The Call to Prayer

This Thursday, I had the privilege of speaking to Crossroads Campus Ministry at UCSD on the topic of prayer. This is one of those issues that all believers understand is something they need to apply in their lives, and yet almost all of the Christians I know would say that their prayer lives are not where they would like them to be. I really believe that one of the reasons we fail in prayer the way we do is because Christ does not remain central in our prayer lives. All true believers would hold that salvation comes not as a result of our work or merit but completely by the grace of God (cf. Eph. 2:8-9). There is thus a willingness on our parts to glorify Christ for our salvation and to keep him central in the doctrine of justification.

A shift in centrality tends to take place, however, when it comes to how we pray. It seems as though in prayer we remove Christ as the central focus and place ourselves in that place of centrality instead. We pray for our felt needs, our desires, our will, and we fail not only to acknowledge God's will, but also to desire it at all.

It is no surprise that God desires our prayers. 1 Thessalonians 5:17 teaches us to pray without ceasing. Colossians 4:2 tells us to devote ourselves to prayer. And Jesus assumes prayer in His instruction in Matthew 6 ("When you pray..."). This is more than a call to discipline, though prayer definitely is a discipline we need to maintain and develop. We must remember that we have access to the Creator of the universe and He desires to hear from us! Do we have a desire to speak with Him?

For more on prayer, John Piper offers helpful insight into God's purpose in prayer in his book, Let the Nations Be Glad.

Reaching Souls in Argentina and the Czech Republic

It has been a while since our last post since Pastor John is enjoying his sabbatical and I have been away in Argentina for the past couple of weeks. Hopefully I will be able to get back on track soon and put up new posts. It is good to be back in San Diego but it was definitely difficult to leave Argentina. What a wonderful experience it was! In the city of Tucuman we were able to focus on two neighborhoods in a five day door-to-door ministry sharing the gospel for almost six hours a day. I don’t think anyone on our team had ever had such concentrated evangelistic ministry before in their lives.

It was awesome being able to work with the members from Missionary Bible Church and the interpreters from Word of Life in Buenos Aires. By God’s plan, we also were able to work with some local unbelieving interpreters. We had the opportunity to share the gospel with them throughout the week and they also were able to translate it for us over and over during the evangelistic campaign. It was great that they were able to have so much exposure to the gospel message. Praise God also that He allowed us to see some of the fruit of our efforts as we witnessed a good handful of people from the neighborhoods and possibly even some of the interpreters respond in faith to the message of the gospel.

There is a lot of talk lately about what kinds of strategies the church should adopt to engage the culture around us. But in all the debate about cultural relevance, we must be careful not to miss the point that the Bible has given us exactly the strategy that we need: Preach the whole counsel of God and the true gospel and God will work through the message preached to save sinners. This is a principle that extends to all cultures and peoples. If we dumb down the gospel or start redefining it, we play with the God-given message of salvation. This is what is so great about the trips to the Czech Republic and Argentina (one a highly atheistic nation and the other a predominantly Roman Catholic nation). We have witnessed the trustworthiness of this principle to preach the Word in season and out of season (2 Tim. 4:2) and we have seen people saved as a result of the message preached.

I am very excited to hear of how this year’s Czech Republic summer mission went. The Czech team arrived the day before the Argentina team departed so there was not much opportunity to hear stories from them. I am definitely looking forward to the two missions report nights on September 10 (Czech Team) and 24 (Argentina Team). I cannot express how blessed we are to be able to work alongside like-minded churches in other countries reaching souls for Christ.

Recommended Books

A question was brought up at church during a Question/Answer session that I thought would be good to post a blog about. Someone asked Pastor John which books had he read (besides the Bible) that were most influential to him. I suppose John will want to post his own list of books at some later date when he returns from his sabbatical, but I thought I would post a list of books that were particularly influential to me. It is probably important to note first that I am not as well-read as Pastor John, so his list of books come from a greater pool of knowledge. Also, this list is not my attempt at the best books ever written (I'm sure others will have suggestions of books that were left off the list), only the books that have made the strongest impact on my life. With that said, here is my list of books (not in any particular order):

1. Disciplines of a Godly Man, R. Kent Hughes
This book was particularly influential during college in helping me understand biblically what it means to be a strong, godly man. It became even more important to me after I was able to sit under Kent Hughes' teaching during a class in seminary and to see that he not only wrote it, but lives it as well. I remember thinking after reading this book that there are a great many aspects about my life that need to change.

2. The Gospel according to the Apostles, John MacArthur (a.k.a. Faith Works)
This book was a bit less technical than its prequel (The Gospel according to Jesus). It was the book that really helped me get my arms around the whole "Lordship Salvation" issue. MacArthur does a great job proving from Scripture that a changed life is indicative of true saving faith.

3. Today's Gospel: Authentic or Synthetic, Walter Chantry
One of the greatest finds you can make is small books with huge impact. Today's Gospel is one such book. Using the story of the rich young ruler from the book of Mark, Chantry walks through a biblical presentation of the whole gospel. A great book to read along with this one is Will Metzger's, Tell the Truth.

4. Let the Nations Be Glad, John Piper
After reading this book, it's hard not to want to travel to the ends of the earth preaching the gospel of Christ. Piper's missiology is refreshingly God-centered. The book begins by hammering down this thought, "Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn't."

5. Light from Old Times, J. C. Ryle
Ryle's account of the English Reformers who were burned at the stake by "Bloody Mary" is incredibly moving and inspiring. As you read through the lives of men like Hugh Latimer, John Hooper, Nicholas Ridley, and Thomas Cranmer, your heart will be set on fire because you will know the sacrifices men have made for the sake of the gospel.

6. Holiness, J. C. Ryle
Each chapter in this book cut like a knife into my heart. I felt like Isaiah when he saw the holiness of God in Isaiah 6, "Woe is me, for I am ruined! Because I am a man of unclean lips, and I live among a people of unclean lips; for my eyes have seen the King, the LORD of hosts." Ryle helped me attain a glimpse of God's holiness and a greater awareness of the necessity of holy living for the believer.

7. When People Are Big and God Is Small, Ed Welch
I did not think I had a big problem with the fear of man before I read this book. After I read this book I realized how much of my life was governed by the way others viewed me. Welch confronted my pride like few other books have ever done and helped me see a problem in myself that I previously had not seen.

8. Brothers, We Are Not Professionals, John Piper
This book has been helpful in understanding the importance of biblical pastoral ministry. Since I have not finished it yet, I can't give a complete review. But Pastor John, Raymond Kim, and I have been going through it together and so far it has been a tremendous blessing. It is not only for pastors. Any believer would be helped by reading this book. The chapter on a biblical view towards baptism is especially good.

9. Lectures to My Students, Charles Spurgeon
If you are considering full-time ministry as a pastor or missionary, this book is required reading. Spurgeon deals with a number of issues regarding the heart of the man who is called by God for pastoral ministry. He will help you think through the decision-making process of going into ministry.

10. Can Man Live without God? Ravi Zacharias
This is a great book that takes on some of the philosophies of the world . . . and beats them to a pulp. It was a particularly great book for me since I minored in philosophy in college. It helped answer many questions I had about answers to critics of the Bible and it helps to show the utter meaninglessness of life without Creator God.

Honorable Mentions:
The Cross-Centered Life, C. J. Mahaney
Spiritual Leadership, J. Oswald Sanders
Fundamentals of the Faith, Grace Community Church
Desiring God, John Piper
The Minister as Shepherd, Charles Jefferson
Repentance and 20th Century Man, C. John Miller
The Gospel according to Jesus, John MacArthur
The Master's Plan for the Church, John MacArthur
Tell the Truth, Will Metzger
Not Even a Hint, Joshua Harris
Nine Marks of a Healthy Church, Mark Dever
The Pursuit of Holiness, Jerry Bridges

I'm sure there are more, but this is what I can think of off the top of my head. I'll have to peruse my shelves to see if I've forgotten any.

EV in the Community

The Argentina Mission team had an opportunity this past Sunday to go door to door in order to share the gospel with our neighbors in the local community. This was an important part of our missions training since this is what we will mostly be doing in Tucuman. Aside from the 100 degree weather, things were really amazing. The team came back with really encouraging testimonies as well as lessons learned and even funny experiences. All in all, it was a profitable time to practice much of what we have been covering in our team meetings - understanding the whole gospel and preaching it to others.

One reflection I had as I was knocking on doors was how sad it was that people refused to even listen to the gospel. Some simply said they weren't interested and closed their doors. Others gave a look of scorn as they informed me that they were of another faith. Others were polite but refused to listen nonetheless. I couldn't help but remember Jesus' lesson in Matthew 19:23. It is hard for a rich man to enter the kingdom of heaven. In affluent San Diego, where the people are comfortably living their plush lives, it will be hard for people to respond to the gospel message. Who will recognize their desperate need for a Savior if they are enjoying everything their heart desires? Who needs Jesus when you have a home, a car (or two or three), cable TV, wireless internet, multiple bank accounts, and an IRA?

The hope that I carried with me as I talked to those in the neighborhood was that God is sovereign in evangelism! Without this truth, I might have given up and simply conceded that no one would listen. But the promise that kept resonating in my mind was that God might have other sheep in the community (John 10:16). Though house after house might close their doors to the message of the gospel, there might be one household who would be ready to hear the Word of truth, to trust in Christ as their Lord and Savior, and to live new lives as new creations for His glory.

I was so encouraged to find the team enthusiastic about the experience. We went out into the community tired and hot. We returned with our hearts strengthened and much more prepared to handle the barrios of Tucuman. Praise the Lord!

Prayer for Missions

It's June 28, which means that the LBC Argentina mission team departs in just thirty-four days! And the Czech Republic team leaves in less than two weeks! Time is quickly winding down as both teams make their final preparations and raise their final support. It is an exciting time for sure, but it has also been easy to become anxious. Even though we are returning to the Czech Republic for the sixth time it is still impossible to foresee every contingency and there is still a great deal to plan. For the Argentina team, last year's trip was our first and we are very much looking forward to building upon the relationships that were begun. However, with that trip we do not have the advantage of years of experience in that country.

It becomes very tempting in light of the circumstances and our inability to foresee all the challenges to simply plan more and more. Plan for hardship. Plan for unforeseen hindrances. Plan for financial setbacks. Of course planning is good but everything gets turned upside down if we plan to the point that we neglect the Lord's plan. "The mind of a man plans his way, But the LORD directs his steps," Proverbs 16:9. One of the most encouraging aspects about this year's missions preparations is the commitment that the teams have had to prayer.

Please pray during these last few weeks. The teams have been praying but hopefully our senders are also praying (as they indicated on their support cards!). We trust that the church has been praying. Hopefully our families and friends have been praying. With so much planning, it is easy to start trusting in our own preparedness and to neglect the crucial lessons that God might be trying to teach us along the way. Think of the number of missed opportunities, missed life-lessons, missed blessings all because of our failure to seek the Lord in prayer. We recognize that God is the one who has orchestrated everything thus far in our preparations, and He is the one who will see the work to completion. Praise God for His sovereignty in all things!

The Da Vinci Code - Muddling Fact and Fiction

After all the press releases and online interactions with and criticisms and praises of The Da Vinci Code, I finally caved in and read the book last week. I have to admit that it was a thrilling read and was at times very difficult to put down. The first half of the book was especially good. At times the dialogue was tedious and read much like a textbook or documentary and Brown did not do much with character development, but the plot is what drives this book. The twists, shockers, and surprises at the end of each chapter made the novel read much like one of these television mini-series. As much as many people are hooked on “24” or “LOST,” I have to admit that I was pretty hooked on The Da Vinci Code. If you’re looking for a spectacular, knock-you-out-of-your-seat ending, you’ll be disappointed, but it’s still an entertaining read.

That having been said, as entertaining as it was, the book caused me great concern and much of its contents were quite disturbing. As many have read in the press releases, Dan Brown is not shy about making claims about the historical accuracy of much of the book. Although it is written in the genre of fiction, the book still instructs its readers about various facts and interesting conjectures of history. There is much written concerning art history, European history, and even church history. The problem with this is that Brown does not care to make any distinction between what is true history and what is mere speculation. Most of the claims are presented by characters who are supposed experts of symbology and history who have spent their lifetimes studying such “facts.” And most of the claims ooze believability in the way they are presented.

One of the areas of greatest concern is that when it comes to church history in particular, Brown’s research is less than extraordinary and at times very misleading. Coupled with the fact that many of his claims about church history are made in the immediate context of other interesting facts about art history and symbology, the book essentially deceives readers into believing that the historical claims are all equally true (and this doesn’t take into account that not all of Brown’s claims about art history and European history are very good either).

One example of Brown’s mishandling of art history is with Da Vinci’s “The Last Supper.” This mural depicts the scene in the gospels when Jesus reveals to His disciples in the Upper Room that one of them would betray Him. In The Da Vinci Code, one of the characters points to the fact that at Christ’s right hand, the seat of honor, is not the Apostle John as the vast majority of art historians claim, but actually Mary Magdalene – Jesus’ alleged wife. Woven through the entire plot of the novel is a contrived conspiracy about the Roman Catholic Church and a clandestine group called The Priority of Sion seeking to squelch the truth that Jesus and Mary Magdalene were actually married and bore children. The Holy Grail, then, is not the cup from which Christ drank, but the “holy bloodline” of Christ. This, of course, does not take into account that even Da Vinci’s own notes explain that it is indeed John the Baptist seated at Christ’s right hand – not Mary Magdalene!

One of the biggest heresies in the book is the claim that Jesus was not considered to be divine by His followers until A.D. 325 at the Council of Nicea. Here’s an excerpt from the book:

“My dear,” Teabing declared, “until that moment in history [the Council of Nicea in A.D. 325], Jesus was viewed by His followers as a mortal prophet. . . a great and powerful man, but a man nevertheless. A mortal.”
“Not the Son of God?”
“Right," Teabing said. "Jesus' establishment as the Son of God was officially proposed and voted on by the Council of Nicaea.”
“Hold on. You're saying Jesus divinity was the result of a vote?”
“A relatively close vote at that,” Teabing added (pg. 233).

Of course, anyone who has read the New Testament or studied church history even in a cursory way knows that Jesus’ divinity was not invented in the early 4th century. The Council of Nicea was made necessary because a man named Arius and his followers refused to believe that Christ was of the same substance as God. They claimed that Christ was a created being and not God in the flesh. Contrary to The Da Vinci Code, Jesus’ divinity was believed and confessed by all of His true followers up to the Council of Nicea and even to today. Not only this, but the result of the vote at Nicea was a 300 to 2 landslide in favor of the orthodox belief that Jesus was indeed God, “true God from true God” – hardly a close vote!

There are many more unfortunate historical discrepancies in The Da Vinci Code, but the purpose of this post is to alert the reader to its dangers. If anything, it is probably better to read the historical claims in the novel with a degree of doubt rather than to take everything written at face value. Unfortunately, not all of the book’s readers have done so. One poll suggested that up to 60% of the people who have read the novel believe Jesus was actually married. This is just one indicator of the book’s tremendous influence.

For more on The Da Vinci Code, visit the website created by the staff at Westminster Theological Seminary: www.thetruthaboutdavinci.com.

Importance of the Local Church

As I wrote the previous entry, I realized that there are a number of things that should have been defined clearly as I don't want to assume that people automatically understand what I am talking about. So I will attempt to provide some foundational points in continuing on the topic of parachurch ministries. What is a local church? Essentially, it would refer to a body of believers that are the visible representation of the invisible, universal church, which is comprised of the body of Christ worldwide. The local church is to be governed by qualified leaders (1 Timothy 3; Titus 1) who are called to shepherd the flock according to the standards and parameters set by the Scriptures. The local church is the body in which all the one anothers are to be fleshed out in obedience to Christ. 1 Corinthians 12 gives a great analogy of the physical body as an illustration of how the body of Christ is to work. The local church is where the ordinances of baptism and communion are to be practiced. While a local church is by no means perfect in its representation of the body of Christ, it is the primary vehicle through which God is carrying out the New Testament plan of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:19-20). The local church does include unbelievers in attendance, though their attendance does not make them a part of the universal body of Christ. But in the end, the local church is the institution through which God has and will continue to fulfill His plans.

What is a para-church? My simple definition is this - a particular ministry with a particular purpose for a particular group of people for a particular period of time. Examples of para-church ministries would be college campus ministries such as Campus Crusade for Christ, Navigators, Inter-Varsity. Other examples would be seminaries, missions organizations, Christian publishing houses, specialized ministries for the homeless, counseling ministries, and the list goes on. The basic premise of a para-church ministry is that it would come alongside ("para") and assist the church in areas where churches might be deficient in their ability to minister. Many of the mega-churches today have the capacity and ability to provide and oversee a multitude of ministries, which result in less of a dependence on para-church ministries to cover particular needs. On the other hand, small churches are often very short-handed in their ability to minister to and reach out to people of various backgrounds. Some churches end up becoming very dependent on various para-church ministries to provide ministry for collegians, for overseas missions, etc.

The reason why I felt compelled to share about this issue is because there is a very REAL problem with the understanding of the role of the local church by many who have, whether intentionally or not, diminished, demeaned, and even boldly claimed the demise of the local church in favor of what recently has been advocated by George Barna in his book, "Revolution" - the idea of just independent gatherings of believers outside the context of the local church since so many local churches have failed in fulfilling their calling. This kind of mentality is dangerous in that it breeds the kind of entrepreneurial mentality towards the church that pushes for a very man-centered and man-driven organization versus a God-centered and God-driven obedience to the Word of God. While I can sympathize and identify with many of the criticisms that people have about the local church (just ask me to share about my 10 year experience in the Korean church scene), I still have hope and confidence that because it is God's church and since Jesus Christ is the head of the church, we can forge ahead and pursue the ministry of the local church with vigor and enthusiasm because we can see God do the work that He promised to do, that is, that He will build the church and the gates of Hades will not stand against it.

One verse that really has been a tremendous blessing as well as a reminder to keep my focus in the right place is Ephesians 3:20-21, "Now to Him who is able to do exceeding abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen." This is the passage where we first set our hopes back in March 1998 when we started praying for the planting of Lighthouse Bible Church. I can say with confidence that God has truly fulfilled this passage in so many ways as we have absolutely seen God do exceeding abundantly beyond what we asked for or thought. We have seen His power at work and because it is His power that is the source behind all that has taken place, we give Him all the praise and glory in this church!!

As I shared this past Sunday about my own struggles and my shortcomings, it is a clear reminder of my inability and frailty to do anything on my own. But with God's power, we are given abundant grace to be used by our Lord to fulfill our roles in the body of Christ and what we see now at LBC is the fruit of obedience and commitment to God's design and plan rather than following our own or what the latest fad advocates. So consider the high calling of being a part of a local church that seeks God's glory and run with it!!

It Is God’s Church – Not Your Church

If you attend Lighthouse long enough you are bound to hear some teaching about the priority of the local church. This is one of the firm convictions of LBC since the Scriptures teach that the church is God’s one ordained institution that He will use to carry out His will and purpose in the world. In Matthew 16:18, after Peter’s great confession, Christ says that He would build His church. It is interesting that Christ does not say, “I will build THE church.” It is HIS church. It has always been His church and has never been our church. Because the church is Christ’s we ought to have the same understanding about it that Christ had, namely a biblical understanding as it is revealed in Christ’s Word.

In Acts 20:28, Paul instructs the Ephesian elders to “Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood.” In Matthew 16, Christ declared that the church was His church. In the Acts passage, Paul gives the reason why it is Christ’s – Christ purchased the church with His own blood. This certainly buttresses the notion that Christ can lay claim to the church. He determines what the church is and how it is to be run. This is the reason why Paul even sees the role of an elder as a divinely ordained position, “among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers” (cf. 1 Tim 3). The elders would have no authority in the church if it had not first been given to them by God.

1 Corinthians 4:17 gives another picture of what it means that the church is God’s divinely ordained institution. Paul tells the Corinthians in that passage that he would send Timothy to remind the church of his ways. Paul says that his ways “are in Christ, just as I teach everywhere in every church.” There was no room for human invention when it came to the work of the ministry. Paul was devoted to Christ’s ways – he made Christ’s ways his ways. Notice also the consistency with which Paul did his ministry. It was this way “everywhere in every church.” This Christ-centered ministry permeated his missions work because he understood that the church was God’s church and not his church (cf. 1 Cor 1:2).

It is God’s church and so God appoints the leaders. It is God’s church so God directs the ministry. In this very tangible way, Christ is building His church. This is the reason why Paul says in 1 Corinthians 12:28 that God has appointed in the church the various ministers and ministries. God governs the order in the church because it is His church (cf. 1 Cor 14:33). What greater statement is there about Christ’s identity with the church than Ephesians 1:22-23, “And He put all things in subjection under His feet, and gave Him as head over all things to the church, which is His body, the fullness of Him who fills all in all”? The church is described as the body of Christ. He is the head of the church and the church is subject to His headship (Eph 5:23-24; cf. Col 1:18). This is not an overbearing, cruel headship, but a loving relationship that shows Christ’s unbreakable commitment to His church. The language of Ephesians 5 is sometimes hard to follow because of the intermingling of imagery between Christ and the church and the husband and the wife. The marriage relationship is to be a picture of Christ’s commitment to the church. It is no wonder then that God hates divorce (Mal 2:16).

One potential point of confusion that I am happy Pastor John brought up is the distinction between the church and the parachurch. One of the reasons why this is a point of confusion is that it is a comparison of two institutions – one divinely ordained in Scripture and the other conceived by men. In this sense, the two are not comparable as two of the same kind. Rather, they must be examined as two different things.

I want to emphasize that I am not in any way saying that God cannot use the parachurch for His purposes. He certainly has and continues to do so. I am not saying that the parachurch is incapable of any good. Certainly I can bear testimony to the amazing ministry that parachurches provide having been part of an amazing parachurch ministry in college and even after college in seminary. The point that I am making is that if one really desires to be committed to ministry as God intended ministry to be done, he must primarily be committed to the church. Although the New Testament speaks of the universal, invisible, catholic church, it is also clear that the working out of ministry is done by means of local churches. In this sense, it might be argued that ontologically as believers we find identity in the universal church. But economically, our function as believers is best understood in the context of the local church. Regardless of whether you are involved in parachurch ministry or not, as helpful as parachurch ministry can be, as believers you are called to work out your spiritual giftedness and abilities in the church, because it is His church.

I want to elaborate on the differences between the church and the parachurch, but I will have to save that for a later time since this entry is getting long.

Lighthouse Bible Church IS a Local Church!!

As I have promised to those who have asked, I will be posting on topics that will no doubt generate some measure of controversy as I will press some of the hot button topics that many of our members have had to confront.

The local church versus parachurch controversy has long been an issue, not just in San Diego with LBC but throughout the Christian community nationwide, if not worldwide. Contrary to some reports by various individuals and parachurch ministries, I have never once stated that I hate parachurch ministries, believe that parachurch ministries are evil, or have pushed for people to leave parachurch ministries. I do have many concerns though, and I will stress several of them here.

Concern #1 - A Disregard for the Importance of the Local Church Ministry

There are many who have experienced many blessings through parachurch ministries (myself included) and there is no doubt that God can and will use various parachurch ministries to help people grow. But what is disconcerting is how many will show a passive attitude or even worse, a disdain for the importance of the local church. Granted, there are many local churches that have not conducted themselves well and are often unable to provide the breadth of ministries that are needed, especially for collegians. So many collegians, finding the convenience of a parachurch ministry to be quite the draw, will immerse themselves into the campus ministry, joining small groups, service teams, retreats, seminars, leadership roles and meetings, and a host of activities that will often keep them quite busy throughout the week and even the weekend, to the point where any discretionary time will be quickly taken up. With the demand for academic studies, other extra-curricular activities, the first candidate for getting axed out of the regular schedule will often be involvement in the local church. This is justified by many claiming that since they are involved in the "universal church" through the parachurch, there should be no problems with their lack of involvement.

This in itself is problematic in that the understanding of the "universal church" was never meant to be a justification to avoid being committed to the local church ministry. 1 Timothy 3:15 states the words of the apostle Paul:

But in case I am delayed, I write so that you may know how one ought to conduct himself in the household of God, which is the church of the living God, the pillar and support of the truth.

This follows the section on church leaders as well as conduct within the church relating to men's and women's roles and so there seems to be a clear indication that there is to be a certain structure and guidelines that a church must follow in order to constitute a legitimate local church body. There is supposed to be a clear accountability to God's Word as well as to the leaders that God calls for a church to submit to that needs to be in place (Hebrews 13:17; 1 Thessalonians 5:12-13).

My concern is with those who would advocate that involvement in a parachurch ministry can be a legitimate replacement for the local church. I would say that involvement in a parachurch ministry is fine but must be subordinate to a commitment to the local church being primary.

I was an advisor to a campus ministry a number of years ago and one of the servant leaders communicated that she was going to step down from her responsibilities at the parachurch ministry due to the fact that her load was quite heavy and that she couldn't do both the parachurch and her local church ministry. The response of the core leaders was quite surprising to me as they made an issue of her integrity to maintaining her commitment, while at the same time disregarding the policy that had been communicated to everyone that if one had to choose between local church and parachurch ministry, it would be no question that one should stick with the local church. When I brought this up, the leaders simply dismissed it and insisted that the greater issue was the integrity of the individual for not carrying out her commitment at the parachurch ministry. This to me showed an utter disregard for the importance of the local church ministry.

I recently had a discussion with a leader from another parachurch ministry who was surprised to hear me state the "priority" of the local church. He asked me to define that distinction and what ensued was a very enlightening response which simply portrayed a position that saw no distinction between the local church and the parachurch ministry. This again showed me a disregard for what seems to be a clear presentation of the New Testament about the importance of being involved in the local church.

It might be that because many have had negative experiences in a local church and a positive experience in a parachurch ministry that this kind of attitude might arise. Admittedly, there are many churches who unfortunately have not done a good job in fulfilling what the Scriptures call a church to be. But just because there is an abuse does not mean that the principle is wrong (as I have been told so many times regarding other issues). What really needs to be addressed is the lack of accountability that so many parachurch ministries have, no matter how well-intentioned they might be.

It is no surprise that many parachurch ministries fluctuate tremendously from year to year depending on the level of spirituality shown by the members. Doctrinal distinctives often change with the tide and whatever happens to be the flavor of the month will often dictate what will set the tone. Since there are no clear parameters set (other than to be as minimal as possible so as to provide the widest range of availability), decisions are made that often contradict the original intentions of those who founded the ministry. This is exactly what I found in the parachurch ministry that I was involved with, which had very purposely worked toward putting ourselves out of existence as a parachurch ministry as the goal was to equip people to strengthen the churches. But this purpose was later cast aside because, as I was told, "things had changed" and what might have been true before was no longer valid.

My challenge to parachurches would be this - how is it that the standards of a ministry can be so vague, especially when it comes to the qualifications of leaders when the Scriptures call very clearly for character and proven-ness, especially that no new convert should be a leader because of the danger of pride? How is it that individuals who would never qualify as an elder, deacon, or deaconess at a local church could so easily be given a role where there is teaching, shepherding, and training involved without proper equipping? How is it that someone can lead a discipleship small group when he or she has not been properly discipled? I have seen this happen time and time again, with the consequences being that of many who receive superficial help, often times outright dangerous counsel that is devoid of Biblical principles and authority. It is no surprise then to see many upon graduating from college go backwards, even to go as far as to deny the faith, which I have unfortunately seen take place even with those from my college years.

Lighthouse has had the opportunity to provide the kind of shepherding ministry that fulfills the Titus 2 mandate (older men/women training the younger men/women) as well as to provide the kind of accountability that individuals need through the membership process and accountability. The elders of the church take very seriously the role of shepherding the flock because we know that many are exposed to all sorts of dangerous influences that undermine the Lordship of Christ and the authority, sufficiency, and clarity of Scripture. With all the latest fads (i.e. seeker-sensitive churches, emergent churches, egalitarianism, open theism, etc.), there is a desperate need for believers to have the kind of shepherding that will protect them from the savage wolves that will come from WITHIN the church!!

Acts 20:27-30
For I did not shrink from declaring to you the whole purpose of God. Be on guard for yourselves and for all the flock, among which the Holy Spirit has made you overseers, to shepherd the church of God which He purchased with His own blood. I know that after my departure savage wolves will come in among you, not sparing the flock; and from among your own selves men will arise, speaking perverse things, to draw away the disciples after them.

This was Paul speaking to the elders of the Ephesian church and as he met them in Miletus, he gave them his final words as he anticipated his arrest in Jerusalem. Notice that Paul addresses them as "overseers" and that they are called to "shepherd the church of God." This is exactly what takes place in the "evangelical" world today - herds of wolves who infiltrate the church with all sorts of error, all in the name of "doing good."

It is on many occasions (though not exclusively) that doctrinal deviance takes place in parachurch ministries and there is absolutely no accountability or safeguards that are in place to protect people from bad doctrine. The local church with a godly eldership was God's design to protect the church. Again, it is unfortunate that many churches have not provided this but this does not mean that God's design has failed. It means that man has been disobedient and instead of changing God's design, we should actually FOLLOW IT!!!

I know that this has ended up being only the first concern - I will follow this up with more concerns shortly.

But suffice it to say - I truly do love the local church ministry that we have at Lighthouse and pray that we will humbly honor God through our obedience to fulfill the calling of what a church is meant to be according to His Word. We also need to pray for our sister local churches to really fulfill God's calling as well. We do need to pray for parachurch ministries as well so that they would honor God and respect His Word concerning the ministry of the local church.

Be Bold, Not Proud!

One issue that I have been intending to address on this blog is something that has caused some unfortunate confusion and misunderstanding in the church. Being a graduate of The Master’s Seminary, I understand that there is a perception (and sadly sometimes warranted) that “Master’s guys” have a knack for preaching cold, rigid theology in a domineering, blunt, and even arrogant way. John alluded to this in his previous entry that there is a certain unavoidable stigma that comes with being a TMS alumnus. I am, therefore, thankful that John elaborated on Lighthouse’s commitment to preach the truth of God in love. Paul refers to speaking truth in love in 1 Timothy 1:5 where he writes, “But the goal of our instruction is love from a pure heart and a good conscience and a sincere faith.” The relationship of love and truth is also the theme of much of the epistles of John. John writes, “Grace, mercy and peace will be with us, from God the Father and from Jesus Christ, the Son of the Father, in truth and love” (2 John 3).

Truth taught without the temperance of love is cold, impersonal, and oftentimes unnecessarily offensive. Love without the standard and foundation of truth is misguided, shallow, and oftentimes misleading. In order to love in a godly way, one must know and be committed to the truth about love as it is revealed in the Word of God. In order to preach the truth in a godly way, one must also understand and sincerely work to apply God’s heart of love.

I suppose the issue that arises from this discussion is where conviction plays a role in our communication of beliefs. Unfortunately, when one speaks out of conviction it is frequently misunderstood as bold arrogance. However, in 1 Thessalonians 2:2, Paul states, “…we had the boldness in our God to speak to you….” While Paul characterizes his instruction as boldness, his life was at the same time indisputably characterized by humility (cf. 2 Cor 12:11). If we take a closer look at what is intended in 1 Thessalonians 2, it helps to provide a greater understanding of how one can be bold in proclamation and yet remain humble. While it is unfortunate that conviction and boldness are misinterpreted as arrogance, it is equally or even more unfortunate that some with good reason to have conviction cannot communicate their convictions with “humble boldness.”

How can Paul say that he and his partners in ministry had boldness to speak? First, he understood that the authority behind what he communicated was not found in himself but in God. I have often thought that one of the keys to true humility is giving credit to the right people and not undeservedly taking credit for oneself. Notice that Paul qualifies his boldness by saying that it is “in our God.” Outside of the revealed truth of God, Paul had no grounds for speaking with boldness. Isn’t it true that when we speak with boldness without first being quick to hear the Word and fully contemplating what the Bible says about a matter we discover that our bold assertions are actually foolishness? Paul’s only claim to boldness came in God (cf. 2 Cor 10:17). Only by thinking God’s thoughts after Him and speaking God’s words could he speak with boldness. This actually says less about the character of Paul than it does the character of Paul’s God. He understood that without God he was reduced to nothing.

Second, and this is certainly related, Paul understood that the source of the message itself was from God. The instruction that Paul bore was “the gospel of God” (2:2). It is God’s gospel. This is the reason Paul states, “For we do not preach ourselves but Christ Jesus as Lord, and ourselves as your bond-servants for Jesus’ sake” (2 Cor 4:5). To be committed to anything else than preaching the true gospel of Christ is futility and focusing on peripherals at best. This is the same instruction that Paul gave to Timothy, “Preach the Word!” (2 Tim 4:2). Don’t preach useless words (2:14)! Don’t preach worldly and empty chatter (2:16)! Don’t preach useless speculation (2:23)! Don’t preach deceptive messages (3:13)! Don’t preach ear tickling stories (4:3)! Don’t preach according to the desires of men (4:3)! Don’t preach myths (4:4)! Preach the unadulterated gospel of God!

It is possible to speak conviction with boldness and yet to maintain a spirit of humility. Of course much of this is dependent upon whether the one who speaks backs his words with a lifestyle of humility. In any case, one must not be too quick to judge someone as arrogant because he speaks with confidence or boldness. Of course even when something is spoken properly from proper motives and with proper means, one’s message still may not be received the way it was truly intended. This places even more responsibility upon the one who speaks with conviction to make sure that truth is indeed spoken and colored with godly love.

Holy #*$*!!*$#??

The delicacy of communicating the truth in love is one that is not easy to find and too often imbalanced both in the presentation as well as in the reception due to the bias of the speaker as well as the hearer. For example, by virtue (which is disputed by some) of being a graduate of The Master's Seminary and having attended Grace Community Church for many years, much of what people hear is filtered through a preconceived grid that I presume to know more than others about the Scripture and that I, and only I, have the correct view and everyone else is dead wrong. Not only that, there is an assumption that I am totally lacking in love and simply want to win the theological debate at any cost. It is a foregone conclusion for many to simply assume that I will parrot whatever John MacArthur says out of blind loyalty and that I do not have a mind to think on my own. To add the whipped cream and cherry on top of all that, it is also assumed that I am anti-everything that is opposed to the hyper-fundamentalist viewpoint, which typically equates to being anti-Holy Spirit, anti-women, anti-love, anti-fun, and anti-reality.

To all this I would simply respond in this way - I am an earthen vessel, not fit for anything of my own merit but because of the imputed righteousness of Christ, I have been called to the heavenly grace of salvation granted by the atoning death of Christ on the cross on my behalf, and through His resurrection am secured to the hope of eternal life. Not only that, I have been granted a stewardship of the mysteries of the gospel as a preacher of God's Word, not because I deserve it, but because I have been called to proclaim His excellencies as opposed to the caving in to the agenda of the world.

I have to admit that I am not quite perfect, in fact, far from it. Yet I am compelled by a high view of God and a high view of His Word not to accommodate the tickling ears of the majority, but to simply please my commander by accurately and boldly conveying His message. To that end, I hope to be a humble vessel, not seeking to draw attention to myself but to point people toward the one way, the one truth, and the one life - Jesus Christ.

So for those of you who have a difficult time understanding why I preach what I do, it's because I'm not ultimately called to preach for your sake, but for the sake of honoring God. And the preaching of God's inspired Word does include the purposes of teaching, reproving, correcting, and training in righteousness. We must defend the honor of Christ most of all. As He is our Lord and Savior, anything that demeans Him and defames Him must be addressed without hesitation and without shame. I am all the more convinced that those who would advocate the idea of our Lord "cussing" and dropping F-bombs on people with His speech (alluding to my response of a certain speaker commenting on the cleansing of the temple in Luke 19:45-46) are at best showing an insensitivity to the holiness of Christ for the sake of being sensitive to man, and at worst, blaspheming the holy name of our Lord Jesus by attributing sinful speech to the perfect Son of God.

There is no room for "holy cussing" (as alluded to in the title) in the life of our Savior. Neither should it be in our own lives. In a vain effort to try and make Christ relatable to sinful man, we are never to denigrate and defame our Lord with such insidious claims. This is to cross a line that is not to be crossed. We treat God as holy because His holiness demands it. Not that we are perfect in doing so - we all do fail each day in our own lives to our sinfulness, which will never be fully dealt with in regard to its presence in our lives until we reach heaven in our glorified state. But I am not talking about us in this instance. I am talking about the person of Christ and how we are to present Him and to portray Him not only to this world through our evangelism, but also in edification to our fellow brothers and sisters in Christ. Consider Colossians 1:13-29 - we are called to proclaim a high view of Christ and are called to ADMONISH and TEACH every man with all wisdom to present every man complete in Christ.

Jesus is the Word (John 1:1). Let's not put words in His mouth that He would never speak forth. Instead, let us humbly submit to the words that have come from the mouth of the Son of God and humbly obey them.

Sola Christus - Christ alone
Sola Scriptura - Scripture alone
Sola Gratia - grace alone
Sola Fide - faith alone
Soli Deo Gloria - to the glory of God alone

Amen.

It is time...

After much deliberation and consideration, I have finally decided to enter the blog world. While I have wanted to make entries and comments for some time, I would refrain from starting an account, not wanting to get drawn into endless debate with individuals who would only be looking to argue.

Now that I am enlightened to the power of blogging, I have decided to make my foray into this electronic world of communication so that I might offer my thoughts on various issues as it relates to the church. I hope to provide some challenging entries and would welcome your comments (though they most likely will not get posted).

As a prelude, I would like to say that my study in Romans has been most challenging in light of the mercies of God that have been presented through the first 11 chapters. As we have just introduced Romans 12, it looks like we will be studying the first two verses for some time, especially addressing the issue of what it means to offer up our lives as living sacrifices to God in worship. It has been very convicting as well as exhilarating to consider the truth that because of God's mercies, I have been granted the high calling of offering up my life daily as a living sacrifice to God, a sacrifice that is to be holy and acceptable to God which should exhibit itself in every aspect of life being an act of worship to God.

What amazes me is how much the church has sold out to the world and in fact has become more and more conformed to the spirit of the postmodern age. While we are not called to be ignorant of the culture around us, we are not meant to conform to the world (Romans 12:2). We are called to be transformed by the renewing of our mind, which should take place by the regular intake of God's Word through the illumining work of the Holy Spirit, which should be sufficient to teach us, reprove us, correct us, and train us in righteousness that we might be adequate and equipped for every good work (2 Timothy 3:16-17).

Lighthouse Bible Church is committed to shining the light of God's truth AND love - never are the two to be separated. We are challenged to communicate the truth IN love (Ephesians 4:15) so that we are not simply stating cold orthodoxy but with the intention of winning people to seek first God's kingdom and righteousness in every area of life (Matthew 6:33). So let us take a firm stand on both speaking the truth in love and loving people in the truth.

Tomorrow - we get it on!!

Shine the Light!

The pastors of Lighthouse Bible Church have decided to call this blogspot "Shine the Light!" because it seems to have become a sort of unofficial church motto at LBC. However, it also comes as a reminder of the believer's responsibility and privilege to be a bright-shining representative and ambassador for Christ in a darkened, unbelieving world. In Matthew 5:16, Christ preaches, "Let your light shine before men in such a way that they may see your good works, and glorify your Father who is in heaven." As believers, we are to Shine the Light!

There has been so much emphasis upon "inreach" in churches and Christian organizations nowadays that outreach has taken a sort of backseat in many ministries. For many churchgoers, outreach is just one of several functional programs in the life of the body (i.e. hospital visitation, door-to-door evangelism, summer missions, etc.). There is a tendency to forget that Christians are a constant presentation of the gospel in their daily lives. 1 Timothy 3 lists the qualifications of a biblical elder and what is interesting is that very little is written about what the elder must do and much is written about what an elder must be. The more daunting fact that comes across is the comprehensive scope of the elder's example. Whether in the home with wife or children, whether in the community with neighbors and unbelievers, whether in finances or pleasures, the elder is called to be an example of godly living. At any given moment of the day, anyone should be able to examine his life and say, "That is what being a Christian (let alone a Christian leader) is all about."

Any believer is given the same responsibility of bearing consistent Christian character in everyday life. 1 Peter 2:12 exhorts us, "Keep your behavior excellent among the Gentiles, so that in the thing in which they slander you as evildoers, they may because of your good deeds, as they observe them, glorify God in the day of visitation." In this clear statement regarding lifestyle evangelism, Peter instructs believers not to be conformed to the sinful practices of the world but to live holy lives so that it would lead to the salvation of those who observe their behavior. Certainly faith comes by hearing and hearing by the Word of Christ (Rom 10:17), but the effectiveness of the proclamation of the gospel is weakened if it is done through a mouthpiece of unholy living.

Is your life an outreach ministry? Shine the light!