Pastor’s Blog

25 March 2009

Miss last week’s Ligonier Conference? You can watch videos of the speakers here.

18 March 2009

Let’s face it–the Bible is a big book with a lot of details. Mastering it can be a daunting challenge. To make that task easier, here is a list of some key chapters in Scripture. These chapters are significant for different reasons. Some are turning points in redemptive history while others are key chapters for understanding certain doctrines or the Christian life. A list like this is inevitably subjective (yours might differ from mine), but here goes. I hope it helps.

Genesis 1-2, Creation

Genesis 3, The Fall

Genesis 9, God’s Covenant with Noah

Genesis 12, God’s promise to Abraham

Exodus 20, The Ten Commandments

2 Samuel 7, God’s Covenant with David

Jeremiah 31, The Promise of the New Covenant

Matthew 5-7, The Sermon on the Mount

John 1, The Deity of Christ

Luke 2, The Birth of Jesus

John 17, Jesus’ High Priestly Prayer

Matthew 28, Resurrection, Great Commission

Acts 2, Pentecost

1 Corinthians 13, Love

1 Corinthians 15, The Resurrection

Romans 9, Election

Colossians 3, The Christian Life

1 Timothy 3; Titus 1, Qualifications for Elders & Deacons

Revelation 21, The New Heavens & New Earth

18 March 2009

In his blog, Al Mohler comments on the current issue of TIME magazine, which takes a look at “10 Ideas Changing the World Right Now.”  Surprisingly, one of those ideas is “the New Calvinism.” From TIME:

Neo-Calvinist ministers and authors don’t operate quite on a Rick Warren scale. But, notes Ted Olsen, a managing editor at Christianity Today, “everyone knows where the energy and the passion are in the Evangelical world” — with the pioneering new-Calvinist John Piper of Minneapolis, Seattle’s pugnacious Mark Driscoll and Albert Mohler, head of the Southern Seminary of the huge Southern Baptist Convention. The Calvinist-flavored ESV Study Bible sold out its first printing, and Reformed blogs like Between Two Worlds are among cyber-Christendom’s hottest links.

We might be surprised TIME would mention it, but we shouldn’t be surprised that the “New Calvinism” is changing the world. The “New Calvinism” is essentially a modern resurgence of the “old Calvinism,” which itself is simply the Biblical gospel of God’s sovereign grace saving sinners. That’s been changing the world for the last 2000 years. It is nice to be noticed, though.

If one gives an answer before he hears, it is his folly and shame. (Proverbs 18:13, ESV)

Have you ever found yourself talking with someone and realized that while they were talking, you were not listening but thinking about what to say next? I know I have. In fact, I have become more conscious lately of just how much I tend to be lost somewhere in the back of my mind rather than truly listening to the other person. (My wife’s way ahead of me on this one; she has known this about me for years….)

Why do we tend to be poor listeners? Why do we answer prematurely?

One reason is that we are indeed lost in our own thoughts, either thinking of what we want to say next (it can’t really be called a “reply,” since we are not listening enough to “reply”), or we are simply thinking about other things. This wandering mind may be a lack of interest in the subject, or a lack of regard for what the other person has to say to us. Either may indicate a lack of regard for the person himself.

Proverbs says that to do this is our folly and shame. Folly, because someone is saying something to us we may need to hear. Shame, because not listening (perhaps while appearing to listen) is a shabby way to treat another person.

So how do we improve in this area? The first step, as they say, is to recognize there is a problem. In fact, sometimes it may be necessary, upon realizing that you aren’t  really listening to someone, to say, “I’m sorry. I have to confess my mind was wandering. I do want to hear what you’re saying. Would you please repeat that?”

Then, resolve to listen. Make sure your entire attention is on the person speaking (close the book, turn off the TV, move away from the computer). Think about what the person is saying. Look at them—pay attention to body language. Does the other person seem tense? Relaxed? Resistant (arms folded)?

Refuse to interrupt. Don’t jump in with an answer (or rebuttal) as soon as the other person pauses to take a breath (or think). If they have stopped talking, pause before responding. Doing so enables you to make sure they have in fact finished their thought, as well as to process what they’ve said.

Repeat back to the person what they have said and ask them to confirm if that’s what they meant. (This step isn’t always necessary in informal conversation, but when talking about deeper, more important matters, it can be helpful). Begin with something like, “Let me see if I understand what you’re saying. You’re saying that….

Jesus said that the second greatest commandment is to love your neighbor as yourself. You want others to listen to you, don’t you? Then listen to them. To listen to them is to show them love.