Too Easily Satisfied

"I am persuaded that the problem with the body of Christ is not that we are dissatisfied with what we do not have, but that we are all too satisfied with what we do have. We are comfortable with a little bit of holiness, a little bit of ministry, a little bit of sacrifice, a little bit of wisdom, a little bit of the satisfying glory that only the grace of Christ is able to give us. I am deeply persuaded that we must resist with all our might the kind of self-satisfied spirituality that marks the life of so many believers."

-Paul Tripp, Broken Down House, pp. 94-95.

Why We Love the Church on Sale

Of course, the week after I bought my copy and a copy to give away, WTS Books put Why We Love the Church on sale (45% off). This is a limited time offer. Have you seen the endorsements yet?

T4G Breakouts

Great. As if I don't have enough tough decisions to make, T4G 2010 is making me make another one. So, help me make this decision. If you were me, which breakout session would you attend?

-Eric Bancroft — Convincing Christianity: The Implications of a Robust Gospel in Marriage
-Tony Carter — Gospel Unity: Maintaining the Gospel as the Main Thing
-Kevin DeYoung — ‘Tis Mystery All, The Immortal Dies: Why the Gospel of Christ’s Suffering Is More Glorious Because God Does Not Suffer
-Greg Gilbert — What Is the Gospel?
-Brian Habig — Fears of the Minister
-Joshua Harris — Dug Down Deep: Helping Others Build Their Lives on Christ-Centered Doctrine
-Michael McKinley — Unity, not Uniformity: Diversity in the Body of Christ
-David Platt — An Unadjusted Gospel in an Unreached World: Connecting Gospel Theology with Urgent Missiology

Christ loves to be trusted in KFC

Ever felt stiff, like the tin man in need of some oil, while witnessing? Read this.

Rob, did Michelle's drink get cold in the car while you were in KFC? I would have used that as an excuse not to stop. "I'm serving my wife..."

Great Contest!

I really enjoyed the "Just 5 Books" contest. Shane Waters won the new book, Why We Love the Church (its already in the mail). And, as promised, I picked one of the entries at random and will be giving a copy of this book to Inside/Out (aka David Moore).

By the way, Lisa has narrowed down the books she is thinking of packing with her for Russia. You can see her list and offer suggestions at her blog.

Restocked Nightstand

I recently restocked my nightstand with 6 books that I'll be reading in the moments before I fall asleep. I usually keep a few books there to read a little at a time. This is a batch I'm excited about.

1. Counsel from the Cross by Fitzpatrick and Johnson
2. Why We Love the Church by DeYoung and Kluck
3. A Shelter in the Time of Storm by Tripp
4. Broken-Down House by Tripp
5. Adopted for Life by Moore
6. When Helping Hurts by Corbett and Fikkert

I got my wife Comforts from the Cross by Fitzpatrick

Vote for the best list

We had some great submissions to the contest about which 5 books you would live with for the next 3 years. I've narrowed down my 3 favorite below. Please help me decide the winner of this new book by voting on the sidebar of my blog (those using a feeder will have to actually go to the blog). Voting will only be open for 24 hours.

1. Shane Waters:
-Institutes - John Calvin
-Redemption Accomplish and Applied - Murray
-Knowing God - Packer
-Vol 6 of Owen's works on Sin
-Vol 3 of Bunyan's works (Pilgrim's Progress)

2. Justin Nale:
-The Existence and Attributes of God - Charnock
-Matthew Henry's Commentary on the Whole Bible
-The Christian's Daily Walk - Henry Scudder
-Spiritual Depression - Lloyd-Jones
-The Trinity Hymnal

3. Jeff Brewer:
-The Bruised Reed - Baxter
-The Dicipline of Grace - Bridges
-To the Golden Shore (Biography of Judson)
-Knowing God - Packer
-The Cross of Christ - Stott


It was very difficult to narrow it down to 3. All the lists were excellent. I hope this helped you to think in terms of reading the best books. I also hope these lists give you an idea of what you should be reading next.

Book Giveaway: Just 5 Books

Let's have a little contest. In my previous post, I forced myself to answer this question: "Justin, if you were leaving this afternoon for 3 years and could only take 5 books (in addition to the Bible), which would you take?" So, I want to hear your answer to that question. And, for the person with the best answer, I'll give them a copy of a brand new book: Why We Love the Church by DeYoung and Kluck (check out the endorsements for this book).

So, here are the rules:

1. Make a list of the 5 books you would select. Assume that you have access to the ESV Study Bible online and all Piper books online (in other words, don't include these in your list).

2. Post your list on your blog and then paste a link in the comments of this post (please also include a link back to this post so that people know what you are doing). If you don't have a blog, just post your list in the comments of this post. As a means of getting others involved, post a link to this contest on facebook or twitter.

3. Include any details you would like. Tell us why you chose that particular book.

4. I'll select the top 3 or so and have people vote to determine the winner.

5. Have your list posted in the comments of this post by Wednesday, July 22.

6. I'll also give away another book (to be determined) at random to one of you who makes a list. So, you can win by just posting your list. Hopefully, this will be an incentive to participate.

7. Please include an e-mail address if I don't know you, so that I can contact you if (when) you win.

8. Have fun!

Just 5 Books

I am delighted that Lisa, one of my church members is going to Russia for about 3 years. She will be extending the mission of Christ Baptist half way across the world. We can't wait to see all that God does.

Lisa is packing and preparing for this trip and send me an e-mail with this question: "I'm still wresting with book choices. If you only had five non-scholarly/non-commentary books with you during the next three years what would you choose?"

My mouth salivates at questions like this. This question is like lobbing a huge beach ball to Albert Pujols and saying, "Hit it."

At first, I thought about answering with a complicated formula with several, "It depends" scenarios. But, I finally decided to answer as straighforwardly as I could. I pressed myself with this more specific question: "Justin, if you were leaving for 3 years this afternoon, which 5 books would you actually take? Only 5!"

Here was my answer:

Assuming you can access the ESV Study Bible and all Piper books online:

Personally, I would take:
1. A Gospel Primer for Christians by Vincent
2. The Great Exchange by Bridges
3. Bible Doctrine by Grudem
4. John G Paton Autobiography
5. Communion with the Triune God by Owen

I couldn't just leave it at that, so I included a bit of an explanation:

1. A Gospel Primer for Christians by Vincent (as a means of preaching the gospel to myself daily)
Or, something a little deeper that could help me grow in my knowledge of the gospel:
The Apostle’s Doctrine of the Atonement by Smeaton
The Message of the Cross by Tidball
Redemption Accomplished and Applied by Murray

2. Something that God has used to stir my affections for Christ. Something that I could go to at any time and find refreshment.
One Thing by Sam Storms
Living the Cross-centered Life by Mahaney
Bookends of the Christian Life by Bridges
The Great Exchange by Bridges
Knowing God by Packer

3. Bible Doctrine by Wayne Grudem (as a resource for a variety of theological issues as well as devotional material).

4. John G Paton autobiography (in order to challenge my soul to take risks for Christ).

5. Communion with the Triune God by John Owen (I would make it a goal to master a classic like this over the next three years).

Tell Someone Today

My friend, Rob, has started a blog called, "Tell Someone Today: Attempts at doing the only thing you do with good news." He is posting the details of his daily attempts to share the gospel with people he meets.

I love this idea. I'm challenged by Rob's first couple of posts. I don't try to talk to strangers enough. Rob has been challenging me to share the gospel with people for over 10 years now.

Save his blog in your reader. I don't know of any others like it.

Tell someone today...

A Praying Life

I just finished reading, A Praying Life by Paul Miller. I read the majority of it a chapter at a time before bed at night. It is a good book. It is a helpful, enjoyable, inspiring book.

Here are some of my thoughts about A Praying Life:

1. This is a good read. At times, I couldn't wait to read another chapter.

2. I'm putting this book back on the shelf more aware of God and the power of prayer. The real value of a book lies in what it teaches you about God.

3. This is not just a book about how to pray. This is a book about something deeper than prayer: desperation. This is a book about the reality of our helplessness. Miller writes, "Learned desperation is at the heart of a praying life." No matter what prayer strategies you develop, no matter what your theology of prayer, you will not pray if you are not desperate. The majority of this book is simply a call to recognize how much you need God. Apart from Christ we can do nothing; therefore, pray.

4. This book is about real life praying in the midst of all the distractions of our world. I love the personal stories throughout this book.

5. This book helped me want to be a better parent.

6. Miller makes clear that the best gift God gives is His Son. Jesus is God's most clear answer to our pleas. God allows suffering and leaves prayers unanswered so that we can grow in our love for the Savior.

7. I have reinstituted my prayer cards as a result of this book. I desperately want to obey Colossians 4:2: "Devote yourself to prayer."

Sitting the Bench and Sinking Your Roots into God

"Emily loves field hockey, which is like ice hokey except it's gentler and rquires eleven players on a grass field. Her school had a superb, well-coached program. Their team usually won its division and was frequently in the running for the state championship. The coach was excellent, although Emily thought the coach played favorites. That year she and her friend were not the favorites, and occasionally Emily sat out the entire game.

Another parent heard about the bench warming and, while chatting with me at the local gym, said, "Isn't that unbelieveable what the coach is doing? Doesn't that make you mad?" I replied, "Actually, no. We are thankful Emily has this low-level suffering while she is still on our watch. It is a wonderful opportunity for her to grow in faith. She'll learn far more about God on the bench than out on the playing field."

The other parent expected Jill and me to be angry about what was happening to Emily. Her goal for her child was tied to the child's accomplishments. Our goal was tied to Emily's faith. Because of that, we saw sports as just another venue where she could learn to sink her roots into God. I saw the bench warming as an answer to my daily prayer that Emily would not love the world of the things in the world...Life is more about bench sitting than about being a star."

-Paul Miller, A Praying Life, p. 170-171.

Daniel Commentaries

Here are some of my thoughts on commentaires on the book of Daniel.

1. Tremper Longman is the best all-around commentary.

2. Homiletical commentaries abound.
-Iain Duguid is fantastic. A must have! Very Christ-centered.
-James Boice is good and helpful.
-Sinclair Ferguson is also good and helpful.
-Stortz is not as helpful as the others.

3. Not worth the time or money.

Olyott and Wallace.

4. Notable.

-Archer is very helpful.

-Hope in the Midst of a Hostile World is the weakest volume in The Gospel According to the Old Testament Series I have read. However, it is still helpful (which says a lot about this series).

-I wish I would have purchased Young at the beginning. A lot of commentators refer to him.

Friend of Sinners

I surprised my daughter by getting her Noel Piper's new children's book: Do You Want a Friend? She loves books and I love getting her books that point to the Savior. This book walks through the qualities of a good friend and shows how Jesus fulfills each perfectly. There are 3 reasons I like this book:

1. The Scripture is quoted prominently. My daughter memorizes books. So, whenever a book contains exact quotes from the Bible, I know that it is going to be a means of getting the Word of God into her heart.

2. I love the diversity of the kids in the pictures.

3. The work of Christ on the Cross is central. Noel makes clear that Jesus can be a friend to sinners like us because He is first and foremost our Savior.

Got kids or grandkids? Do you Want a Friend? would be a great gift.

Jesus: God's Ultimate Jubilee

What is the significance of the 70 "sevens" of Daniel 9:24-27? Most scholars agree that this is referring to 70 units of 7 years, or 490 years.

While I certainly think a time-frame is being given here, I also think there is a significance to 490 years that goes deeper than merely being able to do the math (not matter how you view the dates, you run into problems because we don't have the exact dates given to us in Scripture).

I would argue that these numbers find their ultimate significance in the Sabbath and Jubilee principles found in Leviticus 25-26. You see, God commanded His people to separate one day out of every seven days (the Sabbath day). And, He commanded them to separate one year out of every seven years (the Sabbath year). And, He commanded them to celebrate a year of Jubilee after 7 Sabbath years (or after every 49 years).

The year of Jubilee was a huge celebration. All land was returned to its original owner; all Jewish slaves were released; and all debts were cancelled.

So, 490 years is 10 Jubilee units. This is an intensification of the Jubilee concept, pointing to the ultimate Jubilee. This is the Jubilee of all Jubilees. God is alerting Daniel to His plan to send a Messiah who would usher in God’s final and ultimate Jubilee. Jesus Christ is the fulfillment and intensification of all that the Law foreshadowed.

God-Centered Prayer

Daniel 9:1-19 contains Daniel's prayer for the restoration of Jerusalem. It is a fantastic model of God-centered prayer.

1. This prayer is prompted by Daniel's study of God's Word (9:1-2).
-We should allow God's Word to inform our prayer life.

2. This prayer is based on God's character (9:4).
-Daniel recognizes the greatness of God and pleads with God to act according to His character.

3. This prayer is permeated with confession and repentance.
-v. 5 – “we have sinned and done wrong and acted wickedly and rebelled.”
-v. 5 – “we have turned aside from your commandments and rules.”
-v. 6 – “we have not listened to your servants the prophets…”
-v. 8 – we deserve open shame
-v. 8 – “we have sinned against you.”
-v. 9 – “we have rebelled against him.”
-v. 10 – “we have not obeyed his voice.”
-v. 11 – “All Israel has transgressed your law and turned aside, refusing to obey your voice.”
-v. 11 – “we have sinned against him.”
-v. 14 – “we have not obeyed his voice.”
-v. 15 – “we have sinned, we have done wickedly.”
-v. 18 – we do not present our pleas because of our righteousness

4. This prayer in grounded in God's passion for His own glory (9:17-19).
-Daniel appeals to God to act on behalf of His own name.

The Most Controversial Passage in the Bible

I can't think of a more controversial passage in the entire Bible than Daniel 9:24-27, the prophecy of the seventy weeks.

It was a joy to study and preach this passage this week. I grew to love this passage because of how clearly it points to the person and work of my Savior, Jesus Christ. In the middle of all the controversy, underneath the difficulties, Jesus shines like a beacon on a foggy, dark night.

I read about 30 different sources on this passage and didn't find any two that completely agree on every detail of this passage. In fact, there is not a single phrase in Daniel 9:24-27 that is universally agreed upon. This is no exaggeration. I think I could give you a differing interpretation on every phrase of this passage.

In my view, God is responding to Daniel's prayer in 9:1-19 by giving an immediate and an ultimate answer. The immediate answer is that Jerusalem will be restored (which is what Daniel pleads with God to do based on Jeremiah's prophecy). The ultimate answer is that God will send a Savior to redeem His people from their sin and reconcile them to Himself. God will inaugurate the promised New Covenant through the cutting off of the Messiah.

Jesus (9:24):
-finished transgression in His death.
-put an end to sin by His blood.
-atoned for the iniquity of His people.
-brought in everlasting righteousness in obedience to His Father.
-sealed vision and prophet by being the fulfillment of all God's promises.
-was anointed as the true temple, the most holy One.

What a Savior!

Happy 500th Birthday John Calvin!

I thank God for your tenacious committment to the Word of God.
I thank God for your passionate pursuit to make much of Jesus Christ.

Praying in Jesus' Name

"Imagine that your prayer is a poorly dressed beggar reeking of alcohol and body odor, stumbling toward the palace of the great king. You have become your prayer. As you shuffle toward the barred gate, the guards stiffen. Your smell has preceded you. You stammer out a message for the great king: "I want to see the king." Your words are barely intelligible, but you whisper one final word, "Jesus, I come in the name of Jesus." At the name of Jesus, as if by magic, the palace comes alive. The guards snap to attention, bowing low in front of you, Lights come on, and the door flies open. You are ushered into the palace and down a long hallway into the throne room of the great king, who comes running to you and wraps you in his arms.

The name of Jesus gives my prayers royal access. They get through. Jesus isn't just the Savior of my soul. He's also the Savior of my prayers. My prayers come before the throne of God as the prayers of Jesus. "Asking in Jesus' name" isn't another thing I have to get right so my prayers are perfect. Is it one more gift of God because my prayers are so imperfect.

Jesus' seal not only guarantees that my package gets through, but it also transforms the package."

Paul Miller, A Praying Life, p. 134.

Christ Died to Make Me Angry

Encouraged and challenged by this Tripp piece posted by JT.

Humbled by This

I am humbled greatly by the fact that some friends from college are naming their 2nd son after me (and Charles Spurgeon!). You can read the announcement here. All glory to God. I am a great sinner. Christ is a great Savior!

Resource Spotlight: Outrageous Mercy

Outrageous Mercy is one of the best “lesser-known” books available. This is a book worth getting and reading. William Farley (a pastor in Spokane, WA), helps us dive deeper into the radical nature of the Cross of Jesus Christ. No matter how long we have been a Christian, we never outgrow our need for the gospel. Whether you’re a new believer, an experienced Christian, or a veteran of ministry, making the Cross central to your life will give you fresh insights into all of God’s ways and purposes. Outrageous Mercy includes study questions to be used with a group or individually.

Driscoll on Dating

Chapter 7 (Question 3) of Religion Saves is about dating. Driscoll addresses some of the key issues surrounding dating and draws out the idols associated with singleness in our culture. Then, he gives 16 "Christian dating principles for both men and women."

1. Maximize your singleness for God - Don't waste these precious years.

2. Do not pursue a serious relationship until you are ready to marry.

3. Be reasonable - Don't set your expectations too high or too low.

4. Do not be legalistic about dating - While our culture's practice of "dating" is unacceptable for Christians, it is not a sin for two Christians to enjoy time together.

5. Do not have any romantic relationship with someone who is a non-Christian.

6. You should be in a romantic relationship with only one person at a time.

7. He should initiate and she should respond - The man should lead.

8. You need to look at who God puts in front of you.

9. Feel free to use technology wisely - Social networking is simply a new way for God's providence to bring people together.

10. Invest in a romantic relationship only with someone you are entirely attracted to.

11. Only date someone who agrees with you on primary theological issues.

12. Guard your heart.

13. Be careful of legalism and libertinism.

14. Marry someone who will be a fit for every season of the life that awaits you together.

15. Pursue only someone you love.

16. Do not have any sexual contact until marriage.

Then, Driscoll gives seven dating questions for men and women:

For Men:

1. Are you overlooking good women?

2. Do you enjoy her?

3. Is she modest?

4. Will she follow your leadership?

5. Does she have noble character?

6. Can you provide for the lifestyle she expects?

7. As you stand back and objectively consider her, is she like any of the women that Proverbs warns against?

For Women:

1. Do you want to help him and join his course of life?

2. Is he tough enough to remain strong in tough times?

3. Will he take responsibility for you and your children?

4. Is he considerate and gentle with you?

5. Will he be a good father?

6. Is he a one-woman man?

7. How valuable are you to him?

Of course, Driscoll explains each of these principles and questions in the book.