Why...

I have been in 1 Corinthians for the last month or so and I received a book I had ordered on it yesterday called Twelve Challenges Churches Face, by Mark Dever. I read the preface and a couple of pages in the first chapter this morning and already am greatly encouraged. This paragraph is from the preface.

"In this letter, 1 Corinthians, Paul astonishes the pastor (at least, he did me). When he was facing the most normal of problems (division in the church, worldliness, selfishness, and others) he reached for deeply theological responses. Paul called the Corinthian congregation to be not divided but united, not worldly but holy, not selfish but loving. That's not the surprising part. The surprising part is how he argued this with them. He called them to forsake divisions, because God is one. He called them to forsake sin, because God is holy. He called them to forsake selfishness, because God is loving. In all of this, the governing presupposition is not that the church should operate by a rule book of spiritual manners and etiquette, but that the church is a living reflection of the living God. There is one God. He is holy and has given himself in love. His church, therefore, should reflect his own character; we should be united and holy and loving or else we lie about him! That is a powerful thought." --Twelve Challenges Churches Face, by Mark Dever, page 10

This is huge! I recently heard a message that said that in most evangelical churches, we have mastered the "how-to's," but have no clue about the "whys." I am excited to get further into this book because I think it is going to deal with the latter. During this season of trials that seems to be raging in many churches, don't forget that Jesus, the head of the Church, is King! We can't see all of our stuff from His viewpoint just yet, but we can say with Paul, "For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us." --Romans 8:18 (ESV)

Fighting to Focus On Him,
~Jon

Martin Luther On The Priesthood Of Every Christian

"All Christians are truly of the 'spiritual estate,' and there is among them no difference at all but that of office...To make it still clearer. If a little group of pious Christian laymen were taken captive and set down in a wilderness, and had among them no priest consecrated by a bishop, and if there in the wilderness they were to agree in choosing one of themselves, married or unmarried, and were to charge him with the office of baptizing, saying mass, absolving and preaching, such a man would be as truly a priest as though all bishops and popes had consecrated him....There is really no difference between laymen and priests, princes and bishops, 'spirituals' and 'temporals,' as they call them, except that of office and work...A cobbler, a smith, a farmer, each has the work and office of his trade, and yet they are all alike consecrated priests and bishops, and everyone by means of his own work or office must benefit and serve every other, that in this way many kinds of work may be done for the bodily and spiritual welfare of the community, even as all the members of the body serve one another."

--Martin Luther, "An Open Letter To The Christian Nobility," in Three Treatises (Philadelphia: Fortress, 1960), 14-17

Send Revival, Lord!

My friend Richard called me a few days ago and with a brokenness in his voice, said, "Jon, have you watched the video I emailed you, yet?" I had not, and he strongly entreated me to check it out with, what I discerned was an "overwhelmed by God" kind of passion. This morning, I sat down for the 26 minutes required to view it, and was blown away. These are words from men of God from the past that, as they are combined, carry a Holy Spirit one-two punch that knocks us on our self-centered, faithless, fleshly, religious butts! Take the time to watch it, but do so at your own risk...there's no telling what God might do in your life. ~Jon


http://www.godtube.com/view_video.php?viewkey=738d155fc78d7243e303

Text and Context

I have been listening to some messages from a pastor's conference that took place in February at Mars Hill Church, in Seattle called Text and Context. I have only listened to 3 1/2 messages so far, but I have been greatly challenged and greatly blessed by them. If you are passionate about God's church and how it should function in today's culture, check these messages out. You can watch, listen, or download at:

http://www.theresurgence.com/text_and_context_media

Sharing the Love,
~Jon

A God Centered Church, 2

Tonight I came across some powerful and extremely relevant quotes in the book, A God-Centered Church, by Henry and Melvin Blackaby. Here are two. Be challenged. ~Jon


"I mentioned earlier in this chapter how we would enter into a covenant with each person whom God led to join fellowship with our church. We recognized that God had taken the initiative to move within a person's heart to obey Him in all things. We, therefore, made a pledge before God to be a good steward of every life God added to the body. We were to help each person to become God's best, whatever that might require. Knowing that God had added him to the body and knowing that He saw what lay before him in the days ahead, we were committed to helping him through life's journey. If he started to wander and fall away, we pledged to remain faithful to him and not let him go. This covenant we had with God and with one another allowed us to keep those who came to the church; we were determined not to let them slip through the cracks. If a person's attendance began to slip, we knew something was wrong. To us nonattendance was a symptom of a deeper problem, and we were committed to care for one another's needs.

I see a trend happening in churches today that is alarming. That is, when a person is not walking in line with the vision of the church, the church cuts him off and sends him elsewhere. Or, if a person has fallen away from God and is living in sin, she is quickly criticized and put outside of the church body. We have become so driven by evangelism that we have forgotten to take care of the people of God. One of the scriptures that is constantly used for evangelism is where Jesus said, '[I have] come to seek and to save the lost' (Luke 19:10). That was a direct quote from Ezekiel 34, referring to the people of God. And it is a condemnation of the shepherds who have let the flock be scattered into the mountains, being exposed to the elements and in danger from wild beasts. The Lord chastised those who would not go after the sheep, bring them back, feed them, and care for them. And in that chapter God said that He would raise up a shepherd that would seek and save that which was lost. That shepherd is Jesus. The sheep are the people of God. We are in trouble if we have more concern for the unbeliever than we do the believer. God's heart always looks to His own first, for as go the people of God, so goes His purpose to redeem the rest of the world." --pg. 73-74, A God-Centered Church, by Henry & Melvin Blackaby

"...according to Scripture, a true church has some identifiable marks. It has the capacity to assemble. It has leadership to teach its members the Word of God. It has authority to discipline and correct its members when they are in error. It has an organization to minister effectively to the needs of its members as well as those in the world. Its visible structure produces an influential presence in the community. It observes the ordinances of baptism and the Lord's Supper as given by Christ. It has unity in doctrine. It has koinonia, or fellowship, among the members. As an autonomous body, it has direct and immediate access to God through His Word and prayer. It has the capacity to respond quickly to the will of Christ, the Head of the church. It has the power of the Holy Spirit resident in its midst. It has the tools to fulfill the Great Commission: to make disciples; to baptize in the name of the Father, Son, and Holy Spirit; and to teach new Christians to practice all that Christ has commanded. In summary, the local congregation embodies all the marks of the New Testament church. There we discover the Lord's strategy to touch the world." --pg 80, A God-Centered Church, Henry & Melvin Blackaby