Life After LBC #1 – Anna Kim

by Anna Kim

Editor’s Note: This is a new series that we’ll be running occasionally that features letters and updates from former LBC members. Anna was kind enough to be part of our initial group.

Hey Lighthouse Bible Church!

For those of you who may not remember or know me, my name is Anna Kim and I used to be a member at Lighthouse a couple years ago. But, I moved away from SD to go to Baltimore, MD in 2006. My experiences since moving to the east coast have sometimes been pretty extreme with its huge freezing snow storms and scary crime-laden blue-light districts! However, I’ve come to realize the simple truth that God is truly omnipresent and faithful!

I started my life in the east coast by attending pharmacy school in the fall of 2006 at the University of Maryland, Baltimore. I came to school with three major objectives in mind. First, I wanted to find a good church. Second, to make new friends and be a witness to them and third, to be a good student so I can be an excellent pharmacist for God’s glory!

However, from the beginning there were several challenges. I came to Maryland expecting to find a great church like Lighthouse and was pretty disappointed when I couldn’t find many solid Bible-based churches in Baltimore. I started going to one church for several months, but I did not feel at peace about becoming a member there because I did not fully trust and respect the leadership. Then thankfully after much wrestling and prayer over the whole church issue, God lead me to another church that Pastor John had recommended, Hope Bible Church with Pastor Tom Leake. Although the church was further away and I had no car, I knew that if God wanted me there, He would provide the means to get there, and He graciously did! I loved the solid biblical teaching, the God-centered worship, the God-fearing and loving people, and the chance to grow and serve! I knew that Hope Bible Church was where God wanted me and I immediately took the membership courses offered and became a member. I currently serve in the welcoming team and the nursery.

As for new friendships, God blessed me with many new friends in school. Unlike San Diego, most of my friends in Maryland are not Christians. And not having that same “Christian bubble” I had in SD gave me many new opportunities to witness and invite friends to church. My favorite verse during my first year of school was Matthew 5:16:

“Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven.”

Yet, it was also very challenging in some ways because I did not have as much support and accountability as I did in SD. Thankfully, God answered my prayers and provided some strong Christian friends in school and in church overtime.

Finally, school. Yikes. Grad school life has probably been one of the most challenging thing I’ve experienced in my life. Don’t get me wrong, I really do love school and love what I’m learning, but it was and still is a struggle to balance massive amounts of studying along with church involvement and other social activities. I’m very thankful to God for teaching me many invaluable lessons like time management, disciplining myself spiritually and physically, and also learning to trust in God to pull me through seemingly impossible situations.

In conclusion, all I can say is God is sovereign and very good. He is Jehovah Jireh and has always been faithful to take care of His blessed children. Hallelujah!

Prayer Requests

Please pray that I will:

  1. Learn to trust in God and love Him more through all situations (good and bad)
  2. Live in light of eternity (time/money/hopes)-not to waste the time I have in MD
  3. Be more humble and teachable when my family and friends rebukes me about a sin issue
  4. I would learn to not judge people, but rather love and be humble and remember to take the log out of my own eye
  5. Grow in the fear of God and wisdom in the choices I make this coming school year
  6. God will provide an older woman discipler

For Me to Live Is Christ…

by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

From Philippians 1:21

The believer did not always live to Christ. He began to do so when God the Holy Spirit convinced him of sin, and when by grace he was brought to see the dying Saviour making a propitiation for his guilt. From the moment of the new and celestial birth the man begins to live to Christ. Jesus is to believers the one pearl of great price, for whom we are willing to part with all that we have. He has so completely won our love, that it beats alone for Him; to His glory we would live, and in defence of His gospel we would die; He is the pattern of our life, and the model after which we would sculpture our character. Paul’s words mean more than most men think; they imply that the aim and end of his life was Christ-nay, his life itself was Jesus. In the words of an ancient saint, he did eat, and drink, and sleep eternal life. Jesus was his very breath, the soul of his soul, the heart of his heart, the life of his life.

Can you say, as a professing Christian, that you live up to this idea? Can you honestly say that for you to live is Christ? Your business-are you doing it for Christ? Is it not done for self-aggrandizement and for family advantage? Do you ask, ‘Is that a mean reason?’ For the Christian it is. He professes to live for Christ; how can he live for another object without committing a spiritual adultery? Many there are who carry out this principle in some measure; but who is there that dare say that he hath lived wholly for Christ as the apostle did? Yet,this alone is the true life of a Christian-its source, its sustenance, its fashion, its end, all gathered up in one word-Christ Jesus.

Lord, accept me; I here present myself, praying to live only in Thee and to Thee. Let me be as the bullock which stands between the plough and the altar, to work or to be sacrificed; and let my motto be, ‘Ready for either.’

1.7a

Weekly Links (6/25/2010)

by Stephen Rodgers

Welcome to Friday! This week, we’re going to do something slightly different than usual. We’ll still have all our regular weekly links, but they’re all going to come from the same place. You see, Ligonier Ministries just had their national conference, and I thought you might be interested in the notes of what their speakers had to say. The conference started with a pre-conference dealing with the topic of new media and technology, before launching into their theme of “tough questions Christians have to face.” So, in the order that they appeared at the conference…

    Pre-Conference Sessions

  1. Ed Stetzer – The Brave New World of New Media
  2. Burk Parsons – Taking Captive New Media for the Church
  3. Al Mohler – The Hypersocialized Generation

    4. 2010 National Conference Sessions

  4. John MacArthur – Why Did Jesus Have to Die?
  5. Michael Horton – Is the Doctrine of Inerrancy Defensible?
  6. John MacArthur – Does the Doctrine of the Divine Decrees Eliminate Human Will?
  7. RC Sproul – What is Evil? And What is its Origin?
  8. RC Sproul Jr. – Why Do Christians Still Sin? And Why Do I Still Sin?
  9. Derek Thomas – How Do We Know Which Interpretation is Right?
  10. Steve Lawson – Is the Bible Just Another Book?
  11. Alistair Begg – Is the Exclusivity of Christ Unjust?
  12. Q&A
  13. Al Mohler – Why Does the Universe Look So Old?
  14. Burk Parsons – Is Calvinism Good For the Church?
  15. Derek Thomas – How Could God Command Holy War?
  16. RC Sproul – Can We Enjoy Heaven Knowing of Loved Ones in Hell?

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Cleaning Ministry Update

by Andy Shin

What We Do

We clean Saturday and Sunday nights each weekend. Typically it starts at 6p, or later depending on church events, and takes about 2 hours.

Cleaning Ministry Is What You Make of It

It is totally dependent on your schedule. At the beginning of each month, I will email everyone and ask for the dates you are available to clean. Based on your replies, I set the staff/schedule for each day of that month. We do ask you to commit to the days that you are assigned or find a replacement if you can’t make it.

Needs

With several members leaving with the San Jose church plant and collegians leaving for the summer, there is definitely a need for more help. Please come talk to me if you are interested!

Please continue to pray for the ministry as well! Pray that we would serve joyfully. While the tasks may be as simple as vacuuming or taking out the trash, our prayer is that we would see it as a time of worship and fellowship as we serve the Lord and the church.

Living Theology #28 – Common Grace

by Garrett Glende

Things could always be worse. We look around and see natural disasters, oil spills, political corruption, and moral degradation. The world we live in has been in shambles since Genesis 3, but is it as bad as it could be? Has God left man to destroy all things good or does He intervene and provide blessings? Chapter 31 of Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology tackles these issues and more under the heading of “Common Grace,” illustrated in various aspects of human life.

First, we must lay a framework for what is meant by the term “common grace,” so that it is not confused with saving grace. The doctrine is seen most clearly when we are confronted with the fact that man still exists on Earth. In the Garden, God promised Adam that eating the fruit would bring about death. Nevertheless, man fell and the Earth and all its inhabitants have been cursed ever since, bringing about the ultimate punishment of death. But why are we (humans in general) even allowed to live in the first place? God would be perfectly just to punish sin immediately with its due consequences, yet He withholds His wrath and grants us life. Isn’t this grace? Men are receiving something that they have done absolutely nothing to merit – life itself! And this is just the beginning. Grudem defines common grace as “the grace of God by which he gives people innumerable blessings that are not a part of salvation.”

Common Grace in the Physical Realm

This is essentially the principle that is illustrated above. God gives believers and unbelievers the same amount of grace when it comes to the physical world around us. I can enjoy the serenity of the beach and the majesty of the mountains just as an unbeliever can (although the unregenerate man is still blind and cannot see God’s glory in it all). Jesus explains this principle when He says that God “makes his sun rise on the evil and on the good, and sends rain on the just and on the unjust” (Matt. 5:45). Likewise, Acts 14:16-17 speaks of how God has blessed the nations with rain and productive harvests, “satisfying [their] hearts with food and gladness.”

Common Grace in the Moral Realm

Many of us in Reformed Christianity love the acronym “TULIP,” and rightly so. It represents wonderful truths about God and His redemptive plan, but the first term in the phrase, “total depravity,” is easily misunderstood. It could imply that man is depraved to his maximum capacity and there is no more room left for any evil to creep in. However, it’s obvious that the world could be much more evil than it actually is. God’s grace in the moral realm is demonstrated by the fact that unregenerate men and women are able to discern between good and evil and can exercise upright behavior. There are many atheists in the world who do many “good deeds” and hold to similar moral values as Christians because God has given all men a conscience that bears witness to the Law of God and convicts their hearts (Rom. 2:15). When we read about this issue in Scripture, it’s clear that the world could be filled with even more sin than it already has, but God has graciously restrained the sinfulness of man so that His character might be seen, even so faintly.

Application

There are many other aspects of God’s common grace. Especially when we consider that all good things come from Him, it’s clear that evidence of God’s grace surrounds us throughout our days (James 1:17). We see the amazing feats of modern technology and the wonder of ancient art, but rarely do we give God any credit for it. It was completely by His grace that people were able to have the minds that designed today’s hi-tech electronics that we all enjoy. I’m probably going to give in and upgrade to the new iPhone 4 when it comes out. Surely, its technology will impress me and I’ll gawk at all the fancy things it does (seriously, having an HD video camera on my phone sounds pretty sweet). But is this praise directed at the ingenuity of the human designer? Or does the thought even cross my mind that God is the one who gave that person the gifts and talents in the first place? There is so much out there to worship God for, but we rarely are aware of it all. I suspect that if we understood common grace to its full extent, our hearts would never cease to be amazed by the goodness of God to His creatures.

A Word of Encouragement

by Pastor John Kim

To my dear Lighthouse family,

I truly thank God in my every remembrance of you (Philippians 1:3) and it truly is because we share in the work of the gospel ministry. These past twelve years in San Diego have been such a blessing as God has introduced new brothers and sisters in Christ to join our church family. Through all the joys and even trials, God has used you all to encourage me, challenge me, sharpen me, stretch me, and point me to trust in God more and more. I have to admit that there have been so many times where I really felt like I could not go on and wanted to quit but God provided timely encouragements that would help me refocus my heart and my mind on the Savior. There have been times when things were difficult and even some heartaches but overall God has shown Himself to be faithful and has not only sustained our church family but has increased our tribe to share in the work of the Kingdom. So I want to just give some specific words of encouragement to the different affinity groups in hopes that you will all know my heart for you.

To Grace Life

Thank you for being joint heirs in the grace of life as we have shared the growing of our families over the years. Thank you for your partnership in the ministry as well as allowing me the privilege of being a part of your families. It was a joy to be a part of seeing many of you get engaged, go through premarital, and have the honor of officiating at your weddings. Seeing the birth and growth of many of your children has been one of the biggest blessings and I have been blessed to enjoy their greetings and smiles. Please continue to pursue the Savior with all your heart, soul, and mind and pass on the greatest of God to the next generation, not only to your own children, but even to the rest of the church family that God has brought to us.

To Single Life

These past few years have been a wonderful experience in shepherding you through the challenges of the single life. I have marveled at how God has transformed many of you to not fall to the status quo of the pursuit of the comfortable life but have seen you embrace the way of the cross and seek to grow and seek first God’s kingdom. This past year during our Friday Night Light Bible studies has shown a progressively growing trajectory in becoming more Christ-centered and Biblically thinking in addressing life issues and I have been given so many reasons to rejoice. I pray that you will continue to strive in your relationship with Christ, that you would mature and deepen in your walks with God. I will be praying that you truly love one another as brothers and sisters in Christ and that one day it would lead to marriages that will reflect the majesty and glory of Christ.

To College Life

This past year was probably the most encouraging year for me to observe the collegians at our church. To see the efforts that so many of you made to show your commitment to Christ, to the church, and even to one another was really incredible to behold. I was amazed to see how many freshmen not only stayed throughout the year, but even became members and participated in the life of the church. There are so many colorful characters and personalities that have also been added by the SDSU bunch and I can’t be more thrilled to know that there is a great future ahead because of all of you. I pray that you grow in grace, that you would seek godly counsel and discipling to prepare you to do the same for those who are following you. Keep bringing the enthusiasm and energy!

To the Youth of Lumos

There will always be a special place in my heart for youth as I was involved in youth ministry for over 15 years and since Jenna and Kara were in the youth ministry these past few years, there was always a sense where I was vitally interested in what was going on. The past couple of years has been awesome to see how the staff and stuff have worked together to bring a spark and verve to the church through your eagerness to grow and learn God’s Word as well as be a light to the community. I hope that the momentum will not stop but will continue to move forward and reach out to the young people in San Diego and set God-glorifying goals for your future.

To the Children of Sonlight, Sparklers, and Fireflies

It is such a wonder to see all of you, many of you from birth and now to see you grow up – it truly is one of God’s greatest blessings to me to be your pastor. Not to play favorites (but I guess I am), but to hear a little “Pastor John!” calling me in the hallway was one of the things I looked forward to each Sunday. I hope and pray that you will come to truly understand the gospel and repent of your sins and confess Christ as your Lord and Savior at an early age so that you might give the best years of your life in service to Him. For those of you blessed with parents who really love Jesus more than you, they will show you what it means not to just live a comfortable life but a consecrated life to God, just like Romans 12:1-2 says. Remember “first time obedience” from the heart and honor your parents in the way you would want to honor Jesus. I hope you won’t forget me!!

To the Lighthouse Family

Thank you for being my church family. It truly has felt like a family because you have become such a dear part of our family’s life over the past decade. So many of you invested in our children’s lives from nursery to preschool to elementary and to youth. Many of you have come alongside us in our joys and sorrows. Your generosity has reminded us of the grace of God time and time again and I marvel that God would pour out such abundant grace to an undeserving pastor. You have been patient with my long sermons, my outbursts and over the top statements. You have been merciful in not getting rid of me sooner and you have endured over the years with much longsuffering. Thank you for loving our family so much – we have truly felt it and experienced it. I remember when we went through the ordeal of Angela going through three consecutive miscarriages over less than two years and I really learned at that time what it meant to be ministered to by you. During some of the dark times where I was so overwhelmed with discouragement and despair, you patiently waited for me to recover and allowed me time to get away and heal. The elders have been more than gracious to support me and to take care of our family’s needs. God has truly blessed me with the most wonderful church family that would actually step out in faith and both support as well as for some to even partner in this church plant to San Jose. It is an amazing testimony of the Holy Spirit’s work, that there would actually be the willingness to act on the MVP. I hope and pray that God would sustain both the San Diego congregation and the fledgling San Jose church to shine the light of the gospel brightly to the glory of God. Praise God for His faithfulness and for bringing to fruition Ephesians 3:20-21. May we continue to build on what God has already done and look forward to what He will accomplish both in and through us to His praise and honor!

Understanding the Lord’s Supper – Hub Post

by Stephen Rodgers

This is the hub post for Richard Shin’s four-part series on communion.  From this page, you can easily find and refer to all posts in this series.

All posts in the Understanding the Lord’s Supper series:

Understanding the Lord’s Supper (part 4)

by Richard Shin

Editor’s Note: This is the 4th and final part of an ongoing series. Parts 1, 2, and 3 can be found here, here, and here.

The Lord’s Supper as Communion

Finally, we look at how the Lord’s Supper acts as a means of communing with one another and with Christ. Some people have contended that the bread and wine are somehow really the body and the blood of Christ, subconsciously committing the sin of idolatry. But in the Great Commission, we see that Christ exhorts His disciples by saying that He is always with us (Matt. 28:20). And Paul teaches us that Christ is the head and the church is the body (Eph. 5:23), indicating that the Church is always led by Christ Himself. Then, the idea that Christ is somehow more present in the believers’ life during the Lord’s Supper than at any other time seems entirely wrong.

Rather, we experience the presence of Christ through the proclamation that Christ is united with His people, the church. We, through faith, confess the identity of the people of God and our union with the crucified Messiah. Much like the Passover was a unified act to commemorate God’s deliverance of Israel from judgment and Egypt, the Lord’s Supper is an act of bringing together the body of Christ to commemorate His death on the cross for our deliverance from God’s wrath.

Paul teaches the Corinthian church in 1 Corinthians 11:17-34 that they are partaking in the Lord’s Supper “not for the better, but for the worse” (v. 17). They were not “discerning the body”, eating and drinking however they pleased (v. 29). These people were using the Supper to feed their individual appetites rather than to care for one another (v. 20-21). This form of eating the Lord’s Supper was repudiated because of the way the Supper forms the identity of God’s people as a whole (1 Cor. 10:17). Paul, in the Epistle to the Ephesians, drives this point home even further (Eph. 2:11-22).

Also, when we partake in the Lord’s Supper, we are fellowshipping with Christ through the Church in the same way the Israelites fellowshipped with fellow covenant people. The eating of the Supper points back to the Old Testament imagery of the worshiper “fellowshipping” with God through the meal of sacrifice, a meal the meat of which the worshiper actually consumes (cf. Deut. 32:32-33). The idea of a shared meal as fellowship sheds light on Paul’s warning in 1 Corinthians 10:18-22 that partaking of a sacrifice offered to an idol or a demon is in effect having fellowship with it.

This concept of union in Christ is precisely why we are asked to resolve any conflicts within the church before partaking in the Lord’s Supper. Any conflict existing between the brethren is equivalent to a division in the church. By not resolving the issues before eating the Lord’s Supper, we are saying the gospel is not enough to resolve our conflicts. Essentially, we would rather let our pride consume us and eat and drink in a manner that defiles the table.

So, What Now?

Given what the Scriptures say, I don’t think I need to stress how important the Lord’s Supper is. So, I won’t. But like all theology, it must be transferred from our thoughts to our actions (I hear Stephen screaming, “Theopraxis! Theopraxis!”). There’s no point in having theology if we don’t actually apply it to our lives. Many of us, including myself, have been far too ignorant about the implications this ordinance has in regards to Christ’s crucifixion and the Church itself. This is part of the reason Paul cautions us to examine ourselves before we eat (1 Cor. 11:28). So, next time we partake in the Lord’s Supper, let us remember the paramount significance of the meal, and approach the table in a manner that is holy and acceptable to God. Let us remember and declare that this meal is a visible act of our obedience to God and that we are committed to proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ wherever we go. Let us do all this united with one Spirit and as one Body, aimed at one thing: giving God the glory.

Now the Hand of the Lord…

by Charles Haddon Spurgeon

From Ezekiel 33:22

In the way of judgment this may be the case, and, if so, be it mine to consider the reason of such a visitation, and bear the rod and Him that hath appointed it. I am not the only one who is chastened in the night season; let me cheerfully submit to the affliction, and carefully endeavour to be profited thereby.

But the hand of the Lord may also be felt in another manner, strengthening the soul and lifting the spirit upward towards eternal things. O that I may in this sense feel the Lord dealing with me! A sense of the divine presence and indwelling bears the soul towards heaven as upon the wings of eagles. At such times we are full to the brim with spiritual joy, and forget the cares and sorrows of earth; the invisible is near, and the visible loses its power over us; servant-body waits at the foot of the hill, and the master-spirit worships upon the summit in the presence of the Lord. O that a hallowed season of divine communion may be vouchsafed to me this evening! The Lord knows that I need it very greatly. My graces languish, my corruptions rage, my faith is weak, my devotion is cold; all these are reasons why His healing hand should be laid upon me. His hand can cool the heat of my burning brow, and stay the tumult of my palpitating heart. That glorious right hand which moulded the world can new-create my mind; the unwearied hand which bears the earth’s huge pillars up can sustain my spirit; the loving hand which incloses all the saints can cherish me; and the mighty hand which breaketh in pieces the enemy can subdue my sins. Why should I not feel that hand touching me this evening?

Come, my soul, address thy God with the potent plea, that Jesu’s hands were pierced for thy redemption, and thou shalt surely feel that same hand upon thee which once touched Daniel and set him upon his knees that he might see visions of God.

1.6p

Weekly Links (6/18/2010)

by Stephen Rodgers

It’s Friday! And that means that we’re back with another edition of the Weekly Links.

  • Well, this Sunday is Father’s Day, so I thought it might be appropriate to point your attention to this post by Scott Thomas on “Six Ways Fathers Pursue Christ in Their Fatherhood.” (WEB)
  • We’ve all heard a parent say “delayed obedience is disobedience” at some point in our lives. Douglas Wilson writes about another kind of disobedience, “Stealth Disobedience.” You’ll need to read the article to find out exactly what that means…but it’s worth it. (WEB)
  • If you read much, I’m sure you’ve stumbled across a lot of people and blogs throwing the word “missional” around willy-nilly. Sometimes I think that Acts 29 is one of the worst offenders in that regard, but at least they back it up with articles explaining what it means. (WEB)
  • Last week I posted a link to an article dealing with Arian misogyny. This week, I’m back with another treasure from the same blog: marital heresies. In his two part article, Glen Scrivener discusses what sort of unity marriage out to model, how it can go wrong, and how that wrongness parallels well known historical heresies. Check out both of the articles here and here. (WEB)
  • And last but not least, Mark Driscoll interviews Wayne and Margaret Grudem. You’ve read the book, now meet the man (and his wife). (VIDEO)

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