Preaching Christ – Keller

*recently, a friend passed along this preaching advice from Tim Keller. Given that history is about Jesus, it makes sense that the Bible is all about Him as well. I hope you find ways to apply these principles to your own Bible study. – Pastor Matt

Preaching Jesus Christ Dr. Tim Keller

1. Expound Christ. Explain the text in its Biblical context, so they understand Christ. Explain how it points to Christ.

2. Apply Christ. Apply and counsel with text, so they put on Christ. The aim here is to use the text on the hearer’s practical life issues and problems, which is always to ask: “how am I failing to rejoice in and live as if this were true about who Jesus is and what He did?” Show how Jesus is the solution to our problems.

3. Adore Christ. The aim here is to adore and worship Christ with the text, so that they rejoice in Christ. This is to ask: “How can I adore and rejoice in Christ from what I learned?” You haven’t really fulfilled the text’s purpose, unless you aim to bring people into the presence of God through Christ.

Halloween – great holiday

Y’all know that I am a Southern boy and churches in the South invented “fall festivals” as “safe Christian alternatives to Halloween.”. Halloween (all hallows eve – the day before All Saints Day) has a lot of pagan origins and has been connected with occult practices. Because of these connections, many Christians thought it best to distance themselves from this celebration and instead celebrate the bounty of the fall as a gift from God. November 1st is also Reformation Day – which is a wonderful celebration of the return of the church to faith alone, grace alone and scripture alone.

But as southern as I am, I have left fall festivals behind in favor of Halloween. Surprisingly, this decision has come as a result of my faith. For years I have bemoaned the commercial takeover of Christmas. The wonderful gift of God’s Son is no longer the reason for the season. Instead, it is a time of overindulging our children (and selves) with material things. Nobody thinks you need to be religious to celebrate Christmas. This is unfortunate. But Christmas is not the only holiday that has been conquered by commercialism. Both Valentines Day and Halloween are now fully owned by commercial interests. Halloween has become centered on fun costumes for kids, overly sexy costumes for young women, and overpriced costumes for men. Then there is the candy!!! Costumes and candy are what Halloween is now about. My kids love the costumes and my sweet tooth loves the candy. Another religious holiday bites the dust.

The other thing I have noticed about Halloween is a gospel theme about this commercial holiday. It is the only day of the year when you can knock on every door in your neighborhood (except the houses whee the families are at their church’s fall festival). It is possibly the most neighborly day of the year. Walls come down – because you can knock on any door regardless of your ethnicity, skin color or socio-economic status. This is a preview of the kind of radical inclusiveness of the kingdom of God. Trick or treating is also based on hospitality – which is another gospel theme. Kids come to your door, and regardless of how they look, you treat them all the same – with generosity (yet, another gospel theme). This is a night where you can meet tons of neighbors, practice hospitality and generosity and see the way neighborhoods should be. Pretty awesome, right?

So, Christians, let’s let our light shine on this night! Here are a few tips:
1. Give out the best candy on your block. Be known for your generosity. Having the children of the neighborhood thinking of you as the nicest people on the block is a great testimony to Christ’s work in your life.
2. Greet each child who comes to your door personally. Bend down and talk to each child. Find something to complement about their costume (even if they are 13 and didn’t put a lot of work into it.)
3. Greet the moms and dads. If you know them, say hi and call them by name. If you don’t know them, introduce yourself.
4. Send them off with a blessing, “God bless you!” as they turn to leave. If you have been generous and friendly, nobody will complain.
5. As they walk away, say a silent prayer for them. Pray for God to bless them and that He might use you to share his gospel with them.

God’s plan is to redeem the whole world – even Halloween. Praise be to Him that the pagan portions of the celebration have really faded and that hospitality and generosity have become so central.

What I am listening to these days

Grace will tell you that I listen much more often to podcasts than music. Falling asleep at night, running, and driving – its almost always a podcast. Among my favorites are: Clark Howard (consumer advice), the splendid table (food and cooking), Tim Keller (preaching), Wait! Wait! don’t tell me (new quiz show).

I do listen to music while reading and writing emails, Sunday morning before church services, and before and after most meetings. These days there are some definite favorites:

Indelible Grace – a group of great musicians who have been giving old hymns new life. The lyrics challenge my faith and their Nashville acoustic sound pleases my ear.

Ellie Holcomb – I am in love with her album (Magnolia). Great voice and quality lyrics. This EP is definitely worth your $7 on iTunes.

Ryan Long – his album Arise has three really good songs: change me, lay my burdens down and love immeasurable

Sandra McCracken – Part of the Indelible Grace group, she writes incredible lyrics and does serious work with old hymns. For those of you in Arlington, she’s playing at Mt. Olivett on Nov. 18 and in DC the following night. Last year I flew to Atlanta to catch her and her husband (Derek Webb) play.

I encourage everyone to find music that glorifies God and inspires you to live out your faith. Currently, these artists really encourage my faith.

Joseph, the Massai Warrior

The Story of a Masai Warrior Named Joseph

One of the least likely men to attend the Itinerant Evangelists’ Conference in Amsterdam sponsored by the Billy Graham Association was a Masai Warrior named Joseph. But his story won him a hearing with Dr. Graham himself. The story is told by Michael Card. (Virtue Magazine, 1991)

One day Joseph, who was walking along one of these hot, dirty African roads, met someone who shared the gospel of Jesus Christ with him. Then and there he accepted Jesus as his Lord and Savior. The power of the Spirit began transforming his life; he was filled with such excitement and joy that the first thing he wanted to do was return to his own village and share that same Good News with the members of his local tribe.

Joseph began going from door-to-door, telling everyone he met about the Cross [suffering!] of Jesus and the salvation it offered, expecting to see their faces light up the way his had. To his amazement the villagers not only didn’t care, they became violent. The men of the village seized him and held him to the ground while the women beat him with strands of barbed wire. He was dragged from the village and left to die alone in the bush.

Joseph somehow managed to crawl to a water hole, and there, after days of passing in and out of consciousness, found the strength to get up. He wondered about the hostile reception he had received from people he had known all his life. He decided he must have left something out or told the story of Jesus incorrectly. After rehearsing the message he had first heard, he decided to go back and share his faith once more.

Joseph limped into the circle of huts and began to proclaim Jesus. “He died for you, so that you might find forgiveness and come to know the living God” he pleaded. Again he was grabbed by the men of the village and held while the women beat him reopening wounds that had just begun to heal. Once more they dragged him unconscious from the village and left him to die.

To have survived the first beating was truly remarkable. To live through the second was a miracle. Again, days later, Joseph awoke in the wilderness, bruised, scarred—and determined to go back.

He returned to the small village and this time, they attacked him before he had a chance to open his mouth. As they flogged him for the third and probably the last time, he again spoke to them of Jesus Christ, the Lord. Before he passed out, the last thing he saw was that the women who were beating him began to weep.

This time he awoke in his own bed. The ones who had so severely beaten him were now trying to save his life and nurse him back to health. The entire village had come to Christ.

This is one vivid example of what Paul meant when he said, “I complete what is lacking in Christ’s afflictions, for the sake of his body.”

There is something profoundly freeing and stabilizing to know that Christ calls us to sacrifice for the sake of the gospel. It stabilizes us from being thrown off guard when it comes. And it frees us to choose it when love beckons us. And it begins to free us from the incredible seduction of American prosperity.

Significant Books

During my 3 months away from Little Falls, I read 13 books (which is a personal record for that amount of time).  It was great to read on topics that interest me without thinking of how they will fit in to a week’s sermon or teaching.  Among the books there were 3 that stuck out as absolute winners; books I would reccomend to everyone.  Along with an honorable mention:

1.  The Ragamuffin Gospel – Brenning Manning (1990)

The last time I read this book, I was a college student.  Now, a couple decades later, it hits me as a very profound book about grace and God’s love for me.  One page 25 Manning wrote, “My deepest awareness of myself is that I am deeply loved by Jesus Christ and I have done nothing to earn it or deserve it.”  I accept the truth of those words, but cannot yet say that they represent my deepest awareness of myself.  But thanks to this wonderful book, they are becoming true for me.

2.  Simply Christian – N.T. Wright (2010)

Simply Christian fills out a new trinity of great new apologetics for our faith.  The first book in this new trinity is Lee Strobel’s “The Case For Christ.”  That book depends on archeological evidence to prove the historical reliability of the gospels.  This is a classic approach that has been used widely during the modern era.  The second book is Tim Keller’s “The Reason for God” which is a philosophical apologetic.  It does a great job of showing how our minds give testimony to God’s presence.  I always suggest reading the second half of this book first (chapters 8 – 14), they are a much better starting place than chapter 1.  Now, Wright’s “Simply Christian” joins the group.  It could be labeled as a “biblical apologetic” perhaps.  Bishop Wright simply lays out the major themes of the Bible and God’s great meta-narative that is playing itself out in history.  It is easy to read and inspiring.

3.  Unbroken – Laura Hildebrand

This is a tremendous novel, based on the true story of an olympic runner, who goes to war, becomes a pow and eventually a man of faith.  Best novel I have read in a decade.  Can’t wait for the movie to eventually get made.  Every man in North America should read this one.

4. (Honorable Mention)  Subverting Global Myths – Vinoth Ramachandra

Ramachandra is a brilliant Sri Lankan writer who teaches occasionally at Yale.  This book is a series of essays showing the myths that we latch onto in society.  It is a great follow up to his book on idolatry and is in many ways a pracitcal primer on the subject.  He writes about the “war on terror” in a way that really opened my eyes.  The essay on technology is also quite enlightening.  Not an easy read – but well worth the effort.

I hope you pick one up and enjoy.

United Orphanage and Academy

I spend the later half of this week in Mois Bridge, a small town in north-western Kenya, about 50 miles from the Uganda border. To get there, I flew to Eldoret, the place that the faster marathoners in the world are from. It didn’t take long before I saw some of these runners on their practice runs.

Rev. Stephen Chege, the founder and director of the United Orphanage and Academy (UOA) provided great hospitality to me during my stay, This is an interesting area of Kenya where there are 8 different ethnic groups (many with their own languages). rev. Chege with help from some churches in our Presbytery started the orphanage to provide a home for these children and work to unite people from the various groups under the gospel of Jesus Christ.

Currently, there are 56 children living in the orphanage. In addition, there is a growing Christian School that serves not only these children but 59 others from the community. My interactions with the students were very positive. The school is making a difference in their lives. On behalf of our National and World Missions team I gave the school a Storybook Bible and 2 soccer balls. They were very appreciative.

Before going to Mois Bridge, I went to two local missions of St Andrews in Nairobi. The first of these is called Tumaini Children’s Home. This home is for orphan children with HIV. They were born to mothers with the disease. There are currently 25 children living in the home. They were very warm and full of life. Praise God, I can tell you that medically these children are currently all doing well. Of all of the places I have been in Kenya, this is far and away my favorite place. I wish I could have spent many more hours with these children,

That same day, I visited the Hawa House, a ranch outside of town for street boys. It is estimated that there are 60,000 street boys in Nairobi. They have been abandoned by there families and have turned to begging and crime to survive. The Hawa house provides a new environment for reform, to be loved and to experience the gospel of Jesus Christ. The day I was the, 4 “graduates” of the house had returned to check in on the other boys. There stories were very inspirational.

Tomorrow morning, I will be worshipping at St Andrews for the final time on this trip. I am hoping to being some of you with me next time I come here.

I’ll see you next Sunday!

In Him,
Matt

Mashuru

In the Presbyterian Church of East Africa (PCEA), the Presbyteries assign an area of the country for each church to do mission work. In the case of St. Andrews, they have been assigned some of the land where the Masai people live. This is a rural area about three hours drive from Nairobi. The area is very rural with no electricity. Here, St. Andrews has established 12 churches and a good number of schools during the last 20 years. I have been visiting one place where they have established a vocational and leadership training center.

Students, most often young adults, come three times during the year to receive training. The first time they come for 3-4 weeks to learn the basics of the Christian faith. The second two times they come to receive specialized vocational training. Areas include masonry, carpentry, mechanic for motorbikes and cars, and sewing. This training allows these people to go from having no income to about $100 a month – which is a secure middle class wage in this area.

The reason for their poverty is that the Masai do not like to work with their hands. So, they do not farm or make hand goods. Traditionally, they are herders and only the older men own animals. This puts young people in a lot of economic jeopardy.

The churches are in very rural areas. Most of the time, they are the only building made of cinder block or brick in the area.

Driving out here we stopped at a shopping area to buy bottled water and some bananas. As I started to get out of the car, my hosts asked me to remain in the car because in the store owners saw me, they would dramatically increase the price of the goods because of the color of my skin. It was the first time that I have ever experienced that type of racism. It helps me understand the plight of minorities a little better.

At the end of yesterday, we came across several herds of twiga(giraffe).

In Him,
Matt

Funeral in The Rift Valley

I spend today in the outskirts of Nakaru, in the Rift Valley about 2 hours drive from Nairobi. I went with two ministers from St. Andrews for the funeral of a five year old girl. The parents of the girl live in Nairobi and are members of St. Andrews. So, why do the funeral and burial 2 hours away? Because that is where they are from originally. The African tradition (most peoples in Africa) is to bury a loved one at the family home. While some have referred to this as “ancestor worship” it is better understood as ancestor veneration – in the Christian context think “the communion of saints.”

Surprisingly they asked for me to participate in the service by reading scripture. This is surprising for two reasons. The first is that I was the only white person there (probably in the whole area). Secondly, the rest of the service was in Swahili. After the service in the church, we paraded down to the family home. Off a dirt road, we came upon a large impressive gate. Behind the gate were three one-roomed buildings. They had tin roofs and stick and mud/mortar walls. I am posting w few pictures to help.

The burial service was much like one at home until the end. At the end of this service, we lowered the coffin into a deep hole (maybe eight feet). Then each of the ministers took a handful of dirt and threw it in. Next, the family did the same. Then relatives. Next, everyone attending the service took turns shoveling dirt into the hole until it was completely filled in. Then the family placed flowers on top of the grave. They other pastors explained to me that this was the community participating in the grief and burial. There was a sense of community there that was palpable.

On the way back to Nairobi, we drove past a heard of antelope and several herds of zebras. Very cool.

Getting ready for Africa

This coming Tuesday I leave for Kenya.  During my time there, I will mainly be in Nairobi at St. Andrews Presbyterian Church.  They are a very active church with great outreach and service to the local community and throughout East Africa.  I will also spend two days at the United Orphanage and Accademy in Moi’s Bridge.  I can’t wait to see what God is going to show me there.

The preparation for this part of my trip has taken on a weird new component.  At my brother’s reccomendation, I have started watching “Ninja Warrior” on G4 (a cable TV network).  This is a Japanese game show (I am a nut for almost any Japanese game show) in which highly conditioned athletes try to complete 4 phases of an intricate and imposssibly difficult obsticle course.  In the history of the show (now in its 7th season), only one man has ever succeeded.  So, during “nap time” for the small kids at the beach, Lauren, Grace and I have been catching up on episodes.  Then, we found out that there is an “American Ninja Warrior” where contestants compete in the exact same first stage as Japan trying to win a trip to Japan to compete on “Ninja Warrior.”  What has been amazing to see is the difference between the shows (produced by the exact same people).  The set up is exactly the same, but the attitudes of the participants is completely different.  This has me very curious as to what new attitudes I will find with the Christians of Kenya.  Who knew that watching TV could actually be productive and inspiring?

Refelcting on our time in Sanibel, Grace and I are so appreciative of that time for our family.  All five members had a great time.  One highlight from this week is that on our last morning at the beach, Caroline rolled over for the very first time.  We leave Florida with many fond memories of fun times and a real sense of togetherness.  This uninterrupted time is a supreme gift – thank you.

Health wise, I have been blessed to be healthy the whole time I have been away.  However, I am feeling a little congestion right now.  I would appreciate your prayers for illness to stay at bay and for safe and uneventful travel. 

In three weeks, I will be back at home with you my Little Falls family.  I can’t wait to hear how God has been transforming your lives this summer.

ps – I will try to get the last of the florida pictures (including some shots of an amazing sunset) up by Monday.

 

Week 3 in Sanibel

Sanibel is really starting to feel like home. We can recognize the various weather patterns and know the tidal schedule. Finding shells is getting easier because we have a better eye for what we are looking for. It will hard to leave at the end of this coming week.

This week, Lauren and I tried our hand at fishing. We caught a couple sunfish and a whiting. Nothing impresive, but we had fun. We fished from the Sanibel Pier, a place I remember fishing from as a child with my dad and brother. It’s a little surreal returning to this place of rich childhood memories. It’s funny, I remember this pier being 3 times it’s actual length. We will try our hand at fishing a couple more times this coming week.

My reading speed has increased – maybe reading on the beach and in front of the pool are good for increasing my rate. This week I finished Twyla Tharp’s book, Roger Von Oech’s classic “a c
Kick in the seat of the pants” and am half way through Disney’s “the imaginers workout”. All of these books focus on creativity. Thwrp’s book is the great look inside the patterns of a working artist. Von Oech’s book is a study of how to have creative ideas and the four roles of a creative person: explorer (finding possibilities), artist (manipulating concepts into new ideas), judge (decerning which new ideas to put in practice) and warrior (deploying the new idea). The Imsgineers Workout is a study of various practices the imagineers use to create the many things Disney makes. All of these books share some similar philosophies. I certainly have a better grasp of the creative process and how to get unstuck. This is very fruitful in the ways I have hoped for and so much more.

I have also begun to chart out a sermon series on the Gospel of Luke. For several years, the staff has been talking about doing a sermon series on one of the gospels and I am finally ready to do so. There is nothing like seeing the life of Christ. Rather than focusing only on his teaching, or his parables, or the miracles, we will be looking at all of it together. This way, we won’t just experience the parts of Jesus that fit well with our own thoughts, but Him in his fullness. We will go passage by passage through the entire gospel – skipping nothing. While I am still working on the breakdown, I am estimating that the series will begin in late November and take us to the fall of 2013.

This summer I have learned about two nice Bible apps. The first is “accordance”. It is a free app that has an ESV bible. If you touch any word in the text, the app will show you the Hebrew or a Greek word, the pronunciation and the Strong concordinance number. The other app is Bible.is. This app is an audio bible with several versions including the ESV.