Gospel Shepherding vs. "Christian Counseling"

At Kaleo Church, we have had the sweet blessing of having a partnership with Soma Communities in Seattle/Tacoma, Wa. They have been training us, as of lately, on Gospel Shepherding. Gospel Shepherding, like all other works of ministry, stems from the view and call that elders are to equip the body of Christ for the work of the ministry (Eph. 4:11-12). Before I compare and contrast Gospel Shepherding with traditional "Christian Counseling," I want to show what equipping the body of Christ means for the body of Christ.

1) This means that the elders/pastors (hopefully you have a plurality of elders) are willing and must love equipping the church for the work of the ministry.

2) This also means that the elders cannot have superiority issues when training up the body of Christ, meaning: There cannot be any arrogance thinking that God has called them (the elders) to handle the whole load of ministry by themselves. Instead, the elders will find joy equipping the body for the work of the ministry.

3) This also means that the body of Christ, when equipped, does not see themselves as having the authority of the elders, but working as a body to serve the body. So, in essence, equipping will continue equipping, which will continue equipping...a cycle that is healthy and matures each part of the body.

So, traditional "Christian Counseling" calls either a pastor or professional counselor to give advice to a person struggling with sin, pre-marital advice, etc. This pastor/counselor will usually meet with a person once a week, at most. Can this really offer a view into this person's life? Most people who are counseling a man/woman struggling with sin are not involved in their everyday life. Their is no solid community that sees the person's struggle, leaving the counselor to use random methods to stop the sinner's behavior. This is because they only see the bad fruit of the sin, not the root.

What about the method of the traditional way? Far too often in Christian Counseling, and all of Christianity, struggling people are counseled with Law. What I mean is that when one struggles with anger, the counselor would respond with, "Be angry and do not sin (Eph. 4:26). Or, someone might be struggling with enjoying their work, to which the counselor might respond, "You need to work for the Lord (Col. 3:23)." Yes, these are from the Word of God, but they are commands that are only possible because of the indicatives that are true of us. These truths are all found in the Gospel. We are a people that deserved to die for our sin, but Christ died in our place. We could not obey the law, so Christ did perfectly for us. By putting our faith in his work, we are given the righteousness and eternal life he deserved. So, when one counsels without reassurance of their true identity and what they are not believing about the Gospel, we leave them trying to "be angry and not sin," or to "work as if working for the Lord."

Gospel Shepherding looks completely different than one on one counseling, although there are times for that. Gospel Shepherding equips the body of Christ, who are actively living in community (this means seeing one another more than at a mid-week Bible study and weekend church service), to encourage or correct one another with the Gospel. You see, when doing life together, people are bound to rub each other the wrong way, making sin habits more visual, and also building a love for one another, resulting in men and women desperate to aid in the sanctification of one another by the Spirit, through the power of the Gospel. Think of how your family knows you and how differently you act around them than you do at a church service. The point is to get the body of Christ living real life together, for the sake of glorifying our God. Gospel Shepherding allows the body to shepherd one another, in real life, instead of seeing a person who does not know how you even live your real life. A person who is involved in your everyday life will be the first to see your struggle with sin, the way your husband/wife, mom/dad would be the first to see sin. Instead of trying to correct the bad fruit (anger, worry, etc.), Gospel Shepherds understand that bad fruit occurs because of unbelief in the Gospel (Hebrew 3:7-4:13). Again, all sin stems from an unbelief in the Gospel. That is why we must constantly remind one another of our identity in the Gospel (Eph. 1-3).

While traditional "Christian Counseling" will give a list of "to-do's," which is Law based, Gospel Shepherding allows sinner's to be restored from disbelieving the Gospel, to a people who are consistently being reminded of who their God is, what He has done, who they are in light of who He is and what He has done, and how they can live as a result. Friends, I beg you, stop seeing the Gospel as a past tense event that gives you a pass to Heaven, but see it for what it is: The means and power of salvation (Rom. 1:16-17) in the PAST (Eph. 2:8), PRESENT (1 Cor. 15:2; Phil. 2:12-13), and FUTURE (Acts 15:11; 1 Peter 1:3-5). The Gospel forms a Community on Mission. Community and Mission cannot happen without the Gospel, so let us see the Gospel as the lifeblood of who we are!

The Sad Departure that Leads to Eager Expectation

On Thursday October 14, Jenny and I had our rehearsal dinner for our upcoming wedding. After a sweet night of enjoying good food, friends, and family, I had to leave to go an hour and a half home to San Diego. Jenn and I had a long distance relationship for quite a long time, but the distance never caused any trouble in our relationship. However, on this night, my sad departure would lead to eager expectation. What I mean by that is that on that night I learned one of the coolest lessons God has taught me through her. You see, it was sad because it was a sweet night and we did not want to leave one another, but it led to eager expectation in both of our hearts because the next time I would see her, and she would see me, was when her dad would be walking her down the stairs at our wedding to give me her hand in marriage.

Instantly, when I saw this mixture of sadness and excitement in her eyes, I could not help but think of what Jesus said to his disciples in John 16. Jesus tells his disciples that he would be leaving them soon, that he is returning to the Father (16:5), and that the Spirit will come upon them (16:7). Then, John 16:16 hit home like never before. It says:

A little while, and you will see me no longer; and again a little while, and you will see me."

That night I left and could not get the look on Jenny's face, especially her eyes, out of my head. She knew I had to leave, but at the same time, she knew that the next time we saw one another would be especially sweet. In the same way, Jesus left his disciples, but did not leave them without hope. Our hope, as those justified by the person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ, is that Jesus will return to capture his bride (Matt. 24:31; 2 Thess. 1:10). We do not have to live this life filled with sadness because God the Son has left us, but we can have a hope that is sure because our God never lets us down. Our Jesus is preparing his elect a place to live with him and worship him forever (John 14:3). One of my favorite passages about what our life will be like in heaven is Revelation 19:5-10. The Apostle John is having a vision about how Jesus has fulfilled his promise to capture his bride. In the vision, his bride is in a beautiful state of worship and are glorifying Jesus, for he alone is worthy.

On October 17th, I got to watch by beautiful bride walk down spiral stairs and into the covenant of marriage with me. It was amazing. What it was, in all reality, was a small glimpse of how our Savior will come back to get his bride. He will not leave us. It is okay to be sad but eagerly expectant, but we DO have a true hope in the person and work of Christ. I am so stoked about my marriage and how it is used as a means to fall deeper in love with God. "Hallelejah! For the Lord our God the Almighty reigns (Rev. 19:6b)." Grace and peace.

Side note: Another sweet lesson I learned was the love it must have taken for God the Father to send His Son to take on flesh and die for enemies. That day, Jenny's dad gave her away to me. I watched his eyes and understood a little bit better what it must be like to give away one you love with all your heart. Our God loves us so much, enough to give His only Son to live the perfect life that we could not live, pay the price of eternal punishment that we deserved on the cross, and rise from the dead to give us life. Praise Him, HE IS WORTHY!

Church Discipline: A Necessary Means of Grace

The words "church discipline" might make some just instantly stop reading, but I highly suggest you read the lyrics of this song by Stephen the Levite. I have been part of a church that does not practice biblical church discipline and I am now part of a church that does. I always saw it as such a necessary means of grace in the Bible, but never saw it played out. Over the last 9 months I have watched what it looks like to be in a truthful community that practices church discipline as a means of grace, for the purpose of restoration, and I can honestly say it is very necessary in the local church and every believers life. One of the most dangerous things a local church can do is avoid church discipline to make their members feel more comfortable, or avoid it for keeping "numbers. Check out these lyrics and let me know what you think about this topic:

This idea started back in the garden/ when Adam and Eve sinned and God sought to pardon them/ He discharged them, placin' a flamin' sword at the gate along with the cherubim charged to guard it// One could argue it started back even farther with Satan/ I see what you're sayin' but please peep the point I'm makin'/ there's a basic distinction that separates them/ the goal of man's displacement was restoration// We see the contrast in Gen. 3:15/ the serpent's eternally cursed, but The Seed redeems/ In conjunction with judgment we read of a dream/ of a world free of the enemies schemes// But there's a process proceeding the promise/ it's hard, yes, but by His mercy it's not death/ 'cause if they would've ate from the tree of life in their dyin' state/ their resurrection could never take place// And that's the Lord's grace and sanctification/ that shapes men and claims a nation so pagans praise Him/ the big picture I'm givin' is/ mentioned throughout scripture when sinners are driven out for dissin' Him// so keep listenin'/ the topic is not a popular one but you know how we get it in/ it's church discipline, the grace is doubted/ but the body of Christ has A.I.D.S. without it// yeah

"Authority and Church Discipline" x3 "If excommunicated what body would they be missin' in"

If a brother or sister offends you talk to 'em/ if the issue is in scripture then walk through 'em/ if they still ain't listenin' bring witnesses/ prayin' the evidence of the 2 or 3 is convincing, if// it still doesn't work, take it to the church/ the Lord's official spiritual judicial system on earth/ and they'll determine whether to bind or loose them/ scrutinizing the proof for a final resolution// to loose 'em is to render a dudes sin forgivin'/ due to viewin' the true fruit of repentance/ binding 'em means finding 'em guilty/ drawin' a line between the fly and the filthy// 'cause when a few of 'em gather in His authority/ He's in the midst of them, judging and ruling accordingly/ So the Lord is takin' responsibility/ making Himself the true object of hostility// 'cause when you're handing a man over to Satan/ for the destruction of his flesh in order to save him/ and the whole church cuts communication/ cats with punkish views of love start hatin'// but true love is to hate sin/ trustin' that God provides through his prescribed means to break men/ but they'll see when the prodigal comes back/ and they slaughter a beast and the party is dumb phat//

"Authority and Church Discipline" x3 "They turn to the steeple and return to the sheepfold, isn't that just like God's people?"

A few more things for us to consider/ unforgiveness over time becomes bitter/ and bitterness can spread just like a virus/ infecting the whole body with plank in the iris// it blinds us of our own sin, then close friends/ have to tell us we're lunchin' and if we don't listen/ then the whole process is starting up again/ the sin that we tossed out leavens the whole lump again// another counter-productive part of the process/ is the broadcast of slanderous gossip/ even if all the information is true/ the resulting view, of the person or issue is skewed/ then you feel strange and ought'a confront them/ but pride reminds you where your info comes from/ and who wants to be caught in hypocrisy?/ nobody. so you lock your thoughts away and you toss the key// but that won't stop the beef/ cause sooner or later, what you believe becomes your behavior unless you plot for peace/ it's hard not to see, somebody's got to speak/ if not the sin cycle repeats, it's got to cease// The process done properly shows love to everybody/ and the gospel is preached inaudibly/ The God of Peace squashed the beef at the cross of Jesus/ modeling peace-making for the whole flock to see//

Church Membership: What it is and is not

I have always struggled with the fact of what church membership is because it seems to be a check mark on a box, a couple classes, and not much past that. The Scriptures show that membership is giving of all things and all of ourselves to one another for the good of the body...not for the good of a church service! I have been experiencing true gospel community and membership for the last 6 months and there is nothing more encouraging that pushes me to adore Jesus Christ more and more. One of my favorite rappers is Stephen the Levite, and he addresses the topic quite well. Here is the link to the song and the lyrics are below. Peace

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_DZydYuElzg

Listen, this is written for long term visitors/ non-committers who get the word, but never get to work/ at least not in conjunction with a church/ they stay away and say they afraid of getting hurt// but pain is never excuse for disobedience/ church wasn't created to cater to your convenience/ And God didn't give you gifts to be greedy with/ mission without the church is missing a main ingredient// I know I rushed in without much of an introduction/ but membership is what we're discussin'/ committing to a community through a covenant/ and doing the 'one another's of scripture with brethren// (membership!) it actually happens at salvation/ but practically it happens in active participation/ if 1 is a fact then 2 the demonstration/ for the maturing Christian nothing should separate them// If 1 is the truth, then number 2 is the proof/ if it's aloof, then number 1 is a lion without a tooth/ If not the elect, who's inspecting your fruit?/ Just a select group of heads from your crew? (that's not a test dude!)// It's more like a bad science experiment/ with no control groups in the lab and bias experiences/ It's foolish to laugh denyin' it's serious/ when the only proof that you have is kinda mysterious//

Hook: This may be bold to say/ but if you're not a part of a church, how do you know that you're saved?/ the chances are you're prob'ly not a bit/ the objective evidence is sayin' the opposite// A body without biblical membership/ is sick, and their health depends on them getting' it/ so though you claim to be in it kid, please consider this/ if you is, then show us (How you livin' it?)//

We live in the days of the consumer/ shopping's a coveted skill and bloggers write reviews up/ no one commits, people leave when they choose 'cause/ ain't nobody tryin' to be tied down, with too much// labor only lasts as long their passions/ cats dip sayin' they feel bad with no sadness/ they want the good stuff without the attachments/ like friends with benefits of the ecclesial fashion// playin the church like the girls that you date then/ you criticize her like you're Seinfeld (or Satan!)/(explain) You sit in the back makin' your accusations/ but you ain't willin' to aid in her sanctification?!// (hypocrite.) I know that I'm gettin' a little hype but/ you gotta understand the church was purchased by Christ's blood/ And if Levi got jealous for Dinah/ of course the Levite's gon' be zealous for the Bride cuz// we see that Haggai and Zechariah/ were willin' to work wit Israel, not just prophesy stuff/ You can check for yourself in Ezra 5:1/ then wrestle with verse 2 until you're ready to die (What!?)//(Yup) I didn't stutter, you heard me right bruh/ dyin' is the price for being up in the cypha/ It's all or nothin', cat's are puttin' their life up/ but you be isolated like you don't even like us//

Hook

Membership is not a check in a box/ or an altar call response when the sermon is hot, it's/ privileges bought with His blood on the cross/ and it separates the flock from the world that is lost kid/ membership is being a part of the body/ but how can you be a body part when apart from the body?/ (and furthermore) How could you possibly think it's godly/ when God is 1, or even 3 in 1, but He's not 3?!/ I know the reality's universal/ but practically it has to be tangible to the world too/ so how do we gather to spur the virtues/ when our anatomy has been scattered throughout the Earth dude?// the local church has entered the picture/ the form of the assembly most mentioned scripture/ this is what you were given spiritual gifts for/ to Voltron with a squad and add your steez to the mixture// They're also the tools used to fix ya/ iron sharpens iron, sparks flyin', it's sick stuff/ but don't try to punk out when it gets rough/ Satan's like a roaring lion tryin' to vic' ya// He's waitin' for you faint when it gets tough/ straggle at the back of the flock and you might be his lunch/ Or maybe you'll prove you were never His bruh/ 1 John 2:19 homie, you with us?//

Hook

Filling the Voids

This last Saturday my pastor was preaching on Eph. 2:14-21. He taught how we all have these massive voids in our lives, and they can only be filled with the love of Christ. According to Paul, Christ's love "surpasses knowledge" and we can be "filled with ALL the fullness of God. (v.19)." Also, in v.17, Paul says that "through faith Christ can dwell in our hearts." This was big for me! We all say things like, "I need Jesus." Or, "I love Jesus with all my heart." However, what happens when we are filling down, anxious, needy, depressed, etc.? We start grabbing the first thing that goes by to fill our voids. Right? Most people do this with people or possessions.

Think about it. When you are feeling needy or unwanted, what do you do? If you have a spouse, fiancee, best friend, whatever it may be, we fill our voids with them right? And what is bound to happen? They will prove every time that they cannot fill us. They will let us down because they are sinful just like us. So, we end up filling our voids with them, they let us down, and we have another void and want it filled again. It is a vicious cycle!

What Paul is trying to do here is to get the Ephesian church, and us, to understand the "breadth and length and height and depth" of this love that can fill us every single time. Last night as we discussed this at missional community, my pastor made a sweet point: If we go to God to be filled with this love that surpasses knowledge, do we really believe that He won't fill us. Do we believe that if someone else is seeking to be filled with this love, God will be like, "Uh, sorry Wes, wait til Jenny is done using my love?" No way!!! He wants us to be filled with nothing but His love. THIS IS BEAUTIFUL!

In a culture where we need everything as fast as we demand (thanks to high speed internet, iPhones, etc.) we have become a demanding, impatient people. However, this love that fills with all the fullness of God is right at the foot of the cross if we would just approach the graceful God who willingly died upon the cross. At the cross He poured out his love on the undeserving, why would He not want to pour it out on us still?

Whatever your false Savior is: spouse, fiancee, friend, gadgets, money, let it go because it will only cause a bigger void. However, if you fill the voids with Christ, you can love the people in your life unconditionally and not get angry, sad, anxious when they fail you. Be filled with His fullness. Peace.

Do you believe?

Lately I have been thinking a lot about the loved ones in my life. This includes family members, close friends, and acquaintances. When I think about there claims that they "believe" in God, my heart is just covered in sadness. You see, we are in a culture where we completely worship ourselves, want to live our lives for us, and we might on a quick "I believe in God" statement just in case there is a God. As this weight has continued to press me lately, I have been reading through the Gospel of John a lot to see what "believing" really means.

In John 6, Jesus feeds 5,000+ hungry people by turning 2 loafs of bread into enough to feed all of them. So everyone is full and there is even bread left over, but something crazy happens. These 5,000+ people who saw this miraculous miracle got upset when Jesus says that the physical bread he gave them will perish, but he himself is the bread that gives eternal life (6:27). These 5000+ disciples leave Jesus' presence and He is left with just the 12 disciples (v.66-71). They wanted just the physical quick temporary pleasure, like so many of us today, instead of the fulfilling Jesus that would satisfy them for eternity.

Again, in John 8 Jesus is defending himself among the religious leaders and explaining that He IS GOD. In v.30, these folks "believe" in Him. Or do they? In the very next verse (v.31), Jesus says to the Jews who HAD (past tense) believed in him that the truth will set them free. This begins an argument where they say they cannot be free if they are not enslaved. Jesus goes on to prove they are enslaved to their sin (v.32-57), claims again to be God, and look what happens next: Those who "believed" try to kill Jesus in v.59.

You see, so many people have been fooled into the lie that saying a quick prayer when they were at an 8th grade camp has secured them eternity with Jesus. However, these texts I showed you give us an example of continued belief. We are to trust in Christ as our Savior, not just once but always!! In a culture where we run to sex with random partners, substance abuse, materialism, vacations, etc. to give us that quick pleasure, it is only Jesus, the eternal bread of life, that can sustain and fulfill us. So please, if you are reading this and are unsure of your salvation, please read the Bible, call me or a friend who loves Jesus, and spend time asking God to reveal Himself to you. Jesus is the most beautiful treasure one can ever find (Matt. 6:44).

Gospel Community

I am reading a book right now called Total Church by Tim Chester and Steve Timmis (the 2 founders of the Crowded House Ministries in the UK). The book is basically all about shaping churches around the gospel and community, which community in itself must be gospel centered as well, because without the gospel, no community. They have a part that explains the failure of churches in the UK when it comes to gospel centered churches, but I believe this can relate to the majority of churches in America as well. Here it is, word for word, let me know what you think:

"The reason the UK church is not effective in mission is because we are not making disciples who can live well for Christ in today's culture and engage compellingly with the people they meet....Jesus has a 'train and release' strategy, while overall we have a 'convert and retrain' strategy." In the last twenty years, it claimed, we have produced plenty of creative evangelistic materials, but little to help Christians connect their faith to the whole of life. This has created a sacred-secular divide: "the pervasive belief that some things are important to God--such as church, prayer meetings, social action etc. -- but other human activities are at best neutral -- work, school, sport, leisure, the arts, rest, sleep." As a result:

The vast majority of Christians have not been helped to see that who they are and what they do every day in schools, workplaces, or clubs is significant to God, nor that the people they spend time with in those everyday contexts are the people God is calling them to pray for, bless, and witness to. So we pray for our Sunday services but not, for example, for schoolteachers working 40 hours a week in schools among children and adults who on the whole don't know Jesus. We pray for oversees missionaries but not for Christian electricians, builders, shop assistants and managers in our own towns.... We have simply not been envisioned, resourced and supported to share the Good News of Jesus in our everyday contexts.

Pretty good stuff huh? You guys and gals should check the book out, it has blown me away. The authors close this specific chapter with this:

"We need non-full time leaders who can model whole-life, gospel-centered, missional living. It means thinking of our workplaces, homes, and neighborhoods as the location of mission."

I really like that. My own personal opinion is that the Church's biggest failure has been pushing people to invite people to church, instead of preparing them to share the gospel with people. Romans 1:16 says the gospel is the power of salvation, not the Church. We are to live out the gospel, for God uses the gospel alone to save, not our unique ways of getting people in a worship service. I hope this made everyone think like it did me.

Me, me, me

And he (Jesus) said to all, "If any man would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me." -Luke 9:23

In the middle of January, I began studying an ethic called Egoism. Egoism basically states that we as humans will ALWAYS do what is best for us. There is no such thing as doing good to, or for, others because, in theory, we want something back from them. Wanting something back can be anything from material goods, friendship, or even a hope that they might see the person doing good as a "good person." As I studied this a bit, I sat and observed those around me...and watched myself even closer.

Ever since I started observing, I noticed that the scariest thing about this theory is that I noticed myself and many other Christians thinking they can manipulate God. I started to realize that sometimes I would pray, alone or by myself, hoping that God would give me the comfort I need, make my engagement stay so amazing, etc. Now, I must say, God does do those things but I believe when we have the lenses on to look at ourselves and benefit ourselves instead of our eyes to God, then we are egoists manipulating God.

In a recent sermon, JR Vassar explains how we lie to ourselves and to God so often to try to look good for others. He explains a lot of this comes from our high view of self-importance. He gives an illustration about this. He said, "Everytime any of us bought a yearbook, what was the first thing we did? We flipped back to the index, found our name, and turned straight to our own picture." So true!!!

I believe our lives are still like this, I know mine is. This egoism theory really jacked me up because, as I watched myself closely, a lot of what I do is secretly for approval. I noticed we seek God's approval buy manipulating Him, we seek others approval by veiling our sin by pretending we have it all together while easily noticing others sin. A friend once told me, "if you can pinpoint a person's sin that they are trying to hide, you can be sure that you have done the same and that is why it upsets you so much at what they are doing.

I believe there is another type of egoism that I have noticed. People who deny serving others because they have an "excuse." As Christ followers, we are to love God and love others, not ourselves. This type of egoist, who serves himself/herself will work 8-12 hour days and believe serving others is not necessary because they worked a long day or something, that they have earned the right to be selfish as if their work earned them that. Christ has called us to deny ourselves DAILY. However, some believe that because they are doing so much of one thing, maybe comparing their life to another person, that they can leave the serving (whether it be praying with others, cleaning up after themselves and others, etc.) to the person who has "less going on." This is sad to see and I see it all the time in Christianity. We should consider ourselves less than the next person, no matter what the situation, social class, position, etc.

Here is the application I have got from all of my observing. If we have trusted in Christ, than it is no longer us who live but Christ who lives in us (Gal. 2:20). 1 Cor. 6:19-20 talks about our bodies being the temple of the Holy Spirit, we are not our own anymore, SO GLORIFY GOD with your body. This is not something, if you come to the realization that you ARE an egoist, that you will fix the second you are done reading this. However, we must observe ourselves and yield to glorify God. I have been praying Psalm 139:23-24 for a while now, and it is amazing how wicked the Spirit reveals me to be, but that forces me to depend on God and not myself.

I hope this does not come off as harsh, but a motivator to glorify God and serve others. This theory rattled me pretty hard, but might just be the best rattling I could have gotten.

Hating the works of your hero: Martin Luther

On October 31, 1517 Martin Luther nailed his 95 theses to the front door of the Catholic Church. They were selling indulgences(forms that would get someone out, or shorten their time in purgatory) to build up the church. The Latin Vulgate was the only Bible used from 400-1400+ and very few people could read Latin. So, it was up to the priests to teach the Bible and before long the Church became the dominating and authoritative figure in the church. That was until Martin Luther stepped up and fought for Scripture to be read as is and taught to the people. 2 Tim. 3:16-17 states:

All Scripture is breathed out by God and profitable for teaching, for reproof, for correction, and for training in righteousness, that the man of God may be competent, equipped for every good work.

Martin Luther understood this. If you ask Christians today who their heroes are, Martin Luther will usually dominate the list, outside of Jesus and the Apostle Paul of course. However, most who would claim that Luther is a hero of Christianity would treat him the same way he was treated back them.

The Main Issue: Luther saw the Scriptures as all about Christ and that Christ should be our treasure, nothing else. However, I see a filthy battle going on in America right now. Church has once again been raised in authority over the person and work of Jesus Christ. When I first went to church, I started thinking I needed Jesus so I could get into heaven, so I could have an easier life, etc. It was not until a year and a half later, while attending church every Sunday, that I came to the conclusion, from the bible, that salvation is through trusting in the person and work of Christ. My silly attempts at earning it were feeble, my "serving" the church was a way to earn it, and my false evangelism (inviting people to church) were all weak attempts to earn God's favor.

Christ, which Martin Luther would risk his life to make known, is what is necessary for salvation. It is not a ticket to heaven, because heaven with no Christ is rubbish! When we trust in Christ, it is natural that we become part of a Christ-treasuring, gospel-centered community of believers. Our evangelism should be Christ crucified, not a come to church method. Not once did Jesus teach His disciples to go out and bring people to the synagogue because He was teaching something that would itch their ears (2 Tim. 4:3), but He commanded the disciples to preach Christ crucified and resurrected, then make disciples (1 Cor. 15:1-4; Matt. 28:16-20).

Unfortunately, the truth's of the cross burn bridges sometimes, when it is meant to unite believers. Luther was persecuted for explaining that Christ crucified and resurrected was far more of a treasure than being obedient to the church's heresy. Luther loved Jesus. Luther was very knowledgeable and he produced many good works out of his love for Christ. The emergent church and it's devout followers attack those who seek knowledge, overemphasize church over Jesus, and believe that all we need to do is love one another. This generation holds a lot of fiery men and women who will not stand for such garbage, and like Luther, will be told they are enemies of the Church. Praise God for these men and women, and the leaders that have not swayed from the truth and have built selfless Kingdom minded gospel communities and ignore the silly myths the "seeker-sensitive" methods. R.C. Sproul says this about the seeker-sensitive movement:

"It is a very bad thing. 1)It rests on the fundamental error that unbelievers outside the church are desperately seeking for God. 2) The purpose for corporate worship on Sunday is to reach the lost."

Why is this important? Sproul goes on to say:

"The Bible (Rom.1-3) is clear that NO ONE seeks after God. The only people who seek after God are those who have been born again."

So, let's look to the Scriptures about all matters like the cross of Christ, Church, evangelism, etc. Martin Luther fought for us to have the Word and live by the Word, Sola Scriptura. When one has a good knowledge of the Word, they treasure Christ more and more, and evangelism becomes a natural, loving effect instead of a guilt forced sales-pitch.

Treasure Christ!

The Sun Shined (just for me)

As many of you know, I am now an engaged man. I am engaged to who I honestly believe to be the most amazing woman in the world, and I am serious about that. We got engaged on 1/16/10 at the beach in Dana Point where we had our first date. I read Ephesians 5:25-26 to her and explained how I want to be this man to her and will fight to do so. Now, before I go on I must set the context a bit, which is a bit ugly.

In February of 2008 I was preparing to ask a girl to marry me. I had spent hours in prayer about the situation and had a steady uneasiness about my decision, but I was trying to be Jesus to her and was quite disobedient by trying to do the work of the Holy Spirit instead of letting the Spirit do His job. So, I prayed a silly prayer asking God to give me a sign if I was not supposed to propose, even though I wasn't even sure if God gave signs at that time. To make a long story short, the weather had been beautiful until I prayed, then instantly turned dark out, poured hardcore rain, and I still asked. I instantly came down with my first ear infection ever, and was so dizzy that I was confined to my bed. Did I listen? Nope! After months of chaos and fighting, I forced the marriage and she divorced me 5 months later.

Back to the present time. I have been dating the most Godly, intelligent, funny, beautiful, real, secure woman I have ever met. We had been talking Scripture and talking for quite a few months and building a friendship. However, I knew she was going to be my wife. So, I spent months in prayer about whether I should propose or not, if the marriage would be honoring and glorifying to God, and other little prayers. No conviction or doubt came whatsoever.

So, driving to Dana Point the sky was covered with clouds. As we got near the spot where I was going to propose I asked God, because of my scars from the divorce, "Lord, can you bring the sun out while I ask her?" Can you do this as an extra bit of reassurance because of my prior disobedience?" As we pulled up to the beach, the sun shone through like no other and stayed that way throughout the whole proposal, amazing! The next day I stood worshipping the Lord in all His goodness and just wept at the love and grace He continuously shows to His repentant children.

In 9 months, on 10/17/10, Jennifer Marie Thomas will be my bride. This makes my heart so soft and humble. How amazing it will be to run this race with a partner who is passionate about sharing the gospel of our Lord Jesus Christ. I can be me without any worrying around my Jenny: I can serve Christ 100% without being laughed at, I can fart, laugh like a girl, eat BJ's buffalo pizza all day, watch 24 with her, and on and on and on!!!!

The sun shines so much brighter when you experience the darkness it saves you from. Thank you Jesus, thank you Jenny, and thank you friends and family (the ones who supported me and did not judge).