Destructive Divisions in the Church, Part II

From yesterday, I made the case that God hates the division between the priest and the people. Look at the purpose of God for His people.

Exodus 19:5,6 "If you will obey me and keep my words...you shall be unto me a Kingdom of priests."

I Peter 2: 5 "you also,...are being built into a spiritual house to be a holy priesthood, offering spiritual sacrifices acceptable to God through Jesus Christ."

It is God's plan and purpose for ALL of his children to be priests. Now that does not mean "professional priests," but "performing priests." All priests are able to perform acceptable sacrifices through Jesus Christ.

God does not expect more from the pastor than He does from the people in regard to character, holiness, standing, or expectations. Yes, there are qualifications for elders, pastors given in the Word of God because God wants to make sure elders and deacons are qualified to serve and lead His people; but that does not mean they are to be separate from the people.

This division, if permitted to remain, will kill a local church and it will kill the pastor. Churches and pastors with this mindset are clearly outside of the will of God resulting in the members losing their spiritual standing and the pastor killing himself on the altar of busyness and serving outside of his spiritual giftedness.

But oh the church that is Holy Spirit filled, Word of God born and service orientated according to their spiritual gifts; that church has the anointing of God and will shake this world and the underworld.

Destructive Divisions in the Church, Part I

This past Sunday night I preached "Two Destructive Divisions in the Church." I feel compelled to share some of those thoughts in this blog project over the next few days. Here is day one.

There have been two very destructive divisions that have occurred within the church in our history and is still showing up in our churches today. The first is the division between the pastor and people, the minister and the members. I don't like the following wording, but some times it is called even between clergy and laity.

In Revelation 2:6 Jesus says "he hates the deeds of the Nicolaitans." In 2:15, "he hates the doctrine of the Nicolaitans." First, this shows the undeniable link between what one believes and how one behaves. Deeds and doctrine are linked.

But who are the Nicolaitans? I like what Dr. W.A. Criswell says that the word comes from two Greek words: Nike - is a winged victory bought at a trophy shop. It represents victory. The other word is Laos - which is people, a group, class who exalts themselves above the people.

Dr. Criswell says that there was a group of church leaders that was beginning to suppress the people in religious ways. He said, "Priest-craft was supplanting the preaching of the Word of God. Ceremonies performed was substituted for the regenerating power of the Holy Spirit."

We know where this was headed in years later when the Roman Catholic church elevated the priests above the people almost to the place of placing them in the role of saviour.

God says, "I hate the doctrine of the Nicolaitans." I believe God hates it when the pastor elevates himself above the people and when there is a division there.

More tomorrow.....

Michael Moore, Capitalism and Christian hyprocrisy

Russell Moore, Dean of the School of Theology, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, has a good meditation today on Michael Moore’s hypocrisy (using capitalism to bash capitalism). But also on how “Michael Moore isn’t all that different from me, and most of the Christians I know.” Here is the link.

Sermon Notes from Sunday, September 27, 2009

Today's sermon was the third in the series from Daniel entitled "There is a God In Heaven" from Daniel 2. Here are the notes.

Sermon Notes from Sunday, September 20, 2009

This past Sunday the sermon was the second in the new series from Daniel entitled "Living For Something Bigger than Yourself" from Daniel 1: 8-21. Here are the notes.

My heart bleeds for Pastor Tullian Tchividjian

I don't know if you have followed the Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church where Dr. D. James Kennedy was long-term pastor before his death. The church called Tullian Tchividjian, grandson of Billy Graham, as their pastor on March 15 and agreed to merge the new church start he was currently pastoring with this traditional church.

Well, some of the members did not like that the young Tchividjian didn't wear a robe like Dr. Kennedy and did not have such a politically centered church, as Dr. Kennedy. So a revolt started led by Dr. Kennedy's own daughter to have Tchividjian removed. Here is a full story of those details.

The elders supported the pastor, but due to their bylaws had to call for a vote on him due to the number of petitions presented. That vote was today and the results was he won by 2/3 majority. Here is the full story.

My heart goes out to this church, but especially this pastor. My heart bleeds for him and his family as they have had to endure these days of criticism just for being themselves and doing what God called them to do. May God heal them and reinforce them as they continue on in the kingdom. I will certainly continue to pray for them and the church.

Rejoice over TODAY

Andre Previn said, "If I miss a day of practice, I know it. If I miss two days, my manager knows it. If I miss three days, my audience, knows it."

He was talking about the piano, but the same is true about life. If Andre Previn needs to practice the piano every day to stay at his best, we need to practice the presence of God every day to stay at our best.

Forgiveness

Peacemakers Ministries is a resource that I have been impressed with for at least ten years. I have read their books and followed closely their teachings. On their blog, they were exposing their readers to a new book by Chris Braun Unpacking Forgiveness. There was a one page diagram that captured the heart of the book. See it here.

Why We Believe Children Who Die Go to Heaven

Dr. Daniel L. Akin and Dr. R. Albert Mohler has posted again an article they wrote last year entitled "Why We Believe Children Who Die Go to Heaven." It is a great article. Read it here.

Matt Chandler on Sanctification

Below is an excerpt from an interview with Matt Chandler, Lead Pastor, Village Church in Texas and I like what he says about sanctification.

From Leadership 's interview with Matt Chandler:

Sanctification here at The Village begins by answering two questions. What stirs your affections for Jesus Christ? And what robs you of those affections? Many of the things that stifle growth are morally neutral. They're not bad things. Facebook is not bad. Television and movies are not bad. I enjoy TV, but it doesn't take long for me to begin to find humorous on TV what the Lord finds heartbreaking.

The same goes for following sports. It's not wrong, but if I start watching sports, I begin to care too much. I get stupid. If 19-year-old boys are ruining your day because of what they do with a ball, that's a problem. These things rob my affections for Christ. I want to fill my life with things that stir my affections for him. . . .

We want our people to think beyond simply what's right and wrong. We want them to fill their lives with things that stir their affections for Jesus Christ and, as best as they can, to walk away from things that rob those affections—even when they're not immoral.

Fellowship and Solitude

My church is aware that sometimes I give them written statements that I call "Morsels for Mediation." Well, here are two strong statements that are definitely "Morsels for Meditation."

We need fellowship with others to be alone safely.

We need solitude to be with others meaningfully.

The following is more from Bonhoeffer from his book Life Together:

Let him who cannot be alone beware of community. . . . But the reverse is also true: Let him who is not in community beware of being alone. . . . We recognize, then, that only as we are within the fellowship can we be alone, and only he that is alone can live in the fellowship. Only in fellowship do we learn to be rightly alone and only in aloneness do we learn to live rightly in fellowship. . . . Each by itself has profound pitfalls and perils. One who wants fellowship without solitude plunges into the void of words and feelings, and one who seeks solitude without fellowship perishes in the abyss of vanity, self-infatuation, and despair. (p. 77-78)

Blessed is he who is alone in the strength of the fellowship and blessed is he who keeps the fellowship in the strength of aloneness. But the strength of aloneness and the strength of the fellowship is solely the strength of the Word of God, which is addressed to the individual in the fellowship. (p. 89)

Proper Motivation - God's glory

What motives you? What motives a church? With both, too many times the main motivation is self-centered or self-promoting. We like ourselves.

At other times our motivation may be jealousy or competition. We want to out-do our neighbor, friend, family member or someone that we don't even necessarily like. And far too many times our churches do things simply because the "church down the road" or another well-known church "grew really fast" doing this.

Does our motivation matter? You better believe it. First, without a proper and pure motivation, God will not reward us no matter what the results. Good results plus wrong motivations will equal no eternal reward. But proper motivations plus no results will equal a full reward in Heaven.

So what should be our motivation? I like I Corinthians 10: 31 "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."

Colossians 3:17 "And whatever you do, in word or deed, do everything in the name of the Lord Jesus, giving thanks to God the Father through him."

Oh, that we would do things only for God's glory. I believe it would be a worthy motivation that honor God and bring eternal rewards for His people and His church.

Happy Birthday to our oldest son Keith

Roxanne and I are away this week and today is our oldest son's birthday, Keith. On this September 14 he is 26 years old. Now married to his beautiful wife, Kimberly, and serving for his third year as PE teacher at John Jones Elementary School in Rainbow City and assistant basketball coach at Southside High School. Happy Birthday son!!

Sermon Notes from Sunday, September 13, 2009

Here are the sermon notes from today's message "Bachelor Degree from Babylon University" as we began the new series of messages on Daniel. Notes here

Steve Lacey Trio with us Sunday

I look forward to having The Steve Lacey Trio with us Sunday morning in the 10:15 service as they will do a mini-concert. Steve and Penny have been friends for a long time as we have shared many wonderful family times, church experiences and long nights of playing Rook.

Steve wrote a song several years ago "Dare to be a Daniel" that I have asked he sing as I kick off the series in the book of Daniel Sunday morning and "Developing Daniels" ministry with our youth and college students Sunday morning and our adults Sunday night.

The Golden Rule

Ken Sande and Peacemaker Ministries has been a great blessing in my pastoral ministry through the years. I have read his book The Peacemaker several times and lead a previous church through his material who had experienced chronic conflict.

In chapter 6 of his book, this excerpt comes:

Perhaps the most common cause of conflict is our failure to follow the Golden Rule, which Jesus taught in Matthew 7:12: "So in everything, do to others what you would have them do to you, for this sums up the Law and the Prophets." To see whether you have violated this teaching, ask yourself questions like these:

Would I want someone else to treat me the way I have been treating him?

How would I feel if I found out people were saying about me what I've said about her?

If our positions were reversed, how would I feel if he did what I have done?

If someone broke a contract for the same reasons I am using, would I feel that was right?

If I was an employee, how would I feel if I was treated the way I have treated her?

If I owned this business, woudl I want my employees to behave the way I am behaving?

Anytime you see that you would not want someone else to treat you the way you are presently treating others, you have fallen short of the standard Jesus established to govern all human relations. If you admit your failure to God and the person you have wronged, you can start moving down the road to forgiveness, agreement, and reconciliation.

Ken Sande, The Peacemaker, pages 124-125

Sunday's Sermon "Jesus Loves Sinners"

This past Sunday I preached from Luke 15:1-2 "Jesus Loves Sinners." Here are the notes.

God is the Welcoming One

I have been reading Ed Welch's book, When People are Big and God is Small for some time. It is one of the books that is taking time due to interruptions for studying for sermons and teachings. It is a great book and doing a deep work about how much we fear man instead of God.

Nevertheless, there is a great passage that I thought would serve well as a follow-up from this past Sunday's message "Jesus Loves Sinners." (I will post those notes later today). Read the following three paragraphs from Welch:

“When we listen to God after difficult self-examination, God reveals himself as the Welcoming One. No "I told you so." No time-outs in a spiritual isolation room. Instead, God rejoices that we have turned to him in a more wholehearted way. God promises the repentant person, "None of the offenses he has committed will be remembered against him" (Ezek. 18:22).

If you don't believe that, stop reading immediately. Don't say, "How could God forgive me for that!" (whatever that is). Don't think that God's forgiveness is a begrudging forgiveness and with that thought deny some of God's glorious love. And don't think that Gods promises are only for other people. If this is how you are thinking, you must realize that your own sins, no matter how big, are not bigger than God's pleasure in forgiveness.

This is a time when you must be controlled by the truth of God more than your own feelings. God's Word, not feelings, is our standard. To be driven by our fluctuating sense of well-being may seem spiritual, but it is wrong. It exalts our interpretation above God's. This is why it is so important to immediately turn to God after any biblically guided introspection. When we listen to God, he speaks words that fill an empty soul.

Ed Welch, When People are Big and God is Small 169-170

Albert Mohler on Moralism is not the Gospel

Dr. Albert Mohler, President, Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, KY hit a home run with this eight minute audio blog. Many parents want their children to be "good," but that does not mean they are believers. I hope you will take time to listen by clicking here. Or if you prefer (though not as good), you may read the text here.

Francis Chan on the Holy Spirit

Francis Chan, Pastor of Cornerstone Church of Simi Valley, California, has a new book Forgotten God. It is a book on the Holy Spirit. His book Crazy Love I have read, but I have only seen the beginning of his new book. Here is an excerpt:

“When we are referring to God, balance is a huge mistake. God is not just one thing we add to the mix called life. He wants an invitation to permeate everything and every part of us. In the same way, seeking a 'healthy balance' of the Holy Spirit assumes that there are some who have too much Holy Spirit and others who have too little. I have yet to meet anyone with too much Holy Spirit. Granted, I've met many who talk about Him too much, but none who are actually overfilled with His presence. Is it possible to get enough or even too much God? Is there a point when a person can be satisfied with the amount of intimacy, knowledge, and power of God he or she experiences? I don't see how there can be, because doesn't every encounter with God only cause us to thirst for Him more?"