Pastors Are People Too

Should pastors be held to a higher standard? 

When I first came to Christ at about age 23, I thought pastors were on some plane of faith and living that I could never reach. Bob Dylan wrote a song with words something like the following: If my thought-dreams could be seen, they’d put my head in a guillotine.

How could a loving God send anybody to … Earth

Dave Kosobucki, pastor of Horizon Christian Fellowship Central, did a Saturday Seminar for Calvary Chapel Bible College Indianapolisis. The title was “The Unpopular Doctrine of Hell.” read his notes at http://dckoso.wordpress.com

I especially took note of his reference to Timothy Keller in The Reason for God, Chapter 5: How Can a Loving God Send People to Hell.  (see part 1 - G) I haven’t read any of Timothy Keller’s or Rob Bell’s books or others of the same vein, but I’ve read a few blurbs by some of them to get the drift of some of their beliefs.

Regarding peoples’ problems with the subject, I have long fancied the idea of making a bumper sticker that says, 

“How could a loving God send anybody to Earth?”

The point being that isn’t this earth hell enough to make everyone want to avoid this type of existence in eternity? The other point is that enough hell exists on earth already to suggest such a thing could certainly exist in the next realm.

Why wouldn’t it exist in eternity? What’s to prevent it from existing? (I’ll make this personal so as to implicate myself) If I hate God and ignore God, and if I love rebelling against God in this life (as I have done) why would I be different in my transition? What would cause me to have a change of heart––especially since I can continue to rebel and love sin and enjoy it for eternity? Short of divine inducements, why would someone who loves sin in this life want to give it up in eternity?

I don’t understand

I don’t understand why anyone would have a problem believing Hell exists, again, at least because there is enough evidence in this realm to make it plausible in the next. I also don’t understand why some do not believe and repent. I don’t understand why there is a hell prepared for the devil and his angels. I don’t understand why Satan would have rebelled in the first place. Nor do I understand why there is forgiveness for fallen man but not for fallen angels.

As for eternal torment of the lost, I don’t understand how I could be happy in Heaven knowing loved ones on earth are suffering in hell. That’s beyond me. I do understand, however, that if the ship is sinking, I must get in the lifeboat. I can’t be deterred by the fact that others, in spite of repeated warnings, obstinately choose to continue partying onboard. I must look steadfastly on Christ and hope in His mercy toward me and leave others to Him.

I don’t think God expects me to understand or even wants me to understand these things. But this much I understand: If God were to let me into heaven without giving me a complete “do over”––the miracle of forgiveness, of reconciliation, of justification through Christ, and sanctification––a completely new, pure, heavenly nature––I would quickly set about turning Heaven into Hell.

Heaven would not be Heaven with me there as I am.

Recent links added to Blogroll and Favorites

Check out the recently updated Blogroll and especially the Selected Favorites. The favorites are samples of many sermons available that confront much of modern, popular, and trendy evangelicalism.  They speak personally to my experience, and I’ve listed them because I need to hear them again and again.

Something was wrong with my Christian walk, and until listening to these men I didn’t have the indisputable confirmation. Much of the evangelicalism I learned and embraced (starting with my conversion experience years ago)  is far from the true, saving gospel.  Perhaps you will identify with it. Of course if you don’t care for MacArthur, Ryle, Washer and the like, you probably won’t. Nevertheless, I pray you listen, and may God’s glory be our mutual desire and pursuit.

Grace

Holiness – J.C. Ryle

In the latter part of the 19^th century J.C. Ryle wrote twenty articles (“papers”) included in one work entitled “Holiness” which I have downloaded from another site, reworked the layout and have made it available as a PDF. 

His writings, as well as others from previous centuries and from contemporaries such as John MacArthur and Paul Washer have confronted my half-hearted faith, my fuzzy beliefs, and my disregard for a consistent and coherent doctrinal framework–all of which are characterized by a lacked authentic repentance and a shallow, nominal, unfruitful easy-believe-ism type of Christianity.

I submit his writings for your careful consideration. The times demand a severe look at our lives in the light of Scripture and pointedly in the light of the severe words of Hebrews 12:14: “Without holiness no man shall see the Lord”.   J.C. Ryle clearly lays out what holiness should “look like” in the lives of those who profess Christ as Lord.

Current popular man-centered consumer Christianity has taken over large parts of evangelicalism and purports to be authentic Christianity. It will not stand the test of scripture, and it will not stand the test of persecution. Neither will it stand the test in the presence of Christ.

The entire work in PDF is 211 pages. To get it, click Holiness PDF  Or the Word version  Holiness MSWord

John MacArthur and Paul Washer

John MacArthur:

For the last six months or so Jewel and I have been listening to online sermons and interviews of John MacArthur and of Paul Washer. My longstanding unknowledgeable and ill-conceived ideas about MacArthur have been done away with. Years ago we attended Grace Community Church’s Sunday services a few times and with just those few scant experiences I concluded MacArthur was a stanch legalist and that Grace CC was stuck in the stuffy, moribund way of “doing church”.

Prejudices die hard.

The Kingdom of God and Discipleship

I need the comfort of being on a very short leash with God. His rod and staff do comfort me. Much of modern, popular Christianity does not do that in the least.

Radical Christianity

A radical Christian is someone who loves Jesus …
   …more than I do.

Lust Part 1–The Veiled Desire to be Discontent

My wife was not good enough for her former husband …she wasn’t what he wanted. I have to admit that I have wondered if she was good enough for me either. The essence of this matter is lust.

Marriage and the Kingdom of God

How is it that, having first been brother and sister, we become husband and wife and lose (or forfeit) that brotherly-sisterly relationship?