Car Wash Christianity

Sunday April 29th, 2007 was the last day we will call ______ ______ Baptist Church home. We have decided to call it quits and to never attend services there again due to what I believe is the flat out whole sale of the church over to the Seeker Sensitive Movement. I'm sure it started out very subtle with the study of the Purpose Driven Life and the 40 days of purpose, but just over a year ago I started to noticed some changes, like a new slogan that states "WE EXIST FOR NON-MEMBERS", all of the Bibles & hymnals have been removed that made way for a jumbo screen to be the central focal point and a constant bombardment of contemporary 7-11 songs, you know seven words repeated eleven times in order to stir up your emotions. The pastor constantly saying on Wednesday night services "you will hear things on Wednesday nights that you won't hear on Sunday morning." Why does he say this? Or "if you only have one hour to give I would rather you give it in a small group." Is he for real? All the sermons on Sunday became geared at healing relationships, or how to be a better you, and 10 steps to something I am told I am missing in my life, or the gospel according to the barbecue grill or some other funny little sermon, never about the Holiness, Mercy, Grace, Wrath, Judgement, or Justice of God or the Deity of Christ and I can't tell you the last time I heard the word HELL or Repent on a Sunday morning. They slapped a cool new multi-color paint job in the sanctuary that really sets the mood for entertainment, it looks more like a movie theatre now that plasma TVs are plastered everywhere though out the church. And money seemed to be a popular topic in the announcements every other week, and be sure to come and join in the conversation about the 'quirky' sermon you just heard, as though someone was going to add some theology to the gospel according to the grill. Add in a worship minister with rock star like credentials and a band to back him up who says "God is not concerned with putting his stamp of approval on your worship" and the next thing you know the new invitational hymn is Desperado by the Eagles, and then top it all off with a $10.00 CAR WASH with FREE Valet Parking as you attended Sunday school class and worship service while eating your complementary donut and drinking your free cup of coffee while you are entertained with the spiritual counsel of the rock-star followed by the comedian. And they have the gall to call this church?

Sorry I can't take it anymore!!!

By Common Confession

As I continue to ponder the statement "We exist for non-members" which describes many church's today. I ran across this sermon by John MacArthur that addresses this statement head-on as he clearly explains the purpose for that assembly.

Matthew 16:16 "And Simon Peter answered and said, Thou art the Christ, the Son of the living God."

This is the confession that establishes the church, a church is made up of people who make this confession. Can we get real basic here, the church is not designed for non-believers it is an assembly of people who make this great confession. And when unbelievers come one thing ought to be profoundly clear that everybody assembled there is assembled there for the purpose of affirming this great confession. The church is not a place for non-Christians who need a motivational speech, it's not a place for non-Christians who need help for their addictions, or who want to some how feel spiritual. It is the assembly of those who make the great confession.

The church is a gathering of people who make a common confession, and what is that confession? That great and awesome is the mystery of godliness, it is the confession that God came in human flesh. To be a Christian you must confess Jesus as Lord (Romans 10:9-10) and believe in your heart that God has raised Him from the dead, these things are written says John that you might believe that Jesus is the Christ and that believing you might have life in His name. The church is the gathering of those who make this common confession, their not there trying to make sure they don't offend anybody by overdoing the confession their there for the purpose of affirming that confession.

Excerpt taken from a sermon preached by John MacArthur delivered at Omaha Bible Church on 11/25/05 at a Leadership meeting and can be downloaded here.

Quote of the Day

"Man is nothing: he hath a free will to go to hell, but none to go to heaven, till God worketh in him to will and to do His good pleasure" - George Whitefield (1714-1769)

She's Worth It!

Over the past two weeks my wife has been a bit stressed out do to the end of the school year getting closer, and our youngest son is graduating and with his prom this past weekend it goes without saying that the whole household has been on edge. But this morning I got a nice surprise letter from my wife that just makes it all worth wild!

Dear Husband

Thank you for loving me when I'm unlovable, thank you for working so hard at work, thank you for giving me more than I ever dreamed I'd have and then listening to me complain about it. I'm sorry for stressing us out. I know when I'm over the edge I put more stress on you. Thank you for encouraging me to walk closer with God. Thank you for loving the Lord and making Him the priority in your life. I'm sorry for distracting you with stupid stuff that takes our focus off God. Your a great father and husband and I'm thankful that you are my husband.

I'll miss you today and I hope you have a quiet stress-less day. All my love your Wife

Now I need some time to deflate my ego so I can get my shirts back over my head. I am thankful that my Wife sees me as the man I want to be instead of the man that I am. I Love My Wife.

20 Years of Desiring God

Desiring God has released twenty years worth of Pastors Conference audio on their web site from 1988 to the present is now available online. That's over 130 messages, and, like all of their online resources, they're all free. Click Here

Celebrate Superman

Over at Christian Research Network Ingrid has posted a great article on an email she received from a lady in Wisconsin who's church has compared The Lord to Superman. You can read the whole article here. The quote below is so accurate that it describes thousands of church's across this country. I personally have seen this very thing first hand.

There is a sickness in God’s house, an absence of the fear and reverence for the Lord, a flippancy and a sensuality that can’t be denied. The crosses are being taken down, the hymnals are discarded, the church members come into church eating donuts and drinking coffee as though the sanctuary is a food court. There is no gravity, no seriousness and above all, no prevailing prayer.

Come To Your Senses

Why are so many preachers ashamed of the Gospel of Christ today? Folks may say my pastor isn't ashamed of the Gospel he is preaching it; if that is so then why are hundreds of new people pouring into your church's every week? You might say it's a revival, hogwash; have you never read in the last days there will be a great falling away (2 Thessalonians 2:3)? You see the preaching of the Cross is an offense to the unregenerate person, unsaved people cringe at the proclamation of the true Gospel, it crushes their pride, and reveals their sins and the last thing it does is make you feel better about yourself or boost your self esteem. If a preachers message is geared at not offending the unbeliever but rather he is always apologizing for offending the Christian or if the invitational hymn has been replaced with Desperado by the Eagles then your church has a form of godliness, and they are denying the power of God. You see the preaching of the Gospel is the power of God unto salvation and if your preacher is trusting instead in his little sermon's on barbecue grills, and how to build a bridge to the community, or 10 steps to a better life then you are commanded to turn away from such. So all of you desperado preachers why don't you come to your senses and stop giving us 10 steps to a better life and give us GOD!

Romans 1:16 "For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek."

2 Timothy 3:5 "Having a form of godliness, but denying the power thereof: from such turn away."

Free Gospel Media

This will be a place to post a list of great free media, PDF books, audio files, mostly in MP3 format or what ever. Just right click on the link and choose "Save Target As" and choose the folder on your computer where you would like to download these great resources.

• John MacArthur MP3's
  Authority and Sufficiency of Scripture - Download
  Virginia Tech Shootings - Download
  Narrow Gate or the Broad Gate - Download
  Refuting The Feel-Good Gospel - Download
  Unmasking The Pope - Download
  The Emerging Church Movement - Download
  What's So Bad About The Emergent Church - Download

• Jack MacArthur MP3's
  The Charismatic Hysteria - Download

• Phil Johnson MP3's
  A Beginner's Guide to Postmodernism - Download
  Divine Grace vs Human Pride - Download
  Programs Get Your Programs - Download

• Horatius Bonar Books
  Follow The Lamb - RTF Format / MP3's 1-2-3-4
  God's Way of Peace - PDF
  The Everlasting Righteousness - PDF

• Justin Peters MP3's
  Word of Faith Discernment Seminar - Download

• Jeff Noblit MP3's
  Apostasy and the Unpardonable State - Download

• Paul Washer MP3's
  Gospel: The Cross of Christ - Download
  Shocking Youth Message - Download

• Jonathan Sims MP3's
  The Total Depravity of Man - Download
  Eternal Security of the Believer, Part 1 - Download

• D. A. Carson MP3's
  What is The Gospel - Download

• Dean Sisk "Sin Killers Series" MP3's
  Sin Killers, Part 1 - Download
  Sin Killers, Part 2 - Download
  Sin Killers, Part 3 - Download
  Sin Killers, Part 4 - Download
  Sin Killers, Part 5 - Download

The Pampered Self

I received a copy of Horatius Bonar's little book titled "Follow the Lamb" (which I highly recommend to every Christian as a must read) and as I came to the following quote I couldn't help but see how the modern Seeker Friendly church's of today really destroy both growth and fruitfulness with the gospel of self.

Self in all its forms is a hindrance to our growth (Rom 14:7). Self-will, self-sufficiency, self- indulgence, self-importance, self-glory, self-seeking, self-brooding, all these mar fruitfulness. Denying self is the beginning, the middle, and the end of our course here, as followers of Christ. How can a man grow when he is pampering self instead of crucifying the flesh; when he is indulging and fondling the old man instead of nailing him to the cross; when he is enjoying all softness and ease and worldly comfort, instead of enduring hardness, and taking up his cross and mortifying his members which are upon the earth? (Rom 8:13, Gal 5:24, Col 3:5).

Excerpt taken from "Follow the Lamb" by Horatius Bonar (1808-1889)

Only Two!

There are only two religions in the world. That’s all. Just two. In spite of the myriad of claims, there are only two. One is God’s, one is Satan’s. One is called the religion of human achievement, that is Satan’s religion and it based upon man’s own effort and ability. The other is the religion of divine accomplishment, that is God’s and it is based solely and only on God’s sovereign ability. One, you see, depends on what man can do and the other depends on what God did. One is earned, the other is a gift. One is by human effort; the other is by divine grace. One is by works, one is without works, and sadly but clearly, most people on the face of the earth in human history have banked their time and eternal destiny on the religion of human achievement that says I’m good enough if I just behave myself and carry out certain religious functions, God will accept me.

Now the religion of human achievement comes in many, many forms and packages, but it is all really the same religion. It is all the satanic counterfeit and if God says that men are saved by grace through faith apart from anything they can do. Satan will say men are saved by what they can do and all religion falls into those two conflicting categories.

Whether you’re talking about the mighty IM movement, Mormonism, Islam, Eurancha, the One World Family, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Christian Science, Spiritualism, the Association for Research and Enlightenment, the Divine Light Mission, OASPE, Worldwide Church of God, Great White Brotherhood, Ascera Unification Church, the Way International, Scientology, the Roman Catholic system or whatever other system of religion you’re talking about in the world; they all fall into the category of the religions of human achievement. And they all say that through certain means you can better yourself. You can become pleasing to God or gods that be, you can attain salvation, you can take yourself to a better world because you have within you the ability to do that.

There’s only, I say it again, a choice between two religions: the religion of human achievement which comes under many labels and the religion of divine accomplishment which is revealed in the scared pages in the Word of God.

Excerpt taken from a sermon preached by John MacArthur titled "Rejoicing in the Cross". You can read the entire transcript or download the MP3 at www.gty.org

We Exist For Non-Members?

"We exist for non-members", is this statement the battle cry of your church? If so, then you are caught in a seeker-sensitive, purpose driven church led by a Rick Warren wannabe who's main focus is on marketing the church to non-Christians that will soon plunge head first into the Emerging Church Movement or worse yet Contemplative Spirituality if left unchecked. One has to ask themselves is it the primary purpose of Sunday morning church services to reach out to unbelievers? Or put another way should non-Christians determine what Christians do in the church? Absolutely not the Scripture should determine what we do. Folks if you are in a church that uses the above quote to describe their main focus then it's not the Lord's church it's a man drawn crowd aimed at non-Christians felt needs who rush in to get their ears tickled and the results are huge crowds spawned by entertainment and self-centered water-downed preaching that leaves the true Christian church severely malnourished. Sheep food. . . . not goat food is what the church needs.

John 21:16 He saith to him again the second time, Simon, son of Jonas, lovest thou me? He saith unto him, Yea, Lord; thou knowest that I love thee. He saith unto him, Feed my sheep.

Evil Interpreters

I am just so fascinated by the writings of the early church fathers and how their words still ring so true today. This quote by Irenaeus sounds as if he could be addressing the Emerging Church Movement leaders of today.

Inasmuch as certain men have set the truth aside, and bring in lying words and vain genealogies, which, as the apostle says, "minister questions rather than godly edifying which is in faith," and by means of their craftily-constructed plausibilities draw away the minds of the inexperienced and take them captive. These men falsify the oracles of God, and prove themselves evil interpreters of the good word of revelation. They also overthrow the faith of many, by drawing them away, under a pretence of [superior] knowledge, from Him who rounded and adorned the universe; as if, forsooth, they had something more excellent and sublime to reveal, than that God who created the heaven and the earth, and all things that are therein. By means of specious and plausible words, they cunningly allure the simple-minded to inquire into their system; but they nevertheless clumsily destroy them, while they initiate them into their blasphemous and impious opinions respecting the Demiurge; and these simple ones are unable, even in such a matter, to distinguish falsehood from truth. - Irenaeus

Excerpt taken from "Irenaeus Against Heresies" Book I

Happy Birthday

I want to thank the Lord for another year on this earth, with my 41st birthday just 9 days away I am so grateful for my life and especially my life in Christ. My Mother bought me the latest New Testament Commentary by John MacArthur which is 1 - 3 John. I was surprised by the new dust cover and almost startled that they had changed the cover but the binding is just as the others in my collection. I would just like to share the opening statement in the first chapter that has a bit of "The Truth War" feel to it.

We live in an era that looks with suspicion on any type of certainty or conviction about the truth. Our society has abandoned the idea of absolutes, choosing instead to arbitrarily grant equal validity to every opinion and philosophical musing, Sadly, today's church, influenced by the surrounding culture, has fallen prey to an inclusivism that tolerates seemingly any and every viewpoint, except dogmatism. In the realm of biblical interpretation, for instance, a significant new movement is gaining ground that says that no one can know for sure what the Bible means. According to this emerging viewpoint, the Bible is so obscure that anyone who exegetes Scripture should offer nothing more than a cautious "humble," open-minded opinion regarding the text's meaning. But such radical, unwarranted skepticism blatantly ignores the Bible's own teaching that Christians not only can, but must, know the truth. Thus, to claim that the meaning of Scripture is unknowable is to directly attack the divinely designed clarity of the Bible; it is, in essence, to accuse God of being unable to clearly reveal Himself and His truth to humanity. The inevitable result of such arrogance for those who embrace it is the loss of certainty and confidence about the rich and essential doctrinal truths of the Christian faith.

John 8:32 - And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free

Pss. 19:8 - The statutes of the LORD are right, rejoicing the heart: the commandment of the LORD is pure, enlightening the eyes

Prov. 22:21 - That I might make thee know the certainty of the words of truth; that thou mightest answer the words of truth to them that send unto thee?

Isa. 29:24 - They also that erred in spirit shall come to understanding, and they that murmured shall learn doctrine.

Luke 1:4 - That thou mightest know the certainty of those things, wherein thou hast been instructed.

1 Tim. 4:3 - Forbidding to marry, and commanding to abstain from meats, which God hath created to be received with thanksgiving of them which believe and know the truth.

2 Peter 1:12 - Wherefore I will not be negligent to put you always in remembrance of these things, though ye know them, and be established in the present truth.

2 Peter 1:19 - We have also a more sure word of prophecy; whereunto ye do well that ye take heed, as unto a light that shineth in a dark place, until the day dawn, and the day star arise in your hearts:

1 John 2:21 - I have not written unto you because ye know not the truth, but because ye know it, and that no lie is of the truth.

1 John 4:6 - We are of God: he that knoweth God heareth us; he that is not of God heareth not us. Hereby know we the spirit of truth, and the spirit of error.

2 John 1 - The elder unto the elect lady and her children, whom I love in the truth; and not I only, but also all they that have known the truth;

Excerpt taken from "The MacArthur New Testament Commentary 1 - 3 John" Moody Publishing

The Word and Prayer

It seems to me the more I read the great preachers of the past the further our church's have fallen from what the pattern of a true church should be. D. L. Moody really nailed down what happens to us when we neglect Prayer and The Word of God.

"The two first and essential means of grace are the Word of God and Prayer. By these come conversion; for we are born again by the Word of God, which liveth and abideth forever; and whosoever shall call upon the name of the Lord shall be saved.

By these also we grow; for we are exhorted to desire the sincere milk of the Word that we may grow thereby, and we cannot grow in grace and in the knowledge of the Lord Jesus Christ except we also speak to Him in Prayer.

It is by the Word that the Father sanctifies us; but we are also bidden to watch and pray, lest we enter into temptation.

These two means of grace must be used in their right proportion. If we read the Word and do not pray, we may become puffed up with knowledge, without the love that buildeth up. If we pray without reading the Word, we shall be ignorant of the mind and will of God, and become mystical and fanatical, and liable to be blown about by every wind of doctrine."

Excerpt taken from the book "Prevailing Prayer" by D. L. Moody

Absolutely Not!

Here is an excellent sermon on the Emerging Church Movement, by Phil Johnson, who is the Executive Director of Grace to You ministeries, given at the 2006 Shepherd's Conference.

Quote: Emerging. In the first place, I object to the implications of the word emerging. This movement is not some beautiful new butterfly coming out of a cocoon. Although people in this movement sometimes claim to represent the next great step forward after the failure of modernism, my assessment would be that what we are really seeing here is the collective dying gasp of every major modernist idea evangelicals and fundamentalists have stood against for the past century and a half.

Download MP3

Thanks to www.takebackcanada.com

Duty of Prayer

"The spirit of a true convert is a spirit of faith and reliance on the power, wisdom, and mercy of God, and such a spirit is naturally expressed in prayer. True prayer is nothing else but faith expressed. Hence we read of the prayer of faith; James 5:15. True Christian prayer is the faith and reliance of the soul breathed forth in words. But a hypocrite is without the spirit of faith. He hath no true reliance or dependence on God, but is really self-dependent.

As to those common convictions and affections which the hypocrite had, and which made him keep up the duty of prayer for a while; since they are not reaching the bottom of the heart, nor being accompanied with any change of nature, a little thing extinguishes them. The cares of the world commonly choke and suffocate them, and often the pleasures and vanities of youth totally put an end to them, and with them ends their constant practice of the duty of prayer."

Excerpt taken from a sermon by Johathan Edwards titled "Hypocrites Deficient in the Duty of Prayer" from the book Sermons of Johathan Edwards © 2005 Hendrickson Publishers, Inc