Thoughts on Pastor Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill Church

I have been pretty silent on the issue of Mars Hill Church and the turmoil that Mark Driscoll finds himself in. Many have asked about my thoughts and I have told them but have not put anything in writing.

Warren Throckmorton at Patheos.com has given very good coverage to the issues of Mars Hill and all that is happening. Some pundits find it satisfying that Mark Driscoll has stepped down as the Lead Pastor at Mars Hill.  But, we need to read the announcement carefully.  He has only taken a six-week leave of absence while the Elders review the charges against him.

What has brought this action about?  Well, the releasing of twenty plus pastors from their association and the resigning of many others has not been helpful. They were also charges of plagiarism (with documentation) in the recent past. Then the disclosure of the effort to manipulate the Book selling marketplace to get Driscoll’s book on the New York Times top 10 list.  Along with this are Mark’s own comments in sermons about certain pastors and leadership style.

These things bring to light what can only be thought of in my mind as Pride and Arrogance on the part of a Mega Church Senior Pastor. He believes he is above the bar when it comes to Christian Ethics and moral attitudes.  His attitudes as well as those of his Executive committee regarding ignoring the Orange County Commissioners and Zoning Planners is one example.  The Executive Committee told the local pastor to ignore the orders to vacate the property the church was using because it was not zoned properly.  They told the pastor, let them come after us and we will mount a campaign of religious persecution to shame them into relenting.  That is not what a Christian Ministry should do.

I believe that the Pride and Arrogance that we see in Pastor Driscoll is similar to the Pride and Arrogance that King David showed in his relationship with Bathsheba.  He refused to acknowledge his sin.  Thus God had to bring judgment on him and it cost the life of the child that was born to Bathsheba.  Even King David, a man after God’s own heart, could not avoid the sin of Pride and Arrogance in this situation.

Pastor Driscoll should acknowledge that his style of leadership is not that of a Shepherd Leader and not following Christian Ethics or Biblical principles.  He needs to face the music, accept the punishment that God sets forth and then realize that God will allow him to then be restored to ministry and allowed to again serve and serve faithfully.

We need to hold our mega church media favored Pastors to the same standard of any Pastor as Paul express to Timothy.  They need to be above reproach with not even a hint of scandal.

I pray that Mark Driscoll can come to see the error of his way.  I pray that those if us in Pastoral work can heed the examples of sin that are so straight forward in this case and repent of our evil ways and seek to serve God as good Shepherds of the Flocks that He has place under our care.

Let us remember that none of us are without sin.  God is merciful and righteous and forgives our sins when we confess them. He also loves to use sinful but repentant people to further His Kingdom.

Frivolous Lawsuit filed against the Ferguson Police Department

When you hear about the $40 million dollar lawsuit being filed against the Ferguson Police Department you think that the family is trying to get some compensation for the death of their son Michael Brown.

But upon listening to the lawyer who has brought the lawsuit that is not the case. On national news this lawyer states, “If the Ferguson Police won’t police themselves then we will sue them and bankrupt them so that they can no longer function.”

Now, that is just downright stupid. You are angry that the police did something wrong and that the investigation seems to be dragging along.  So, now, let’s sue them, bankrupt them and get rid of law and order in the city of Ferguson.  I’m sorry but the citizens of Ferguson deserve police protection.  Yes, sometimes that goes wrong and there are consequences, but overall the department provides stability to a community.

If we use the same logic this lawyer is using then why don’t we sue the Federal Government, President Obama and the Attorney General’s office, along with the FBI.  They have all come in and declared that they will get to the bottom of the issue and as of today they have not finalized any investigation or brought any charges. 

So, if we use the same logic we ought to be bringing a lawsuit against the Federal Government!  How crazy does that sound.  But everyone wants their 15 minutes of fame, so now, the court should throw out this lawsuit as frivolous.

I may be just an ignorant citizen, but I can see a problem when it presents itself clearly and this lawsuit is a problem.

Do I think that the family of Michael Brown should be able to file a lawsuit?  Yes, if that is what they want. But it should be for compensation for loss of income, loss of companionship, loss of a loved one.  It should not be with the intent to bankrupt a police force to shut them down.  Really, it won’t shut them down, it will if upheld just cause an insurance company to loose a bunch of money.

Really people, let’s be smarter than this and not allow outsiders to come in and raise up more trouble in the North Part of St. Louis.

What do you think?  Let me know?  If I am off base then speak up.

Further Thoughts on ISIS and the prophet Jonah!

Would you go to ISIS and declare God’s judgment if He asked you to?

The Prophet’s of the Old Testament were a rare breed of character.  They usually were shunned by society and appeared often to be outcasts.  I believe the main reason for this is the message that God asked them to bring.  Israel had been rebelling against God for a long time and the Prophet’s brought God’s message of repent or be destroyed.

Jonah was no exception to this.  He was asked by God to go to Nineveh and express God’s outrage to the people and inform them that He had seen their evil and thus He was going to destroy them.

We all know that Jonah went the other way.  He ignored God, but then God gave him a second chance to go and deliver the message.  When he delivered it the people repented and God relented, satisfied that they had turned from their evil ways.

In our Community Group the other night one of our members, a former Marine, said, “You know, ISIS (Islamic State of Iraq and Syria) is like Nineveh, I wonder how we would react if God asked us to go the ISIS and call them out about their sin and tell them to repent or be destroyed by God.” It was an interesting thought given that ISIS is in the same area that Nineveh had been.

It also gave a good reminder about how I would feel regarding going to ISIS territory and declaring God’s judgment, it gave me a reference point to know how Jonah must have felt.  If I set foot in ISIS territory and declared their demise I’m pretty confident that I would lose my head at the hands of these criminals.

Jonah felt the same fear, the Ninevites were not a people to be trifled with.  They took great pleasure in killing Jews.  ISIS takes great pleasure in killing Christians, as well as non-violent Muslims.

So, how would you respond if God called you to go to the Middle East and deliver His message of repent or die to the men of ISIS?

Know The Heretics, by Justin Holcomb

What a wonderful short book about the main Heresies that arose in the early times of the developing Christian Church. I have read many different books on this subject over the years but found that this was one that I could quickly devour and then recommend to the many students and congregation members that I know would love to learn about this subject.

I think the "Know" series of books is a great way for small groups to go through a topic together and learn. After having read through this I'm going to get 10 copies for our small group and we are going to make this as our first study this fall. Some of the heresies that he writes about are well known and some not so much. But what is interesting is that all of these heresies started long ago but if you start to understand them you can see that they are still present in our culture today. Many people are being swayed away from the Bible and the true Gospel Message because they at times feel God is harsh. They just don't fully understand His nature.

But when you think God is harsh or cruel or mean then you have a tendency to try and soften the message or the text of scripture and that leads to false teaching and leading people astray.

If you have never read anything about the Heretics that confused the early church members then this wonderful little book is perfect for your primer on the topic.

Enjoy!

Christianophobia by Rupert Shortt

Those of us who are curious about the persecution of Christians in the Middle East and other non-Western countries will find this book helpful in documenting what is going on.  Rupert Shortt gives us information regarding the following countries: Egypt, Iraq, Iran, Pakistan, Turkey, Nigeria, Indonesia, India, Burma, China, Vietnam, North Korea, and the Holy Land.

Each chapter gives a history of the issues in that country and then documents many of the attacks against Christians and their churches, businesses, homes and schools.

With the atrocities of ISIS prevalent on the nightly news many Westerners are wondering what they can do or what is the cause of much of this violence and rage that is being poured out on the non-Muslim populations in the Middle East.  Shortt will give you some background and help you to clarify what has been happening not just recently but for many centuries.

The Western Church needs to read a work like this to get a better grasp on the issues facing God's people throughout the world. This book is not for the faint of heart as it will give you the details as to what is happening and the cruelty being inflicted on many innocent people, Christian as well as Muslim.

You will not find an answer to the problem within these pages, but you will find a good description of what the problem is.

2 Timothy 4:1-8 --- Preach the Word

In this section of scripture Paul is exhorting his young disciple Timothy to diligently follow the exhortation that he is giving, that exhortation is;

            Preach the Word

            Be ready in season and out of season (to give an answer)

            Reprove, Rebuke and Exhort with complete patience and teaching

            Be sober-minded

            Endure suffering

            Do the work of an Evangelist

            Fulfill your ministry

Timothy had a calling/ministry to fulfill and Paul was encouraging him to stand by that calling and run the good race and finish that race, just as Paul has done.

These words are also meant for each of us today. Do you know what calling God has placed on your life? Are you striving to fulfill that calling? Are you willing to suffer the possible consequence of persecution for following your calling?

I think that we in the United States have become very complacent in our faith.  We have become comfortable in the face of lack of persecution. We have become quiet because we don’t want to be politically incorrect or be viewed as intolerant.

The time to stop this lethargic Christian lifestyle is now. We may not be facing persecution in America for being religious/Christian, but our lethargic attitude towards sharing the Gospel will bring eventual judgment on us from the Lord.

The day is coming when we will be persecuted even here in America for our faith, are you ready to stand tall and give an answer for the hope you have in Christ?

I am presently reading a book called, “Christianophobia: A Faith Under Attack.” It is mainly exploring the persecution of the Christian Faith in countries other than America.  I picked the book up because of the crisis of ISIS in the Middle East.  I want to understand more of what is going on.  When I finish the book I will post a review here on this Blog.

In the meantime I ask you, the reader, to memorize 2 Timothy 4:1-8 and ask yourself, “Am I fighting the good fight, or am I comfortably ignoring God’s call on my life?”

Write and let me know what you think and feel free to send prayer requests as I would love to pray for you.

Obadiah -- God's judgment on Edom

The minor prophets continue to be the least looked at books in the Bible. So, is it any wonder that maybe Obadiah is the least looked at of the minor prophets since it is so short? Obadiah is the shortest book in the Old Testament but that doesn't mean that it doesn't hold solid truth's about the Lord.

The book is God's declaration regarding the people of Edom. The Edomites turned against the Israelites by helping catch fleeing Israelites from the Babylonians. They also gave aid and comfort to the Babylonians. God was not happy with the Edomites so this is His declaration of what will happen to them.

This new Commentary Series does a great job of addressing the background, the history, the culture, etc. of the people that the prophecy is about. Daniel Block does a very effective job of writing and making the concepts understandable for laypeople as well as Pastors.

The layout is good, the explanation of the original languages is good and the outlining and structure are very well done.

I think that Laypeople will enjoy this series, but it has enough solid intellectual material that even Pastors and Bible teachers will be happy with the text.

Enjoy!

The God of second chances! Thoughts on Jonah Chapter Three

We are all familiar with the story of Jonah and how he became what we like to term, ‘The Reluctant Prophet.’  In chapter 1 we read, “Now the word of the Lord came to Jonah.”  This phrase is the opening of the story.  God had a message for Nineveh and Jonah was the prophet he selected to deliver that message.

But Jonah ran away from the task and God had to capture his attention through the storm at sea and then the adventure in the belly of a great fish. Jonah comes to his senses and cries out to God while in the belly of the fish (see chapter 2).  The first vomits Jonah out onto dry land.

Now for chapter 3.  It starts out with, “Then the word of the Lord came to Jonah the second time.”  What I find most interesting is that God allows Jonah a second chance. God extends mercy to Jonah, not just for Jonah’s sake but also for the sake of all the people of Nineveh.

Jonah takes heed of the word of the Lord this time and goes to Nineveh.  Now, granted, he still didn’t have the best of attitudes, but he did go. The result, much to Jonah’s surprise, is that the whole city of Nineveh repents and turns from their evil ways.

So, why am I intrigued by this aspect of the story?

1.     God will go to great lengths to have His message delivered to a sinful people

2.     God gives mercy to Jonah and spares his life and gives him a second chance. How often have you needed a second chance with God?

3.     God knows our hearts, but still He desires to allow us to be his spokesperson.

4.     God is the God of judgment as well as the God of mercy.  All we have to do is repent (like Jonah did in the fish) and God will be quick to hear and respond.

In our culture today people are sinners and need to hear the word of God.  Our cities are no better than that of Nineveh.  How it must break God’s heart to see us act the way we do. Our sin and corruption know no bounds.

BUT, God is merciful and willing to receive us back into His fellowship if we will just repent. So, how do we get people, to repent?  Well, we don’t, God does. It is God’s work to bring sinful people to a point of brokenness and repentance.

BUT, God needs helpers.  He needs people to be his voice. Jesus told the disciples that the harvest was plentiful, but the workers were few. Then the apostle Paul gave us this question to ponder in Romans 10:14-17;

¹⁴ How then will they call on him in whom they have not believed? And how are they to believe in him of whom they have never heard? And how are they to hear without someone preaching? ¹⁵ And how are they to preach unless they are sent? As it is written, “How beautiful are the feet of those who preach the good news!” ¹⁶ But they have not all obeyed the gospel. For Isaiah says, “Lord, who has believed what he has heard from us?” ¹⁷ So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ. ^[1]

So, the question is, do you need a second chance to share the Gospel with someone? Do you need God’s mercy in your life because you have not followed Him? Are you willing to confess your sins and turn from your evil ways and go where God directs you?

Let me know your answers to those questions.

God bless.

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^[1] The Holy Bible: English Standard Version. (2001). (Ro 10:14–17). Wheaton: Standard Bible Society.