Monthly Archives: October 2015

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Preaching Unto Eternity

As A Dying Man

The few faithful readers of this here blog know that my planned dissertation subject for The Institution is the saintly Robert Murray M’Cheyne. This fall I’m spending my time combing through all the autobiographical and biographical material I can get my hands on. My friends, this has been a soul feast of epic proportions. Today I want to give you a glimpse into just one way M’Cheyne is shaping my pastoral ministry.

As A Dying Man on the Edge of Eternity

Like his Puritan forebears M’Cheyne’s perspective can—and should be—modified by the adjective “eternal.” He was a man consumed with heavenly realities and that consumption was visible to all. Consider just a few quotes from the young pastor on the subject of eternity:

  • “Live near to God, and all things will appear little to you in comparison with eternal realities.”
  • “A great part of my time is spent in getting my heart in tune for prayer. It is the link that connects earth with heaven.”
  • “As I was walking in the fields, the thought came over me with almost overwhelming power, that every one of my flock must soon be in heaven or hell.”
  • “Life is vanishing fast. Make hast for eternity.”
  • “Make all your service tell for eternity; speak what you can look back upon with comfort when you must lie in silence.”
  • “Live for eternity.”
  • “Speak to your people as on the brink of eternity.”

That last quote leads me to ask, “How did M’Cheyne fit his soul to speak as one on the brink of eternity?” Bonar gives us an idea when he writes, “It was [M’Cheyne’s] manner, on a Saturday afternoon, to visit one or two of his sick who seemed near the point of death, with the view of being thus stirred up to a more direct application of the truth to his flock on the morrow, as dying men on the edge of eternity.”

Consistent views of eternity caused M’Cheyne’s preaching to pulsate with an unusual earnestness. It caused his life to bask in the glow of heaven. It’s a model full of, for me at least, stirring conviction. As I’ve read and meditated on this most ordinary pastor I’ve settled on a two-fold pattern for an eternity-shaped ministry. Allow to sketch out my admittedly preliminary thoughts on the matter.

Live Always in the Sight of Eternity

Thinking often of death and eternity need not be a morbid endeavor. In fact, it’s a most biblical one. As Moses said in Psalm 90, “Teach us to number our days that we may get a heart of wisdom.” Wisdom preaches the reality of death, the brevity of life, and the glory of seeing Christ face to face. Setting your mind on things above transforms the heart to live as one always ready. If the adage “you become what you behold” is correct, then we must behold the eternal beauty of Jesus Christ. Such a sight gives a depth of joy, a fullness of hope, and a reverence of Spirit uncommon in this world. And I for one want to be a most uncommon pastor. I raise my glass to the ordinary pastors who are peculiar—peculiar because the rays of heaven have so manifestly shined upon their faces.

Living always in the sight of eternity brings power not only to a life of holiness, but also to evangelism. As M’Cheyne said, “I feel that there are two things it is impossible to desire with sufficient ardor: personal holiness, and the salvation of souls.” Seeing the glory of Christ seated on the throne ought to promote in our hearts the sentiment towards lost people, “I want you to see Him who is your life!” It reminds us that not all with see Christ as Savior, multitudes will see Him for the first time as Judge and nothing could be more terrifying.

Speak Always with the Savor of Eternity

One amazing thing I’ve notice about M’Cheyne is how often people were transformed just by observing his heavenly manner of life. Could someone say the same thing about me?

But what is even more undeniable are how many took hold of heaven through his preaching. He preached as, Old Baxter said, “A dying man unto dying men.” The terrors of hell and glories of heaven became real through his words. Read through his sermons and I doubt you’ll escape the battle he waged for eternity when standing behind the pulpit. Heaven became real to his hearers—oh, to have heard him preach!

Something will season our preaching. I often wonder what exactly seasons mine. How I pray the savor might not be one of my personality, but one of eternity. Perhaps this is now why I pray before every sermon, “Help me to preach as a dying man unto dying men.”

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A Series Worth Serious Investment: Christian Pocket Guides

For a few years now Christian Focus has quietly amassed a nice little storehouse of little books on essential matters of Christianity in Christian Pocket Guide series. Averaging eighty pages per book and overflowing with helpful comments on matters of “Warning,” “Don’t Forget,” “Stop and Think,” and “Points of Interest,” this series is ideal for two reasons. First, it is a fantastic resource for refreshing your basic understanding of the main business of the faith. Second, these books are excellent discipling resources.

Check them out and see if you don’t agree.

9781845509514mA Christian’s Pocket Guide to Jesus Christ: An Introduction to Christology by Mark Jones. Could you explain Christology if asked to? For many of us, the whole concept of Christology is as mystifying as a foreign language, yet Christians down the ages have fought to defend the person and work of Christ – seeing him and what he did quite rightly as a vital element of how we are saved. If we are to understand this subject we need to know the person of Christ; not just what he did (his work) but who he is (his person).

Through this book we get to know the Son of God who indeed is God and not just a superman! He is the one who came from above and became fully human having a human body and soul. Being God enabled him to pay the debt owed for sin and being man enabled him to stand on man’s behalf for their sin. In straightforward and simple layman terms this book will explain the interconnectivity of the work and person of Jesus Christ and dispel any misconceptions you may have.

9781781916476mA Christian’s Pocket Guide to Sin: The Disease and Its Cure by Iain Campbell. The doctrine of sin is a dark doctrine. It takes us to the very core of our being, and to our radical departure from God. It speaks in negative terms. Its tones are shadowy, its notes deep. It is not a user-friendly doctrine. Our need is great; that is what the doctrine of sin is saying. But, there is an answer, and it is in Jesus Christ. “A Christian’s Pocket Guide to Sin” maps out the nature of the disease which only God, by His grace in Jesus Christ, is able to heal.

9781781911099mA Christian’s Pocket Guide to Being Made Right with God: Understanding Justification by Guy Waters. Justification is not a relic of the past – it has direct relevance to us as Christians today. We often struggle with the thought of justification because of human pride; “I can’t be that bad” and so justification is often undermined, wrongly presented or just plain ignored. Scripture though, is brutally clear: we have a real problem – the prospect of our lives marred by wrong-doing being laid out before an almighty God who is pure and will not forever let wrong go unpunished. We can’t earn our way out of our predicament – as this is just “rubbish” according to the apostle Paul. We need something else, someone who can take the hit we so richly deserve – leaving us to be declared innocent instead.

9781845508104mA Christian’s Pocket Guide to Growing in Holiness: Understanding Sanctification by J.V. Fesko. No true Christian wants to keep on sinning. Yet the battle seems unwinnable. For every slain opponent two more emerge from the shadows. And to make matters worse, an endless stream of pundits are on hand with conflicting combat tactics: ‘Try harder. Do more.’ ‘It’s a matter of mind over matter.’ ‘Imitate Christ. Ask, What would Jesus Do?’ ‘Take a break. Even if you yield to every known sin, you’re still a winner because Christ has forgiven everything.’

In the Bible we find a more coherent and realistic approach to growing in holiness. Victory over sin does not come to the spiritual sluggard. Effort is essential. Even so, self-transformation is not possible. ‘Sanctification is by faith alone in Christ alone.’ The gospel is not just for day one of the Christian life; it’s for the whole journey. How do we grow in holiness? We grow through the word of God and prayer and sacraments. This book will help us find the benefits of growing in Christ for which there is no substitute.

9781845509682mA Christian’s Pocket Guide to Baptism: The Water That Unites by Robert Letham. What is Christian baptism? Is it, as many believe, a mere symbol? When should someone be baptized? In A Christian’s Pocket Guide to Baptism, Robert Letham answers such questions from Scripture. He reflects sensitively on historic Christian teaching and avoids the extremes that often mark discussions of this subject, making this a book for everyone. Letham’s plain talk will not leave beginners bemused, nor will it frustrate those who want to make real progress in their theological understanding. It is a ‘tragedy’, says Letham, that Christians should think of baptism as ‘the water that divides’.

The sign of our union with Christ should unite Christians, not least because it does not focus on our actions, but on God’s mighty deeds. Baptism belongs to him. It must always be administered in connection with faith, yet that does not mean Christians do anything to receive or to earn baptism. They are to be baptized solely because of God’s gracious promises.

9781781915806mA Christian’s Pocket Guide to Loving The Old Testament: One Book, One God, One Story by Alec Motyer. Many of us know and love the stories and characters of the Old Testament such as Joseph, Moses and Jonah. But how do we view its importance in relation to New Testament teaching and our 21st century experiences? This accessible yet powerful addition to the Pocket Guide series draw together the threads of Scripture to help us understand the power of God’s word when viewed in its completeness.

9781781912997mA Christian’s Pocket Guide to Papacy: Its Origin and Role in the 21st Century by Leonardo Di Chirico. Who are the Popes and how does the Roman Catholic Church define their role? What about the present day Popes? What is the ecumenical significance of the Papacy and what are its prospects in the global world? These and other questions are tackled as Leonardo De Chirico explores the Biblical, historical, and theological fabric of the Papacy.

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Prepare to Meet Thy God

Worship Preparation

I recently started rereading Daniel Block’s excellent To the Glory of God: Recovering A Biblical Theology of Worship with a few members of our church. He makes a striking comment about Israel’s meeting with God at Mt. Sinai in Exodus by saying, “Exodus 19-20 presents the most impressive corporate earthly worship event in all of Scripture.” So, what say you to Dr. Block’s superlative statement? Is it exaggeration or truth?

Walking in The Old Ways

If he’s right, and I’m in total agreement with him, one thing we must learn from the meeting at Mt. Sinai is the necessity of preparing to meet God in worship. Simply read through Exodus 19-20 and notice how exhaustive Israel’s preparation was to meet their God. Block goes on to ask the question,

How can we translate this into our own regular experience? Does this mean that we need to practice the purification rituals found in the First Testament and performed with such scrupulosity in early Judaism? . . . For many, Sunday morning is just as hectic as any other day. By the time we arrive at the church, we are out of breath, our tempers are short, and we have scarcely had worship on our minds. But, blissfully, we imagine that all we need to do to is show up in church and God will be impressed.

The question then I have for this post is, “How can we—as pastors—encourage and equip our congregation to show up with worship on their minds?” The question is thus one of how to prepare for gathered worship.

They’ve Thought About it Before

This isn’t a new concern. The saints of old spoke often of preparing to meet with God in worship—especially the Puritans, those blessed divines. The Westminster Catechisms say, “It is required of those that hear the word preached, that they attend upon it with diligence, preparation, and prayer.” The Westminster Directory for Public worship states, “There [should] be private preparations of every person and family, by prayer for themselves, and for God’s assistance of the minister, and for a blessing upon his ministry; and by such other holy exercises, as may further dispose them to a more comfortable communion with God in his public ordinances.” Thomas Watson has a whole section on the subject in his book The Ten Commandments. (Can you guess which commandment his discussion falls under?)

J.I. Packer, in commenting on this Puritan practice, says, “Here, perhaps, is our own chief weakness. The Puritans inculcated specific preparation for worship–not merely for the Lord’s Supper, but for all services– as a regular part of the Christian’s inner discipline of prayer and communion with God.  … What we need at the present time to deepen our worship is not new liturgical forms or formulae, nor new hymns and tunes, but more preparatory ‘heart-work’ before we use the old ones.”

My question still remains: how do we today exhort our people to this kind of earnest preparation?

Ways to Shepherd Your Church to Prepare for Worship

What I long to be true about my particular church is the tangible cultivation of anticipation in meeting with God. Even though they say it’s dangerous to do so, I assuming here that pastors are teaching and modeling the importance of preparing for worship. With that in mind, here are some simple ways to promote preparation for gathered worship:

Pray, pray, and pray some more. I don’t mean merely praying for a culture of preparation to permeate your church. You do that, but you can do much more on this subject of prayer. When you meet with individual church members throughout the week you can close each meeting with prayer and include a petition for the upcoming gathered worship service. Start a pre-service prayer meeting for the sole purpose of pleading with God to let the Spirit descend in power upon each element of worship. This matter of prayer dovetails nicely into the next suggestion . . .

Distribute resources to aid in preparation. Include in your weekly bulletin an “Upcoming Sermons Card” that tells who will be preaching and what text will be preached over the next few weeks. Encourage your members to put the card in their Bible and then, during devotional time, read through the sermon passage and pray. Pray for the man to preach and for their heart to hear.

Every Tuesday I update a page on our website called “Songs We Sing” with the songs to be sung at the upcoming service. It never ceases to amaze me how many people utilize this simple resource. We’ve also put together a Spotify playlist of the songs we regularly sing so that the pertinent music can always be on hand.

You might also consider, on this point, freely giving away copies of Christopher Ash’s Listen Up: A Practical Guide to Listening to Sermons to your members. WTS Books will let you get a case of 200 copies for only $558.

Use social media. Here is any easy way to sanctify an often salacious medium. Tweet about the upcoming sermon, post about the song you will sing for the first time this weekend, and anything else your social media platforms will let you do to perpetuate awareness of the coming gathered worship service. At least every other day I put things up on Twitter or Facebook to exhort our church to get ready for the service. And yes, sometimes it’s as blunt as, “Get ready to worship with us tomorrow by listening to the songs we hope to sing–[insert link to our “Songs We Sing” page].”

Aim to create congregational chatterboxes. We want people who love to talk about spiritual things. Encourage you people to send an email or text to the preacher saying something simple like, “I prayed for your sermon preparation today.” Exhort small groups to walk through discussion questions on the previous week’s sermon and then pray for the upcoming week’s sermon. Exhort the parents in your congregation to read through the week’s text with their children and discuss what questions they have that the preacher might answer.

It’s a Solemn Thing

There are a myriad of different things we can do to prepare to worship, but most would probably fall under the categories above. I leave you then with a trumpet blast from George Swinnock. Back in 2013 I read through his collected works, and my goodness, does that brother pack a punch! Here’s just one example, pertinent to this post:

Prepare to meet thy God, O Christian! betake thyself to thy chamber on this Saturday night, confess and bewail thine unfaithfulness under the ordinances of God; shame and condemn thyself for thy sins, entreat God to prepare thy heart for, and assist it in, thy religious performances; spend some time in consideration of the infinite majesty, holiness, jealousy, and goodness, of that God, with whom thou art to have to do in sacred duties; ponder the weight and importance of his holy ordinances . . .; meditate on the shortness of the time thous hast to enjoy Sabbaths in; and continue musing … till the fire burns; thou canst not think the good thou may gain by such forethoughts, how pleasant and profitable a Lord’s day would be to thee after such preparation. The oven of thine heart thus baked in, as it were, overnight, would be easily heated the next morning; the fire so well raked up when thou went to bed, would be the sooner kindled when thou should rise. If thou wouldst thus leave thy heart with God on the Saturday night, thou should find it with him in the Lord’s Day morning.

And all God’s people said, “Booyah.”

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How Should You Preach?

How is the Word of God to be preached by those that are called thereunto?

They that are called to labor in the ministry of the word, are to preach sound doctrine, diligently, in season and out of season; plainly, not in the enticing words of man’s wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit, and of power; faithfully, making known the whole counsel of God; wisely, applying themselves to the necessities and capacities of the hearers; zealously, with fervent love to God and the souls of his people; sincerely, aiming at his glory, and their conversion, edification, and salvation. – Westminster Larger Catechism #159

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Citizens Soldiers

Philippians Podcast

When Emily and I bought our first home in 2009 we moved in with plans to cut the cable. Emily at the time was working nights as a nurse and so I was left to my lonesome three evening each week. Previously, ESPN always occupied my attention (and sadly, my affections as well), but when cable was let go, I had to find other means of occupation. So, I went to the library and rented Band of Brothers for the first time.

Thus began my infatuation with World War II, and also my infatuation with reading. I was soon spending hours each night pouring through military history books, one of the first of which was Stephen Ambrose’s Citizens Soldiers. Elaborating on the title Ambrose opens with these words, “This book is about the citizen soldiers of the U.S. Army and U.S. Air Forces in the European Theater of Operations in World War II. Although it includes some material on strategy . . . it is not a book about generals. It is about the GIs, [the ordinary men] of ETO—who they were, how they fought, what they endured, how they triumphed.”

“Citizen soldiers” is a most apt description of Christians according to our text. The verbs are almost exclusively political and militant. It’s as though Paul is saying, citizens of heaven are to live as soldiers for Christ. We thus see truth about our identity in Christ (citizens of heaven), and also about the tenacity of life in Christ (soldiers fighting worthy of the gospel).

But let us saying something here about living “worthy.” For how many of us, after seeing everything Paul says feel so unworthy. We are divisive complainers, fearful with the truth, and prone to distrust a sovereign God when He graces us with suffering. Far from being worthy soldiers for Christ, we are often unworthy deserters of Christ. If you are in here tonight and are not a Christian, the Bible says you are an enemy of Christ. What hope does Paul have for our unworthiness? Look back at 1:29. Paul writes, “It has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should . . . believe in him.” God meets our unworthiness with the worth of Christ, He graciously gives us faith in Jesus; faith that saves from sin and enlists us into Christ’s army. Oh, I pray that those of you apart from Christ tonight would see His supreme worth—that he died for sinners like you. If you would but turn from you sin and trust in Him, you will become a citizen of heaven and soldier of Christ.

If you are a Christian see afresh the grace that changes unworthy sinners into worthy citizen soldiers. His Spirit of Grace resides within you to enable you to live in a manner worthy of the gospel. So, as we close let me try and tie everything we’ve seen together as we consider what our text tells us about a church that lives worthy of the gospel.

A Church That Lives Worthy of the Gospel

We display the heart of Christ. The heart of Christ is one of unity. He secures it through his death, intercedes for it through His prayer, and builds it through His spirit. Steve Timmis said, “The church is the fruit of the cross. You may look across this room and be unhappy about a part of this body. Something that frustrates you, or some that makes you uncomfortable. But Jesus looks at us and say, “This is the fruit of my suffering and I love it.” So we are to stand firm in one spirit, with one mind.

We declare the truth of Christ. Through our preaching and hearing the word preached we take up arms against the forces of darkness. As we grow in the truth through discipling relationships and small groups we sharpen our blades to do battle against the Serpent. As we fathers and mothers lead our children to love and obey the truth we fit are putting them through a spiritual boot camp. And, as we’ve said already, we do all of this without fear. Courage is the seasoning that ought to permeate our declarations of truth.

We demonstrate the treasure of Christ. The grace of suffering will fall on you at some point. It’s has fallen on us multiple times this year, and we ought not to expect next year to be any different should the Lord tarry. It’s a grace for many reasons, one of which is that is allows us to demonstrate before the world what we truly treasure. Comfort? Pleasure? Success? Acclaim? Or, when all those things fall away, do we show that in plenty or in want, Jesus is our true treasure.

We are welcomed into the kingdom of Christ and called to behave as citizens worthy of the gospel; behavior Paul summarizes as showing our allegiance to Christ and perseverance in Christ. As those things happen we will find this church to be one that display the heart of Christ, declares the truth of Christ, and demonstrates the treasure of Christ. Living worthy of the gospel is the essence of the Christian life.

This post is adapted from my recent sermon, “Rejoicing in Life,” on Philippians 1:27-30.

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Preaching Nourished by Prayer

The Pastor and Prayer

It’s a perennial question, “Where should you start a book on preaching?” You could give a brief theology of Scripture, survey its primacy in church history, or you could do something totally different like write a chapter on prayer. That’s exactly where Gary Millar and Phil Campbell begin their book Saving Eutychus: How to Preach God’s Word and Keep People Awake. That emphasis seems just right. That apostles did say they would devote themselves “to prayer and to the ministry of the word” (Acts 6:4). So, when a book self-consciously reflects this order my interest is automatically piqued.

Gary Millar takes five pages and fills them with punch and pith on the necessity of prayer if we are ever going to keep Eutychus awake. His sage counsel is summarized with these points: 1) resolve now to pray fervently for your own preach, and 2) make sure that your church prays together for the preaching.

Putting It Into Practice

To illustrate the power of the second point Millar recounts his experience at Gilcomston South Church. I found the example of this community stirring. May it do the same for you and lead to you place greater emphasis on prayer in your preaching ministry. Millar writes,

From 1988-1991 (when I was a theological student), I was part of a remarkable church family. Gilcomston South Church of Scotland in Aberdeen wasn’t a huge church. Nor was it a particularly ‘happening’ church. We met twice on a Sunday, had a midweek central Bible study and a Saturday night prayer meeting—and that was it. There was an organ, and we sang five hymns or psalms (often to Germanic minor tunes). The pastor, William Still, preached steadily through the Bible (this was still relatively novel at the time, even though he had been doing it for 40 years). But what set that church family apart was its very simple commitment to ‘the ministry of the word nourished by prayer’ (as Mr. Still would repeatedly say). I have never been part of a church family that had a greater sense of expectancy when we gathered to hear the Bible explained. And I have never been part of a church family where prayer was so obviously the heartbeat of everything that went on. And I have never been part of a church family where God was so obviously present week by week as he spoke through his word. And, it seems to me, there might just be a connection.

Of course ‘Gilc’ was, and is, just like any church family—full of flawed, messed-up people like you and me. But those of us who had the privilege of ‘passing through’ went on from there with an indelible sense that preaching and praying go together. It was just part of the DNA of the church family. The precious group of 50 or 60 people who met week by week at the Saturday night prayer meeting spend most of the two hours praying for the proclamation of the gospel elsewhere—in other churches in our city, in Scotland, and on every continent around the world, one by one. Eventually, someone would pray, ‘And Lord, spare a though for us in our own place tomorrow . . .’ and the others, who had been praying faithfully on their own all through the week for the preaching at Gilc, would murmur a heartfelt ‘Amen.’

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Cultivating Awe & Knowing Christ

Screen Shot 2015-09-30 at 7.00.36 PMMy early favorite for book of the year—Mark Jones’ Knowing Christ—has finally arrived. This is a book on which to feast and fill your soul.

The venerable Dr. Packer wrote the foreword (I look forward to the day when someone compiles all the forewords he’s offered) and he concludes, “Knowing Christ is a book calculated to enrich our twenty-first-century souls, and one that it is an honour to introduce.” Rosaria Butterfield goes even further by saying, “Knowing Christ is a majestic gem that will be passed down from generation to generation as a beloved devotional. Its author takes the reader by a loving pastoral hand into depths and riches, exhorting us to know Christ better and to love him more.”

SITTING AT THE FEET OF A GIANT

To help publicize the book, Banner of Truth just put out a fifteen minute conversation between Jones and Packer on matters of awe, meditation, and the glory of Christ. Tune in and watch one of God’s great ones encourage us to stare in awe at Christ.

Speaking of Packer, you really ought to also check out Leland Ryken’s forthcoming biography J.I. Packer: An Evangelical Life. It will surely make its way on to many “Best Of” lists at the end of the year.