Happy Reformation Day!

Just wanted to wish everyone well on this 490th anniversary of the Protestant Reformation began by Martin Luther in 1517. I am so pleased that the Reformation is still ongoing. I agree with John Calvin that we are reformed and always reforming. We, the people of God, haven't yet attained perfect knowledge and complete wisdom. But that's Ok, God's grace sustains us. It is a work of God that constantly pushes us forward through the muck of false teachings toward the glory of divine truth. The reformers began a noble work - the recovery of truth. May we faithfully pass on to the generations to come the theology formed in the blood and flames of medieval Europe. Today, piles of doctrinal dung are often flung upon the monuments of God's truth. Let us never tire of polishing those monuments as we continue to grow in the knowledge of the truth.

And remember...

The just shall live by faith! (Rom 1:17b)

Soli Deo Gloria!

Brandon L.

Changing the Heart of Worship

I've observed a trend over my 12 years as a member of Christ's body that has increasingly raised my ire. Worship leaders have been exercising their freedom to change hymn and praise & worship song lyrics that they don't care for. For example, I recently heard of one such worship leader who didn't like a particular verse in the popular song 'The Heart of Worship.' Here is the offending verse:

King of endless worth, no one could express

How much You deserve

Though I'm weak and poor, all I have is Yours

Every single breath

The worship leader bristled at the thought that people are weak and poor, so he desired to alter the lyrics a bit to reflect a more positive, self-affirming view of fallen man. He wanted to change the line to:

Why Celebrate Halloween...

When there is a much better alternative holiday to observe on October 31st!

'What other holiday?' you may wonder.

Well, let me enlighten you! The day we most commonly refer to as Halloween is also known as...

REFORMATION DAY!

On October 31st, 1517, Martin Luther, an Augustinian monk, nailed his 95 theses on the castle church door in Wittenburg, protesting the sale of indulgences by the Roman Catholic church. Luther eventually went to trial for heresy at the Diet of Worms where he was asked to repent of his teachings upon penalty of excommunication. His teachings opposed many accepted doctrines and practices of the church. He also challenged the authority and infallibility of the Pope. Luther refused to recant, famously stating:

Blogger's Block

I apologize for the lack of posting recently. The strange thing is, I have no shortage of topics to write about. In fact I have over 20 drafts awaiting my attention! However, I can't seem to string two coherent sentences together.  I hear this is a common malady for writers and bloggers, but that doesn't make me feel any better about it. I may know the root cause of it all - and will share that with you if it does in fact prove to be the case -but until then be patient and don't abandon me. I will be back - for better or worse for all of blogdem. Please pray that this too shall pass.

God Bless

Brandon L.

The Responsibility-Index

Dan Phillips of Pyromaniacs has posted an excellent article on how every good scripture-driven sermon produces what he has coined as the 'responsibility-index'. Here is an excerpt:

Perhaps I'll develop this further another time, but the faithful sermon we hear changes our status before God. Of course, I'm not talking about justification, but about accountability. The pan-Biblical principle is: greater privilege = greater responsibility. In this particular connection, we certainly see it in Jesus' words: "If I had not come and spoken to them, they would not have been guilty of sin, but now they have no excuse for their sin" (John 15:22).

So let's say you are in a church that teaches the Word of God — which you should be. As you listen to the Word faithfully preached, something is happening to you. This is true whether you feel it or not, whether your behavior changes or not. Something is happening. What is happening?

What is happening is this: your responsibility-index is rising.

Click HERE to read the rest of the article.

Another New Look

Ok, I promise this is the last theme I will play around with - for now.

I'll let my readers be the final judge on this. Which theme should I keep?

A.) Original theme with Bunyan pic and contrasting black, white and red.

B.) The clean and elegant (but Bunyan-less) blue-gray theme I have used for the past three days

C.) The current theme

Vote now in the comment section.

Do We Really 'Decide' For Christ?

Here is a clip from a CrossTV series investigating the modern evangelical tactic of moving people to 'make a decision for Christ.'

A New Look

Well, give it to me straight, is my new theme a thumbs up or thumbs down in your opinion? Tell me the truth, I can take it! And I'm not too full of pride to humble myself and revert to my old tried and true theme if public opinion should so necessitate.

What Can Separate Us From the Love of God?

Who shall bring any charge against God's elect? It is God who justifies. Who is to condemn? Christ Jesus is the one who died--more than that, who was raised--who is at the right hand of God, who indeed is interceding for us. Who shall separate us from the love of Christ? Shall tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger, or sword? As it is written, "For your sake we are being killed all the day long; we are regarded as sheep to be slaughtered." No, in all these things we are more than conquerors through him who loved us. For I am sure that neither death nor life, nor angels nor rulers, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth, nor anything else in all creation, will be able to separate us from the love of God in Christ Jesus our Lord. (Rom 8:33-39)

The Apostle Paul asks several important questions in this text. He also gives his readers profound answers.

Who can accuse God's people of any crime?

No one. God alone justifies the guilty. He answers to no man. He has mercy on whom he will have mercy.

Who has the right to sentence his saints to death and hell?

No one. Christ took our condemnation up on himself. We are free from the sting of death and the punishment of hell.

Who can separate God's people from the love of Christ, which has been freely bestowed upon them?

Nobody can and nothing will. No circumstance or trial can wedge apart this bond. Through God's love we have been made more than conquerors. Again, he reiterates that no being (angels nor rulers), thing (the sword, death nor life, nor things present nor things to come, nor powers, nor height nor depth) or circumstance (tribulation, or distress, or persecution, or famine, or nakedness, or danger) can separate us from the love of God. He even goes so far as to say 'nor anything else in all creation'. I think that pretty much covers everything, don't you think?