Author Archives: Stephen Rodgers

Lessons from Sparklers Ministry

by Caroline Shin

  • Obey the first time. 
  • Be kind to everyone. 
  • Do your best work. 
  • Have fun!

These are our four rules that the Sparklers and staffers go over every Sunday. We (staffers) remind the preschool children that it’s important that they follow these rules every week. It’s humbling when I have to talk to address a sparkler’s sin if he/she is not obeying for the 7th time or is shoving another child away from them. It reminds me that I am no better. I look at my own life and have to ask myself,

  • How long does it take me to obey one of God’s commands? [Usually a long time] 
  • Am I impartial in the way I love people, or am I showing favoritism and only showing kindness to those that are easy to love? [No. I definitely show favoritism] 
  • Am I doing things with excellence unto the Lord? [So many things are done without a heart that desires to honor God] 
  • Do I enjoy and praise God for the blessings and grace He showers me with? [No. I complain an awful lot]

The staffers and I teach these rules to the Sparklers because we want them to learn that everything that we do is to glorify God. God’s been using these rules to teach me to apply them to myself as well. As a fairly recent full time employee, I am tested everyday to follow through with obeying God the first time, show kindness to everyone, do my best work, and to have fun at work. I’m in the Sparklers ministry not because I need to tell the children about morality or what’s right from wrong. I’m challenged to faithfully teach them the Bible and to be there to lead by example. It’s definitely not an easy thing to do. I fail in my flesh daily, but it allows me to be fully depend on the Lord for strength and to show grace to the Sparklers.

The biggest thing God has taught me while serving in this ministry is to prioritize my relationship with Him. An ongoing struggle of mine is to be Martha-minded (Luke 10:38-42): focusing on the busyness of life and getting caught up with my acts of service. That’s not what pleases God. God says those who sit at the feet of Jesus and listen to His teaching have chosen the good portion. The best way I can prepare and minister to these preschool children is to make sure I am prioritizing my time with the Lord through prayer and the reading of His word.

Having served in the Sparklers ministry just shy of four months, I am privileged to be with this particular age group. God doesn’t need me or my service, but it’s a tremendous blessing to 1) be with a staff of men & women who truly desire to teach God’s word and present the gospel to children, and 2) witness 3-5 year olds’ growth in their understanding of who God is and why He is worthy to be praised.

FOF #1 – Introduction to the Bible

by Pastor Patrick Cho

The Bible is God’s inspired Word. In writing to his young disciple Timothy, Paul gives one of the most important passages to gain a right understanding of the Scriptures. He writes, “All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work” (2 Tim. 3:16-17). The word is theopneustos in the Greek, which is a compound word bringing together the terms “God” and “breath.” In other words, when the Bible speaks, God speaks.

To bring the Bible to completion, God employed about 40 different human authors over a period of about 1500 years. These writers came from different parts of the world and from entirely different cultures. They wrote in three different languages – Hebrew, Aramaic, and Greek. But still, through the entire process, God orchestrated and superintended the work so that each author wrote exactly what God intended him to write. The Apostle Peter explained that it was the Holy Spirit who moved in these men to cause them to write God’s truth (2 Pet. 1:21). The Bible is not a collection of works from wise and learned men. It is not just a book of helpful instructions and maxims for life. It is the very Word of God.

Unfortunately, many Christians don’t hold the Bible with as much esteem as it deserves. Too many Bibles are left on shelves or in the backseat of the car throughout the week. If the Bible is indeed God’s written revelation to men, certainly those who profess to know God should be in it as much as possible.

What would God desire to communicate to His people? Through the Bible, we are given knowledge of God. We can learn who He is, what He is like, and what He desires and demands of us. We can learn what offends God and what pleases Him. Most importantly, we learn through the Scriptures how to come to know Him and place our faith in Him.

The Bible also gives us knowledge of ourselves and the world around us. We learn that we aren’t as good and godly as we’d like to think. The Bible helps us understand the depth of the wickedness of our hearts. It helps us discern that we live in a cursed world because of sin. The beauty of nature is not as beautiful as it was created to be because our sin has tainted it. In fact, all of creation groans to be redeemed and restored to its perfection (Rom. 8:19-25). Man sins against man. Hate, wars, and evil exists because of man’s disobedience to God.

The Bible reveals God’s solution to the problem of sin. Though He would have been completely just to judge the world and condemn it, God demonstrates His love by providing a way of salvation for sinful men through His Son Jesus Christ. Knowing that men were completely incapable to doing anything to get back into good standing with Him, God provided the way of salvation Himself. This salvation is entirely by grace, and not by anything we could hope to accomplish on our own. Jesus died on the cross to pay the penalty of sin so that those who would believe in Him could have life.

The Bible even gives us a look at the future. It clearly teaches that this life is not the end. All men are destined to face an eternity in heaven or hell, and it all depends on their response to the person of Christ. The clock is ticking because Jesus promised He would return soon. There is a distinct urgency for men to respond to the truth of the Bible. Instead, sadly, most people choose instead to live for the temporal, fading, comparatively insignificant things of this life. It’s through the Bible that we learn that it profits a person nothing to gain the entire world while forfeiting his soul (Mark 8:36-37).

These are all truths that we could not know except that God revealed them to us in His Word. And there’s a ton more that God desires for us to know about Him, ourselves, the world around us, and the future that we can only come to know through the Bible. We need to be in it. Being in God’s Word is the only way that any believer will see growth in his or her life (1 Pet. 2:2-3). It is by receiving and abiding in the instruction of God’s Word that the church will grow together (Eph. 4:11-16).

Don’t be one of those Christians that is unfamiliar with his Bible. The first chapter of Fundamentals of the Faith gives a basic introduction of the Bible. Through the lesson, you come to know the sixty-six Books of the Bible. There are thirty-nine in the Old Testament and twenty-seven in the New Testament. Every page of Scripture centers on the one unified theme of the Bible – the glory of God in His redemption of man through His Son Jesus Christ.

Every Christian should have a basic working knowledge of the Bible. At the very least, you should know what are the Books of the Bible in order and with correct spelling (yes, it matters)! I certainly wouldn’t want to visit a doctor who couldn’t spell influenza. I’m sure it is difficult to take a Christian seriously who doesn’t even know the simplest things about the Bible (like its contents). Besides this, every member of Lighthouse Bible Church should know about and read the “Books of the Bible” series in the Beacon. This is a helpful series to get you better acquainted with God’s Word.

Shew Me Wherefore Thou Contendest With Me

by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

From Job 10:2

Perhaps, O tried soul, the Lord is doing this to develop thy graces. There are some of thy graces which would never be discovered if it were not for thy trials. Dost thou not know that thy faith never looks so grand in summer weather as it does in winter? Love is too often like a glow-worm, showing but little light except it be in the midst of surrounding darkness. Hope itself is like a star-not to be seen in the sunshine of prosperity, and only to be discovered in the night of adversity. Afflictions are often the black foils in which God doth set the jewels of His children’s graces, to make them shine the better.

It was but a little while ago that on thy knees thou wast saying, ‘Lord, I fear I have no faith: let me know that I have faith.’ Was not this really, though perhaps unconsciously, praying for trials?-for how canst thou know that thou hast faith until thy faith is exercised? Depend upon it, God often sends us trials that our graces may be discovered, and that we may be certified of their existence. Besides, it is not merely discovery, real growth in grace is the result of sanctified trials. God often takes away our comforts and our privileges in order to make us better Christians. He trains His soldiers, not in tents of ease and luxury, but by turning them out and using them to forced marches and hard service. He makes them ford through streams, and swim through rivers, and climb mountains, and walk many a long mile with heavy knapsacks of sorrow on their backs.

Well, Christian, may not this account for the troubles through which thou art passing? Is not the Lord bringing out your graces, and making them grow? Is not this the reason why He is contending with you?

‘Trials make the promise sweet;
Trials give new life to prayer;
Trials bring me to His feet,
Lay me low, and keep me there.’

2.18a

Signs of Spiritual Maturity #1: Introduction

by Elder Peter Lim

Growing as a Christian is one of the great joys of a Christian’s life. Understanding that we were dead in our sins in which we formerly walked, it ought to be expected that redeemed people would live differently than the world does (Eph. 2). This makes a lot of sense because we are now alive in Christ and no longer slaves to sin. Many non-Christians do not want to become a Christian because it would mean giving up the lifestyle that they want to hold on to so dearly. They understand that if they believe in Christ, their lives will change. In other words, change is expected.

In every Christian’s journey, there are certain signs or indicators by which one can measure progress in our spiritual maturity. This is important because it gives us encouragement that the Holy Spirit is working in our lives. This encouragement lets us know that despite our sinful flesh, God is at work in us (Phil. 1:6). As we grow closer to Christ, we find that more and more of our sins are exposed. Initially we may feel embarrassed or upset and we may even try to shoot the messenger by whom our sins are exposed. But those feelings should quickly turn into recognition that God is at work in our lives. If you never experience this exposure of sins, it could be that you are avoiding fellowship with brothers and sisters and are content to live the life you are living without growing. Then there is no wonder that you are not maturing in Christ. Though you ought to be teachers, are you in need of milk instead of solid food (Heb. 5:12)?

These thoughts lead to a new series that I’m starting here on the Beacon: Signs of Spiritual Maturity. It will be a many-part series on the different ways in which we can measure our progress in becoming more spiritually mature. Believe you me that I haven’t achieved some sort of plateau at which I can look back at where everyone else is. I write these things as one who is in the marathon race alongside you as a fellow runner. But as someone who is on the older end (at least at our church) I hope to encourage you to continue running by pointing out the various milestones that mark our progress together. I am confident that I will recognize even more markers as the years go by because God is the one who is causing the growth. I hope you are looking forward to reading a new article every four weeks on the different Signs of Spiritual Maturity. I know I am looking forward to writing them!

Whereas the Lord Was There

by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

From Ezekiel 35:10

Edom’s princes saw the whole country left desolate, and counted upon its easy conquest; but there was one great difficulty in their way-quite unknown to them-‘The Lord was there‘; and in His presence lay the special security of the chosen land. Whatever may be the machinations and devices of the enemies of God’s people, there is still the same effectual barrier to thwart their design. The saints are God’s heritage, and He is in the midst of them, and will protect His own. What comfort this assurance yields us in our troubles and spiritual conflicts! We are constantly opposed, and yet perpetually preserved! How often Satan shoots his arrows against our faith, but our faith defies the power of hell’s fiery darts; they are not only turned aside, but they are quenched upon its shield, for ‘the Lord is there.’ Our good works are the subjects of Satan’s attacks. A saint never yet had a virtue or a grace which was not the target for hellish bullets: whether it was hope bright and sparkling, or love warm and fervent, or patience all-enduring, or zeal flaming like coals of fire, the old enemy of everything that is good has tried to destroy it. The only reason why anything virtuous or lovely survives in us is this, ‘the Lord is there.’

If the Lord be with us through life, we need not fear for our dying confidence; for when we come to die, we shall find that ‘the Lord is there‘; where the billows are most tempestuous, and the water is most chill, we shall feel the bottom, and know that it is good: our feet shall stand upon the Rock of Ages when time is passing away. Beloved, from the first of a Christian’s life to the last, the only reason why he does not perish is because ‘the Lord is there.’ When the God of everlasting love shall change and leave His elect to perish, then may the Church of God be destroyed; but not till then, because it is written, JEHOVAH SHAMMAH, ‘The Lord is there.’

2.17p

LBC Weekly SPARK – April 19, 2012

by Pastor Patrick Cho

Dear LBC family and friends!

I hope you are doing well and walking in the Lord. This past Sunday, we heard a message from James 1:21 about the importance of receiving the implanted Word. This is what will help produce spiritual growth and ensure the ongoing process of sanctification in your life. So the obvious question of application is: Are you taking in God’s Word? We hear so many messages about the practical importance of Scripture intake, and all true believers will attest to the necessity of being in God’s Word. It really comes down to being disciplined in this. It is about loving the Lord and praising Him for His revelation, receiving it with meekness, and learning to apply its principles. Like I mentioned on Sunday, we can all appreciate the simplicity of James’ message. Consider this an encouragement to be in the Word today, and to persevere in it for the rest of the week, month, and year.

In His grace,

Pastor Patrick

Here are this week’s ministry opportunities:

  1. MISSION BOWL PEP RALLY. Instead of our regularly scheduled Friday night Bible studies, this week we will be having our annual Mission Bowl Pep Rally to cheer on our ladies’ flag football team. Everyone is encouraged to come out to support the team and join in the festivities! Families, please bring the kids! Everything will begin at 6:00 PM at the church on Friday evening.
  2. MISSION BOWL TOURNAMENT. The ladies have been preparing long and hard and the tournament is finally upon us. The tournament will begin on Saturday, April 21, at 12:30 PM at UCSD’s Muir Field. This is a great way to meet other believers in our community and fellowship together. Come cheer on our gals!
  3. MEMBERS MEETING. Don’t forget that there is a members meeting this Sunday, April 22, from 4:45-8:30 PM, at the church. All members are highly encouraged to come. As always, dinner will be served.
  4. WOMEN’S MINISTRY SEMINAR. The women’s ministry will be hosting a seminar on the works of the Holy Spirit on Satuday, April 28, from 9:00 AM-12:30 PM, at the church. There is no cost to attend, but you need to RSVP with Christine Cho to reserve your spot (christinescho@gmail.com). All ladies, high school age and up, are invited to attend.
  5. BAPTISM. There will be a baptism class on Tuesday, April 24, at 7:00 PM, at the church. If you have not yet been baptized as a believer in obedience to God’s command, please come out to the class. The baptism service will be on Sunday, April 29, at 5:00 PM (please note the time change!). (Editor’s Note: we recently updated the Baptism Hub Post).
  6. ANNIVERSARY BANQUET. The annual banquet will be on Sunday, May 6, at 5:00 PM, at the church. Come out as we celebrate 13 years of God’s faithfulness and focus on our annual theme: Dying to Know Him. The cost is only $25/adult and $15/child (ages 4-12). The dress this year is casual. Sign up with Johnny Kim this weekend!
  7. VACATION BIBLE SCHOOL. VBS will be from June 25-29, from 9:00 AM-5:00 PM each day. More information is forthcoming, but please mark your calendars! We are still in need of volunteers for staff, so please contact Josh Liu or Abram Kim for more information.
  8. GRACE LIFE WEEKENDER. The Grace Life family ministry will be having its very first weekender on July 6-8! This will be a conference style event with meetings at the church. The theme is: “The Lord of the Rings: Marriage to the Glory of God.” The speakers are Dr. Robert and Mary Somerville of The Master’s College. The cost is only $80/person ($160/couple), and includes two meals. Childcare will be provided! You can reserve your spot with Pastor Patrick. Invite your friends!
  9. SISTER CONNECTION. The women of the church will be taking part in Sister Connection once again! College Life sisters will either be paired up with a Single Life or Grace Life sister to get to know each other better and spend some quality time together. If you are interested in participating, please email sisterconnection@gmail.com. You can also sign up with Christine Cho, Janet Shih, or Deborah Wong. The last day to signup is April 29.
  10. LOCAL OUTREACH. Please do not forget about the regular opportunities you have to share the gospel in our community. The Pacific Beach ministry to the homeless occurs every other Sunday, from about 3:00-6:00 PM. We also have a ministry that visits a local convalescent home. Contact Joyce Kang (joycekang84@gmail.com) or Hanka Rodgers (hanka.rodgers@gmail.com) about the PB Homeless Ministry, and Teddy Yu (yu.teddy@gmail.com) about the convalescent home ministry.
  11. BEACON. Helpful articles are provided each week to stimulate godly thinking and growth. Check out the Beacon today (www.lighthousebc.com/beacon)!

BOB – Outlines – The Pentateuch

by Stephen Rodgers

I know what you’re thinking: “Is this guy ever going to do the Prophetic Books?”

Lord willing, yes.  But not this week. Because this week, (and for the next couple weeks), we’re going to play a little game of catch-up with the BOB series. Let me explain. (“No, there is no time; let me sum up.”)

I recently fielded a question about the BOB series from a church member who wanted me to know that they felt that the BOB series had a particularly glaring deficiency, because it didn’t have a section articulating exactly what happens in each book of the Bible. I explained that wasn’t an oversight, that was deliberate. After all, the hope with BOB is that it will provide a helpful reference for books of the Bible, but it’s not intended to obviate the need to actually read them.

That being said, I do think there’s some value in having an overview of the events and/or structure of the books, so I’ve put together something that I think is interesting. I’ve taken the outlines from three different study Bibles (MSB, NET, NIV), which are published by three different publishers (Thomas Nelson, whoever publishes the NET, and Zondervan). I could be wrong, but I don’t think there’s any crossover when it comes to the scholars and writers on those content committees, so we should wind up with three uniquely sourced outlines. I’ve then laid out those outlines side-by-side, and will be releasing a new section each week until we catch up to the Prophetic books.  From that point on, I’ll include the outlines everytime we get to a new section, so that you’ll have something to refer to as you read the BOB articles. (I’ll also edit the old section articles so that people reading through this series in the future will have them from the beginning).

Now, a couple of disclaimers:

  • I really wanted to include the ESVSB outline, but since they’ve recently relocated that behind their paywall, I’m not sure of the propriety of that. My life is pretty exciting already; I don’t need to be getting C&D letters from Crossway.
  • While these are comparative outlines, they are not parallel outlines.  What’s the difference you ask? A parallel outline is where certain internal markers are used to hold the lines/rows constant with each other. That’s a really cool resource to have, but it would take more time than I have to create. If anyone really wants to give that a whirl, let me know and I’ll send you the editable files.

Alright then. For those of you who are interested, here’s the first outline for the books of the Pentateuch. I’ve also updated the original article on the Pentateuch to contain that as well.  See you next week with the History books!

FOF – Introduction

by Pastor Patrick Cho

Each week, during our Sunday School hour, one of the classes we offer at Lighthouse is Fundamentals of the Faith (FOF). This is a thirteen week study using a workbook that is published by Grace Community Church. In the class, we walk through the basics of Christianity covering topics such as “Introduction to the Bible,” “The Person of Jesus Christ,” and “The Church: Fellowship and Worship.” Unlike other Sunday School classes we offer, Fundamentals of the Faith is offered continually throughout the year except in the summer when we typically take a break from all classes.

FOF is a helpful tool to get the student of the Word better acquainted with basic spiritual truths. The lessons are refreshingly biblical and practical. Even walking through the exercises, the student becomes more familiar with the Bible by answering various questions from the text of Scripture. Each lesson is also accompanied by a weekly memory verse, which the students are encouraged to memorize and internalize.

At Lighthouse, we have actually made FOF a required class for membership. Even if you have grown up in the church and these lessons are very familiar to you, we still ask that you sit in the class. There a couple reasons for this. First, we don’t want to make any assumptions about a person’s salvation or familiarity with the Bible. Many people who took this class later admitted that they didn’t know as much as they thought. We are thankful that as a result of the class, some have even been introduced to the principal doctrine of the gospel. If someone wants to gain a better understanding of the Christian faith, FOF is a great class to recommend.

Second, much of the teaching at LBC assumes the lessons of FOF. Many times when the teachers of the church walk through a particular passage, they don’t have the time to sufficiently explain some of the more basic truths. By sitting in FOF, each member is given the same foundation and can learn where Lighthouse stands on each of these core doctrines. Besides these two reasons, FOF provides a wonderful environment to get better plugged into the church, meet other believers, and get to know the teachers of the class.

Fundamentals of the Faith could even be used as a helpful discipleship tool. If you are have already completed FOF, you could walk through the class again with your discipleship group. Parents might find the class as a helpful spiritual aid to shepherd their children. Think about how profitable it would be to study these things together with your children and discuss them throughout the week.

This series will walk through the lessons of FOF but more as a supplement to the class. For you members who still need to fulfill the membership requirement, this is not a viable alternative. But as we walk through the lessons together, hopefully this series will provide key insights and useful background information to make the class even more enjoyable. If you have already finished the lessons that are covered, you’re encouraged to review each lesson before reading the supplemental article. May the Lord continue to bless His church as its members uncompromisingly and unswervingly strive to grow in their understanding of His truth!