The Worst Sinner You Know

Are you the worst sinner you know? How you answer that question says a lot about your theology as well as the condition of your soul. Some Christians find this questions to be difficult, if not inappropriate. So let me tell you up front that I am convinced the answer to this question, when posed to a Christian, ought to always be, "Yes. I am the worst sinner I know."  Many balk at this idea--pointing to people who are constantly overwhelmed by guilt and find no relief. Such theology can seem cruel. Yet when properly understood this leads to deliverance rather than to despair. Knowing ourselves and knowing our Savior highlights our transgressions and Christ's glories in such a way that we are both humbled and made happy by the grace of God in Christ.

The Apostle Paul wrote of himself in a way that demonstrates what he believed about himself. First he said he was "least of the Apostles" (1 Cor. 15:9), then "least of all the saints" (Eph. 3:8), and, at the end of his life, he saw himself as the "foremost" of sinners (1 Tim 1:15). This, combined with Paul's ongoing struggle with sin described in Romans 7:13-25, gives a picture of the Apostle's self-image. Though now a saint he remained, in his own eyes, the worst sinner he knew due to his wicked past and even his present corruption. Note what the Second London Confession has to say about the sin nature in believers:   Continue at Joe Thorn

Porn, Pride, and Praise

According to a study by Covenant Eyes, roughly half of all professing Christian men and one-fifth of all professing Christian women admit to being porn addicts. Other reports indicate the problem could be even more extensive.

Whatever the exact numbers, porn is a problem, a growing problem, and an increasingly accessible problem. 

“The Internet is the crack cocaine of pornography,” says Heath Lambert, author of the forthcoming book, Finally Free: Fighting for Purity with the Power of Grace. Lambert is assistant professor of biblical counseling at Boyce College and teaches at Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Kentucky. We asked him about the growing epidemic of pornography in the lives of Christians, and about the roots behind the sin.

The Deep Root of Porn

 

The sin of pornography is directly linked to the sin of pride, he says. 

“At the root of viewing pornography is an arrogant heart that says: ‘I will have whatever I want. And if I want pictures of naked women, I am going to have it. And I don’t care if God doesn’t want it, and I don’t care if my wife doesn’t like it, and I don’t care if I might lose my ministry over it — I am going to look at it.’ And in the moment of temptation, in the moment of the sin, when you dive in, that’s the statement of your heart.   Continue at Tony Reinke

Open Letter to Mark Driscoll (2013)

Dear Pastor Mark --

I know you don't read any of the little blogs, or people who are trying to make their own tribe, but others do, and I think it's worth writing a brief open letter to you this week based on your epic video from this weekend.  

I think it's fantastic that you can walk away from the Gospel Coalition, and hand over the reigns to Acts29, and with no muss and no fuss start your own tribe.  It's proof that you have something which most of us don't have.  I'm sure there's a Greek word for it, but unfortunately I don't speak Greek.

Someone with more time on their hands might want to go through this 21-minute monologue and find all the ingrown hairs and blemishes, but sadly: I'm on a tight schedule this week.  I'm writing today about the funniest parts of this video.  In your attempts here to get tribes to talk to each other, you have somehow done two things so well that they deserve a mention.

The first is this: you are fantastic at making much of yourself.  You are the master of the humblebrag now that the meme is dead and the ship has sailed.  Like a self-aware version of Ari Gold from Entourage, you drop all the names you know to demonstrate your position -- but dutifully, you're not like any of them.  T.D. Jakes didn't hardly even know you when he met you, for pete's sake.  And thankfully: you're nothing like the homeschooled fundies who can't make a tribe for themselves, who act drunk even though they would never touch the stuff.  You're a tribal leader.

If anyone knows how to salvage his own reputation from the doctrinal and moral pratfalls and frankly-insulting egoisms for which you are actually well-known, it's you -- and it's funny to watch you do it as you get older and your audience stays the same age.    Continue at Frank Turk

The Greatest Danger to Your Pastor’s Spiritual Growth

I have always believed that the highest character trait of a Christian is humility. There are many statements in the Bible that support my position. Here are just a few: 

• This is the one I esteem: he who is humble and contrite in spirit, and trembles at my word. Isaiah 66:2b
• Whoever humbles himself like this child is the greatest in the kingdom of heaven. Matthew 18:4
• Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. Philippians 2:3
• Remind the people to be subject to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready to do whatever is good, to slander no one, to be peaceable and considerate, to show true humility toward all men. Titus 3:1-2

I was thinking of these verses last week as Tara and I worked on a magazine article on the topic of responding to narcissists in your church. Initially, I thought it a bit strange when the editor asked us to write on this topic. After all, neither Tara nor I carry special education or training in diagnosing or dealing with narcissism. But the editor asked us because he rightly discerned that many times, church conflicts involve people who could rightly be described as narcissists:

Having excessive and grandiose interest in self; displaying extreme arrogance and a sense of entitlement; full of hubris (overweening pride) and often unwilling to accept any hint of criticism.    Continue at David V. Edling

Five Big Myths About Calvinism

I speak for many when I say that I have not always embraced the doctrines of grace or what is commonly called Calvinism. Its actually unfortunate that a man’s name is associated with the doctrines that came out of the Protestant Reformation. Calvin was not the first to articulate these truths, but merely was the chief systematizer of such doctrines. There was actually nothing in Calvin that was not first seen in Luther, and much of Luther was first found in Augustine. Luther was an Augustinian monk, of course. We would also naturally affirm that there was nothing in any of these men that was not first found in Paul and Peter and John in the New Testament.

Even now, I have no desire to be a Calvinist in the Corinthian sense of the word – a follower of John Calvin, per say. Though I believe Calvin was a tremendous expositor of the Scriptures and had many great insights, I am not someone who believes he was in any way infallible. I am with Spurgeon who declared, “There is no soul living who holds more firmly to the doctrines of grace than I do, and if any man asks me whether I am ashamed to be called a Calvinist, I answer – I wish to be called nothing but a Christian; but if you ask me, do I hold the doctrinal views which were held by John Calvin, I reply, I do in the main hold them, and rejoice to avow it.” (C. H. Spurgeon, a Defense of Calvinism)   Continue at John Samson

A God-Centered Sexual Ethic

Intro: Remember that Corinth was afflicted with the love of philosophy and rhetoric. They wanted that which sounded good and seemed wise. It didn’t matter whether or not it was right, they just liked fine sounding and wise sounding things. (Cf. Acts 17:21 They spent their time either hearing or telling new things. Beware the itch for new things when the old will suffice.) Their pride led to division. Now, remember that James told us that envy and strife are accompanied by every evil work (James 3:16). It is no wonder, then, that Paul had to rebuke the Corinthians for the approval of a church member committing incest (1Corinthians 5:1-13). A proud and envious person who is striving with others is never satisfied, and that person is very likely to seek out his satisfaction in any place and manner that he can find it, except in God.

It is in this context that Paul establishes a God-Centered sexual ethic.

1. The Relationship Between Worship And Sex :9-11

They were once sexually immoral, but God has forgiven them and cleansed them of these things. The gospel of Christ is a message of sacrifice of self as well as good news that God gives us that which is better. Having cleansed them of their sins, God has given them Himself.

That being said, immorality is idolatry. Note the downward spiral of sin in Romans 1:18-17. The worship of the Creator is traded for the worship of the creature and carnal passions. It is not that the carnal passions are wrong, but outside of the context of worship of God, they are filthy and immoral, and they lead to that which is unnatural in the pursuit of pleasure and satisfaction. One only need observe the glorification of sex and the objectification of people in our nation to recognize that immoral sex is an act of misdirected worship.

True worship leads to monogamous, heterosexual pleasure. Note that the mandate given to Adam and Eve was not only to take dominion, but first to be fruitful and multiply. This mandate is about imaging forth God. It is about worshiping our Creator and showing His greatness through the way that we live. Being fruitful means having sex and raising children. Note also that there is pleasure associated with it, because Moses said that the man and woman were to cleave to each other, and that they were naked and not ashamed (Genesis 2:24-25). Man and woman were to enjoy their union, and they were unashamed in their union.  Continue at Pastoral Musings

Insecurity Produces Pride

If you have the reputation of being somewhat critical, “hard edged”, and defensive–it may reveal much more than you realize. Believe it or not, there is a direct and explicit connection between a lack of confidence in God’s unconditional love for you and your tendency to be critical, assertive, and defensive. When you function as if God’s love and acceptance of you depends on your spiritual achievements, your obedience, and your performance, you develop a “defensive assertion of your own righteousness and defensive criticism of others.”

Big thanks to Tom Wood for highlighting these insightful words from Richard Lovelace:

Christians who are no longer sure that God loves and accepts them in Jesus, apart from their present spiritual achievements, are subconsciously insecure persons–much less secure than non-Christians–because they have too much light to rest easily under the constant bulletins they receive from their Christian environment about the holiness of God and the righteousness they are supposed to have. Their insecurity shows itself in pride, a fierce defensive assertion of their own righteousness and defensive criticism of others.  Continue at Tullian Tchividjian

Gay Pride?

Homosexuality is not a topic I enjoy talking (or writing) about, but given its recent rise in the news cycle (thanks to the controversy over same-sex marriage) it’s a topic that I, as a Christian, feel compelled to discuss for several reasons. One, to combat the continued misrepresentations from supporters of the homosexual agenda on the Christian position on homosexuality. Two, to continue to reason these things out in the public square so that the nature of the debate will progress. Three, to help fellow Christians who either are misinformed on this issue or haven’t studied this issue enough to form a cogent response when the opportunity presents itself. In other words, I talk about this issue because it is continually brought to our attention by homosexual activists and the media; therefore, a response is called for. I am fully aware that most people do not share my view on this issue because I know that most people do not have a Biblical worldview. All I ask is that if you disagree with what I am about to say that you fairly represent what I am going to say and attack the argument, not the person.

Over this past weekend, Chicago held it’s annual Gay Pride parade, a parade to celebrate and promote acceptance for homosexuals and their lifestyle. I find it interesting that the word “pride” is used. The concept is obvious; homosexuals should take pride in who they are and how they live. Pride is, of course, the opposite of shame or stigma, so acceptance of the homosexual lifestyle and of homosexuals first comes when they accept themselves as normal, functioning members of the society. Then they can advocate for acceptance from the general populace.   Continue at NewCreationPerson

Flattery Can Kill

She was a well-dressed middle-aged woman. She arrived early at one of my first services as senior pastor of Gages Lake Bible Church. Immediately my "new person" radar went up. All pastors have this sixth sense, but for young, first-time, small church pastors it is always at the highest levels of alert.

I walked up to her and briefly chatted before the service began. I learned that she had driven a great distance and had listened to a few of my sermons online before deciding to check us out.

After the service I purposely singled out the new lady (we'll call her Rose). Rose was overflowing with compliments. "Wow! I haven't heard preaching like that in a long time. You're a breath of fresh air in this community." I offered some preacher speak like, "No, it's all God."

But inside my heart was dancing the two-step. Rose's flattery seemed a balm to my restless soul. Pastoring was new to me, and I was pretty insecure about my preaching. I had yet to find my voice. Here was a seasoned believer whose opinion mattered to me. She'd probably been attending church longer than I'd been alive.

The flattery continued. "You're the only church in this area that preaches the true gospel message." I was pretty sure this wasn't at all true, but I let that go. Why spoil a good thing? Maybe every other evangelical pastor in town embraced a full-throated heterodoxy. I had yet to develop relationships with any other local pastors, so her assessment seemed as good as any.  Keep Reading >>>

Satan the Proud and Powerful (Part 2)

In our day there has been a renewal of interest in the work of Satan. Hollywood has given us The Exorcist and The Omen and a host of other films to whet our appetite for the occult. Within Christian circles there has arisen a new concern for ministries of deliverance. Some of these deliverance ministries have developed a bizarre and radically unbiblical view of demon possession and deliverance.

For example, we hear that we can recognize the departure of a demon from a human soul by a manifest sign that is linked to the particular point of bondage. We have people saying that particular demons cause particular sins. There is, they say, a demon of alcohol, a demon of depression, a demon of tobacco, and so on. I have listened to tapes from well-known deliverance ministers (whose names I will not mention, to protect the guilty) in which they teach the signs of departure of the demon. A sigh, for example, indicates the departure of the demon of tobacco. Since the tobacco demon enters with the inhaling of smoke, he leaves us with an audible exhale. Likewise vomiting may be the sign of the departure of the demon of alcohol. There are demons for every conceivable sin. Not only must each one of these demons he exorcized, but there are necessary procedures to keep them from returning on a daily basis.    Keep Reading...

Satan the Proud and Powerful (Part 1)

Where did the idea of a red-flanneled, pitchfork-bearing Devil come from? The roots of this grotesque caricature of Satan are found in the Middle Ages. It was popular sport in medieval days to mock the Devil by describing him in ludicrous terms. There was a method in this madness. The medieval church believed in the reality of Satan. It was aware that Satan was a fallen angel who suffered from an overdose of pride. Pride was Satan’s supreme weakness. To resist Satan, that proud but fallen creature, required fierce combat. The combat focused on Satan’s most vulnerable point, his pride. The theory was this: Attack Satan at his point of weakness and he will flee from us.

What better way to attack Satan’s pride than to depict him as a cloven-hoofed court jester in a red suit? These silly images of Satan were intentional caricatures. Unfortunately, later generations responded to the caricatures as if they were intended to be the real thing.    Keep Reading...

15 Characteristics of Pride

It’s hard to put on humility if you don’t think you have pride. The characteristics of pride can be understood as follows:

(1) Being blind, unable to see pride. Pride envelops itself in smoke unless you’re in the mirror of God’s word and God, by His grace, allows you to see your sin and its magnitude. Many people see the logs in other people’s eyes and maybe the speck in their own. They may even say “I’m proud” and then move right on as if it were insignificant.

(2) Being unthankful. Proud people think they deserve only what is good. The result is, why should they be thankful? As a matter of fact, they may even complain because they think they deserve better. They tend to be critical and complainers. One of our professors at the seminary sized up a student, saying, “This person is a walking minus sign!” They may grumble, be discontent, see the downside of everything, be quarrelsome and divisive. No one is safe around this type of person.

(3) Outbursts of anger, withdrawing, pouting, being moody or impatient because one’s rights or schedules aren’t being met. Keep Reading...

Pride and Prejudice and Porn

Pornography teaches young men to view women as depersonalized sex objects, and because pornography seems to create an insatiable desire for increasingly extreme forms of objectification, the hard-core pornography common today and readily accessible to anyone with access to the internet is shocking for its level of violence and degradation. According to Dines, hard-core porn is a staple on many college campuses and there is little stigma attached to consuming it. Read it all HERE

HT: Tim Challies

HAROLD CAMPING, JUDGMENT DAY, & THE REST OF THE STORY - PART I

When Camping’s first prediction failed, claiming miscalculation, he then began to reinvent his scheme with the idea that God ended the church age. “Sometime earlier” wrote Camping, “God was finished using the churches to represent the kingdom of God.”[3] In his book “We Are Almost There!” we find that Camping chose the date of May 21, 1988 for the end of the church age.[4] Read the rest  HERE

The Personal Cure for Pride

Let these four phrases be the heartbeat of our ministries (and our lives):

1. I am a sinner (1 Tim. 1:15)

• Remember what I was (think on the sins you’ve been delivered from)
• Remember what I could be now (if God had not stopped you)
• Remember what I still am (research your own heart)
• Remember what I could yet be (if God removed His restraining grace)

Follow the example of godly me from the past who turned the devil’s deadly weapon of pride back upon himself by using it to keep them humble.

Robert M. McCheyne: “Oh, for true unfeigned humility; I know not how to be truly humble. I know I have cause to be humble, but I do not know one half of that cause; I know I am proud, and yet I do Not know half of my pride.”

J. Edwards: (twenty years after his conversion) “I abhor the bottomless, infinite depths of wickedness and pride left in my own heart.”

Richard Baxter: “Pride not only goes with me into the study, but often chooses my very subject and sometimes my very words. Pride writes my sermon, pride goes with me to the pulpit; it forms my tone and animates my delivery. It takes me off of that which may be displeasing to the people and sets me in pursuit of vain applause from my hearers. And when I have preached, pride goes home with me and causes me to eagerly seek for sings that I am applauded, rather than signs that my message was useful in the saving of souls.” Keep Reading>>>

When Humility Is Pride

Rev. Joshua Symonds (1739–1788) was the pastor of a church in Bedford, England who suffered from frequent afflictions, temptations, and what we might call depression—“family cares and severe bodily affliction sometimes cast a gloom over his spirit and led him to take desponding views of himself” [1]. Symonds’s despondency and sense of personal worthlessness engrossed his life, which is made clear in the letters he exchanged with his friend John Newton.

Symonds was aware of his own depravity and spiritual barrenness. But the bigger problem in Symonds’s life was not in thinking too lowly of himself, but in thinking too lowly of the Savior. He was sliding into legalism. He was aware of his own sinfulness, but unable to appreciate the all-sufficiency of the Savior. Continue Reading>>>

The Fifty Fruits of Pride: A Self-Diagnostic

1. Want to be Well Known or Important (Isaiah 14:13-15; James 3:13-16; Romans 12:6)

• “I am selfishly ambitious. I really want to get ahead and make a name for myself. I want to be someone important in life. I like having a position or title. I far prefer leading to following.”

2. Sinfully Competitive

• “I am overly competitive. I always want to win or come out on top and it bothers me when I don‟t.”

3. Want to Impress People (Luke 10:38-42)

• “I want people to be impressed with me. I like to make my accomplishments known.”

a. Clothes or jewelry you wear.
b. Vehicle you drive.
c. Furniture you own.
d. House you live in.
e. Place you live.
f. Company you work for.
g. Amount of money you earn.
h. Food you eat.
i. How spiritual you are.
j. What you look like (physical appearance).
k. What you have accomplished.
l. What you know.
m. Where you went to school.
n. Who you know.
o. What your background is.

Read the rest HERE

Why You Should Raise Up Preachers in Your Church

I was overcome with joy this Sunday as I listened to a young man preach God’s word in my church: he was faithful to the text, he heralded the gospel of Jesus, he stirred my soul. Tragically, many church planters and pastors never experience this. They never share their pulpits. Fear, pride, and laziness generally drive this, and it harms Christ’s church, and, ironically, the planter himself. Continue Reading>>>

Humility