Communion is getting dangerous
February 12, 2006
This is really bizzare. We have the Alabama church burnings - 1 more today - and now this:
Bottles of fruit juice that appeared to be tampered with were found at same drug store where grape juice that sickened dozens of churchgoers had been purchased, police said....
The discovery comes after 40 churchgoers at Calvary Baptist Church were sickened last Sunday. Five people were sent to the hospital with nausea and vomiting after drinking the juice during a communion service, but nobody was seriously injured.
Read the whole story and be careful!
Are you Emerging? Take this Test
December 1, 2005
I'll admit it, I've been curious about the Emerging or Emergent Church movement. I have friends you dip their toes in these waters who walk the walk of a follower of Christ. But the hardest thing about the Emergent Church movement is figuring out what it really is, what it really stands for, where they draw their lines in the sand. I guess the difficulty is..... they wouldn't even see the need for the previous sentence.
Anyway, Purgatorio as finally defined it for me You Might Be Emerging If...:, I laughed as clarity dawned.
The Bill Clinton Option
November 16, 2005
I've been following the cessationist vs. non-cessationist debate closely. Who am I to comment? I keep thinking back to the authority and sufficiency of Scripture as outlined in the Westminster Confession of Faith and, I am wondering if we really know what that means. We adhere to the Bible as our authority - the Word of God, but than look to a "word from God" to give us direction.
I've had many good friends who are continuationalists - I've found their hearts to be turned towards God. I've found their thinking often to be convoluted. Their experience, their impression of what God is telling them, there "word from the Lord" always trumps basic Scriptural principles. It is as if their individual revelation from God - supersedes Scriptural instruction.
A great post by Daniel Phillips talks about the Bill Clinton option. It is sad if we affirm God's redemptive plan from Genesis to Revelation - but still need a Bill Clinton option. Read it.
Biblical Illiteracy and Islam
April 29, 2005
Biblical illiterates in our churches abound. We talk about the general "evangelical" church and its decline, but assume we who are "reformed and churched" are immune from spiritual and intellectual decline. The Islamic Research Foundation International has taken notice. They site our lack of Bible knowledge when they form their prostelization efforts. This article about Christian's lack of basic biblical knowledge appears on their website.
This hit home yesterday as we studied Romans in our Women's Bible Study. We as a group tried to name all ten commandments (we were studying Romans 13). We failed! According to a study done in 1999, six out of ten Americans cannot name 1/2 of the ten commandments. As a group of churched women, we could only name seven.
We read Jonathan Edwards, debate the fine points of Luther's teachings, discuss John Piper's latest book - but we cannot name the ten commandments. I think we all need to go and shore up our foundations, catechize our children and ourselves, and return to Sunday School basics. Islam is on the march - we as people of the Word, need to learn the Word!
Tithe your vacation
April 23, 2005
What a wonderful idea and yes, Everybody Should Do This Once in Life.
I've been thinking along the same lines this last year. Bringing the reality and importance of missions home to our family has been a considered thought. I didn't know how to go about doing this, but just recently I was looking at some missions websites and I found that many offer short-term family mission trips. Whether its building housing and schools in Appalachia or going oversees, there is a broad variety. How great it would be to study a country, an area, a need and come to know and love the people before arriving - and than spend vacation time acting on the love that the Holy Spirit has put upon your heart.
Here are a couple of links: World Vision Family and Teen Trips, Mission to the World - 1 month trips and many others. Tithe your vacation.
Evangelicals and Catholics together - the debate
April 23, 2005
The current debate regarding Evangelicals and Catholics together rages on in the blogosphere. I have never seen such acrimony, kindness, hate and love. Having not grown up Catholic but married to a former Catholic I realize my view of Roman Catholicism is colored by a very small slice of life. I've come to know and love former pre-Vatican II Catholics, post-Vatican II Catholics (my husband is one), Ameri-Catholics, Cafeteria Catholics and every other type of Catholic under the sun. They all bring unique perspectives on Catholicism that are sometimes no more similar than broccoli is to strawberries, (both having their merits).
Rather than rehashing something I know little of let me point you to a post and its COMMENTS (comments here are even better than the original post) . I don't know how to link directly to comments within a post so forgive me for copying large parts of certain well expressed thoughts. One is from a sincere Catholic sister responding to the Protestant backlash she has been experiencing on pro-life, Protestant blogs. First the post:
David Bayly writes in Out of our minds, too: The Beam in Our Own Eye....:
If we are honest, we must admit as Protestants that what the Reformers viewed, to a man, as the baseline defective principle of Roman Catholicism is so entrenched within Protestantism we are blind to it. Typical Protestant and Evangelical theology is little better than Roman Catholic. Theology which makes the human will sovereign in salvation is Roman, no matter where it is taught.
The reason so many Protestants have so easily and happily made the transition to Rome in recent years is that Protestant soteriology has devolved, in many cases, to Roman soteriology. We have thrown in the towel on the bondage of the will, on depravity, on the sovereign grace of God.,,,read the whole thing.
Tess a Catholic believer comments:
I know I said I didn't want to get into theology, but I have to ask this question. Sorry if it annoys you :(...
"Theology which makes the human will sovereign in salvation is Roman..."
As a Catholic I don't feel as if my will is sovereign _at all_. I'm so finite and wretched, just a dust mote in God's Creation. How could my will be sovereign compared to Our Lord's will and the firey love of the Holy Spirit? At the center of everything is Jesus Christ, radiating out His Divine love and mercy. My greatest hope is to die to my own self and be filled to the brim by God, so that in every action performed I do His will. Even if it breaks my human body, so be it, as long I am His little child.
What you say about Catholicism, and what I experience are so different that I don't understand. I just want to love Jesus. In a way I don't care about all the "theology", I just want to see the face of my Lord and worship Him forever. Even if He sent me to Hell, I would still love Him.
David (the blogging PCA pastor of Baylyblog) replies:
Dear Tess,
Let me say to you as a pastor that I am not seeking--nor I believe is anyone else on this blog--to cause you to question your justification. I don't have total recollection of all you've said on this blog, but my impression is that you have given strong evidence (as far as fruit is discernible on a blog) of regeneration both through your profession of faith and by your gentle and kind conduct here in our midst.
I think I speak for almost every writer on this blog when I say that I am confident there are true men and women of faith, thus regenerate Christians, within the Roman Catholic church.
No Protestant writing here has any desire to attack you personally in your faithful walk with God. Our desire is to rejoice with you in salvation through the blood of Christ, appropriated by faith, the fruit of which is works, entirely and together by the sovereign grace of God.
Yet to one convinced of Roman Catholic theology, our criticisms of Roman Catholicism, and particularly of Roman Catholic soteriology (doctrine concerning salvation), will inevitably appear personal.
Some years ago, out of personal respect for a number of the Evangelical leaders involved in formulating the Evangelicals and Catholics Together statement, I told my associate pastor that I thought I could sign on to the statement. I had not thought much about the actual statement; just a casual read and a nod of agreement at the time.
But Gary, my associate, normally a gentle giant of a man, got as angry at me as I've ever seen him. Why? Because he grew up in a Roman Catholic church, attended Roman Catholic school, considered the Roman Catholic priesthood, all without ever hearing the true Gospel. He had only heard the sacerdotal, sacramental, works-based theology of the typical Roman Catholic church--and, I must add, of Trent--before coming to salvation in a Protestant church as a young man.
Tess, any teaching which denies God's truth and leads men astray we must oppose and seek to expose. Thus, you will find on this blog that, unlike Roman Catholic writers who must defend Roman Catholicism lock, stock and barrel because of Roman ecclesiology, when necessary, we are equally critical of Protestant churches.
We don't claim that all of Protestantism is better than all of Roman Catholicism, unlike the Roman Catholic apologists here. We claim that God's Church, while visible, is defined ultimately in God's eye by its invisible qualities. We don't deny the visible nature of the Church. We celebrate it. But we are very careful not to assume that the visible Church is precisely identical with the invisible Church. How to define that distinction requires more time than we have here, and perhaps more wisdom than I possess.
May I say gently in conclusion that experience can be true yet the assumptions we make based on our experience can be dead wrong. When I was in my teens, I once saw an oval set of lights hovering eerily in the sky. My initial assumption was that they were a UFO. It turned out they were the traveling lights and overhead destination sign of an old Greyhound bus coming slowly toward me over the brink of a hill.
I was probably subtly influenced toward thinking it was a UFO by a recent report from friends--two older couples I respected--that they were sure they had seen a UFO while driving one night.
You may truly have come to know the goodness of salvation in Christ. Your experience, therefore, would be true. But that does not necessarily make your assumptions about how you came to have that experience accurate. If people are telling you it came by mass, auricular confession, baptism, etc., you may believe them and be wrong--yet still have tasted the goodness of the Gospel of salvation in Jesus Christ.
Peace, friend. I trust I am...
Your brother in Christ,
David
Amen to it all. This is the type of sensitive conversation that needs to be taking place when discussing the essential doctrines of salvation and the visible church.
Again, I point you to Charles Hodge who addressed this same debate 150 years ago when defending himself against the charges that recognizing Roman Catholic baptism was not true baptism and a believer needs to re-baptized.
Praying-up the invisible and visible Church
April 22, 2005
Jollyblogger says in his post The Power of Spirit-Less Preaching:
In my last post on preaching a couple of commenters mentioned the importance of spirit filled preaching where the preacher is full of unction from on high. I agree that there are those whom God moves on in a powerful way and through whom He speaks in a special way. Yet, I don't think that what we often mean by "spirit-filled" preaching is as important as we think it is. I am not saying that it is ok for a preacher to preach while in rebellion to the Spirit of God. But I am saying that even such a preacher, if he faithfully brings the Word, can see the spirit move through his preaching. The notion of the primacy of the spirit filled preacher misses a very important fact. It is the Word of God that has power, not the one who delivers it.
As I look to Rome the last several weeks, and as I look to our own churches I see the importance of his statement, the Word of God has power. Reading Charles Hodge he talks about the constant testimony of the Spirit.
The Scriptures teach that the Spirit operates through the truth; that we have no right to expect his influence (as far as adults are concerned) where the truth is not known, and that where it is known, he never fails to give it more or less effect; that wherever the Spirit is, there is the church, since it is by receiving the spirit, men become members of the true church; and wherever the true or invisible church is, there is the church visible, because profession of faith; and, therefore, where these true believers are united in the profession of that truth by which they are saved, with a society or community-- then such society is within the limits of the visible church.
When Christ is preached, when the doctrines essential to salvation are proclaimed - the Spirit is giving testimony - God is glorified. No matter that the vessel of that preaching is clay, sinful, full of envy and rivalry (Phil. 1:15-18).
Reformed churches proclaim loudly the purity of doctrine and the orthodoxy of our teachings. True - this is our standard. But, God has chosen men to deliver his message through the divinely inspired Word of God. We are weak and God is strong - as long as the Word is proclaimed, we have reason to rejoice and enjoy worship in our churches.
Let me offer one more quote from Jollyblogger that nails it, whether Rome or our own church:
It is true that preachers need to be prayed up and Spirit-filled, but I think the reason for this is not so much to make the preacher more effective in and of himself, but simply to make him more effective as a conduit for the clear proclamation of the Word of God. If a preacher's message is powerful, its not because he himself is so powerful and Spirit-filled, it is because the Word of God came through loud and clear.
The good news of this is that no preacher ever comes to the pulpit without carrying a heavy weight of sin with him. Even on his best day, the most Spirit and unction-filled preacher has enough sin in his heart to disqualify him from the Spirit's blessing. But, if it is the Word of God he is preaching, if it is Christ he is preaching, the Spirit will attend that Word about Christ, even in spite of the preacher's sinful heart.
So let's pray up the invisible church, the visible church and the men and women who proclaim the Gospel.
Why I am sad and conflicted about the Pope.
April 1, 2005
Read Pastor Paul T. McCain , he thoughtfully and kindly says what is on my mind tonight.
Paster Paul McCain explains why a reformed-evangelical like myself is sad to see the Pope die, but also conflicted about his legacy. I share with the Pope his embrace and defense of the sanctity of life. I admire his strong defense of marriage, family and God's blessing of sexuality. I admire his stance against oppressive governments, communists and socialists. My favorite writer on Christian social issues is Father Richard John Neuhaus who is a close admirer and follower of the Pope. - I go to him first - before my evangelical sources. The Roman Catholic church under the guidance of Pope John Paul II has stood firm on social issues and has been a model to the constantly fluctuating mores of the modern evangelical church. For these reasons I cannot speak ill of the Pope.
Yes, my criticism runs deep - it is theological - it is the basis of salvation - the core of all of life. Today, I cannot get caught up in detailing our profound differences - those discussions must wait for another day. Today I am sad and fearful. I am sad because we are losing a great advocate for the poor, the disabled, the afflicted, the oppressed. His voice will be missed. I'm fearful - because I am afraid Rome will follow the way of the mainline churches, not only will the gospel be lost, but so will Christian thinking be lost and the good works this thinking has borne. The unborn, the Terri Schiavo's, the world will be poorer. I am sad.
Holy Saturday - The Day In-Between
March 26, 2005
Today is the day inbetween. Good Friday has passed, Christ is crucified, we wait expectently for tomorrow. But, tomorrow has not yet come.
I feel life is like Holy Saturday - Christ's work on the cross is accomplished. Our sins are forgiven and we have been made righteous because of Jesus's perfect obedience and sacrifice. But we wait to share in his glory. We wait, and wait and wait... expectently - hoping - looking forward in faith. It is Holy Saturday!
Forgiveness, a two-way street
February 27, 2005
JOLLYBLOGGER writes about forgiveness. He points out how are forgiveness is often tied to repentence. This is true, but it is only half of the equation. Forgiveness needs to be given as well as received.
First, let's look at Jollyblogger's first steps. He suggests you think of people who have offended you and ask these questions.
1. How many of them don't even know that they have offended someone else?
2. How many of them know they have offended someone else, but they think that the other person has misunderstood them and is just being a little too sensitive, or touchy?
3. How many of them know they have offended someone but feel that the other person is at least partially to blame?
4. How many of them believe that someone else's sin against them justifies their own sin against that person?
5. How many of them are sorry for what they have done, but not really "sorry enough" in the eyes of the one whom they have offended?
6. How many of them are cold-hearted and just don't really care whom they offend?
This is an good place to start when looking at our heart. On the cross Jesus shows us what true forgiveness looks like.
Jollyblogger goes on to site a Christianity Today article where R.T. Kendall says this:
One of Jesus' main teachings was that we love our enemies, pray for them, and do good to those who have hurt us. It is curious how some of us read the Gospels over and over and miss this. We may get the theology, but not the graciousness that Jesus taught and exemplified.How much repentance do you suppose there was at the Cross while Jesus hung there? There was not only an utter absence of repentance, but also total contempt. Jesus' reply: "Father, forgive them because they do not know what they are doing." (Luke 23:34)
Grudges, bitterness, old hurts seem to plagueing so many Christians. Forgiveness, praying for our enemies, having the mind of Christ would empower and free the church in such a powerful way, we would hardly recognize it.
But... I believe this is only the first step. Once we've been forgiven we need to accept that forgiveness. I once spoke to a gentleman who said, "How dare she forgive me, I've done nothing wrong!" In addition to forgiving we need to be ready to accept forgiveness, often just as difficult as forgiving. Sadly, we stand before God as well, and refuse his forgiveness because we are unwilling to face our sin. Forgiveness is a two-way street, it must be given, and received. It starts with seeing our sin, and forgiving others for their sin. One, without the other, cripples.
Ideal Church
February 24, 2005
Tod Bolsinger at It Takes A Church... is playing the interview game. I will post later today my interview. Meanwhile his question, "Describe the church you've always wanted to belong to?" has got me thinking.
First, I want to belong to Tod's church (superficial reasons are listed - to go with this post). First, I want to live in California, have cookies on the patio between services, go to Lenten services in a small chapel take pictures of sunsets over the ocean that sing God's glory, fellowship on the beach with church friends, go to Big Wednesdays for pie, etc.
Here in Massachusetts is my church. Slog into a cold (literally) high school that turns off the heat on the weekends, find your seat in a massive auditorium that seats 1000 with 80 other church goers, look at the pulpit set to the side of "Guys and Dolls" playing March 3,4 and 5th, participate in the Lord's Table while listening to feedback from KISS 98.9 on the sound system and try to keep my mind focused on worship.
After church we gather in the FREEZING cafeteria around a small fold up table (everything is fold-up since we have to carry in and out all church things every week) and have some coffee. Look out at the unplowed sidewalks hoping no one breaks there neck while walking to the remote parking lot, fold everything up and go home.
This is it - no weeknight meetings (no place), no get-togethers (we live spread over 30 miles of Boston), no choir, no youth group (well, there were 3 last week ), no sense of place or church as I knew it growing up.
So what is my ideal church - and why am I a member of Redeemer Presbyterian Church (PCA) in New England. That's complicated - hope to answer some of these questions later today.
