Cultural Conundrum

Lately I’ve been reading Vintage Church by Pastor Mark Driscoll of Mars Hill Church in Seattle, Wa.  I’ve reached the final chapter, which deals with the church’s imapct on culture. I found it to be very interesting and insightful into how exactly Christians can have a lasting effect on the culture in which we live.  That being said, most of what I say came from Driscoll’s book…

Basically, you can turn on a tv or open a newspaper and figure out pretty quickly that the world isn’t perfect. Natural disasters, wars, economic dismay, and many other perdicaments plague society.  On top of those tragedies, the world, America included, is in a rut of moral confussion where normality is constantly redefined to suit the latest trend.  Homosexuality, adultary, lying, theft, drug abuse, pornography, abuse, etc. are allowed to flow freely through media outlets and sadly, have become normal “lifestyle choices” for the general public. ”Sure drugs are bad, but tons of people do them. It’s not that unusual…” “Is he having an affair with her? It doesn’t surprise me…they never really seemed happy together anyway.” Remarks like this flood not only tv dramas but everyday real life. As a Christian, watching morality continually thrown into the gutter haunts me. I cannot claim to be perfectly uninvolved with the problem, but as I strive for perfecting through forgiveness in the blood of Jesus, I can’t help but wonder what I could be doing to reverse the trend and take culture with me.

Sadly, the first thing to admit when contemplating how to improve the world is that only so much improvement can be done. We live in a fallen creation under the curse of sin.  Until Jesus returns and restores everything to how it should be, some will go hungry; some will be hurt; some will die.  Since I’m not Jesus (obviously) I cannot ultimately solve all the problems.

The second flaw in perfecting the world that I must admit is that honestly, I’m not that important.  I hold no political office and when I sneeze, news stations and poparatzi don’t flood in to investigate details.  Even as a blogger, I am merely one of millions who post their opinions and ideas every minute.  Just like some people have more monetary influence than most, there are some people who hold all the cards when it come to cultural direction.  And, when it comes to widespread influence, change almost always come from the top of the river downstream.  Think about it: if you go to the store and buy the absolute ugliest shirt you can find, then wear it the next day, everybody will point and laugh and wonder what hole you stuck your head in while you bought your shirt; but, if a movie star wears the same shirt to their blockbuster premier, fashion gurus will “ooh” and “ahh” at such “marvelously unique attire.”  Movie stars have more weight in deciding the cool trends than the average joe next door. That’s just the way society works right now.

Since change has to come from the top, the Christian church must be concerned with influencing the top of the cultural chain.  Practically, this means influencing major cities or areas of population– the epicenters of cultural influence.  Pastor Driscoll certainly would know something about that.  As the largest church in Seattle, WA (which happens to be the most un-churched city in the country), he has a unique opportunity to potentially influence and impact culture.  Even Paul understood this trickle-down flow of influence.  He focused soley on large cities.  All of his letter to congregations were to churches in large cities.  The churches he planted in Corinth, Ephesus, and Rome were stragetically placed to influence and evangelize the maximum number of people.  Churches in large cities have a unique ability to preach salvation and repentence to much greater numbers.

To do this, they must become a city within a city; a countercultural community within a metropolis.  While their surrounding city is running rampant with sin and disparity, urban churches can shine a light by pursuing Jesus while reaching out and loving the people of the city.  For some churches, this means feeding the hungry or sheltering the homeless.  For others it may mean hosting community events and youth athletic events.  However, it is vitally important that all of these outreach ministries ultimately be used as a stage to preach the Gospel or else the church is nothing more that a bunch of philantropists “giving back” to feel better about themselves.  The church within a large city has the ability to redefine culture for the sake of the world.

All this posses and interesting question for me here in small town, Alabama.  What should I be doing to reach a fallen culture?

The obvious answer is found in school.  Approx. 2500 students gather under one roof for seven hours a day.  There isn’t a more perfect place to live a countercultural lifestyle to share Jesus.  With only one year of school left, I wonder if I’ve really done all I can to reach my minature city.  For any Christian student reading this, I would challenge you to view your school as your city– a society of cultural depravity watching for you to do something radical for Jesus.

For my church (Capshaw Baptist Church), we actually couldn’t be a more strategic location if we tried.  As one of the fastest growing communities in the region, new people are pouring in all the time and our Bible-preaching pastors present the gospel on a weekly basis.  Our leadership’s direction for church growth and outreach is unbelievable!  I pray the Holy Spirit would continue working through them and continue to change lives for the glory of Christ!

So, in summary, the fact is there is very little that I, as a single individual can do.  To see cultural reform in this world the church has to reach out to the cities where the majority of people live.  But most importantly, every Christian must keep focus on Christ and remember that while Satan may have control over the world momentarily, Jesus is sitting on His throne and ruling over all.  One day, He will return and restore the earth to perfection.

For more reading, I highly recomment Vintage Church. Driscoll explains how a church can reach the lost in alot more detail.

Happy Earth Day?

So today is Earth Day, and to me personally, one of the weirdest celebratory days of the year.

The basic idea is that for one day we should “go green” and be eco-aware and make conscious effort to preserve and conserve this planet.  Should we recyle and try to not pollute the air with our massive trucks and SUVs? Sure! But should we go so far as to claim that because of human technology the world is going to be destroyed? Eh, probably not…

I’m all for being a good steward of the planet.  After all, God did appoint Adam to rule justly over the creation.  So recycling and limiting pollution is great.  But I’m not losing any sleep over the ozone layer and global warming.  I’m not even convinced the ozone hole and global warming exist! Besides that, all attempts at restoring the planet amount to wasted energy fighting a dead cause anyway.  Revelation 21 promises a new heaven and a new earth.  Eventually, God is going to hit the reset button and creation will return to it’s original form– a perfect earth in pristine condition with Jesus Christ ruling over all.  Oh and the coolest part about that? Jesus is going to be there! For me at least, I look forward to that earth; and while I will do my part to be responsible now, I’m not exactly worried about the fate of the current earth.

So, happy earth day!  Think green thoughts and all that jazz, but more importantly think about the glorious new earth await God’s children who have placed their faith in Jesus!

Judges 4-5/ This One’s for the Ladies: Masculinity, Femininity, and the Glory of Jesus

I apologize for not posting anything new in so long! Lately, I just haven’t been on the computer that much and the majority of my free time has been spent studying Judges 4-5.  Last Wednesday I preached on that passage…by far one of the cooler passages of the Bible I’ve been able to closely examine.  For full audio of that sermon, check out www.storylineframework.wordpress.com

Like I said, Judges is a really sweet book.  It’s all about Israel’s repetitive sins; every judges encouters a similar situation where Israel has turned their back on God and begun following the pagan gods of the surrounding nations.  Judges 4 is no different…

Israel has been handed over into the hands of the Cannanites and is living in slavery.  They are severly oppressed by a king named Jabin and his army commander Sisera.  We are told that Sisera has a fleet of 900 iron chariots, the equivalent to modern day tanks.  With an army like that, there was little to no hope of Israel every living in freedom as an independent nation again.  They cry out to God for deliverance, and he begins developing an escape route for Israel.  At the time, a woman named Deborah is judging Israel.  This is very significant.  The Bible doesn’t provide specific background on why she is in charge, but the most logical and likely reason is that the men of Israel are too caught up in sin to step up to lead.  In a way, Deborah’s being in charge is a form of God’s judgement upon Israel’s men for being to spiritually weak to do their job.  Deborah is in a position that she should never have had to be in.  This is not to say, however, that women should never take any spiritual initiative and simply sit back on their heels to let men do all the hard work.  Women should be pursuing righteousness, and they should be following after God’s commandment.  Like Deborah, Godly women will be used when men don’t step up first.  Also, women will be used in different ways that only women are intended for.  The pattern of the Old Testament, and the direct command of 1 Timothy 2, show that men should be in the area of leadership over an entire nation or church body, but older women should exercise authority over younger women and mentor them to become Godly wives, mothers, and females within the church. 

But back to Judges…Deborah is told by God to summon Barak to lead an army to liberate Israel from the Cannanites.  Barak is promised to completely destroy the Cannanite army, but rather jump on board with God’s plan immediately, Barak tells Deborah that he will only go if she accompanies him.  What a coward!  Barak is promised a victory by the same God that tumbled the walls of Jericho, and yet he insists that a woman lead him into battle!  Again, just a sign of how weak the men of Israel were at this time…Deborah does go along with Barak, but she tells him that because of his hesitance, God will see to it that the glory of the battle goes to a woman.

Out of nowhere, 10,000 men volunteer to answer Barak’s call to battle and the army of Israel is prepared for battle on top of Mount Tabor.  Sisera got word of the uprising and collected his troops and chariots on the feild at the base of the mountain, a field border by Tabor on one side and the river Kishon on the other.  Without any intrusion, Sisera’s chariot fleet would have been enough to wipe out the Israel resurgance easily; but as the battler began, God intervened with commanding force.  The heavens opened up and a massive storm rained down on Sisera’s army.  The Kishon river overflowed it’s bank, creating a difficult field for battle.  The chariots would have been useless in the mud and muck, and Israel destroyed the entire army with swords.  Only Sisera escaped the slaughter.

As Sisera fled, he reached the tent of a woman named Jael in the middle of nowhere.  Jael was married to a Kenite, the decendants of Moses’ father-in-law.  So Jael was on somewhat friendly terms with Israel, but Judges 4 also shows that she had good diplomatic relations with Cannan.  When Sisera arrived at her tent, he convinced her to allow him to take shelter in her tent.  He was tired and hungry from running away, so he asked Jael for some water.  She gave him milk, possible even curds or yogurt, and that heavy food, along with fatigue, cause Sisera to pass out asleep in the back room.

In the most gruesome scene of the passage, Jael takes up a tent peg and a hammer and sneeks back to where Sisera was asleep.  At the time, women were in charge of putting up the tents whenever a family moved, so Jael was skilled with these tools.  She put the tent peg to Sisera’s temple, and struck it with enough force to drive it through the commander’s head into the ground.  Sisera was dead.  His army was now defeat.  And the Israelites went on to destroy the whole nation of Cannan.  Just like God had promised, the fall of Cannan was at the hands of a woman.  Ultimately though, through both the storm and control of Sisera’s demise, God is the reciepient of all the glory!  When God defeats sin, he shows off His glory.

Like Israel, we are captive because of sin.  In a similar way, God defeats our sin to show off His glory.  In John 12:27, we see Jesus in the final days before His crucifixion.  Jesus is about to go to the cross to bear our sins for us.  He is going to ultimately pay the price to free us from captivity.  And here, we see that Jesus main motivation behind what he’s going to do is not His own pride, or even our neediness, but the glory of His father.  After Jesus dies on the cross, he was buried, and three days later resurrected from the grave in glorious triumph over sin.  And through his work on the cross, Jesus glorified His Father and in turn God glorified Him.

So what does that mean for us?  Well, we see that Jesus is our glorious deliver.  In Judges 5, the response of Deborah and Barak is to sing a song declaring the might and power of God.  Following that example, our reaction to the glorious work of Jesus should be to worship Him.  We do this not only through song, but as Romans 12 says, with our entire lives and with everything that we do.  What we think, what we say, what we do oughta reflect the glory of our savior. 

For guys, one way to do this would be in how you spend your free time.  The content of your movies, video games, and music reflects on how you view Jesus.  If he is glorious in your life, the activities in your free time should reflect that glory.

For girls, your worship can be displayed through your dress.  The clothes you wear will either 1)show off only your physicl appearance or 2)allow your personality to be shown along with your external beauty.  If the only thing people can see when they look at you is the former, the result is only self worship and glorification.  But if your personality is allowed to take center stage and your dress isn’t a hinderance to that, you have a platform to show of Jesus’ glory with your actions.

Judges 4-5 points out a prime example of how God shows off His glory.  His ultimate display is shown through the work and person of Jesus.  And because of that glory, followers of Jesus ought to worship his glory with all that they are.

On Truth and Salvation: A Response to “Preacher Gets Caught Lying for Jesus”

Usually, I never read the popular blogs that show up on the homepage.  Usually, the titles don’t interest me and I’m in a hurry to do something else.  But yesterday, an interesting blog caught my eye, so I investigated.  Needless to say, I was shocked at what I read.

“Unreasonable Faith” is a blog posted by a former-Christian now turned atheist.  His latest post concerned a few comments he had received on his blog.  Apparently, a pastor had left comments arguing against atheism and telling the blogger that foul past experiences with Christians had led him to deny God.  The blogger was unaffected by these comments, so the pastor took a different approach.  He began using fake identities to leave comments arguing sin okay as long as you are an atheist.  Killing people, raping women?  No problem as long as no eternal consequences exist.  After such offensive comments, the blogger investigated, found out the pastor, and proceeded to do what any blogger would do: expose him with another blog.

First off, I have to say that I do not condone this pastor’s actions in any way.  Lying and deception is wrong no matter how you slice it.  But I do, to some extend, understand his motives.  It would seem as though the purpose of his actions was to argue that postmodern thinking isn’t practical.  There is a definite need for an underlying truth.  However, his methods of doing so were utterly shameful and completely misrepresent the person and work of Jesus Christ, the person which he claims to be representing.  I hope that this experience will prevent him from similar actions in the future.  He did present a full apology to the blogger.

Secondly, it’s interesting to see how the reaction of several atheists to his comments actually does prove a point.  Despite the fact that they deny any existence of a god, they feel a sense of moral direction.  The incident itself shows that when sinned against, people will acknowledge that lying is wrong.  They can deny the Bible and still grasp the idea that there is a right and a wrong way to live.  For more info on this, see http://storylineframework.com/2008/09/06/framework-12-macro-theology-view-of-apologetics-how-does-theology-answer-the-world

This is evidence of the Holy Spirit bearing witness to us about Christ in the form of our conscious.  Jesus explains that “when he comes, he will convict the world concerning sin and righteousness and judgement: concerning sin, because they do not believe in me; concerning righteousness because I go to the Father, and you will see me no longer; concerning judgment, because the ruler of this world is judged.” (John 16:8-11)

The Holy Spirit convicts unbelivers of their sin and coming judgement.  Unfortunately, an unrepentant heart can, in a sense, “tune-out” these convictions…

To this blogger, any atheists with similar stories, or any unbeliever who has been wronged by Christians, I am sorry.  We are not perfect (I certainly cannot claim to be), but we serve One who is.  Jesus Christ is a perfectly righteous judge who is presenting you with convictions of sin and opportunities to repent and turn away from the ruler of this world (Satan).  Psalm 19 even says that the “heavens declare the glory of God; the skies proclaim the works of His hands.”  All creation testifies for God, the one and only Creator.

Jesus was fully God and fully human.  He was born of a virgin, lived a sinless life, and died on the cross for the sins of every person of every time.  He is the perfect, spotless, blood sacrifice as demanded from God for the redemption of sins.  After three days of being dead in the tomb, Jesus defeat sin, death, and the grave once and for all by resurrecting and walking the earth again.  He then ascended into heaven to sit at the right hand of God.  This is the Gospel message.  It is 100% true, and apart from believing and accepting the redemptive work of Jesus as the payment of your sins, the punishment is hell.  It may be offensive, but it is what my Lord proclaimed to be true (John 14:6). I cannot apologize for that.

I hope that this incident will make you think.  If you’re a Christian, be extra careful in what you blog and how you act, because the world is watching and just waiting for you to mess up.  Just remember you are representing Jesus in all that you do.

If you are an unbeliever, I hope and pray that God will reveal himself to you and you will make a decision to enter into a life-changing relationship with Jesus Christ.  I would encourage you to talk to a Christian you know or find a local church to answer your questions, but keep in mind we are all imperfect.  The best we can do is imitate the one who is.

To all: God bless!

Just a note: I am open to any and all criticism, comments, etc. so go ahead and leave me with your thoughts.

God’s Will

As I’m enjoying an awesome break from school, I’ve been thinking alot about my upcoming senior year and how that will reflect on my future college career. I’ve been thinking about getting a job, daydreaming about a new guitar, and “worrying” about a reading assignment for English class that’s due Monday (still haven’t gotten around to that…). With so much going on in the near and distant future, I’m reminded of a sermon from Dr. Albert Mohler about God’s will and all the He has in store for my life. In a way, I’m kinda scared to know what’s in store for the future…

One revolutionary idea I learned from Dr. Mohler is that I actually already know alot of God’s will. For example, I was born in a specific year to specific parents in a specific location for a specific reason. This is extremely evident in how my parents provided me with a Christian upbringing that placed me at Capshaw Baptist Church at a perfectly opportue time to be involved in our student ministry. Through His Word, I know that I’m supposed to strive to be Christ-like in everything I do (1 Corinthians 11:1) and I’m called to spread the message of Jesus Christ to the ends of the earth (Matthew 28:18-19). My goal in life is to serve Him (Romans 12:1). By understanding that, other aspects of my life become complementary details; which, in a way, eases the pressure of decisions.

For the stuff I don’t know about God’s will for my life yet, I can trust that it is good and acceptable and perfect (Romans 12:2). By trusting God path for my life, my goals and dreams no longer revolve around me, but around Christ. This assurance comes as a great comfort whenever I feel overwhelmed by my future. Even though it’s scary, I trust the words of Jeremiah 29:11 to know that God’s got it under control.

I think about my future, God permitting, as a teacher and preacher of the Word of God. It scares me to death because I feel so unqualified, and yet God has already begun preparing me by placing me under awesome examples of what church leadership looks like. My interests have shifted to include a desire to learn more and more about the church, about Jesus, and about how I can more effectively serve Him. Four years ago I would have told you my only pursuit in high school would have been the best athlete possible and I would be pursuing college scholoraships from athletics. But God apparently has other plans that are far better than anything I would have planned. This is a perfect  example that even in a teenager with practically zero life experience under his belt, God’s will reshapes and redefines life in amazing ways to honor and glorify His Son, Jesus Christ.

Revolution Conference Overview

Wow was this weekend great! Friday and Saturday I was in Louisville, KY at Boyce College/Southern Baptist Theological Seminary with the Capshaw Baptist Student Ministry for the Revolution Conference.  This conference was designed to challenge High School students to live more bold and radical lives for Jesus Christ and grow deeper into their understanding of the Christian faith.

Friday night was incredible! Dr. Russel Moore and Dr. Albert Mohler led the first 2 sessions and did a phenomenal job.  Worship was led by the Josh Wilson band, and at the end of the night we were all pumped up ready for Saturday!

As it turned out, Saturday was a mixed bag.  The 2 small group seminars we attended were solid.  The first was on Postmodernism, and it was very informative and provided a lot of food for thought on how to interact with a culture that denies absolute truth.  The second was on the Emergent Church movement, and built off Postmodernism to explain how the church was being effected.  Altogether 2 very solid seminars that were very beneficial.

The large group sessions were rather sticky.  Alex and Bret Harris, authors of Do Hard Things, spoke on the concepts of their book, which challenges teenagers to apply themselves to do meaningful things and quit being immature children.  This challenge is absolutely relevant, but it was lacking in many ways.  It was only loosely Biblically based, and none of the content was any different than what is taught in the public school system.  Also, it was never fully explain what “hard things” are.  This was more of a minor detail, but because it was never explain the concept felt very vague and abstract.  More importantly, however, it completely ignored Jesus Christ.  Never was any connection drawn between a teenager doing something hard and the work & person of Jesus.  The purpose of this conference was to grow in a deeper understanding of who Jesus is and allow that understanding to reshape our lives and our witness for Him, and these 2 sessions didn’t contribute to that goal. As Jacob Reed, one of the high school guys in CBSM, put it, “They left out everything about Jesus, the very person we [went] all the way up there to learn about.” 

All in all, the Revolution Conference made us think.  The Capshaw Baptist Student Ministry definately took a lot away from the experience.  What was Biblically sound, we absorbed and learned from.  What was not, we Biblically disagreed with and still put alot of thought into what should have been said.  We grew closer as a group and picked up many stories in ways that can only come from 6 hour van rides…

Huge thanks to Boyce College for putting on the event!  I was very impressed by the seminary and am looking forward to attending in about 4 years.  Keep up the awesome work!

Almost time for…

…THE Revolution Conference!
I am super stoked about this trip! We ship out tomorrow afternoon, so be looking for a report from that sometime next week.

Fighting Like A Christian

So last Wednesday Chip preached on Joshua 6 and fighting against sin. I thought it was especially relevent and deserved a blog…

Basically Joshua 6 is about the conquest of Jericho. God told the Israelites to march around the city walls one time a day for six days, then on the seventh day they marched around the wall seven times. God caused the walls to crumble, and the entire village was destroyed by Israel’s army. It’s an amazing story, and it shows us four principles of Christian warfare.

1) God fights for us. Jericho was a massive metropolis surrounded by a seemingly impenatrable wall. Yet God performed an incredible miracle to wipe away the city like dust. When it comes to sin in our lives, there is little that we can do alone to fight against it, much less defeat it. It is only by the supernatural power of God through the Holy Spirit within us that we can stand up to sin.

2) Sin brings spiritual defeat. After Jericho fell, a man named Achan stole some of the gold in the city that God had told Israel not to take. He hid it under his tent, and when Israel went up to conquer the neighboring kingdom of Ai, they were embarassed and defeated. Through a series of tests and castings of lots, Joshua determined that Achan was the guilty party and his entire family was destroyed. A single man’s sin led to an entire army’s defeat. As long as there is sin in our lives, God cannot use us to our fullest potential. We must ask God to defeat the sin in our lives before we can truly become effective.

3) Fight smart. It’s okay to think. God gives us the ability to reason and determine a course of action when it comes to fighting sin. Often times, that is his way of guiding us to victory. A good example of fighting smart is to limit sin’s ability to attack. For example, if a personal sin involves watching R-rated movies and other unholy television programs, a smart move is to discontinue the cable service, get rid of the DVD player, or throw away the questionable movies. It doesn’t make any sense to try to resist sin in the middle of avoidable temptations. So when fighting like a Christian, use your God-given intellect to create a winning strategy.

4) In the end, Jesus wins. Revelation 19:11 gives us a glimpse of Jesus’ glorious return, or as Chip so often calls it, “thug Jesus.” Jesus comes back on a white horse soaked in blood from annialating all his enemies. Jesus don’t play when he’s defeating sin. The battle has already been won on the cross, but when Jesus comes back to seal the deal there’s no question who the God of this universe is. So when the battle gets tough and you feel like sin is winning the fight for your life, just remember that Jesus has conquered sin, and through his sacrafice you have His power to defeat sin in your life.

These principles are something that every Christians needs to keep in mind when fighting sinful temptations daily. Like He did with Israel agains Jericho, God is faithful to fight for you and be victorious everyday. So look to Jesus for strength, and keep up the fight!

This Week at Capshaw…

Hey ya’ll! Here’s a quick look at what all is going on in the Capshaw Baptist Student Ministry lately…

Wednesday night we kicked off a new series in Joshua! It is gonna be awesome!!! We’re looking at how Joshua points to eternity in Christ! Really sweet stuff…this week (Joshua 1-5)was about how God led Israel across the Jordan River, how He has to lead us through our lives and on into eternity, and how those who remain in Christ and defeat sin through Him will live with him forever (Revelation 21). Our youth pastor, Chip, is really excited about this series and I can’t wait to hear more of it!

Sunday mornings we’re reading “The Prayer Matrix” by David Jeramiah and so far it’s been a great read. Expect a few posts from me about it!

Then in a couple weeks were heading up to Louisville, KY for “The Revolution Conference” put on by Southern Seminary. It sounds incredible, and there will definately be a recap up as soon as we get back!

So those are some of the major happenings right now…I’ll keep up with how God is changing lives through everything goin on in the coming weeks!

So sorry guys…

Wow. It’s been what, only 5 months since my last post. And this is only the second of 2. Woops…

I honestly don’t get on my computer very frequently, but if I’m going to start a blog I probably need to keep it up, so be checking back for weekly or bi-weekly posts in the future.