Archive for February, 2007
February 28, 2007 5:01 pm
I love reading the Old Testament because in it we find so many hints at the gospel. The entire Old Testament is hinting at, pointing to, and preparing the way for Jesus. A fresh example is in Exodus 12. In the last of the great plagues against Egypt, God has threatened to display horrific judgment on Egypt if Pharaoh will not release the Israelites from slavery. The threat: the firstborn child of every household will die, except for those Israelite homes who are marked by blood:
The blood shall be a sign for you, on the houses where you are. And when I see the blood, I will pass over you, and no plague will befall you to destroy you, when I strike the land of Egypt. (Ex. 12:13)
The Israelites are not autoamatically spared jus because they are Jews but because of the blood of a lamb. Sound familiar? The blood of the lamb marked the family as one of God’s own, thus to be spared from the judgment of God.
In a similar way, Christians are marked by the blood of a Lamb. I wonder if Paul was thinking of these events when he wrote:
In him we have redemption through his blood, the forgiveness of our trespasses… (Eph. 1:7)
Let’s thank God today for the blood of our Savior, which secured for us forgiveness for our sins and safety from the judgment and wrath of God.
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February 26, 2007 8:54 am
February 25, 2007 7:28 pm
 I hope y’all enjoyed the Amazing Grace movie last night. I thought it was a ton of fun to be in a movie theater with a couple hundred of my closest friends. And what a great movie! The casting, acting, production, and plot were all wonderful. But the content is what made it so worthwhile. A few reflections:
- Mark Mullery noted this morning the film did a fine job portraying the difference a single person can make in the government, the marketplace, or any other setting. In the service of God, all of our work is honorable, holy work. You don’t have to be working full time for the church or a missions organization to be serving God. God has called you to serve God where you are: in school, at work, on the soccer field, in the home.
- Furthermore, in Amazing Grace we saw how Wilberforce brought his faith into his work. Would he have endured his political opposition and personal trials without his faith in Jesus Christ? We don’t know, but we can say that his biblical, Christian sense of morality fueled his abolitionist tenacity. We must ask in the same way: what difference does the gospel make in our lives? Does the worth of Christ and a sense of urgency to proclaim his gospel and further his kingdom motivate your studies, your work, your evangelism? If not, why not? Remember Colossians 3:23-24.
 The references to Wilberforce’s profound faith in God and love for Jesus Christ were few, but they are worth studying more thoroughly. I urge you to get and read Piper’s Amazing Grace in the Life of William Wilberforce, which is also the third chapter in his Roots of Endurance. You can read it online for free.- My favorite line came from the mouth of John Newton: “Although my memory is fading, I do remember two things very clearly: I am a great sinner and Christ is a great Savior.”
So what did you think of the movie?
Categories: five15 blog
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February 22, 2007 11:38 am
I can’t wait to see the Amazing Grace movie on Saturday night. I’m hearing great things about it from some friends who got a sneak preview!
We have sold all the discount tickets, but I believe you can purchase your tickets directly through the movie theater.
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February 16, 2007 5:05 pm
Breaking news:I want to let you know about a change to our upcoming 2/24 not-so-big meeting. You may be aware that the movie Amazing Grace is scheduled to open on Friday, 2/23. This movie depicts the story of William Wilberforce, a pioneer in the British abolitionist movement. Wilberforce was a Christian, and stood nearly alone in the British Parliament against the British slave trade and slavery itself. Produced by Walden Media (makers of The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe), this looks like it will be an accurate depiction of Wilberforce’s life. (NOTE TO PARENTS: this movie is rated PG for thematic elements related to slavery and mild language. I don’t know what this means since I haven’t seen the movie, but please exercise your own discernment for your family’s participation.)
So, we are going to move our five15 not-so-big Meeting to the movie theater! We’ve purchased all the tickets at a discount price of $6.50 for the 7:20 show on February, 2/24. Though this was originally scheduled as a not-so-big meeting, I want to invite all high school and middle school students and their parents. This will be a great outreach opportunity! Feel free to invite friends.
Here are the details… Please read carefully:
- WHAT: Amazing Grace movie night.
- WHEN: Saturday, February 24. 7:20pm
- WHERE: Fairfax Town Center Movie Theater (map)
- WHO: all five15: high school students, middle school students, and their parents.
- HOW MUCH: $6.50. We have 173 tickets to be sold first-come, first-served.
- HOW TO GET TICKETS: There will be a table in the lobby after church this Sunday, 2/18. Tickets are available on a first-come, first-served basis. Bring cash or check.
See you in line in the lobby on Sunday!
Categories: Announcements, five15 blog
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February 15, 2007 10:07 am
Is Our Worship Fun? Is Our Fun Worship?
 Parents,
I wouldn’t be surprised if you told me that your kid sometimes complains of being bored at church. “Why can’t it be more fun?”, they might ask. Now you can come prepared to answer the question, Should worship be fun?
Last Friday, Bob Kauflin answered this question by posing a couple other questions of his own: Can our worship be fun? And: Should our fun be worship? He explains:
The fun this world offers is unsatisfying, deceptive, and temporary. Let’s not idolize or fall for it. As Christians, we can enjoy fun activities without believing they’re the root of our joy. The fun, joy, pleasure, and celebration we experience when we worship God is greater than the world will ever know, because the root is knowing we are completely forgiven through the substitutionary sacrifice of Jesus Christ. Our joy is in God himself. We’d be fools to look for it anywhere else.
Read the whole thing here.
Categories: Thursday Thoughts For Parents, five15 blog
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February 14, 2007 10:19 am
Mark 15 recounts the jeers that passersby hurled at our Savior as he hung on the Cross: “He saved others; he cannot save himself.” (Mk. 15:31)
D. A. Carson explains that they are both right and wrong:
“This is the man who voluntarily goes to the cross (14:36; cf. John 10:18). To say “he can’t save himself” is ridiculously limiting. Yet he couldn’t save himself and save others. He saves others by not saving himself.” (Carson, For the Love of God, Vol. 1, entry on 2/12/07)
That is to say: our Savior is our substitute. Our sin required payment to be paid to an infinitely holy God. Only by sacrificing himself in our place could the Savior earn this forgiveness on our behalf, to bring us near to God.
Remember this today and rejoice.
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February 13, 2007 8:13 am
Just a reminder: through a scheduling quirk, there is not a youth meeting this weekend (even though it has been two weeks). We’ll be back together on the 24th.
Categories: Announcements, five15 blog
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We would appreciate your prayers this week: your pastoral team leaves this morning to attend the Sovereign Grace Ministries Pastors College in Gaithersburg. We are taking a class on counseling in order to be better equipped to serve the church. Please pray:
- that the weather would not hinder our plans
- that we would grow in our understanding and application of biblical truth in counseling
- that we would experience fellowship and continue to grow in our friendship together
- that the Lord would protect our families in our absence
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February 12, 2007 10:13 am
Yesterday, I had the privilege of preaching from Mark 1:1-13. We learned how Jesus is the Son of God. In particular: the expected Son of God, the beloved Son of God, and the obedient Son of God. We saw that one way to think about what it means to be a Christian is to agree with God about His Son.
Anytime I prepare to preach, I run across some great quotes that I don’t have time to use in my sermon. Here are some choice quotes that didn’t make the cut:
“The point of these opening scenes is, therefore, to let the reader know from the start who Jesus is and to stress that he comes to fulfill divine promises and his divine commission.” David Garland, The Gospel of Mark, 43.
“‘More accurate than referring to our access to God would be to speak of God’s access to us. God comes whether we choose it or not.’ The barriers are torn down and torn open, and God is now in our midst and on the loose.” David Garland, The Gospel of Mark, 48.
“In Mark’s understanding, therefore, the gospel is more than a set of truths, or even a set of beliefs. It is a person, ‘the gospel of Jesus Christ.’ The kingdom that God inaugurates is bodily present in Jesus of Nazareth.” James Edwards, The Gospel According to Mark, 25.
“Jesus is the perfect fulfillment of the original concept of sonship that was linked to Israel’s call in Exod 4:22-23: Jesus is Israel reduced to one.” James Edwards, The Gospel According to Mark, 37.
“Mark is pointing us to a double thrust in his message. It is about who Jesus is. It is also about how people should respond to Jesus. These themes run right through the Gospel of Mark. They form the basic materials for the telling of the story of Jesus.” Donald English, The Message of Mark, 16.
“But Mark here reflects the tension which runs throughout the biblical presentation of Satan as at the same time both implacably hostile to God and yet operating, despite himself, within God’s overall sovereignty.” R. T. France, The Gospel of Mark, 85-86.
Categories: Monday Matters, five15 blog
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Want to learn more about the real William Wilberforce? Justin Taylor has compiled a list of resources.
