Daniel Darling's Blog, page 78

The Surprising Fruit of Balance

It would be hard to find a more boring word in ministry circles than “balance.” There is a lot of talk about being “radical”, “edgy”, “relevant”, etc. But balance sounds rather unhip. But I’m finding this word may be the key to lifelong, steady, sustained ministry success.

There is a part of all of us in ministry that desperately wants to be noticed. And our American culture seems to celebrate such unbridled ambition. We want to be though of as being successful, even if we cover it with a nice Jesus gloss and call it impact. And so pastors are on Twitter crafting statements they hope will be retweeted. Or we are coming up with more outrageous ways to have our message rise above the cultural noise. I’m guessing most of the time this comes from a pure heart: we want to see a lost world embrace Jesus and we’ll do anything to get them to notice.

But there is a cost to a sort of pragmatic, no-hold-barred, entertainment-is-the-answer approach. There’s a cost to pastors being outlandish, carnival barkers, a bit crazy. Sure, you’ll be seen as a different kind of pastor and you’ll likely get written up in the latest ministry magazines. You might get a lot of traffic to your website or land that coveted speaking engagement. But the cost is something valuable: credibility. Maturity. Pastors, as God’s representatives to His people, should, at the very least, be the adults in the room. We should be sober-minded, steady, strong. This is the kind of leadership every generation needs.

Now, to be balanced isn’t necessarily the same as being “safe.” To be “safe” is to shy away from the hard call of the gospel, it’s to seek our own comfort, it’s to bend our ear more frequently to the applause of the culture. To be safe is to do the same things, over and over again, without new results. To be safe is to preach only of the culturally acceptable parts of the Bible (love, forgiveness, justice, unity) and ignore those that sound like fingernails on a cultural backboard (Hell, sin, repentance, God’s wrath, morality, forgiveness, grace). In it’s own way, being the most obnoxious, radical, attention-seeking preacher is, in a way, safe. It’s safe because you create a lot of easy heat without much light. It’s safe because building a ministry by scheme and flash is a shortcut through a  lot of hard, faithful, tireless ministry work.

There is something inside all of us who do public ministry that has to die. It’s the desire to be someone, something. I must fight this regularly with the empowerment of the Holy Spirit in me. We must make Jesus Christ the story of our ministries. We must work hard to create cultures where the gospel, not the leader, is celebrated. We must ask ourselves, with every new, creative idea we have: is this to make me more famous, is this to get other Christians talking about me? Or, does this have the intent of edifying the body of Christ and bringing those who don’t know Jesus to Him?

This is why balance matters. One of my best friends, a ministry mentor, Dr. Rich McCarrell of Byron Center Bible Church, says, “Balance is the elixer of ministry.” He has always cautioned me not to make one issue, one controversial position, one methodology the main thing. Keep Christ the main thing, he says, and that will give you wisdom in leadership.

As I look around the Church, I see that God has granted some of his servants favor and prominence. But mostly the Church is built by ordinary men and women, serving faithfully, day in and day out.

I know balance and maturity and boring old faithfulness are not the hot stuff of the Christian conference and publishing circuit. But they are vital, I think, for lifelong gospel ministry.

 

5 Things Leaders Can Learn From the Presidential Debates

So the Presidential debates are about a week behind us. This election is heading toward it’s conclusion (Thankfully). Unlike previous election years, the debates have had a dramatic effect on the race. Personally, I have found them fascinating and interesting. And I wonder if Christian leaders can draw some lessons from these debates as we lead God’s people. Here are five things that were obvious to me:

1) Leadership invites incredible scrutiny. Regardless of your political persuasion, you have to give both President Obama and Governor Romney credit for stepping forward and offering to serve America in the highest office in the land. In this 21st-century, the scrutiny of public leadership is every so tight. You have journalists and bloggers paid to extract the most inane of details, down to what a candidate orders at Wendy’s and how that reflects upon what he’d do in the White House. Pastors don’t face near the scrutiny of a President, but are accountable to our people and to the Lord. And if you think the searchlight of our 24hr news cycle is penetrating, the searchlight of the Almighty is more thorough. But the good news about Christian leaders is that the Almighty knows all we do and are and still loves us. On a practical, leadership level, I think this means we should be transparent, real, and authentic in our approach to leadership.

2) Public Leadership is a Mix of Both Competence and Communication

Some of the debates got rather snippy, sharper than I’ve ever seen in a presidential debate. But candidates seemed to lose “points” in the public eye when they crossed the line and became overly aggressive or condescending. There is a really delicate balance, it seems, with projecting leadership without coming across as an arrogant know-it-all. In other words, you can have the right policies, but if your tone is off, if you’re demeanor and the way you carry yourself is off-putting, you will lose votes. In other words, the voters want to see a bit of humanity in their candidates, rather than seeing robots who spout focus-group-tested talking points.

For a Christian leader, this is important. There are things about which we cannot compromise, such as the authority of the Word of God, spiritual and moral issues, and the centrality of the exclusive gospel message. And yet, it matters not only that we have the truth, but how we communicate it to our hearers. In other words, we may turn off people who are willing to listen to the message by simply carrying the message in a way that offends. Humility, charm, graciousness, self-discipline–these are important traits for a Christian leader. They allow the good news of the gospel to go forward without a human barrier. People may indeed stumble over the cross of Jesus, but let it not be me they stumble over.

3) Mature, Adult Leadership Still Matters. We live in an increasingly shallow culture, where we reward the young, the sexy, the beautiful. We pay big money to celebrities whose only accomplishment is being famous, on a reality-show or some kind of moment in the sun. But there is still a yearning for adult leadership. During the presidential debates, there was much talk of “who looked the most presidential.” In other words, people might even be willing to bypass their political preferences to vote for the man who most looked like he could occupy the White House, who looked most real behind that famous Rose Garden podium. And this is good, because the President is supposed to represent the best of America to the world.

I think Christian leaders, especially pastors, would be wise to discern this need in the culture. There are very few adults left, it seems. Very few folks willing to stand up, be faithful, act wisely, know when to shut up and when to speak, and know how to offer calm reassurance in a crisis. Pastors, of all people in the community, should be among those kinds of leaders. There has been so much emphasis in ministry circles about being relevant and cool and hip. We’ve got pastors putting beds on top of their church, pastors who work hard at looking adolescent, pastors who pat themselves on the back for their “coolness.” I think this is foolish on the part of my generation. In a crisis (and that’s when most people turn to the church), suffering people need a father figure, a grown-up, someone who can calmly bring God’s Word to bear on their situation.

4) Thinking on Your Feet is Really Hard

After every debate, there were the super annoying fact checkers on every station, at every news site. I found them annoying because even the fact-checkers seem biased and it was often hard to separate what someone labels a “lie” and what may be, if you looked at it a certain way, “true.” But I also thought we are pretty hard on our candidates. We expect them to stand up for an hour or more, with no notes, and perfectly recite figures and facts. And for every discrepancy, we say, “You lied.” Imagine if you or I had to go through the same exercise? We’d likely fail as badly as the candidates if not worse.

The lesson? We are all human and frail. And if you parsed every single word I every spoke or wrote, you’d undoubtedly find errors. So perhaps we should go easier on each other? I’m not saying churches shouldn’t hold their pastors accountable or that Christian leaders should get a pass if they are not truthful. But, to the bloggers who spend their entire day finding fault with Christian leaders, who parse sermons and grab clips simply to criticize them: stop it! Leaders are humans. Preaching, writing, speaking is a difficult excercise. Most who do it do it because they want to edify God’s people. And most, I’d imagine, have the humility to admit when they’ve been wrong. So, let’s give them grace.

5) Our Version of Reality is Skewed by Our Own Preferences

After every debate, surrogates for each candidate go to the “spin room” and try to tilt the post-debate media coverage in favor of their candidate. But in reality, Twitter and Facebook is one giant spin room. I’ve got friends on both sides of the aisle. It was funny to see who their political ideology shaped what they saw happen in a given debate. I suffer from the same malady. Regardless of what happened, after the debate I thought my guy won.

Life is this way as well. In a way, our realities are skewed by our desires. We see what we want to see. Paul said it best when he wrote to the Corinthians: “We see through a glass darkly” (1 Corinthians 13:12). So not only do we live in a broken reality, we also view that broken reality with broken vision. This is where we need Christ to continually reshape our vision. Only the gospel can change the way we look at life.

As Christians leaders, we must be careful to not rely on our own fleshly vision. In other words, we must not trust what our eyes tells us they see. This is why prayer and godly counsel are so important in the life of a leader. Good books, conferences, blog posts–new spiritual content that stretches and shapes our thinking. Most of all, we must cultivate that inner life with Christ through prayer and Scripture so that the blinders begin to peel away from our eyes. In this way, we won’t be living in an alternate world of shape-shifting spin, but in the reality of God’s presence. This helps us lead well.

Why I’m Voting, Who I’m Voting For, and Why

We’re heading down the homestretch of this election. There are a lot of questions for American Christians. Should we vote? Who should we vote for? Should we place so much trust in a political party? We’ve seen both candidates endure months of grueling campaigning, be ridiculed about gaffes, and we’ve read enough tweets and Facebook posts to fill a book (a really lame book, at that).

I’d like to share with you where I’m at. I’m only one person and I’m not the first or last word on this subject. But I’d like to share just why I’m voting, who I’m voting for and why. I write this to hopefully help my fellow brothers and sisters in the Lord.

Why I’m Voting

There are some well-meaning Christians who, not liking any of the candidates, wonder about the efficacy of voting. Why settle for a “lesser of two evils” role when there is not anyone that matches your values. And so they abstain. Here is my thought: I believe voting is a stewardship that both honors the sacrifice of soldiers who died to gives us this freedom and allows believers to shape the culture to which they are called by God. It’s an imperfect system. We have flawed candidates. And we are flawed people. But the sinfulness of all of this is no excuse to not get involved. I’m convicted by the verse in 1 Corinthians 4:2. “It is required of stewards that he be found faithful.” At the end of the age, I will be asked by God, “What did you do with the opportunities and life I gave you?” I think this includes my vote as an American, a privilege few humans in history have ever enjoyed. And so I vote. Plus, voting is a small way of loving our neighbor.

Now, I vote knowing that nobody on the ballot will be my hero. I’ve given up on finding a Messiah-like figure as a national leader. And this is good, because all those hopes and dreams I may project on a President can only be fulfilled in Jesus. The longing for utopia, for the righting of the empty places in our society–this will only be consumated in Heaven. Until then, I’m tasked, as a faithful American citizen, with choosing between two sinful men (or perhaps a woman someday). When I look at it this way, my political disappointments are drastically minimized. And so I pick a President, knowing my guy may win or he may not win and either way, I’ll find some things about which to be disappointed in the man God appoints as President.

Who I’m Voting For and Why

Now to who I am voting for and why I’m voting for him. First, let me share what I believe are the areas of agreement and disagreement with President Obama and Governor Mitt Romney that are important to me.

President Obama - There is much to admire about our President. Though I didn’t cast a vote for him, I was proud and shed a tear or two on election night when I saw the first African-American man ascend to the Presidency. When you consider our long and shameful struggle with first slavery and civil rights, it was a profound achievement for our great country.

I also deeply admire him as a husband and father. Having grown up without a father, he takes his role seriously and has championed fatherhood in our culture. Regardless of where you are on the political spectrum, you should read some of what he has said about this crisis in our country.

I also happen to agree with the President on immigration. I wish for a solution to the crisis of undocumented immigrants and I’d like to see a humane solution. I was in favor of his actions to enforce provisions of what is called The DREAM ACT to allow the young undocumented to go to college and find a path to citizenship.

I also like how the President (until the Bengazhi tragedy) has executed the War on Terror, bringing many terrorists to justice, including Osama Bin Laden.

Lastly, I like that the President sought a solution to the many millions who don’t have health care, though I disagreed with the final result of Obamacare (top-down, no cost-control, etc).

Now there are three main areas where I disagree with the President: 

I’m troubled by his commitment to the pro-choice position. To be clear, this is a position that says it’s okay for a mother to kill her baby in the womb. I think it’s pretty safe to say that the President has been the most radically pro-choice president we’ve ever had. As a state senator he refused to support a bill that simply provided safety for babies who survived an abortion. And I was deeply, deeply troubled in my soul when I watched the Democratic convention and thousands of people lustily cheering the right to kill innocent young children. I believe this violates Scripture. God alone is the author of life. To be sure, I don’t blame the President for the abortion culture, it existed before he took office and will exist after he leaves. However, as the leader of the nation, he has only encouraged abortion on demand. And his Health and Human Services department has infringed on the rights of religious employers, forcing them to provide abortion-like services against their convictions. This is wrong.

I’m also troubled by the President’s abandonment of traditional marriage. He has reversed his position on this from what he previously held. In my mind, this is not as serious an issue as the abortion issue, but is still very important. Marriage and family are the bedrocks of a civil, functioning, orderly society.

Lastly, the President’s language of “share the wealth” troubles me. I heartily agree with this empathy for the poor, but I feel that class warfare and envy not only divide the country, but lead to solutions that end up hurting the poor.

Governor Mitt Romney - Like the President, there is much to admire in Governor Romney. I admire his family values, his commitment to his wife and his family. He seems to me to be a man of great character and integrity. I also admire his business acumen and his knowledge of economics. He’s been a fine steward of institutions large and small. He’s also proven to be a very generous, giving man. As a Christian, I cannot say Mr. Romney’s Mormon faith is the same as Christianity, but he gives us much to admire.

Where I agree with Governor Romney: 

I agree with Romney’s position on the need for serious, long-term entitlement reform. I believe his moderate instincts will help him work out solution with members of the other party. I have found his plans a bit sketchy at times, but I trust his judgement on economic theory.

I agree with Romney’s position on abortion. He has admittedly experienced a change of heart–and for that I’m grateful. I’m glad he now sees life as precious, beginning at conception. I pray he remains a champion of life for the rest of his public life.

I agree with Romney’s conservative, capitalistic approach to the economy that says providing an environment where entrepreneurship can thrive will give the best chance for the poor to have the dignity of a job.

I agree with Romney’s desire to provide a long-term solution to the health care crisis. His track record in Massachusetts tells me he is pragmatic about finding ways to get everyone insured.

Where I disagree with Governor Romney

I’m troubled by Governor Romney’s inconsistencies on immigration. In the primaries he adopted the most radical, “kick them out” policies toward the undocumented that are both inhumane and antithetical to a pro-life position. He has since moderated his position on this, but his willingness to throw immigrants under the bus like this troubled me.

I also would like to see the Governor adopt a solution for a simpler tax code, rather than slice and dice tax cuts, etc.

I also disagree when Governor Romney says that he “won’t apologize for America.” I think much of this is just campaign rhetoric, but while I don’t feel America should apologize for good, core beliefs or be weak in the face of terror, however there are times when we as a nation do wrong and should apologize. The idea that we are never wrong just seems antithetical to the great Christian values we claim to espouse.

Who I’m Voting For: 

In the end, I’m going to vote for Governor Romney. There are a few reasons, but for me, the deal-breaker is the issue of life. I believe abortion is injustice, it’s the targeting of the most defenseless in our society.

Now, this doesn’t mean that I’m necessarily a Romney fanboy, that I’m a defender of all things Republican or that I hate Democrats or despise the President. Ultimately, I make a choice and leave the rest to the Lord, who rules in the hearts of kings and who is the only sovereign worth worshipping.

When We Add Stuff to the Bible, We Hurt People

Orthodox evangelicals believe in something called a “closed cannon.” In other words, we believe the Bible as it is presently constructed-39 books in the Old Testament and 27 books in the New Testament-are the complete, written, inspired, inerrant Word of God. This matters for lots of reasons, but two big ones: a) we have all we need for faith and practice (2 Peter 1:3; 2 Timothy 3:16) and b) there is no new revelation, no new Scripture. The latter point takes seriously Revelation 22:19 in that we feel it dishonors the Word to add to it.

In practice, most conservative evangelicals believe this. It’s in our statements of faith, its part of our creeds, and we will not be ashamed to say we believe this. But in practice, we often say something different. We can do this in a variety of ways, but one big one for conservative, inerrantists is this: We often add lists, rules, and ideas to the Bible that just aren’t there. This is a very subtle, yet dangerous thing to do, in my view. And I think it hurts the people we pastors are called to serve. Let me explain: 

I’ve often had people approach me, as a pastor, and ask me, “Why don’t you tell us what entertainment we should enjoy in our homes?” They want a list, the sanctified, sanitized, pastor-blessed list of acceptable movies and okay music. But I can’t do this with integrity. I can’t get up in the pulpit and say, “Thus saith the Lord . . .” when really the Lord has not spoken specifically on that subject. I can preach the broad ideas when it comes to entertainment. But mostly what I’m tasked with doing is simply preaching, clearly, the text of the Word of God, nothing more and nothing less. And I’m to trust the Holy Spirit who uses that Word to shape the hearts of my people.

To be sure, there are areas where the Bible gets very specific, particularly on morality, gossip, honesty, etc. And on those I can, with confidence, preach what the Bible says. But when we as pastors parachute our preferences into the Word of God, we are dishonoring the text. It’s subtle. And our motives maybe pure, but if we are, on Sunday, mixing our opinions with truth, we confuse our people. We communicate the idea that the Bible is like putty–it can be shaped to our whims.

Most people who come to church on Sunday assume that what a pastor says in the pulpit is from God. That’s the dangerous rhetorical power of a pastor. This is why James 3 strongly warns those who would be teachers to take their responsibility seriously. Words spoken in the pulpit, under the authority of God, have power to uplift mens’ souls or to destroy them. Consider how many millions of people throughout the centuries who have been led tragically astray by bad teaching. Consider the destructive impact of legalism.

Our job is to simply preach the text of the Word. We ought to make it abundantly clear when we give our opinion that it is our opinion. Our preaching out to answer the question, every time ,”Where is that in the Bible?” My opinion my be sound, it may be good, it may even be based on my interpretation of what I think the Bible says, but at the end of the day my opinion has now power. Only the Word of the living God has power.

How You Can Best Help Your Church

If you’re a Christian, whether you realize it or not, you are called, by God, to be on mission in the world. This is the essence of the gospel call, that you were not simply saved from death but also saved for a purpose (Ephesians 2:10). That purpose is to make disciples (Matthew 28:16-20). And the way God has called you to make disciples is through the local church, His expression of His body in your community.

So how do you help your disciple-making, evangelistic, Bible-preaching church with its mission? You might think I’m going to say something really cool like: “go to another conference with a well-known speaker” or “read and then pass along to your pastor that best-selling book” or “get your pastor to do this or that new, innovative church ministry model.”

Those are all good efforts. And if you are in a position of influence, please use that to move your church forward. But there is one, very uncool thing you can do to help your church be all that God desires it to be in the community.

Be dependable. If you were to give your pastor a shot of truth serum, he’d probably say his biggest frustration is to find dependable people. Of course he won’t say this publically, because he’s very grateful for the few in his church who are dependable. I think of my own church, Gages Lake Bible, and the band of people who give of their time (mostly volunteer) to make the church function smoothly. They are awesome.

There is a verse, 1 Corinthians 4:2, that I memorized while in Christian grade school. It’s simple: “It is required of stewards that they be found faithful.” In other words, what God is most looking for from His people are not necessarily spectacular gifts, stunning talent, or amazing personality. Those are wonderful traits that can be leveraged for God’s kingdom, to be sure. But what God is mostly looking for is faithfulness.

Faithfulness is really not a sexy term. You don’t see too many big conferences on faithfulness. I’m guessing none of the political candidates are running on a faithfulness platform. And it’s a subject that is not going to wow your Twitter and Facebook followers.

But wow is it valuable in a church, especially most churches that are, like our church, small and limited in resources. One faithful person or a faithful family can really move a church forward.

And by faithfulness I mean:

Attending the services and functions whenever possible. Even when you don’t feel like it. Even when you’d rather be watching football. Not simply because you may get something out of it, but because your presence says something about what you value. Doesn’t mean you don’t go on vacation (I encourage our families to travel–do it, please do it.) Doesn’t mean you don’t ever get sick. Doesn’t mean you don’t travel for business. But all in all, are you someone who is in church whenever you can be?
Signing up for jobs nobody wants, like the nursery. Believe it or not, if you want your church to be a family friendly church, somebody has to volunteer to supervise the children. Even if it’s not “your thing.” I’m pretty sure nursery is not anyone’s thing, really. Neither is setting up for an event, mowing the grass, or other such mundane stuff. But these faithful tasks are what makes a church function. And they are acts of worship and sacrifice that please the Lord.
Being on time and being someone that your pastor and the church leadership can count on. There are two kinds of church members, in my view. Those who we all know will be there and those whom we wonder if they will show up. Don’t make your attendance and/or participating in a ministry commitment a game-time decision. Don’t make it depend on your faulty alarm-clock or whether or not you spent Saturday night playing Halo. Be there. Be faithful. Be committed. Be consistent.
Committing to a regular pattern of giving. Yes, I know you are tired of hearing this from pastors. Yes, we often ask for money in ham-handed ways. But, there is hardly a better measure of your heart than your wallet. (I didn’t say that, Jesus did.)

Why is faithfulness so important? Because it tells yourself, the world, and your Lord what and whom you value. God loves His Church, His Bride. And he calls us to love Her too. I dare say your faithful participating in a local, gospel-preaching church for a long-lifetime will do more for the Kingdom than that winsome blog post, witty tweet, or Facebook rant.

So, to those who faithfully attend, do nursery, hand out bulletins, volunteer, cook meals, tithe, and other church things, I salute you as Christian heros. To those who are not as faithful, here’s your chance: commit this week to being faithful to the local church where you are called.

Why You Should Tithe To Your Church

One of the hardest message a pastor is tasked with giving is the message on giving. I don’t like talking about giving at our church. I don’t like urging people to give. But giving is clearly a concept that runs through the Scriptures. And if we don’t talk about, we miss an opportunity to learn and discover the joy it brings.

And I’m not simply talking about giving of time or giving to worthy charities (which you should do). I’m talking about giving consistently, faithfully, cheerfully to your local church. I’m talking about the word we hate to use: tithe. Yes, we know we are not under the law and we don’t have to tithe. Yes, we know 10% is not a legalistic number. Yes, we understand that tithing won’t get you any closer to Heaven than giving nothing.

Yet for a Christian, redeemed, rescued, sanctified, and called–tithing is important. Here are three compelling reasons why:

1) Tithing reflects a minimum level of sacrifice. Giving was required under the Old Testament law, but that’s not the first time it was introduced in the Scriptures. Way before Moses, Abraham tithed a portion of his war spoils to Melchizidek, King of Salem (Genesis 14:16). So giving was seen, even in the earliest days of God’s revelation, as a practice of faithful followers of God. In the NT, we are called to give our lives as a “living sacrifice” (Romans 12:1). This means we no longer offer, as the children of Israel did, a blood sacrifice for our sins. Jesus is the perfect and final sacrifice which satisfies God’s wrath against sin. Instead, we offer ourselves, our bodies, as the sacrifices. We offer our lives. Giving of our money is one very demonstrative way we do this. And so when we look at a 10% monthly gift, we are essentially subscribing to the “bare minimum” that was required in the OT. What I typically tell people is to find a percentage that works for them and work their way up. We at least want to be at the minimum, but because we’ve been saved by God’s grace, we ought to push past that as we can and be people of generosity toward God.

2) Tithing reflects a consistent commitment to God’s local work. There are often opportunities to give generous gifts, both in special projects at your church or to charities or Christian organizations you support. But giving faithfully on a consistent basis to your local church is a profound statement. You are saying that you are “all in” with that local expression of Christ’s body. You are committed to that local body, through thick and thin. You are saying, “I’m with this local church. I’m standing by them.” IF you only give when prompted or when you feel good or when there is a special fundraising drive, you’re not really committed. You’re saying you’ll be there when you feel like it, when you’re emotional itch has been scratched. You are communicating, by your sporadic, non-consistent giving patterns, that you are not interested in being as committed to the Lord’s work locally as Christ is to you. Real sacrifice, real obedience, real commitment involves long-term, consistent, faithful giving. And, on a more pragmatic note: your church needs regular, consistent givers to fund the Lord’s work. Sure, you shouldn’t give only because your church needs money on a regular basis. You should give from grace, out of pure joy in your Savior. But that should be part of your calculus.

3) A life of consistent, sacrificial giving results in spiritual blessings. I can’t say with any biblical authority that you’ll be rich if you give faithfully and consistently. I’ve known some of the most faithful givers in the world who endured financial ruin. So there is no one-to-one correlation. And you shouldn’t give to get anyways. We should give because we’ve already gotten Christ, Who is enough. But, I will say that you will never look back at a life of consistent tithing and wish you hadn’t committed to this practice. You’ll never say on your deathbed, “I should have given less to my local, bible-believing church.” You never will. Angela and I have been faithful givers since we’ve gotten married. We’re certainly not rich, but we’ve seen God provide our needs over and over again.

The most important blessing of faithful, consistent giving is spiritual. There is a joy in giving God your money. There is a wonderful sense of release and trust. Giving sacrificially is a form of worship.

Summary: Don’t miss out on the joy of regular, sacrificial, consistent giving to your local church. It’s a sacrificial act of worship you won’t regret.

Here’s a helpful video of Ray Pritchard explaining the importance of tithing: 

 

3 Reasons Your Pastor Probably Doesn’t Preach Politics

I’ve written on this issue before, but it’s probably worth revisiting in an election season. And new research has been released by Lifeway that affirms what I’ve always believed: generally Bible-believing pastors shy away from overt political endorsements and preaching politics in the pulpit.

I wrote a piece for Relevant not long ago on this subject in which I said this:

[To preach] is a humble and holy task because the people who attend churches arrive with the assumption that what is said comes from the Bible. To cut and paste partisan talking-points or to substitute consistent exegesis with sample “election season” sermons is spiritual malpractice.

 I want to expand on this with three important points on why pastors don’t and probably shouldn’t preach politics in the pulpit:

1) Our Text Must be the Word of God

This sounds like a cliche, but it bears saying: faithful Bible preachers use the text of the Word of God as their source of preaching. Anything less is simply a speech, which may be inspirational, moral, or even Christian-themed. But if our basis is not the text, we’re not preaching.

Sometimes a given text will make political or moral statements. For instance, if you’re preaching through Psalm 139, you cannot escape the references to the sanctity of life. Or if you are preaching through Proverbs you will encounter many economic truths that shape capitalism. Or if you are preaching through parts of James or Timothy, you will find it inescapable to avoid the harsh condemnations of greed.

But as a rule pastors, especially those who preach in an expository (taking a book at a time, chapter at a time, verse at a time) approach, will be guided by the text. To parachute political talking points into the text is spiritual malpractice.

One caveat is this: perhaps a pastor will do a topical series on key issues of the day and how Christians should think through them biblically. I’ve done this as a Sunday Night series. This can be helpful, however, a pastor must be faithful to let the text speak to the issue and not wedge your particular political opinion into the text.

2) The Bible cuts both ways

I find it fascinating that certain groups on the Right want pastors to “speak up.” What they mean by this, of course, is to more overtly endorse their preferred candidates and/or moral issues. But what they don’t understand is that pastors are speaking up, it’s just that what pastors are speaking up about may not be the taking points of the current season.And, the Bible cuts against both parties, against all political persuasions. Yes, there is much in the Scripture affirming the prolife (Psalm 139; Genesis 2-3) and traditional marriage (Mark 19:5) positions. You can also make a good argument that the Bible affirms the idea of limited government (1 Timothy 2:2; Mark 12:17) and some of the root ideas of capitalism. So some would say the Bible is very conservative. And yet that would be incomplete, because you will also find in Scripture many texts on justice, the plight of the poor, treatment of the immigrant. And who Jesus’ chief antagonists were in the gospels? The Pharisees, the Religious Right of their day.

Should pastors speak about in the pulpit about contemporary issues? Yes, but only when the texts of Scripture clearly articulate it. They shouldn’t bow to any party’s talking points. They shouldn’t slant their sermons to fit a political profile. They shouldn’t become wannabee pundits in the pulpit. They should preach the Word and let it do it’s work in the hearts of the people, who will then go influence their communities.

3) We must never dilute the message of the gospel. 

The Church should be counter-cultural and should engage the issues of the day. But this engagement should be an outgrowth of the gospel’s sanctifying work in each believer. In other words, the political issues shouldn’t be the main thing that characterizes a church. The gospel should be the main thing. The Scriptures should be the main thing. Christ should be the main thing. This is why pastors often shy away from endorsements or public pulpit activism. It sends the wrong message that the main purpose for gathering on Sunday is to stir up the troops and get “our guy” elected. But what of the brother or sister of the other party or the soul seeking God who only hears partisan talking points? If this happens, we’ve failed in our mission.

To be clear, pastors are citizens, too. And so in other venues, such as op-eds, blogs, books and other places of influence the pastor may speak his mind. Even so, he must jealously guard that influence and always speak winsomely. Again, as a minister of the gospel, he must not make politics more important than his pastoral duties.

Pastors should also coach their members to winsomely engage the culture. We need gospel preachers at all levels of society and in all spheres, politics included. Pastors should equip, encourage, and support those who enter public service.

Summary: In conversations I’ve had and in my own experience, it is mission that keeps pastors from overtly preaching politics in the pulpit and not the IRS.

Les Lofquist on Leadership and Preaching

I especially loved this piece by Les Lofquist on how to respond to a criticism of preaching:

I think the only way is to be determined to be prayed up and studied up the next time you’re in the pulpit. Resolve to get up early each day the next week and pray as a man of God should. Then study seriously. Grapple with next Sunday’s text. Turn off the television. Stop surfing the web. Put away your fantasy team rosters. Dig into the Bible. Pull off from your shelves those theology books and commentaries of yours and pore over them. Review your old Bible College / seminary class lecture notes. Accept the challenge of that passage you’ll be preaching and wrestle with its meaning and outline and application.

Approach next Sunday with all the earnestness you can. After all, it’s God’s holy and written Word you are handling! Get serious about it once again, like you did when you first began preaching. Shake off the cobwebs and preach with fire in your soul, accepting the calling from God to be the spokesman to your people in your congregation for Him. Let them see His glory through you as you seriously handle His words. And don’t be afraid of being appropriately direct and bold, assuming nothing with respect to the spiritual condition of the individuals in your congregation. Preach with the authority of God, bearing God’s message, speaking God’s Word and forget about yourself and your own authority.

via Leadership … and Preaching | Fire In My Bones.

Chocolate Faith

  Within the church of the living God, we must become excited about the gospel.  That’s how we pass on our heritage

– D.A. Carson

If you want to impress the woman you love and happening to be traveling through the northwest suburbs of Chicago, my advice to you is to spend a significant amount of time in the quaint village of Long Grove and its famous Confectionary. This niche candy shop is a must-stop for those who live and visit the Midwest. I know because my wife considers chocolate as important as oxygen and I consider my wife as important to me as breathing. Those two factors have kept me visiting and browsing the Confectionary’s many aisles of cocoa creations.

Interestingly, it wasn’t my wife’s longings that first acquainted me with this tiny slice of chocolate heaven. When I was around six years old, my father, a licensed plumber, was contracted to work at the Long Grove Confectionary as part of the team that built and installed the chocolate pipelines. I remember him coming home every day with large boxes filled with “bricks” of chocolate. We had a supply of chocolate in the house that looked like it would last until Lord returned. Or at least until the next church potluck.

Dad regaled us with stories of working at the plant. I found most interesting the intricate work involved in building a complex chocolate-making system. Dad and his crew created the chocolate channels with threaded steel. When they were finished, however, they didn’t flush the system with the usual mix of water and bleach. Instead, they pumped piping hot cocoa through the lines. The highly secretive chocolate recipe was so precisely engineered that any water that hung up in the lines could alter the formula. They would rather waste several batches of chocolate than risk diluting their recipe.

This is a story I think of often when I contemplate the difficult task of passing the gift of faith from my generation to the next. I wonder if we stop long enough to consider the purity of the faith send through the parenting pipeline. Are there any impurities that might dilute or even pollute the Bible’s central message?

What Do We Believe Anyways?

Jay Leno’s “Jaywalking” is one of my guilty entertainment pleasures. It’s interesting to see how people answer seemingly easy questions about life and history and current events. Perhaps it is a way to feel better about myself, because surely I could ace such an easy quiz.

But I wonder what we’d hear if we “Jaywalked” the average person on the street and asked the simple question, “What is Christianity really about?” Perhaps they’d say something like, “Christianity is about being good.” Or “Christianity is a set of moral codes.” Or “Christianity is about politics.”

Some of this can be chalked up to our culture’s warped sense of our faith or perhaps a skewed portrayal of Christians by the media. But I wonder if much of the blame can be laid to rest on the Christian community itself. Perhaps we’ve not been as clear about defining our faith. What is the big story of the Bible?

But even more important than articulating our faith in the broader culture is how we articulate our faith to ourselves, to the generation that now sits at our feet, the children we teach who will one day form the pillars of our culture.

What is it that we are passing down to our children? I wonder if we have cluttered up the gospel’s central message with good, but not ultimate things, such as our methodologies, our systems, our denominations.

And perhaps we don’t even know we’re doing this. I think of the steaming hot mix of chocolate coursing through the steel pipes at the Long Grove Confectionary.

Imagine, for a moment, if the proprietors of this chocolate shop weren’t as rigid in their guarding of the recipe. they pushed bleach and water instead of chocolate through those new pipes? What if they were careless about what they sent on as finished product, thinking, a little water or pipe residue won’t be noticed.What if

I’m guessing that little confectionary would cease to be one of the most visited places in the Chicagoland area. Retailers would probably stop filling their shelves with Long Grove creations. And the chocolate factory would probably close its doors.

Since chocolate is the lifeblood of their business, they guard the formula with critical care. And so it should be with the faith we stream from one generation to another. We have the recipe for life eternal—the gospel message. Jesus was both God and man who came to earth in love, bore the wrath of a holy God, rose from the dead and now offers new life.

It’s a simple message with profound implications. But for some reason, we think we have to clutter it up with good, but not ultimate, things. And we wonder why the next generation tastes what we’re offering and pitches it. We think they’re rejecting the gospel, but it could be that they’re simply rejecting the impurities we’ve attached to it.

Excerpted with permission from  Real, Owning Your Christian Faith

Three Dangers of Simplistic Evangelistic Methods

If you’ve been a Christian for any length of time, undoubtedly you’ve been exposed to one or more “proven” methods of sharing your faith. In my lifetime I’ve been exposed to a few of these. They have been helpful in narrowing down the message, helping me get more comfortable sharing the gospel, and summarizing the life, death, and resurrection of Jesus.

But there is a danger in relying too heavily evangelistic methods or tools. Here are three that concern me:

1) We send the message to ourselves and our hearers that the gospel is simplistic. The truth is that the gospel is simple–simple enough for a child to grasp, Jesus said (Matthew 10:14-15). Paul articulated a one-sentence gospel in 1 Corinthians 15:3-4. And yet, the gospel, while being simple is not simplistic. There are many mind-boggling aspects about which we will never understand. We will never fully grasp the Incarnation, how Jesus could be fully man and fully God. We’ll never fully understand the Trinity. We’ll never fully understand how Jesus could rise from the dead and can live in us through the Spirit. Peter said in his letter that prophets who predicted it didn’t understand it and the angels, who daily behold God’s glory, long to know it. Paul said a few times that God’s grace–it’s vastness and richness are “unsearchable” Romans 11:33; Ephesians 3:8. The gospel is a beautiful treasure whose value we will study and love for all of eternity. Sometimes, in an effort to be simple, we reduce the gospel down. We restrict it to the language we prefer or the method we use or our favorite verses. As if that’s all the gospel is. We forget that the gospel is both simple and yet beautifully magnificent.

2) Methods tend to emphasize an impatient, one-shot-only approach. One thing that has hurt my own personal evangelism, at times, is the idea that I have to “close the deal” with people. That I must push them so far that they must bow their head in repentance, right here, right now. Now there are some gifted evangelists who routinely bring people to a point of decision on their first try. But for me, and I suspect for the rest of us, it will take many conversations over a long period of time before someone crosses the line from death to life. The problem with “proven methods” is that they often convey the idea that if you do it right, it will work every time on every person all the time. But this is just not true. Some may understand and see the light. Others may need time. Furthermore, closing the deal puts the evangelistic onus on the person, rather than trusting the Holy Spirit do his work in converting the sinner. If its all on me and I must executed perfectly the “proven method”, then if that person doesn’t nod their head and accept Christ, I have failed. This can also lead to false conversions–someone nodding their head in agreement to get me off their back. Rather, I believe it is God who does the saving and he uses flawed, human vessels to share his message. His timing is different than ours. Evangelism is not about “how many did you lead to the Lord this week” but faithfulness in sharing the gospel when you have an opportunity. When you are free of having to use a method, you are free to allow the Spirit to work in you to apply the Scripture to each person’s specific spiritual questions. If you embrace a whole-Bible, big-gospel approach, all of God’s revelation is available to you to apply to the person God has called you to evangelize.

3) Methods tend to create a false gospel dichotomy. What I mean by this is that when we reduce the gospel to a method, we tend to think the gospel is something for the unregenerate sinner and not for me, the Christian. We think it’s something we tack on to the end of a moralistic message rather than the power that enables us to live daily for Jesus. In other words, we convince ourselves that because we are “in”, we don’t need the gospel anymore. But the gospel is big. What saves us from eternal death is what empowers us to be disciples. When we stop thinking we need the gospel, that it’s the big-bad sinners who are in need of grace–we lose our humility and we begin to embrace a religious moralism that doesn’t really need Jesus in order to work. This is at odds with New Testament theology. When you read the letters of Paul, for instance, he always grounds what we are to do with who we are in Christ. Christianity is not simply about “not doing bad stuff” but transformation and regeneration. It’s not a new lifestyle, it’s a new life.

Summary: I’m not against evangelistic methods, but I think we should hold them loosely. We should shift our approach based on the audience. And we should not think that the gospel is merely the few cherry-picked verses I’ve chosen.Remember, the gospel is simple, but not simplistic.