From the Front-lines: Tire Guy

Don’t we all love waiting rooms? Yesterday I sat in a grungy, smoke-filled waiting room, surrounded by old editions of Sports Illustrated and National Geographic. Although it was almost 2 Pm, the morning coffee still sat in an almost full carafe, but frankly it did not interest me in the least. Perhaps I am becoming one of those detestable coffee snobs — I digress. 

An older man in a Brewers club jacket and Green Bay Packers ball cap entered the room and sat down right across from me. I picked up a conversation with him and moved quickly to spiritual things. It all went something like this: 

Do you consider yourself a Christian? I asked. 

He replied, Well, after 40 years of Catholic church, I’d sure hope so! 

That really is a long time, sir. Let me ask you this — have you ever read the Bible cover to cover?

From the front-lines: Medical Professor

For the past two months, I’ve had the opportunity to meet the same medical professor on the same day of the week for the same purpose — talking about the Bible, Jesus Christ, and His gospel. For the purpose of anonymity, we will simply call him Robert. Shortly after completing his undergraduate degree, Robert was “called” (his word, not mine) into the field of medicine after standing by a dying woman in an ICU, wondering if he could develop equipment that could be used to prolong her life. Robert is a very intelligent Roman Catholic, morally upstanding in his own eyes.  

We hit it off instantly one day in the coffee shop. I honestly can’t remember exactly how it happened

From the Front-lines: New Muslim Friend

09/30/2009, Journal Entry

This morning as I drove down to my perch at the local coffee shop, I was struggling internally:

Lord, is tonight’s Bible study even practical for our people? This is a Lutheran-Catholic Wisconsin community, is there even a single Muslim who lives here? I’m sure the people will find the topic of Evangelizing Muslims interesting and educational, but will they ever use it?

About 10 minutes later, I was filling my mug with Ethiopian Java and turned around, finding myself face to face with __________, my new Muslim friend from Iran who is an international businessman, a resident of our fine community. I asked in a very straightforward fashion, “Are you a Muslim?” He responded in the affirmative and we spent the next hour in conversation regarding his faith and mine. I was able to briefly share the gospel with him, and pray that God will give me another opportunity to lovingly confront him regarding his need for Christ. 

Colossians 4:2-4: 

Continue steadfastly in prayer, being watchful in it with thanksgiving. At the same time, pray also for us, that God may open to us a door for the word, to declare the mystery of Christ, on account of which I am in prison— that I may make it clear, which is how I ought to speak. (ESV)

Boldness, Not Fear

In the midst of this pluralistic, post-modern world, what is needed is Spirit-empowered-boldness and loving confrontation, not apologies, endless conversations, and fear. 

2 Timothy 1:7-8:

For God has not given us the spirit of fear; but of power, and of love, and of a sound mind. Be not thou therefore ashamed of the testimony of our Lord, nor of me his prisoner: but be a partaker of the afflictions of the gospel according to the power of God…

Book recommendation: Tactics

Gregory Koukl, of Stand to Reason, has written an excellent book entitled Tactics: a Game Plan for Discussing Your Christian Convictions. It is written in a captivating and compelling fashion, so much so that I read it in just a few hours (real-life stories were great!). The result in my life has been an increased confidence in conversation with unbelievers, even those who are a bit hostile to Christianity. If you are serious about reaching your friends, family, classmates, and co-workers, you’ll want to purchase this little book and digest it for yourself. 

He divides the book into parts: (1) The game plan and (2) Finding the flaws. Today, we will look at the Game Plan, then a later blog post will go through some of the flaws.  

The Game Plan

Koukl maintains that having the truth is not enough to successfully maneuver your way through difficult conversations. I personally often find myself struggling to find a good balance between what Koukl calls “D-day” and “diplomacy.” So here is the major tactic identified in this section: 

• Columbo: Playing off the detective from old-school television, Koukl suggests that we begin by asking questions, instead of making assertions. He gives three main ways to employ the Columbo tactic: 
  • Gather Information: A simple question like, “What do you mean by that?” will do here. This gives you an opportunity to find out from where the individual is coming. Koukl says, “People don’t know what they mean much of the time. Often they’re merely repeating slogans.” 
  • Reverse the Burden of Proof: “The burden of proof is the responsibility someone has to defend or give evidence for his view.” Koukl presents another simple question, “Now, how did you come to that conclusion?” 
  • Lead the Conversation: this is the most aggressive form of Columbo. Ask questions like, “Have you considered…” or “Can you clear this up for me…” where their assertions are clearly contradictory or inaccurate. 

I have found one major benefit from using Columbo over the past couple weeks. I am simply not quick on the draw, so asking questions in this manner gives me time to think and formulate. It buys me the time that I need.

From the Front-lines: Nazi-pagan

My new-found friend Liam identifies himself as a National Socialist. In other words, he’s a Nazi, perhaps a more moderated version in his thinking than what you would see portrayed in a Hitler’s Germany movie. He doesn’t believe that the weak should be exterminated per se, but he would be fine with allowing the poor and weak to die off, so that their sort are not perpetuated in society. “Hate” would be a strong word for how he feels about the Jewish people, but he certainly has a strong inward bent against them and can only interact with them skeptically. Postmodernism does strange things to people; here’s what it does to today’s Nazi’s. After telling me that the pope should be publicly beheaded and that the weak should be left to die, he said, “But that’s just my way, I wouldn’t force it upon others!” 

Ironically, his French mother gave him a Hebrew name, Daniel, meaning “judgment of God” (how sovereign is God?). He now goes by Liam, short for William, a seemingly stronger Norman name, reflecting his worship of Odin, a pagan god.

From the Front-lines: Unitarian Universalist

If you don’t know what a Unitarian Universalist is, join the club. I’m not even sure they know what they are, which, ironically, is probably the only criterion for becoming one. That aside. The following is my encounter with an embittered UU. 

I sat in one of my three regular coffee houses the other day, glanced to the table next to me, and immediately identified my “way in” (the lady was scribbling on a pad while pouring over a newspaper). I said, “Are you a writer?” “Not exactly. Are you?” she responded. I explained that I was indeed writing and that for my line of work, I tend to write about 20 pages per week. 

I can’t remember her name, and even if I could, I wouldn’t share it here. So we’ll call her Sally, an ironically dignified and modern name for such a hippy, anti-establishment, liberated woman. She wore severely faded and somewhat tattered clothing — a jean top and one of those puffy ski-style vests. Sally responded with obvious disgust when she found out that I wrote so much in order to keep up with my weekly sermons.

Beyond Apology

Welcome to Beyond Apology  

The purpose of this blog is simple: to encourage believers in Jesus Christ to stand upon the truth that Jesus is King over kings and Lord over lords and to equip them to defend this claim rather than to apologize for it. 

The format will be simple. 

• Reports from the front-lines (true stories of evangelism and apologetics in the marketplace). 
• Video and audio from the front-lines. 
• Book reviews, quotes, and recommendations. 

Beyond Apology

Friends and blog-readers, I am now posting some personal testimony in the related spheres of evangelism and simple apologetics over at Beyond Apology.

I hope that in future days, I will be able to post some audio/ video of evangelism and practical apologetics, both done without apology in today’s marketplaces.

Christian Philosophers Coming Out of the Closet?

If you’ve seen the Princess Bride, you know the line, “You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.” Perhaps the following from Philosophical Foundations of a Christian Worldview does not correspond exactly to the interchange between Inigo Montoya and Vizzini, but nonetheless, it demonstrates an unusual usage of a common phrase. 

Since the late 1960’s Christian philosophers have been coming out of the closet and defending the truth of the Christian worldview with philosophically sophisticated arguments in the finest scholarly journals and professional societies.  

Church Mad Lib

I’ve just picked up and started reading Why We Love the Church: in Praise of Institutions and Organized Religion by Kevin DeYoung and Ted Kluck. As I read the first chapter, I burst out laughing in a public place when I read the following “Mad Lib” about the church: 

The institutional church is (pejorative adjective). When I go to church I feel completely (negative emotion). The leadership is totally (adjective you would use to describe Richard Nixon) and the people are (noun that starts with un-). The services are (adjective you might use to describe going to the dentist), the music is (adjective you would use to describe the singing on Barney), and the whole congregation is (chose among: ‘passive,’ ‘comatose,’ ‘hypocrtical,’ or ‘Rush Limbaugh Republicans’). The whole thing makes me (medical term). I had no choice but to leave the church. My relationship with (spiritual noun) is better than ever. Now I meet regularly with my (relational noun) and talk about (noun that could be the focus of a liberal arts degree) and Jesus. We really care for each other. Sometimes we even (chose among: ‘pray for each other,’ ‘feed the homeless together,’ or ’share power tools’). This is the church like it was meant to be. After all, (insert: ‘where two or three are gathered, there I am in the midst of you,’ or ‘the letter kills but the Spirit gives life,’ or ‘we don’t have to go to church, we are the church’). I’m not saying everyone needs to do what I’ve done, but if you are tired of (compound phrase that begins with ‘institutional’ or ends with ‘as we know it’), I invite you to join the (noun with political overtones) and experience (spiritual noun) like you ever will sitting in a (choose among the following architectural put-downs: ‘wooden pew,’ ’steepled graveyard,’ ’stained-glassed mausoleum ,’ or ‘glorified concert hall’) week after week. When will the (biblical noun) start being the (same biblical noun)? 

That quote was worth $11 I spent on the book.

Church Services, for the Believer

Last night I was having a discussion with a couple new friends over a great dinner. I expressed (to their agreement) that a true church service should really not be designed for unbelievers primarily, but for the building and equipping of the saints. While I do try to make the gospel clear to unbelievers each week, the primary purpose of our gathering is to edify believers and to equip them to go out from our assembly to do the work of evangelism. 

Ironically, I just read the following paragraph from The Deliberate Church by Mark Dever and Paul Alexander. They write, 

The Sunday morning service is the main feeding time. As such, biblical exposition is primary. It is popular to view this service primarily as an evangelistic time. As a result, many churches are calibrating these services to the musical and cultural preferences of their target audiences. According to 1 Corinthians 14, though, the purpose of the main weekly gathering of the church is not evangelism, but edification. It seems wise, then, to calibrate these services not to the preferences of unbelievers, but to the scriptural parameters given to us for the mutual edification of believers. 

Lakewood Baptist Church

For over a year now, my wife and I, along with several other believers from Lake Country have been praying and working towards the establishment of a local church in Delafield, WI. God has shown himself powerful to open each door as He builds his Church for his glory. This Sunday, we look forward to the beginning of a brand new local body, Lakewood Baptist Church. In an area where the preaching of the Word is often not the priority on Sunday and where the gospel has been muddled by seeker-programs and liturgical ritualism, we are praying that God will shine his gospel light brightly through this new and imperfect body that is simply seeking to be faithful to the teaching of Scripture while maintaining a vibrant evangelistic presence in the community. 

The preparations for this day have been long and stretching. We began meeting for Wednesday Bible studies about one year ago. After several months of study and prayer, it became apparent through some difficult circumstances that it was not yet God’s timing for this work to begin. So, we took a step back and re-evaluated the timeline and the method and then regrouped. When we launched our team-building phase on April 8th of this year, about 20 believers began studying the book of Philippians together at a local hotel conference room, all the while praying that God would take our small Bible study and turn it into a local body for the sake of his glory in our community. 

One week into June, sensing that God was indeed working through us, we launched our outreach phase in which we: 

• Made 18,000 phone calls with the help of our mother church (Calvary Baptist in Watertown) 
• Held a Cola War with the help of the youth groups from Calvary Baptist and Brookside Baptist 
• Sent 3 bulk mailings to the 1,300 people on our mailing list 

This week, we will be following-up with each of the 1,300 on our mailing list and preparing for our first Sunday morning worship service this Sunday at Cushing Elementary School in the City of Delafield at 10:00 AM. We are praying that God would: 

• Be glorified through the ministry of our church (Ephesians 3:21) 
• Continue to raise up believers in this community who are in need of a place for their families to grow (Ephesians 4)
• Continue to open doors for faithful gospel witness (Ephesians 6:19) 

I ask for your prayers!

Satisfaction in Doing

With the rising popularity of John Piper’s Desiring God as well his overall emphasis of being satisfied in God, my generation has been moved to seek satisfaction in our relationships with God. In Psalm 17:15, the psalmist passionately declares:

As for me, I shall behold your face in righteousness; when I awake, I shall be satisfied with your likeness. 

This emphasis is right and proper. In an age when individuals are incessantly tempted to be distracted by what is shiniest, Christians, as they progress in sanctification, should be increasingly satisfied in God and decreasingly satisfied by stuff. 

Sadly, however, what I’ve seen on occasion and what I’ve known experientially is not complete satisfaction from God. Sipping a mint mocha frappe at Starbuck’s while reading Mortification of Sin or Valley of Vision is not the purposed end of deep and sustaining satisfaction in God. 

I fear that too many Christians are only finding half of the satisfaction that God intended for us. If we only search for satisfaction in God, and never put our hands to the plough in working for God, then we will not gain the whole of the satisfaction that God designed for us. 

That was Jesus’ point in John 4. While the disciples were in the city buying food for them and for Jesus, an immoral Samaritan woman approaches Jacob’s well. You know the story; our Lord lovingly confronts the sin of her heart, convicting her of sin. When the Lord, then, reveals his messianic identity, the woman runs to her home proclaiming that Jesus is some sort of prophet sent from God. The disciples stumbled upon this scene and said something like this in their hearts, 

Master, why are you speaking to a woman? Why this woman? How could you defile yourself like this, Lord? Why aren’t you reading the Puritans…

But none of them said a word. Instead, they told Jesus that he must eat. Naturally, they would think that Jesus needed something to sustain and satisfy him amidst their long journeying. Jesus answered, 

I have meat to eat that you don’t know about…My meat is to do the will of Him who sent me and to finish his work. 

Here, Jesus reveals that there is satisfaction in doing, in accomplishing – in working. Usually, when we think about being satisfied in our Christian life, we think of satisfaction primarily in terms of our relationship with God. Here, Jesus explains that there is satisfaction in our work for God. 

What is this satisfying work? 

The context is clear. Immediately preceding, Jesus has a spiritual encounter with the Samaritan woman that leads to confrontation and conviction of personal sin. Immediately after this scene, Jesus says, “Lift up your eyes and look unto the fields, for they are white already to harvest.” The work that our Lord speaks of is a gospel, disciple-making work. 

The great commission is not an option from peer to peer; it is a command from the King to his servants. Here, however, Jesus is reminding us that there is delight to be found in our service to the King.

Corinthian Chiasm

2 Corinthians 5:6-10: 

 So we are always of good courage. We know that while we are at home in the body we are away from the Lord, for we walk by faith, not by sight. ⁸Yes, we are of good courage, and we would rather be away from the body and at home with the Lord. ⁹So whether we are at home or away, we make it our aim to please him.¹⁰For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil.

A. Home in the body 

            B. Away from the Lord

                        C. We walk by faith not by sight

            B’. Away from the body 

A’. Home with the Lord

It seems then that “we walk by faith not by sight” and “we make it our aim to please Him” are roughly equivalent with a motivating factor coming in verse 10.