More blessings!  I am being given still more blessings!  Let me mention 2 outstanding ones, both of which I hope you can share in.

1)  I have the pleasure of trying to assemble the T4G papers for our published volume of them.  And so I am reading over them carefully, multiple times.  What a blessing!  It's like I wasn't even at the conference!  I'm getting to experience T4G 2006 again, by God's grace, even in the simple tasks of editing! I am noticing things, and being challenged and encouraged and instructed in ways I was not when I first listened to the addresses.  Thank God for His providential care, even in mundane tasks like editing!

2)  Being preaching-sabbaticaled by my elders for the summer, I have the blessing of listening to Michael Lawrence's series "Biblical Theology."  Words fail me in expressing what a wonderful presentation of Bible/theology/Gospel this series has been.  The one today on "Sacrifice" was a wonderfully filling message, which brought my heart to deeper appreciation of my Savior's love.  Michael spent the first half of the sermon reviewing the story of sacrifice in the Bible, and then the second half going over the need, nature, effects & end of sacrifice.  After half an hour of reviewing the Bible's teaching on sacrifice, and the OT system, it was powerful when Michael said to us that when Christ was sacrificed God raised this Victim from the dead because, finally, His sacrifice was enough.  !!!  Michael carefully laid out and explained both the substitutionary and the penal (penalty-bearing) nature of Christ's sacrifice in a way that was rooted in the whole sweep of Scripture.  He expressed our faith as leaning on Christ (as the OT offerers of sacrifices would lay their hands on the offered victims, thus identifying with them).  And what good pastoral application to the Christian!!  Brothers and sisters, he asked, why do you keep on living as if God might be angry with you?  I could go on, but you get the idea.  Go to www.capitolhillbaptist.org and root around until you can find an audio of Sunday's sermon (Sunday, July 30, 2006 AM) called "Sacrifice".  You, too, will be blessed.

What do ecclesiology and missiology have to do with each other?  Does the same gospel always sound the same when presented?  How much can the method be changed without changing the message?  Pastors are always having such conversations.  Recently reading and talking with Mark Driscoll, Ed Stetzer, David Wells, Tim Keller and others have continued to remind me to think as a missionary in my culture. 

One very interesting conference on all this I simply want to draw to everyone's attention is the Desiring God conference this fall. I presume most people reading this blog would already know of this conference, but in case you don't, find out more about  Above All Earthly Powers: The Supremacy of Christ in a Postmodern World.   (Go to www.desiringgod.org).

This is the Desiring God 2006 National Conference September 29-October 1, at the Minneapolis Convention Center in Minneapolis, MN.  Speakers are scheduled to be John Piper, David Wells, D.A. Carson, Mark Driscoll, Tim Keller, and Voddie Baucham, and the program will include two panel discussions on practical expressions of Christian living in a postmodern world.  I am elsewhere then, but will look forward to listening to the presentations.  And there are some interesting video clips up on the website.

Derek Thomas, my dear friend and colleague here at First Pres., Jackson, does a devotional each week for our Ministers' Meeting (which we have every Friday morning, in preparation for our Lord's Day duties and delights, and for prayer for the congregation, for needful sharing of pastoral situations, as well as for mutual encouragement). Derek's remarks are typically a feast of theology, history and pastoralia.

Last Friday, he exhorted us from the words of C.H. Spurgeon out of G. Holden Pike's Life and Work of Charles Haddon Spurgeon, (Edinburgh: Banner of Truth, 1991, vol. 2:352) to this effect -

"We need to muster a band of ministers who live only for Christ, and desire nothing but opportunities for promoting His glory – opportunities for spreading His truth – opportunities for winning by power those whom Jesus has redeemed by His precious blood. Men of one idea – these are they that shall do exploits in the camp of Israel."

You've got to read the whole thing though to get the proper effect. Here.

Lig, that was an interesting report from brothers & sisters overseas.  Thanks for pointing us to it. 

My family & I have just returned from some good vacation time together.  I know Al and CJ & you have been away.  It will be good to get back to a little blogging.  (Lig, I had a great dinner with your brother John & his family last week.)

One thing I get to do when I travel on vacation with family is to visit churches.  And when I do I am reminded of how much good work there is going on; and I'm reminded of some characteristices of many modern evangelical churches that grieve me.

One of the other things I get to do when I'm away is to have more time for reading.  I was looking over David Wells' books again, and am impressed afresh at what a service he has done is in publishing his series of 4 books--No Place for Truth, God in the Wasteland, Losing our Virtue, Above All Earthly Pow'rs.

Dear readers, if you haven't already, GET THESE AND READ THEM.

I'm wondering about possibly having our elders go through them.  Just to give you a taste, early on in this latest and final volume to the series--Above All Earthly Pow'rs--David refers to the response to 9/11 in evangelical churches, and how the, well, seriousness of the event caught so many by surprise.  I should simply let David give you this comment in his own words.  "What has become conspicuous by its scarcity, and not least in the evangelical corner of it, is a spiritual gravitas, one which could match the depth of horrendous evil and address issues of such seriousness.  Evangelicalism, now much absorbed by the arts and tricks of marketing, is simply not very serious anymore."  (David Wells, Above All Earthly Pow'rs [2005], p. 4).

One thing I appreciate about the Southern Baptist Seminary, First Pres Jackson & Sov Grace Ministries is the way each of these ministries understands the weightiness of the issues we're involved in, and in different ways, expresses that regularly, naturally, and compellingly.

God forgive us when silliness more marks our churches than seriousness.

God grant us a confident, joyful, humble and compelling seriousness for His glory.

David Wells' careful reflections may help us all in this.

Great post Mark. Very important subject. In fact, an evangelist just sent me a book on this very subject today. I may blog a few ideas from it next week. Meanwhile, one of our church-supported missionaries in Africa just sent this report to me in his prayer letter. His observations touch on some of the points you have raised.

"As I sat down to write this prayer letter I thought about what the significant events were that had happened in our ministry in Uganda since we had last written. The most important thing that jumped out at me was that our students at Westminster Theological College have a much better understanding of what the gospel of our Lord Jesus really is than before they came.

"For example, after one of our Congolese students, Joseph, had been in class for several weeks, he came up to me after class one day with tears in his eyes and said, “I have never understood this before. Neither I, nor any other preachers that I know in Congo are teaching this. I will have to go back to Congo and tell my people what Jesus has done for us.” What Joseph was referring to was a simple diagram that we had talked about of Jesus taking our sins upon Himself and Him giving us His righteousness, the only way that we could be acceptable to God.

"Much of the “gospel” that is preached in Africa is a “gospel” of works - going to church, giving money, being a kind neighbor, reading the Bible. Many, many church-goers in Uganda never hear of the free gospel of grace in Christ Jesus. Another example is of one of our students, Allan. Allan is a young Christian, but a very enthusiastic evangelist in his home village. One day in class he seemed confused about what I was saying, so I stopped and asked him what the trouble was. He said, “So you mean that not all of the people who come to the front during an altar call really become Christians?” We had been talking about Christians bearing fruit as evidence of true belief in class that day. Allan was confused because he saw so many people “walk the aisle,” but so few of their lives changing after they did. He didn’t realize that not everyone who “walks the aisle” is actually changed by the Spirit on the inside. His church was teaching what is commonly called “easy believism” – just walk the aisle and pray the prayer and you have your ticket to heaven. Righteous fruit produced by the Holy Spirit after this “conversion” is not emphasized. The number of so-called “conversions” is what matters.

"The most popular “false gospel” that Ugandan churches are teaching is the “health and wealth” gospel, the idea that God wants all believers to be rich and healthy while on earth; if you’re not it’s because you are not exercising enough faith. It’s not the gospel of Jesus because it makes God a celestial genie, with man, not God, as the focus of all creation. It tends to make Christians feel very guilty if they are not rich and healthy. Another student, Henry, gave an example of this in class one day. He said that he and some friends went into a big church in Kampala, all dressed up in their Sunday best. Because of their dress, the ushers must have thought that they were wealthy and seated them very near the front of the church. When the offering basket was passed they only put in a few shillings, all that they had. The pastor noticed their meager offering, came up to them and told them to move back to the back of the church. These seats at the front, he said, were reserved for those who had strong faith, those who could put thousands of shillings in the offering. Needless to say, anyone can guess what that pastor had on his mind!

"This is a very common occurrence in some of the biggest churches in Kampala. The problem is that none of these “gospels” is the true gospel of Christ and as a result the culture here is full of unrighteousness because people’s lives are not being changed by the power of the Spirit working in them. One of the most important things that we teach the students at WTC is that lives are changed only by the power of the living Christ within us. As far as we are concerned this is the only true hope for the African Church and for churches all around the world.

Sometimes I get the feeling that people think there's something wrong with questioning the reality of a profession of faith.  It's legalistic, or judging, or holier than thou.  Or something.

But if evangelists want to see lost sinners saved, and if evangelists know that we sinners can deceive ourselves, then it's not surprising that we want to try to make sure (with all appropriate qualifications about our limitedness) that conversions professed are conversions possessed.

Or is it just sour-faced theologians who think about such things?  Are preachers who think about such things unevangelistic?  Here's what one preacher said, reflecting on Jesus' parable of the sower and the soils.  “There are so many stony ground hearers, who receive the Word with joy, that I have determined to suspend my judgment till I know the tree by its fruits.  I cannot believe they are converts until I see fruit brought back; it will never do a sincere soul any harm.”

Does such a determination seem uncharitable or unevangelistic?  What preacher would say such a thing?  That was George Whitefield (as cited by Carey Hardy, “Just as I am” in John MacArthur, ed.,  Fool’s Gold, [2005], pp. 136-137). I don't think George Whitefield was unevangelistic for wanting to know a tree by its fruit, and neither are we today.  In fact, I think such a concern would actually help our churches to do more real evangelism.

And besides, as Whitefield says, such caution "will never do a sincere soul any harm." 

What should we do?  Encourage the new believer in all things good.  Remind them of the gospel.  After some appropriate time (which would vary much from case to case) they should be baptized and join a church.  They should regularly hear the preaching of the Word, commune, fellowship, pray and obey the Word.  They should be building relationships in order to do that.  And they should be told to hope in Christ alone for their salvation.  Our desire is to find every professor getting safely home to heaven. 

And then what about counting converts?  The final tally will be made by God in due time.  And that's the only tally that matters.

The Australian Presbyterian is a denominational magazine that you should get to know. Peter Hastie, the editor, is doing a super job. He was at T4G in Louisville this year, by the way.

Here's a good piece from the AP by our friend Al Mohler on the subject of the recently rediscovered, translated and published "Gospel of Judas."

So, guys, for example, I recently heard a sermon on David's great Psalm, "Lord, who may dwell in Your sanctuary" (Psalm 15).  Everything in the sermon was true.  In some ways it was a feast of truth.  The preacher exhorted us to do good, speak well, keep our word, do business justly, not slander, etc.  Everything he said was faithful to the text.

Now, how could that sermon have been made even more relevant? 

One way would have been to update examples, or make the more edgy and catchy, to use some video clips.  All of this would have been done to make the application even more powerfully evident to everyone present.

A second way of making the sermon more relevant would have been to have spent more time showing us that none of us HAVE been good enough, spoken well enough, kept our word enough, etc.  AND then to have shown us that Christ did all of this FOR US. 

There's not just the relevance of more effectively showing us how to live.  There's also the relevance of showing us how we're not good enough, and how Christ has been good for us.  Does the Law teach Christians how to live?  Yes.  Does it also teach us how we haven't lived, and does it honor Christ by teaching us about the fullness of His obedience?  Yes it does. 

More of us need to spend more time in our sermons working on this second kind of relevance.

Mark, Lig and Al, your biblical insight on this topic of faithfulness and relevance is critically needed in the church today. Thank you for serving us.

The most effective way that I can serve is to post excerpts from my favorite article on this issue: "The Power of the Gospel in the Church Today" by our friend Ray Ortlund, Jr. (Trinity Journal 18, NS, no. 2, Spring 1997). Check out Ray's theologically informed discernment, on what it means to be relevant in ministry, written with remarkable forsight nine years ago:

"We might get the wrong impression from Paul, when he writes in 1 Corinthians 9:22 that he has become 'all things to all men,' that he might by all means save some. Paul was not unbending in meeting people as they were, where they were. He was widely adaptable. But we might get the wrong impression from this passage, if we read it in isolation from Paul's other statements about ministry, as if 1 Corinthians 9 were the whole of his mind. The fact is that Paul was not infinitely flexible in his outreach strategies. He had limits, and in 1 Corinthians 2:1-5 he explains one of his boundaries:

'When I came to you, brethren, I did not come proclaiming to you the testimony of God, in lofty words or wisdom. For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified. And I was with you in weakness and in much fear and trembling; and my speech and my message were not in plausible words of wisdom, but in demonstration of the Spirit and of power, that your faith might not rest in the wisdom of men but in the power of God. (RSV)'

Paul deliberately chooses ('I decided') not to meet the culturally conditioned expectations of his hearers....The most embarrassing aspect of the gospel—a crucified Savior, a loser Messiah—was the very thing Paul concentrated on. Paul is here exposing to view the controlling center of his ministry strategy. 'Jesus Christ and him crucified' was for Paul, the ultimate criterion for what we today call 'relevance.' And with his typically refreshing outlook, the apostle defined relevance not as we tend to do. For him, relevance had to be defined not in terms of meeting audience expectations but in relation to the centrality of the Cross. His preaching agenda was set by that theological center, not by his audience....

Now, what lessons may we preachers today learn from this amazing passage of Scripture?

First, a biblical preacher critiques his methods, his forms of contextualization, his adaptations to culture, his style, not primarily by the standard of culture but by the superior standard of the gospel itself....The message of the Cross must discipline and control us—indeed, limit us—even though that puts us at a disadvantage in winning an audience.

What one observes in evangelicalism today is that, while many preachers can declare allegiance to all the right doctrines, their theology makes little difference in their preaching beyond drawing the widest, most amorphous and seldom alluded-to boundaries. Their formal credentials may be in order, but the theology they affirm sits very lightly on their actual practice of ministry. It is invisible to their people. Such ministers demonstrate little doctrinal specificity or even discernment—intentionally so?—in their message and style. The biblical gospel may be formally obligatory, but it is personally uninteresting and strategically incidental. Such ministers may be exacting in their methodology, but they are vague in their theology—a curious arrangement of priorities! For Paul, such thinking would have been completely alien to his soul. For him theology reigned supreme in every aspect of his ministry. Theology for him, energized him, cheered him, emboldened him. It was his ministerial fountain of youth. One wonders how far we may drift from Pauline ministry and still retain a plausible claim to biblical authenticity in our work."

I could go on and on with more great stuff from this article. I recommend every pastor obtain and read it for himself, and apply it to the leadership and preaching of your church.  Assign the article to your pastoral team or eldership and together evaluate your church in relation to the content of this article. We must do more than nod our heads as we read, we must make application to our pastoral ministry in very specific ways.

How about your pastoral reading list—is it more focused on the latest pragmatic pastoral fad than the cross of Jesus Christ? Are there more books on your desk from the business section of Barnes and Noble than there are the great works of Calvin, Edwards, Owen and Spurgeon?  Let us not be numbered among those for whom "theology...sits lightly on their practice of ministry" or pastors who are "exacting in their methodology, but vague in their theology."

May it never be said of our pastoral ministry that the gospel was "formally obligatory...but personal uninteresting and strategically incidental."  Instead, by following the example of Paul, let "theology reign supreme" with the message of "Jesus Christ and him crucified." May this be the "the controlling center" of our preaching content, the structures and practices of our church and our evangelistic strategy. Then, and only then, will the church be truly relevant to our culture.

Brothers, thank you for your reflections.  I'm on my annual state capitol road trip with Nathan.  We're in Natchez tonight, heading onto Baton Rouge tomorrow, and then on to Austin & Oklahoma City (Lord willing).  One thing I've been able to do on sabbatical from preaching, and on vacation this summer is to read more.  (I'm up to about 1/100th of your intake, Al!).  One of the books I've read is the collection of essays, ed. by John MacArthur, published by Crossway, called Fool's Gold. 

As ministers who care that the Gospel be preached, that God's Word be regularly expounded, and while I've been able to listen to a lot of other preachers this summer, one article by John M strongly reminded me of the importance of expositional preaching.  He does so in this article by listing negative effects of the superficial brand of preaching that is so rife in modern evangelicalism.  Here the 15 concerns John M wrote about.  These are worth reflecting on for us as preachers.  About such superficial preaching, he warns

1.  It usurps the authority of God over the soul.

2.  It removes the lordship of Christ from His church.

3.  It hinders the work of the Holy Spirit.

4.  It demonstrates appalling pride and a lack of submission.

5.  It severs the preacher personally from the regular sanctifying grace of Scripture.

6.  It clouds the true depth and transcendence of our message and therefore cripples both corporate and personal worship.

7.  It prevents the preacher from fully developing the mind of Christ.

8.  It depreciates by example the spiritual duty and priority of personal Bible study.

9.  It prevents the preacher from being the voice of God on every issue of his time.

10.  It breeds a congregation that is as weak and indifferent to the glory of God as their pastor is.

11.  It robs people of their only true source of help.

12.  It encourages people to become indifferent to the Word of God and divine authority.

13.  It lies to people about what they really need.

14.  It strips the pulpit of power.

15.  It puts the responsibility on the preacher to change people with his cleverness.

If you want to read more about his meditations on each of these, see John MacArthur, Fool’s Gold, pp. 36-41.

Perhaps I'll write some more later on this trip.  CJ, thanks so much for your warm reception of Thabiti.  What a joy to serve the Lord with brothers you love and respect!!