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Movie Review: “Heaven is For Real”

I have been asked several times about my opinion of the movie Heaven is for Real so I took the time to watch the DVD. I will start out with what I liked about the film. 

Overall I thought the acting was good. I like how the pastor is shown before and after the traumatic event of his son’s near death experience, the local church he pastor’s struggle with the situation, and the fact that the movie raises the question of heaven for those who reject the concept. As I watched the film, I was taken back to an event in my life as my son Asher struggled to breath in a children’s hospital. I was told at one point that he wouldn’t make it. Needless to say this movie pulled at my heart strings. I enjoyed how the pastor was shown in a positive light in the church and community. I also enjoyed seeing how the pastor struggled and wrestled with issues in the Word of God. These aspects are very true to life for all pastors and churches. Pastors are humans who struggle with situations and theology just like everyone else. In addition to this, I also enjoyed seeing how the church leaders struggled with the situation. They had given the pastor room to deal with some of his issues, but most didn’t really seem to truly grasp the struggles of the pastor and his family. It is difficult to describe the unique pressures and struggles that ministry places on individuals and families. I felt the film did a good job of showing the tension of an imperfect pastor leading an imperfect church, and in the end both coming out the better. This is a common and important concept for local churches. In addition, I also enjoyed that the question of the existence of heaven after death was raised for those who don’t believe.

Now I will move on to what I didn’t enjoy about the movie. First off, the images of heaven are not biblically based. When Colton goes to heaven, he finds himself at the church building? The Word of God makes no mention of church buildings in heaven anywhere. Even our most beautiful buildings will not even be close to what God has hand crafted in heaven. Second, the attempt at showing a “beautiful heaven” in the church building was cheesy at best, and downright not helpful. Showing angels as these star things that sing? There are many examples of angels in the Word, but none show them as this movie does. In addition to this, the overarching problem with the vision, is the lack of seeing Jesus as the crown jewel! While Jesus is part of this vision of heaven, Jesus plays more of a side character or like a glorified “table host” of café heaven in Colton’s vision. At no point does Colton worship Jesus or show that Jesus is King, Lord, and worthy of worship (Revelation 5).



My overall opinion, take this movie with a grain of salt, the images of heaven seem more cooked up by an active four year old imagination than based in Biblical reality. I fear that our need and attention to movies and books along this line, only points to the spiritual immaturity and our addiction to “junk food” Christian entertainment instead of healthy biblical truth. Experiences never dictates doctrine, especially the doctrine of heaven. This movie is simply entertainment, not biblical reality. Keeping in mind this is simply entertainment not something to base a bible study on, I would give this a four on a scale of one to ten.

What does Hebrews 6:4-5 Mean?

"4 For it is impossible to renew to repentance those who were once enlightened, who tasted the heavenly gift, became companions with the Holy Spirit, 5 tasted God’s good word and the powers of the coming age, 6 and who have fallen away, because, to their own harm, they are recrucifying the Son of God and holding Him up to contempt."

In the above passage the author of Hebrews is giving us what is commonly referred to as a “warning” passage. Other examples of warning passages are found in Hebrews (2:1-4; 5:11-6:12; 10:19-39, 12:1-29) Revelation 2 and 3, James and Galatians 4:8-11. For many years pastors and scholars have spilled a lot of ink in a struggle to understand how the “warning” passages work with the “assurance” passages (like John 10:28-30, Romans 8:28-39, and Philippians 1:6). I think the key to understanding the meaning to this question arises from two questions about this passage:

1. Who does it address? 

2. What is the function of this warning?

When one reads this text, the simplest explanation of who it is written to would be a believer.  If you were to put this passage before a child, they would say it is written to a believer.  The language that is used here of “tasted the heavenly gift, become companions with the Holy Spirit, tasted God’s word and the powers of this coming age,”  all point to the fact that we are dealing with some who have a knowledge and experience of the things of the living God of the universe.  It is also important to note that the author of Hebrews never says anyone has fallen away or in verse six the comma does not follow with the clause, “as some have done” or “since some have fallen away”.  But if that is true, and none have fallen away, what is the function of this passage?

I believe there is a weightiness involved in Hebrews 6 that is often overlooked and slighted in an effort to defend the eternal security of a believer.  I would submit to you that this passages is more than a hypothetical situation, but that this is a warning passage that is used as a means of preservation for God’s people.  For example,   if you were driving up towards Butler Bridge and you saw a sign in the middle of the road that says, “Bridge Out Ahead!”  Those of us who are able to read, would turn our cars around and take another route to preserve out life, avoiding the eighty foot plus drop into Watauga Lake.  Or if you were on a tour of the Biltmore in Ashville, North Carolina, and the guide said, please do not go down into the cellar there is poison gas down there that will surely kill you.  You would heed the warning of the guide, and be very careful not to go near that cellar!  The warning is more than a hypothetical, the warning is a means that the guide used to save your life.  It is important to remember that only those who belong to God will be able to heed the warning passages God gives.  It is impossible to warn those who don’t know the power of God to be preserved (1 Peter 1:5).  There is a call from Hebrews six to be careful and take heed!  

For futher study on this passage and other warning passages click HERE!

Is the Bible Reliable?

“All scripture is given by inspiration of God, and is profitable…” -1 Timothy 3:16

While there are several historical documents tests to determine the historical reliability of a document, I would like to highlight just a few for you today.  One test is called the bibliographical test. This test looks at several aspects of ancient manuscripts like how many exist right now.  In order for a document to take this test, the originals must no longer exist.  Today, we have close to, if not more than 25,000 copies of the New Testament either in part or whole.  The document that comes closest to this is Homer’s Iliad which has around 643 copies.  Another test looks at the time gap between the oldest surviving copy and the original manuscript.  Again in second place is Homer’s Iliad with a time gap of 400 years from penning of the original manuscript until the oldest surviving copy.  The New Testament has a gap of only fifty years.  There is no other ancient book that matches the textual availability and integrity of the Bible.   Time would fail me if I went on to tell you about how non-Christian historians, like Tacitus, Suetonius, Josephus, and many others document and validate the existence of the Word of God.  If you haven’t given the Bible much attention lately, I would encourage you to give the most historically reliable book of all time another look!

Are All Christians Hypocrites?

"If we say, “We have no sin,” we are deceiving ourselves, and the truth is not in us.” – 1 John 1:8

In the English language the word hypocrite gets a lot of mileage! A hypocrite is a person’s whose public statements and life are inconsistent with their private life. The word "hypocrite" evokes a certain level of distain and distrust in everyone. What many point to as inconsistency among professing Christians is what it appears to be. Even Jesus made the point that hypocrites exist among God’s people. For example Jesus taught us the importance of prayer, fasting, and giving for kingdom advancement. Jesus also gave his harshest warnings and correction to those who did pray, fast, and give for the wrong reasons and for earthly rewards. Jesus discourages his followers from making long public prayers, making sure that our fasting draws attention to our self-righteousness, and parading our gifts at church and to the poor (Matthew 6:2, 5, 16). Jesus calls these people out for being real hypocrites among God’s people (Matthew 23:13-33; Mark 7:20-23). While Jesus never called his disciples hypocrites, our Lord did make it clear that there will always be hypocrites mixed in among true disciples (Matthew 13:24-30).

So the real question is, how can we know the difference between a true believer and a hypocrite? Both true disciples and hypocrites have sin and inconsistencies in their life. I would encourage you to remember that perfection is the final step in the life of a believer (Romans 8:30). We are reminded by the Apostle Paul that we are being “transformed into the same image (the image of Jesus Christ) from one degree of glory to another (2 Corinthians 3:18).” For a true disciple, one is continuing to change each day to become more like Christ. The Apostle Paul reminds us that while we are changing, we will still “stumble in many ways (James 3:2).” I think we must ask ourselves the following questions in order to think correctly about ourselves (Romans 12:3):

• Do we agree with God about the sin in our life? (1 John 1:9)
• Are we seeking to fight the sin in our life? (1 Peter 5:4-11)

In World War II, the bloodiest battles for our troops was between D-Day, on June 8, 1944, when we broke the enemies back by taking the beaches at Normandy, France and VE-Day, on May 8, 1945, when we finally defeated the axis of evil. In the same way, Christians will lose many battles and the battles will often be most difficult after trusting Jesus Christ. But if we repent of our sins and truly trust Jesus we will be victorious. So no, not all Christians are hypocrites, when we are honest in our struggle to be more like our perfect, Holy, King Jesus!

What Does Our Crown Referred To in Revelation 3:11 and Can We Lose our Crown?

“I am coming quickly. Hold on to what you have, so that no one takes your crown.” 

–Revelation 3:11

The above passage is given by Jesus to one of the seven churches in the opening of revelation, namely Philadelphia. This is one of only two churches that Jesus does not rebuke. While this passage contains no rebuke, Revelation 3:11 is a warning passage. I believe that the crown here symbolizes eternal life, it is the same idea as someone who has competed in an Olympic challenge and crowned at the end with victory (also see 1 Corinthians 9:24-25). One thing that is helpful when you read a warning passage is to read them in light of other warning passages, because each helps us understand the other. I would like to point one particular passage out to you that is of great help for understanding Revelation 3:11, namely 1 John 2:19:

“They went out from us, but they did not belong to us; for if they had belonged to us, they would have remained with us. However, they went out so that it might be made clear that none of them belongs to us.”

In 1 John 2: 19, the warning is that any who depart from us, though a lifestyle of sin, were actually not saved before they left us! And while true Christians may depart for a time, they will eventually come back to the flock. Think of the examples that are contrasted in Peter’s defection vs. Judas’ defection. Both Peter and Judas denied Christ, but only Peter came back to Christ and God’s people, the church! So if that is true, you may be asking yourself the question, “Why is this passage and other warning passages given to believers if we can’t fall truly fall away?” In God’s wisdom, The Lord had placed warning passages as a means to preserve God’s people. When I was a teenager up through the first part of Seminary, I would work for my father on brick and block mason crews. At times we would have to build scaffolding that was three to four stories or more high. We always had to put up safety rails on the completed scaffolding. The newer scaffolding we would crank up and it was much easier, but the older kind had to be changed out by hand! We hand to put on a safety harness, go under the walking boards at these heights and change them out. To be honest, I dreaded this task most of all, because the thought of the fall to the ground terrified me. As I would slowly climb down to assist the other laborer, I moved slow and cautiously to make the change. I would often look down at the ground, which seemed miles away, and imagine my fall and the splat that followed as I hit the ground. Of all the times I built and changed out scaffolding, I never slipped and needed my harness, nor safety rails to preserver me. The safety harness and rails were a means to provide confidence and remind me that I needed to be cautions as I did my job. In a similar manor, warning passages such as Revelation 3:11 lets us see what our fall from grace could be like, reminding us to do our work with care and caution, all while we look from the safety and security of God’s strong hands (John 10:29).

Why Does Satan Appear with the Sons of God in Job 1:6?

"One day the sons of God came to present themselves before the Lord, and Satan also came with them." -Job 1:6

Recently a church member who is reading the Bible on the one year recommended plan came to me with this question. This passage seems to be contradictory, to Satan being cast out of heaven until it is put into perspective with the larger redemptive narrative. Lucifer is his given name and he is described as having great beauty and wisdom (see Isaiah 14:12-14 & Ezekiel 28:12-18). In the book of Job, we get a peek into the high court of the universe as God's sons, aka his angels are gathering to give account of their ministries (see Hebrews 1:14 & 1 Kings 22:19). I am not sure if the other angels recognized him for who he was, because he can disguise himself as an angel of light (2 Cor. 11:14). It is important to note that wherever there is a gathering of the servants of God, there will always be at least one, sent by Satan, who will appear among them to cause trouble and division. The apostle Paul knew this when he gave a warning against "False Brothers" in the local church (Galatians 2:4). When Lucifer rebelled and took a third of heaven with him, the battle left heaven marred by his sin (Rev. 12:4). Lucifer will try one more time to take the place of God, but his plan will fail (Rev. 12:7-13). This is why there is a need for a NEW HEAVEN as well as a new earth in Revelation 21:1. As one reads Job, it becomes clear that Satan is both called into account for what he is doing and given restraints on what he can or cannot do. We are informed that he sits night and day and accuses the people of God in Revelation 12:10. This ancient story points out the fact that Satan is no threat to the throne of Heaven. When Satan is through serving God's proposes for the redemption of mankind, bringing God ultimate Glory, Satan will be rendered completely useless in influence and power (Hebrews 2:14). In fact the Bible tells us we will sit in judgment over the angels, which includes Satan. (1 Corinthians 6:3).

Men's Retreat 2014

"Be strong, and show yourself a man..."  

-1 Kings 2:2 (ESV)

Coming up on September 19-21 at FairHaven on Roan Mountain our men will gather for the first Men's Retreat that I have been able to join in with our men. I am very excited about this even! The event will be held over a three day, two night time span. I will speak on Friday night on the verses in 1 Kings 2:1-9, David's dying instruction to Solomon. David's words to his son on his deathbed is a great instruction to all men. There are at least items he instructs his son in: leadership, provision, and protection. I think it is important to note the instruction of biblical manhood for our children. There are many qualities that both boys and girls should posses, but there is special instruction for each sex. God made us both equal, but with different roles. I believe that this is modeled after the trinity, God the Father, Jesus the Son, and the Holy Spirit are all equal, but clearly play different roles.

Our boys must be taught what it means to "show yourself a man." We can't take notes from television, feminism, nor our mothers on what it means to be men. So come, join us as we seek to lead, provide, and protect in our roles as men!

Can God Still Use Me Even Though I've Sinned?

"For if you keep silent at this time, relief and deliverance will rise for the Jews from another place, but you and your father's house will perish. And who knows whether you have not come to the kingdom for such a time as this?” -Esther 4:14 (ESV)

In the above passage, Mordecai is strongly urging the queen, whom he raised, to do the right thing and seek deliverance from destruction. There is a beautiful tension that exists in this passage, namely the sovereignty of God and our responsibility. Mordecai is not a prophet, nor the son of a prophet, but he knows that God will deliver the Jews one way or another. Why does Mordecai have this confidence? Because he knows the promises that were made to Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob. He has faith and trust in the fact that God will deliver on what God says he will deliver on; however, Mordecai knows that this will be costly to God's people.

He also states here, that if Esther keeps silent she will not get to participate in God's plan for redeeming his people, and it may cost her life. Here is the principle that arises from this text: God will get his plan accomplished, but you could miss out on the blessing of being involved with where God is working. Let me illustrate, recently I was out working on picking some tomatoes from a few plants I had put out. My kids wanted to help, and I was overjoyed to let them. I told them to pick only the red ones. While my youngest loved picking the green ones that were about golf ball sized, the red ones made it into the house. Those red tomatoes would have made it in the house without the kids helping, but they would have missed the instruction of twisting and pulling the tomato. And more importantly, we would have both missed out on the joy of the fellowship of doing this together.

In addition to this, he says perhaps you have come into the kingdom for such a time as this. We often think about the kingdom of God, but that is not where they live. They live in a pagan culture that does not worship the one true living God. Esther is unlike her Daniel counterpart in the Old Testament. Daniel had a level of moral clarity about him. We knew why he didn't eat the king's food or bow to the idols. They both worked in a pagan king's court, but Esther lacks the same clarity. She has made a series of sinful decisions which include: concealing her faith and sleeping with the king before they are married to entice him. She has to choose between the kingdom she lives in and God's kingdom, which is the decision we all face. While she has grown comfortable eating the king's food, Esther becomes the heroine through her resolve to live for God's kingdom at a great crossroad in her life. I wish I could be a Daniel, but the truth is most of us identify more with Esther than Daniel. Esther gives us hope that we can still be greatly used of God, especially if we have made sinful, bad decisions in the past. She shows us that even if we have a "past", God can use us as part of His plan to redeem others! Be encouraged beloved! The LORD has placed a world full of sinners to accomplish His will.

What Happens to Believers Who Commit Suicide?

Therefore we do not lose heart, but though our outer man is decaying, yet our inner man is being renewed day by day (2 Corinthians 4:16)


The recent suicide of Robin Williams has shocked many. My heart breaks for the family and friends of Robin Williams, especially since I don't know what his relationship with Jesus Christ was at the end of his life. I once heard Robin Williams say, “I’m an Episcopal; that’s Catholic Lite. Same religion, half the guilt!” I hope he heard the gospel and put his full trust and faith in Jesus Christ.

In the wake of a high profile suicide, I often receive questions on suicide. The issue usually centers around what happens to believers who commit suicide. Some would make the argument that suicide is a one way ticket to hell, but I see only one sin in the Word that is a guaranteed ticket to hell, namely blasphemy against the Spirit (Matthew 12:31-32). That is to live your whole life and reject the gospel and the conviction that hearing the gospel brings. Believers in Jesus Christ are a people marked by hope. In the case of people who have lost hope or as the above passage says "lose heart", I would submit to you that suicide does not send believers to hell. In fact in the Old Testament, in one final act of strength Samson pulled the pillars down killing himself and thousands of his captors (Judges 16:25-30). Samson is later noted in the Hall of Faith (Hebrews 11:32). Let's not forget, Saul also committed suicide (1 Samuel 31), but King Saul is not mentioned in the Hebrew's Hall of Faith. Remember beloved, sometimes suicide is the cap stone on a life of hidden rebellion against God. Other examples of suicide in the Bible (Judges 9:52-54;2 Sam. 17:23; 1 Kings 16:18-19; Matt. 27:3-5), are all done in the context of shame and defeat. The Bible also gives us examples of Godly men who asked for their life to be taken, but God does not grant their request (Num. 11:12-15; 1 Kings 19:4; Jonah 4:1-11).

Losing heart may be related to one of two possibilities: sin and/or clinical depression. Losing heart may be sin related, I would challenge anyone who is thinking along those lines to first look inwardly and renew your mind to the examples, teaching and principles found in the word of God (Romans 12:2). But for some, the pain of depression is deeper. I once was speaking with a mental health doctor who told me, "Depression is the equivalent of cancer in our field." If someone's heart, liver, or kidneys don't function correctly, and they take a pill to help, Christians usually have no problem with that action. But unfortunately there is an inappropriate stigma with those who need medication to assist the brain in functioning correctly. The time we live in is one of the best to be alive due to all of the gifted men and women who have advanced medical science. I believe that God provides these minds and gifts as a means of help for all people, including God's people. So do not lose heart! If you are struggling with suicidal thoughts or know someone who is, please do the following:

1. Pray for God's help.

2. Look to the Word of God for comfort and help.

3. Inform others who love you and you trust to pray for you.

4. See a doctor for help if the thoughts and pain remain.

Do You Want To Be Healed?

In John Chapter 5, we see that Jesus comes into a room full of crippled people. He picks one, just one from the crowd and asks a question to him that I find very strange. He says in verse 6 "Do you want to be healed?". What person in their right mind would not want to be healed? And the man said yes. Now another thing that I find puzzling is the fact that at the time of the healing, the man did not know who Jesus was; because, when asked who had healed him the Bible says,

     "Now the man who had been healed did not know who it was, for Jesus had withdrawn, as there         was a crowd in the place."

I know that God healed this one man among many for his glory. He healed a man that was not even a believer at the time. There are several implications that could be drawn from this text. But one implication that stands out, is the fact that some claim the ability to heal in the name of Jesus, others in the name of science, and others in the name of a false God. But at the end of the day, the true healer is only Jesus. Giving life in a way that no one else can. The point is that he doesn't just make a claim, he backs it up!

I think back to all the times that people have promised me this or that, then they don't deliver. I am also remained of all the times that I have failed to deliver on my promises and it breaks my heart. One thing that we know for sure is that Christ will always deliver! Remember Jesus is the great Deliverer (1 Thess. 1:10). So let's not be upset when we are let down by men, for it is our nature. We will not find water in broken cisterns. But let us praise God for never failing.

Book Review: Is God anti-Gay?

"Summoning the crowd along with His disciples, He said to them, “If anyone wants to be My follower, he must deny himself, take up his cross, and follow Me." -Mark 8:34

Over the past twelve years, I have received more questions from church members about homosexuality than I did ten years ago. I think Dr. Molher captured how so many church leaders feel about the increase in this discussion when he said at the Southern Baptist Convention, "we have a bus parked on our feet." I fear that many people and pastors seeking to honor the LORD fear or are very uncomfortable with this topic. I once heard a pastor talking about this issue who just shook his head and grunted in disgust, which I found unhelpful. In a church our size, it would be ridicules to think there is not one person who struggles with this issue. If you or someone you love struggles with this issue, please read this book.

This book that Pastor Sam Allberry wrote, is an excellent read that I would recommend to anyone who has questions or struggles with this topic. Pastor Allberry admits that he struggles with Same Sex Attraction (SSA), making an important distinction from being gay. Allberry makes an important distinction, we are more than our sexual identity/desires! On page 11, he quotes Mark 8:34, and concludes, 

"It is saying "No" to your deepest sense of who you are, for the sake of Christ. To take up a cross is to declare your life (as you have known it) forfeit."

One of my favorite quotes from the book is on page 32 when he goes on to say,

"All of us have desires that are warped as a result of our fallen nature. Desires for things God has forbidden are a reflection of how sin has distorted me, not how God has made me."

Pastor Allberry is right on the mark biblically. I don't think that God hates any one sin more than any other, Christ died for all. There is tremendous pressure to change the word of God to suit present desires of this age (see 2 Timothy 4:3). He also gives help to those who have come out, and those who have had someone come out in this lifestyle. The book helps us think sensibly, sensitively, and biblically. I applaud Pastor Allberry for having the courage and strength by God's grace to fight his sin and to write about his struggle for all to see. I give this book two thumbs up! Way Up!

What Happens When Believers Die?

"we are confident and satisfied to be out of the body and at home with the Lord." -1 Corinthians 5:8

"I am pressured by both. I have the desire to depart and be with Christ—which is far better—" -Phil. 1:23

I recently received this question from a church member on what happens to believers when we die? Do we go to be with Jesus or does our soul sleep? The Bible makes multipule references to "sleep" or "falling asleep" such as (Matt. 9:24; 27:52; John 11:11; Acts 7:60; 13:36; 1 Cor. 15:6, 18, 20, 51; 1 Thess. 4:13; 5:10). And if some passages were all we had on the topic, one would believe the dead do not have a conscious existence (see. Ps. 6:5; 115:17-18; Eccl. 9:10; Isaiah 38:19). But when the scriptures represent death as "sleep" it is simply a metaphorical expression used to indicate that death is only temporary for Christians, just as sleep in temporary. It may also be an expression to help explain what the transition is like from life to death back to life, which feels instantaneous to us. In John 11:11, Jesus say, "Our friend Lazarus has fallen asleep, but I go to awake him out of sleep". Jesus does not says "the soul of Lazarus is sleeping" nor does any passage in Scriptures say that the soul of a person is sleeping or unconscious. The passages that seem to indicate that the dead do not praise God, or that there is a ceasing of conscious activity when people die, these authors are writing from what the world observes. There are other examples in Psalms, where the author is working through what appears to be reality from our perspective instead of what is reality from God's perspective (see Psalm 73).

I believe the Bible teaches believers go immediately into God's presence rejoicing. In the above passage from 1 Corinthians 5, Paul believes that he will be removed from the body and immediately at home with God. He goes on and shares the same thought in Philippians 1:23, he desires to depart and be with the Lord, seeing the departing dovetailing with being with Christ! Paul does not say, "my desire is to depart and be unconscious for a long period of time."

In addition to these verses, Jesus says to the thief on the cross dying next to him, "Today you will be with me in Paradise" (Luke 23:24) Jesus' statement indicates that after they both die on the cross, they would be immediately ushered into paradise, not fall asleep. We also see the author of Hebrews instruct us that when Christians come together to worship, we come not only into the presence of God in heaven, but also into the presence of " the spirits of righteous people made perfect (Hebrews 12:23)." Be encouraged beloved of the Lord, the dead in Christ are with Him and praising his name right now!

Missional Communities

The above video is a snapshot into the life of a Missional Community. Below you will find a Q & A about Missional Communities at our church, and a short more simple explanation of MC's. If you would like more information please fell free to contact me! 

What are Missional Communities?

A smaller groups of Grace Baptist Church from six to twenty people who are united, through Christian Community around a common service and witness to a particular neighborhood and/or a network of relationship.  With a strong value on life together, the group has the expressed intention of seeing those the group impacts choose to start following Jesus, through this more flexible and locally incarnated expression of Grace Baptist church.  The results often are that the group grows and ultimately multiplies into further Missional Communities.  They are networked within Grace Baptist Church.  These mid-sized communities are “lightweight and low maintenance.”  These groups gather formally and informally numerous times a month in the group’s missional context.

What is the Goal?

The end goal of the groups is christian growth and multiplication for the kingdom of God.  So these uniquely flavored mid-sized groups are designed with missions/disciple making as their target!

When and Where?

The groups will gather formally and informally as best accommodates the needs of the community and the leader of the group.  A list of active Missional Communities will be avaible for the church to pray over, plug in new members, and assist as needed.

Who Can Come?

Anyone.  With the exception of those who fall under 1 Corinthians 5:11.

Saying Good-Bye: Practical Help for Talking to Preschoolers about Death.

Death is all around us in movies, video games, and the news. We cannot shelter our kids from it for very long. That is why it is very helpful for you to speak to your children openly and honestly about death, particularly when a loved one passes away. You may be tempted to think that they will not remember or be impacted, but what they will recall as an adult may surprise you. So here are a few tips from a pastor/former preschool teacher with a minor in Human Development and Learning on how to talk to them about death.

1. Walk Them Through the Cycle of Life.

Movies like Lion King and All Dogs Go to Heaven, introduce children to death, but preschool children often don't understand it. They need to be told the truth about it from their parents. You talk to them about dead plants or a dead pet fish as an introduction. They need to understand from you that birth, growth, decline, and death are all part of life.

2. Remind Them of How Much the Deceased Loved Them.

This is simple but important. They need to know that they are loved by the one who has passed away. Remind them of examples of this:

"Remember when your uncle gave you that special _______?" or " when your grandma cooked you that special cake?"

3. Create a New Category in Their Heads for Death.

Small children don't/can't make a distinction between sick with a common cold and terminally ill. Therefore, you need to create a new category for death in their young minds. They understand sleeping and going away somewhere, but this is different than death. You need to be very clear that death and being dead is not the same as going to sleep or going away. If you are not clear, children may be afraid to go to sleep at night or go away on a trip. Our efforts to shelter them from the harshness of the separation of death can backfire in a terrible way! Tell them things like:

"They are dead so that means they cannot talk to us anymore, they can't play anymore, they can't cook anymore, etc… Because their body does not work anymore."

4. Give Them Hope in Jesus Christ.

God's Word tells us to grieve differently than those who have no hope. If there is a clear testimony from the departed, let the child know that they are now in heaven with Jesus. Give the child hope that Jesus has conquered death, so we don't have to be afraid of death anymore!

5. Be Patient.

Being patient with young children can be a task any time, but it is especially true when we are grieving. When children ask questions like "do they breath anymore or do they go to the bathroom anymore?" They are not being insensitive, they are usually trying to understand what has happened to the person they love. They may even play games and use words like death and die as they play, to try to understand the concept. Their minds are sponges and they are taking all of it in, and believe me they are thinking about it.

6. Follow Up.

Don't forget to follow up with them in the coming days and weeks after you tell them. Ask them what they are thinking and how they are feeling. Be prepared for anything they may say, and above all love them!

Remembering Aunt Karen

“I thought I could describe a state; make a map of sorrow. Sorrow, however, turns out to be not a state but a process.”

― C.S. Lewis, A Grief Observed

Aunt Karen entered into eternal rest in the arms of her Savior, Jesus Christ, Friday morning, July 11, 2014, after a long battle with cancer.  Karen was 54 years old. Karen loved her Savior and family. She loved us all through her amazing country cooking skills! As she sipped on her Mountain Dew, she would fry eggs to perfection, make amazing sausage gravy, cook the best peas you've every tasted  or beat you at a game of Rook. She was a long time member of Willow Springs Baptist Church. Former employer of Levi Strauss for over 20 years. She was beloved by the Lord and will be deeply missed by her family.

Preceded in death by mother, Norma Sue Severs.

Survivors: ex-husband, Steve Beeler of Luttrell; daughter, Keyla Beeler of Knoxville; father, Everett W. Severs; and sister: Deborah  and Jack Tyler, Fall Branch; brothers, Chris and Lisa Severs of Karns, Jeff and Linda Severs of Powell; special friend, Shirley McLain;  Nephews, Travis and Becki Tyler of Elizabethton, Ryan Severs of Knoxville, and Christopher Severs of Jacksonville, North Carolina, Luke Severs of Powell; Nieces, Tiffiney Tyler of Kingsport, Jessica Severs of Powell and cousins; She is also survived by several beloved great nephews and great nieces.

I wanted to write about my aunt as part of my process of the grieving.  Our family will dearly miss her, because we had spent so much time with her over the last five years especially.  Over the last six years or so, due to unfortunate events, Karen lived with my parents.  During this time she became very close to my children like a second Mamaw. She made many trips to Indiana for all the major events in our lives like my seminary graduation, the birth of all my children, holidays, birthdays, and baby dedications.  In addition to this she also came up many times to help us, for example when Becki was on bed rest before and after Asher was born.

I loved her dearly, and the grief is more than I thought it would be.  I find great comfort in hearing her tell me about how she repented and placed her complete trust in Jesus Christ for her salvation.  She told me that she was "saved during a regular Sunday Morning at a little baptist church off Unaka Avenue in JohnsonCity, Tennessee".  We all tried to prepare ourselves for what is coming, and I knew that she was going to pass soon.  Being in the ministry for nearly 12 years now, I have stood by many bedsides and watched people slip into eternity.  Karen fought her cancer hard, she had stage four lung cancer for two years!  The average life expectancy rate is about 9 months for stage four lung cancer.  I want to share with you what I learned from my Aunt.  Without her help I would have no idea how to make homemade sausage gravy, dice veggies with ease, or make peas that taste amazing.  I learned from her and I thought I would give a little window into what she taught me/us.  Here goes:

Karen you taught us how to…

     Love passionately,

    Forgive completely,

    Work Happily,

   Cook correctly,

    Laugh heartily,

    Serve sacrificially,

   And fight fervently!

"Precious in the sight of the LORD is the death of his saints." -Psalm 116:15

I love you, Aunt Karen and will miss you always, until we meet at Jesus' Feet!

Pastor Emeritus Ron Owens

“Let the elders who rule well be considered worthy of double honor, especially those who labor in preaching and teaching” 

-1 Timothy 5:17 

This past Sunday, Grace Baptist Church fulfilled 

1 Timothy 5:17 by having a service and tea in honor of Pastor Ron Owens. The church voted back in the spring to grant this honorary title to Pastor Ron for his 18 years of service to our church. I am very thankful for all the pastors of Grace Baptist Church and their faithful service. Many times as the pastor of Grace Baptist I feel like the passage in Deut. 6:11 which describes God setting his people up in "houses full of every good thing that you did not fill them with, wells dug that you did not dig, and vineyards and olive groves that you did not plant". I know that there are many good and excellent things that we enjoy today that were brought about under the faithfulness of other leaders like Pastor Ron. I first met Pastor Ron at my home church in Fall Branch, Tennessee. One of the things I noticed about Pastor Ron was that, when you were speaking to him he made you feel like you were the most important person in the world to him.  He has always been quick to listen and slow to speak!  And when he does speak has always been very encouraging to me personally. I am blessed to be placed in a church where I follow a ministry of a faithful servant like Pastor Ron. It was also such blessing for me to hear from others about how Pastor Ron and his family had been a blessing to so many others. Thank you Pastor Ron and your family for your faithful service and sacrifice through the years!

14 Values that Godly Couples Have (Part 4)

I was cleaning out our storage barn over Memorial Day weekend and found notes from a professor's class named Dr. Tackett. In honor of Becki and I's recent anniversary, I thought I would share 14 values that Godly Couples have over the last three weeks. This is the final installment of the serious. I did not come up with these value, they comes from the research of my professor that he did and from his time researching wit Dr. John Gottman. The Gottman Institute can predict with amazing accuracy those couples who will be divorced. Please not that I have rephrased these 14 values to be easier to read and understand.

13.  Godly couples see God's providence in focal moments. (Romans 8:28)

•  Everyday God is at work in each individual, giving guidance through helping them recall scripture to apply to a situation. Focal moments are moments that are of intense stress which tends to draw upon the primal emotions(sadness, fear, anger, joy). These moments can cause it to be easy for us to misinterpret what others are saying and doing. Godly couples seize these moments as opportunities for God to be glorified through pouring out love, respect, and thankfulness for each other.

14.  Godly couples seek to deal with problems now or as soon as possible. (Ephesians 4:25-32)

• Godly couples have learned that the best time to solve problem is to deal with it now, but also do things to prevent a problem from occurring. They have learned to be anger and yet not sin toward each other. They have learned to not let the sun go down o their problem, if the problem cannot be solved in a conversation, please do not go to bed angry. They do not give the devil or others an opportunity to injure their marriage. They have learned to do honest work toward each other through ceasing corruptive talk towards each other and edifying each other in speech. They have learned to respond though kindness, tenderness, and forgiveness toward one another.

14 Values that Godly Couples Have (Part 3)

I was cleaning out our storage barn a few weeks ago and found notes from a Southern Seminary professor's class named Dr. Tackett. In honor of Becki and I's recent anniversary, I thought I would share 14 values that Godly Couples have over posts. I did not come up with these value, they comes from the research of my professor that he did and from his time researching wit Dr. John Gottman. The Gottman Institute can predict with amazing accuracy those couples who will be divorced. Please note that I have rephrased these 14 values to be easier to read and understand.

10.  Godly couples do not repay evil for evil, but overcome it with good. (1 Peter 3:9)

• Couples must move past the stage in their relationship of seeing the differing opinion of their spouse as infringement, but as a way to understand their mate better. When we are misunderstood we often sense the we are missing something. There is a call from scripture to learn to live as a living sacrifice to God; the Spirit is needed to help couples think more like scripture calls us to think. When there is constant fighting, each spouse struggles to believe that God is transforming their mate.

11.  Godly couples are in a continual cycle of forgiveness and reconciliation. (2 Cor. 5:17-6:1)

• Every couple will have verbal fights and conflict, but it is the Godly couple who will realize that they must be a minister of reconciliation, especially in marital life. Here are some steps in the process:

1. They seek to bring spiritual and marital reconciliation. They move the focus off their spouse's sin to their own sin.
2. In the early steps the spouse becomes deeply remorseful about their own sin.
3. The deep sense of remorse is expressed in a vulnerable confession of sin and is an invitation to respond in kindness.
4. Generally this invitation is given 2-5 times before the other spouse responds constructively and joins them.
5. Once this deep sense of remorse occurs in both they ask for forgiveness.
6. Godly couples are consciously extending the rose of thankfulness to their spouse. (Eph. 1:16 & 5:20)

12.  Godly couples will consciously experience thankfulness in their marriage. 

• We must see thankfulness like the rose spring that brings a beauty and aroma that is pleasing to all. Kudzu on the other had is fast growing and difficult to kill. Kudzu could be compared to the negative sentiments we have for our spouses, if left unchecked it will destroy any possibility of healthy growth for the marriage. These couple are deeply thankful for each other.  Because thankfulness chokes out self centeredness in a marriage and helps each spouse over looks little sins. When we live this way, in a state of continuous thankfulness for our spouse, we find it difficult to see the little negative things that they do.

Southern Baptist Convention 2014

I am posting this from Baltimore, Maryland.  We arrived early enough to enjoy the Pastor's Conference in full beginning on Sunday.  The seafood here in Baltimore is excellent,  praise the Mary Land for their crab cakes and clam strips!  The theme of the Pastor's Conference was Show Us Your Glory  in which we were challenged to have an ever increasing desire to long for God's glory.  As in any preaching conference, there is that one sermon that sticks out in your mind.  This year for me it was Rick Warren's message he gave during session 4, as he spoke from a broken heart in the wake of the tragic suicide of his youngest son.  He took a four month grief sabbatical.

Pastor Warren's first Words to open his sermon were,

     "If you want the blessing of God on your life, If you want the power of God on your words, you must be willing to suffer trials and tribulations, because you can't enter the throne room without going through the thorn room."

This got my attention and it grabbed everyone else in the room.  I don't think anyone was even coughing.

He went on to say,
   "There is no publicly successful ministry without private pain.  There are no messages for us without messes.  There is no impact without criticism.  Those who are the most blessed are those who are the most attacked."

He spoke on the worst day of his life, the battle for hope he faced when they found their son who had battled depression for years had taken his life.  He spoke of the ministry of presence where as he put it, "You show up and you shut up."  The greater the hurt the less the words.

Here is Pastor Warren's outline:

Text:  2 Corinthians 1:3-11, 4:10, 6:4, Philippians 1:12  and Romans 8-12

Title:  The Five Ways That God Uses Suffering in Your Life as a Believer

1. Inspect Me
2. Direct Me 
3. Correct Me
4. Protect Me
5. Perfect Me

And What we need to do in response:

1. Draw Closer to God.
2. Draw Closer to Others.
3. Become More Like Jesus- The Number One Purpose of our Life.- Read Hebrews 5, teaches we learn obedience through suffering.
4. Help Others.  He referred to this as Redemptive Pain.
5. Witness to the World!

In addition to this James MacDonald preached an excellent sermon that blessed my heart. 

In addition to this, baptisms are falling faster in decline across the board in the convention.  We are losing ground.  Here is a link to the full report.According to churches reporting in the 2012 ACP: 

• 25% of Southern Baptist churches reported “0 baptisms”
• 60% reported no youth baptisms (age 12-17 bracket)
• 80% reported 0-1 young adult baptisms (age 18-29 bracket)
• The only consistently growing age group in baptisms is age five and under.

Remember it takes everyone doing the work of an evangelist to turn back numbers like this.

14 Values that Godly Couples Have (Part 2)

I was cleaning out our storage barn over Memorial Day Weekend and found notes from a professor's class named Dr. Tackett. In honor of Becki and I's recent anniversary, I thought I would share 14 values that Godly Couples have over four different blog posts. I did not come up with these value, they came from the research of my professor that he did and from his time researching with Dr. John Gottman. The Gottman Institute can predict with amazing accuracy those couples who will be divorced. Please note that I have rephrased these 14 values to be easier to read and understand.

6.  Godly couples have a very strong sense of passion toward each other emotional, relational, and sexually.

•  Simply put these couples love to be together. This can be seen on all levels: as a basic physical attraction    to one another and conversational. There is a continuing development of sincerity, leading to the     development of a place of both feeling secure and protected. There is a strong flow of reciprocal emotions and chemistry with each other which grows over time into a priceless love, a full and complete selfless love for each other.

7.  Godly couples value consistency and change. (Ephesians 4:15-16)

• Godly couples place a high value on a deep personal sense of wanting to change consistently…growing in Christ. There are five factors:

1. Speak the truth in love- that is speaking honestly with one another with a                                             honoring and valuing of the other person.
2. Their growth and change is consistent, they hold on to what they do.
3. Change is gradual, done in little ways.
4. Change must be long lasting both in the person and the marriage.
5. God is the author of all growth that is biblically based. God will be at work in the husband and wife and their marriage.

8.  Godly couples value the relationship they have with their spouse as the most important earthly relationship they have. (Gen. 2:24) 

• Godly couples should have emotionally, mentally, spiritually left their family and built their own family under God's design… Marriage is thicker than blood, though blood is thicker than water. The men must initiate the leaving and the women responds by leaving her parents. How will or could a young woman fell protected and secure if he is still committed to his family? These couples value their relationship above their children, which in turn produces a deeper level of security for the children.

9.  Godly couples understand that as they both grow closer to God, they will grow closer to one another.

As the husband and wife both work to grow closer to God, they will also grow closer to one another.  I have seen cases where only one in the relationship is growing towards Christ, causing the couple to drift apart.  Each must do all they can to help their spouse grow in Christ likeness for the glory of God and so that they will reap the benefit of growing closer together.

14 Values that Godly Couples Have! (Part 1)

I was cleaning out our storage barn over Memorial Day Weekend and found notes from Dr Tackett's Class, a class I took in seminary. Dr. Tackett taught on the subject of Christian Counseling at the time. In honor of Becki and I's recent anniversary, I thought I would share 14 values that Godly Couples have over the next four weeks. I did not come up with these value, they came from the research of my professor that he did and from his time researching wit Dr. John Gottman. The Gottman Institute can predict with amazing accuracy those couples who will be divorced. Please not that I have rephrased these 14 values to be easier to read and understand.

1.  Godly couples understand that Christ is the only foundation for a Christ Marriage. (Lk 6:46-49; Matt 7:24-27)

• Godly couples do not buy into the cultural goal, that marriage is for personal satisfaction.  These couples are very affirming that their lives are not about themselves, but instead about who God is and how God works.  These couples understand that their marriages are a means to make them holy not just happy.

2.  Godly couples value their friendship with each other.

• Godly couples experience a deep and abiding friendship with each other and it is founded on what Christ is doing in their lives. Your best friend on this planet should be your spouse.

3.  Godly couples realize that "I am a marital sinner, specifically I sin against my spouse and God."

• There is a real honesty about one's sin, both spouses know that they are only one sin away from entering a pattern of sin that will destroy their marriage and their family. They take their sin personally and seriously. (see Romans 7:15-20)

4.  Godly couples understand that little sins lead to big ones. (1 Cor. 5:6-8)

• Big doors swing on small hinges.  It takes numerous little sins to lead to the big sins of an affair. These sins might be of omission (sins of not doing something when we should have) not commission (sins of doing something when we shouldn't have done anything). Godly couples are sin detectives in their own lives, searching out their motives and thinking patterns for sin.

5.  Godly couples understand the value of personal responsibility. (Gal. 6:1-10)

• Godly Couples believe that they are responsible before God and each other for their marriage. These couples believe they are responsible before God and each other for the future of their marriage. If they sow sin they will reap divorce.

The Sin of Presumption vs. Blessed Assurance

"You believe that God is one; you do well. The demons also believe- and they shudder." 

                                                             -James 2:9

Yesterday, I preached on the importance of having a biblical understanding of conversion. One thing that deeply concerns me as a pastor is people who think they are converted when really they are not. I believe that there are many who are convinced they are saved, but are far from God. Here are a couple of observations from the above text.

1. There is a type of believe in God and/or Jesus that does not save you.

This is a biblical principle that Jesus clearly taught in Matthew 7:21-23 which says:

"Not everyone who says to me, "Lord, Lord!" will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only the one who does the will of My Father in heaven. On that day many will say to Me, "Lord Lord, didn't we prophesy in Your name, drive out demons in Your name, and do many miracles in your name?" Then I will announce to them, "I never knew you! Depart from me, you lawbreakers!"

In my time as a pastor I have seen men who were presumptuous about God's grace. Men who were drunk off their own pride, and from that proudly proclaim in a salvation that their lives did not reflect. Men who would loudly and proudly proclaim of this salvation to others, and thought it a sin to ever doubt it. These same men also did extensive damage to the church they were in, untold damage over the years. Men like those mentioned in Matthew 7:21-23, may perhaps be Satan's most effective tool in destroying local churches and disrupting Kingdom work. Having a saving faith in Jesus is more than just mental acceptance or moral resolve.

2. There is a type of believe in God and/or Jesus that does save you.

Praise be to God that we can have assurance. Assurance is different from presumption in that it is built on reliance on Jesus Christ. I would argue from passages like 1 John 5:13, where the apostle wants to remind us that we can have assurance. A life that is living in assurance of our salvation will be marked by humility, teachability, and endurance. I pray for all those in my pastoral care who struggle to have the assurance described by the apostle John. Do not be quick to agree with the enemy when he comes to remind you of your sin.

Encouraging Truth for Moms and Dads

"1 Unless the Lord builds a house, its builders labor over it in vain; unless the Lord watches over a city, the watchman stays alert in vain. 2 In vain you get up early and stay up late, working hard to have enough food— yes, He gives sleep to the one He loves. 3 Sons are indeed a heritage from the Lord , children, a reward. 4 Like arrows in the hand of a warrior are the sons born in one’s youth. 5 Happy is the man who has filled his quiver with them. Such men will never be put to shame when they speak with their enemies at the city gate . 1 How happy is everyone who fears the Lord , who walks in His ways!" 

-Psalm 127-128:1

This past week was Mother's Day, and I preached a message that would encourage our mothers. I would like to share three truths from Psalm 127- 128 that would encourage mothers and fathers everywhere. Psalm 127 was usually read at the celebration after a birth. It is considered to be a wisdom psalm, that teaches how to live rightly.

1. Replace your Self Confidence as a parent with God Confidence. (Psalm 127:1-2)

Note how the author depends on God in the above verses, "Unless the LORD builds" and "Unless the LORD watches." We must realize that we cannot build our houses on our own. God wants to undermine our self confidence and replace it with faith in God confidence. Please remember being a good mother or father does not depend on our work, effort, labor, getting it right, strength and ability, but it depends on the grace of God. Remember the times you got it right as a parent? please remember that it was God who enabled those moments to happen. God gave you the ability to sacrifice, comfort, celebrate and discipline correctly. Remember we have a sin nature that is very self centered with fierce appetites. Without God's common grace that He gives to everyone, we would all constantly mess up parenting.

2. See your Children for Who and What they really are. (Psalm 127:3-5)

We are all vulnerable to lies about our children and parenthood. Many in our world are not welcoming to children and children are viewed as disposable. Or the other extreme, children are idolized and worshiped, as extension of their parents. The Word says that children are a "gift" or an "inheritance." In addition to this, children are described as "arrows." Please note that we don't just want to create straight arrows, that is arrows that keep their nose clean and pay their taxes on time. We want to create arrows that hit the targets that God has laid out in His Word. We want arrows that will sink deep into the heart of the enemies of God. We are raising Children who will be pastors, missionaries, deacons, teachers, evangelist, and faithful followers of Christ no matter their vocation.

3. Build your motherhood/parenthood around a healthy fear of God.

Early on in my faith, the idea of the fear of God was very confusing to me. Since then I have come to see that true fear of God is a childlike fear. Fear of God is a holy respect and growing love. Scriptures teaches that fear and love of God are companion emotions. We need to run to God in total dependence. Fearing God reflects a life of submission to God's will. When it comes to our life as a parent, we must not build it around the opinions of others, our reputation, our comfort and ease, avoiding failure, but we must orient our parenting around the fear of God.

The Buckle of the Meth Belt?

"An ever increasing craving for an ever diminishing pleasure is the formula. . . . To get a man’s soul and give him nothing in return–that’s what really gladdens Our Father’s heart.(In Reference to Satan)" -The Demon Screwtape 

C. S. Lewis’s The Screwtape Letters (p. 44)

I love Tennessee! I was born here, and when I die I want to be buried here! That is why it breaks my heart that we are no longer the buckle of the Bible belt, but we are now the buckle of the Meth Belt. The above quote is from C.S. Lewis' book The Screwtape Letters, this is a section in which one demon is instructing another on how to destroy human souls. Almost every Monday at the associational office there is something called "The Pastor's Conference." It is a time when area pastors come together, share prayer concerns, sing praise, and listen to preaching or a guest speaker. This past Monday, April 28, 2014, Sherriff Chris Mathes from Carter County came and spoke to us about a battle that is being fought in our county. Here in Carter County we are locked in a war on Methamphetamine or Meth for short. Sherriff Mathes gave us a quote from a meth user to help us understand the pull. The meth addict said,

"Do you remember being a small boy, and skinned up your knee? How your mother would come and dust you off. There was no better peace. Nothing else in the world mattered. That is what being on meth is like."

Here is some of the information that he shared with us.

· 2010 the Meth Problem hit North East Tennessee

· Tennessee recently passed Missouri in Meth usage making our state number 1 in the United States

· Carter County is #5 in the State of Tennessee for Meth Labs ceased in 2013

· Meth labs are now advanced to the point where they can fit into a back pack

· Mountain Dew Bottles are preferred for cooking meth, please steer clear of any you find on the side of the road

· It is estimated that 75% of the purchases of sinus medication like Sudafed, is used for cooking meth.

· The purchase of $32.77 of materials will make one gram of meth work an estimated $125

· 1 in 3 children in Foster Care in the state of Tennessee is the result of a meth lab bust

I am writing this to let you know that our Sherriff not only fighting this battle, but is trying to help those caught in the cycle. We need to help. Pray for our Sherriff Department and their officers. Please know that there are programs that we can get those who are in need on, like "Red Legacy" or "Get Clean and Stay Clean". Meth is killer, if you know someone caught in this, get them help ASAP, their life is on the line. I have asked Sherriff Mathes to come and share with us about this problem on Sunday Night July 20 at 7:00 PM. Please try to make this presentation.

The Beauty of Biblical Tension

"Yahweh —Yahweh is a compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger and rich in faithful love and truth, 7 maintaining faithful love to a thousand generations, forgiving wrongdoing, rebellion, and sin. But He will not leave the guilt unpunished, bringing the consequences of the fathers’ wrongdoing on the children and grandchildren to the third and fourth generation."  -Exodus 34:6-7 (HCSB)


The passage above is given to Moses and contains the most amazing thing this prophet could hear. As you read this passage one must consider the holiness of God and how that fits it. If one were to do a surface reading of this text, it may seem that there is a contradiction in who God is. 

The Word of God is filled with great tensions. Biblical tensions are two truths that appear to be contradictory, but are both taught as true in the Word. We must remember that when we find biblical tensions one truth doesn't trump another truth. Another example of biblical tensions is the incarnation; how can a Holy, eternal, creator, God take on a human body, entering time and history? The Trinity is another example, how can God be three persons and yet one? But we believe it, we accept these truths as God reveling himself. 

There is mystery with God, He has not revealed everything about himself, but he has revealed exactly what he desires for us to know. He has revealed all that is needed for a relationship with Him and salvation. Throughout history, God planned and promised to reveal His glory to His people. But how could the Lord "forgive wickedness" and yet "not leave the guilty unpunished"? We don't see the answers to this mystery in ancient nor modern Israel. We see that God had promised a person. In the Old Testament there was an atoning sacrifice, a propitiation to diminish the righteous wrath of God. Hope required a substation of suffering and death on the part of the innocent for the deserved punishment of the guilty. This hope also requited some kind of type of relationships between the offended and the offender. 

Before Christ was born, we see that people were wondering when would the Messiah would come. It had been over 400 years since they had heard from God. To put 400 years in prospective, we have been an nation only 231 years. The Lord had give the promise to Moses that he would raise up a prophet (Deut. 18:15-19). But when Jesus came, he took everyone by surprise, because he fulfilled not just the kingly prophecies of the Messiah, but he also fulfilled the prophecies about the suffering Messiah, who would be rejected and suffer in the place of his people. Jesus solves the riddle that the above passage raises. He shows us how God can forgive our wickedness while at the same time punish the guilty. 

 This is the beauty of the Gospel, God knew that the only perfect, innocent substitute is himself. God is faithful to us especially when we are not faithful to Him. God is faithful through the fact that he provided himself to be a perfect, spotless, innocent of sin, substitutionary, sacrifice for our sin and wickedness. So God became a man taking on flesh and blood named Jesus, lived a perfect live, and died a perfect substitution for your sin and mine. The Cross works out this mystery of How God can both "forgive wickedness" and yet "not leave the guilty unpunished?" All that is left for us to do is repent and believe in this substitute that has been give for us, otherwise we will find ourselves in the past last of verse seven, "But He will not leave the guilt unpunished."

10 Things To Do Before You Leave Your Church

I recently received a question about leaving a church from someone who is not a member of our church. Leaving a church is something that should not be taken lightly. When we join a church we are making a covenant with those who are part of that church. We are joining a family! Often times people will abandon their church for petty reasons. However, there are times when it becomes necessary to leave a church for the sake of one’s own conscience, or out of duty to obey God rather than men. The Bible gives the following reasons: heresy from the pulpit (Gal. 1:7-9), leaders of the church tolerate seriously errant doctrine (Rom. 16:17), Unholy living is tolerated in the church (1 Cor. 5:9-11), If the church is seriously out of step with the biblical pattern for church (2 Thess. 3:6, 14), and if the church is marked by gross hypocrisy, giving lip service to biblical Christianity but refusing to acknowledge its power (2 Tim. 3:5).

1. Pray.

2. Let your current pastor know about your thinking before you move to another church or make your decision to relocate to another city. Ask for his counsel. You may not want to do this, but it is helpful for you both.

3. Weigh your motives. Is your desire to leave because of sinful, personal conflict or disappointment? If it’s because of doctrinal reasons, are these doctrinal issues significant? You may need to seek council from someone who is more mature. We can often deceive ourselves, because the heart is desperately wicked (Jeremiah 17:9).

4. Do everything within your power to reconcile any broken relationships, church leadership included!

5. Be sure to consider all the “evidences of grace” you’ve seen in the church’s life- places where God’s work is evident. If you cannot see any evidences of God’s grace, you might want to examine your own heart once more (Matt. 7:3-5).

6. Be humble. Recognize you don’t have all the facts and assess people and circumstances charitably (give them the benefit of the doubt).

7. Don’t divide the body. There may be good times to divide, like if there is heresy being preached, but overall do not use your absence or threat of absence as a power play to get what you want.

8. Take the uttermost care not to sow discontentment even among your closest friends. Remember, you don’t want anything to hinder their growth in grace in the church. Deny any desire to gossip (sometimes referred to as “venting” or “saying how you feel” or “getting it off your chest”).

9. Pray for and bless the congregation and its leadership. Look for ways of doing this practically.

10. If there has been hurt, then forgive- even as you have been forgiven.

This list was adapted from Mark Dever's book "What is a Healthy Church?"

Seeing Easter through the Smokey Shadows of Exodus

"13 Remember Your servants Abraham, Isaac, and Israel—You swore to them by Your very self and declared, ‘I will make your offspring as numerous as the stars of the sky and will give your offspring all this land that I have promised, and they will inherit it forever.’” 14 So the Lord relented concerning the disaster He said He would bring on His people." -Exodus 32:13-14

The above passage has puzzled many theologians, preachers, and Christians. For a moment it would appear that God has changed his mind. But is that what is really happening here? Does God really change his mind? A tension seems to appear here in the word of God. One thing I often comfort these who are grieving or struggling to understand God's providence is "God doesn't deal in plan B, God only deals in Plan A!"  How should we think about this passage? Let me give you a few things to consider about this text.

1. Scripture teaches us that the perfections of God are unchanging. Scripture is clear that God does not change his mind (Numbers 23:19). God is perfectly Holy (Psalm 99 and Isaiah 6), He is without error and he has no equal in all of the existence of heaven and earth. Just think what horror it would be for us if God could change, because the issue would be does he change for the better or for the worse. In this passage, God's Holiness is burning against sinners. It still burns against sinners today!

2. Scripture teaches us that the purposes of God are unchanging (Psalm 33:11 and Isaiah 36). We see from God's word that he governs every detail of life and that his purposes are unchanging. In the above passage in verse 13 Moses remembers what God had promised in the past, and Moses calls God to remember. Do you think it is strange that Moses would ask God to remember something? The reason that Moses prayers and intercedes for Israel, is because this is what Moses is crated to do. God made Moses to be the mediator. The story of God is still unfolding, but we must remember that part of His plan is to send a mediator that goes before him and the sinful people His Holiness desires to crush.

3. Be Encouraged because God always provides a mediator. We see something in this prayer/plea from Moses that points us straight to the Cross of Jesus Christ. As the men of Beth-shemesh said in 1 Samuel 6:20, “Who is able to stand before the Lord, this holy God?..." God made and sent Moses for this moment in redemptive history. Moses stands before God pleading for God's people, a shadow of the true mediator Jesus Christ. Moses stands as part of God's unfolding plan to demonstrate his mercy and grace. We are reminded in Romans 8:34, "Who is the one who condemns? Christ Jesus is the One who died, but even more, has been raised; He also is at the right hand of God and intercedes for us."

Though these smokey shadows in Exodus, we see God both condemning Israel and providing a mediator for them. Moses stands as a flawed, sinful human mediator who points us to the mediator who will come. Moses points to the coming of a perfect mediator who will never fail to stand before God on our behalf. Praise be to God that we have a perfect, Holy, Resurrected mediator today and forever! Happy Easter!

The Church: A Kingdom of Worshipping Priests & Reigning Kings

“Jesus told her, “Believe Me, woman, an hour is coming when you will worship the Father neither on this mountain nor in Jerusalem.” John 4:21

Pastor Brandon Wright preached the above passage during revival last week. The theme of the revival was the above title: The Church: A Kingdom of Worshipping Priests & Reigning Kings. We were able to bless him and his family with a Love Offering of $1007. Thank you church family for your financial support, attendance, verbal encourage- ment, and prayer support!

All of his messages were excellent, but I particularly enjoyed when he preached the above passage. He made the point that asking a question like, “Where are we going to worship, this mountain or that one?,” is almost the same as asking, “What musical style shall we worship with?” The real issue is the heart. It has always been the heart, not the location or music style. God wants more than just our actions or singing. Dr. Carson once asked the very pointed question about worshipping God with music. He asked, “Are you worshipping God, or are you worshipping yourself worshipping God?” Dr. Carson cuts us where we need to be cut. All of life is worship, not just what we sing on Sunday morning (1 Cor. 10:31). If we don’t feel something in the morning worship, could it be us? Could it be that we have not worshipped God well all week, and now we don’t feel anything? I think the answer is yes.

Let us remember these truths as we go about worshipping God all week!