on an interesting quote regarding dumbed down Christians

Daniel Wallace, writing a review of a book by the apostate Bart Ehrman acknowledges the damage that Ehrman's writings can inflict upon the church with this line:

The intentional dumbing down of the church for the sake of filling more pews will ultimately lead to defection from Christ.

A biblical ministry must make faithful teaching of the whole counsel of God a priority.

[Please note: I don't agree with all of Wallace's conclusions in this article, just noting this pithy comment.]

on piper's ongoing association and support of driscoll

I am almost finished with my renovation project, so I hope to have more regular posts shortly. I thought I would bring a little item to your attention in the meantime.

John Piper is continuing to allow his name to support Mark Driscoll, the pastor of Mars Hill Church in Seattle. A conference will be held at Willingdon Church in Burnaby, BC April 18-20, 2007 called reFocus. Some of the other names involved in this conference may also be suspect, but one supposes they are for different reasons.

I find this quite surprising in light of the criticism Piper received after having Driscoll in his own conference last fall, but I am not really surprised on the general 'broader evangelical' approach of Piper being involved in such a conference. In spite of the desire of many to make him a different kind of evangelical, I don't think he really is. He is consistent in the kinds of associations he forms. What mystifies me more is that some supposed fundamentalists seem to think that Piper is moving in a more conservative direction.

Regards,
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3

on the northwest regional fbf fellowship

Our regional fellowship commenced last night with a message by evangelist Dave Barba on Heb 13.5, warning us against covetousness and reminding us of the all-sufficient presence of the Lord Jesus Christ. The service was a good beginning.

The host church for the fellowship meeting is Galilee Baptist Church, Kent, WA, pastored by Tom Nieman. Pastor Nieman energetically provides the leadership for the fellowship in this region of the world. His church, and many others in the area are interested in church planting. In recent years, several churches have been started through the influence of the local FBF pastors. The theme of our conference this year is church planting. We will be hearing from a number of the church planters in the sessions today and tomorrow.

I'll post some highlights as we go through the conference. It is always a blessing to meet with the good men out here, and I hope that some of what is said might be a blessing to you as I post it here.

Regards
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3

on the burial of Jesus hoax

The Biblical Archaeological Society put together a free e-book on the controversy. It is available for anyone who wants to receive the BAS newsletters. You can always unsubscribe later if you don't want to receive them. The BAS is notoriously not conservative, in fact, it is generally liberal, but they do have good information from time to time. The download of the free e-book is available here:

http://jesustomb.bib-arch.org/

The download itself is 17.3 megabytes, so not a small file

1. What Did Jesus’ Tomb Look Like?
2. Did a Rolling Stone Close Jesus’ Tomb?
3. Does the Holy Sepulchre Mark the Burial of Jesus?
4. The Garden Tomb: Was Jesus Buried Here?
5. The Garden Tomb and the Misfortunes of an Inscription
6. Jerusalem Tombs from the Days of the First Temple
7. All in the Family

This looks like a reasonably interesting resource on what Jewish burial practices were like in the first century, although I haven't had time to read much of it. Be prepared for cautious statements that sound like scholarship but are really masks for unbelief and doubt.

Regards,
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3

on the concerns of the WCC over doctrinal decline

MTV Overtaking Whole Bible Generation, Warns Church Head

This article from the site of the Evangelical Fellowship of Canada quotes a WCC ecumenist as being concerned about the spiritual decline of the young. They are being absorbed by the culture and are not absorbing the gospel. Here's a quote:

“Even in the so-called Christian countries, the majority of the youth are biblically illiterate but well-informed about the latest MTV programs,” said Kobia on Wednesday, according to WCC.

“Unless something drastic is done now, the Church will lose a whole generation of leadership” to the infotainment industry, he warned.

Very interesting, especially coming from the LEFT.

Regards,
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3

on my dad and his eightieth birthday

Yesterday was my dad's eightieth birthday. I don't want the day to slip by without some thoughts on the man who is the single biggest influence on my life of any mortal man on earth. My dad was raised on a homestead in central Alberta during the depression and World War II. I remember begging my dad to tell me the stories from the farm and of the war every chance I got. I marveled at how he could remember the details of the ebb and flow of the war, but of course, he lived through it. He learned that in life you must sacrifice in order to reach success. Everyone had to in those years. Some did better than others, but all who survived it learned to sacrifice. That is something that is lost on the present generations, including my own.

My dad as a young man drifted through several different jobs, many in the oilfields of Alberta, just opening up in those days. His home had a Christian mother and a diffident father - spiritually, he was confused, but he did have an acquaintance with the gospel. As a young man, after a crisis experience, he received godly counsel from one pastor (perhaps the point of his conversion) and then was discipled by another pastor. He was working in the oilpatch near my home town and attending a small gospel preaching church in town where he met my mother. They married and set out to establish a Christian home.

My dad became a business man in my home town - working the graveyard shift on the oil rigs and running his general insurance business during the day. He would sometimes be so tired customers would have to wake him up to do business. After some time he left the oilpatch behind and was full time in his business. He became successful and fairly well respected, serving our town as a municipal councilor and as acting mayor to fill out the term of a mayor who died while in office. He ran unsuccessfully for the provincial legislature on two occasions, both bitter disappointments to me, but my dad looks back and thinks it was probably better for us that he didn't win.

More than anything that I appreciate about my dad is that he always took the time to talk to me. He taught me that being in business didn't mean the abandonment of Christianity or integrity. He taught me a Christian world-view (though I am sure he wouldn't think of it in those terms!) I well remember riding long highway trips with him (in Alberta we have lots of long, straight highways between towns miles apart). On those trips we would talk or listen to Christian men on the radio. Some were better than others and we would discuss them. He took me to Bible conferences at Prairie Bible Institute in Three Hills, AB. Those were stirring occasions. He took us to sumer camp, sometimes taking the week off to serve as a counselor at camp. He served in our local church in various offices.

My dad certainly wouldn't claim to be perfect and he won't be until he is caught up to glory. But my dad is a Christian man of integrity to whom I owe my physical and spiritual life. When I was but a wee lad, my dad explained the gospel to me and I trusted Jesus Christ as my Saviour.

Today, I thank God for my dad - he suffers today from Parkinson's disease, his energy levels are not what they once were, but he's doing pretty well for the shape he's in! And inside a weakening body there still lives that faith that comes from Jesus Christ and the great work of God in providing eternal salvation for sinful men. One day that faith will make that body perfect, like the Lord's, for my dad will see Him as He is!

Regards,
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3

on occasional blogging (or, "I'm a paintin' fool")

Well, here we are, with an entry... I am in the midst of renovating the second half of my duplex, sold the other half in November. So my time is cramped for sure. Right now I am in the midst of painting. I have put in three days of painting so far and it looks like another day and a half to go, hopefully Monday and Tuesday of next week. Did I mention that I hate painting? Give me drywall mud any day. At any rate, things are really coming into shape on the reno. One of my deacon's is helping me. He got the kitchen cabinets installed for me this week while I painted.

In the meantime, we are managing to keep up with our New Testament study guides and sermons as we work our way chronologically through the New Testament. Last Sunday was all Ephesians, the first installment in our study of the prison epistles. It seems to me that in the writing ministry of the apostle Paul the Lord used him to teach Christians concerning Christian living in a progressive sort of way. First he dealt with disciplinary matters as the church was being 'hewn from the rock' of Gentile paganism with Galatians and the Corinthian epistles. The Thessalonian epistles were written between these two, dealing with important eschatological questions and pastoral assurances. I suppose we 'forget' about those two epistles more than any others of Paul's, except perhaps Philemon. In Roman's Paul comprehensively explains the theology of salvation, without a doubt one of the most critical books for our understanding of the gospel. From the disciplinary/eschatological beginnings of Paul's 'corpus' [don't you love scholarly words?], we move to theology, and then we move to the heavenlies... that is what Ephesians is all about, especially the idea of the heavenly blessings realized now in the church of the Living God. In Colossians we are called to set our affections on things above, especially the pre-eminent Christ. Philippians also gives us high doctrine in the 'kenosis' passage, the doctrine of the incarnation. The theology of these books are intended to stir up Christian graces in our lives, real practical Christian living. Theology is essential for this, the contemporary pulpiteer who eschews theology and preaches only 'practical' messages can give no solid ground for people to live the Christian life by faith. The only basis for 'Christian living' in such preaching is the pragmatic benefit of living a sober life, and the only power is will power, not faith. Paul's writing closes out with practical matters, four personal epistles written to individuals (Philemon, the two Timothys, and Titus), but high theology intersperses the work. I think Paul was involved in Hebrews as well, but I'll leave my theory on that one until we get to it.

In Ephesians, our first message was about the Church. Entitled "The Great Mystery Revealed" from Eph 1-3, I discussed the great plan of God, determined before the foundation of the world but only revealed in the NT era, the mystery of the Church. The church is formed individually, when individuals are saved by grace through faith, and corporately, when the Gentiles and Jews are taken from where they were to become one new body, not what they used to be. This whole concept involves the manifold wisdom and love of God, for the blessing of the whole church and the praise of the Lord's name. This message involves discussing something God wants us to know. After that comes those things that God wants us to do, but those come in the next two messages.

The second message was also about the church, but more involved with our place in it and how we should be functioning. Entitled "One Body", it covered Eph 4.1-16. The idea of this message was that because of the mystery revealed to us [and in us] (Eph 1-3), there is an imperative for the believer: unite with the body of Christ, especially as it is seen in a local church. There is a call to a mind of unity with the brethren, seven uniting reasons are given (centered around the persons of the Trinity), and gifts are given to the body for the purpose of uniting it in the image of Christ. The whole point of this message is that God has a place for you in a local church and you are obliged to fulfill it.

The third message covered the rest of Ephesians, 4.16-6.24. I called it "The New Walk". The new walk begins with a renewed mind, the renewed mind displays itself by putting off the old man and putting on the new man, especially for the sake of the body: ex., put off stealing, work, so that you may be able to bless others. The renewed mind involves renewed relationships: marriage, family (parent/child), employment (master/servant). Having changed your mind about how to live, the apostle finally calls the believer to stand against the wiles of the devil, fully equipped with the armor of God.

On Wednesday, we moved on to Philippians (which some think was written last of the four prison epistles). The message for this evening was entitled: "Humility and How to Attain It". A major theme of Philippians is humility. Paul's words concerning himself and his devotion to the gospel are an example to us (even when rivals preach it out of envy, hoping to hurt him; or when it might mean his execution). From this, Paul exhorts the Philippians to adopt his mind, by adopting a manner of life worthy of the gospel, and by adopting a mind like Christ. The apostle points to the example of the humility and humiliation of in his incarnation and crucifixion, Christ as the ultimate example for us to follow, leading him to exhort us once again to work (for it is God working in you). My proposition for this message was: "Humility is a state of mind produced by a commitment to self-sacrificial giving."

Well that catches us up. I will now retreat into my mad dash to prepare for the weekend, then next week, more painting!

Regards,
Don Johnson
Jer 33.3