The Jesus We Missed

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Many of the reviews for The Jesus We Missed seemed to be disappointed by the lack of surprise, as the subtitle indicates. Or, perhaps, they we just not that surprised by the fact that so many Believers do indeed miss the striking humanity of Jesus. I felt this book was wonderfully thought out and intellectually driven. I will readily admit that this book is not well suited for those simply looking for a devotional or easy reading “Christian Living” book. To truly appreciate this work, you must enjoy seeing the nuanced way in which the life of Christ blends divinity and humanity. Did Jesus have pimples? Did our Lord and Savior ever have the stomach flu? Are we repulsed by the idea of God having diarrhea? These and many more not-so-gross human attributes of Jesus are examined.

The wonderful facts of His humanity are that the God of heaven did not just become like us, He became one of us. Reardon has written a wonderful, and yes, even surprising look at the side of the superman we often want to forget—His humanity. 

* I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their Book Review Blogger program. TNP requires no expectations of a positive review. 

Baptism

We baptized a total of five Sunday. Here are a few shots thanks to Tammy Jeffers!

Totally Depraved

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Not many people would enjoy being called depraved; much less totally so. But the doctrine of Total Depravity is very freeing and liberating. It means that every essence of our being is tainted by sin. Everything that I can think or do is tainted by sin, and it will be so until I reach Glory.  In our fallen state, our very nature is oriented against God, and the bent of our will is evil from the beginning.

St Augustine said that the only reason we think a baby is good, is because he doesn’t have the power to show us just how evil he really is...yet. Augustine also said that, “If a baby had the strength when he emerged from the mother’s womb, he would seize the mother by the neck and demand his milk.”

I guess what I’m saying is that the doctrine of depravity is comforting to me because it shows me that sanctification is not up to me. Look, you may be surprised that you’re evil, but it is no revelation to God. All I can say to that is Hallelujah!

Paul says in Romans 7:24, “Who will rescue me from this body of death?” In Romans 8:1 he answers his own question. “Therefore, no condemnation now exists for those who are in Christ Jesus.” 

I am totally depraved, but thanks to God, I didn't stay that way. I think that's what Solomon meant when he wrote "I have always tried my best to let wisdom guide my thoughts and actions. I said to myself, 'I am determined to be wise.' But it didn’t work."

The only way any of us can be saved is through the power and grace of God. The power of Holy Spirit changes our nature by abiding with us, keeping us, sanctifying us, and raising us by His power.

Measuring Up

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“When I get to heaven I will be amazed at three things. First, those who are not there that I thought would be. Second, those who are there that I thought would not be. Third, that I am even there at all.” ~ John Newton

I grew up in the Fundamental Independent Baptist Church of the Deep South. I even went to a Fundamental Independent Baptist School. Every Friday we would have preacher boys come in and have chapel at our little school. These were mostly youth guys at their respective churches who aspired to have their own little fiefdom one day. Every Friday we had to endure Sermonettes from these Christianettes.......usually about cigarettes.

They were really into soul winning and these boys did not sin. We knew they didn’t sin because they told us they didn’t sin. They would call all the guys drunkards and all the girls whores and it was their great pleasure to inform us that we were all going straight to Hell. I have to say that, even though these guys didn’t sin anymore, they looked suspiciously arrogant to me.  Especially since they all wore a blue suit, white shirt, and red tie.

In Ecclesiastics 7: 20 Solomon opines that “there is not a just man on earth who does good and does not sin.” In James 2, the pragmatic James tells us that we should not be respecters of persons. I heard a story about a boy who walked for miles to get to church, passing by churches much closer to his house. When asked why he walked so far, the boy said, “They love a fella over there.” Another boy told his mom about how much he liked his new Sunday School teacher. She asked what made him better than the last teacher. The boy said, “He treats me like I’m a people.”

We may think of these as cute little stories, but would to God that more churches treated visitors like they were "a people." James says when someone visits the church we are not to “hold them up with partiality.” The Greek phrase there, Prosopolepsia, literally means to lay hands on someone’s face. In other words, don’t judge them on superficial, outward appearances. Don't just "lay hold of their face" and judge them on what they look like on the outside. The Message parapharse puts it like this, "If a man enters your church wearing an expensive suit, and a street person wearing rags comes in right after him, and you say to the man in the suit, 'Sit here, sir; this is the best seat in the house!' and either ignore the street person or say, 'Better sit here in the back row,' haven't you segregated God's children and proved that you are judges who can't be trusted?"

Here’s an idea. Instead of judging people, let’s look to Jesus and make Him our standard. When we can measure up to that Man, then we can compare ourselves to other men. 

Heating Up The Baptistery

No; literally, heating up the baptistery. A few weeks ago the pump that circulates the water and also acts as a water heater for the baptistery went out. After much debate on size, price, and installation crew, we finally found, ordered, and installed the pump this past week. Our humble building and grounds committee sweated the plumbing, phased the electricity, and turned the elbows, (and several other plumbing jargons that I just nodded my agreement and assent at,) and wallah, Thursday afternoon we had hot water!

Just another day in the life of a small church pastor—or was it? 

God certainly didn’t think so. During our Sunday service, five came forward to receive Christ (another joined by the most Baptist of ways…the moving of the LETTER.) So while we might say, “What convenient timing,” we can truly know that God is never taken by surprise. He knew that baptistery needed heating up...in more ways than one. Indeed I can say with the Apostle Paul, “And my God shall supply all your needs according to His riches in glory by Christ Jesus. Now to our God and Father be glory forever and ever.”

Amen.

Things I Ponder When The Ushers Are Taking Up The Offering

Why isn't phonetic spelled the way it sounds?

Why do fat chance and slim chance mean the same thing?

Do you need a silencer if you are going to shoot a mime?

Have you ever imagined a world with no hypothetical situations?

If a cow laughed real hard, would milk come out her nose?

Why isn't "palindrome" spelled the same way backwards as it is forwards?

Why is it so hard to remember how to spell 'mnemonic'?

If someone invented instant water, what would they mix it with?

If there is no God, who pops up the next Kleenex in the box?

How do they get a deer to cross at that yellow road sign?

Why is there a 's' in lisp?

Why is abbreviated such a long word?

If you were scared half to death twice, would you be 3/4 dead or 100% dead?

If the cops arrest a mime, do they tell him he has the right to remain silent?

If you asked a librarian where the books on self-help were would she tell you, or would that defeat the purpose?

If you spin an Oriental person around and around, does he become disorientated?

*********sigh***************

I really have a lot of work to do on Promoting Awareness Regarding Legal and Ethical Issues in the Biblical Counseling Ministry of the Local Church

Back to work, now….

Lord, commandist what Thou wilst, and grant what thou commandest. ~ St Augustine

Moments of Truth

Can you imagine spending an entire year studying with John MacArthur?  One of the most prominent Bible teachers in America today can be your  personal mentor and devotional partner for the next 362 days. The book Moments of Truth, Unleashing God’s Word One Day AT A Time is a classic work from MacArthur’s library. 

Day by day this book helps us to focus on a passage of Scripture and John gives a brief “Moment of Truth” that we can use to apply that Scripture to our daily life. I read through this book for the first time a few years ago, and rereading it now has been just as fresh and relevant. There are two other books in the series, so if you find this one as useful as I did, you can purchase the other two—and  like me—go back to this one. It will amaze you how much it will speak t your heart that second time through.

Highly recommended. Five Stars!

* I received this book free from Thomas Nelson Publishers as part of their Book Review Blogger program. TNP requires no expectations of a positive review.