Mother’s Day Discussion

FROM PASTOR STEVEN…

Mother’s Day was a big day at the Wade household (with four mother’s present) and at Poplar Spring. This morning I found an article (here) about why Mother’s Day might be a bad idea by one of my favorite cultural commentators, Al Mohler, and thought I would share it with you. What do you think? Give us your feedback on this one! 

The article can be found at: http://albertmohler.com/blog_read.php?id=3774

Are You a Lukewarm Christian?

FROM PASTOR STEVEN…

In his work Crazy Love: Overwhelmed by a Relentless God, Francis Chan, senior pastor of Cornerstone Church in Simi Valley, CA, offers a radical call for evangelicals to live a life that flows out of a ‘crazy love’ for God. Chan himself wants to live this way. He has significantly downsized his home and given away many of his resources to the poor.

One chapter in the book exposes the fact that many of us are lukewarm Christians. He offers ten characteristics in his “Profile of the Lukewarm”:

1)     Lukewarm people attend church fairly regularly either because it’s expected of them or because they like the people there. It’s what “good Christians” do.

2)     Lukewarm people give money and time to the church as long as it doesn’t impinge on their standard of living. If they have a little extra and it’s easy and safe to give, they do so.

3)     Lukewarm people tend to choose what is popular over what is right in conflict. They want to fit in both inside the church and outside of it. They care more about what people think of their actions than what God thinks of their heart.

4)     Lukewarm people don’t really want to be saved from their sin; they want to be saved from the penalty for their sin. They don’t genuinely hate sin and are not truly sorry for it; they’re merely sorry because God is going to punish them. 

5)     Lukewarm people are moved by stories about people who do radical things for Christ, yet they do not act. They assume such action is for “extreme” Christians, not average ones. These people call “radical” what Jesus expected of all of his followers.

6)     People rarely share their faith with their neighbors, coworkers, or friends. They do not want to be rejected, nor do they want to make people uncomfortable by talking about private issues like religion. 

7)     Lukewarm people love God, but they don’t love him with all their heart, soul, mind and strength. They would be quick to assure you that they try to love God that much but that sort of devotion is only for pastors and missionaries and radicals.

8)      Lukewarm people want pastors that will point out to them their gifts, but not pastors who will point out to them their sin.

9)     Lukewarm people are continually concerned with safety and comfort. This focus on safe living keeps them from sacrificing and risking for God.

10)  Lukewarm people ask:

“How far can I go before it’s considered a sin?” instead of “How can I keep myself pure as a temple of God’s Spirit?”

“How much do I have to give?” instead of “How much can I give?”

“How much time should I spend praying and reading my Bible?” instead of “I wish I didn’t have to go to work so I could sit here and be with God longer.”

Perhaps we all need to examine ourselves and make sure our love for God far exceeds our love for all other people, relationships and things. May we all be transformed into believers who have a Crazy Love!

Now great crowds accompanied him, and he turned and said to them, “If anyone comes to me and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be my disciple.” Luke 14:25-26 ESV

Simple Marriage – Notes From Session #4

#4 – Simple Priorities

Simple Marriage – Notes From Session #3

#3 – Rethinking Conflict Pt. 2

Simple Marriage – Notes from Session #2

Conflict will come in our marriages. In this section, Pastor Steven helps us think through how we are to look at conflict in our marriage.

#2 – Rethinking Conflict (pt. 1)

Simple Marriage – Notes from Session #1

Over the last several Sunday nights, Pastor Steven has led us through a great discipleship class on marriage. He is making the notes available here on the blog for those who were not able to attend the sessions and for those who did attend and would like to have electronic copies of the notes.

Session #1 – SiMPLE MARRIAGE

Class Notes #8 – The Church

This past Sunday night we finished up our overview of Christian Theology. I think that this was a great study, and I hope that it was helpful for those who were able to attend. I’m posting my final notes for those who are interested.

8-the-church

Class Notes #6 – The Holy Spirit

Sorry for the delay in posting these notes. I think that we had a great discussion of the Holy Spirit on Sunday night! Here are my notes if you would like to study them. They are heavily based on the work of Eric Thoennes in the ESV Study Bible.

6 The Holy Spirit

Class #5 Notes – The Work of Christ

For those who were not able to be there on Sunday night, I’m uploading my notes.

#5 – The Work of Christ

* To be sure that I give credit, these notes are based on the lecture notes of Dr. Bruce Ware.

Class #4 Notes – The Person of Christ

I wanted to thank everyone who came out on Sunday night for our discipleship class. We had a great time looking at the doctrine of the person of Jesus Christ. Since we covered a whole lot of information, I’m posting my expanded notes from the lesson. (Click on the words below to get the file…)

The Person of Christ  

Please understand that these notes are heavily based on the article on the person of Christ by Erik Thoennes in the ESV Study Bible.