Connecting man to man to God!

Week of March 11, 2007

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"Do to others as you would have them do to you.  If you love those who love you, what credit is that to you?  For even sinners love those who love them.  If you do good to those who do good to you, what credit is that to you?  For even sinners do the same.  If you lend to those from whom you hope to receive, what credit is that to you?  Even sinners lend to sinners, to receive as much again.  But love your enemies, do good, and lend, expecting nothing in return.  Your reward will be great, and you will be children of the Most High; for [God] is kind to the ungrateful and the wicked."  Luke 6:31-35

     CONSIDER

"Faith during affliction matters more than healing from affliction.  Submitting to God's will is preferable to a rescue from crucifixion.  Humility counts more than deliverance from a thorn in the flesh."  Philip Yancey, Prayer: Does It Make Any Difference?

     JESUS AND THE SINNER'S PRAYER

by David P. Gushee

In reading through Luke, I discovered that twice (10:25, 18:18) Jesus is asked, "What must I do to inherit eternal life?"

In the first passage, Jesus turns the question back on the lawyer who asks it.  The lawyer replies with the Old Testament commands to love God with all your heart, soul, strength, and mind, and to love your neighbor as yourself (cf. Mt. 22:34-40).  Jesus affirms his answer: "You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live."  The lawyer then tries to narrow the meaning of neighbor. So Jesus tells the unforgettable parable of the compassionate Samaritan, who proved to be a neighbor to a bleeding roadside victim.

In Luke 18, Jesus responds to the same question, this time from the man we know as the rich young ruler, by quoting the second table of the Decalogue, forbidding adultery, murder, theft, and false witness, and mandating honor towards parents.  His questioner says that he has kept these commandments, and Jesus proceeds to call on him to "sell all ... and distribute to the poor."  Jesus assures him, "You will have treasure in heaven; and come, follow me."  The "extremely rich" ruler won't do this, and Jesus goes on to teach his disciples about how hard it is for the wealthy to enter the kingdom of God.

On the two occasions in Luke when Jesus was asked about the criteria for admission to eternity, he offered a fourfold answer: love God with all that you are, love your neighbor (like the Samaritan loved his neighbor), do God's will by obeying his moral commands, and be willing, if he asks, to drop everything and leave it behind in order to follow him.

The contrast between how Jesus answers this question and how we usually do is stark and awfully inconvenient....  Read this in full at

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2007/march/29.72.html

     MARCH MADNESS

http://www.ncaasports.com/basketball/mens

http://www.ncaasports.com/basketball/womens

     LOOKING AHEAD

Tax Day is April 17 this year.

http://www.irs.gov/newsroom/article/0,,id=167195,00.html

     WHAT EVER HAPPENED TO DISCIPLESHIP?

by Michael Craven

There is a growing body of research demonstrating that there is a significant disconnect between professing faith in Jesus Christ and actually following Jesus.  A recent study reveals a great deal about our current approach to youth ministry and its shortcomings.  The study revealed that 59% of Protestant teens (13-17) report regular church attendance, meaning they attend church at least 1-3 times per month while 41% of all teens reported regular church attendance. The study participants identified affiliation with 9 Protestant denominations with Southern Baptist (SBC) being the largest group represented in which 65% of SBC teens reported regular attendance.  Forty-seven percent of Protestant teens reported active involvement in their church's youth group compared to 38% of all teens.  The majority of Protestant teens also reported that they attend Sunday School "a few times a month," participate in youth retreats, rallies, and conferences.  In all, 90% of Protestant teens say they believe in God compared to 85% of all teens; only 12% of all teens say they are "unsure about the existence of God"....  Read this in full at

http://www.crosswalk.com/pastors/11529607/

     THE SIN OF SELF-SOVEREIGNTY

An interview with Eugene Peterson

RADIX:  [In EAT THIS BOOK (Eerdmans, 2006), you write that] "the text that seems to be most in favor on the American landscape today is the Sovereign Self."  Do you think there are reasons why that's a special problem in this particular culture in a way that it wasn't in the past?

PETERSON: Well, the basic ingredients go back to Eden.  But I think American culture with our combination of individualism and consumerism has taken it pretty far.  We've got the money, most of us do, to do whatever we want to.  With our post-Enlightenment individualism and consumerism, combined with the total erosion of community, which we're all experiencing, I think America has almost perfected the self-sovereignty sin.

RADIX: Do you notice a difference when you travel in other countries?

PETERSON: I don't do that much traveling, but when I talk to friends who are in Third World countries, it's very different.  The little bit of travel I do is usually in Scotland and Ireland, and Christians are such a minority people there, they don't have that same sense of self-sovereignty -- they're more marginal to the culture.  So I think it's an American problem, although some of the Asians might be catching up with us -- the Hong Kong, Korean, Japanese Asians.

RADIX: Toward the end of the book, you say that when the Hebrews were at home in the Canaanite culture, they knew how to say "no" to the culture when they needed to.  So I'm wondering, at what points do you think we American Christians need to be saying "no" to our culture?  Are there any points that are especially important?

PETERSON: Well, yes. I think the identification of the culture with the church, with the evangelical church, makes us prone to an idolatry of nation.  That's so pervasive it's almost impossible to carry on a conversation about it.  America's founders left Europe because of nationalized churches.  Now we've got one of our own, and we aren't even aware of it.  So the nationalism combined with the pervasive consumerism are big problems for the American church.

We go church-shopping; we demand services of the church.  The scary thing about this for me is that the vocabulary stays the same.  We use all the right words, and we still keep all our doctrines in the evangelical church, but the context has changed so radically that they no longer mean anything.  I don't know how the Devil works, but if I were the Devil, I don't think I could have devised a better way of destroying the congregation than talking about "big" -- you know, the bigger, the bigger, the bigger, the more glamorous.  And that destroys congregations.  Congregations aren't glamorous; they're comprised of sinners.

But we've got these poster pictures, glamour shots of what churches ought to be.  It can destroy pastors of small churches -- they feel always inadequate, always inferior.  And it destroys the people in the big churches, because they're no longer dealing with community; they're just part of a crowd.  In the vaunted small-group movement -- which certainly has some good things going for it (probably earlier on, more than now) -- people say, "Well, we take care of community by having small groups."  Well, those aren't communities -- those are people you like.  And, you know, a community has to have people you don't like in it.

RADIX: Yes, actually, my small group is made up of people I like.

PETERSON: They all are.  If you don't like them, you just drop out.  Good things happen in these groups, but it's not community.  Congregation is God's way to give us community.

http://www.radixmagazine.com/

     LEADERSHIP TIPS (BUSINESS, FAMILY, LIFE)

by Brad A. Greenberg

Faith in the workplace is one of the fastest growing arenas of Christian ministry.  If nonprofits are learning lessons from former for-profit execs, it's also true that Christian workers are learning how better to bring their faith into the for-profit world....  Read this in full at

http://www.christianitytoday.com/ct/2007/march/33.62.html

     VERSE TO PONDER

"But when the Holy Spirit controls our lives, he will produce this kind of fruit in us: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control.  Here there is no conflict with the law."  Gal. 5:22-23 (NLT)

     CONSIDER

"With a power given from above we shout, "No!" to him who promises the whole world if we will only worship him.  We crucify the old mechanisms of power -- push, drive, climb, grasp, trample.  We turn instead to the new life of power, love, joy, peace, patience, and all the fruit of the Spirit."  Richard Foster, Money, Sex and Power

     AUTHENTIC FAITH

"Good faith can be distinguished from pretending, self-hypnosis, self-delusion, manipulation, or lying by its intention to reach for truth, reality, what's there.  In other words, faith is an attempt to orient oneself to and concern oneself with what is real and true both 'in here' (subjectively) and 'out there' (objectively).

"Some thinkers have used this expression: True faith is held 'with universal intent.'  Believing is thus distinguished from make-believe in that the person 'in' faith believes she is onto what is actually universally true, not just what is 'nice' for her to fantasize about to make herself feel better.  She hopes that she is not departing from reality, but rather closing in on it, through her exercise of faith."  Brian D. McLaren, Finding Faith: A Search for What Makes Sense

     PONDER DURING LENT

"There is more evidence that Jesus rose from the dead than there is that Julius Caesar ever lived or Alexander the Great died at the age of 33.  It is strange that historians accept thousands of facts for which they can produce only shreds of evidence.  But in the face of overwhelming evidence of the resurrection of Jesus Christ they cast a skeptical eye and hold intellectual doubts.  The trouble with those people is that they do not want to believe."  Billy Graham, Peace with God

"Both children and theologians were part of the Palm Sunday throng.  One can only imagine that the theologians had spent a very hard morning working with old Hebrew word roots. Their scholarship was rigorous, and it left them so distracted, they never saw the Son of God when he entered the city.  The children, well ... they were quite another matter.  They loved Jesus and were so glad to see him coming into Jerusalem, they began to shout their uninhibited praises."  Calvin Miller, The Christ of Easter

    THE GOD GAP?  THE FAITH OF REPUBLICANS AND DEMOCRATS

Recent elections have emphasized the importance of Christian voters.  How is this element of private life shaping up to influence party politics in 2008?  A new survey from The Barna Group explores the "God gap" between Republicans and Democrats, examining religious commitment, belief, and activity.  The study shows that while Republicans continue to hold advantage in attracting born again Christian voters, Democrats are not as far behind on measures of Christian commitment as might be assumed....  Read the report at

http://www.barna.org/FlexPage.aspx?Page=BarnaUpdateNarrow&BarnaUpdateID=266

     SOME NEW $1 COINS LACK 'IN GOD WE TRUST'

According to the U.S. Mint, possibly 50,000 new George Washington dollar coins were mistakenly struck without their edge inscriptions, including "In God We Trust," and made it past inspectors and into circulation.  The properly struck dollar coins, bearing the likeness of George Washington, are inscribed along the edge with "In God We Trust," "E Pluribus Unum," and the year and mint mark.  They went into circulation Feb. 15.  The mint struck 300 million of the coins, which are golden in color and slightly larger and thicker than a quarter.  The coin's design has already spurred e-mail conspiracy theories claiming that the religious motto was purposely omitted from the Washington dollars. That rumor may have started because the edge lettering cannot be seen in head-on photographs of the coins....

http://www.christianpost.com/article/20070308/26206.htm

     A TALE OF TWO SERVANTS

by Chuck Colson

"...So we have in [the movie] "Amazing Grace," on the one hand, and [the movie] Breach, on the other, a contrast between integrity and compartmentalization.  One life shows the fruit of right belief translated into right action, while the other shows how compartmentalized sin does not stay compartmentalized for long; it spreads like gangrene.  God demands our whole hearts.  He wants our beliefs and actions in alignment.  That's why Wilberforce was so adamant, warning us against counterfeits of real Christianity"....  Read this in full at

http://www.breakpoint.org/listingarticle.asp?ID=6229

     CONSIDER

"Authentic faith works to keep the eternal in focus."  William Wilberforce

     2 BOOK SUMMARIES

True Sexual Morality: Recovering Biblical Standards for a Culture in Crisis (Crossway) by Dr. Daniel Heimbach, addresses sexual morality from a biblical perspective.  The author, a professor of Christian ethics at Southeastern Baptist Theological, believes that heeding God's design for our sexuality leads to successful, fulfilling relationships.

Velvet Elvis: Repainting the Christian Faith (Zondervan) is by Rob Bell, the founding pastor of Mars Hill Church in Grandville, Michigan.  Bell is one of the leading spokesmen in the "emerging church movement" which focuses on the church and the postmodern cultural shift surrounding it.  God never changes, Bell says, nor do the central truths of Christianity.  But the believer's understanding of those truths is in constant flux.  "The challenge," he writes, "is to live with great passion and conviction, remaining open and flexible, aware that this life is not the last painting."

Read the summaries of these books at

http://www.christianbooksummaries.com/

     NORTH AMERICAN CHURCH MEMBERSHIP INCREASES ALMOST 1%

The National Council of Churches' Yearbook of American and Canadian Churches 2007 reports on a record number of 224 national church bodies, including brief histories, leadership, and headquarters information, and a ranking of the 25 largest churches by membership -- totaling 149,222,807, an overall increase of .82%....  Read about this at

http://www.ncccusa.org/news/070305yearbook2007.html

     ON MARRYING CORRECTLY

Two women met for the first time since graduating from high school.  One asked the other, "You were always so organized in school.  Did you manage to live a well-planned life?"

"Yes," said her friend.  "My first marriage was to a millionaire; my second marriage was to an actor; my third marriage was to a preacher; and now I'm married to an undertaker."

Her friend asked, "What do those marriages have to do with a well-planned life?"

"One for the money, two for the show, three to get ready, and four to go."

http://www.mikeysFunnies.com

     CONSIDER

"Satan is not concerned with how many people gather in a service if all they do is sit and listen and leave.  Satan does not care how much seed is sown as long as he can steal it away."  W. Oscar Thompson Jr., Concentric Circles of Concern

     VERSE TO PONDER

"With my mouth I will give great thanks to the Lord; I will praise him in the midst of the throng.  For [the Lord] stands at the right hand of the needy, to save them from those who would condemn them to death."  Psalms 140:12-13

     THIS WEEK'S HYMN: FORTY DAYS AND FORTY NIGHTS

Words: George H. Smyttan, 1856

Music: melody by Martin Herbst, 1676; harmony by William H. Monk (1823-1889)

Forty days and forty nights

Thou wast fasting in the wild;

Forty days and forty nights

Tempted, and yet undefiled.

Sunbeams scorching all the day;

Chilly dew-drops nightly shed;

Prowling beasts about Thy way;

Stones Thy pillow; earth Thy bed.

Should not we Thy sorrow share

And from worldly joys abstain,

Fasting with unceasing prayer,

Strong with Thee to suffer pain?

Then if Satan on us press,

Jesus, Savior, hear our call!

Victor in the wilderness,

Grant we may not faint nor fall!

So shall we have peace divine:

Holier gladness ours shall be;

Round us, too, shall angels shine,

Such as ministered to Thee.

Keep, O keep us, Savior dear,

Ever constant by Thy side;

That with Thee we may appear

At the eternal Eastertide.

>from CyberHymnal at

http://www.cyberhymnal.org/htm/f/o/fortyday.htm

     GOD FAQ

Question 115: Which is the fourth commandment?

Answer: The fourth commandment is, Remember the Sabbath day, to keep it holy. Six days shalt thou labor, and do all thy work: but the seventh day is the Sabbath of the Lord thy God: in it thou shalt not do any work, thou, nor thy son, nor thy daughter, thy manservant, nor thy maidservant, nor thy cattle, nor thy stranger that is within thy gates: For in six days the Lord made heaven and earth, the sea, and all that in them is, and rested the seventh day: wherefore the Lord blessed the Sabbath day, and hallowed it.

http://www.shortercatechism.com/

     ON PRAYER

It is the praying heart that sanctifies the toil and skill of the hands, and the toil and wisdom of the head.  Prayer keeps work in the line of God's will, and keeps thought in the line of God's Word.  E.M. Bounds, 19th century author and pastor, in Purpose in Prayer

     PRAY FOR PERSECUTED CHRISTIANS TODAY
http://christiansincrisis.net/

     PRAY FOR A COUNTRY TODAY
http://www.gmi.org/ow/index.html

     DAILY BLESSING PACT
Use the following list as your daily prayer guide. Think of a brother or situation that applies and lift them up in prayer.

I am agreeing in prayer with you for God’s blessings to overtake you!

PERSONAL
Marital harmony
Family unity
Children saved
Faithful pastor
Spirit-filled church
Real friendships
Relatives redeemed
Educational benefits
Recreational time
Fulfilling career
Favor with God and man
Be in God’s will

FINANCIAL
Better Jobs
Raises or bonuses
Benefits
Sales & commissions
Business Growth

Settlements
Estates & inheritances
Investment increase
Rebates & returns
Checks in the mail
Gifts & surprises
Money to be found
Bills decrease while blessings increase

"And all these blessings shall come on thee, and overtake thee, if thou shalt hearken unto the voice of the Lord thy God" (Deut. 28:2).

[As you travel on business or vacation, let me know if you'd like the church guys to pray for your safety and spiritual effectiveness. I'll add your name to the list for the time you'll be away.]

     CLASSIFIEDS

Are you looking for something or do you have something to sell?  Let me know and I'll put it in this newsletter.

     SHARE YOUR FAVORITE WEBSITES

Tell us what sites you find enjoyable and why.

Sabrina Sloan fan site

(One of the contestants on American Idol this year, Sabrina Sloan, grew up at Saddleback Church in California)

http://sabrinasloanzone.com/index.html

Internet Evangelism Day, April 29

http://ied.gospelcom.net/

Great (free) books online

http://www.bartleby.com

All links to websites are provided as a service, and do not imply endorsement by our church.

(BTW: whenever the URLs in this newsletter are too long to turn into links on your e-mail program, just copy the entire URL (two lines or more) and paste it into a temporary email message.  Then delete the return in the middle of it and copy it again.  Then paste it into your web browser and hit enter.)

A procrastinator's work is never done.

Min. Frank Coleman, Editor

[email protected]

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