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Of the Danger of Too Many On-Line Sermons

pastortravislv

Preach the word! The Lord commands it. The body is blessed by it. The sermon is a good and necessary thing for the life of the believer.

In today’s world, the believer has access to more of the preached word than ever before. We can read books of collected messages. We can stream our favorite Bible teachers. We can turn on RYM Radio and hear teaching all day long. We can Google the Internet (I hear that’s what the kids call it), and find videos of pastors of small churches we will never hear of in any other way.

But, as a pastor, one who preaches weekly (and hopefully not weakly), can I warn you of a danger or two in too much on-line sermon consumption? I’m quite grateful for the resources that the Lord has placed at our fingertips, but I fear that some believers may move from being helped to being harmed by their consumption of material on-line.

I Know a Secret

One danger of on-line sermons that I think we would all agree on is the risk of consuming false teaching. This is more likely when a believer is listening to a pastor or scholar about whom they know nothing. If you are listening to a message or reading an article written by someone whose scholarship is not being checked by others, you run the risk of novel and even dangerous teaching.

One of the attractions of many an on-line message is the fact that it teaches you something you have never heard before. It is possible to run across a man who is translating the Hebrew of Genesis for himself and saying things about what it means to be human that no faithful teacher has ever taught. If a believer is not careful here, he or she may come away with a damaging, false belief that was all the more dangerous for feeling like it was something secret that no other teacher has brought forth.

I’d bet that you have heard of the problem of Gnosticism in the early church. Among the dangerous beliefs of the Gnostics was the ego-boosting belief that they possessed secret knowledge that was not available to the general public. It was easy for folks to love the fact that they were let in on the stuff that other, ordinary people could not grasp. See any similarities to how some folks feel about that special teacher they have found on-line?

Choose-Your-Own-Doctrine

Do you remember choose-your-own-adventure books? These were popular before video games took the idea to a whole new level. A reader would follow the story of a hero until a particular turning point: enter the cave or climb the mountain? The reader would turn to a different page of the book to find out what happened to the hero depending on the choice the reader made for the hero. Perhaps the cave contained a dragon. Perhaps the mountain led to a castle and a princess. The point was to give the reader a sense of adventure by being able to pick the kind of story he or she wanted to read.

Similar to the draw of novel and dangerous doctrine is the temptation to pick and defend your own favorite teaching. Sometimes people will have a particular point of doctrine they want others to agree with. Instead of examining faithful teaching of faithful teachers, the eager learner will scour the Internet for the one teacher who says it just the way they want to hear. Want to find that Calvinist who dunks on your Arminian friends, no problem. Want to find that Arminian preacher who makes your Calvinist friends look like cold-hearted robots, piece of cake. Want to find somebody who interprets a particular passage in accord with your strange preferences? This one might take a bit more work, but the Internet is a big place, and lots of people have said lots of crazy things over the years; so it can be done.

Romance Novel Religion

Perhaps the biggest danger, especially for folks who will not be dragged down the road of false teaching by obscure teachers on the corners of the Web, is what I am calling romance novel religion. When you talk with a believer who spends a lot of time during the week listening to a lot of sermons from a particular teacher or group, you will start to notice that this eager listener begins to develop a respect, perhaps even more than a respect, for the teachers on line. Like a wife reading too many romance novels and beginning to wonder why her own husband falls so far short of the fictional leading men in her books, the eager sermon consumer begins to wonder why his pastor cannot deliver a blistering, hour-and-fifteen-minute masterpiece like his favorite conference speaker.

But stop and think. Why is it that a husband cannot live up to the picture of the man in the romance novel? The man in the novel is not real. Nobody ever mentions, in the books, that the handsome and modest yet muscular Amish man who sweeps the city girl off her feet to carry her back to a simpler time also hasn’t taken a bath in 4 days and has been working the fields that whole time. Fiction is fiction. Real life goes much deeper.

Similarly, when we listen to sermon after sermon from pastor after pastor and scholar after scholar, we develop in our minds this idyllic picture of what our local pastor should be. He should be as scholarly as Mohler and Sproul, as bold as MacArthur, as passionate as Platt and Piper, as funny as a pre-fall Driscoll, as fatherly as Rogers, as sophisticated as Keller, as keen with illustrations as Swindoll, and somehow develop the accents of Begg and Ferguson. No pastor is all these men rolled into one.

Before you find yourself sad about the fact that your pastor cannot be a Frankenstein’s monster of all your favorite on-line personalities blended together, read this vital truth: God does not want you to have such a pastor. God wants you to have a human pastor who has strengths, who has weaknesses, and who knows and loves you. You do not need a perfect on-line teacher. You need a shepherd. Unless you have a few connections, none of those on-line pastors know you. They have no idea who you are or what you are going through. Neither do they know the situation of that person who sits next to you in church and who is struggling with their own particular messes—messes for which you have no patience.

Gorging without Exercise

God loves feasts. We should be able to figure that out by how often the Old Testament commands that people feast for joy in celebration of the Lord. Yet there is a problem when feasting leads to nothing but more feasting. Our bodies need movement, exercise, and breaks from constant consumption of food and drink.

Feasts are special breaks from the day-to-day work. The Sabbath was to be one day in 7, not a life of laziness. Even Jesus, when he took the 3 atop the mountain of transfiguration quickly led them back down to the ordinary.

As a pastor, I run into people who tell me about how many on-line sermons they listen to in a week. And I am glad to know that they are filling their minds with faithful teaching. But I often want to ask a question. It is not necessarily a nice question, so my wife tells me not to ask it. But, since we are all friends here and nobody will notice, I’ll ask it now: So what?

You took in an entire conference of teaching on the trinity this week, so what? You listened to 45 lectures on evangelism this week, so what? You sat through an entire biblical counseling conference before breakfast, so what? You finished a big series on marriage on Monday, so what? These all are great things to listen to. But, and here is a big question, what impact are they having on your day-to-day? Have you only filled your head with knowledge? Or is what you have listened to making you love the Lord, love your spouse, love the church, and love the lost better?

Conclusion

On-line preaching can be tremendously helpful. But it brings with it a few dangers. Watch out for false and novel teaching. Watch out for the temptation to find a teacher, any teacher, any teacher at all, who agrees with you and goes against what others are telling you. Use your resources wisely. But do not let your resources take you out of faithful Christian living in your local church. Do not daydream about having a legend for a pastor or feel the urge to reshape your pastor into your favorite conference personality. Be grateful for faithful teaching, but do not assume that simply consuming content has sanctified you.

Really, I want you to listen and learn on-line. But, how many sermons do you need in a week? Please do not consume so much content that you have no time for people and no patience for the real world. Use your resources to look up things you need to learn. But check your work by being sure your sources of teaching are also faithful teachers who hold to orthodox, biblical doctrine.

Be careful as you learn, not to turn up your nose at simple, faithful, time-tested theology. There is, after all, a reason why the church has had to battle down heresy for two-thousand years. Heresy is tempting. False teachings sometimes ring a bell in our souls. And this is why we need the protection of our own pastors and of faithful theologians of the past. No, they do not have biblical authority. But, yes, many have heard and rejected the new things that some guy on YouTube thinks he came up with long before the YouTuber ever taught it.

Bottom line, love the Lord. Love his word. Love faithful teaching. Love your church. Love your pastor. Love your brothers and sisters in Christ. Love the lost and share the gospel. Do these things, and you will use but not over-use on-line content.

In Defense of Kindness

pastortravislv

How do you feel when you read through on-line posts? I know that my own experience is a mixed bag. Some days I am encouraged. Other days, I find myself thinking with Obi-Wan, “You will never find a more wretched hive of scum and villainy. We must be cautious.” Some days I find fun things that make me laugh. Some days I find nasty rants that make me want to turn from the Internet for months. And, sadly, the good, the bad, and the ugly are posts I find when looking at the feeds of folks I know to be genuine believers.

One of the beautiful things about blogging and posting on social media is the fact that we can engage important issues in a pseudo-public square. Obviously, the Internet is not a truly public square, as we are not face-to-face, and there is always a chance that the owners of the platform will ban or hide content with which they disagree. But the Internet is still a place where we can communicate with far more people than many of us would otherwise speak to in our daily lives. And I do not want to give up on attempts to honor God, encourage believers, address issues, and even share the gospel on-line so long as the forum is one, we can access.

Sadly, as I’m sure you have seen, decorum in conversation on-line can sometimes leave something to be desired. The anonymity of on-line conversation and the physical distance between participants lends itself to a level of harshness and cruelty on-line that would be highly unlikely in a civilized public setting. Some folks are just mean from the keyboard.

Some who write with a harsher style are simply mean and sinful. Some, however, genuinely believe that it is right to speak and write strongly, sharply, about issues of importance. After all, Paul was pretty harsh with the Galatians and Corinthians. Jesus was sharp with the Pharisees, calling them whitewashed tombs and a brood of vipers (little snake babies).

The concept of decorum in on-line discussion came to my mind this morning as I was reading through Paul’s second letter to Timothy. In this letter, Paul is facing his own execution. And the apostle wants to prepare Timothy to do ministry in the years to come, years when Paul will not be there to guide his protégé. Notice how Paul tells Timothy to address problem people and controversial topics.

2 Timothy 2:23–26

Have nothing to do with foolish, ignorant controversies; you know that they breed quarrels. And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil, correcting his opponents with gentleness. God may perhaps grant them repentance leading to a knowledge of the truth, and they may come to their senses and escape from the snare of the devil, after being captured by him to do his will.

While I will not present this little paragraph as the final word on all forms of communication, and while I will not be the one to police the tone of others—especially not those who are not part of the church where I serve—allow me to call your attention to some of the final words Paul has for a young minister. In these 3 verses, we find three important reminders that should guide how we interact in person and on-line, especially when dealing with controversies. And this advice applies in conversation with the saved and the lost.

First, avoid foolish arguments. Not every topic requires your opinion. Not every error of every person needs your hand of correction. There are issues out there that simply do not matter. There are topics that only breed quarrels and arguments, and God is clear here in his word that we do not need to be quarrelsome. If you pride yourself in being argumentative on-line, you are priding yourself in something that Paul warns against.

Second, be kind. Even when you do find the need to engage in controversial discussion, if kindness is absent, something is wrong. In this passage, God says to you to be kind to everyone and to correct others with gentleness. Kindness and gentleness along with patience are fruit of the Spirit. No Christian should be engaging in discussion of topics without the fruit of the Spirit.

Third, engage with the glory of God and the good of the other’s soul in mind. If you are arguing with a lost person, your desire should be that the Lord, by his sovereign power, would save this person’s soul. While that does not mean you compromise on telling the truth, it should impact how you write. Do not treat others as if they are faceless robots or enemies in a video game. Engage people as—get this—people made in the image of God who need the grace of God as much as you. And when your interlocutor is a believer who is mistaken on a doctrine, keep their good in mind as you tell the truth. As Paul told Timothy, you want to see them freed from the snare of the devil. Your goal is that other person’s good, not to crush them and make yourself feel big.

Dear friends, I am not suggesting for a moment that we compromise the truth of God to shield the feelings of others. Sometimes we will have to say things that, because of the very truth they represent, are offensive to the lost and to those caught up in godless thinking. Tell the truth. But speak the truth in love. No, I do not assume that, if you are kinder, you will persuade people to the faith with your sweetness. But, for the glory of God, by the fruit of the Spirit, in obedience to Scripture, tell the truth with patience, kindness, and gentleness. If you trust in the power of a sovereign God who changes hearts, you can honor him by writing respectfully, kindly, and clearly without being nasty, quarrelsome, and mean-spirited.

Of The Danger of Christian Celebrity

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When were you last star-struck? Perhaps you were in a place where a celebrity showed up. Perhaps you stood on a plot of ground where an important historical figure once stood. Perhaps you met one of your heroes.

I’ve had a few star-struck moments. Once, I had the privilege of meeting the greatest St. Louis Cardinal of all time, Stan Musial. Once, I held in my hands a piece of history, a Tyndale New Testament that was printed around 1526; so, yes, I was star-struck by a book. As a child I was star-struck when I met “Leaping:” Lanny Poffo, brother to the “Macho Man” Randy Savage—If that one does not impress you, I truly do not know what will.

People, places, and even objects can leave us wide-eyed and giddy. And, in general, I do not think that’s all bad. But I wonder if we realize that there is a danger when it happens to us in the church. Have you ever thought of the danger of Christian celebrity?

Just as I was star-struck when Stan “the Man” signed a ball for me, or when Brett “the Hit Man” Heart gave me a high 5—OK, now I’m just name-dropping—I have also found myself feeling the wonder of celebrity in Christian conferences or events. I know what it is like to feel a rush when hearing someone speak who I know wrote one of my favorite books or whose sermons I have only heard on podcasts. And I wonder just how good or bad such a thing is.

On the one hand, God is clear in his holy word that we are to rightly, in the church, honor faithful servants of God.

Philippians 2:29–30

So receive him in the Lord with all joy, and honor such men, for he nearly died for the work of Christ, risking his life to complete what was lacking in your service to me.

When Paul wrote to the Philippians about Epaphroditus, the apostle commended the man’s faithfulness and self-sacrifice. Paul wanted the Philippian Christians to honor Epaphroditus and others like him who were willing to give their lives to the service of the Lord. So, there is most certainly a rightness to us honoring faithful ministers, authors, speakers, and missionaries through whose ministries the Lord has blessed our souls and the church at large. There is a rightness to a local church loving a faithful pastor, a long-serving deacon, or a godly woman who has served the church with a true heart and self-sacrificial zeal.

There is, however, a danger we should not ignore in the cult of Christian celebrity. And this danger is not at all new.

2 Corinthians 11:3–5

But I am afraid that as the serpent deceived Eve by his cunning, your thoughts will be led astray from a sincere and pure devotion to Christ. For if someone comes and proclaims another Jesus than the one we proclaimed, or if you receive a different spirit from the one you received, or if you accept a different gospel from the one you accepted, you put up with it readily enough. Indeed, I consider that I am not in the least inferior to these super-apostles.

Part of Paul’s struggle in his letters to the Corinthians is the dangerous influence of powerful preachers who apparently swept into Corinth and shook the faith of some in the congregation. These men presented themselves as big deals, super-apostles. They made fun of Paul’s public speaking and rhetorical skill. They mocked Paul for being bold in writing and meek in person. And they introduced false teaching to a people who were willing to eat it up because of the teachers’ charisma.

This passage shows us that celebrity teachers were influencing local churches in the first century, not merely today. While that influence might have been to the good had these men not been greedy and dangerous, the influence of the super-apostles was deadly, because their influence included a false gospel. And platforming these men in Corinth was clearly leading to some people being drawn away from the true faith.

Christian friends, see the balance we need. Honor faithful Bible teachers. Beware of being influenced by celebrity. You can do both. You should do both.

How do you guard against being overly influenced by celebrity? First, I would suggest that you guard yourself best by being most committed to your local church. Love your local congregation. Learn from your pastor, your elders, your Sunday School teachers, even the ones who cannot speak like the conference platform giants. Be careful when the only spiritual conversations you have with others involves the latest podcast you listened to or the most recent blog or YouTube you took in. Be sure that you and your fellow believers can talk about what each other is reading in the Scriptures and where you are encouraged or convicted by the message in the local pulpit.

Second, watch out when you find yourself quoting anybody a lot. I know, this is subjective, but I assume that you can figure it out. If not, ask a friend to help you. Do you sound like a disciple of a mega-church pastor or bigtime author? Are you constantly sending folks links? Be careful of being proud of having a puritan quote for every situation (after all, celebrity in the church need not be current).

Dear friends, hear this: The outside celebrity, the bigtime speaker, the passion-stirring author is not your pastor. These teachers can be a gift from God, and I do not want to have you ignore them. But you must realize that these folks do not know you and cannot care for your soul. You are not their responsibility before God. So, learn from faithful teachers, but do not let yourself be drawn to them like a kid to a pro athlete or rock star. Remember that the public persona you see may have nothing at all to do with the person’s real personality or character. Realize that the giddiness you may feel when you hear the bigtime speaker can also be a pathway to danger as your fandom can leave you vulnerable to accepting false teaching.

Of Draws from the Faith

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From the garden to today, followers of God have faced opposition to the faith. Sometimes that opposition comes in the form of hatred and persecution. Sometimes it comes in the form of sly temptation. And sometimes it comes in the form of well-intentioned but dangerous godlessness.

Think about the strategies that the devil has used against the people of God which have made the most headway. Often times, persecuting the church with out-and-out aggression has served to strengthen the faith of believers—the blood of the martyrs being the seed of the church. But sometimes the devil’s plots are much more intimate, much more subtle, and honestly much more dangerous than violence. When the enemy of our souls tempts us through people we genuinely care for, the temptation is significant.

God is not surprised that humanity is often swayed by the influence of our loved ones. IN fact, in Deuteronomy, the Lord spoke a dire warning to the people of Israel regarding this very topic.

Deuteronomy 13:6-11

6 “If your brother, the son of your mother, or your son or your daughter or the wife you embrace or your friend who is as your own soul entices you secretly, saying, ‘Let us go and serve other gods,’ which neither you nor your fathers have known, 7 some of the gods of the peoples who are around you, whether near you or far off from you, from the one end of the earth to the other, 8 you shall not yield to him or listen to him, nor shall your eye pity him, nor shall you spare him, nor shall you conceal him. 9 But you shall kill him. Your hand shall be first against him to put him to death, and afterward the hand of all the people. 10 You shall stone him to death with stones, because he sought to draw you away from the Lord your God, who brought you out of the land of Egypt, out of the house of slavery. 11 And all Israel shall hear and fear and never again do any such wickedness as this among you.

As a quick explanation for any who are apt to misunderstand this passage, the legal standards for national Israel in the Old Testament were quite strict. This nation was uniquely the people of God in this time period, given the law of God, in the presence of God, under the direct instruction of God, and carrying the promise of God to send Messiah, the only plan God ever had for the salvation of people from all nations. Thus, for these people, offenses against the following of God were often death-penalty offenses. The Lord knew that, should Israel become as corrupt as any other sinful nation on the planet, the Lord would, under the obligations of the covenant, have to destroy them, which would destroy the promise, which would destroy humanity. In order, therefore, to protect the nation and preserve the promise, offenses such as blasphemy against the Lord or leading people to worship other gods met severe penalties.

With that said, what is an appropriate truth for a modern Christian to draw from Deuteronomy 13:6-11? What is, as the Second London Baptist Confession calls it, the “general equity” principle we should find? I believe it is an important one, a very helpful one.

Look back at the text. God knows that, in the lives of faithful believers, we will face the temptation to walk away from the faith. Sure, there will be times when that temptation will come to us from outside of our inner circle. Sometimes the world will try to tempt us to turn away through persecution or greed. But one of the more effective and more dangerous temptations we face is when someone we deeply care about tries to call us away from faithfulness to the Lord. When a friend, when a family member, when a romantic interest is the voice saying to us that we should be more open-minded toward other faiths, this is when temptation can be most risky.

What was King Solomon’s failure? He married many “foreign” wives. This was not a failure based on ethnicity. The wives of Solomon led him to worship their gods. The Lord warned against it, but Solomon was unable to overcome his desire—this in spite of the fact that he was the smartest king in the Old Testament.

The same ploy is in play today. As we watch young men or young women suddenly walk away from the church, what is regularly at the root? So very often, the turning away of a young person is about their romantic interest in someone or their deep friendship with someone. Christianity is an exclusive faith. Jesus is the only way for a person to come to the Father (John 14:6). It is hard, when a young person develops romantic feelings for another, for the Christian to accept the lostness of someone they find so loveable.

What then might we want to carry with us from Deuteronomy 13? No, I do not recommend we put the death penalty in place for those who would challenge our faith. But the warning is strong, and it is not something we can ignore. If someone you care about is calling your heart away from the Lord, you may have to figuratively enact the death penalty on the relationship. At minimum, you have to guard your heart with all your might so as not to allow a lost person to influence your soul. You should most certainly pray that the Lord will protect you and that he will draw your lost friend to himself. No Christian should willingly enter into a romantic relationship with a nonbeliever—Scripture is clear on this time and time again.

Ultimately, we need to grow in wisdom from the law of God. Deuteronomy 13 warns us that we will face temptations from friends and family to turn from the faith. We must be aware, we must be wise, and we must be committed to faithfulness to the Lord above all. Particularly, we should watch out for those relationships with the lost that can dig deeply into our hearts, as this is a temptation that the Lord has warned against. Yes, love your family. Yes, care deeply. Yes, be prepared even to be wounded as they push against the faith or try to draw you away. But learn from the law of God not to allow yourself to be pulled from the faith by one close to you.

Of Being Wise in Our Own Eyes

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Ever notice that we have become a nation of consumers? We love restaurants with giant menus that offer burgers and tacos, sushi and pasta, sandwiches and steaks. And we want that restaurant to be happy to reconfigure anything at our request without complaint. We want our phones to make musical playlists that play only the songs we thumbs-up and never expose us to the unfamiliar. We have come to expect that we have the right to only experience what we like.

This is also true in the church. We want a church that plays the music we like in the way that we like. We want a fellowship that is made up of people who look like us and have our same hobbies. We even want to b able to pick and choose which parts of the church’s doctrine we hold to and which we ignore.

There is a phrase in Scripture that has my attention: “right in his own eyes.” When you read that phrase, you probably think of the end of the book of Judges, though I recently ran across it in Deuteronomy.

Deuteronomy 12:8 – You shall not do according to all that we are doing here today, everyone doing whatever is right in his own eyes…

See also Judges 17:6; 21:25; and Proverbs 12:15; 16:2; 21:2; 26:5; 26:12; 26:16; 28:11.

As the Lord led his people, he repeatedly spoke of people doing what was right in their own, individual eyes. And every single time God talks about it, God condemns it—every time. In Deuteronomy and in Judges, the thought is that the nation was not to determine its worship or its morality by their own personal opinions. Instead, the people were to submit to the Lord’s word. In Proverbs, the common thread is that a man who is wise in his own eyes, a man who will not learn from others or receive counsel from others, is actually a fool.

Think well, dear Christian friend, about how well you receive counsel and wisdom from others. When you think of your theology, as an example, to whom do you submit? Are you picking and choosing doctrines based on your wisdom alone? Or are your thoughts actually shaped by the wisdom of others who have gone before you?

Carl Trueman writes about people who say they have no creed but the Bible. There is, of course, a sense in which this is a noble-sounding thought. The problem is that such a declaration is not true. Every person who reads and loves Scripture develops doctrine. You have to. Every Bible reader decides what he believes about God, about salvation, about the church, about baptism, about marriage, about morality, etc. Hopefully those beliefs are based on accurate interpretation and application of Scripture. But in no way is the reader without a set of beliefs that summarize what Scripture teaches. The person, as Trueman points out, who says they have no creed actually has a creed, they are just unwilling to have that creed written down so that others can examine it and question it.

A faithful Christian has an interestingly narrow road to walk, one with ditches on either side. On one side of the road is the faulty belief of the Roman Catholic Church that councils and the collected teachings of the church are equal in authority with Scripture. On the other side of the road is the fault of the consumeristic Christian who believes that he can pick and choose all doctrine a la carte. On the one side of the ditch is a person who bows to tradition and unthinkingly swallows whatever he is fed. On the other is the one who develops a strange hodgepodge of differing, even contradictory, doctrines.

In our church-shopping, individualistic culture, we would be wise to take into consideration the warnings in Scripture against only doing what is right in our own eyes. There is great wisdom in learning from the spiritual giants of the past who wrestled down important theological issues far better than we are likely to do today. Faithful statements of faith and the classic creeds of the early church are helpful guardrails to keep our thinking on a biblical track. We should not, of course, give any of these the weight of holy Scripture. At the same time, we should think twice, three times, even twelve times before we determine that we have figured something out on our own about how the church should function that the faithful before us have never quite gotten right.

What about you? Do you pick and choose doctrines like a la carte menu options? Is there anyone to whom you submit yourself for instruction and counsel on the complicated issues of the faith? Do you embrace a creed, confession, or statement of faith as a true and helpful summary of right doctrine? If not, is there some reason that you believe that not having a statement to which you subscribe is better—that your own wisdom is safer than the wisdom of others which has stood the test of time?

No, I do not assume any statement of faith to be perfect. We will read them and say that we would say this or that differently. We will wish that the old statements clearly addressed modern issues. But, it should concern a Christian if he or she cannot find even one statement of faith among the classics that fairly summarizes his beliefs. Let us learn from others and not be guilty of only doing what is wise in our own eyes.

Of Gathering for Worship When you Do not Want To

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Why should I go to church when I just don’t feel like it? Aren’t I just being a hypocrite? Why go if I feel like I won’t get anything out of it this week?

As a pastor, I find myself regularly helping people work through reasons why they should not give up gathering together with other believers (cf. Heb. 10:24-25). Quite often, my words of encouragement go down two paths. On the one hand, I remind believers that gathering for worship is fitting in keeping with the commands of God. Obedience calls you to discipline yourself to gather and worship. On the other hand, I will try to encourage believers that, even when they do not expect to personally gain from the service, they may be surprised. God often breaks through our stony hearts and enlivens our souls when we gather together with his people under his word for his glory. God has designed our worship in the church, not only to honor him—which is primary—but also to feed flagging souls and nourish hungry hearts.

Today, I want to ponder yet a third reason to gather that I do not often point to, but which is of great importance. It popped up in my daily Bible reading.

1 Corinthians 12:21-26

The eye cannot say to the hand, “I have no need of you,” nor again the head to the feet, “I have no need of you.” On the contrary, the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable, and on those parts of the body that we think less honorable we bestow the greater honor, and our unpresentable parts are treated with greater modesty, which our more presentable parts do not require. But God has so composed the body, giving greater honor to the part that lacked it, that there may be no division in the body, but that the members may have the same care for one another. If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.

In context, Paul is challenging the Corinthians on the issue of spiritual gifts. Apparently, individuals in the church have begun to see themselves as having greater or lesser importance depending on the type of spiritual gifts and experiences they are having. One believer feels unimportant because his gifts are not spectacular. Others may feel they are of greater worth because God has, for a season, allowed them to experience the obviously miraculous.

The point in the passage I site above is that one’s level of giftedness or even neediness has nothing to do with one’s value in the church. As a body has many different parts, and we would not eagerly rid ourselves of any of our parts, so the church has many members, and we should realize that all members matter. Yes, some parts require extra care. That is true in the physical body and in the church as a body. But all members have worth.

How might this apply to your decision to attend worship when you are pondering letting this week’s gathering pass you by? Paul says in verse 22, “the parts of the body that seem to be weaker are indispensable.” Grab that word, “indispensable.” That is a big one. When a body part, even a weaker one, even one requiring special care or special modesty, is hurting or missing, it is a big deal. Paul also tells us in verse 26, “If one member suffers, all suffer together; if one member is honored, all rejoice together.” Clearly God intends togetherness for us whether we are suffering or rejoicing.

Perhaps, when you wonder if getting out for gathered worship is worth it, you might consider this reason: Your participation in gathered worship, even when your heart is heavy or distracted, is important to the good of all the others in the body. I’m not trying to give any of us an overly inflated ego. But the word of God is clear that the church needs all of its parts together. We need each other. Healthy and happy believers need to worship alongside hurting and struggling believers. The church needs people who are gracious enough to allow others to care for them in times of need. The church needs folks who will shed tears and sing the songs of sorrow that are as present in the Psalms as are the songs of celebration.

Why go to worship on Sunday? Obedience is a good reason. The fact that going might just encourage your soul is a solid reason. But when you are struggling, and when those reasons are not moving you forward, perhaps remembering that you are needed will help. When a believer is absent, the local church is the less for that absence. We are a body, and we need all our members together for our mutual good. So, dear believer, love others in the church well by being there with the body, even on days when being there is hard.

Of Christ as True and Better

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One of our favorite songs to sing in worship in recent months is “Christ the True and Better.” In this piece, we see that Christ is the true and better Adam, Isaac, Moses, and David. As the second Adam, Jesus lived the perfection that Adam failed to achieve and thus brings salvation to his people. As the true and better Isaac, Jesus offered up his life as a sacrifice to save ours. As the true and better Moses, Christ leads his people home by himself parting the waters of judgment. And as the true and better David, Christ is the promised King of all kings who will be enthroned eternally over the entire universe.

This song came to my mind as I read through a section of Numbers that is often quite easy to skip over.

Numbers 34:1-2 – 1 The Lord spoke to Moses, saying, 2 “Command the people of Israel, and say to them, When you enter the land of Canaan (this is the land that shall fall to you for an inheritance, the land of Canaan as defined by its borders),

For many of us who are not map enthusiasts, a description of the borders of the land of Israel, however that land is allotted, is just not that interesting. But a thought grabbed my mind this time through. Are we seeing what could be another verse to “Christ the True and Better?” Israel had borders, simple and clearly defined borders, limits to the reach of the nation.

Isaiah 9:7

Of the increase of his government and of peace
there will be no end,
on the throne of David and over his kingdom,
to establish it and to uphold it
with justice and with righteousness
from this time forth and forevermore.
The zeal of the Lord of hosts will do this.

Isaiah 45:21–23

21 Declare and present your case;
let them take counsel together!
Who told this long ago?
Who declared it of old?
Was it not I, the Lord?
And there is no other god besides me,
a righteous God and a Savior;
there is none besides me.
22 “Turn to me and be saved,
all the ends of the earth!
For I am God, and there is no other.
23 By myself I have sworn;
from my mouth has gone out in righteousness
a word that shall not return:
‘To me every knee shall bow,
every tongue shall swear allegiance.’

Matthew 28:18–20

18 And Jesus came and said to them, “All authority in heaven and on earth has been given to me. 19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, 20 teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age.”

Philippians 2:9–11

9 Therefore God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, 10 so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.

While god gave Israel defined borders, distinct places where the authority and power of the nation would stop, he promised Israel a King who is far greater than those borders. Isaiah 9 tells us of this King over Israel, the King on David’s throne, who would have no end to the increase of his kingdom. Isaiah 45 shows us the kingdom reaching the ends of the earth. In Matthew 28:18-20, the Great Commission, Jesus claimed to have authority over all the heavens and the earth. And In Philippians 2:9-11, the Lord declares that Jesus has the name above all names, the name before which every knee will bow, the name worshipped by all peoples everywhere just as Isaiah 45 predicted.

Israel would have a land, borders, and even kings like David. Christ rules a kingdom just as David ruled the kingdom, but unlike David, there are no longer any boundaries or borders. There is no authority to oppose our King. Christ, fulfilling God’s promises, with no borders, including all people groups in his grace, is the true and better King over the true and better nation.

Of Two Logical Fallacies Becoming Pet Peeves for Me

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As society shifts away from rationality, our ability to agree on morality slides into obscurity. Without a little thought about how to think, how to reason, how to avoid fallacies, we are doomed to wallow in the mire of conflicting emotional opinions.

For fun, let me share with you two logical fallacies that I find myself hearing on a regular basis. These are in the church from time-to-time. They are certainly on the television and the Internet. And, if we learn to spot them, perhaps we can help people to get past dangerous, faulty reasoning.

Inflation of Conflict Fallacy

Inflation of conflict is the term for a logical fallacy in which a person claims that disagreement between opposing viewpoints means that no valid viewpoint can exist. If expert A and expert B disagree about subject Y, then we assume that nobody can know anything about Y. We may as well give up any study of Y. Certainly we cannot suggest that a wise, modern, forward-thinking person can hold a position on Y.

Without advocating for either side, consider the discussion about masks from our most recent health crisis. One set of healthcare experts declares that masks prevent the spread of diseases. Another set of experts declares that masks in fact do nothing to help temper the spread of disease. The inflation of conflict fallacy would lead one to conclude that, therefore, nothing at all can be known about masks and the spread of disease.

But ask yourself, is there no actual answer? Does the disagreement between the two expert groups tell us that nothing can be known by mankind regarding masking? Or is there a possible alternative solution that better befits logic? One might consider that one group is simply wrong in their conclusions or dishonest about their supposed opinion. The presence of disagreement, however, is no proof that there is no such thing as a correct answer.

Try another example, this time from doctrine. Baptists declare that only believers should be baptized. Presbyterians declare that infants born to believers should be baptized. If a person concludes, therefore, there is no correct position on baptism, that person would be committing the inflation of conflict fallacy. The presence of a conflict between a Baptist and Presbyterian theologian does not indicate that there is not a correct position to be found or that nothing can be known about baptism.

You might say to yourself that you would not fall prey to this fallacy, but you may find that it is more common than you think. When you are faced with a difficult issue, and when you believe—genuinely believe—that smart people have made good arguments on both sides, you may find yourself tempted to pretend that no answer exists. Be careful. It is good to acknowledge when smart people have made cases on both sides of an issue. This prevents you from disrespecting people who disagree with you as if they are dumb dumbs. But the presence of smart people in one camp does not make that camp’s position correct. In point of fact, both camps can be wrong. But nothing here indicates that there is no possible way to know the truth.

In medicine, masks are either helpful or not helpful, and there is a way to know. In doctrine, babies either should be baptized or they shouldn’t, and there is a way to know. The same holds true for arguments regarding issues of atheism, gender, sexuality, Calvinism, women in the pulpit, and the age of the earth. Just because experts disagree does not exclude the possibility of a true answer to a question existing. And to pretend that disagreement between experts allows you to do your own thing without repercussion is fallacious.

The Golden Mean Fallacy

Argument to moderation, also known as argumentum ad temperantiam or the golden mean fallacy, is a fallacy where a person claims that, when views differ, a compromise between the two views will be the correct solution. If expert C suggests that 10 units is proper, while expert D argues for 6 units, the right answer must be 8 units. While compromise can be a helpful solution to some problems in society, it is logically fallacious to suggest that all disagreements must be settled with compromise.

From what should be absurd, imagine that an evil political dictator wants to put to death 50% of the population of a nation. The evil man’s political opponent, a good man, wants none of the population to be murdered. The golden mean fallacy would suggest that the murder of 25% of the population would be an acceptable solution.

Without illustrating further, I believe that you can see that a press to compromise is not always a proper solution. This is true in the church and in the civil arena. Compromise can be a sweet way to solve problems, especially regarding issues of preference, but when we are dealing with claims of truth, doctrine, and morality, seeking a middle ground may simply be walking both sides into error instead of leading to a right conclusion.

Conclusion

Have you found yourself using either of the above fallacies in your reasoning with others? Have you refused to make an argument about an important life issue because experts disagree? Have you pressed for compromise in situations where taking a stand, an absolute stand, is actually what is right? I would urge you to guard your thinking. Do not compromise truth for the sake of comfort by the means of logical error.

Of the Danger of Embracing Culture

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Are we really so different? Are we really supposed to be? Why cannot the church and the world hold hands and get along?

Throughout the age of the church, Christians have faced the temptation to compromise. Once Constantine made Christianity officially the thing in Rome, the church had to wrestle with the temptation to become more like the world in order to be more well-liked by the world. During the rise of theological liberalism, teachers began to tone down claims of the miraculous to look more like a naturalistic and scientific culture. And in a world that embraces new concepts relating to sexuality, gender, the family, and so much more, churches are tempted to reshape the message of the Scripture to be more widely accepted.

Sometimes Christians are tempted to compromise as they hope for popularity. The feeling is that, if we can just get folks to think we are a helpful part of our community and we do not cause trouble, we will become the place people in town want to be. Sometimes Christians shift their values out of fear, not wanting to face the hardships of persecution. Sometimes folks have compromised out of a desire to be evangelistic. The misguided hope of these folks is that, if we stop talking about sex or about the latest pet peeve of the media, people will give our gospel a hearing; and isn’t that what is most important?

But I wonder if, as we are tempted to compromise and value the things that the world values, we are forgetting just how big is the gap between the ways of the Lord and the ways of the world. Have we forgotten that there really are different sides, and those sides are far apart when it comes to being right with God?

In Luke 16, Jesus confronted the Pharisees who had become lovers of money. These men compromised for the sake of personal, financial gain. They loved the applause of men.

Luke 16:14-15

14 The Pharisees, who were lovers of money, heard all these things, and they ridiculed him. 15 And he said to them, “You are those who justify yourselves before men, but God knows your hearts. For what is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.

Consider that last line from Jesus once again: “What is exalted among men is an abomination in the sight of God.” How true is this in our culture? Our society is exalting things today that God calls abominations.

What should we do with this thought? Let me suggest two things. First, we should pray that God would give us a heart to exalt what he loves and see as abominable what he calls abomination. Let us not think that we are so cultured that we have gone beyond the standards of God. God’s standards are not out-of-touch with reality. On the contrary, modern reality is out-of-touch with truth.

Think about your own heart here. What does it chase? What do you value? Do you love the things God loves? Do you hate the things God hates? Do you want things for yourself that God has called dangerous or destructive? Do you accept as the new normal things that God says are unacceptable? Ask the Lord to shape, cleanse, mold, and renew your heart and mind.

Second, let us be careful, as we seek to shift our hearts, that we not become cruel or nasty people in the process. There must be a way to see things in our society as abominable before God, speak the truth, and do so in a way that is not itself mean-spirited. We must pray that we will stand firm, avoid compromise, and speak the truth in love.

The word abomination is a harsh one. But since it is God’s word and not ours, we ought not avoid it. But you can call a thing an abomination with sorrow or with arrogance. One way of speaking includes compassion, kindness, and humility. The other way looks like the Pharisee and is sharp, bitter, and cruel.

May we learn to have the compassion that Christ showed when sinful people were around him. May we learn never to embrace or even accept sin. May we never be so foolish as to think that ignoring evil will make our churches grow to the glory of God. But may we also, even with tears, hold out a true gospel to a lost and dying world.

How do I Explain “Reformed Baptist” to Someone Who Asks?

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In last week’s post, I shared a couple of threads of thought regarding what it means to be a Reformed Baptist Church. Hopefully those were helpful for individuals to think the issue through. But what about when we are talking to people who are not part of our tribe? What about when someone who is not a believer asks what a Reformed Baptist church is? What about when a person who does not enjoy theological thought poses the question?

Three Types of Answers

A one-size-fits-all approach to answering a question about a church’s identity, theology, and practice is not a good idea. Different people ask from different perspectives and with different levels of interest. Thus, I believe answering the question, “What is a Reformed Baptist,” might require three different kinds of answers:

  • Single Sentence
  • Short Presentation
  • Coffee Table Discussion

Single Sentence –It may be that a single sentence answer is all that a situation allows for or is necessary. The person asking may not be in a place to unpack any of the doctrinal differences demarking denominations. You may be speaking with a nonbeliever who could not begin to follow the discussion. You may be speaking with your sweet aunt who just wonders if you’ve joined a cult.

Short Presentation – A second kind of answer may be one you need to have at the ready for when you have a minute or two with a curious person. Salespeople call this an elevator pitch. This allows you to unpack who you are in a simple summary. It is designed to open the door for a follow-up conversation, but it does not force the issue.

Coffee Table Discussion – The third kind of answer goes deep and seeks to lay out distinctives over a longer period of time. The points that I outlined and briefly explained in my previous post could serve as a helpful guide for such a discussion about Reformed Baptists. This might take a few hours or a few meetings.

Single Sentence Response

Say you are inviting a non- Christian friend to your church that has “Reformed” as part of the name. They ask you what a reformed church is. They are not likely wanting you to tell them about the Canons of Dort or the difference in English and European mainland Reformation confessions. For the curious person needing a single sentence, perhaps you might say the following:

A Reformed Baptist church is a church that loves God, loves the Bible, loves the gospel, and loves God’s church.

That statement covers several of the points I shared in last week’s post. But it does not unpack any of them. It should leave the door open for questions if the person wants to think them through. At the same time, it will not bog you down in conversations about topics the person has never heard of.

If you are talking with someone who is a Christian and who is trying to figure out if a Reformed church is some sort of weird denomination, or if you are not sure where their question is coming from, you might say something like this:

A Reformed Baptist church is a Baptist church that is committed to the Bible, in line with historic Christianity, and informed by important doctrines that the church recovered during the Protestant Reformation.

Again, this is short and simple. It will allow you to begin a conversation about doctrine if the person wants to ask. It ties your church to historic doctrine, faithful beliefs people have held from the New Testament age and recovered—not created—during the Reformation. But it does not take you down a road of debating election when a person just wants to know if you are involved in some sort of crazy new movement.

Short Presentation

What if the person you are talking to is up for a bit more of an explanation. What can a Reformed Baptist say that will summarize things somewhat quickly without chasing rabbits? When you do not have time to go deep, but when your interlocutor is up for something more than a single sentence answer, the short presentation might work. Perhaps the following would be a good example:

A Reformed Baptist church, like other Baptist or Presbyterian churches, is a Protestant church. We believe that the Bible is our highest authority. Like other churches, we believe in 1 God who is the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit as revealed in the Bible. And we believe in the good news that anybody can be forgiven by God because of the good news of Jesus Christ.

Reformed Baptists try to follow Scripture and do in our worship services what God has commanded. We believe that God is the Almighty and is sovereign over everything, including our salvation. We believe that all of the Bible, even the Old Testament, is God’s word and is helpful to us to know God and love him well. We believe that Jesus really is the fulfillment of all of God’s promises in the Scripture.

If this all sounds unfamiliar or new, you can read about what we believe in something old. The Second London Baptist Confession of 1689 is a great place to look to read a summary of the doctrine our church believes. This is a confession that is similar to the Westminster Confession that Presbyterians hold to or the Savoy Declaration that congregationalist churches use, just with a Baptist explanation of the church and biblical covenants.  

Conclusion

When someone asks you what a Reformed Baptist is, you do not have to be paralyzed. Neither should you always answer the question the same way in every situation. But if you will put a little work into knowing what the label means, and if you will put a little forethought into how you might explain it to different people in different settings, you should be able to help others understand the concept.