Cleaning the Blogroll

blogrollWhen I first started blogging, I worked to build up a blogroll.  These are the ones I read, and wanted to share with my readers.  Recently I’ve had to make a couple of subtractions. 

Tim Wilson lives in the United Kingdom, and was the author of Christ Centred.  His last post, the one linked, asks the question “Should Your Blog Exist?”  It also explains why he quit blogging.  The short answer is that there are a lot of blogs out there, and many are better than his own.  Since pastor’s like John Piper and C.J. Mahaney are doing such a good job, his blog was either redundant or inferior.  My name didn’t come up in his consideration.  Hmmm.  Tim concluded that the vast majority of Christian bloggers need to shut it down. 

My good friend That Dude You Know  is taking some blogging time off.  He says at least a year; no blog writing, no Facebook, no Twitter.  His goal is to re-prioritize the things in his life.  He is supporting a family, raising two kids, and working on a seminary degree.  I’ll watch for him though, and should he return I’ll recommend him again.

There are some I wonder about.  Cafe e Vino, A Small Faith and Red Head Rev stuggle sometimes to hang in there.  I’m going to leave them on the blogroll, and suggest perhaps stopping by and/or leaving a word of encouragement.  In the words of Red Green, we’re all in this together.

Re-Introducing Jesus

This is everything some have us have been saying about “other” Jesus for years (Hippie Jesus, Cool Jesus, BFF Jesus, Discount Jesus) we just haven’t been throwing down lyrics.

Thanks to The Joy of Grace  for posting this (so I could post it also).  I figure the more people see it the better.

p.s.  The full screen button works!

Jesus’ Involvement in Starting the Christian Church

jesus_teaching If we began a study of the first century church, 9 times out of 10 we would begin with Acts chapter 2.  The Holy Spirit comes as promised, and Peter preaches a fiery message proclaiming Jesus is the Christ.  Certainly by the end of Acts 2, we see the first Christian believers come together in an organized way.  But if we back up a just a few chapters, Jesus gives the disciples instructions on what will happen next, going beyond his death, burial and resurrection.

Critics of Christianity, as an organized religion (the Church), even claim that Jesus had no intention of starting a new church or movement of any kind, but rather his followers started one in his name.  To put it mildly, these critics have not studied the Bible.  Continue reading

On the Lighter Side (3)

It’s been a long time since I tried to spread the laughter here on The Master’s Table.  Have a Coke and smile!

One Sunday morning, the pastor noticed little Alex standing in the foyer of the church staring up at a large plaque. It was covered with names and small American flags mounted on either side of it.
The six-year old had been staring at the plaque for some time, so the pastor walked up,
stood beside the little boy, and said quietly, ‘Good morning Alex.’
‘Good morning Pastor,’ he replied, still focused on the plaque. ‘Pastor, what is this?’
The pastor said, ‘Well son, it’s a memorial to all the young men and women who died in the service.’
Soberly, they just stood together, staring at the large plaque. Finally, little Alex’s voice, barely audible and trembling with fear asked, ‘Which service, the 8:30 or the 10:45?’

Jesus Was Not Religious

jesusI’ve said before that the problem with religion is that it’s easier than following Jesus.  It is usually a given that something is wrong with us, wrong with the world, perhaps critically or else just a little off, but most people agree that something must be done because all is not right in the world as it is.  Religion, in most cases, offers us the chance to do something.  If we read the right book, say the right things, act right, talk right and treat each others the right way we can “fix” what is wrong.  Religion, as such, is worthless.  But what could I mean that Jesus was not religious? Continue reading

Father Abraham (A Father’s Day Sermon)

abrahamThere’s a lot of negative things to say about topical preaching, but I know two things: 1) Father’s Day will be one of the most searched terms today on the Internet, and 2) No matter what “topic” I begin with, before the sermon is over I will preach the Gospel. 

“Father Abraham had many sons, many sons had Father Abraham.”  So goes the old children’s song.  While we recognize Abraham as the primogenitor of the Jewish nation, like any member our fallen race he was far from perfect.  One danger of celebrating historic lives is that we elevate a person too high by never mentioning certain shortcomings or character flaws.  Historians have to be careful in their presentation of certain figures, particularly the ones they like.  Continue reading

Can A Person Get Saved Reading the Old Testament?

reading-bibleI certainly teach that the whole Bible is about Jesus.  The Bible, on the whole, is the story of how a holy God relates to a sinful and fallen people.  Jesus is at the center of that story.  You’ve heard all this before.

The question I heard raised this morning is “Can a person get saved only reading the Old Testament?”  II Timothy 3 tells us that all scripture is given by the inspiration of God.  Obviously the New Testament is God-given, and we need to read and study it.  If the Old Testament was sufficient, why would God give us another?  But still, if the gospel is all over the Bible, is there enough there to lead a person to Christ?  And I say, yes it is possible.  Continue reading

America Is Not The World

world mapMany of us in the United States are so richly over blessed that we are out of touch with the rest of the world.  I remind my students a few times each year that America is not the world, and it happened again today. Continue reading

Saving(?) the SBC

First Baptist ChurchThe Internet Monk is at times the most critical voice of the SBC, even while on the inside.  At the close of Advance 09, he aknowledges there are problems that the SBC needs to work through in order to remain effective, and wonders how we will do it.  Continue reading

History Repeats Itself

Jeremiah_as_Michaelangelo_Saw_Him“History repeats itself” is actually a terrible misquote.  It leads students to ask questions like “If history repeats itself, why do I have to learn it the first time?”  No, the actually quote is “Those who do not learn history (the past) are condemned to repeat it.”  Google George Santayana.  The point is that if we learn from history, we can avoid making the same mistakes.  Here’s an example of New Testament people not learning their Old Testament history. Continue reading