As we approach the end of 2008, many folks begin to reflect on the past year and look forward with anticipation to the year ahead.  It’s normal to see countdowns of the top movies, songs, books, and just about anything else you can think of from the past year.  Yep, this is one of those lists.  Here are the top 5 books that I read during the past year:

#5 – According to Plan by Graeme Goldsworthy – This book was a helpful (and surprisingly easy) read that serves as an introductory biblical theology.  Goldsworthy succeeds in showing the unfolding revelation of God’s plan of redemption in the Bible.  The primary strength in this work is that Goldsworthy shows how Christ just leaps off of the pages of both the Old and New Testaments.

#4 – Shadow of the Almighty by Elisabeth Elliot - This is a biography about the life of Jim Elliot, one of the well-known Christian missionaries who was murdered by the Auca Indians in 1956 (and for whom the movie “The End of the Spear” is based upon).  Although the book is narrated by his wife, the heart of the book is a glimpse into the journal writings of a man who had a passion to make Christ known to the nations.  If you are ever looking for an inspiring missionary biography to read, this book would be an excellent choice.

#3 – God, Marriage, and Family by Andreas Kostenberger and David Jones - This book lays the biblical foundation for the institution of marriage and family.  The authors review relevant teachings from both the Old and New Testaments as they present their conclusions.  After building the proper foundation, the authors then address contemporary issues such as birth control, abortion, artificial reproductive technologies, adoption, homosexuality, singleness, and divorce and remarriage.  This was an eye-opening book to me and I definitely recommend it to you.

#2 – Instruments in the Redeemer’s Hands by Paul David Tripp – This book is a wonderful resource for discipleship and biblical counseling, and serves as a wonderful introduction to biblical counseling.  Tripp helps the reader to see that we are people in need of change who God uses to help other people who are also in need of change.  His simple process of counseling (Love, Know, Speak, and Do) helps the reader to make sense of the daunting task of counseling.  I highly recommend this book!

#1 – Seeing With New Eyes by David Powlison – This is another wonderful resource for biblical counseling.  Powlison does a wonderful job of making the case that the Bible is sufficient to address the problems in our lives.  As the title suggests, this book helps the reader to see the problems of human beings through the lens and light of Scripture.  In essence, the book helps to see the root causes of the counselee with new eyes.  This book has had a profound effect on me, and I believe that it may also do the same for you.

The countdown is upon us.  Only 6 days until Christmas.  Many folks are busy wrapping up their Christmas shopping, wrapping up their Christmas gifts, and wrapping up bags of baked Christmas goodies.  But, just as Linus needed to share the real “reason for the season” with Charlie Brown, Christians need to be reminded to share with others the true meaning of Christmas, the birth of Jesus Christ.  We attempt to accomplish this task in our ever-increasing secularized culture by wishing others “Merry Christmas” rather than “Happy Holidays”, participating in Christmas plays and programs, and conducting live nativity scenes.

However, it appears that many of us who celebrate the birth of our Lord and Savior don’t really understand or comprehend the true magnificance of this gift, if the results of a recent report from the Pew Forum on Religion & Public Life are even remotely accurate.  In that report, a slight majority (52%) of American Christians think that at least some non-Christian faiths (such as Judaism, Islam, Buddhism, atheism, etc.) can lead to eternal life.  If that is true, then what are these confessing Christians really celebrating at Christmas?

It certainly cannot be the birth of the one and only true Son of God, as He is revealed in the Bible.  For the Bible clearly teaches that explicit faith in Jesus Christ is the only way that a person can be saved.  Consider the following Scripture passages:

John 3:16-18: “For God so loved the world, that he gave his only Son, that whoever believes in him should not perish but have eternal life.  For God did not send his Son into the world to condemn the world, but in order that the world might be saved through him.  Whoever believes in him is not condemned, but whoever does not believe in him is condemned already, because he has not believed in the name of the only Son of God.”

John 14:6: “Jesus said to him, ‘I am the way, and the truth, and the life.  No one comes to the Father except through me.’”

Acts 4:11-12: “This Jesus is the stone that was rejected by you, the builders, which has become the cornerstone.  And there is salvation in no one else, for there is no other name under heaven given among men by which we must be saved.”

Romans 10:9-10: “If you confess with your mouth that Jesus is Lord and believe in your heart that God raised him from the dead, you will be saved.  For with the heart one believes and is justified, and with the mouth one confesses and is saved.”

This is the clear teaching of Scripture that Jesus Christ is the only Savior.  This is known as the exclusivity of the gospel, and it is not a popular message in our culture of tolerance and inclusivism.  Increasingly, it is not even a popular message in our churches, as evidenced by the results of this Pew Forum study.  The challenges of the exclusivity of the gospel are nothing new, as history has shown us 4 basic views.

1.  Universalism – this view holds that there’s really no need for a savior since everybody will be saved.  Hence, Jesus Christ is not the only Savior.  John 3:16-18 (quoted above) is only one of many passages that disprove this view.

2.  Pluralism – this view holds that there are many paths to God.  In other words, one can be saved through many types of religions.  Hence, Jesus Christ is not the only Savior.  John 14:6 and Acts 4:11-12 (both quoted above) disprove this view.

3.  Inclusivism – this view holds that Jesus Christ is the only Savior, but explicit faith in Him is not necessary in order to be saved.  Thus, the truly sincere Jew, Hindu, or Muslim is saved through Jesus, but they just don’t realize it.  A well-known proponent of this view includes C.S. Lewis.  In his popular book Mere Christianity, Lewis states “We do know that no man can be saved except through Christ; we do not know that only those who know Him can be saved through Him.” (Mere Christianity, p. 64) However, Romans 10:9-10 (quoted above) disproves this view.  Only 3 verses later, the Apostle Paul states, “For ‘everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved.’  But how are they to call on him in whom they have not believed?  And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard?  And how are they to hear without someone preaching?  And how are they to preach unless they are sent?  As it is written, ‘How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!’  But they have not all obeyed the gospel.  For Isaiah says, ‘Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?’  So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.”  (Romans 10:13-17)

4.  Exclusivism – this view holds that Jesus Christ is the only Savior, and explicit faith in Him is necessary in order to be saved.  This is the true biblical teaching as shown above.

So, contrary to what half of American “Christians” believe, Jesus Christ is the only Savior, born of a virgin roughly 2000 years, who would later die on a cross in order to pay the debt for our sins so that we could be saved.  The fact that God loved us so much that He would sacrifice His only Son for our benefit is magnificent, and it is truly something to celebrate. 

And that’s what Christmas is all about, Charlie Brown.

This semester will also be memorable because of what happened in my personal life.  Near the beginning of this semester, my wife and I found out that she was pregnant with our first child, and just last week, we found out that we’ll be having a boy!  Praise God for this wonderful blessing!  (I’m sure there will be more to come on this in the near future!)

All in all, I am very thankful for God’s goodness and His grace during this semester.  With the close of this semester, I have officially passed the mid-point of my seminary education!  (I’m on the 5-year plan!)  Praise God for all that He has taught me during the past two and a half years!

The title of the article is “Spare the Rod”, which is a direct and obvious disregard for Proverbs 13:24: “Whoever spares the rod hates his son, but he who loves him is diligent to discipline him.” The main point of the article is that parents should not spank their children because scientific research says so. Just like in my previous post about worldview clashes in the movie theater, yet again we have a worldview clash in this article. “Science” (with a whole host of naturalist presuppositions) says one thing, while the Bible and those who believe it (with a whole other host of presuppositions) says another thing. While I am not anti-science, most scientific research is so fickle that one would never know what to believe. But, this discussion is about the scientific finding that spanking your child may cause cancer, and to that point, we now turn.

The article states that high levels of corporal punishment “are associated” with diminished ability to control one’s impulses. First, the term “associated” is such a vague term that it could mean just about anything. For example, light is associated with darkness, but it’s only because they are complete opposites. Good is associated with evil, but for the same reasons. I am associated with Michael Jordan because I’m a human being and I like to play basketball, but the similarities end there. The observation that corporal punishment is associated with a diminished ability to control one’s impulses doesn’t tell me anything. The article says nothing of any type of direct, causative relationship, because one does not exist.

There is, however, something that does cause a person to have a diminished ability to control one’s impulses. The Bible calls this sin. “Impulses” is simply another word for “desires”. And a fulfillment of one’s desires, when contrary to the will of God, is sin. James 1:14-15 says, “But each person is tempted when he is lured and enticed by his own desire. Then desire when it has conceived gives birth to sin, and sin when it is fully grown brings forth death.” And without the Spirit of God living in a person, they have no choice but to give into their desires and sin. 2 Corinithans 4:3-4 says, “And even if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled only to those who are perishing. In their case the god of this world has blinded the minds of unbelievers, to keep them from seeing the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” 2 Timothy 2:26 says that unbelievers have “been captured by the devil to do his will.” So, a diminished ability to control one’s impulses is not caused by corporal punishment, but by sin. In fact, we were born as sinners so there was never a time that we had an ability to control our impulses, let alone a diminished ability. But, for the Christian, one of the fruit of the Spirit is self-control. (Gal 5:23). Jesus Christ is the only way to have the ability to control our desires!

Similarly, the article says that corporal punishment is “associated” with poor physical outcomes such as cancer, heart disease, etc. Of course it is! But, flying a kite is also associated with poor physical outcomes like cancer and heart disease. So is petting a puppy, or reading a book, or riding a rollercoaster, or writing a blog post! Why? Because according to WebMD (or any other medical website), 3 of the top 4 causes of death worldwide are heart disease, cancer, and lower respiratory infections, which are the exact three “poor physical outcomes” that the article cites are associated with corporal punishment. That observation can hardly be considered as a cause/effect relationship. The ultimate cause of these “poor physical outcomes” is, once again, sin. The Bible says that “the wages of sin is death.” (Romans 6:23)

If the Lord delays in his return, something is going to take us all out of this world, and there’s a good chance that it will be heart disease, cancer, or respiratory disease, regardless of whether or not you were spanked as a child. So, if you love your children, heed the words of Proverbs 13:24 and do not spare the rod.

UPDATE:  Dr. Albert Mohler has now blogged on the same article.  You can read his take on it by clicking here.

Brandi and I were without power for only about six hours, so we feel blessed as many of our friends are still without power.  News reports predict that some areas could be out of power for a week or longer.  The seminary is still without power, so Brandi is home and classes have been cancelled for the day.

So, that’s three major “forces of nature” (I use that term loosely) events that I’ve experienced for the first time in my life since moving to Louisville over two years ago: (1) tornado, (2) earthquake, & (3) windy remnants of a hurricane.  It just causes me to praise our Sovereign Lord who reigns over these “forces of nature”: “For I know that the Lord is great, and that our Lord is above all gods.  Whatever the Lord pleases, he does, in heaven and on earth, in the seas and all deeps.  He it is who makes clouds rise at the end of the earth, who makes lighting for the rain and brings forth the wind from his storehouses.” (Psalm 135:5-7)

While I was driving to class tonight, I heard an excerpt from WAY FM‘s evening show with Wally.  Wally is an interesting and entertaining character and he was joking about the email forwards that Christians like to send.  His punchline was that “God doesn’t have a computer” which drew an afternoon laugh from me.  However, the more I think about it, I don’t know if I should laugh or cry.

Ed Stetzer recently published a post on his website about Evangelical Gullibility, and he asks the question, “Does anyone still have a Bible and some common sense?”  He then states that he wonders if Christians are just gullible.  John MacArthur (and others) makes a similar point in the helpful book, Fool’s Gold?  Discerning Truth in an Age of Error.  He writes, “If you think everything you read or hear on Christian radio and television is reliable teaching, then you are a prime target for doctrinal deception.  If you think everyone who appears to love the truth really does, then you don’t undertand the wiles of Satan.” 

The Apostle Paul tells us how to practice discernment in 1 Thessalonians 5:21-22: “test everything; hold fast what is good.  Abstain from every form of evil.”  Using this text, MacArthur then leads the reader through the practice of discernment (1) in your local bookstore, (2) in your local church, and (3) in your daily life.  I would like to add one more category: practicing discernment in your inbox.

I have received hundreds of emails over the years forwarded from Christian brothers and sisters which typically follow this outline:

1. A statement in the subject that says something along the lines, “I’m not taking a chance on breaking this!  No way!”
2. The email then shares a nice little devotional, story, or cute sayings of children in church (some of which are quite funny!)
3. It then closes the story with some type of prayer.
4. Here comes the discernment warning: the email usually tells you to pray the special prayer found in the message and then forward on the email to a certain number of people in order to receive a special blessing from God (it could be financial, physical, emotional, etc.).
5. The message then ends with a similar statement as that found in the introduction, “I need a blessing, so I’m not about to take a chance and break this!”

I’m sure if you are reading this, you probably can recall numerous emails similar to the one I just described.  Chances are, you’ve probably forwarded them on (as I have in the past).  But, when we follow the Apostle Paul’s teaching in 1 Thessalonians 5, we should exercise discernment and think twice about forwarding on those emails.  While these emails may cheer us up and give us a nice break, we need to ask ourselves, does the Bible actually teach these things?  Does the Bible teach that God can be manipulated in such a way to render a blessing on us just because we have forwarded a magical email or prayed a special prayer?  Does the Bible teach that God is just a genie in a bottle? 

These are serious questions that I’m afraid too many Christians don’t even think about.  Still others may think about these issues, but don’t see the danger.  In fact, you may even now be thinking, “Come on, how legalistic can you be?  Lighten up.  It’s all in good fun to cheer someone up.  What harm can it do?”  Similar logic was proposed in the Garden of Eden with deadly consequences.  Remember the words of the Apostle Paul: “But test everything; hold fast what is good.  Abstain from every form of evil.”  Christians must ask themselves, “In light of Scripture’s teaching on discernment, should I forward on emails that include teachings that are contrary to the biblical teaching on God or prayer?”  That leads to one more question, “Are teachings that are contrary to God’s Word classified as good or evil?”  I believe the answer is clear.

So, the next time you open your Inbox and find a forward from a Christian brother or sister, don’t just blindly forward it along.  Take the time to read it, and ask yourself the question, “Is there anything in this message that contradicts God’s Word?”  If so, don’t feel bad if you click the trash can.  You can then share with the person who sent it to you why you chose not to forward it on.  In this way, we are using God’s Word as it is intended in 2 Tim 3:16: “for teaching, reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness.”

May we all practice biblical discernment in our Inbox!

Last night, my pastor and I drove to Frankfort, KY to hear Dr. Jerry Vines preach at Buck Run Baptist Church where Dr. Hershael York is the Senior Pastor.  However, when we got to the church, Dr. York informed us that inclement weather had cancelled Dr. Vines’ flight into Louisville, and he would be arriving in Lexington around 9PM instead.  Since Dr. Vines was scheduled to preach in seminary chapel the following day, Dr. York asked if we could pick him up at the Lexington airport and drive him to Louisville.  So, we didn’t get to hear him preach, but we ended up spending over an hour in a vehicle with him along with a late-night stop to Steak ‘N Shake.  I truly enjoyed the evening talking with (but mostly listening to) one of the men that God used during the Conservative Resurgence of the Southern Baptist Convention.  It’s not every day that you get to slurp a milkshake with a former President of the SBC!

If you’d like to learn more about Dr. Vines and his ministry, click here.

This week marks the beginning of my third year as a Master of Divinity student at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, KY.  Due to my full-time job, I’m easily on the “5 Year Plan”, but I will officially be halfway towards earning my degree at semester’s end. 

However, as I am beginning a new semester, I have taken some time to reflect on the past two years at seminary.  I am sure that my experience is very similar to countless other men and women who have sought to receive training for a life of full-time ministry.  Like many others, my wife and I came to Southern in 2006 with a passion for God and an unmatched excitement for God’s call on our lives.  I had been warned by godly friends that seminary was going to be very challenging, but I didn’t truly realize the truth behind those statements until I reviewed the syllabi for my three classes and realized that I had to read 16 books, write 3 or 4 papers, along with numerous quizzes and exams, all during my first semester!

But, like many others, I soon adjusted to the demands of a seminary education.  Unfortunately, also like many others, I soon found myself reading the books and God’s Word more because it was an assignment.  My thoughts were no longer, “I get to read God’s Word”, but were more along the lines of “I have to read God’s Word.”  Therefore, my devotions became mechanical.  It was just another task to check off of my list.  At the same time, I began to learn wonderful doctrines and truths that I just had to share with others.  But, a dangerous combination had been formed.  I was gaining biblical knowledge, but I was doing less and less with it.  My mind was expanding with biblical truth, but my heart was shrinking with biblical love.  The result was a cold and prideful person that I didn’t particularly care too much for (and I’m sure others didn’t either!)

During this semester, I’ve decided to scale back and take one less class than normal for two reasons: (1) Financial considerations, and more importantly (2) I can spend more time in God’s Word for my own spiritual nourishment.  In fact, I am already beginning to see the fruits of this decision, as I am experiencing a renewed love for God’s Word once again. 

And that’s one of the most important lessons that I have learned from seminary thus far!

Recently, I had the privilege of preaching the morning worship service sermon at my wonderful church in which I preached from Genesis 3:6 and how we (unlike Eve) must resist the temptations of the devil such as the lust of the flesh, the lust of the eyes, and the temptation of pride.  While addressing the lust of the eyes (which is essentially a fancy way of describing covetousness), I discussed the fact that just as Satan pointed out to Eve the one fruit that she couldn’t eat, He also makes sure that we focus on the things that we don’t have.  Using advice from C.J. Mahaney’s wonderful little book about Humility, I shared with the congregation that we must resist the lust of the eyes, not by focusing on what God is keeping from us, but by focusing on the many blessings that He has graciously given us.

And there are abundant blessings!

First and foremost, God has blessed me with a wonderful wife who loves me, supports me, and cares for me.  When we first discussed God’s special call on our lives, she was so supportive, and her support has never wavered.  We have now been in Louisville for over two years, and she has sacrificed a great deal during that time.  Countless hours I have spent locked away in my office reading, researching, writing, and praying while she has found other things to do instead of spending time with her husband.  There have been times when this has been hard on both of us, but God is faithful, and He daily strengthens, encourages, and refreshes our love for one another.

God has also blessed us both with a wonderful place of service.  Although it took us over six months to find the right local church, it was worth the wait.  It is such a joy to serve alongside such a loving and supportive church family.  It is also a privilege to observe and learn from such a godly pastor, who I also consider one of my best friends.

God has blessed us with a multitude of friends.  While I was hoping and praying that we would make some friends while living in Louisville, I have been overwhelmed by the number of folks that Brandi and I have met.  I can truly say that many of the folks at our church have become family, and some lifelong friendships have developed.  Just like the Apostle Paul, I thank God daily for my friends!

God has blessed me with a wonderful family.  Although my immediate family lives about 4 hours from Louisville, they stay near and dear in my heart, and I think about them often.  Unfortunately, we don’t get to visit with them as much as we used to, but I cherish those times that we do.  I praise God that both of my parents are believers in Christ, as well as my brother (who is also an ordained minister) and sister-in-law.  Although we don’t see eye to eye on everything, I love them immensely, and I praise God for them.

These are just a few of the many blessings from God.  I didn’t even mention my health, my job, my home, my seminary, or any of the spiritual blessings that Paul lists in Ephesians 1:3-14.  God is good!  As you reflect on the many blessings that God has bestowed upon you, I hope that you will join me in praising our wonderful God and Savior.