Notes on the Church as the People of God

August 24, 2012

These are my notes and outline for my talk at the Commonwealth Collective on August 23, 2012.

What is Regeneration?

  1. Two tensions in the New Testament
    1. Subjective – Titus 3:5
    2. Universal – Matt 19:28; Rev 21:5
  2. A Biblical View of Regeneration
    1. Generation
    2. Degeneration
    3. Regeneration
      1. Objective Regeneration – In the person and work of Christ
      2. Subjective Regeneration – Through union with Christ based on the indwelling Holy Spirit
      3. Comprehensive Regeneration – God’s purpose to restore all things through the second coming of Jesus and the arrival of the New Heavens and New Earth
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Doing a Little Study on Regeneration

August 21, 2012

This Friday I’m speaking at the Commonwealth Collective on the topic of The Church as the People of God. As I’ve been preparing it’s taken me to a study of what the Bible teaches about regeneration.

Alice, meet the rabbit hole.

To help me sort out the ever broadening topic I’ve appealed to my favorite BT scholar, Graeme Goldsworthy. In his article on regeneration in The New Dictionary of Biblical Theology he tries to bring a redemptive historical solution to two apparently divergent New Testament teachings on regeneration.

For example, Titus 3:5 teaches regeneration with a personal and subjective emphasis when Paul writes,

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3 Things We Learn from Jesus’s Humanity

July 24, 2012

And he came out and went, as was his custom, to the Mount of Olives, and the disciples followed him. And when he came to the place, he said to them, “Pray that you may not enter into temptation.” And he withdrew from them about a stone’s throw, and knelt down and prayed, saying, “Father, if you are willing, remove this cup from me. Nevertheless, not my will, but yours, be done.” And there appeared to him an angel from heaven, strengthening him. And being in an agony he prayed more earnestly; and his sweat became like great drops of blood falling down to the ground. And when he rose from prayer, he came to the disciples and found them sleeping for sorrow, and he said to them, “Why are you sleeping? Rise and pray that you may not enter into temptation.” -Luke 22:39–46

What started in a garden is now ending in a garden. The great moment of the fall of humanity is now being replayed in the one man to whom humanity looked to make all things right.

The biblical narrative could be summarized as humanity’s search for the second Adam[1], one who come and carry out God’s will where the first Adam utterly failed. Abraham failed. Moses failed. David failed. Israel failed. We fail.

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Is Your Leadership Driven by Ability or Jesus?

July 16, 2012

I’ve always been intrigued by the exchange between Jesus and Peter where Jesus lays out to Peter in advance both Peter’s utter denial of ever knowing Jesus and his subsequent return to faith and leadership.

“Simon, Simon, behold, Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat, but I have prayed for you that your faith may not fail. And when you have turned again, strengthen your brothers.” Peter said to him, “Lord, I am ready to go with you both to prison and to death.” Jesus said, “I tell you, Peter, the rooster will not crow this day, until you deny three times that you know me.”[1]

Jesus’s Care over Leaders

Jesus’s care over leaders in his church, exemplified in this passage, really is amazing. Jesus was not the least bit surprised by the complete abandonment he experienced from his disciples during his betrayal, arrest, and bloody execution. He not only knew what would happen but wanted to make sure that his disciples[2], especially Peter, knew that he had already provided for them in their weakness and failure.

In fact, Jesus tells Peter six things about the temptation about to befall him.

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In pastoral ministry
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8 Things I’ve Learned in 9 Years of Ministry

July 13, 2012

I was ordained to pastoral ministry 9 years ago today. It was a hot, summer evening service in Jackson, MS. I still remember Ligon Duncan’s sermon on Deuteronomy 6 and Derek Thomas’s charge to me as I headed into ministry. And after close to a decade of being a Rev. I can’t shake the feeling that I still know so little about pastoral ministry.

But it’s my tradition on every July 13 to think back on the previous years of service in Jesus’s church and write down some things I’ve learned and am learning. Here are the eight things that come to mind this year.

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Notes for the Person and Work of Christ: The Content of the Gospel

February 17, 2012

These are my notes and recommended reading from my lecture at the Commonwealth Collective on February 17, 2012.

Preaching Christ and Church Planting (Acts 17:1-9)

  1. Preach Christ from the Bible - reasoning from Scripture (v 2)
  2. Preach the person of Christ - The Christ and Jesus of Nazareth (v 3)
  3. Preach the work of Christ - The Incarnation, Crucifixion, and Resurrection (v 3)
  4. The Result (1 Thess 1:2-10) - A Holy Spirit filled, Bible loving, Christ exalting, Missional Church Plant

Preaching Christ and Penal Substitutionary Atonement (Isaiah 53)

  1. Jesus suffered on behalf of others (v 4-6, 11-12)
  2. Jesus provides huge benefits for those for whom he suffered (v 5, 10)
  3. Jesus suffered actively and willingly (v 4-5, 12)
  4. God, the Father, actively punishes Jesus for the sins of others (v 6, 10)
  5. Jesus himself is sinless and righteous (v 9, 11)
  6. God’s judgment is satisfied in the punishment of Jesus (v 11-12)
  7. Jesus stands in as a guilt offering for his people (v 10)

Preaching Christ and Pastoral Counseling (1 Peter 2:13-3:7)

  1. The Cross is at the center of all Christian ministry
  2. The Cross serves as both an example and a substitute for God’s people (v 21-25)
  3. The Cross speaks into the submission and authority issues that Christians struggle with – Government, Employment, and Marriage

Recommended Reading

  • For the material on Preaching Christ and Church Planting I drew heavily on Tim Keller’s talk entitled Dwelling in the Gospel and the book, God’s Power to Save edited by Chris Green.
  • For the material on penal substitutionary atonement I drew heavily on the book entitled, Pierced for our Transgressions—a must read on the topic of penal substitutionary atonement.
  • Anyone in pastoral ministry should also read The Cross and Christian Ministry by DA Carson for more information on practically applying the person and work of Jesus to pastoral ministry in the local church.
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8 Tips for Talking to Kids about the Sermon

February 17, 2011

They sit there next to you and their feet don’t even hit the floor. You’re thinking, “What, if anything of this guy’s sermon is sinking into my kid’s head?” And with that little thought you’ve already decided not to engage your child about the sermon. But it doesn’t have to be that way.

Let me introduce you to the most important rule when talking to your kids about the sermon: They retain more than you think they do. The second most important rule is like it: They understand more than you think they do.

In the interest of these two truths I’m writing this brief guide on how to talk to your kids about a sermon. I’m writing it both as a preacher and as a parent of four boys under the age of 8. I’ve failed, succeeded, and failed some more at talking to my kids about Jesus. Hopefully the tips you find below will help you as they’ve helped me.

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Why you Should Go Ahead and Join Your Church

February 9, 2011

As a pastor, I see serial church visitors all the time. I actually don’t have any problem with the term “church shopping” as long as you the shopper plans to make a purchase in the near future.

Here are a few reasons that I give folks for joining a local church.

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Why Folks Who Aren’t Christians Should Go to Church

January 25, 2011

I really enjoy talking to people who aren’t Christians.

I grew up as a confessing Christian but had completely misunderstood what Christianity was all about. As far as I was concerned my Episcopal church attendance was all about up, down, up, down, kneel, red book, blue book, kneel, little bread, little cup, strange procession, and leave. Little did I know I wasn’t experiencing the real thing. I just thought the real thing was really boring.

Then I met Jesus. To be more specific, I met his followers. But as far as he is concerned, he and his followers are the same thing. They were a bunch of high school kids that showed me what real Christianity was about. I discovered that I had missed Jesus for 16 years and didn’t want to miss him anymore. I wanted to follow him.

But you see, I never officially denied Christianity as true. As a very not-Christian kid I would have still told you I was a Christian. There were too many societal perks and too much of my own self-righteousness to see clearly enough that my Christianity was an empty hull.

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