T4G: Some Personal Reflections...

I have been mulling over T4G this week and trying to decide how to summarize my experience there.

Let me back up.

About 9 months ago I started thinking a lot about the day of my death. Not in a morbid fashion, but in the manner of Jonathan Edwards’ Resolutions... like #9. “Resolved, to think much on all occasions of my own dying, and of the common circumstances which attend death.” The purpose of this kind of thinking was to clarify things – what does my life really amount to in the end?

I have been extremely busy with many good and enjoyable opportunities: pastoring GFC, teaching at TBS, helping lead the SGF, preparing the Examining Emergent paper and being a dad and husband. But there was something in all that good busyness that was unsettling.

Last Sunday night at GFC I confessed to the folks two sins that came into focus while I was at T4G. Neither of these revelations were prompted by anything in particular at the conference, but more by the whole event along with my thoughts on the brevity of life.

1. I too often replace deep relationship with Jesus with being busy. Wow. Like no one has ever done that before, you say! Ah, but the two go together...

2. I am a proud man.

And I came to see that my pride often drives my busyness. It goes something like this. I give lip service to the fact that my level of influence, the size of my church, etc are all under the direction of God’s sovereign hand. But somewhere, deep inside, this little switch goes off that subtly leads me to believe that I had really better help the Lord out in this recognition and personal fame for me, since He doesn’t seem to be taking care of it so well. Thus, I can get busy. Not busy in the work of the Kingdom, dependent upon the grace of God; but fluttering around in my own strength in the production of wood, hay and stubble.

Someone asked: What is the solution?

Frankly, I am not sure. I am not convinced it is to drop everything and get lazy. I am rather leaning to the conclusion that I simply need to follow the directions I give the men in my seminary class: Never Surrender. Never surrender intimacy with Christ; time in the Word; seasons of prayer; genuine spiritual power; the wise use of time; humility; purity; boldness in the Gospel; and depth in my relationship with the Triune God.

T4G showed me 7 men who do what I do, albeit in different contexts and spheres of influence. Not to take anything away from any of them, but “what do they have that has not been given to them?” The beauty of T4G was the unspoken sense that God will lift up whomever He wills whenever He wills for His great glory alone. It is His fame that I need to seek. Not mine.

May He increase and may I decrease.

EXAMINING EMERGENT Thoughts

EXAMINING EMERGENT

The EXAMININGEMERGENT blog has been an interesting experiment. There were well over 2000 unique visitors to the site in the first two weeks (then my free counter went "not free" and stopped working!). The folks leaving comments have boiled down to a group of 7-1o. I should put another counter on there to see what the traffic is now.

The full content of the paper has been published in sections and now I am beginning the appendices. I am curious to see what kind of response these get. The comments so far have really clarified what are the major differences.

There have been some good correctives. There have also been some lame accusations.

Soon I am going to blog about the one big lesson this process has taught me... about blogging in particular.

If you have not read much of the paper I would encourage you to think of reading the section on one proposed solution.

JOLLYBLOGGER: The Emergent Statement on their Non-Statement of Faith

JOLLYBLOGGER: The Emergent Statement on their Non-Statement of Faith

I assume this is the same guy David refers to:

F. LeRon Shults

1997-
Professor of Theology

Shults is the author of several books, including The Postfoundationalist Task of Theology (1999); Reforming Theological Anthropology: After the Philosophical Turn to Relationality (2003); The Faces of Forgiveness: Searching for Wholeness and Salvation (2003, with Steve Sandage); Reforming the Doctrine of God (2005); and Transforming Spirituality: Integrating Theology and Psychology (in press). Shults has also published more than two dozen book chapters and articles in journals such as Theological Studies; Journal of Psychology and Theology; Scottish Journal of Theology; Neue Zeitschrift fur Systematische Theologie und Religionsphilosophie; Perspectives in Science and Christian Faith; Christian Scholar's Review; Studies in Science and Theology; Journal of Interdisciplinary Studies; and Neues Athenaeum. Shults has lectured on theological and philosophical issues throughout the United States as well as in England, France, Germany, Spain, Poland, Holland, and other countries. He is an active member of the American Academy of Religion and other professional societies, and a participant in the Templeton Oxford Seminars in Science & Christianity at Oxford University.

Education

B.A., Roberts Wesleyan College;
M.A., Fuller Theological Seminary;
Ph.D., Walden University;
Ph.D., Princeton Theological Seminary

I also assume 1997 refers to the year he started working at Bethel, not his year of birth!

Toronto Baptist Seminary Graduation Tonight!

It would be great to have you join us tonight at 8:00PM.

The graduation address will be given by Dr. Joel Beeke of Puritan Reformed Theological Seminary in Grand Rapids, Michigan.

Plenty of FREE PARKING (if you show up early enough!).

Click here for more information...

Men Don't Listen - Part II

See here for an introduction and part one of this series...

II. Wise Men Are Slow to Speak

Having established that it is good and right for men to develop meaningful and deep relationships with one another, there remains one more foundational item. Men that are wise are men that speak little, and listen much. Try reading each of these proverbs out loud twice... go slow and let their truth sink in.

A common Biblical theme is that too many words leads to trouble:

Proverbs 10:19 “When words are many, transgression is not lacking,
but whoever restrains his lips is prudent.”

Proverbs 13:3 “Whoever guards his mouth preserves his life;
he who opens wide his lips comes to ruin.”

Proverbs 17:27 “Whoever restrains his words has knowledge,
and he who has a cool spirit is a man of understanding.”

Proverbs 21:23 “Whoever keeps his mouth and his tongue
keeps himself out of trouble.”

So Solomon rightly asks:

Proverbs 29:20 “Do you see a man who is hasty in his words?
There is more hope for a fool than for him.”

What is a man to do, then? Clearly the spouting off of pat answers is not going to do! How is he to relate to other men?

You will have to wait for part three!

T4G - Statement Final Version Released

T4TG-statement.pdf

As most of you know, I was pleased to be at Together for the Gospel last week.

Al Mohler penned a document for the group of four men who hosted the conference and it was read during one of the panel sessions. As JT noted on his blog, this statement is helpful not only for what it commends, but also what it denies. I urge you to read a copy!

Click the link above for a link to the pdf file on the T4G website...

HT: Justin Taylor

Men Don't Listen - Part I

Jokes abound concerning husbands that ignore their wives, boyfriends that won't listen to their girlfriends, and males that can stare you in the face while you talk - never hearing one thing you said! Humour like this works since it touches on a very real problem... albeit a stereotyped one: men are not good listeners.

There is a tendency amongst us guys to not listen, especially when we are talking with other men. The event unfolds something like this:

1) One man opens up about a specific sin he is struggling with, or a question that has him perplexed.

2) While that first man is still talking, the second man is formulating his solution to the issue... and, perhaps he will allow the first speaker to finish before spouting it off.

3) The second man tells the first man what he should do.

4) The first man is given what most often amounts to a pat answer (albeit something very tangible and practical) and is expected to get that fixed in the near future...

5) Rich, Christ-saturated, Spirit-led, God-honoring fellowship has been enjoyed by all! (That was saracasm!)

What I am describing is a common male problem based on my observation. It is a combination of failing to listen and the tendency to want to fix everything at the moment.

If married, perhaps you have granted your wife enough time to lovingly observe this in your relationship with her... maybe not. But, what men learn with their wives they do not always transfer into other relationships. The same incentives found in our marriage are not present nor persuasive in our male-to-male friendships! So, we need to think carefully and act purposefully if we are going to grow in this area.

A wise man learns to listen. Now, before I attempt to prove that, let me lay some basic groundwork.

1. The Foundation: It is good for men to speak to one another – confessing sin, seeking counsel, asking for advice, etc...

We need to confess sin to God... but to men as well:
Proverbs 28:13 “Whoever conceals his transgressions will not prosper,
but he who confesses and forsakes them will obtain mercy.”

God has granted some men much wisdom which is to our benefit if we tap into it:
Proverbs 14:33 “Wisdom rests in the heart of a man of understanding,
but it makes itself known even in the midst of fools”
Proverbs 24:6b “and in abundance of counselors there is victory.”

Wise friends will have words that hurt sometimes, but are for our good:
Proverbs 20:30 “Blows that wound cleanse away evil;
strokes make clean the innermost parts.”

Proverbs 27:6 “Faithful are the wounds of a friend;
profuse are the kisses of an enemy.”

So, you can see... men need to be in relationships with other men. And one thing that will help make those relationships profitable is learning how to listen to each other.

Watch for Part Two "Men That Are Wise Are Slow to Speak"

A Blogger's Life Verse

A fool gives full vent to his spirit,
but a wise man quietly holds it back.

Proverb 29:11

Would You Be Happy in Heaven if Christ Were Not There?

The critical question for our generation—and for every generation— is this: If you could have heaven, with no sickness, and with all the friends you ever had on earth, and all the food you ever liked, and all the leisure activities you ever enjoyed, and all the natural beauties you ever saw, all the physical pleasures you ever tasted, and no human conflict or any natural disasters, could you be satisfied with heaven, if Christ was not there?

And the question for Christian leaders is: Do we preach and teach and lead in such a way that people are prepared to hear that question and answer with a resounding No? How do we understand the gospel and the love of God? Have we shifted with the world from God’s love as the gift of himself to God’s love as the gift of a mirror in which we like what we see? Have we presented the gospel in such a way that the gift of the glory of God in the face of Christ is marginal rather than central and ultimate? If so, I pray that this book might be one way God wakens us to see the supreme value and importance of “the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God.” I pray that our ministries would have the same focal point as the ministry of John Owen, the great Puritan writer of the seventeenth century. Richard Daniels said of him:

There is one motif so important to John Owen, so often and so broadly cited by him, that the writer would go so far as to call it the focal point of Owen’s theology... namely, the doctrine that in the gospel we behold, by the Christ-given Holy Spirit, the glory of God “in the face of Christ” and are thereby changed into his image.

Can we really say that our people are being prepared for heaven where Christ himself, not his gifts, will be the supreme pleasure?

From, God is the Gospel by John Piper, 15.

T4G: Making New Friends in the Gospel

I posted earlier on a number of guys I was able to re-connect with at T4G. Here are some musings on men I was blessed to meet for the first time...

Tom met us at the airport to drive us to the Band of Bloggers meeting. I have totally blanked on Tom's last name, which is a shame since he is a great guy. He has been with C.J. at Covenant Life pretty much since "before the beginning" and now works conferences like this while not at his FAA job. He was one of myriad of incredible servants...

Timmy Brister organized the Band of Bloggers meeting, then drove Challies and I around for 4 hours after the conference and before our flight home. He, too, was a mighty servant! I mean, it takes a lot of patience to stand around a Border's Bookstore while two Dad's scan for the cheapest presents to take home for their kids. (Please thank your wife for us, too, Timmy!)

I had met Nathan Fullerton at Ian Vaillancourt's wedding a few years back, but his brother Ryan has always been "just a name." Our meeting was brief (in the line up at a Subway!) but more than pleasant! I was thrilled to get to know this transplanted half-Canuck and look forward to hearing more and more over the years how the Lord uses him at his church.

Terry Staufer is a regular commentor on this site from Alberta and who do you think the very first guy I met in the parking lot of Southern Seminary was?! A kind providence! The Lord crossed our paths many times over the next three days and it was great to get to know him.

Larry McCall pastors the church in Indiana that breifly served as home for my wife's family over 20 years ago! There we were talking, and me thinking, "I know this name" for 5 minutes or so until, BOING, the light went on! "I married little Susie!" Great to meet this faithful pastor.

Then there was Marc Heinrich of Purgatorio fame. Marc was... what I thought he would be - only better. I had the feeling that spending more than 30 minutes at a time with him would get me in trouble. Be sure to fill in your caption of Tim Challies picture on the Purgatorio blog... and just remember that if it wasn't for me he wouldn't have been smiling.

Scott Lamb was a new friend too. This guy seems as tireless as Mohler and will be a huge asset to the new Discerning Reader as an associate editor.

On top of this were the men I would sit with at each session, talk with at breaks, walk (shuffle) with toward elevators and all the other places through the mammoth hotel. It was a delight to meet them all. Presbyterians, Baptists, Independents, Sovereign Grace guys, "others..." it was truly a time of being together for the Gospel!

T4G: Quotes

Here are some of my favorite quotes from the conference... I include the message number or panel number in brackets afterwards. (They are from my rough notes, so I hope they are fairly accurate!)

Mark Dever: "We are fallen enough that we can have a clean conscience and be wrong." (1)

Mark Dever: "True ministers of Christ are happy to be despised if Christ is glorified." (1)

Lig Duncan: "There is only one way to God, but many ways to Christ." (2)

Al Mohler: "Sinners sinning ought not to surprise us!" (3)

Al Mohler: "The problem of us pre-exists all the problems that have happened to us." (P1)

R. C. Sproul: "We are not justified by the doctrine [of justification by faith] or by believing it, but by believing on Christ!" "All that he is and all that He has is mine for the rest of eternity." (4)

Al Mohler: "No one is justified by affection for Christ." "The problem is that we reduce sin to sins. The most insignificant sin ruins the cosmos." (P2)

John Piper: "[The preaching mantle] is soaked in the blood of Christ and singed by the fire of hell." (5) [Discussing what was at stake when we preach the Gospel.]

John Piper: "People are changed the way God wants them to be changed - by seeing His glory... the pastor's job is to make God's glory seen." (5)

John Piper: "A preacher must have the gift of contagen... otherwise his demeanour lies about the text." (P3)

C. J. Mahaney: [In his opening prayer before preaching.] "We know that prayer is not overcoming any reluctance in You..."
"Our character must be more persuasive than our speech."
"There is no pastoral privelege in relation to sin - If you don't watch, you will weaken!"
"You cannot effectively watch yourself by yourself." [This led to that wonderful "cream cheese moment" illustration.]
"Past attention [on our personal sin] is not enough for now or the future."(6)

John MacArthur: [Describing the benefits of expositional preaching.] "You will get a church full of Christians!" (7)