Category: Uncategorized

  • a few thoughts on “the hole in our holiness”

    I just finished reading Kevin Deyoung’s book The Hole in Our Holiness.  I found the book to be very good. I was blessed by it.

    The book is short and easy to read. It only has 146 pages, and it is 10 chapters long so someone can quite easily read a chapter a day.

    On the second page of the book, Deyoung states his purpose “The hole in our holiness is that we don’t really care much about it.”

    This purpose in writing is very necessary. Sadly, Christians and non-christians alike are not very concerned or even interested in being like God. The remainder of the book does a good job addressing this “hole.”

    I loved the book. For the many, many on-fire young Christians coming up in the church today, I would highly recommend you read this book. Read it so that it sinks in. So that you get it. And for the hundreds of Bible verses he quotes, make sure you get those too. This book is about what God is saying to us.

    Here are some of my favorite quotes from the book:

     

    Chapter 1: “No matter what you profess, if you show disregard for Christ by giving yourself over to sin –impenitently and habitually– then heaven is not your home.” (14) “You would not be happy there [in heaven] if you are not holy here.” (15)

    “The Great Commission is about holiness. God wants the world to know Jesus, believe in Jesus, and obey Jesus.” (16)

    Chapter 2: J.I. Packer “In reality, holiness is the goal of our redemption.” (24)

    “To find acquittal from God on the last day there must be evidence flowing out of us that grace has flowed into us.” (26)

    Chapter 3: “In other words, sanctified is what we are and what we must become.” (33)

    “Or to put it another way, worldliness is whatever makes sin look normal and righteousness look strange.” (37)

    “If you want to know what holiness looks like, look at God.” (39)

    Chapter 4: “Let’s not be afraid to land on law– never as the means of meriting justification, but as the proper expression of having received it.” (54)

    “Preachers must preach the law without embarassment. Parents must insist on obedience without shame.” (55)

    Chapter 5: “The truth is God’s people can be righteous– not perfectly, but truly, and in a way that genuinely pleases God.” (64)

    “Love does not equal unconditional affirmation. Love entails the relentless pursuit of what is for our good.” (73)

    “When we sin, our union with Christ is not in jeopardy. But our communion is.” (74)

    Chapter 6: John Owen “from a self-strength, carried on by ways of self-invention, unto the end of a self-righteousness, is the soul and substance of all false religion in the world.” (80)

    Chapter 7: “Christ justifies no one whom he does not also sanctify.” (99)

    “Do not strive after holiness because you cower in dread of God. Strive after holiness because you are confident you already belong to God.” (102)

    Chapter 8: “In moving from darkness to light, one of the first things new Gentile converts had to accept was a radically different sexual ethic.” (109)

    “Don’t reason with sexual sin, just run.” (111)

    Chapter 9: “The man who attempts Christianity without the church shoots himself in the foot, shoots his children in the leg, and shoots his grandchildren in the heart.” (132)

    Chapter 10: (This is one of the best chapters that I have read in a book in a long time. Very good!)

    “when it comes to sanctification, it’s more important where you’re going than where you are. Direction matters more than position.” (138)

    “Remember, it’s the testimony of all saints that as they get closer to God they see more of their ungodliness. It’s normal to feel less holy as you become more holy.” (139)

    “Repentance is a way of life for the holy child of God.” (140)

    “It’s one thing to sin your heart out, mumble a few sorrys, and get on with life. It’s quite another thing to hate your sin, cry out to God, and make a spiritual U-turn. Real contrition is hard, painful work.” (140)

    “[Repentance] means admitting specific wrong, recognizing your offensiveness to God, changing course, turning to Christ, and wishing with all your heart you had never made the mistake you now despise.” (141)

    “Godly grief doesn’t blame parents or the schools or the government or friends or the church. Godly grief says, “Have mercy on me, O God”” (143)

     

     

  • balancing sleep!

    I remember those Saturday mornings as a teenager. The ones that came after late Friday nights from a hard-fought high school basketball game that left me drained. The ones that came at the tail end of a tiring school week full of tests, papers and homework assignments. Those Saturday mornings when nothing sounded better then being able to sleep until about Noon. But instead I was woken up by my father’s loud voice telling me to get outside and help rake leaves. Yes, I remember those mornings when I felt like I needed more sleep, and my dad knew I did not. Sleep is like that. Sometimes you need it, and sometimes you don’t. And then sometimes you think you need it when you don’t. And sometime you don’t think you need it when you actually do.

    Well recently, I ran into both of these verses from God’s Word:

    “It is in vain that you rise up early and go late to rest, eating the bread of anxious toil; for he gives to his beloved sleep.” -Psalm 127:2

    “Do not love sleep, lest you come to poverty.” -Proverbs 20:13

    I think it is remarkable that God says both of these things. The Bible really does address so much of life.

    Sleep in our lives is about balance. If you need sleep and you are depriving yourself from sleep because you are worrying so much, then you need to take a deep breath and go to sleep. God has given it to you. So do it, rest up!

    But if you sleep all the time or too much and end up neglecting duties and responsibilities in life like work and bills and house chores, then you need to get up and get busy and stop sleeping. God has told you to be faithful to your responsibilities. So, don’t love sleep and become poor.

    There is a balance there. Worship God in everything you do- even your sleep!

  • I wish everyone knew this verse

    Ephesians 4:32 “Be kind to one another, tenderhearted, forgiving one another, as God in Christ forgave you.”

    It seems today that “drama” and “issues” are so common.

    We live in a day where many people have problems with one another. I often recall Gandhi’s quote “I like your Christ. I do not like your Christians. Your Christians are so unlike your Christ.”

    Reading or hearing that quote hurts. It should not be the case.

    This Bible verse above written by the apostle Paul to the believers that make up the church in Ephesus is so clear how we are to be. We are a forgiven people and therefore we should be a forgiving people. As my mentor has said many times, “people of grace should be gracious people.”

    I wish that more people, indeed everyone, knew this verse and wanted to live that way!

     

  • two become one flesh

    One of my favorite things about studying the Bible is when one piece of Scripture is quoted in another place in the Bible. This means that one Biblical author knows, believes, interprets, and applies one Bible passage to another part of life. And therefore, we have one “idea” in God’s Word being used in multiple places. This is very cool! Cool from 2 angles. One because it is written by different men in different time periods. Two because God inspired it all and is therefore the author behind all of it. And I use the word cool because the Christian reader is so blessed and encouraged by it. The unity of truth is impactful!

    I plan to use a few blog posts here in a row showing you what I am talking about.

    Here is an example.  Early in God’s Word in Genesis 2:24 God says (Moses writes):

    “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”

    There is a lot to be said about this verse. That will be saved for another time. The point I want to make is this= That awesome statement that has been shaping Biblical view of marriage for thousands of years is quoted 4 times in the New Testament by three different authors.

    1. Matthew 19:5 “and (Jesus) said “Therefore a man shall leave his father and his mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh”

    2. Mark 10:7-8 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”

    3. 1 Corinthians 6:16 “For as it is written, the two will become one flesh.”

    4. Ephesians 5:31 “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.”

    Studying the Bible is great. Being able to recognize and pick-up on themes like this one is so encouraging and enlightening.

    The Bible has authority. You really begin to see this authority when one verse from Genesis 2 is remembered and then used again by Matthew, Mark and Paul in the New Testament.

    Which of God’s truths show up in your life over and over again? Which are shaping you like they shaped Matthew, Mark and Paul?

    Start reading the Bible and taking notice of what ideas repeat themselves!

  • the reality of hell

    The past two Sunday mornings I have preached on “The Reality of Hell.”

    You can listen to part one here and you can listen to part two here.

    The passage for both sermons is Luke 16:19-31. It is Jesus’s story on the rich man and Lazarus.

    Here are a few highlights:

    • The Great Desire of the people who are in Hell is that they do NOT want anyone else to be there.
    • The rich, comfortable man on earth ends up begging in hell while the beggar outside his house ends up comforted in heaven.
    • “A lack of signs is not why people reject Jesus. Rather, people willfully reject him. The heart cannot see what it is not looking for.” -Bock
  • so thats what dads are supposed to do

    Being the father of three little boys brings much responsibility.

    Now that my wife is expecting our 4th child (this one’s a girl!), I have been thinking more and more about what I really should be doing. As a dad, there are so many doubts, desires, wants and worries for your children.

    On  a daily basis, I work hard on making sure they “mind their manners” around the dinner table; practice throwing and catching a ball; and learn how to serve their siblings. In my other thoughts, I wonder whether they are learning to read well; playing outside enough; and becoming a North Carolina fan more than a Kentucky or Louisville fan.

    And while all of those desires are good and appropriate, I continue to find myself analyzing my “parental wishes” with which ones are expendable. If my kids don’t like to read, will I still be proud if they are very well-mannered? If they don’t like the outdoors, but they love serving the church, would I be ok with that?

    When all is said and done, what is it that I must be most focused on and committed to in being a dad?

    Recently these passages have begun to answer my heart’s burning question:

    He established a testimony in Jacob
    and appointed a law in Israel,
    which he commanded our fathers
    to teach to their children,
    that the next generation might know them,
    the children yet unborn,
    and arise and tell them to their children,
    so that they should set their hope in God
    and not forget the works of God,
    but keep his commandments;
    (Psalm 78:5-7 ESV)

    One generation shall commend your works to another,
    and shall declare your mighty acts.
    On the glorious splendor of your majesty,
    and on your wondrous works, I will meditate.
    They shall speak of the might of your awesome deeds,
    and I will declare your greatness.
    They shall pour forth the fame of your abundant goodness
    and shall sing aloud of your righteousness.
    (Psalm 145:4-7 ESV)

    And now, O sons, listen to me,
    and be attentive to the words of my mouth.
    (Proverbs 7:24 ESV)

    God’s Word has addressed my heart’s desire and has answered my question. My most frequent prayer and biggest hope for my children is that they would learn from me what God is like and what God has done. That they would know Him and understand Him (Jer. 9:24).

    While I will continue to enjoy all the thrills of being a dad like camping and ball and reading and wrestling, I will also be diligent to make sure they are learning about what God has done.

    In my ten years of young ministry experience, I have had countless encounters with older active church-goers who say “It’s not my fault, I took them to church.” This comment and reaction comes when they are speaking about why their children do not honor God with their lives these days.

    Oh may God grant you and I the humble knowledge to understand that that was never the goal. It may be one of the means, but it is certainly not the end. The end goal is to teach them what God has done. Any dad serious about raising his kids to know God cannot be content with that excuse. Instead, may we spend our lives telling them what God has done and is doing.

     

  • a few reflections on our church men’s retreat

    This past weekend our church had a Men’s Retreat.  The church website post is here with a few pictures.

    There were 22 different men who went on this overnight camping trip out on a 163-acre farm at Green River. The youngest guy who went was 14 years old and the oldest was 83 years old. And everyone one else was somewhere scattered in the middle of those two ages. This made for a great time. The church is made up of men from all ages, and the Bible teaches for older men to influence the younger men. Overnight camping trips is such a great way to deepen those relationships.

    From what I am hearing since then and what I heard yesterday at church, all the men who went had an awesome time. Lives were impacted; relationships were strengthened; Biblical understanding of manhood & responsibility were heightened; and fun and happiness were increasing.

    Here are a few of my reflections now that I look back over the retreat:

    1. Men love to still act like boys. We absolutely enjoyed skipping rocks, looking at stars, sitting by the fire, playing with the fire, etc.
    2. Men having good, strong, healthy relationships is so beneficial.
    3. Men like to be challenged when they don’t first feel they are being criticized.
    4. Younger men look up to older men. Younger men desire to be like older men in many ways even though many times they do not say it.
    5. Most men recognize the large amount of responsibility that they have in their lives.
    6. You get a group of men to sit around a camp fire and you can talk to them about the Bible for hours.
    7. Getting away from your stressful lives for even just 24 hours can prove to be so refreshing.
    8. Encouraging unbelievers to be apart of your trip can prove to be so helpful in deepening relationships in order that the Gospel may be further communicated.

    We are already excited about the next Men’s retreat!

     

  • Senior Retreat Video

    A few weeks ago I had the great opportunity to be the guest preacher at the Whitefield Academy (High School) Senior Retreat. The Retreat was for three days and was held at the Country Lake Christian Retreat Center in Indiana. I could not have been more impressed and encouraged by the caliber of students that were on this trip. They were a joy to be around for three days.

    The theme of the retreat was: Following Christ is hard but it is absolutely worth it!

    Here is the re-cap video from the retreat which a student put together. (Notice me on the left doing the zip line backwards and upside-down at the 3:53 mark) I am so humbled and thankful that my church allowed me to go be involved with an event like this one.

  • “Don’t be a Fool!”

    Notice some of these great verses in God’s Word about the “fool:” Oh, that we would desire to walk in the wisdom of God!

    “the mouth of a fool brings ruin near.” –Proverbs 10:14

    “whoever utters slander is a fool.” -Proverbs 10:18

    “the way of a fool is right in his own eyes.” -Proverbs 12:15

    “a fool flaunts his folly.” -Proverbs 13:16

    “A fool despises his father’s instruction.” -Proverbs 15:5

    “Let a man meet a she-bear robbed of her cubs rather than a fool in his folly.” -Proverbs 17:12

    “the father of a fool has no joy.” -Proverbs 17:21

    “A fool’s lips walk into a fight.” -Proverbs 18:6

    “whoever trusts in his own mind is a fool.” -Proverbs 28:26

    “The fool says in his heart ‘there is no God.’” -Psalm 14:1 & 53:1

February 2025
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