March, 2006
March Madness
I’m here, Mark, but I’m a little distracted because March Madness has begun! I am very concerned Maryland will not be invited to the big dance, but I am looking forward to Duke losing in the tournament. I will be sure to let you know when that happens.
Hey, I experienced quite the surprise on Monday when Al called me to talk about college basketball. On the way home from the conference he read Last Dance, by John Feinstein. I was stunned. There is hope for Al, but I’m afraid I have no hope that you will develop even the slightest interest in sports. You are missing out big time, my friend, especially at this time of year. Luther would have loved March Madness.
There were a number of topics I considered posting on this week. I still intend to do a post about the importance of a plan for reading and study. But I must first add my voice to the reflections on last week’s Shepherd’s Conference–an extraordinary conference indeed. I would like to briefly draw attention to one of the pronounced evidences of God’s grace I observed.
John MacArthur, Dan Dumas, and the members of Grace Community Church put on a clinic in the art of serving. Though the preaching at the conference was outstanding, the example of servanthood (truly the fruit of expository preaching) was compelling. Every individual I encountered, from the first moment I arrived to my final moment at the conference, served with excellence–and not only excellence, but cheerfulness as well. The hundreds of members of Grace Community Church who took time off work in order to serve us were a compelling illustration and demonstration of the content of the preaching we heard. True greatness as biblically defined was on display each day of the conference. Sadly, in time, I will forget much of the excellent preaching I heard, but I will not forget the example of servanthood that I observed. I hope John, Dan, and the members of Grace Community Church feel our gratefulness and more importantly, God’s pleasure.
I do, however, have one recommendation for next year’s conference. Athletic events should be added to the schedule. Given that the overwhelming majority of the men who attend this conference are athletically inclined, there must be some way to make this a priority. How about a late night basketball tournament? This could take place from 11:00-12:00 each evening. Actually, I have already formed and finalized my team for next year’s tournament. The following guys have agreed to play on my team:
Ralph Drollinger
Joey Penberthy (And Joey’s brother, Mike, if he is back from Europe)
John MacArthur
Adam Bailies
Kurt Gebhards
These are my guys, and we will take on any other team that would like to be schooled and humbled at the conference. Of course, I issue this challenge in the spirit of servanthood and ultimately for the glory of God.
Finally, Mark, one of the unique joys for me at The Shepherd’s Conference was the time I spent hanging with and learning from you, Al and Lig. Being with you guys is exhilarating and exhausting. You seem to have another gear you shift into after all the meetings are over. At around 11pm, you get a burst of energy that carries you into the morning hours. And after a few hours of sleep, you guys do it all over again. I try to keep up, but never succeed. Even though it’s Friday and the conference ended last Saturday, I am still tired. But I love staying up late with you guys. You men work hard serving the Savior and His church. You personify 2 Timothy 2:15, and you do so with joy. And what a memory it was to be included in the panel Friday night and honored along with you men.
Baptized Pagans
"In [this city], churches are wealthy enough to market themselves a crowd (I am also guilty). And how do we market? By asking and supplying what people say they prefer for their church experience. Given that my community finds ‘relevance’ the most important value to hold, I have been feeding them human enrichment rather than eternal and powerful truth (I have been like Joel Osteen in style with a little SBC culture thrown in). I have grown a church of baptized pagans."
That’s just a portion of a truly remarkable email I received today. A dear brother, of exemplary humility and striking faithfulness in his pastoral labors shared with me the problems that he had created by following popular church growth methods. External growth had occured, yes, but, he confessed, "I have grown a church of baptized pagans."
Consider what it means to have a church of baptized pagans. I remember a few years ago, reading in Mohtama Gandhi’s autobiography this frank admission: “What I want to achievewhat I have been striving and pining to achieve these thirty yearsis self-realization, to see God face to face, to attain Moksha (spiritual deliverance) . . . I have not yet found Him, but I am seeking after Him . . . For it is an unbroken fortune to me that I am still so far from Him . . . I have not seen Him, neither have I known Him,” (Gandhi, Autobiography, p. 252).
Too many of our churches are made up of too many people who know God as little as Gandhi. Too many of our churches are too full of baptized pagans.
Lig, make sure folks hear this at Ligonier’s national conference on the church! God bless you while you’re there!
CJ, are you still there?
Al, wasn’t this blog your idea?
And can anybody help me get these fonts to match up!?
Reporting from the Ligonier National Conference
I’m in Orlando today through Saturday for the Ligonier National Conference (located on the campus of First Baptist Church, Orlando, FL). John MacArthur gave the opening address on Jesus Christ as the Head of the Church, and it was brilliant. John gripped our hearts from the beginning with the brave and tragic story of the pre-Reformation reformer, John Hus, and never let go. He pounded home the way this indisputably true doctrine is undermined in modern church practice, and showed the practical, pastoral significance of this truth. It was vintage MacArthur. Then, just afterwards, R.C. Sproul shared a little known story from the ordination of Luther that tied him to Hus. You need to hear this for yourself. Talk about sovereignty! Get the audio!
Sorry about the slow blogging this week. I’ve been at a dead run. And though I’ve had the fleeting pleasure of brief phone conversations with Mark, and email exchanges with C.J., we haven’t been communicating much via the blog. Adrian Warnock has even raised the alarm on our absence in the comments! Well, here’s a start at making amends.
Mark’s Luther ecclesiology questions are good. I agree with Mark that Marty Marty has rightly assessed Luther’s attitude towards the finer points of church polity. As to Mark’s second question, though I have great sympathy with the spirit of Luther’s view, I myself am committed to a jure divino [by divine command] approach to church government (as is Mark). That is, we believe that the Bible sets down certain unalterable principles of the government and order of the church, for all places and times, and that we ignore them to our peril. I believe that God has established a biblical form of church government, appointed the precise offices of the church, explained their jobs and qualifications, directed how the congregation is to relate to those officers, insisted that Jesus is the only head of the church, and more. The Bible doesn’t tell us everything about the government of the church, but it does tell us the most important things.
OK, Al and C.J., chime in.
California Dreamin' & Church Polity
Was it a week ago I set out for California? Time flies. Tempus fugits. I’m reminded by your ruminations Lig of much I have to thank God for in this past week. The past always looks so past when it’s past. (Bet no one links to that line!)
Monday was flying out there. Good time all week with Mike Law, who accompanied me. Dinner that night with you, Al, Greg Gilbert & Mike was great. Thank you for getting the ties. Sorry I forgot.
Tuesday was all day down at Westminster California in Escondido. Good to catch up with Mike Horton, Bob Godfrey, Scott Clark, the rest of the faculty and also meet the Jones’. At night, again, was hanging out with you, Al!
Wednesday was Master’s College. This was the most impressive Christian college chapel I have seen. Hundreds of students obviously eager to hear God’s Word. That afternoon was a good time with Tom Ascol over at Fuller Theological Seminary’s Bookstore. That evening was dinner with Al, Steve Lawson & John MacArthur, and then hearing John M preach a wonderful treatment of Luke 15. Clayton did an amazing job with the music that night, and all week. That night it was hanging out in Al’s room with CJ Mahaney on our laptops with me re-tooling my message after John’s good work that night.
Thursday I was up first in the morning at the conference. If you’re reading this and you were there, let me just tell you that you guys were a GREAT congregation to preach to! My thought on preaching on unbelief was that it is an interesting way to get to the gospel, and a way in which I hope pastors would particularly be helped. That evening was dinner again with John MacArthur, Steve Lawson & Al Mohler. Then I got the opportunity to introduce Al a little bit for the evening, and he did a wonderful job for us on Colossians 1, and the importance of preaching. Later that night, I had a little time with Al, and some other friends.
Throughout the week Matt Schmucker (9Marks) & Paul Medler (Sovereign Grace) were there, getting expert help from Dan Dumas in preparing for the Together for the Gospel Conference. If you don’t know what that is, slow down on your way to this blog!!
Friday was Steve Lawson in the morning and R C Sproul in the evening. Two excellent messages. A late morning meeting with Dave Doran of Detroit. Great conversation. Lunch with Jim & Steve, on staff for evangelism at Grace Community Church. Good fellowship. Q&A panel that Friday afternoon, well-led by John M. Then dinner with RC & Vesta Sproul, John & Pat MacArthur, Steve & Anne Lawson, Lig, John & Mel Duncan. The afternoon was spent listening to RC talk about the Steelers and Lig & John Duncan rap. That evening, a special after time organized by Dan Dumas & Eric Bancroft was fun, humbling & incredibly kind. I kept thinking that there was some mistake, me sitting there being honored with CJ, Lig & Al. Dan & Eric, thanks so much! And then, later that night, a great couple of hours with just the 4 of us hanging out and talking. Thanks for the fellowship. Lig, Al, CJ, you are each providing tremendous leadership. People are being blessed by you guys in ways they have no idea of! I love to see something of how the Lord works for the good of His people!
OK, since it’s March, here’s another Luther matter. Martin Marty in his little book (on p. 115) observes that “As for governance, Luther judged that if a pattern of polity or policy did not stand in the way of the gospel there could be flexibility in church order.” 2 questions: 1) Is this what Luther thought (I think it is). 2) Do you three agree with this? (I do only sort of. I think there are more givens than Lig thinks and probably than Al thinks. I don’t know how exactly to read CJ on this!)
It was an honor to be asked to preach by John M, and great to see you guys and so many others.
Shepherds' Conference Afterglow
It was a blessing to be with John MacArthur and his team, and the good folks of Grace Community Church at this year’s Shepherds’ Conference. I have never been so well-taken care of in my life (thanks to Steve Hall to for carting me around everywhere!). The singing was marvelous. The spirit was joyous and encourgaing. I just wish I could have been there for more of the conference, and had had more time to spend with the brothers who were gathered there for this great pastoral confab.
Before some of the highlights slip my mind, I’ll share them here:
* Dan Dumas is a genius at organization and a gracious host. Thanks so much friend for all you did and gave. I am your debtor.
* I was able to meet a colleague whom I have long admired but never met – Steve Lawson. What a dear, brave and godly servant of the Lord. Steve is just a few miles down the road in Mobile, and I hope to fellowship with him in days to come. BTW, I am now an unabashed fan of his wife Anne – who has been duly installed in my "Real Reformed Women’s Hall of Fame" after hearing Steve speak about her, and meeting her for myself.
* R.C. Sproul brought his A-game and his message on Romans 1 on Friday night was powerful and timely.
* Al, Mark, CJ and yours truly – after a wonderful T4G dessert gathering on Friday night – were surprised to receive four handsome presentation pieces of Spurgeon (for CJ), Luther (for Al), Edwards (for Mark) and Calvin. How kind. Thank you from the bottom of our hearts.
* Al Mohler’s Saturday morning talk was vintage Al. Densely packed exposition, deftly applied, which searching cultural analysis, engagement and critique. He just needed another hour!
* It was great to meet Phil Johnson in the flesh for the first time. Just wished we could have had more time to talk. He and my brother John got to have lunch on Saturday, I think.
* Seeing my brothers for a few moments. John and Mel both work for Ligonier Ministries. I even got to fly back from LA to Atlanta with my brother Mel, and walk to our next departure gate together. Fun.
* Staying up late talking with Mark, Al and CJ on Friday night. Can you say "more fun than a barrel full of monkeys"?
* Meeting Lance Quinn for this first time. He and I both serve on Peter Jones’ CWiPP board, but are never there at the same time! I’ve admired and followed Lance’s ministry for some time now, so what a privilege to meet him.
* Got to hug Tom Ascol.
* A number of you asked to whom I was referring in my last post when I mentioned CHBC and CLC and GCC and BBC as examples of strong Reformed churches with excellent evangelistic track records. Well, CHBC is none other than Capitol Hill Baptist Church – pastored by the finest preacher-theologian-evangelist of our time, Mark Dever. CLC is Covenant Life Church, where Josh Harris is now pastoring, and where C.J. Mahaney so ably served. SGM, or Sovereign Grace Ministries is a good example of a family of churches that are superb at the practice of evangelism and emphatic in embrace of the doctrines of grace. Grace Community Church is GCC – what more need I say?! And BBC is Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, where John Piper serves. These congregations take a back-seat to no one when it comes to church health, zeal for the lost, effective witness, commitment to the great commission and joyful embrace of reformed theology.
After Theology
“I have no use for cranks who despise music,
because it is a gift of God.
Music drives away the Devil and makes people gay;
they forget thereby all wrath, unchastity, arrogance, and the like.
Next after theology,
I give to music the highest place and the greatest honor.”
Martin Luther. (Quoted by Martin Marty, Martin Luther, p. 114.)
Continuing my March celebration of Martin Luther, aren’t his words about music here true?
Tomorrow at CHBC we’re to have a funeral of a dear sister whom the Lord called home last week. She was 99! No doubt, we will have some wonderful singing tomorrow (DV) "Like a River Glorious" "I Will Glory in My Redeemer" "It is Well with my Soul"!
And how blessed we were by music today at CHBC! This morning we sang "Jesus Paid it All" "What Wondrous Love" "Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah". Tonight it was "How Deep the Father’s Love" "The Servant King" "Hark, I Hear the Harps Eternal"!
This past week out at Shepherds Conference (where we all 4 were, so instead of blogging, we were talking to each other late into the night!) we have been treated to phenomenal singing, and wonderful performed music. Can Jubilant Sykes sing, or what?!?! And Lig Duncan can rap!
And as wonderful as the music was–the Haydn piece on Psalm 19, the cello & harp, the incredible congregational singing, here’s the amazing thing. God Himself is even more wonderful than our best experience ever of hearing him praised in song!!!
So, again, I’m with Luther! "Next after theology,
I give to music the highest place and the greatest honor.”
After theology.
On my way to L.A.
Thanks Mark. Can’t wait to see you, Al and C.J. Hope to be there early afternoon. Full day here in Jackson, but had a blast teaching Covenant Theology at RTS this afternoon (a course I teach each Spring). Covered the Noahic covenant and started into the Abrahamic covenant in Genesis 12 and 15. Rich passages, filled with God’s grace.
The Shepherd's Conference
Mark, Al and Lig: I will be praying for you and cheering you on as you preach over the next few days at the Shepherd’s Conference. It is a particular joy for me to attend the conference this week with two of my sons-in-law. We are learning a lot, eating In-n-Out burgers for breakfast and having a blast. John MacArthur, who hosts and leads this important and strategic conference, opened our time with two outstanding messages. And the way Grace Community Church serves the 3,300 pastors in attendance is simply world-class. True greatness (humility and servanthood) is on display everywhere I look.
Speaking of John MacArthur reminds me of something that took place Tuesday. At John’s kind invitation, we played golf together. Now playing golf with John is a memorable experience. The man is an athlete. He doesn’t merely play golf. He attacks the golf ball. Each time I’ve played with John, I’ve been on his team. And what a team we are! How do I humbly share the following information? We’ve never lost. No joke. Whenever we’ve played and whomever we’ve played against, we’ve always won. And wouldn’t you know it, we won again. It’s now Thursday, and I’m still finding humility to be an elusive experience. Please pray for me.
Higher Priced Preaching
Dear Lig,
I’m out here in California with Al, CJ and thousands of others at the Shepherd’s Conference. John MacArthur & company are graciously hosting us. I’ve had edifying conversations with many people. I was down at Westminster California in Escondido on Tuesday, and at Masters College in chapel yesterday. Last night, CJ, Al & I were all in his room typing on our laptops (with CJ & Al trading the kind of posts you can read immediately before this one!). We’re looking forward to you joining us.
The preaching here has been refreshing. John M. preached a powerful message on the parable of the loving father and the 2 sons in Luke 15 last night. I am reminded by fellowship and example here that “A good expository sermon costs far more labor than any other, but it is also of far higher value to preacher and hearer.” H. Harvey, The Pastor: His Duties and Qualifications (Philadelphia, 1879), p. 55.
I conclude that we need more expensive preaching. It is a joy to labor with you all in pursuing this ourselves and encouraging it in others.
