The Biblejunkie

Interesting Survivalist Blog

2010-06-20T21:38:00.000-04:00

M.D. Creekmore at The Survivalist Blog – a survival blog dedicated to helping others prepare for and survive disaster – with articles on bug out bag contents, survival knife choices and a wealth of other survival information is giving away a 1,000 round case of 9mm – 124 Grain FMJ (a $200 value – donated by LuckyGunner)! To enter, you just have to post about it on your blog. This is my entry. Visit The Survivalist Blog for the details.

Interesting Survival/Be Prepared Site

2010-05-18T20:49:00.000-04:00

M.D. Creekmore over at the The Survivalist Blog – a survival blog dedicated to helping others prepare for and survive disaster – with articles on bug out bag contents, survival knife choices and a wealth of other survival information is giving away a Go Berkey Water Filter System (a $139.00 value)! To enter, you just have to post about it on your blog. This is my entry. Visit The Survivalist Blog for the details.

Post Lake Yale Conference

2009-08-23T09:54:00.005-04:00

The Conference went well. It was basically a "refresh and update" on whats been going on in the cult world. The "Interfaith Evangelism" side of NAMB is desiring to kick start that program again. Its been kinda "dead in the water" for the last few years. This weekend began that effort for the Florida chapter of it. We went over the biblical basis for speaking the truth to those trapped in false religions and also the importance of educating Christians in biblical doctrine to keep them from falling prey to the doctrinal wolves both in and out of the church.

I was surprised to see some "big dogs" that showed. Guys that have been doing evangelism to the cults for 20 plus years were there. Some are teaching profs, some are pastors and one had even written for CRI magazine. One gentleman whom I met years ago is actually getting his doctorate in Hindu studies. If I remember correctly he is attending a Hindu school! Needless to say he was "the man" whenever we covered info on Hinduism. It was funny hearing him talk of interacting with the Hindu teachers.

Because of certain comments in the past, I must admit, I was a little nervous concerning any discussion of Calvinism that may arise. But to my surprise and delight I ran into three other gentlemen at the conference who are Calvinists! One was even scheduled to speak! The other is the Hindu guy I mentioned. Needless to say I was much relieved and encouraged.

They have also stepped up the requirements for those who wish to become "certified" as an "Interfaith Specialist". One book by the cult itself. At least two books by approved authors on the cult. Write a review of each book and what you learned from it. Actually witness to or at least discuss the differences with a member of that cult. And last but not least submit an outline of what you would teach in a class and then teach it. If possible, video tape it and submit it for evaluation. Once these things are done and approved you can be certified and receive the stamp of approval from IE and NAMB on that particular cult. The process is the same for each cult/world religion you wish to be certified in.

It was great seeing Tal Davis and Bill Gordon again. Also got to talk with some folks that I haven't seen in years. It was an enjoyable conference.

For those interested, here is the web site. You will find some good stuff here: www.4truth.net.

Lake Yale

2009-08-21T08:12:00.004-04:00

Headed to Lake Yale Baptist Conference Center today. Should arrive their around noon. Register and Check into my room, rest, Conference starts at 3pm. I've been invited to the "Interfaith Evangelism Specialist Training" event. "OOOoooohhh....AAAhhhhhhh". Those are big words for training on witnessing to cult members. Actually this is more about being trained to take what you've learned and share it with the churches in your areas.

Actually I've been doing this type of thing for years. Many church members and Pastors have always kind of looked at me sideways about this type of stuff. UNTILL they need information or a church/family member is headed down the road to cultsville. All of a sudden I'm a needed member of the community. LOL!! People are the same, many times, whether in the church or outside the church.

Anyway, I'm hoping all goes well. There is going to be a much bigger group than usually shows for these types of things. We should be done by noon tomorrow. I'll grab some lunch, say a few goodbyes and hopefully be home around 4ish.

The Hypocrisy of Offense

2009-06-13T12:45:00.004-04:00

Christian liberty has become a "touchy" subject of late in my neck of the woods. Christians who are more than pew sitters are reading their bibles and beginning to see and understand that some of the old "traditions" that have become law in their churches fall short of being biblical. Certain taboos that believers refrain from under the guise of "holiness" or "being a good witness" or "not offending" are being challenged. It is the "offense" part that I want to address here. Yes, offending one's brother is not a good thing. (a side note here: offending your brother is not simply doing something that he disagrees with. It has evolved into that meaning today, but that is far short of the true definition) It is to be avoided if possible, but not at the expense of truth and leading our weaker brothers into a legalistic form of righteousness. What my "non-offending" brothers need to realize is that in their great zeal to not offend, they do truly offend! Not only do they look down upon the non-taboo brother or sister, but they deny them certain privileges in the church due to their "sin" as well as gossip and slander them to other church members. These things ought not to be.

There is to be a sort of give and take in this matter according to Scripture. Romans 14 is very clear in this matter. The strong/mature believers are not to lord their liberty over the weak/immature believers and the weak/immature are not to judge the strong/mature. Each are to serve the Lord under the guise of their own conscience....in love. Each is to allow the other believer to follow Christ within the boundaries of his understanding of scriptural teachings. Word of warning here. This freedom among brothers only applies to "gray areas" of sanctification, it does not apply to heretical teachings and false doctrines. These are to be resisted at all costs. There is no agreeing to disagree in the areas of heresy.

So remember my taboo loving brothers. Not only are you disobeying Romans 14 by judging your stronger brothers, but you are accomplishing the very thing that you say you wish to avoid: Offense! By sidelining them, gossiping and slandering them, and just overall treating your brothers who disagree with you in a "gray area" as second class Christians.

~ The Biblejunkie

The Christian's Bill of Rights

2009-04-16T19:33:00.002-04:00

The Christian's Bill of Rights
1. As believers in the Lord Jesus Christ we have only one right: and that is to give up all rights to ourselves (2 Cor. 5:14-16; Romans 14:7-9).
2. We have the right to deny ourselves, take up our cross and follow Him (Mt. 16:24-26).
3. We have the right to esteem others more highly than ourselves; and love our neighbor as ourselves (Mt. 22:39;
Phil. 2:1-5).
4. We have the right to fulfill the law of Christ in bearing one another's burdens of sin (Gal. 6:1-3).
5. We have the right to be wronged and to maintain a faithful testimony (1 Cor. 6:1-8).
6. We have the right to live in unreciprocated, self-sacrificial love (Eph. 5:1-2).
7. We have the right to forgive others the smaller debt, as God in Christ has forgiven us the larger debt (Eph. 4:31-32; Matthew 18:12-35).
8. We have the right to suffer for the gospel and to take the blows for the One who took the blows for us (1 Peter 2:21-24)
9. We have the right to be "subject to rulers, to authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good deed, to malign no one, to be uncontentious, gentle, showing every consideration for all men" (Titus 3:1-2).
10. We have the right to not be political agitators trading the truth of His Word to play politics with men's souls; thinking that true spiritual change occurs through legislation rather than the transforming power of the gospel of grace. (1 Peter 4:10-16).
11. We have the right to turn the other cheek (Matthew 5:39).
12. We have the right to be stripped of all earthly things (Matthew 5:40-42).
13. We have the right to not repay evil for evil and to be at peace with all men as much as it depends on you (Romans 12:17-18).
14. We have the right to love our enemies, do good to them that hate us, bless those who curse us and pray for those that despitefully use us (Matthew 5:44-45).
15. We have the right to pursue holiness-not personal happiness (1 Peter 1:13-16).
16. We have the right not to be ashamed of the gospel (2 Tim. 1:6-18).
17. We have the right not to harbor revenge, anger, bitterness, clamoring, wrath, malice and slander when wronged by another (Ephesians 4:31).
18. We have the right not to quench or grieve the Holy Spirit. (Eph. 4:30; 1 Thess. 5:19).
19. We have the right to repent of and not cherish our sins (Psalm 66:18).
20. We have the right to guard the trust; and to contend for the once for all delivered to the saints faith (1 Timothy 6:20; Jude 1:3).
21. We have the right to train our children in the nurture and admonition of the Lord (Ephesians 6:1-3).
22. We have the right to reflect God's covenantal relationship with us by honoring our vows in the covenant of marriage with our spouse Mt. 19:6).
23. We have the right to worship Christ Jesus as God of very God; Creator; Redeemer; Sovereign Lord and Ruler of all (Col. 1:15-19; Hebrews 1:8; Phil. 2:5-11).
24. We have the right to present our lives as living sacrifices everyday to God (Roms. 12:1-2).
25. We have the right to live in the expectancy and hope of the Lord's return by which we purify ourselves (Roms. 12:1-2).
26. We have the right to march daily on our knees in prayer; praying for our leaders in government; our church leaders; our fellow believers; our families; and the lost (1 Timothy 2:1-3; Ephesians 6:18-21).
27. We have the right to praise and glorify God according to how He has revealed Himself through the pages of His Word (Col. 3:16-17).
28. We have the right to honor our local church pastors; for they keep watch over our souls as those who will give an account (Hebrews 13:17).
29. We have the right to go into all the world and make disciples of all nations (Matt. 28:18-20).
30. We have the right to have no rights apart from Christ Himself; "for whoever wishes to save his life shall lose it, but whoever loses his life for My sake shall find it" (Matt. 16:25: John 15:5).

A Puritan Prayer for Those Who Have Surrendered Their Rights in this Life
"Accept His worthiness for my unworthiness, His sinlessness for my transgressions, His purity for my uncleanness, His sincerity for my guile, His truth for my deceits, His meekness for my pride, His constancy for my backslidings, His love for my enmity, His fullness for my emptiness, His faithfulness for my treachery, His obedience for my lawlessness, His glory for my shame, His devotedness for my waywardness, His holy life for my unchaste ways, His righteousness for my dead works, His death for my life!"

Taken from Steve Camp's site: http://stevenjcamp.blogspot.com/2005/07/christians-bill-of-rightswe-have-one.html

2009-03-22T21:26:00.003-04:00

Guys, if the opportunity is still available (the class just finished its first week), sign up for "Maintaining Your Spiritual Health". ITS FREE!!! and its found here:

http://study.founders.org/

2009-03-21T22:32:00.005-04:00

The final day, Saturday, was quite good. Robert Godfrey opened with "Wounded for Our Transgressions: The Holiness of the Cross" and made an interesting comparison using the sin of Uzziah in Isa. 6 with the following verses of Isaiah's encounter with God. He made two interesting quotes. 1. " The more that worship pleases you the more suspicious you should be of it" and 2. "Sermonettes produce Christianettes" borrowed from Spurgeon. Of course he then went on to expound a little from Isa. 53. How could he not when dealing with the cross??

Derek Thomas was up next. He was a new face to me and one that I will have to check more into. He also is a Scot and very good preacher.
He spoke on "Be Ye Holy: The Necessity of Sanctification" from 1 Peter 1. He had so much I can only give a few of his points: 1. Holiness is an essential aspect of the Christian life 2. We live for self-fulfillment rather than pleasing God 3. The purpose of theology is to drive us to Christ-likeness and 4. We are saved to be holy. He also made the point that only God can truly satisfy.

The last lecture of the Conference was of course preached by R.C. Sproul and he hit it out of the park. "A Consuming Fire: Holiness, wrath and Justice" was the topic. His sole purpose was to remind us that while God is truly a God of magnificent grace we must never forget His justice and wrath. He pointed out our utter sinfulness before His holiness and our absolute need of Christ as our substitute and sinbearer in order for us to stand in the presence of God. NOT standing in our own righteousness but in a righteousness that is totally outside ourselves and alien to our nature, the righteousness of Jesus Christ. It was great.

I must comment on the music there. We sang many old hymns. One even from the 4th century. They were FILLED with biblical doctrine and always pointed you to the majesty of God and Christ and to our sinfulness and need of redemption. They weren't the watered down syrupy sweet "love songs" we call Christian music today but melodies of great theology that push biblical truths down into the heart and soul. It was quite refreshing.

The Conference was ended on a great note. They asked for volunteers from the audience to gather up front and sing the Hallelujah Chorus. About 150 or so responded. That is one of my favorite songs and it was lifted up to the rafters with joy and praise to the God who sacrificed His only begotten Son for rebellious sinners like us. What a note to end on.

2009-03-21T22:10:00.004-04:00

We got an early breakfast and headed for the Conference center the next day looking forward to a packed day of great teachers.

Sinclair Ferguson hit us pretty hard on the Holiness of the Father. Of course he took us to Isa. 6 and how Isaiah being in the presence of the Holiness of God revealed just how sinful a being that Isaiah really was. He stressed the idea that when we truly consider the phrase "O Holy Father" it should really cause us much soul searching. That it is a phrase that we should not take for granted. That we must always remember the price that was paid for us to have the unspeakable privilege of not only being able to call Him "Father" but also being able to enter into His presence.

Steve Lawson was up next. He stressed the holiness of Jesus pointing out that the title "The Holy One of God" is a title of Deity and Supremacy. He made the funny comment on how even the demons recognized the Deity and Majesty of Jesus and how they had a better testimony than what you find in liberal churches today. He went on to emphasize the amazement that the Jews had when they witnessed holiness of life expounding holiness of truth. Steve Lawson has written some really great books. I highly recommend his Foundation series. It is a four book series that traces the Doctrines of Grace from the Scriptures all the way to our present day.

After a break Allistar Begg and his wonderful accent expounded upon the Holy Spirit. Reformed theology has gotten a bad rap over the years of people saying that they neglect the doctrine of the Holy Spirit. Poppycock. He pointed out the necessity of Christ leaving, The identity of the Helper and His activity: confrontation of sin and proving the guilt of the world before a Holy God.

Thabiti Anyabwile treated us to "Cosmic Treason: Sin and the Holiness of God" from Numbers 25. His most important point to me was "people live as if there is no danger in sin and the wrath of God and judgment."

And finally D.A. Carson, a brilliant man, regaled us from 1 Peter 2:4-10 "A Holy Nation: The Church's High Calling". He stressed the importance of the Church and how she is to be viewed as "family". How she is a chosen people, a royal priesthood, a holy nation, and a special possession. The neat thing is that he took us to all the Old Testament references that Peter was quoting from showing how the Church is the fullfillment of all those promises made to Israel.

Over all a really good day.

2009-03-19T21:21:00.006-04:00

We were able to get away around 5:30 am and we made good time. We were even able to stop and get some breakfast before the conference began: 9 am. From 9am until 4:30 pm we were treated to lectures about John Calvin. Its the 500th anniversary of Calvin's birth so we were treated to a "mini-conference on Calvin before the real conference began. Teacher, preacher, theologian and so much more we learned of the many ways that Calvin has not only affected the Christian world but the social and political world as well. You can even trace some of the principles of our Republic and Democratic freedoms to the principles taught by John Calvin.

Calvin preached around 4000 sermons in his lifetime. But because of poor record keeping we only have about 1500 of them. His most famous work is "Institutes of the Christian Religion". A fantastic work about the practical outworking of Theology. It is well worth the read. We were told today that a good introduction to Calvin for the layman would be to read his sermons on Galatians and Ephesians. A good intro to the Institutes would be to read the Preface letter as well as Book 3 Chapters 6-10, commonly called "The Golden Booklet of the Christian Life".

Calvin was big on piety which is shorthand for the practice of the Christian life. Calvin referred to it as the experiential love of God as Father joined with a great fear and reverence of God as Lord. Calvin believed that true piety was a matter of the heart. Its not about perfection but about progress: Progressive sanctification. Calvin outlines it into 4 parts: Self-denial, Cross Bearing, Meditation, and thinking about the future life.

His staunch hard nose stand on the idea of Sola Scriptura: The Word of God Alone decides doctrine and practice. He was decidedly against chasing rabbits to no avail. He was of the opinion that if God's word didn't speak of it then it wasn't important enough for us to worry about.

Sinclair Ferguson preached on the Doctrines of Grace. He made the point that the most difficult thing for man to believe is in a salvation in which he can't add anything to it. It comes naturally to fallen man to want to add his "good works" to the act of salvation. But the bible is clear that it is solely the work of God.

Steven J. Lawson treated us to "The Legacy of Calvin" which was a romp through history outlining the many, many influences of Calvin and his theology on areas of social, political, and religious life. It was really fascinating. I had no idea how far it reached.

Well, basically that's a very short version of "cliff notes" for the lectures we heard today. Good stuff but no way I can put it all down here. :)

I will try and take some pictures and post them tomorrow night to give you an idea of whats going on location wise.

2009-01-20T19:38:00.003-05:00

This is a great book. While many people have a great time chasing after "fun" things like end time events and who are those giants in Genesis 6, this book gets down to the meat and potatoes of the Christian life. Ten Questions that will make you sit up and take notice as to where you are in your Christian walk. Sometimes after we commit our lives to Christ, after awhile we begin to take some things for granted and whether unwittingly or not, begin to get slack in some things. This little book will help you to see where those things might be and point you in the right direction.

The questions are:

1. Do you thirst for God?
2. Are you governed increasingly by God's Word?
3. Are you more loving?
4. Are you more sensitive to God's presence?
5. Do you have a growing concern for the spiritual and temporal needs of others?
6. Do you delight in the Bride of Christ?
7. Are the Spiritual Disciplines increasingly important to you?
8. Do you still grieve over sin?
9. Are you a quicker forgiver?
10. Do you yearn for heaven and to be with Jesus?

You can find the book here:

http://www.amazon.com/Questions-Diagnose-Your-Spiritual-Health/dp/1576830969/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&s=books&qid=1232499184&sr=1-1

2008-12-09T22:12:00.002-05:00

The way we present the Gospel has really been bothering me of late. We tell people that what they need to do is "accept Jesus" and they will be saved. This, I believe, is the exact opposite of what we should be telling the lost. Here's where I'm coming from:

WE are the sinners (Rom. 3:23). WE are under the condemnation of God right now (Jn. 3:18). WE are the enemies of God (James 4:4). WE are under the wrath of God (Jn. 3:36). WE are the rebellious ones, WE have gone our own way, WE are GUILTY!

Therefore, when we approach the Holy and Righteous Judge, we don't tell him "I accept you into my heart". NO! We hit our knees realizing that the only thing we deserve is the wrath of God. The only thing we deserve is condemnation. We realize fully what our sin has done and we beg a Holy and Righteous God to show us mercy. We plead with HIM that HE will accept US !! Based upon what His Righteous Sinbearer has done for us on the cross. We ask HIM for grace and mercy based upon that pure, sinless blood that Christ shed as our substitute. The Gospel is all about a Rightous and Holy God making US acceptable by HIS mercy and grace, not us "accepting Him" like we are doing Him some kind of a favor.

"A Sure Guide to Heaven"

2008-11-30T20:01:00.005-05:00

Joseph Alleine's book "A Sure Guide to Heaven" is the last book to be read in the "Puritan Challenge" made at the beginning of this year. And what a challenging book it is too. Alleine was a superb evangelist that took nothing for granted and plowed deep into a person's heart and mind to make sure that he understood the Gospel and was truly converted. He knew nothing of today's shallow "gospel" of easy believism and would even push hard upon those who claimed to be converted to examine and search their hearts to make eternally sure they were not self-deceived. Did they have scriptural fruit? Did they repent of their sins? Had they forsaken all to follow Christ?

So to whet your appetite and perhaps convince you to buy and dive into this short convicting work, here are the chapter titles:

1. Mistakes about Conversion
- Conversion is not the taking upon us the profession of Christianity
- Conversion is not putting on the badge of Christ in baptism
- Conversion does not lie in moral righteousness
- Conversion does not consist in external conformity to rules of piety
- etc, etc

2. The Nature of Conversion
- The Author of conversion is the Spirit of God
- The efficient cause of conversion is both internal and external
- The instrument of conversion is personal and real
- The final cause or end of conversion is man's salvation, and God's glory
- etc, etc

The remaining chapters are just as detailed:

3. The necessity of Conversion
4. The marks of the unconverted
5. The miseries of the unconverted
6. Directions to the unconverted
7. The motives to conversion

One of the most challenging chapters is "The marks of the unconverted". He makes a detailed as well as haunting list of marks that you won't hear much of in the church today and pressures you to search the reins of your heart to see if these marks are true of you! No looking around at your neighbor nor the person in the pew besides you but at yourself. You'll find yourself praying with David, "Search me O God.......... and see if there be any wicked way in me".

I've enjoyed this convicting little book that even Spurgeon highly recommends, and challenge you to take it up and apply it to your own life.

The Last Sin Eater

2008-08-24T15:42:00.005-04:00

I just wanted to take a minute and recommend "The Last Sin Eater". Not that its some great theological tome of a movie or because it always presents a strong Gospel presentation. But it does tell the truth that Jesus is the great sin bearer.

What I found interesting about this movie is the history that its built around. When the Welsh, Scottish, and Irish came over to America and settled in the Appalachian mountains they brought the belief system of the "Sin Eater". This system of belief is a perversion of the "scape goat" found in the Old Testament. They would actually choose a person, supposedly God chose them first via lottery, and that person would be "sent away" only to return when someone died to "eat their sin" so that they could enter the afterlife pure. The story is a little slow, but interesting to me because of the history. Anyway, watch the movie to see how they came to the truth of the Gospel. It may not be the most exciting movie you've ever seen but you'll surely appreciate the fact that you know the real "Sin Eater".

It also reminds of the fact that we have many, many people here in America that have a very distorted view of what the Gospel really is. Many of these people are in our churches and need to be presented with the real Gospel. May God show grace and mercy to a people that have been flooded with His Word and yet desire to use it for their own purposes.

The True Bounds of Christian Freedom

2008-08-24T15:20:00.003-04:00

September brings another installment in the "Reading through the Puritans 2008" challenge. A good one too: "The True Bounds of Christian Freedom" by Samuel Bolton. Nowadays when we speak of Christian freedom or Liberty its usually in the arena of what we can do or not do that some may consider sinful. That's not the case for this book. Here Bolton discusses the idea of Law and Grace and our freedoms concerning the two. Some of the questions answered are these:

1. Does our being made free by Christ free us from the Law?

2. Does our being made free by Christ deliver us from all punishments or chastisements for sin?

3. Is it consistent with Christian freedom to be under obligation to perform duties because God has commanded them?

4. May Christ's freemen come into bondage again through sin?

5. Is it consistent with Christian Freedom to perform duties out of respect for the recompense of the reward?

6. Does the freedom of a Christian free him from all obedience to men?

You can purchase the book here:

http://www.amazon.com/True-Bounds-Christian-Freedom/dp/0851510833

Christian Contentment

2008-08-16T18:26:00.003-04:00

As many of you know I've been participating in the "Puritan Reading Challenge 2008". Twelve books in twelve months. You average about 10 pages per day. Its been quite easy as well as learning some very challenging things from the Saints of yesteryear. This month is Jeremiah Burroughs' "The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment. No, I can't go over all that is included in this great book but I did want to list some of the things that have really impressed me on the subject of murmuring. I just want to list the subtitles and maybe "peak" your interest in reading this book for yourself. But be warned, it will convict you greatly. There are many things that we have taken for granted in our Christian lives and many things that, if Mr. Burroughs is correct, we surely need to repent of. Here's the list of subtitles I want to share:

VIII. There is a great deal of folly, extreme folly, in a discontented heart; it is a foolish sin. I shall open the folly of it in many respects.

1. It takes away the present comfort of what you have, because you have not something that you would have.

2. By all your discontent you cannot help yourselves, you cannot get anything by it.

3, There are commonly many foolish attitudes that a discontented heart is guilty of. They carry themselves foolishly towards God and towards men.

4. Discontent and murmuring eats out the good and sweetness of a mercy before it comes.

5. It makes our affliction a great deal worse than otherwise it would be.

6. There is a great deal of danger in the sin of discontent, for it highly provokes the wrath of God.

7. There is a great curse of God upon murmuring and discontent; so far as it prevails in one who is wicked, it has the curse of God upon it.

8. There is much of the spirit of Satan in a murmuring spirit.

9. If you have a murmuring spirit, you must then have disquiet all the days of your life.

10. God may justly withdraw his care of you, and his protection over you, seeing God cannot please you in all his administrations.

And these are just a few of the really good points in this book. All are solidly backed up with examples, principles, or factual statements from Scripture. Very hard to ignore. :)

~ Hankster

Grandpa? Who Me?

2008-02-24T21:41:00.013-05:00

On February 20th, at 6:38 am Rayne Elisabeth Harper was born weighing 8 pounds 6 ounces making me a Grandpa.

The new Grandma renews her feeding skills.

Obviously she doesn't appreciate the goofy smile either!

"Who the heck are you old man?"

Okay, somehow the Trekkie sickness of her Great Grandmother snuck into the gene pool. Where did the Spock ears come from?

Grandpa? Me? Naaaaaa, just not old enough yet. :)

Timmy Brister: Poet

2008-02-05T21:43:00.000-05:00

From the "Provocations and Pantings" blog site. Good Stuff:

Panting in Matthew 2-4

A panting on Jesus’ opposition in Matthew 2-4.

King of kings and Lord of lords,

You came to us as the Prince of peace,
but your entrance was declaration of war
against all principalities and powers.
Indeed, you are our peace,
who breaks down the wall of hostility
through your death on the cross.
And yet, such peace was troubling to your kinsmen
and a threat to your rulers.

The kings of the earth, yea Herod,
sought to destroy you by putting you to death,
yet even the king’s decree cannot overcome the promises of God,
for out of Egypt you have been called God’s Son.
You are the true King of the Jews.

The religious rulers, yea Pharisees and Saducees,
sought to accuse you as a lawbreaker and blasphemer,
yet you came to full the law in perfect righteousness
as determined by the purposes of God,
for with your righteousness we stand clothed and clean.
You are the true great High Priest.

The god of this world, Satan himself,
sought to do unto you as he did with the first Adam,
leading you away through temptation.
Yet by the Spirit of God and the Word of God,
you overcame the lust of the flesh, lust of the eyes, and pride of life
as the second Adam, Son of God and Son of Man.
You are the true prophet of God.

Lord Jesus,
Herod intended to kill you,
religious leaders wanted to destroy you,
and Satan came to dethrone you.
Indeed, your life on this earth is no small thing.
I praise you who is faithful to the promises of God
and true to the purposes of God,
entering history as prophet, priest, and king.

You are Lord of heaven and earth,
ruler of all nations,
enthroned as king of the earth.
Help me to feel the weight of your majesty
as my humble and yet conquering king,
to rest in your trustworthiness as righteous in all your ways,
to glory in Your greatness with gospel exultation.
May I be useful to rescue many from the evil one,
that they may rejoice with me as your kingdom comes.

- TNB

Mormon Missionaries

2008-01-27T17:10:00.000-05:00

As a result of filling out a card when Jeff, Paul and I visited the Visitors Center at Temple Square in Salt Lake City, Three, count them, 3 Mormon Missionaries came to visit today. What a great privilege and opportunity! Of course they were very nice and polite and we chatted for awhile discussing my book collection and jobs and Mitt Romney and then we finally got to the Scriptures. I had decided before hand that this visit was going to be a "getting to know you" visit. My kids were there listening and on occasion even asking questions as the young men went through the "lesson" they had planned for this afternoon. We lightly covered a lot of topics, they making comments as well as Dawn and I. We touched on what we believe are the basic doctrines of the faith (nature of God, Jesus, Salvation by grace through faith, etc) as well as what the topics are that we can agree aren't that important to fuss over (polygamy, when Christ will return, etc). In other words not relevant for salvation. But what really surprised me was when I asked their opinion of the latest information concerning the Book of Abraham! How scholars who have learned Egyptian Hieroglyphics have deciphered the manuscript that Joseph bought claiming it was the Book of Abraham and have shown that it is anything but! It is actually an Egyptian Book of the Dead and has nothing to do with Abraham. But alas, they were unaware of this more recent scholarship and since this was a "get to know you" meeting, I did not pursue it. They stayed for about an hour and a half and we had a great time. I've encouraged my kids to come up with questions that interest them to ask the missionaries when they come back. That may actually upset some of you. But I believe that it is an excellent learning tool when your children watch and learn as their parents engage in the Great Commission with those who have been lied to and taken captive by Satan himself. They can ask direct questions and get answers from those who actually believe the teachings. If need be, I can come back at a later time and clear things up with my kids. But when you take the time to give them a good foundation to build upon they can do pretty good on their own. :)

We have set a tentative time for 3:00 next Sunday. We have agreed to begin discussing the basic, foundational doctrines of the faith and compare them with Scripture and Mormon teachings. If you think about it this week pray for us: wisdom, patience, knowledge and most of all of allowing the Holy Spirit to do His work as we plant the seeds of the Gospel. Should be fun.

Joel Osteen

2008-01-25T20:05:00.001-05:00

It seems as if everyone has heard of Joel Osteen. The perfect hair toothy smile guy that sells millions of books and can be seen on TV preaching a positive, self-esteem based message. But is he a real preacher? Does he present the biblical Gospel of Jesus Christ? I highly recommend that you download and listen to the following message from "The White Horse Inn". These guys are great and they hit the nail on the head concerning Mr. Osteen. It is only about 35 minutes long. So don't pass it up and you'll be able to understand why Joel has really missed the boat. Download it here:

http://www.oneplace.com/ministries/the_white_horse_inn/

I also recommend the message called "Happy Clappy Worship". :)

2008 Puritan Reading Challenge

2008-01-24T21:49:00.000-05:00

I just wanted to take a minute and put in my two cents worth about the "2008 Puritan Reading Challenge. I have taken up the challenge and it doesn't look like it will be too difficult to accomplish. Over the years the Puritans have been given a bad rap. Some of the best authors on spirituality and a deep walk with God come from the Puritans. Here is a chance to find out. I know that the box on the right of the blog is not click-able so here is the link. Just copy and paste into your browser:

http://timmybrister.com/2008/01/07/join-the-2008-puritan- reading-challenge/#comment-33891

Also, for those of you who may wish to go a bit further, Founders has a really good 16 week class on the Puritans. It can be found here: http://study.founders.org/

Let me know if you take up the challenge! We can weigh the pros and cons of the authors points and how the subject matter may or may not have affected our life.

~ Hankster

Final thoughts on Idaho

2008-01-20T13:47:00.000-05:00

This trip to Idaho was absolutely great. The funny thing is that I would have never in a thousand years considered doing ministry in Idaho. I mean, its Idaho. The Potato state. I don't mean to sound condescending, its just that as many of you know, if your living on the east coast Idaho isn't exactly a place you talk about. California, sure, but Idaho? But sometimes God does things that you never see coming. This could be one of those times.

I know I've said this in previous posts but the need for Bible believing Gospel preaching churches is enormous out there. There is actual persecution that goes on in the Potato state too. We would go out to eat at a restaurant and Jeff would tell me that this place is Mormon owned, Mormon employed, and non-Mormons need not apply! Wow. That is actually called "illegal" but as you know there are ways around such things. We were at Wednesday bible study and the youth pastor told us what his Mormon employers did to him. He is a mechanic. The weather is freezing outside and they sent him out to wash machines. Something that was definitely not a priority and there was other work needing to be done. But since he is not afraid to speak out on his beliefs and actually shares the Gospel with his Mormon fellow employees, they give him this unneeded task. By the time he was through he had icicles hanging from his goatee! Breathing that freezing mist for that length of time is surely not good for you at all. But that's how they treat non-Mormon folks. You get passed over for promotions and when you need service for your home they get to you "when they can". Your churches are considered "taboo" and the average person doesn't want to be seen going into one. If you have a neighborhood friendly event, and its at the church, very very few will attend. But if you have it at the park many many more will show up. Doesn't quite sound like the friendly bike riding guys we meet out here does it? That's what happens when you are in their territory. The rules are different. BUT! When someone comes to know Christ you know that your dealing with the real deal. Why? Because its going to cost them something. It could cost them everything from job to family. It can be very costly to come to Christ in the state of Idaho.

If the Lord brings it to your heart and memory please pray for us as we seek God's will in all of this. We are very excited about the opportunity but do not want to step out on what we want to do but actually follow what Christ has in mind for us.

~ Hankster

On the way home update

2008-01-19T17:25:00.000-05:00

Canceled flights are cool !! Yeah right. My 5:20 flight was canceled and rescheduled for 8:45 !! Oh well. A sandwich and a Winter Ale from the Samuel Adam's pub makes everything a little bit better. :) Gonna get in late and miss the first couple of fights. Oh well..................

On the way home

2008-01-19T10:03:00.001-05:00

Well I'm blogging from the Salt Lake City airport waiting for my 10:00 flight to Atlanta. We were supposed to fly out at 8:30 but they threw in some changes. Instead of 3 flights its only two. That's a good thing. Of course we didn't find out about it until on the way to the a
irport. We left at 4 in the morning and Jeff had me here by seven. So its wait time. The pic at the right is the family that I stayed with this week. In order, Tonya, Kaylie, Jeff, Cora, me and of course Riley. The only one missing is Stryder their dog. Cool dog. Wish I would have gotten a pic of him too. Anyway, great folks. Made me feel at home as soon as I hit the door. Fellowship was good, food was good and sleep was good. I couldn't have asked for better accommodations nor for a more eye opening trip as to the needs of the West for good bible believing, Gospel preaching churches.

The is Jeff. I could not believe how little the man makes me look! Of course I didn't have shoes on so that must be what it is. :) I first met Jeff way back when GGBC went on a mission trip to Idaho and spent a lot of time with him while we were cruising Yellow Stone. He really impressed me as a man who loves the Lord and is willing to do whatever God calls him to do. He has a lot he can teach me concerning ministry in the West. I've listened and tried to learn and absorb all that I could. We have kept in touch via email over the last few years and he kept "enticing" "luring" "bribing" me to come out again and look into the area as far as ministry goes. So thats what I've been doing. Getting to know Jeff better, his vision for Blackfoot and whether or not we could stand each other enough to work with each other to further the Kingdom of God in the good state of Idaho. Now comes the time of more prayer and talking with my wonderful wife to make sure that we are both hearing the same message. Lord willing and the creek don't rise we will go back in the summer for Dawn to also get a better "feel" for the area and for her to better experience the need.

Did I tell you that Jeff and I both enjoy "debating" "discussing" different portions of Scripture? Well here we are going at it pretty good. My question is, Why do I look gay in this picture? We enjoy "sword fighting" over issues such as Dispensationalism, Calvinism, alcohol, and whatever else comes up. Its quite fun. When its done in the right spirit, and he knows how, we both learn and grow. "Iron sharpens iron and one man sharpens another" Proverbs 27:17 esv.

And last but not least here is my new buddy Riley. She introduced me to such great cinema as Scooby Doo videos and great activities like taking care of baby dolls when they are sick, doing transactions on a play cash register, the new game of Operation, Barbie dolls getting married and living in the Strawberry Shortcake house and best of all, Monsters in the closets! She was a treat and a sweet heart.

I'm gonna be in airports and airplanes pretty much all day today. Hopefully be at Jax by 6:30 and home by 7:15 and begin to get ready for the fights tonight. What better way to come home! Spend a week seeing the spiritual needs of a beautiful state and then come home and watch two grown men beat each other senseless! It doesn't get any better than that. :)

~ Hankster

Wolverine Mountain

2008-01-18T00:37:00.000-05:00

Today we drove as far as we could in Jeff's four wheel drive jeep until we came to a "road closed" sign. The only vehicles allowed from there were snowmobiles. So we set out on foot. Here at Wolverine you can hunt, fish and camp. Its some beautiful country. The pictures don't do it justice.

Front porch of the Church

2008-01-17T00:27:00.001-05:00

Dawn, here is the view from the porch. Remember how it was when we were here last?

Day of Rest

2008-01-17T00:06:00.000-05:00

Today was a day of rest for Jeff and I. After spending so much time in the car Sunday, Monday and Tuesday we needed today just to cool out. I spent quite a bit of time playing with different toys and finally watching a Scooby Doo video with Riley, Jeff's youngest daughter. I also had a great time getting to know their dog Stryder. After dinner Jeff and I went to the church for Wednesday night bible study. We spent about an hour learning about speaking in tongues and whether or not it is for us today as well as learning that no matter what spiritual gift we have it is to be used to honor and glorify God and edify his body, not to uplift us and make us look super spiritual.

Now concerning the picture above. I put this in here so that you could meet Paul Chapel who rode in with Jeff to pick me up at the airport. He is the gentleman on the right. The man in the middle is the DOM of Jeff's church's association. He attended the bible study tonight. His son Josh is also the "Youth Guy" for Jeff's church. Anyway, Paul is a real trip. I've only known the man for 3 or 4 days and I feel like I've known him for a long time. He calls himself the "Linguistic Wizard" and that he should be elected "King of America" and things would be quickly straightened out. It is hilarious to sit and listen to his stories from his younger days. Stories of trucks, chains and fistfights. Comes across as tough and crazy. Redneck is the word they like out here. But then you listen to him talk about his Savior you begin to see a soft side appear. When you listen to him when he gets to share his heart in a bible study and you begin to see where this big man's heart really is. He's already confronted me about where God would have me and if I have enough faith to step out and trust God no matter where he wants me to go and what he wants me to do. LOL, I must admit that I enjoyed this bear of a man taking me to task about my faith in Christ. Why? Because I knew it came from his heart.

Tomorrow we will be up early and off to have coffee with the guys and discuss whatever is on somebody's heart to discuss. Then its either fishing or taking Jeff's jeep as high into the mountains as we can go or.............................who knows?

~ Hankster

2008-01-16T12:51:00.000-05:00

I was able to get a picture of Matt Boyd. Remember, he told me that he graduated from West Nassau in the 90's. Does anyone recognize him? If you do please let me know.

Let it snow, let it snow, let it snow

2008-01-15T23:56:00.000-05:00

Pocatello Bible Study

2008-01-15T23:26:00.000-05:00

Today we left Boise and headed home to Blackfoot. Four and a half hours later we pulled into Jeff's driveway. I was shown to my room. A cozy little room that is being decorated and set up in preparation for Jeff's new son that will born in April. Nathaniel Chase will be his name but all the girls already call him "Nate". I put my bags down and got a quick nap and then we were off again to pick up Paul and a very nice lady named Valerie and headed off to Pocatello for a bible study. The picture is from the home where we held the bible study. The man in the white shirt, John, owns the home. To his left is Jeff. John just recently has given his life to Christ and his wife more recent than him. They were like two very thirsty sponges just soaking up everything that anyone commented about as we read the Scriptures. Jeff and Paul told me that John gets nearly bummed out every time they leave. He is so hungry that he will stay up all night asking question after question wanting to learn if they didn't leave. The bible study went great. Two solid hours of bible went by fast.

So far it has been a very eye opening trip. These guys keep pointing out to me the great need for the Gospel out here where there is hardly any Gospel witness at all. It is very very tough out here. The average church has about 30 members. 80 members is considered large and a church of 200 is considered very very large. There are so many communities out here that have absolutely no Evangelical witness at all. None. The things that we take for granted about church back home, many times is unheard of here. The very basics of Gospel truth and stories that we think everyone, sinner and saint alike know back home, is very much unknown here.

What is a sad commentary on our Bible Colleges and Seminaries nowadays is that they don't want to come out here where the need is so great. You know why? The attitude is that they did not give 4, 6, or 8 years of their lives in college to Pastor a church of 30 people. And on top of that having to be Bi-vocational because the church isn't big enough to pay their salary. Are we producing Pastors or business executives?

~ Hankster

Temple Square

2008-01-14T21:53:00.000-05:00

2008-01-14T20:28:00.000-05:00

This was the view from the motel where we attended the conference. Some beautiful country out here. The cold has not been too bad even though there is snow everywhere and I have to get use to hitting patches of ice when I'm walking or else I look like I'm doing a bad Michael Jackson impression.

The Conference was very interesting to me. To hear pastors and others discussing the idea of breaking free from a two state convention to a one state convention and all of the ramifications for both states was very interesting indeed. Even though it was only Idaho pastors and laymen present it was made very clear that they are very concerned about their Utah brethren and the effect the "moving apart" would have on them.

The other interesting part was the total lack of Evangelical churches. There are only 92 Southern Baptist churches in the whole state. They presented a state chart where the state was broken down into counties. Quite a few of the counties had only 1.5%, of the population Evangelical, quite a few had around 5% and the highest was only 15%! When you come from a part of the country that has Evangelical churches on nearly every corner these numbers are quite distressing. They made it very clear that they are most desperate for God to send church planters out here.

There was one thing that really knocked me for a loop today at the conference. We had to do the usual thing of going around the room and telling everyone our name and where we are from. At break time a young man comes up to me and asked me again where I was from. I told him Callahan Florida. He laughed and told me that he thought he had heard me wrong because he was from Callahan also and graduated from West Nassau! After I picked my jaw up off the floor he told me that he had attended school in Kentucky and heard of the need out here, applied and has been out here ever since. What are the odds? BTW, his name is Matthew Boyd. Ring a bell with anyone? While we were at dinner at Cracker Barrel Matt informed me that Cracker Barrel was the only place where you could get good southern sweet tea out here. :)

We will be heading back to Blackfoot tomorrow and I'll be sitting in on a bible study that is destined to become a brand new church before too long. Should be fun listening in and participating with a group of people who asked to have a new church started in their area.

Till tomorrow evening,

~ Hankster

Finally Made It

2008-01-14T02:16:00.001-05:00

After what seemed forever sitting in airplanes, three to be exact, I arrived in Salt Lake City. Jeff and one of the men from his church, Paul, met me at the baggage counter. They were holding up a sign that read "Welcome Elder Hank". They thought that was funny. So we loaded up and headed out.

The first place they took me was to tour the Mormon Square. The two young ladies were nice and polite, of course they were missionaries serving their time at the Temple. It was fun to talk with them and hear them tell of what they believe and see the sites.

Then we left for Boise. As we rode, of course, we talked about all kinds of things but the thing that stuck out the most to me was the point they both made of how BIG a mission field it is out here. I had told them how in the south we nearly have a church on every corner. They proceeded to tell me of over thirty communities they know of right now that need a church. It is 85% Mormon out here and about 5% Christian. Wow, talk about under saturated. The need is definitely here.

Five hours later I am in the motel room about to go to bed because the conference starts tomorrow. Some of the Pastors in Idaho want to separate from Utah and start their own association. Some don't. Should make for some interesting discussion and debate.

Tomorrow is the Big Day

2008-01-12T09:09:00.000-05:00

Tomorrow morning I will be boarding a plane and taxing out around 8:55 am. I must admit, I am both excited and nervous. I have never traveled this far alone and especially needing to change planes on time as well as being on the right plane! And the whole time keeping up with my carry on as well as keeping my eyes open for robe wearing, head covering, beard sporting terrorists. I am quite sure its going to be a great trip though. A lot, in my mind anyway, is riding on this trip.

The only reason I created this blog was so that I could upload pictures of the trip as well as let my family know whats going on. I just wanted to keep my family, and friends who were interested, up to date. So starting sometime tomorrow or Monday I will do my best to upload some pics as well as comment on whats been going on. :)