The Active Obedience of Christ

When J. Gresham Machen lay dying, he sent a telegram to John Murray that said:

"I'm so thankful for the active obedience of Christ. No hope without it."

Rescuing Ambition, p. 52.

What do you think about this church sign?

Who is at the center?

Dave Harvey on struggling with selfish ambition:

"Earlier I mentioned my struggle with the wrong kinds of ambition. I call them "Davebitions." So often I'm Davebitious. I assume that my family would work much better if they all majored in Daveology. Friendships work best if they have a Davetistic bent. I believe many of life's misunderstandings could be cleared up with jus a few Daveological insights. Overall the world would be a better place if we could just celebrate an annual Davetoberfest.
I guess you can call me a Daveaholic. There, I've said it. I feel so much better."

Rescuing Ambition, pp. 37-38.

Philippians Overview Sermon

I enjoy doing overview sermons at the end of the series instead of at the beginning. In my Philippians overview sermon, I simply meditated on the sufficiency of Christ. Paul's great example is that Jesus is enough.

• Because Jesus is enough, we can rejoice even when we suffer.
• Because Jesus is enough, we can look forward to death.
• Because Jesus is enough, we can humbly love one another.
• Because Jesus is enough, we can be content in any circumstance.
• Because Jesus is enough, we can be counted righteous by God.

Hallelujah, All I Have is Christ. Hallelujah, Jesus is My Life.

John Owen on Christ

"Christ is the treasury in which the Father places all the riches of his grace taken from the bottomless mine of his eternal love."

"All the fruits of God's love are first given to Christ. Christ then gives them to us."

"Christ is the well of salvation into which the water of God's love is poured."

"Christ bears the iniquity of our offerings and he adds incense to our prayers."

From pages 20-21 of Communion with God.

The Greatest Burden We Can Lay on the Father

John Owen speaking to Christians:

"The greatest sorrow and burden you can lay on the Father, the greatest unkindness you can do to him is not to believe that he loves you."

Communion with God, p. 13.

Rescuing Ambition for $5

WTS has a special 48 hour sale on Dave Harvey's new book, Rescuing Ambition. The endorsements for this one make it look very attractive.

Radical Available at WTS

WTS books now has David Platt's Radical. Everyone reading this blog needs to get this book. I give a lot of book recommendations. This is not a recommendation. Its an expression of my care for you.

I'll be giving a copy of Radical away later this week.

T4G Breakouts Now Online

You can find the T4G breakouts here. Be sure to listen to David Platt's session.

What gets you fired up?

"Most preachers and zealous Christians I knew got fired up over what we need to do for God. But C.J's (Mahaney) greatest passion was reserved for exulting in what God had done for us."

Josh Harris, Dug Down Deep, p. 27.

Philippians Commentaries

After studying Philippians, preaching through it, and writing a basic commentary of my own, here are my thoughts on the available resources.

Philippians is one of the few books that has 3 top-notch, excellent commentaries.

1. The best commentary on Philippians is Walter Hansen's Pillar NT Commentary on Philippians. Readable, pastoral, extensive, helpful, Christ-centered, applicable. Everything you look for in a good commentary.

2. Gordon Fee's NICNT commentary on Philippians is a close second to Hansen's. This is a very good commentary (my favorite in the NICNT series). Fee does a great job outlining passages and keeping the big picture in mind, while at the same time providing rigorous exposition.

3. If you can read Greek, PT O'Brien's NIGTC is excellent.

4. I also like Hawthorne (WBC), but found myself disagreeing with his conclusions more than the others.

5. I was disappointed by Motyer, Silva, and Melick.

6. DA Carson's little book, Basics for Believers, is a great small resource for understanding the main point of each chapter.

7. I think MacArthur's Philippians homeletical commentary might be one of his best.

A Step by Step Guide to Planting a Church

Obviously, the title of this post is meant to be a joke. There are no step-by-step guides to planting a church. Beware of anyone who claims they know how to plant a church. Here is the best advice for church planting: Be faithful.

That's why I love Mike McKinley's Church Planting is for Wimps.

This book is mainly the story of the revitalization of Guilford Baptist (a good and funny story). But, weaved throughout the story are some very helpful encouragement to those planting new churches or revitalizing old ones. Here are some of the big picture practices that McKinley challenges us to:

1. Preach the Word relentlessly

2. Develop clear membership boundaries (have a clearly defined statement of faith and church covenant)

3. Have a plurality of elders

4. Don't target particular kinds of people

5. Don't neglect your marriage or family

6. Don't try to do everything yourself (develop/train leaders)

7. Stay for the long haul

Do you plan for Sunday?

Blog readers,

Please read this post by Tim Challies about planning for the Lord's Day. It contains fantastic advice for preparing to meet with the people of God under the Word of God. This advice is golden.

Some suggestions:

• Make it a habit to be home on Saturday night.
• Be careful not to do, watch, or read anything that will cause lingering distractions in your mind the next day.
• Get things ready on Saturday night to alleviate the typical Sunday morning rush (lay out clothes, set the table, write the offering check, stock the diaper bag, etc).
• Get a good night's sleep so you can be sharp and energetic to worship and serve God. It's hard to listen when you're nodding off.
• Eat a simple but adequate breakfast that will hold you until lunch. It's difficult to hear over the grumbling of your stomach.
• Work together with the other members of your family to get ready, and to establish and maintain a godly atmosphere on the way to church. Listen to music, sing, and pray together.
• Arrive at church ten minutes early instead of ten minutes late so you have enough time to find a parking spot, drop the kids off in the nursery or their Sunday school classes, get a cup of coffee, visit with your friends, and find a seat.

My Commentary on Philippians

My study through Philippians has been life-changing. I am sad that it is coming to a close (like saying "bye" to a precious friend). As a gift to my church, I have been writing a very basic commentary on Philippians over these past 5 months. I hope people will use it to further their study of Philippians and to help them teach God's Word to others.

So, if you are interested, here is a link to my commentary on Philippians.

I'll soon be sharing my thoughts on which Philippians commentaries are most helpful and which are not as helpful.

Happy Mom's Day

Mothers have the hardest job on the planet. I'm grateful I get a front row seat to the greatest mom in the world.

Jeanna, I love you. Happy Mother's Day.

Without a Vision Statement, the People Flourish

I'm enjoying reading Church Planting is for Wimps. Having been exposed to all the latest and greatest church planting ideas, this book is refreshing.

After explaining how they got rid of both the mission statement and the vision statement at the church they were revitalizing, Mike McKinley says,

"Look, if you don't know what you're supposed to be doing as a church planter, if you need to write out a statement in order to remember that your church is supposed to evangelize the lost and help Christians grow in Christ, friend, you shouldn't be a church planter. How about casting vision the way Protestants have cast vision for the past five hundred years! Teach God's Word! Explain it to God's people, and tell them God's mission and vision and values and purpose and strategy for their life. Don't refer them back to some mantra that you make sure everyone in the congregation has memorized. Teach them what the Bible says about what it means to be a faithful Christian and a faithful church" (p. 62).

What Part of the Gospel Is Optional?

One of My Favorite Book Titles

The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment.

Good Book on Evangelism

Imagine this: A book on evangelism that focuses on the gospel. Marks of the Messenger is an inspiring and refreshing read. It is a passionate call to be faithful to the message. We don't need tricks and manipulative strategies for evangelism. We need a committment to the truth of the message. J. Mack Stiles helps us guard the gospel so that we can proclaim the gospel.

B-I-B-L-E, Bible!

A Review of Radical

Radical: Taking Back Your Faith from the American Dream by David Platt is a must-read book.

WARNING: This is a challenging book that will turn your world upside down (actually, right side up).
PAY ATTENTION: This is a helpful book that will increase your joy in Jesus.

David Platt calls us to follow the Jesus of the Bible. He warns us against thinking we are worshipping Jesus while really we are worshipping ourselves. He shows us that Jesus is far superior to all the things we clutch onto in this life. He calls us to abandon the Christian spin on the American dream.

Here are a few of the claims Platt makes in Radical:
-Real success is found in radical sacrifice.
-Ultimate satisfaction is found not in making much of ourselves but in making much of God.
-The purpose of our lives transcends the country and culture in which we live.
-Meaning is found in community, not in individualism.
-Joy is found in generosity, not materialism.
-Truth is found in Christ, not universalism.

Chapter 3 is golden. Platt pleads with us to stop relying on ourselves and realize our utter need for the power of the Spirit. Most of what we do in our churches could be done without the power of the Spirit. Would we even recognize if the Spirit abandoned us? He calls us to recognize the power of the Spirit and depend on that same power for everything we do.

One of the main points that Platt emphasizes is Jesus’ call to preach the gospel to all nations. He disarms all of our common excuses for not being involved in missions and gives example after example of people who have abandoned the American dream to follow God’s heart. Missions is not something a few people do. We have been given so much by God so that we can be a blessing to the peoples of this earth.

In chapter 6, David Platt challenges the abundant wealth of the American church. He calls our wealth a “blind spot” in our generation. How can we keep so much for ourselves when so many are starving and dying of preventable diseases? We don’t earn salvation by giving to the poor but we prove our salvation by our care for the poor.

Platt ends this book by challenging us to embrace the “radical experiment,” a one year test drive of living totally for Christ. Specifically, there are 5 challenges of the radical experiment: (1) pray for the entire world, (2) read through the entire Word, (3) sacrifice your money for a specific purpose, (4) spend your time in another context, and (5) commit your life to a multiplying community.

I really appreciate Platt’s emphasis on living out these principles in the context of the local church.

Here’s a flavor of what you will find in Radical:

“Both of us will soon stand before God to give an account for our stewardship of the time, the resources, the gifts, and ultimately the gospel he has entrusted to us. When that day comes, I am convinced we will not wish we had given more of ourselves to living the American dream. We will not wish we had made more money, acquired more stuff, lived more comfortably, taken more vacations, watched more television, pursued greater retirement, or been more successful in the eyes of this world. Instead we will wish we had given more of ourselves to living for the day when every nation, tribe, people, and language will bow around the throne and sing the praises of the Savior who delights in radical obedience and the God who deserves eternal worship” (pp. 216-217).

You can buy Radical directly from the publisher here (Multnomah provided a copy for me to review).
Or, you can buy it at 34% off here.

Being Astonished by Grace

There is a powerful prayer titled "The Mover" in The Valley of Vision, a collection of puritan prayers. In it, the author says this to God:

"O Lord, I am astonished at the difference between my receivings and my deservings."

This is worth pondering for the next few weeks. Think of the vast different between what we deserve and what we receive.

There is a huge difference between my deservings and my actual receivings. I deserve the full force of the wrath of God. I deserve to pay eternally for my sin in hell. I deserve to be alienated from God. God owes me nothing good.

But, I have received grace upon grace from God. He has justified me by faith in Christ. I have received an eternal hope of everlasting enjoyment. I have received access to God through Jesus Christ. I have been given everything I need for life and godliness.

The difference between my receivings and my deservings is as great as any difference imaginable.

Let us think upon the difference between what we deserve and what Christ has purchased by His blood. Let us be astonished by the difference between what we deserve and what we have received.