my sermon, and a fundamentalist's sermon

a)

Tomorrow I'm preaching at my Church. Here's an excerpt if you're interested:

Sinner, you are never your own

Genesis 4:5-7
5So Cain was very angry, and his face fell. 6The LORD said to Cain, "Why are you angry, and why has your face fallen? 7 If you do well, will you not be accepted? And if you do not do well, sin is crouching at the door. Its desire is for you, but you must rule over it."

God’s warning is for all of us: sin desires us. Not in the sense of a suitor, wishing to take us to the movies, offer us its class ring, and ask us to go steady with him. Sin desires to gain dominion over us. Sin wants us as his slaves.

A common question in evangelistic presentations is to ask the hearer whether they desire that God rule over them, or that they continue to occupy the throne of their life. Although this language of self-dominion is Biblical, Scripture also sheds light onto the real situation. No one is king of their own castle. The Bible says that all are slaves.

“I don’t want someone else in control of my life” is the number one objection to the Gospel I hear from students overseas. The very popular reference to sin’s consequences in Romans 6:23, “For the wages of sin is death” shows the foolishness of this thinking if and only if you explain this semi-verse in its context.

When Paul says “wages” he means wages. He is discussing the difference between two masters: sin and God. There are no other options, you will either be ruled by one or loyal to another. Let us consider the text in question:

22But now that you have been set free from sin and have become slaves of God, the fruit you get leads to sanctification and its end, eternal life. 23 For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord.

The sinner desires that no one rules over them but is tragically blind to reality. There are two choices: God or sin. Who do you want to be your master?

God is a demanding master. He asks that you give him everything. You’ve got to come on His terms. But He gives all His unworthy slaves the same free gift – sanctification in this life and eternal life in the next. This means gradual freedom from sin in this life, and total freedom in the next.

Sin is the opposite. He is merciless and cruel but initially easy-going. He let’s you have weekends off, gives you tonnes of seemingly good benefits, and is never demanding. You can slack off and joke around all you want. But the payment is death. No retirement fund or bonuses, just death.

Is this not what God is warning Cain about? Cain chose sin. Sin offered quick release from anger and an immediate sense of relief. It felt good. But sin has one desire, to own and destroy.

There are two lives – slavery to Sin and slavery to God. Who is the better master? Who offers the better future?

Sin is not only desirable, but sin has a desire, and that is to enslave you. Hear the warning of God; follow Abel’s example and have faith in the sacrifice of a substitute’s blood given for your sins. Repent and run to the good master who laid down His life for His slaves. Submit to the Lordship of Jesus Christ.

b)
Few people I run into know what a "Fundamentalist" Christian is theologically. It pretty much means this (or just google it):

Paul - "Hey Steve, wanna go to the evening service at Bayside Baptist?"
Steve - "No way, Bayside believes (insert theology Steve doesn't agree with). I can't fellowship with them."

Steve is a fundamentalist. He believes in the doctrine of separation (fundamentalist-style). Now, some of them believe in double separation, which goes like this:

Paul - "What about going to Angel Grove?"
Steve - "No way, they do evangelistic meetings with Bayside."

Of course, it is not surprising if you've associated these things with fundamentalists:
- only hymns
- hate Christian rock
- cessationists
- KJV-only
- suits and ties
- don't drink or chew or go with girls who do

But we should get our terms straight. Click here to see a rather interesting excerpt from a sermon by a fundamentalist, but here's what you should know about this guy:
- Hardcore KJV-Only
- Hardcore Baptist
- Hates Calvinism
- Hates "Lordship Salvation"
- Has very clear and extreme opinions on clothing and gender roles
- There are far more..... normal fundamentalists out there

Enjoy.

Beauty and Catholics

a)

Earlier, I said I would respond to Jon (about Sex and the City), and now it has been a long time. Here is a quick response:

Jon points out:

"it certainly makes me laugh seeing as how every other week an apparently "innocuous" comedy is being released and reviewed by Christianity Today (which I follow) without any reader uproar".

Good point. It is unfair to make Sex and the City more evil than other movies because it has the word "Sex" in it. However, even the positive review in CT listed enough negative content that I don't think the movie should be viewed by Christians (except maybe by Christian movie reviewers so they can tell us to avoid the movie). Is this just crazy fundamentalism? No. Explanation to come.

Here's what Jon says about film (on behalf of many others):

"we don't try to "justify" these films to our Christian friends by saying we're only observing them at an arm's length to "gain knowledge" on culture, we experience these films intensely and viscerally and in doing so are often presented with some of the most profound and empathetic truths we've ever encountered buried beneath all the dirt and muck"

Here is my problem. This is not about moralism vs. beauty. This is about lesser beauty vs. greatest beauty. Do I need to watch the movie so that I can experience the inner desire for love that thrusts these women into (supposedly) hilarious situations? Do I need to watch the movie to taste the sweetness of their enduring friendship despite the changes that occur in their lives?

Well,
i) I don't need a movie to know about people. John Macarthur (or another faithful pastor) knows much more about people than could be drawn out of this hbo-tv series-turned-movie . Why? Because he lives with them and ministers to them and cares for them. That's how we should ultimately experience people, not through movies.

and ii) Beyond all the obvious reasons for not watching this movie (it promotes disgusting sexual sin and could cause many to lust*), the greatest Truth in the world is God. The greatest beauty in the world is the beauty of God. I am no stranger to movies, tv shows, and music that attempts to find beautiful insights about man in the midst of a sinful world. Is it worth it?

My experience is that the more you spend with your mind enveloped in the things of this world, the less you will be able to experience the greatest Beauty - the Beauty found in the Word of God. The Beauty of the Cross. I have no doubt that a full day with the season one dvd set of Sex and the City will make your soul shrink in its experience of God. There's a word for this - Sin. We weren't made to find joy pondering insights about man, we were made to be satisfied in beholding God.

*Here is a review that goes into non-graphic detail of the negative content of the film. It speaks for itself.

b)

Onto another discussion - over the last year, I've realized that I need to be better about confronting the question of Roman Catholicism. Should I be happy when I meet a devout Catholic? Should I just try to challenge some of their ideas? Should I try to share the Gospel?

There's a really good video on Youtube that I'd recommend. Here's one of the most interesting parts.

One thing that is clear - Evangelicals (those who believe in the Gospel of the Reformation) must firm up their understanding of the issues. Too many say "they believe in Jesus, I believe in Jesus, let's just agree to disagree", but they have no idea what they're disagreeing about. We must be prepared to give an answer, so that we will be able to stand firm and defend the precious Truths that bring Eternal Life.