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Brampton Blog - Entries from February 2010
ThuThursdayFebFebruary18th2010
John Bunyan on Prayer
John Bunyan once said: "You can do more than pray after you have prayed, but you cannot do more than pray until you have prayed" (I.D.E. Thomas, The Golden Treasuary of Puritan Quotations. Chicago:Moody, 1975). If our church is going to "do" some things of eternal impact in our city, it has to start with prayer.
We have seen God to amazing things so far in our body and we seem to be gaining some spiritual momentum which puts us at a cross roads for many decisions that need to be made regarding taking next steps. I truly believe that we are only beginning to see God work in our midst and we need to pray that God will continue to lead us each step of the way as we move forward by faith.
Come join us at our next Church Wide Prayer Meeting next Tuesday February 23rd.
WedWednesdayFebFebruary17th2010
Tony Reinke on Sleep
I was encouraged by this theological refection by Tony Reinke on Sleep.
Sleep is a perpetual reminder of our finiteness. Every 14-18 hours or so (depending on the person and depending on caffeine intake), our bodies have to shut down and be refreshed in order to survive. It doesn't matter how strong or resilient a person is, no one can survive without sleep.
Sleep is one of the things that sets God apart from human beings. God's word says that God never sleeps (Psalm 121:4). Think about it, the God who cares for you has never been drowsy, has never had bed head or morning breath, because He has NEVER EVER slept. Whether under the light of the sun or moon (Psalm 121:6), God is always caring for us.
Amazing! So sleep then should be an act of worship in which we regularly cease from our own efforts and rest in the care of He who "does not faith or grow weary" (Isaiah 40:28).
MonMondayFebFebruary15th2010
Understanding the Gospel starts with Understanding Ourselves
In studying John 3:1-21 this week, I was intrigued by this quotation from Thomas Constable, a professor at Dallas Theological Seminary.
Much of modern man's problem with the gospel is anthropological. It arises from a faulty view of himself. Fallen man generally views human beings as neutral if not good. Therefore the fact that God sent Jesus and Jesus came to save sinners seems only interesting at best. If man is good and not in need of salvation, we can applaud God's love as admirable. If man is neutral, we can take salvation or leave it. If we leave it, God appears unfair for condemning us. However man is not good or neutral but bad. He already stands condemned and destined to experience God's wrath. Therefore faith in Jesus becomes a necessary way of escape from that dreadful destiny.
http://www.soniclight.com/constable/notes/pdf/john.pdf (page 60)
SunSundayFebFebruary14th2010
Born of Water and Spirit
What does Jesus mean when we talks about being “born of water and the Spirit” (John 3:5). Some have suggested that Jesus is describing the importance of believer’s baptism, while others put forward that Jesus is contrasting natural birth with spiritual birth. I’ll pass on to you a little bit of my homework from sermon prep this week, but for a more thorough and lucid discussion of this material please see D.A. Carson, The Gospel According to John. (Grand Rapids: Eerdman’s, 1991) around page 185-200.
The first clue lies in the grammatical structure of the sentence. For those of us who are nerdy grammar types, here it goes: The construction of the phrase in the Greek text indicates that the preposition "of" governs both "water" and "Spirit." This means that Jesus was clarifying regeneration by using two terms that both describe regeneration. Why is this significant? This is significant because Jesus is not proposing that two separate things have to be present for regeneration to happen (i.e. water baptism and spiritual baptism) and He is not contrasting one form of birth with another (i.e. natural birth and physical birth). Spirit and water in this sentence are described as coming from one source.
The second clue is found in its overall context. Notice Jesus' criticism of Nicodemus for not understanding these things (John 3:10). This indicates that what He was saying about the source of regeneration was abundantly clear in the Old Testament.
The Old Testament often used water metaphorically to describe the giving of His Spirit to His people.
Joel 2:28 "And it shall come to pass afterward, that I will pour out my Spirit on all flesh; your sons and your daughters shall prophesy, your old men shall dream dreams, and your young men shall see visions.
Isaiah 32:15 until the Spirit is poured upon us from on high,
Isaiah 44:3 For I will pour water on the thirsty land, and streams on the dry ground; I will pour my Spirit upon your offspring, and my blessing on your descendants.
Ezekiel 36:25-27 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.
Ezekiel 39:29 And I will not hide my face anymore from them, when I pour out my Spirit upon the house of Israel, declares the Lord GOD."
Jesus was emphasizing that with this many repetitions of a water and Spirit theme, Nicodemus should have caught on to what Jesus was saying because he was an Old Testament expert.
God had promised through the OT prophets that He would pour out His spirit on people like water which would result in a new heart and new spiritual life (Jer. 31:31-34). Thus the notion that God would clean and renew His people by His Spirit is replete in the Old Testament. Therefore John 3:5 describes the cleansing and life-giving work of the Holy Spirit in regeneration.
Have you experienced the life transformation that comes through the cleansing and forgiveness of sins made possible by the cross?
TueTuesdayFebFebruary9th2010
Recommended Reading: What Jesus Demands from the World
The recommended reading for our Narrow Path sermon series is What Jesus Demands from the World by John Piper. Here's a brief excerpt from the introduction.
"On the basis of who he was and what he accomplished, Jesus made his demands. The demands cannot be separated from his person and work. The obedience he demands is the fruit of his redeeming work and the display of his personal glory. That is why he came— to create a people who glorify his gracious reign by bearing the fruit of his kingdom (Matt. 21:43). When he said, “The Son of Man came to seek and to save the lost” (Luke 19:10), he was speaking about Zacchaeus who had just been so transformed that he gave half his possessions to the poor (Luke 19:8). In other words, the Son of Man came to save people from their suicidal love affair with possessions (and every other idol) and to lead them into a kind of impossible obedience that displays the infinite worth of Jesus. Therefore, my effort in this book has been to hold together the meaning and motivation of Jesus’ commands, the greatness of his work, and the glory of his person." (page 23)
You can pick up a copy at our resource table this Sunday or click here to download this book in PDF format for free.
SunSundayFebFebruary7th2010
Come Lord Jesus! To All Who Are Thirsty
I was so encouraged by this song at worship service this morning and it's permanently stuck in my head. I thought I'd pass on the lyrics.
All who are thirsty
All who are weak
Come to the fountain
Dip your heart in the stream of life
Let the pain and the sorrow
Be wash'd away
In the waves of His mercy
As deep cries out to deep
Come, Lord Jesus, come
Come, Lord Jesus, come
Come, Lord Jesus, come
Come, Lord Jesus, come
As deep cries out to deep
As deep cries out to deep
Words and Music by Brenton Brown, Glenn Robertson
© 1998 Vineyard Music
Click here to purchase this song on itunes.
These verses come to mind when I hear this song.
Psalm 63:1 O God, you are my God; earnestly I seek you; my soul thirsts for you; my flesh faints for you, as in a dry and weary land where there is no water.
Isaiah 55:1-2"Come, everyone who thirsts, come to the waters; and he who has no money, come, buy and eat! Come, buy wine and milk without money and without price. Why do you spend your money for that which is not bread, and your labor for that which does not satisfy? Listen diligently to me, and eat what is good, and delight yourselves in rich food. 3 Incline your ear, and come to me; hear, that your soul may live.
SatSaturdayFebFebruary6th2010
Thankful for our Chair Warriors!
Just spent 3 hours with the leaders of our set up and tear down crew (affectionately know as "the chair warriors") tweaking our Sunday morning arrangements.
I'm so thankful that God has provided gifted and humble people who are willing to give up a saturday morning to honour the Lord by striving for excellence in even the smallest details.
God uses these people each week as they serve with the strength God provides (1 Peter 4:11), doing tasks that go unnoticed by most. If you're interested in joining this amazing team, please inquire at the Get Connected Desk this Sunday.
WedWednesdayFebFebruary3rd2010
...but I don't have the Gift of Evangelism!
As I was preparing for the sermon last Sunday, I came accross these encouraging words from Don Whitney for those who think they can't share their faith effectively because they don't have the gift of evangelism.
"some Christians believe that evangelism is a gift and the responsibility of only those with that gift. They apeal to Ephesians 4:11 for support: "It was he who gave some to apostles, some to be prophets, some to be evangelists, and some to be pastors and teachers." While it is true that God gifts some for ministry as evangelists, He calls all believers to be His witnesses and provides them with both the power to witness and a powerful message... Just as each Christian, regardless of spiritual gift or ministry, is to love others, so each believer is to evangelize whether or not his or her gift is that of evangelist".
(Don Whitney, Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life. Colorado Springs: NavPress, 1991. page 101)
In this way, the church is kind of like a National Leage Baseball Team. In the National League, there are no designated hitters, every player has to go to bat. Sure, different players may specialize in specifice areas in the infield or outfield like shortstop, catcher or centre field, but everyone, even the pitcher, has to go bat. In the same way different people in the church are gifted in different ways as encouragers, teachers, helpers etc, which means we serve in different ways, but their is one area of service that no one is exempt from and that's sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with others.
So just like Paul (Ephesians 6:19-20), we all need to be praying for and expecting opportunities to share our faith with boldness "as we ought". So step into that batter's box and swing away.
TueTuesdayFebFebruary2nd2010
The Great Commission
Sharing the good news of Jesus Christ is not optional. We have all been commissioned by Jesus to get out there and tell people about Him. This is not the Great Suggestion, it’s the Great Commission, and just incase you didn’t catch it the first time, in the book of Matthew, God inspired other versions of this solemn charge from His son in four other places.
Matthew 28:19 Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, teaching them to observe all that I have commanded you. And behold, I am with you always, to the end of the age."
Mark 16:15 And he said to them, "Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.
Luke 24:46-48 and said to them, "Thus it is written, that the Christ should suffer and on the third day rise from the dead, and that repentance and forgiveness of sins should be proclaimed in his name to all nations, beginning from Jerusalem. You are witnesses of these things.
John 20:21 Jesus said to them again, "Peace be with you. As the Father has sent me, even so I am sending you."
Acts 1:8 But you will receive power when the Holy Spirit has come upon you, and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the end of the earth."
In many ways God has brought “all nations” reaching “to the ends of the earth” here to the city of Brampton. Today, you have been sent as a missionary by simply showing up at work or by walking your child to school or going to the mall. I’m praying for you today that God would give you an opportunity to share your faith with courageous clarity today.
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