Apologetics Friday (but on sunday)---Thinking about thinking

Thinking about thinking Faith and Reason Ideas and their consequences Logic and emotions Philosophy 1. Faith and Reason What is faith? Hebrews 11:1 Faith is the assurance of the things we hope for and the conviction of things that we have not seen. What is reason? A basis or cause for some belief or action. Some have said, “Faith is a blind leap into the dark”. What do you think? Do you have to abandon reason to have faith? God has given us both faith and reason. Christ does not call us to “leap into the dark”, but step into the light. 1 John 1:5,6 2. Ideas and their Consequences We need to understand the consequences of our ideas and beliefs. The bible commands it. 1 Peter 3:15 God has given us a mind to think with and tells us to use it for his glory. Romans 12:2 and Matthew 22:37 Our ideas or beliefs always have consequences. Think about this for a second. If you believe that God is holy and just and there will be a day of judgment, that belief has consequences for your life. You will not want to rebel against this holy God. The consequence of your belief is a change in your heart towards God. And that will result in a change in your actions towards God. Ideas can have good or bad consequences. Those who believe they can breathe under water may drown trying to. Those who believe that gravity doesn’t affect them may jump off of the empire state building. Muslims who believe that martyrdom will get them to heaven will fly planes into buildings. This is a bad consequence that stems from bad ideas. On the other hand, believing that getting your shots from the doctor may keep you from getting the measles. Believing that there is a cure for cancer has lead to many major medical breakthroughs. So you see that some ideas have good consequences. But those consequences come from the root of the issue and that is whether or not the belief is true or valid. 3. Logic and Emotions Logic is a gift from God and is to be used for his glory. God has made us as reasonable creatures. And reasonable creatures should strive to think logically. God has also made us emotional creatures. This means that our emotions and logic should not contradict each other but compliment. For example, looking both ways before crossing the street is a logical thing to do. If you cross safely, your emotions are stable and you are pleased. If you look both ways and then proceed to cross and are nearly hit by the moving traffic, you emotions react. Your heart beats rapidly, you tremble, and you are scared. This emotional response is also logical. It makes sense that you would react this way, you were nearly killed! So logic and emotions are not opposed, but they can be unbalanced. Logic and emotions must be complimentary to one another. Emotions are good but they cannot determine what is true. Feeling good about something does not make it good. If smacking your brother makes you happy, it doesn’t mean that it was right. Emotions are the part of the soul that appreciates and responds to life. We cannot trust our emotions to determine truth for us. But when the truth is revealed to us, let us not stifle our emotions. Let them well up with worship to our God. Let them compliment the truth and logic that you found. Emotions cannot be the key factor for reasoning. 4. Philosophy Philosophy has often been described as thinking about thinking. Proverbs 4:5,6 We should aspire to gain this wisdom. The greek words that make up the word philosophy are “philia”, which means love, and “Sophia” which means wisdom. So the word “philosophy” means “loving wisdom”. This is not anti-christian. We should not be scared of philosophy. Although some philosophers and their thoughts are hostile to Christianity, we should not be afraid to examine why we think the way we do. Philosophy has determined much of the way you think right now. Many clichés that you have heard came from the lips of philosophers. Some of the greatest theologians of the church were also philosophers: Augustine, Aquinas, Anselm, and Jonathan Edwards. Philosophy asks questions such as “What is real?” “How do you know it is real?” “What is truly good?” The problem comes when we seek our reasoning above the reasoning of scripture. Scripture must be our final authority. This is even philosophical. We turn to scripture because it is truth. All philosophy and philosophers desire to be true. Truth is the goal of philosophy and the bible is our ultimate source for finding it.

Apologetics Friday----The Existence of God

The Existence of God 1. The Law of Inertia (first cause) 2. The Ordering of Creation 3. Incurably religious Human Beings 4. Moral Laws Objections to the Existence of God 1. Christianity is just a crutch 2. Paradox of the Stone 3. Christianity is exclusive 1. The Law of Inertia The law of inertia states that “An object at rest tends to stay at rest and an object in motion tends to stay in motion with the same speed and in the same direction unless acted upon by an unbalanced force”. This is the first of Newton’s Laws. If this law is true, then there must be a first cause. There must be something that starts things off. Why does the earth rotate around the sun while spinning itself? The plates beneath the earth shift and stars fly through the universe. Comets and asteroids fly through our universe….what sends them flying? There has to be a first cause and that first cause is God. 2. The ordering of Creation Every building you see in your town was designed by someone. Buildings do not evolve on their own. They do not just pop out of the ground with 2x4 studs and trusses. Someone designs them and someone builds them. They have an order to them. So does every “natural” thing. Trees function a certain way. They take in carbon dioxide and release oxygen. It is the same oxygen that we breath. Is that just a fluke? The human eye is so complex that all parts of it are dependant upon the others for their existence. So it is impossible for the eye to evolve. All parts must be present or it cannot exist. 3. Incurably religious human beings Have you ever noticed that almost everyone believes in a god of some form? Don’t confuse this with faith but this is just a simple belief that “a god” exists. Why is that? I think it is because of Romans 1:19,20. Your conscience can’t deny it. During times of disaster such as tornados, hurricanes, earthquakes, etc… you can’t find an atheist! Everyone believes in a god when they are about to die. Not necessarily faith, just belief. Even atheists have beliefs. 4. Moral Law Even those who deny the existence of a God have a sense of right and wrong. What sets that standard for them? If there is no supreme being that sets the standards, how do they know what is right? How can they say that rape and murder are wrong? By what standard are they measuring those things? The staunchest atheist will tell you that murdering innocent children is wrong. When they tell you this, ask them how they come to that conclusion. Objections to the Existence of God 1. Christianity is just a crutch for weak people. When one considers the fact that over 500 people saw the resurrected Christ, I am not so sure that this faith is a crutch. If anyone ever knew how to effectively kill a person, it was the Romans. Jesus died. The Romans would not have messed this up. They were the best at killing people. The “swoon theory” is full of holes. Had Jesus remained dead, Christians should be the most pitied of all people on the earth. But he didn’t remain dead. He is alive! That is not a leap into the dark, it is a step into the light. 2. The paradox of the Stone The paradox of the stone is the question of God’s omnipotence. It goes like this, “Is it possible for God to create a stone so heavy that he could not lift it?” If you answer “no”, then God cannot do everything and if you answer “yes”, then God still cannot do everything. At first glance you may think that this is a valid question but let’s look a little deeper at it. First of all, the atheist (or whoever) is posing a question that they wish for you to answer logically but the question is not logical. The “Law of Non-Contradiction” states that two truths cannot be opposed to each other. God’s omnipotence is defined by Thomas Aquinas as saying that God can do anything that is possible. This would include things that are impossible to you and me. God could take the earth and cast it into another galaxy. You and I could not do that. But for God to contradict himself or oppose himself can never be an option. That option is non-existent. The question cannot be answered without a little understanding of term “omnipotent” and all sides using logic. Some have said that God could indeed do both of these even though it is a contradiction. The problem with that is that it denies the orderly ways that we see God revealed in scripture. This paints a picture of a God who does things arbitrarily. This is not the God of the bible. 3. Christianity is exclusive. Some say our God cannot exist if it denies all other forms of religion. This argument will get nowhere. If a God exists, and he is really God, then he can be as exclusive as he wants. The reality is that God has commanded all men everywhere to repent and believe. He is not excluding you, he is inviting you. If you choose another way, then you have excluded yourself. To be God means to be Sovereign. Something has to be ultimately sovereign. If God is not sovereign, then whatever denies him is sovereign over him. God is real and he is Sovereign.

Prayer

Hey, this is Derek. I just wanted to ask you all to pray for me tomorrow as I share the gospel with the youth group at Master's church. Marc (the youth minister) asked me to speak a few weeks ago and, right away, I knew that God wanted me to preach the gospel to these youth. Many of them are lost and I'm praying that God will move in their hearts tomorrow and claim them as His own. Thanks guys.

Apologetics Friday--Part 1

Dr. Rick Cornish has published a series of books that are great tools for quickly getting a grasp of subjects. The books that I know of are called, "5 Minute Apologist", "5 Minute Theologian", and "5 Minute Church Historian". They give you the barebones facts about events, doctrines, or whatever. "5 Minute Apologist" is the one that I personally own and have used some of his teachings with my youth group. I recommend picking this little book up and reading it and referencing it. Especially if you are pressed for time and have a desire for understanding. These little books are great for bible studies and contributing godly answers in a time when everyone sees truth as relative. Here is the first of a series that I have written that I will be teaching the youth in April. I have adapted much information from his book to do so. Enjoy! Some common worldviews 1. Theism 2. Polytheism 3. Deism 4. Atheism 5. Humanism 6. Pluralism 7. Post-modernism 1. Theism Q. What is theism? A. Theism is the belief in one infinite, personal God. Deuteronomy 6:4 1 Corinthians 8:6 Why I am a theist 1. Theism has undeniable evidence. 2. It is the explanation of good and evil. 3. Logic, science, and reason all support theism. 2.Polytheism Q. What is polytheism? A. Polytheism is the belief in many finite, personal gods who rule distinct realms of the universe. (exp. Greek mythology) Problems with polytheism 1. Nature is eternal, not the gods. Therefore, nature has given birth to the Gods which is opposed to God creating nature. 2. The world is an arena of chaotic competition between the gods. Their interests clash with one another. 3. These gods are finite which means they do not live forever. 4. “Multiple gods” fails by definition. There cannot be more than one God or else he is not really god. 5. These gods have the same weaknesses as humans. What is so godlike about that? 3. Deism Q. What is Deism? A. Deism believes that God created the world, but then turned his back and is uninvolved and unconcerned with it. God set the world to run by natural law. Problems with Deism 1. Deism denies miracles because God does not intervene with humanity. The problem with this is that it contradicts itself. Creation of the world from nothing fits into the miracle category. If there are no miracles, then there cannot be a created universe. 2. No consequences for anything. Nothing really matters because we face no judgment, no eternal life, no salvation. 3. Modern science has demonstrated that the universe is not mechanical. The so called “absolute natural laws” are not absolute after all. 4. Atheism Q. What is Atheism? A. Atheism is the belief that there is no God. Problems with Atheism 1. It cannot be affirmed. No one can prove that there isn’t a God. 2. All atheists believe that some things are right and some things are wrong. Without a moral standard given by a holy God, then right and wrong do not exist. They believe things to be evil but cannot give an explanation of what determines it to be evil. There must be a “good” to define a “bad”. 3. They cannot live out their belief. They get angry when people die but cannot explain their anger. They shouldn’t be mad. For an atheist, death should be completely natural. 5. Humanism Q. What is Humanism? A. Humanism is the belief that humans are the supreme being. It is the belief that we find the solutions to life’s problems within ourselves. Problems with Humanism 1. If humans are supreme, which race, gender, color, social status, or genetic make-up determines the path for the human race? 2. Why do we have undesirable traits such as hatred, envy, and pride? If we are God, then shouldn’t these things be changed by our determination? Why aren’t they? 3. At what point did humans discover their divinity? 6. Pluralism Q. What is pluralism? A. Pluralism is the belief that all religions and worldviews are equally valid. Problems with Pluralism 1. Pluralism claims to be an exclusive truth in itself. It contradicts itself. The very thing it tries to overcome, it produces. 2. It violates logic. Jesus and Muhammad cannot both be the only, final source of God’s truth. 3. It destroys morality. This view will lead to spiritual implosion. It would take good and evil and make them the interchangeable with no distinctions between them. 7. Post-Modernism Q. What is post-modernism? A. Post-modernism is the belief that nothing can be absolutely true and it rejects all other worldviews. Problems with Post-modernism 1. Post-modernism is a contradiction within itself. It denies all worldviews but it is a worldview within itself. 2. Everyone believes something. If you reject that last sentence, you reject it because you believe something else. 3. If nothing is absolute, then nothing can be truly known. If you have any questions or would like further explanation of a point, please leave a comment saying so. This is just basically the outline for the first study. Some of it may not make sense without some explanation.

Derek's Playlist

Alright, since Andrew has thrown down the challenge, I will accept and share my own playlist. 1) This World (Caedmon's Call)- Caedom's Call is my absolute favorite band and this is one of my favorite songs from them, if not my favorite. They have so many great songs that it's near impossible for me to pick just one. Which is why number 2 is... 2) Not The Land (Caedmon's Call)- Hey, it's my list, I can feature as many artists as I want! This is one of the most rocking songs I have ever heard, especially when the chorus kicks in and Derek really adds the growl to his voice. Ahhh, musical bliss. 3) When He Calls (I'll Fly Away) (Gold City)- That looks a little confusing- Gold City is the artist, not I'll Fly Away. I have to have at least one southern gospel song on this list, and chances are it's going to be about heaven. The studio version is pretty good, but it's amazing live. The tenor singer finishes the song with a note that would make a dog's ears bleed. 4) Callin' Baton Rouge (Garth Brooks)- Oh man, oh man. This song pumps me up every single time I hear it. My favorite version is from his Double Live album- when every thing drops out but the drums in the chorus, I can't help but pound my fist in the air and belt out those lyrics at the top of my lungs... "Hurry up won't you put her on the line, I gotta talk to the girl just-a one more time" 5) For The Love Of God (Andrew Peterson)- This happens to be the most played songs in my itunes. Andrew Peterson is one of the greatest songwriters I've ever heard. He uses the lyrics and music to paint masterpieces in the minds of his listeners. This is a great song about his family and love. 6) Washin' & Wonderin' (Stroke 9)- I can't stay away from that catchy, 90's, power-pop rock. (I'm not sure if that's a real genre, or if I just made that up). Sam (ex-JMB drummer) and I used to jam on this song back in 7th grade. Man, those were the days. 7) Dance (Derek Webb)- Although not one of his more deep, theologically challenging songs, Dance is a great tune nonetheless. Derek wrote this song after a conversation with his grandmother as she told him her entire life story. 8) Take It Easy (The Eagles)- I love when the banjo kicks in about half way through. 9) Tiny Dancer (Elton John)- I used to play and sing this song all the time (don't ask me to now, I've already retired it... a few times) so whenever I hear it, it brings back many fond memories. I remember playing this song once at GSP for Mary Beth... it's probably why she digs me so much. 10) Cruel Kindness (Inside Out)- I love a cappella groups and this is the best one I've heard. If I had to pick a favorite song from Inside Out, it would probably be this one for the great background harmonies in the chorus. 11) Friend Like You (Big Daddy Weave)- If I ever get in a good bass playing mood, this is usually the song I want to hear. Each bass line on the album is solid, interesting, and downright fun to play. This song always gets my blood flowing and my fingers itching to groove. 12) God Only Knows (The Beach Boys)- I feel that the Beach Boys are too often unappreciated in the music world and the genius of Brian Wilson was too easily forgotten. I especially love the end of this song when the vocals start layering on top of each other. 13) Piano Man (Billy Joel)- Here's another song I have played many times, but I still never get tired of hearing it. This was the first song that Mary Beth heard me sing and play so it has some special meaning to me. I love the line "And the piano it sounds like a carnival and the microphone smells like a beer." On the word "carnival", he sings it more as a shout and slightly out of tune... I'm not quite sure why I like that part so much, but I do.

Andrew's Playlist

Here's my playlist - a la iTunes Celebrity Playlists.... sans the "Celebrity" part... 1. Ants Marching (Dave Matthews Band) – my all-time favorite song by my all-time favorite band. Not so much for the lyrics, but the energy of the music, especially live. 2. Hold Fast (MercyMe) – the first time I heard this song, I thought it was one of the most powerful songs I’ve ever heard. I still feel like that way, and it’s just as powerful live as the studio cut. 3. Superstition (Stevie Wonder) – the horn lick in this song is one of the catchiest snippets of music ever. Funky. 4. Pictures of You (The Cure) – I’m a child of the 80s, so I figured I needed to have an 80s song or two. 5. Here Am I (MercyMe) – the epitome of living the Christian life. We’re called to “go.” 6. Where the Streets Have No Name (U2) – one of those songs you wish were longer. If U2 wrote five more verses and repeated the chorus several more times, I wouldn’t have complained. 7. Speed of Sound (Coldplay) – my favorite song from 2005. I would love to see Coldplay live, and hear this anthem. 8. Is It Any Wonder (Keane) – another rock anthem. I would love to be a part of writing a song like this. I have a rule to only play this song loud in my car. All talking stops, the volume goes up, and I just listen. 9. Wonderful Cross – I didn’t label an artist for this because it’s been performed by praise bands everywhere. I prefer David Crowder Band’s version, which I’ve heard twice live. Aside from that, I think the Josh Martin Band’s version is second-best. Not to mention it’s a song about the focus of my faith. 10. Every Breath You Take (Sting) – Another great 80s song. 11. To Make You Feel My Love (Garth Brooks) – everyone has their favorite love song, and this is mine. (maybe the rest of the band will post theirs?? hint, hint) Later, Andrew

Apologetics Fridays

Hey for the next few weeks I will be putting up some stuff about apologetics on fridays. I don't think that you can ever reason someone to faith but I do believe that God has used apologetics for many things. It is definately a great tool for evagelism. It will "stop the mouths" of those who would lead others astray. It will also help us to know why we believe what we believe. Most imporantly, we have a biblical mandate given to us in 1 Peter 3:15 to always be ready to give an account for the hope that we have. We are not only commanded to tell people what we believe, but why we believe it. We will start next friday with establishing a biblical worldview. This is becoming more and more crucial in this post-modern age we live in. We will discuss post-modernism as well. until next friday.............

(no caption really needed to know what he's thinking)

How People Change--Part 3

There are two basic schools of thought about change. One focuses on the emotions and one on the will. The religious world focuses on the will most of the time. If you are down on yourself they say, “Buck up, be strong, grit your teeth and bear it, hang on you can get through it, tough it out, it will be ok.” They place all of the emphasis on the will, your ability change things. Your determination to not settle. And we even say these things, “I am not going to do this anymore. I am not going to keep sinning like this.” You see understanding that something is wrong and applying your determination will not bring lasting change. It does not work. Why? The second school of thought, which is often found in the secular world focuses on the emotions. They tell you that you are practicing self-defeating thinking. You need to change the way you think, you need to do something nice for yourself. They try to get you to feel better about yourself by focusing on your emotions. They try to bring real change by changing your thinking and for those of you who have suffered emotional stress, this may change you for a while, but you will relapse back into it again. Because real change has not occurred. Now, that’s a lot of stuff to think about. I have been thinking about this for several months and it is still a lot for me to grapple with. Don’t miss this right here. If you are totally confused about everything I have said this morning, make sure you get this. Read 2 Corinthians 3:15-18 again. Listen to this. This is the key to real, lasting change. “Beholding the glory of God brings real change.” Listen to me, do not miss this. Josh Martin was converted to Christ when he beheld the glory of God. Seeing that changes you. Here is what I mean. I had heard the gospel many times as a child and it did not change my heart. Why? I didn’t get it. I believed Jesus was God’s son. Of course I believed he died on the cross for sin. I believed he rose from the dead even. But it didn’t change me. Why? Because I knew the facts, but I was yet to behold his Glory. The eyes of my heart were veiled. But when I actually turned to the Lord in faith and repentance, not just knowledge, I could behold the glorious truth of who he is and what he had done and I was transformed. God removed the veil and I could see him in all of his glory and it changed me. When you see him as glorious it will change you. You will experience true repentance because you will turn from your sin in sorrow and to Christ in faith. You don’t want that anymore, you want Him. This is not just true of conversion, but it is true of all of life and it is true of all change. All real change occurs this same way. Let’s break down these verses for a second and see the truth of what is being said here. v.15 Moses was not glorious. The glory on Moses’ face will fade but the glory in the face of Christ will not. V16 You must turn to the Lord, not your determination, not your emotional fix but to the Lord V17,18 When the veil is removed we can see him and it will change us. And it doesn’t end with conversion. But from one degree of glory to another. In all of life. This is how we are sanctified in heart and body. Look at other places where Paul does this. 2 Corinthians 8:1-9 When Paul wants the Corinthians to be generous he doesn’t just scold them. He takes them to the Gospel. He explains how Christ tasted poverty so that we could be rich. When you see that, you will want to give. And you will do it without any pressure. It will indeed be of your own free will. Ephesians 5:22-27 Wives, Because Christ is your savior and you have submitted to him, and he holds your life and you following Him, submitting to your husband shouldn’t be an issue. Husbands, because you know the spousal love of Jesus Christ, when he could have left and probably should have left you, he stayed and gave you everything. Loving your wife this way shouldn’t be an issue. It always go back to the Gospel. The Gospel is what will change us. Seeing that glory will change us. I want to end today the way Paul ended this thought in 2 Corinthians 3:18“For this comes from the Lord who is Spirit.” I want us to acknowledge the glorious truth that this change only occurs because of the working of God. Let’s be sure that he gets the credit for this. Let’s be sure that he gets the glory so that others may see who we credit this work to and then they, with unveiled face, may behold this same glory and be changed. If there are any questions, feel free to ask. I can say, "I don't know" as well as anybody. But who knows, I may have an answer.

How People Change--Part 2

Now that we have established that even those whose hearts are hardened toward God are hardened by something, what motivates us to change? Let’s look at some motivators that do not bring lasting change. Real change happens on the inside and is evident on the outside. Outward change is often a sign of inward change but not proof of inward change. I can have a change of actions without having a change of heart. We often ask what would Jesus do? This helps us conform our actions but you would be surprised what you could do with a hard heart. This was the main problem with the Pharisees and much of the problem with the religious world today. We honor Christ with our lips, but our heart is far from him. We have cleaned the outside of the cup without having touched the inside of the cup. Why do we do that? Why did the Pharisees do that? Why do we so often conform our actions without conforming our heart? Motivators Guilt is a motivator. And guilt will change the way you act but it will not change your heart. Because the change that you make in your actions almost never removes feelings of guilt. If they are removed, they come back and you find yourself in this vicious cycle of never being freed from that guilt. It changes your actions but it does not change you. Whole change must occur or it is not real change, it is a cheap imposter. Fear is a motivator. This is probably the greatest motivator for change that never brings real change. It too will change your actions but it will not change your heart. I do not teach the youth to not have pre-marital sex by scaring them into thinking about the consequences of an STD. This tactic may change their actions but it does not change their heart and the heart must be right or the actions don’t mean a thing. Jesus told the Pharisees I want you to follow the law but follow it with both heart and actions. This fear motivation will not lead you to real change. This is true of my own conversion. I didn’t come to Christ because I was scared of Hell. I was just as scared of Heaven. Hell hurt and Heaven was boring and I didn’t want to go to either. Heaven is not the goal of the Christian life, Christ is the goal of the Christian life. Being with love ones in heaven is not the goal, being with Christ in heaven is the goal. You cannot scare me into a relationship with Christ anymore than you can please me into a relationship with Christ. This talk of heaven leads me to the next motivator I want to talk about. Pleasure is a motivator. This is true for everyone in here. We are motivated by pleasure. We change our jobs so that we can make more money to have more pleasure. We change the way we relate to each other so that we can find pleasure in each other’s company. If you can go on a cruise to the Bahamas for the same price as a weekend at the lake, you will change your plans from the lake to the cruise because it brings you more pleasure. Do you see this? Do you see how pleasure motivates you? Pleasure changes the way you do almost everything but it can never satisfy the need for more pleasure which means it does not bring real lasting change. You will need to change something tomorrow to feel more pleasure so it is never a real change but many endless changes. These are just three of many motivators that will not bring real, lasting, Godly change. There are too many of these to list to put into one sermon but these are the most common I believe. I will post what I believe the Bible teaches about change on Monday.

How People Change--Part 1

There will be seveal posts on here in the next week that I am taking from a sermon I preached a few weeks ago about change. With New Year's right around the corner, people will soon be talking about their New Year's resolutions. Sadly, most of our resolutions fall through the floor. But I think it is helpful to get a biblical perspective on change. From conversion to true sanctification, not just moral conformity. Here goes. Read 2 Corinthians 3:15-18 We all have things in our life or about us that we would like to change. And we would do anything in the world change them. Some things we want to change are things that we should want to change because they are bad or unbecoming of us. In particular these things are mostly sin that we struggle with. We want to change some things because we just don’t like them. They are not bringing any harm to us or anyone else but we want to change them because we simply don’t like them. I have things like that. One thing in particular is my voice. I hate to hear myself recorded. When the JMB produces a new CD, I never listen to it after it’s finished. The last time I purposefully listen to it is in the studio for the final mix. Once it’s done, I’m done. I don’t want to hear it because I don’t like to hear my voice. But I continue to sing despite my voice, because I want people to hear the truth in the lyrics. I don’t have to sing as well as Mac Powell of Third Day, I just want to write music like King David. It is not my first priority to sound like Steven Curtis Chapman, but to write music that is as solid as his. I would change my voice if I could but it’s really not that important and it doesn’t keep me from doing what I feel the Lord has called me to do. Some of you have the same issue here. Some things you want to change don’t really matter that much. But some things do. And that is what I want us to look at today. How do people change? But not just for a little while, how do we change for good? It is really silly that people think that Christians are the only ones trying to convert people. The following is an article from the New York Times written by Mark Lilla. He starts off the article talking about how he had a "conversion experience" as a child but now totally denounces all claims to be a Christian. He goes to a Billy Graham Crusade in queens to write about it for the paper and talks with a young man who had gone forward and surrendered his life to Christ. Here is what he had to say: “I found it hard to conceal my bafflement, since Billy had not said much at all. You must be born again - that was it. I felt a professorial lecture welling up in my throat about the history and psychology of religion. I wanted to expose him to the pastiche of the biblical text, the syncretic nature of Christian doctrine, the church's ambiguous role as incubator and stifler of human knowledge, the theological idiosyncrasy of American evangelicalism. I wanted to warn him against the anti-intellectualism of American religion today and the political abuses to which it is subject. I wanted to cast doubt on the step he was about to take, to help him see there are other ways to live, other ways to seek knowledge, love, perhaps even self-transformation. I wanted to convince him that his dignity depended on maintaining a free, skeptical attitude toward doctrine. I wanted. . .to save him. I thought I was out of that business, but maybe not. It took years to acquire the education I missed as a young man, an education not only in books but in a certain comportment toward myself and the world around me. Doubt, like faith, has to be learned. It is a skill. But the curious thing about skepticism is that its adherents, ancient and modern, have so often been proselytizers. In reading them, I've often wanted to ask, "Why do you care?" Their skepticism offers no good answer to that question. And I don't have one for myself.” (emphasis mine) You will be converted by something. The writer says that we should stay skeptical of all doctrine.....all doctrine but his doctrine! All beliefs but his beliefs! Everyone has a set of beliefs and everyone has been converted by something. Even the most post-modern of the post-modernists have a set of beliefs that they, deep down, believe you should conform to. How silly it is to think that Christians are the only ones concerned with converting people. So, the question is not "will you be converted?" The question is, "What set of beliefs will have it's way with you?" I will continue with more of the sermon on Friday.

Small Crowd/Large Crowd

Have you ever noticed that when attendance is up at church, the leaders spirits are up? And when attendance is down, the leaders spirits are down. The same thing is true for us, not just pastors. Sadly, this is even true for me when it comes to music. As I look back at this year and contemplate the different concerts that we have done, it seems that our better concerts have been with larger crowds and that leads me to ask the question "why"? Why are the concerts with larger crowds better than the ones with smaller crowds? We have had our share of both. There were a few concerts that if we hadn't brought our families, we wouldn't have been singing but to a handful of people. Other concerts had people scanning the room for a place to sit because it was so full. The big shows were better than the small ones. Why? I think this is true for everyone no matter what the venue. I am not necessarily talking about attendance but whatever it is that brings this kind of behavior. I hope this doesn't get too long but I am going to elaborate on that for a second. I am a youth pastor as well as the lead singer of the Josh Martin Band. When a lot of kids are coming to youth, I'm excited. When attendance is small, I get depressed. Most pastors are the same way. I once worked as a manager at a Winn-Dixie Marketplace. When sales where up, everyone was in a good mood. When sales where averagre or a little below..........not so much. I hope you can apply this to whatever it is that you do. Whether you are a factory worker, pastor, blue collar, white collar, career woman, or stay at home mom. All of us go to the end of our day with something that we fall back on. We all have something that, even if everything else falls through the floor, we rest confident in it every night when we lay down our head. It could be the way you manage your family. You may say, "Whatever else happens in my day, it doesn't matter, I am still a good parent." We all have something that we are using to justify ourselves everyday. Tim Keller calls these "functional saviors". We all have something that at the end of the day will be our savior. A little confession of my own here......I have found that one of my functional saviors has become knowledge. I am very eager to learn anything that i can to grow closer to God. My top ten books of the year can be seen at my other blog www.reformationundergoud.blogspot.com . I love learning things. I traveled as a missionary after high school and was not able to go to college or seminary. I would love to do both but I am finding that reading has been almost a supplement for those things. But as I began to grow in knowledge, so did my pride. Knowledge had become my functional savior. This is how you can see your functional savoir. Functional saviors are really idols. You may think that you don't have any idols in your life, but trust me, you do. You say, "I am a Christian and Christ is my idol. I am obediently following him and not looking to anything else." Well, that's a nice thought but it's not completely true. All of us have idols but the problem is that we can't see them until we learn how to spot them. This is true of everyone, believers and non-believers. Here is how you spot them; I will borrow a little from Tim Keller here. Idols are simply good things that have become ultimate things. This can be anything from knowledge, family, food, your job, your social class, etc. Even ministry can become and idol. You know that these things are idols by seeing your reactions when they are tampered with. If a good thing is lost, you get upset and cry. If an ultimate thing is lost, you want to jump off a bridge. If a good thing is blocked from you, you get mad or angry. When an ultimate thing is blocked, you get bitter, you can't sleep. Do you see why you act the way you do? The things that you overreact to tend to be the idols in your life. If knowledge is my idol, and you disagree with what I think, I get bitter at you because you are questioning my funcitonal savoir. You are drawing into question the thing that I am banking on. If my family is my idol, when they die, I am devastated at the loss and I sink into deep depression. I have lost what I am banking on. This is how you spot them. How do you get rid of them? Your heart can never go without an idol. So idols are not removed, they are replaced. God has designed your heart to hold something dear. To have an object of affection. That object of affection is to be Christ. So now that you know Christ is to be your idol, you will fix it, right? It will never happen if you are planning on just changing it. You have this idol because you find something glorious about it. There is something about it that you feel you cannot do without. When something else becomes more glorious than your idol, you exchange it for that new thing. May I present a solution? The Gospel is the center of the Christian life. The gospel is not just what we preach to non-believers, it is something we must preach to other christians. We need to hear the gospel continually. Why? The gospel changes us. It continually reminds us of the ultimately glorious thing and that is Christ. Look at the examples in the bible that Paul has given us. In Ephesians 5 he tells husbands and wives how they are to treat each other but he doesn't just say, "Wives, submit to your husbands because I say so!" or "Husbands don't you dare cheat on your wives!" Keep reading what Paul says. He takes them to the gospel so that they can see the glorious truth of Christ and that is what changes them. Seeing Christ changes us (2 Corinthians 3:15-18). Christ will be our idol when we see him as glorious. This is getting really long. I will stop for now. If you anyone has any interest in me expounding more of this please leave a comment saying so and I will do it. But I hope that you see this truth so that attendance and sales are not what are justifying you at the end of the day. I hope you will be identified with Christ and not any lesser thing.

It's That Time Again

Howdy folks. Long time no blog. Well, at least here at the JMB blog. I've blogged a lot on my personal blog. But, that's beside the point.



It's that time again! JMB will be playing at Centerfield's Cowboy Church this Friday, and at Brandenburg's Country Church on Saturday. My first-ever gig with JMB was at Cowboy Church a couple of years ago (even though I didn't become a member of the band until our live recording). We played Brandenburg for the first time last year, and I really enjoyed that show. That room sounds great! We're looking to see whoever may be there Friday Saturday....

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You gotta see this....too funny

Me and Andrew at the Desiring God Conference
To see how I dealt with Andrew at the DG Conferece just push play.

Did you Vote?

I hope that you guys that are of voting age went to vote yesterday. Voting is a priviledge that we have in this country that many people in other countries don't have. I use to not really care if I voted or not. I thought, "My one vote won't make a difference anyway". But I have since realized the importance of supporting candidates who share the same values as myself. Here is my only beef with election time: So many people say, "You should vote because people have died so that you could!" I have heard more Christians say that than I have heard them say, "Christ died so that you could be reconciled to God!" I guess my beef is not with election time as much as it is with the degrading of the cross. Voting is extemely important but it will always stand in the shadows of the cross. If you must tell someone that a person has died for their benefit, I pray that you will tell them of Christ, not just christian soldiers.

New Song

I have written a new song this week called, "Clumsy Believer". I got the idea from the Bebo Norman concert that I was fortunate enough to attend. He was talking about how he is so clumsy with his faith. I feel the same way. You'll have to come to a concert to get the full story. Hope to see you there!

Please Read This

This is a great article about which understanding where lines are drawn when it come to doctrines that so often divide. Please read this. http://www.albertmohler.com/commentary_read.php?cdate=2005-07-12

What's going on folks?!

Been a while since we have seen some of you guys. So, how are things going? Anything going on in your lives that you would like to share, good or bad?

Oh yeah, life goes on

For those who never venture over into my own little world that I call my blog, I'll bring my next post over here. Hello all. How are things? Let me tell me, things are great over here. I'm still at good ol' U of K and loving it. Midterms are upon us so I'm a little swamped, but nothing too bad. My honor's class is definitely my least favorite class at the moment and I am very ready to be finished with it. I'm not really enjoying the reading or the papers that I have to write but I'm dealing with it. I've got all of my work turned in and I'm passing so I guess there's no real complaints. Life with Mary Beth is good. We've been together for 1 month now (as of Monday) and things are still going great. We don't get many chances to see each other besides weekends but we are managing. God has blessed us so much and any amount of extra work and travel that we have to do is well worth it. I'm missing JMB and music together, but it's always like this around this time of year. I'm really looking forward to our two gigs at the end of November. Hopefully we'll get some practice time in before we have to travel and maybe work up some of those new songs (hint, hint). Well, I'm really just typing this so I have an excuse to not finish my homework but now I'm starting to feel bad about my procrastination tactics so I guess this is good bye. I'll see you when I see you.