Josh Harris preached at CLC last Sunday on Romans 13:14.  Apparently he drew some cartoons to explain how we’ve been set free from the flesh and how we can learn to starve the flesh.  They are very good…

Check it out.

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I’m growing increasingly interested in William Wilberforce. I’ve read little about him: just the few dozen pages in John Piper’s little book, The Roots of Endurance. I am looking for a good biography of him. In Dr. Piper’s short sketch of his life, one of the most notable features about Wilberforce was his joy. It was apparently as contagious as it was boundless:

“Being himself amused and interested by everything, whatever he said became amusing or interesting… His presence was as fatal to dullness as to immorality. His mirth was as irresistable as the first laughter of childhood.” James Stephen, in John Piper, Roots of Endurance, 149.

“If I were called upon to describe Wilberforce in one word, I should say that he was the most “amusable” man I ever met in my life. Instead of having to think of what subjects will interst him it is perfectly impossible to hit one that does not. I never saw anyone who touched life at so many points and this is the more remarkeable in a man who is sippsed to live absorbed in the contempationa of a future state. When he was in the House of Commons he seemedd to have the freshest mind of any manner there. There was all the charm of youth about him.” James Mackintosh, in Piper, 148.

“Joy… is enjoined on us as our bounden duty and commended to us as our acceptable worship… A cold unfeeling heart is represented as highly criminal.” Wilberforce, in Piper, 150.

William Wilberforce is not the first to point out the connection between joy in the heart of the believer and the transforming grace of the gospel:

“These things I have spoken to you, that my joy may be in you, and that your joy may be full.” John 15:11

“May the God of hope fill you with all joy and peace in believing, so that by the power of the Holy Spirit you may abound in hope.” Romans 15:13

I think the forthcoming Amazing Grace movie–based on Wilberforce’s life–looks particularly promising. Check out the website if you’d like to learn more. Produced by Walden Media (makers of The Lion, The Witch, And The Wardrobe), it comes out on February 23!

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I may be a little biased about this, but I think this is a great service: many of CJ’s messages downloadable in one place.

I figure the 60 or so messages here will only take up 3 or 4 Gs of space on your iPod.

(HT: Justin Taylor)

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Don’t forget: Randy Newman returns tomorrow night for part 2 of Questioning Evangelism!

Coffee at 7, meeting at 7:30.  See you there!

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I learned from Andre Yee and Justin Taylor that participants in a Consumer Reports’ blind taste test preferred McDonalds coffee over Starbucks coffee.

Despite the title of this post, I do purchase both McDonalds and Starbucks coffees. What I don’t buy is the conclusion. Granted: it’s just a matter of personal preference, but I stand by my favorite: Starbucks is superior coffee. It tastes stronger because it is stronger. If that seems bitter to some people, so be it.

Drink up. Make mine a venti.

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I heard from some teens and parents that the message Saturday hit close to home. I’m not at all surprised to learn that the topics of speaking and listening are quite common between teens and parents. If you would like to study the topic more, you can’t do better than Paul Tripp’s War of Words. I love how Dr. Tripp teaches us that our words reflect our worship:

“This is the bottom line of biblical communication, the first and highest goal of all of our talk: that our words would reflect an attitude of worship that recognizes our utter dependecy on God for salvation.” (p. 76)

Dr. Tripp provides a gospel-centered understanding of words:

• God has a wonderful plan for our words that is far better than anything we could come up with on our own.
• Sin has radically altered our agenda for our words, resulting in much hurt, confusion, and chaos.
• In Christ Jesus we find the grace that provides all that we need to seak as God has planned.
• The Bible plainly and simply teaches us how to get from where we are to where God wants us to be. (pp. 132-133)

“Winning the war of words means speaking redemptively, and speaking redemptively is rooted in a restoration perspective on relationship. The purpose of human relationships is not human happiness. It is the work of reconciling people to God and restoring them to the image of his Son.” (p. 216)

Categories: Drivers Ed, five15 blog
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2/6/71 was a big day for golfers around the world–and around the galaxy.

Alan Shepard, Commander of the Apollo 14 moon landing, hit a golf ball on the moon. Due to the slight lunar gravity, Shepard’s six-iron may have flown as much as an enviable 400 yards.

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Sunday we heard Mark on Mark. We’re beginning a series of messages on the gospel of Mark that will last us about six months or so. We learned these basic facts about the Gospel of Mark:

• It was written by Mark (hence the name), most likely the John Mark of Acts 12:12, 25; Acts 15:37-39; 2 Timothy 4:11; Philemon 1:24, and 1 Pt 5:13.
• Mark was probably written in the mid-60’s (although maybe as early as the late 50’s), making it the earliest of the gospels.
• Mark can be outlined following a simple geographic progression:

1. In Galilee (1:1-8:30)
2. To Jerusalem (8:31-10:52)
3. In Jerusalem (11:1-16:8)

Beyond these basic facts, Mark explained to us the message of the gospel of Mark:

A. Jesus teaches:

1. The kingdom of God.
2. the signs of the end.
3. In such a way that people love to hear him.

B. Jesus is…

1. Son of God
2. Son of man
3. Suffering servant

C. Jesus comes to…

1. Inaugurate the kingdom of God
2. Make disciples (and enemies)
3. Die as a ransom for sinners

So why is this important? Why study the gospel of Mark? Mark (Mullery) explained with two quotes from Puritan pastor John Owen:

“Look unto the things of this world, –wives, possessions, estates, power, friends, and honour; how amiable are they! How desirable unto the thoughts of men! But he who hath obtained a view of the glory of Christ, will, in the midst of them all, say, ‘Whom have I in heaven but thee? and there is non on earth that I desire besided thee,’ Ps. 73:25.” John Owen, The Glory of Christ in The Works of John Owen, Vol 1, p. 314.

“Let us get it fixed on our souls and in our minds, that this glory of Christ in the divine consititution of his person is the best, the most noble, useful, beneficial object that we can be conversant about in our thoughts, or cleave unto in our affections.” Owen, p. 312.

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What is the most valuable thing in the world to you? Here is one way to find out: try to imagine that your house is on fire (don’t worry: your family and pets are safe). What do you grab as you run out of the house. What is the one thing you most want to rescue from the flames?

How you answer that question will help you understand the rather odd verses that we looked at Saturday night in Drivers Ed Part 6: No U-Turn (Proverbs on Words). We looked at Proverbs 25:11-12:

A word fitly spoken
is like apples of gold in a setting of silver.
Like a gold ring or an ornament of gold
is a wise reprover to a listening ear.

These verses teach us an important lesson: words matter. And they matter in two directions: we need to be careful how we speak and careful how we listen. A word fitly spoken means using our words to serve others and glorify God. As one theologian explains:

“[A word fitly spoken] is to speak the right word to the right person at the right time.” Tremper Longman, Proverbs, 453.

And this is important because we have in our power the ability to speak words of tremendous value (apples of gold = whatever you plucked from the raging inferno, they are that valuable) or utter worthlessness. Part of the redeeming work of Jesus Christ is to transform how we use our words:

“Speaking in a way that serves the needs of others is at the heart of God’s will for us, and his enabling grace makes it possible.” Paul Tripp, War of Words, 209.

If verse 11 makes it clear that it matters how we speak, verse 12 is all about how we listen. What is in view here is far more thank just physically hearing others speak to us:

“Further, the idea of ‘hearing’ in the Bible does not only mean listening, it means listening and following up with right action.” Mark Dever, The Message of the Old Testament, 520.

A reprover is someone who brings correction (or advice or instruction, in some cases). For teens, the best ones in your world for this is your parents. As helpful as it can be to get input or advice from your peers, the fact is that they just don’t have the goods to give you dependable counsel for the long-haul. You need the wisdom and experience that God has given to you in your parents.

Two Christmases ago, my family laughed as Jack showed more interest in the boxes his gifts came in than the valuable gifts themselves. What is funny in a toddler’s Christmas is tragic in a teen’s relationships. If you are not currently benefitting from the advice, counsel, and instruction of your parents, something is broken. Come see me or one of the other pastors; we would love to help you fix what is broken.

The perspective of these two verses is that words matter, so we need to be careful how we speak and how we listen. Not that that’s easy to do. In fact, it is only possible through the transforming grace of Jesus Christ. But this is what the gospel gets done in our lives. If we are going to claim to follow Christ, it means that every area of life will be transformed by his grace and power.

Here are a couple questions for further discussion:

1. What is the most valuable thing in the world to you? Has there ever been a time when someone told you your words were that valuable to them? Was there ever at time when someone else’s words were that valuable to you?
2. What is a reprover? Who does that in your life?
3. How often do you act on what you hear? Why is that?
4. Are you able to humbly consider what others point out as sin in your life or do you deny rationalize, shift the blame, or wallow in your failure? Explain.
5. [Parents, ask your teens:] What do I do that makes it difficult for you to listen to me?
6. [Teens, ask your parents:] How could I do a better job listening to you and acting on what you tell me?
7. How has Christ promised through the gospel to help you change the sinful ways you use words?

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Mark your calendars: March 18, 2007 is going to be a lot of fun.

One of my new favorite bands, West Coast Revival (aka WCR) is coming in concert to Sovereign Grace Church. I introduced you to the band about two months ago, and I’m thrilled to announce that WCR will be on-site to lead worship on Sunday morning, and then will be back that evening for a rockin’ concert.

Opening for WCR: the John Reilly Band and Voice.

The John Reilly Band is a pretty sweet flavor… their website describes them as having “…a rare and excellent blend of skillful artistry and sound theology. It is smoothly eclectic, weaving melodic guitars, violins, flute and vocals through a labyrinth of time signatures, moods and themes…” I’m not sure quite what that means, but I dig their sound. And wonderful lyrics, too. If you get their album, While I Was On Earth, listen especially to How Many Times, Mystery, This Day, and Anyplace. I really like their (brief) instrumental, Irish.

We know Voice as Curt Allen, our rapper friend from Covenant Life Church. You’re probably familiar with Voice’s album, Progression, and his recent release, Crucible. I know Curt a little bit personally and I’ve always been impressed with his love for the Savior, his passion for evangelism, and his desire to use his hip/hop skills to proclaim the gospel. Christian rap is rare, good Christian rap even more so.

CONCERT DETAILS:

• WHEN: March 18, 2007. 7pm.
• WHERE: You know where.
• WHO: US! And all our friends from the other area Sovereign Grace Ministries churches. AND: Bring your friends! Think of this as Each One Reach One set to music.
• HOW MUCH: $8 if you get your advance tickets in the lobby on Sundays, 2/11 and 2/18! After that, you can buy the tickets at the door for $10.

BONUS: stay tuned for a WCR/John Reilly/Voice playlist Saturday night.

Categories: Announcements, five15 blog
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