The Temple

Posted By stevebag on August 20, 2010

The watermelon metaphor helps us to understand that transformation in the Christian life from the before Christ state (old man) to the after Christ state (new man) is a transformation from the inside out and that new man is different.  The first area we talked about was The New Man Speaks Truth, secondly the New Man Expresses Anger Without Sin, and third The New Man Gives.  We continue with the last two points:

The New Man is Gracious

“Let no unwholesome word proceed from your mouth, but only such a word as is good for edification according to the need of the moment, so that it will give grace to those who hear” (Ephesians 4:29).

This emphasis on truth in the passage highlights the importance of words; We are entrusted with the gospel of grace, the truth. As proclaimers of the holiness and righteousness of truth, our words should not be “rotten.”  Out of the same mouth cannot some bitter and sweet water is what James tells us and that is the same emphasis here.  The evangelist, bearer of good news, consistently speaks in a wholesome manner.

The character of these words has three facets:

• The wholesome words we speak are good for edification.  They build up rather than tear down.
• The words we speak are appropriate and timely, “according to the need of the moment”.  The speaker uses discernment to match the mood and tense of the context.  Weeping with those who weep, etc.
• The words we speak are marked with grace.

Paul puts it this way in Colossians:

But now you also, put them all aside: anger, wrath, malice, slander, and abusive speech from your mouth. 9 Do not lie to one another, since you laid aside the old self with its evil practices  (Colossians 3:8-9)

Let your speech always be with grace, seasoned, as it were, with salt, so that you may know how you should respond to each person  (Colossians 4:6)

the Psalmist this way:

Psalm  37:30 The mouth of the righteous utters wisdom, And his tongue speaks justice.

Psalm 45:2 Thou art fairer than the sons of men; Grace is poured upon Thy lips; Therefore God has blessed Thee forever.

This list of verses in the Bible that speaks about our words is long.  This important facet of the Christian life should not be neglected as we strive to discipline our tongue.

The New Man does not Grieve the Spirit

The Grieving of the Holy Spirit must be read in contrast to v. 27. The Spirit is the Spirit of Truth. The Devil is the father of lies. In the infamous story of Annanias and Sapphira, the accusation is why has Satan filled your heart to lie to the Holy Spirit.

When we live lives that reject the truth of God, it grieves him. We so understand this passage if we are parents.  We so understand this passage if we are friends. When you see someone suffering for stupidity, you are burdened, grieved. There is a loss.  We lose out when we ignore the truth of God’s word. When we settle for a season in the pleasures of sin. So cooperate with the Holy Spirit.

Grieving the Holy Spirit may be connected to two activities in the Bible:  complaining and rebelling.

Here is how those things amount to lying.

Complaining in a Christian context is telling God he is wrong.  He is wrong about my circumstances, trials, burdens, struggles, physical makeup, personality or whatever.  Whatever we are complaining about says that God has let us down and not taken care of his part of the bargain, ie to take care of us.  The nation of Israel is the prototype for this lesson.  The wilderness wanderings shed light on our tendency to complain even when God is delivering us and preparing blessing for us. Instead of being grateful, they began to murmur and grumble.  We might even see the “good” reasons for  this. That kind of travel/camping trip sounds like a nightmare; we can hardly blame them.

This is how the Psalmist describes God’s view of their complaining:  ”For forty years I loathed that generation, And said they are a people who err in their heart, And they do not know My ways.

God was guiding them, taking them in His ways, and they were complaining about everything.

The New Man replaces grumbling with thanksgiving, gratitude.  Gratitude is the recognition and acknowledgement that God is at work, His providence is in place and I rejoice even in difficulty.

Rebellion is complaining in full bloom.  When I allow complaining to mark my life, constantly in disagreement with God by calling him a liar, we give ourselves permission to rebel and disobey God.  These things grieve the Holy Spirit as they do when we as parents see our children suffering in their stupidity (sometimes they are like we were…are…will be, ouch).

Stop it.  Give thanks in all thinks.  As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord.

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Posted By stevebag on August 19, 2010

Our Sunday night gathering here at NCC is called “The Well” and for the summer we have been doing a question and answer format covering apologetic, theological, social, personal and biblical categories.  Here are some of the questions from the last few weeks:

• What is absolutely necessary for salvation? Is saying the prayer enough? How much does a person have to understand?
• Is abortion or adoption mentioned in the bible?
• Is abortion a sin?
• When do you believe life begins?
• …about abortion. what if its a rape victim?
• Can you lose your salvation
• Why is God depicted as male in the Bible and in the incarnation of the son? Is that more than how he would be received in Jewish culture?
• How can people claim to be christians if they bomb abortion clinics? They claim that abortion clinics kill babies, but they aren’t wrong by killing those clinic workers?
• Will god ever forgive Satan
• if god knows everything did he know that satan was going to turn on him
• ive heard that when god returns he will return with firre, is that true and if so will he burn all the nonbelievers
• is it possible really repent when you have done something knowing you are going to repent afterward? can there be real repentance?
• Will pigs ever fly?
• How do you truly repent?
• How was your watermelon?

Our questions left over we still have to tackle:

• Why do we who are called saints still sin?
• What does God think about dating? We are given directions about marriage. But what about relationships that are romantic but are not married or necessarily headed that way? Is there a place/guidelines for an undefined romance?
• Does the Bible say anything about defense of ones self? people keep using the example of killing being ok when it is in defended of ones self (or nation) I just keep thinking of what Jesus did when he was attacked, he submitted.  Is standing up for ourselves a Christian idea or is that a human instinct?
• Hey is it a sin! to eat! BEARS?
• Explain predestination
• Can you be baptized more than once?
• Mathew 6:25 stats that God does not want us to worry about what we where or eat, does this mean doing so is considered a sin?
• What makes drugs bad? Does the Bible itself shun it? Is it because it is bad for your health? Or is it bad because its illegal?

See you this Sunday night for some good singing and spiritual stimulation…

Category: Church, Uncategorized | 2 Comments »
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Posted By stevebag on August 17, 2010

Henning von Tresckow was a Major General in the German Wehrmacht and a chief conspirator in the Valkyrie plot (he is played by Kenneth Branagh in the modern movie “Valkyrie” which starred Tom Cruise). He spoke these words to a fellow conspirator Fabian von Schlabrendorff who is the source for these words:

“The whole world will vilify us now, but I am still totally convinced that we did the right thing.  Hitler is the archenemy not only of Germany but of the whole world.  When, in a few hours time, I go before God to account for what I have done and left undone, I know I will be able to justify in good conscience what I did in the struggle against Hitler.  God promised Abraham that He would not destroy Sodom if just ten righteous men could be found in the city, and so I hope that for our sake God will not destroy Germany.  None of us can bewail his own death, those who consented to join our circle put on the robe of Nessus.  A human being’s moral integrity begins when he is prepared to sacrifice his life for his convictions.” *

Despite the atrocities of the Nazi’s, it is not right to conclude that honor and integrity were dead in Germany.  There were many heroes who failed in their attempts to right a very badly listing ship.  Overwhelmed by the ferocity and speed of Hitler’s evil, these men were caught in an avalanche of proportions they could never even imagine.  By the time they figured out the depth of the horror and the corresponding and seemingly immoral option left to them (assassination), Hitler was well on his way.

Once we know what we are willing to sacrifice our life for we will have a better idea of how we should live our lives.

Category: Ethics, Quotes | No Comments »
Tags: Ethics, Hitler, Metaxas, Nazi, Quotes, von Tresckow

Posted By stevebag on August 17, 2010

This is a continuation of my Watermelon Sermon from August 8, 2010 and my Watermelon Part 2 sermon from August 15, 2010
The watermelon metaphor helps us to understand that transformation in the Christian life from the before Christ state (old man) to the after Christ state (new man) is a transformation from the inside out and that new man is different.  The first area we talked about was The New Man Speaks Truth, secondly the New Man Expresses Anger Without Sin.  We continue with…

The New Man Gives

We were created to work, as God works.  The Biblical paradigm for working is found in the creation story and the creation commandments (or mandates as many call them).  We find a model for our labor practices in the creation story which speaks of the work of God in creation as consisting of 6 days, and of resting on the Sabbath.  Often when we speak of the Sabbath it is reduced down to one day, but the Sabbath command is as much about the 6 days of labor  as it is about the one day of rest.  The labor is the reason for the rest – don’t work and you won’t need to rest.  In Exodus where Ten Commandments are listed, the Sabbath day command consists of four verses whereas murder gets one simple phrase.  The sabbath command is as much a command about 6 days as it is about 1 day.  The sabbath controversy today is a detour.  It keeps us focused on the wrong emphasis.  The Sabbath is not about what day we worship, it is about resting after labor.  The resting part is only one part of the whole command and emphasis though – the underlying foundational assumption of Sabbath is labor!
To labor is to fulfill our purpose.  We were created for work, we were redeemed so that our work might become “good work” that we might perform good works.  Work finds its root in the mandates given at creation.  We are told to be fruitful, multiply and fill (more…)

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Tags: Ephesians 4, Labor, Sabbath, work

Posted By stevebag on August 17, 2010

I am always on the look out for good listening material and was pleased to find the “Please Convince Me” podcast. Read the text of my email that I sent in response to comments made on Podcast #162 entitled Does Jesus Possess the Nature of God.  The host of the program is James Warner Wallace a homicide detective and church planter – nice combo.

Jim is a gracious and articulate host, I have only listened to a few of the podcasts and have enjoyed them.  He is an evidentialist in his apologetic approach and although I don’t feel this is the strongest apologetic, it does have value and Jim seems to “apologize” well.

I challenged him on his comments in podcast 162 with regard to the nature of Christ and he read and responded to my email on podcast #165, so check it out.  Here is the link to the podcast page.

For those of you interested in my previous posts on Kenosis theory follow these links:

• Kenosis Theory
• Chuck Smith, Kenosis, Again

Category: Links, Theological | No Comments »
Tags: Apologetics, James Warner Wallace, Please Convince Me, Podcast

Posted By stevebag on August 16, 2010

On my morning bicycle ride George and I stopped at Starbucks…what a surprise. This morning was a good one, leisurely (kind of, George has discovered Wheaties or something, spent all morning chasing him) in that we chatted for an extended period of time at Starbucks. George is our Celebrate Recovery director here at the church and was just back from the CR Summit, so it was a good conversation and update on the ministry. As we were talking, my straw packaging caught my eye. It had some writing on it, and I was thinking: “Maybe they have put some funny or pithy statements on the straw packaging, like a fortune cookie – or Chipotle.”

Well, as you can see, there is a warning on the straw:

“Not recommended For Use in Hot Beverages.”

I couldn’t help myself.  I started thinking about the process and motivation behind the printing of this particular warning on a straw.  I don’t think I have ever seen anyone, ever, use a straw for their hot tea or coffee.  I mean look at the lids, the holes are too small.  So, someone, somewhere got the bright idea that it would be more convenient to use a straw with “extra hot” coffee and scalded the roof of their mouth.  Having no shame they returned to the Starbucks to complain at a very minimum, or even more embarrassing they hired a lawyer, explained their stupidity and made it a public record.  In response to this stupidity, Starbucks feels compelled to print the warning on the straw.  The executive, management and production costs associated with this process would probably shock us.

And I  thought, all because we have lost common sense.

Here are some other examples of the “need” that companies or government feel to protect us from our own stupidity:

This was seen at a local car wash where the woman in front of me needed to come back and read this. She couldn’t seem to get her car to rest “just over the bump” but just kept going.  I actually got a free car wash out of it.

This next picture was taken at a crosswalk in Kirkland Washington, home of Costco:

I felt so much safer (as you can see from the photo, my bald head way ahead of the Joe the flagman who is cautiously paying attention to traffic), but as you can see, no one has been killed carrying the flag, whereas 62 people were killed or injured while flagless.

But onto a more serious example of the need for common sense in the tragic, and then unbelievably ridiculous blame shifting that is created when we concede to the silliness of common senselessness.  This last weekend eight people were killed after being struck by an out of control truck at  a truck race in the Lucerne Valley (Mojave Desert).  The California 200 is a race with amateur drivers.  The race rules state that spectators should stand a minimum of 150 feet from the track, but the track is not “clearly” delineated (?) although it is fairly obvious where the track is because spectators form a sort of human guardrail no more than 10 feet from the track as you can see in this photo.

Here is the common sense challenge:  10 feet from trucks driving 80-120 miles per hour on a dirt track with jumps is dangerous.  I don’t need a white line, a small or large fence, cones or any other demarcation, all I need is the roar of a truck going that fast to conclude:  DANGEROUS.  If I choose to stay that close, I take the risk upon myself.    It is tragic that people were killed, but the real challenge in all of this is that the driver was forced to flee the scene because irate and overly distraught bystanders actually thought it might be his fault and began to pelt him with rocks!!!

So now everyone is scrambling to figure out what went wrong and how to keep it from happening in the future, good luck because common sense has left the building.

Category: Culture - Values, Silly Stuff | 2 Comments »
Tags: California 200, Starbucks

Posted By stevebag on August 16, 2010

The New Man Expresses Anger without Sin

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Tags: Anger, Ephesians

Posted By stevebag on August 12, 2010

Well, it has begun. Caleb leaves for London today.  Joe leaves for Westmont on the 26th. Couldn’t be more excited for both of them. Curious about the future, and my emotional response to their leaving. A sort of final departure.

Classic Caleb

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When did it all happen.  It wasn’t long ago that I was standing in the third base coaching box yelling at Caleb or skimming with Joe at Oceanside.  They grow up, and that is a marvelous thing.  Here are some father reflections.

Enjoy your kids at every stage. Like everything else in life moments and events are fleeting.  What seemed once interminable  (soccer season for instance) I now miss.  I remember when we first had kids and I made this commitment to enjoy my kids at every stage.  It was all new with Tim (our first-born) and we were involved in a young marrieds Bible study.  Some of us had kids, some didn’t.  I can still see my friends face as he agreed with his wife’s words:

“I can’t wait till she is out of diapers.”

I had an ah-ha moment.  I was not yet tired of diapers, we were brand new and it was all an adventure.  But I remember thinking – “that isn’t a good attitude.”  Now trust me, I was glad to see dy-dee diapers go, but the stage of life was precious, and you should grab and enjoy the moment…even the diaper years and even more the junior high years.

Challenge your kids to do great things. Parent out of risk and not fear.  This is a great confidence booster.  In challenging your children to aspire you indirectly communicate that you believe in them and that they can accomplish big things.  When you discourage your children from risky behavior you indirectly communicate that they can’t handle life and big things, that they are not trustworthy or skilled, that they are incapable.  I tried to replace phrases like “be careful” with “have fun” or “remember to watch out for the little guy” or even “be smart.”  Remember at 4 and 5, riding a bike was risky.  How did we handle that?  We spent time training and teaching how to do that risky behavior.  Translate that to every stage in life and the activities that go along with those increased stages.

Say yes. I find that the default response that comes from fear and selfishness is the word “no”.  We use it too much. Can friends come over?  NO Can we go…? NO Can I stay up late? NO Can we light the cat’s tail on fire? NO Think of all the questions that your children ask you.  There are a ton, they ask for everything!  Say YES as much as you can.  If it isn’t unbiblical, immoral, unethical or illegal – find a way to say yes. This nurtures a sense of adventure in your kids.  This tells them that there are good things to do and to want to do.  This tells them that you want to help them to enjoy life.  When you say no repeatedly, your children become lethargic, lazy and unmotivated.  This chases them into adulthood.  Trust me, yes is cheaper than no in the long run, see two paragraphs down…

Don’t make your kids do stupid things to learn obvious lessons.    Sixteen year olds don’t need cars and they don’t need jobs (unless of course, like our friends the Buchanan’s, cars were part of the “yes of life” – they loved to drive, work, race and destroy cars. I am not picking on cars, just the obsession that owning a car at sixteen is a rite of passage for everyone).  Let them use your car, and just suck it up and buy the gas.  A sixteen year old doesn’t learn squat working at McDonalds to pay for insurance.  Please don’t let me see your kid swinging a sign for KayBee homes on the corner in the scorching sun on a Sunday afternoon for a measlee couple of bucks.  Most of you to whom this practice appeals have already taught your children the value of work and money through your everyday life at home.  Working at fast food for minimum wage is over-rated as a means of teaching a work ethic, and pales in comparison to the context of the home to teach these lessons.  There are so many healthy and wonderful opportunities available to children between 16-18 that to put them to work at Taco Bell sounds like torture, it should be illegal. Don’t sell your kids short.

Don’t punish your kids by restricting them from positive contexts and activities.  We have a great youth ministry at the church. Kids find it to be a safe, fun, challenging place.  They need that sort of healthy context.  Don’t threaten your kids with the loss of healthy activities  (like church or a good youth group, other healthy times with significant relationships) when they misbehave.  Instead, make your children accomplish something as a result of their misbehavior.  Give them an extra job around the house, or fine them.  Challenge them to a service project in exchange for time in prison (restriction).  The prison system doesn’t work in society, it doesn’t work for your teen.  Find a new and creative response to the mistakes and rebellion in your teen.  (By the way, much of the rebellion you are experiencing with your teen has to do with the “NO” philosophy that you thought was such a good idea to begin with.  Now that they are old enough, they are ignoring your NO and doing what they want, ouch).

Celebrate your children, especially when they grow up.  Parenting is about training and releasing.  We are preparing our kids to venture out into the wild wild world and to enjoy it.  I want my kids to experience the best that life has to offer – so I am excited that as Caleb begins his Junior year at Westmont College he doesn’t go to Santa Barbara but leaves for England Semester today for four months,  an off-campus program with 25 other Westmont students and two professors (Dr. Paul Delaney and  Dr. Jody Allen Randolph).

I am excited that Joe registered for his first semester at Westmont and and that his Facebook status today reads:

“Tremper Longman III for Old Testament!!! oh yeah baby!!!”

I am anxious to meet his football playing roommate from Idaho and hope they get along.  We will tromp him up to Santa Barbara on the 25th to experience Parent’s Orientation for the fourth time.

Believe me, I am nervous at the same time. The same dad jitters I experienced when they were pitching and hitting magnified.  I want them to do well, meet good people, be safe, have fun, avoid pain.  We push fear aside, smile and bless them on their way.

God bless you boys.

Category: Education, Parenting, Personal | 1 Comment »
Tags: England Semester, Parenting, Westmont College

Posted By stevebag on August 12, 2010

Every Thursday morning I meet with our hispanic Pastor Tony to read and discuss Wayne Grudem’s Systematic Theology.  We are presently in chapter 23 covering “The Essential Nature of Man.”  (Feel free to join us, Starbucks on Ethanac at 7:30 am).

What does the Scripture mean by “soul” and “spirit”?  Are they the same thing?

Typically the discussion has centered on whether man is made up of one, two, or three parts (monism, dichotomy, trichotomy).  The monists (man is made up of only one part) say that what we call the soul/spirit is simply a function of the body and that there is no existence outside of the body.  This view is held by liberal theologians and materialists (agnostics and atheists).  The other views (dichotomy and trichotomy) are views that are held and debated by believers.

The argument stems from the fact that the Scripture seems to speak of the soul and spirit as interchangeable and synonymous terms in some passages (John 12:27 & 13:21; Luke 1:46-47; Hebrews 12:23/1 Peter 3:19 compared with Revelation 6:9 & 20:4) and seems to distinguish them in other passages (1 Thessalonians 5:23, Hebrews 4:12).

I think the best way to view this issue is to use the broader terms “material” and “immaterial” to talk about “body” and “soul/spirit”.  One of the challenges of Systematic Theology as a discipline is that the Bible was not written as a “systematic” theology.  When we gather the different verses of Scripture to put them into a systematic expression of doctrine we find ourselves with different kinds of data.  Some of the data is in the form of a prayer, a parable, a description, a commandment etc.  Each piece of data has different value in the discussion and the data must be evaluated individually and then put into the hopper of evidence.  When we take all the differing data and treat them as if they are contextually equal, we find an unnecessary tension.

But let’s start with the terms material and immaterial (I recognize that these are not in the Bible).  The material part of us is easier to talk about, so let’s start there.  The material part of man is generally referred to in the Scriptures as the “body”, but sometimes it is referred to as flesh (there is another discussion about a unique usage of flesh in Romans with regard to sin – sometimes flesh in the Bible can refer to the physical and Paul uses it to refer to the “sin” which resides in the flesh – and he has something more in mind than simply the body).  The body is not part of this controversy; most theologians simply accept that the body is “one” part.  But really it isn’t simply one part.  My body is made up of several different parts.  We can talk of the different organs, skin, arms, legs, brain, eyes, etc.  We don’t feel the need to divide the body into multiple parts we simply view all the parts as contributing to the whole.

If we use that same kind of approach to the immaterial part of man it seems to me that the problem with the Scripture’s description is diminished.  The immaterial part of man is sometimes described as soul, spirit, heart, mind, etc.  It is not necessary to make the different parts (or ways of describing the whole) to mean that there are multiple immaterial parts.

The dichotomist understanding of the nature of man is the best explanation of man’s nature.

Some of the interesting discussions that come as a result of this doctrine are:  Do animals have souls? Where do our souls come from?  Is our soul a separate and unique act of creation in each instance of conception, that is does God create each soul and put that soul into a person at some point after conception (creationism) or is our soul simply passed on to us by our parents in conception as our other characteristics (traducianism).  Some believe in the pre-existence of the soul (Mormons, Muslims, some evidence that some Jewish thought holds that all souls were created at the time of the creation of Adam,), but this has generally been rejected by Christian theologians.

He's always happy when we talk about the Word

One of the most important conclusions that should be held to by all Christians as a result of this discussion is that the nature of man is clearly intended to be body and soul and that is the nature of our resurrection existence.  Although we may exist temporarily apart from the body, it is not the intention of God to have us remain without a body.  The doctrine of the resurrection has to do with the body of man.  It is our body that dies, it is our body that is resurrected.  It is united with the immaterial part of us (spirit/soul) at resurrection.  Many Christians fail to connect this dot and have a picture of eternity in heaven consisting of “spirits” existing forever.  But we don’t believe in an eternal bodiless state, it violates this doctrine that man is composed of two parts, material and immaterial; body and soul.

Category: Theological | No Comments »
Tags: Body, creationism, Grudem, immaterial, material, pre-existence, soul, spirit, Systematic Theology, traducianism

Posted By stevebag on August 11, 2010

My seminary friend Dale Meador pastors a church in Medford, Oregon. Here he talks about a universal church problem which is apparently not so easy to eradicate since it seems to happen everywhere.  Thanks Dale.

I bet Dale is a kinetic preacher.

Read the email that accompanied this video.

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