Better is One Day

This morning I busted out my guitar after breakfast and sang a few songs with the fam. One of the songs I played was Better is One Day. It’s based on Psalm 84:10 which says, “For a day in your courts is better than a thousand elsewhere.”

As I was explaining that song to a 4 and 5 year old I was convicted myself about the implications of the words. The chorus goes, “better is one day in your courts, better is one day in your house, better is one day in your courts than thousands elsewhere.” Do I really believe that one day in the presence of the Lord, worshipping and glorifying Him is better than 1,000 days doing some of my favorite activities. Would I give up 1,000 days of trout fishing or exercising or napping, some of my favorite activities, in order to spend just 1 day in the presence of the Lord. Most days I have to confess that I wouldn’t.

As I look over Psalm 84 and see things like “no good thing does he withhold from those who walk uprightly” and “O LORD of hosts, blessed is the one who trusts in you!” I am reminded and challenged to fix my eyes heavenward and not on the things of this world. It’s so easy to get caught up in trivial things here that only please for a moment. 1,000 days of the most fun things I can think of on this earth will really only provide about 1 day of actual pleasure while 1 day of delighting in God provides 1,000 days worth of pleasure. Lord help me to get this and to live it!!

Parenting with Hope in the Worst of Times :: Desiring God Christian Resource Library

Last night Lindsey and I watched this sermon together from Dr. Piper. It's some amazing insight into a passage of Scripture in a part of Scripture that I haven't spent much time, the book of Micah. This isn't really a "how to" on parenting, but he discusses the depth of our depravity and riches of God's mercy. As he says in the beginning, this isn't just a message for parents. I would really encourage you to grab a spouse, friend or coworker and 50 free minutes to be challenged by what he has to share!

Parenting with Hope in the Worst of Times :: Desiring God Christian Resource Library

Saved Children

Tedd Tripp's Shepherding a Child's Heart is a must read for any parent who struggles to bring their children up "in the discipline and instruction of the Lord" (Eph. 6:4). It is also for those of us who desire to be used by the Lord to not just raise well-behaved kids, but those who will understand and live out the truth that "Man's chief end is to glorify God and to enjoy him forever."

Something in chapter 5, titled "Examining Your Goals," caught my attention. I've discussed this issue with a lot of people and this is the first time I've read something that clearly articulated what I believe about it. I think you'll figure out after reading this where I stand on this :). I'd love to get some feedback on this.

Saved Children

     I have met many parents whose preoccupation is getting their children saved. They focus on getting their children to pray "the sinner's prayer." They want him to ask Jesus to come into his heart. They take Johnny to Child Evangelism Fellowship functions, Good News Clubs, summer camps or anywhere else where someone will bring him to decision to trust Christ.

     They think that if their child would get saved, all the problems of living would be solved. Sometimes parents feel this way because, in their own experience, getting saved was a spiritual watershed. They want their child to have that experience too.

     This is a sensitive issue that must be tempered by two facts: 1) You can never know with absolute certainty whether your child is saved. Many passages such as the "Lord, Lord" passage at the end of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew 7:21-23) indicate that false faith can carry someone a long way. The heart can even deceive itself. Thus the Bible warns about the dangers of being self-deceived and exhorts you to test yourself to see whether you are in the faith. 2) A child's profession of faith in Christ does not change the basic issues of childrearing. The parent's goals are the same. The things the child is called to are the same. He requires the same training he required before. He will have times of tenderness and times of spiritual coldness. The parent's task does not change when the child makes a decision.

     There are many passages that teach the need to shepherd, to train, to instruct, and to discipline your children. None of these passages has getting a child to pray the "sinner's prayer" as its focus. 

Godly Sex

It's been a while since I've posted something so I thought I'd write something attention grabbing.

Something that is not attention grabbing for most people is the book of Leviticus. Filled with laws about worship and cleanliness in a time and place far removed from us, the modern reader often chooses to read something more "practical" for his or her life. Leviticus is mostly about a God who instructs His people how to be holy in their worship of Him because He is holy. Living holy lives before a holy God should affect every area of our lives, especially our sexuality.

Buried in the middle of this overly neglected book, in the 18th chapter, are some guidelines concerning unlawful sexual relations. But what is often overlooked is verses 3-4 which gives the real reason for these restrictions. Contrary to popular opinion, God is not trying to take away of our fun or control us. He is telling us these things for our protection.  These verses also contain some vital truths that should change our perspective on how we view God's law:

You shall not do as they do in the land of Egypt, where you lived, and you shall not do as they do in the land of Canaan, to which I am bringing you. You shall not walk in their statutes. You shall follow my rules and keep my statutes and walk in them. I am the LORD your God. You shall therefore keep my statutes and my rules; if a person does them, he shall live by them; I am the LORD.

Check out the emphasis here. It is to not do as they did in the place where they were slaves. For New Testament believers, this obviously parallels our old life as slaves to sin. They are also told to not do as they do in the promised land of Canaan to which God was bringing them. Again, for us today the parallel is the still the ungodly world around us that we've been redeemed out of.

The Ten Commandments were given in this context at Mount Sinai. They were given after God called Israel to be faithful to his covenant and reminded them that they are his people, his treasured possession. The law came after slavery as a reminder not to go back to it and before being surrounded by rampant idolatry as a warning not to succumb to it. Without this understanding, the law of God, particularly those concerning unlawful sexual relations in Leviticus 18 make little sense.

God's plan and design for sex is 1 man and 1 woman in 1 monogamous relationship for 1 lifetime. The unbelieving world obviously has a huge problem with this. But God's word says that "The fear of the LORD is the beginning of wisdom, and the knowledge of the Holy One is insight" (Prov. 9:10). God's commands are for our protection and our benefit. If we will open our eyes and our hearts to rightly see this by fearing the Lord, then he will give us wisdom and insight to understand these truths.

Walk With God and Live!

I'm taking a class right now on the Old Testament books Genesis - Joshua. In the lecture on Genesis chapters 4-11 titled "The Outworking of Sin" my professor pointed out something that I have never noticed before. Chapter 5 of Genesis lists the generations from Adam to Noah, using a set pattern for each individual. The pattern goes: When (name) had lived (#) years, he fathered (son). (Name) lived after he fathered (son) (#) years and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of (name) were (#) years, and he died.

After 6 of these repetitions it is understandable to want to just skip the rest because they all say the same thing. The only problem is, they don't all say the same thing. When we get to the 7th repetition we read,

When Enoch had lived 65 years, he fathered Methuselah. Enoch walked with God after he fathered Methuselah 300 years and had other sons and daughters. Thus all the days of Enoch were 365 years. Enoch walked with God, and he was not, for God took him. (Gen. 5:21-24).

The rhythm of death is broken with Enoch and therefore death no longer has the final word. This glimmer of hope is included in a story that is sandwiched between some pretty grim chapters in the history of mankind. Walking with God leads to breaking of the curse of death. The author of Hebrews picks up on the story of Enoch in the famous chapter on faith and even adds a bit of his own insight that Christians would do well to heed,

By faith Enoch was taken up so that he should not see death, and he was not found, because God had taken him. Now before he was taken he was commended as having pleased God. And without faith it is impossible to please him, for whoever would draw near to God must believe that he exists and that he rewards those who seek him. (Hebrews 11:5-6). 

With the curse of death now broken through our Savior's substitutionary death, let us walk by faith and not by sight, expecting to be reward by the One we seek.

Brothers and sisters, let us walk with God and live! 

My Birthday - No April Fool's Joke!

10 years ago, a punk college student was wasting his life and his brain cells engaging in some serious tomfoolery. On April Fool's Day night after returning from some crazy partying, a friend sat him down and talked about the One who came to rescue him from sin and exchange the fool's filth for the Savior's righteousness. That night, a fool who was throwing away his life became a fool for Christ!

I praise God for these last 10 years and for all that he has done in my life. I have an amazing family that I don't deserve and a life that I wouldn't trade for anything.

When I got home today I had some great surprises waiting for me! Lily wrapped up a bunch of things, mostly from her kitchen set and gave them to me. This cake was also waiting for me, though the everyone was little too excited to be able to keep it a surprise. Lindsey accidentally let it slip, but her slip wasn't as funny as Lily's. Lily said to me, "Dad, when we say close your eyes you have to because we're going to surprise you with a cake!" Ha! Kids :).

On another note, this morning before class I was reading through Deuteronomy and came across three reminders that Moses wrote to the people of Israel, reminding them of their slavery in Egypt (15:15; 16:3, 12). While I don't want to dwell on past sins and stumble by thinking too much about that time in my life, I would do well to "remember that you were a slave in the land of Egypt, and the Lord your God has redeemed you" (15:15). Obviously I was not a slave in Egypt. But I was a slave to sin, bound up and held captive by my own wickedness and fleshly desires.

With Easter Sunday a few days away, what better reminder that I have been redeemed from a life of slavery to sin! In Romans 6:17-18 the Apostle Paul writes:

But thanks be to God, that you who were once slaves of sin have become obedient from the heart to the standard of teaching to which you were committed, and, having been set free from sin, have become slaves of righteousness.

It is certainly a battle to daily kill sin and to live as a slave of righteousness. Praise be to God for His redemption and His Spirit that dwells in us, giving us the power to press on and fight the good fight of faith!

Killing Sin - Part 2

Sin never stops whispering in our ears. As a matter of fact, sometimes is shouts! And as God told Cain, “sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it” (Gen. 4:7).

John Owen, the 17th century Puritan pastor and theologian may have said it best in his classic work, Of the Mortification of Sin in Believers. Commenting on Romans 8:13, “For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live,” Owen pens this challenge to the believer:

                          Do you mortify; do you make it your daily work;
                          be always at it while you live;
                          cease not a day from this work;
                          be killing sin or it will be killing you.

Is this our habit, to daily without ceasing battle against our flesh, by the Spirit, so we may kill sin before it kills us? Brothers and sisters, sin is always crouching at the door and whispering to our hearts. It is always ready to jump out and control us or to speak deceitfully and trick us. Don’t be fooled! Pray that the indwelling Spirit of Almighty God would help you to be killing sin before it kills you!