WTS On Shepherds

Why aren't all preachers taught this way? "Good sermons have to be preached in the context of a pastoral ministry."


Hat Tip to: http://www.inlightofthegospel.org/

An 'R' Rated Book

I'm reading through a book this year that most people never really read. It could be rated 'R' for 'raw', or 'real.' Many people own a copy, but I think it probably sits unread in most homes. It's a fascinating book. It tells stories about people that really good imaginative novels can barely deal with. Here are some examples:

• A man and woman standing in nakedness and shame, blaming each other for what they did wrong.
• An angry and envious man, lures his brother into a field, brutally murders him, and then tries to cover it up.
• The world becomes so corrupt and violent that God decides to virtually wipe out the human population and start over.
• Noah gets drunk, and one of his son dishonors him by committing an immoral act in his father’s bedroom.
• Abraham twice tries to pass his wife off to another man to save his own skin. Later, his son Isaac does the same thing.
• Abraham sleeps with one of the household servants so he can have an heir. This was his wife’s idea, but she becomes so jealous after it happens, that she angrily throws the woman and her son out of house to live in poverty and shame.
• Lot offers to let a violent mob gang rape his daughters. Lot’s daughters later get their own father drunk and sleep with him so that they can have children.
• Jacob, Isaac’s son, is a deceitful mama’s boy who tricks his father and brother out of important family legal rights. He has to run away from home so his brother won’t kill him. He goes to work for his ruthless uncle, who keeps him in virtual slavery for decades.
• Jacob escapes by tricking him and running away. Jacob’s wives live in constant jealousy and competition, continually tricking Jacob and each other in an ongoing battle for supremacy in the family.
• Jacob’s sons loathe one of their brothers, sell him into slavery, then lie to their father and tell him he died.
• Jacob’s daughter Leah is raped. Her brothers exact revenge by deceiving and then murdering the perpetrator, destroying and looting his city, and taking all his family members captive.
• Judah refuses to find a husband for his widowed daughter-in-law, Tamar. So she disguises herself as a prostitute, tricks her father-in-law into sleeping with her, and becomes pregnant.

The Internet Monk has an excellent post about this book (here). You should read it, it might awaken an interest in really reading the Bible.

A.W. Towzer had this to say about these kinds of things, "Our woes began when God was forced out of His central shrine and `things' were allowed to enter. Within the human heart `things' have taken over. Men have now by nature no peace within their hearts, for God is crowned there no longer, but there in the moral dusk stubborn and aggressive usurpers fight among themselves for first place on the throne. "

The more things change the more they stay the same. Turn on the nightly news and you hear about the same kinds of 'R' for raw happenings.

The Bible still presents us with the story of the One who can get us out of all this chaos. If only we would read it.

Divine Transcendence

Reading A.W. Tozer's Knowledge of the Holy, I came across this:

"Once in conversation with his friend Eckermann, the poet Goethe turned to thoughts of religion and spoke of the abuse of the divine name. ”People treat it,” he said, ”as if that incomprehensible and most high Being, who is even beyond the reach of thought, were only their equal. Otherwise they would not say ‘the Lord God, the dear God, the good God.’ This expression becomes to them, especially to the clergy, who have it daily in their mouths, a mere phrase, a barren name, to which no thought whatever is attached. If they were impressed by His greatness they would be dumb, and through veneration unwilling to name Him."

I couldn't help but think of some the conversations and sermons I've heard in which God was made to sound like a "buddy" not the Entity whom I can't begin to understand or comprehend. He is not my "pal" He is my God. I'm afraid to think less of Him than his Being calls for.

In conversation the other day, a friend mentioned "assurance of salvation." I told him I was like Paul working out my salvation in "fear and trembling." The more I try to understand God the more afraid (awe struck is probably better phrasology) I become. Anyway I told my friend, I will be fully assured of my salvation when I am in Heaven. Until then I trust Christ, attempt to worship the Father and hope I am one of His elect.

Just for fun

Just for fun I put a "Donate" button to my Pay Pal acount in the upper right corner. I did this because there are among the "geeks" those who believe you must be sophisticated in "code" in order to have a functional web page.

Not! Even a cave man can do it.

ps: I haven't tested it. You need to do that. Try it.

Interesting Things from Fox News

Fox News often does some interesting things. Today it is taking an Internet Poll on whether or not Obama should conform to some, all or none of some "principles" formulated by a Tea Party group. I can hardly wait to read the responses to this one.

The reason I'm so interested is that I have a suspicion my "fellow Americans" don't know that principled thought requires a pre-determined base of knowledge about how things are. Obama doesn't believe in that nonsense. He is a pragmatist.

By definition pragmatists rely only on the facts of the present moment and act based on the "cash value" (William James) believed to be inherent in the situation.

Therefore, we have for President a man who thinks based on situtional ethics, or relativism if you prefer, and then pragmatically makes his decisions. When that worldview makes decisions you get what our President has said: (1) I will close Gitmo, and (2) We can't close Gitmo. Or (1) Charging the underwear bomber as a criminal was the right thing to do, and (2) who was the idiot who made that decision he is a terrorist. This list could go for the length of time Obama has been in office, so I'll just leave it at that. Pragmatism and principle are diametrical worldviews - they can't mix.