It's incredibly thrilling to be a young pastor in the early years of my ministry career. At the same time I've greatly troubled that this is not the easiest time, if there ever was one, to be a preacher of God's Word.
Our church has been in a discussion for the last couple of months about where the boundaries of cooperation should extend. On the one hand we very much want to work together with other believers for the sake of the Kingdom of God. On the other hand it's critical that we don't compromise biblical truth for the sake of cooperation.
This week NPR aired a news article about Brian McLaren's new book "A New Kind of Christianity" (Article Link). I'm sure that NPR thought it would be fitting to air this now because some of McLaren's comments compromise the truth of Jesus' physical sacrifice which is at the heart of the Easter story. Their program folded in quotes from Dr. Mohler and Dr. Ware from the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville. McLaren's new kind of Christianity is extraordinarily popular because you can fit almost anyone into it, but at what cost?
This new kind of Christianity is not new at all. It's really an old kind of heresy, a term that I don't like to throw around lightly.
Here we are, just days away from Easter, and we have "pastors" redefining the basic Gospel. Jesus did not promise his disciples that they would be popular (John 15:20). It is time to stand together for the sake of the Gospel of Jesus Christ, not compromising the Word of God for the sake of personal popularity.
- Aaron
Tuesday, March 30, 2010
Tuesday, March 2, 2010
Suffering Necessitates Hope
This week we were once again reminded that this world we live in is full of pain and suffering. Before the world could even begin to put the pieces of Haiti back together another terrible tragedy occurred, an 8.8 magnitude earthquake in the South American country of Chile.
Carrie and I were touched deeply because of our friendship with a Chilean family who spent the last 72 hours wondering whether their family and friends were still alive. Praise God all were spared, but many did lose loved ones.
There are those like Dawkins that would describe these losses as needless and angrily shake their fists at God. Then the all too familiar angry refrain is played, "how could a loving God do or allow this to happen?"
In Romans 8:18 the apostle Paul says that the "sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed in us." Some argue that Paul is an escapist when he should be a realist. The skeptics argue that there is either no God or some sort of evil God. This distorts the true relationship between God and man. God is not here to serve man or to make him eternally comfortable. Man is here to bring glory to God.
You might rightly ask, how can the suffering of Haiti and Chile bring glory to God? Or you might wonder how your personal suffering can bring glory to God.
It's not the suffering or the evil in this world that is the basis for God’s glory. Tragedy, whether it’s natural or manmade, is a result of our distortion of God's perfection. Mankind chose to turn its back on God, but the current reality is only temporary. The Bible says that the world itself longs for the day when God will restore it so that it functions properly (Rom. 8:19-21). That means no more earthquakes, or tidal waves, or destructive volcanoes, or diseases, or murderers, or anything else that causes pain and suffering.
What we need to remember is that we can bring God glory even in the midest of tragedies like Haiti and Chile. If the people of God step up then the whole world can witness the grace and love of God. We are called to bring glory to God while we continue to wait for peace on earth and God will toward all men.
- Aaron
Carrie and I were touched deeply because of our friendship with a Chilean family who spent the last 72 hours wondering whether their family and friends were still alive. Praise God all were spared, but many did lose loved ones.
There are those like Dawkins that would describe these losses as needless and angrily shake their fists at God. Then the all too familiar angry refrain is played, "how could a loving God do or allow this to happen?"
In Romans 8:18 the apostle Paul says that the "sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed in us." Some argue that Paul is an escapist when he should be a realist. The skeptics argue that there is either no God or some sort of evil God. This distorts the true relationship between God and man. God is not here to serve man or to make him eternally comfortable. Man is here to bring glory to God.
You might rightly ask, how can the suffering of Haiti and Chile bring glory to God? Or you might wonder how your personal suffering can bring glory to God.
It's not the suffering or the evil in this world that is the basis for God’s glory. Tragedy, whether it’s natural or manmade, is a result of our distortion of God's perfection. Mankind chose to turn its back on God, but the current reality is only temporary. The Bible says that the world itself longs for the day when God will restore it so that it functions properly (Rom. 8:19-21). That means no more earthquakes, or tidal waves, or destructive volcanoes, or diseases, or murderers, or anything else that causes pain and suffering.
What we need to remember is that we can bring God glory even in the midest of tragedies like Haiti and Chile. If the people of God step up then the whole world can witness the grace and love of God. We are called to bring glory to God while we continue to wait for peace on earth and God will toward all men.
- Aaron
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