Having Two Legs

Archives For Evangelism

Nobody Wants to be That Guy

April 29, 2013 — 2 Comments

Nobody wants to be that guy preaching the gospel on the street corner. Nobody wants to be the guy knocking on his neighbors’ doors inviting them to church or sharing Christ with them. Nobody wants to be the girl who tells her roommate it’s a sin for her boyfriend to have his hands down her pants. And no, it doesn’t matter that you’re planning to get married. Nobody wants to be that family that walks out of the theater because they refuse to hang out in the company of losers on screen. Nobody wants to be that student who raises his hand and points out that if there is no god then gang rape is a perfectly reasonable option to consider for sexual fulfillment.

Nobody wants to point out that your favorite television show is full of vile language and more tits than even any self respecting farmer ought to see in a life time. Nobody wants to be the lady who gently suggests that the reason you got that piercing was to offend the older women at church and maybe score with the cute boy in the choir. Nobody really wants to repeat what Paul says about husbands and wives, cheerfully without apology, in a clear voice into the microphone. Don’t worry: I won’t repeat it here in case there are some tender consciences reading. Continue Reading…

In Bible - Romans, Culture, ethics, Evangelism, Grace, Manalive, Wisdom

What is a Christian?

April 17, 2013 — Leave a comment

A Christian is someone who believes that the answer to all the brokenness, pain, and evil in this world is the death of a man named Jesus two thousand years ago.

How could the death of one man be the answer to terrorism, abuse, betrayal, cancer, or crime?

The answer is that this man Jesus was not like any other man who has ever lived or ever will live. This man was actually the One who made this world.

Despite the horror, despite the pain, despite the senseless evil that has filled this world, this world is still filled with unexplainable, astounding glory and beauty. From sunsets to galaxies, from laughter to love, from music to dance to ice cream — this world is gut-wrenchingly good.

Christians believe that God made this world and loaded it with glory. He invented this place. He imagined this place. And He filled it with treasures and wonders and pleasure and beauty. But men and women have not listened to His voice. We wanted to go our own way. We wanted to be our own bosses, our own gods. Instead of listening to the words of the Inventor of the universe, we decided to listen to other words, to make up our own words.

This rejection of the Good God who made this good world is called sin. And since God invented life, and His word is what gives life to all things, to turn away from His word, to turn away from His life, is ultimately to embrace death. The wages of sin is death. Sin is asking for death. Therefore sin deserves death. Of course people don’t think that they are begging for death when they sin, when they disobey the voice of God, but still we sin and still death comes again and again and again. Continue Reading…

In Bible, Creation, Evangelism, Grace, Justice & Mercy, Preaching, Theology - Christology, TRC

The Straight Bloody Gospel

April 15, 2013 — 2 Comments

Introduction
I’m calling this Bible Study “Boot Camp” for at least two reasons. First, boot camp is meant to get a man into shape. It focuses on the basics of fitness and health and is meant to train a man’s instincts. Similarly, this study is just the basics, nothing fancy, but hopefully it’s the kind of “basic” that gets in your face a little. Second, boot camp is training for service. This study rests on the assumption that God made men to die. Our glory is our strength, and that strength is meant to be spent sacrificially in obedience to Jesus until there’s nothing left. Related to this is the fact that this is what leadership actually is. And to the extent that the Christian Church is weak and worldly, this is because men in the Church are fearful, cowardly, and refuse to die. This means dying to sin, dying to fear, dying to pride, dying to pain, dying to shame, dying for the good and blessing of others, and dying ultimately all for the sake of Jesus.

Nothing But the Blood: The Straight Bloody Gospel

Paul says: “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” (Rom. 1:16)

This means at least two things: First, the gospel is the kind of good news that someone might be ashamed of. It may seem embarrassing. Secondly, the gospel is the power of God to those who believe and this runs across the most entrenched divisions in human society: Jew/Greek, male/female, Palestinian/Jew, black/white/hispanic, Democrat/Republican, rich/poor, educated/ignorant, abused/abuser, etc. And both the belief and the border crossing nature of the gospel are a good bit of what makes it tempting to be ashamed of.

“For Christ sent me not to baptize, but to preach the gospel: not with wisdom of words, lest the cross of Christ should be made of none effect. For the preaching of the cross is to them that perish foolishness; but unto us who are saved it is the power of God.” (1 Cor. 1:17-18)

We know of course that Jesus did send His apostles to baptize, and Paul did baptize. But I take him here to be emphasizing the supremacy of the preached word. If we can borrow a phrase from catholic ecclesiology, the Word is the first among equals. And this is because Jesus is the Word (Jn. 1:1). But this isn’t rationalism or intellectualism – as though people are saved by diagramming sentences or reading fat theology books – because the efficacy isn’t in the rhetoric or mental gymnastics. The power is in what is preached, namely the cross of Christ. Again, Paul points out that this will appear foolish to those who are perishing, but to those who believe and are saved, it is seen clearly to be the power of God. People may be tempted to ascribe power to water, but the power is in the Word. Continue Reading…

In Bible - 1 Corinthians, Bible - Romans, Boot Camp, Evangelism, Grace, Manalive

Witnesses of the Resurrection

April 1, 2013 — Leave a comment

We’ve just celebrated Easter yesterday, proclaiming Christ is risen! and in many of our communities and churches we will continue to celebrate over the next number of weeks proclaiming this truth, singing this truth, sharing this truth with neighbors and family members and friends. This is the good news, the gospel, that Jesus is risen from the dead, according to the scriptures (1 Cor. 15:1-4ff).

But when it comes to evangelism and sharing the gospel with unbelieving friends, neighbors, and family members, we often get hung up on the peripheral details. How do we explain why homosexuality is sinful? Why do we believe in creationism? Why should abortion be illegal? I’m not saying those aren’t hugely important questions, but we oughtn’t get sidetracked from the central question which is: Who is Jesus and what happened to Him? And why does it matter?

Fundamentally, we are testifying to the truth that Christ is Risen. That’s the bottom line. If that’s not true, then we’re still in our sins and all our preaching and evangelism and witnessing and apologetics is worthless (1 Cor. 15:14). But Paul knows that Jesus really is risen from the dead because he saw Him. Paul got his life interrupted by Jesus. Continue Reading…

In Bible - 1 Corinthians, Church Calendar, Culture, Evangelism, Grace, Theology - Soteriology

Broken for the Broken

March 25, 2013 — Leave a comment

This table is for sinners. This meal is not for good people. This bread is not for people who have their act together. This wine is not for people who have never made enormous mistakes. No, this bread is broken because Jesus was broken for the broken. This wine is His blood because Jesus bled for the guilty. We do not gather here at this table as the top of the class, as the winners, the success stories, the clean, the innocent, the popular, the good looking. No, we are here as the failures, the losers, the guilty, the outcasts, the rejected, the ugly.

There are any number of ways we could get the idea of a new building wrong. As we prepare for this new stage in our story as TRC, we should be thinking and praying about the ways we will be tempted. One danger is the temptation that we will think we have arrived, that we are now a respectable church, full of good, squeaky clean people. Yes, we are a forgiven people. Yes, by the grace of God, we are healed and healing people. Yes, we have been given many blessings. But if we understand who we are in the light of God’s grace, we have to constantly remember where we have come from and how far we have to go. Continue Reading…

In Bible - Isaiah, Eucharistic Meditations, Evangelism, Justice & Mercy, Lent

Paid in Full

February 20, 2013 — Leave a comment

In my sermon this last week, I said that God’s approval of us is not based on our performance but based solely on Jesus and what He has done for us. A reasonable question might be: But what about the fact that the Bible somewhat frequently describes God’s disapproval based on people’s performances? Don’t people reap what they sow? Didn’t Jesus say that men will be judged for their every idle word?

And the answer to these questions is yes. But everything hinges on whether you’ve already been judged or not.

In other words, if one day you get a bill in the mail out of nowhere and it turns out there was some major accounting failure, and now you owe hundreds of millions of dollars in back payments, well, unless you have a nice stash of cash somewhere, you’re sunk.

And just to keep things interesting, what if you knew that even if you worked 80 hour work weeks your entire life and only spent the bare minimum necessary to live, you’d still never be able to pay the debt? You’d still be sunk by millions.

But what if you already knew about the bill before it came? And what if you knew the debt was already paid? Well then, when the bill showed up, it would come more like a scheduled visit to the dentist. You don’t really look forward to those sorts of appointments and they aren’t usually fun, but they’re bearable and expected.

And here’s what I mean. For those who know Jesus, they already know that they have sinned and will sin again, and that Jesus freely suffered and bled for those sins already. They know that bills have piled up, and they know that there are still more bills in the mail. We may not know the exact breakdown of the bills, but we know what the total was. The wages of sin is death. The total debt owed was a perfect, sinless life, impossible for any sinner to pay. But the news that changed our lives was the news that Jesus has paid our debts in full. Continue Reading…

In Bible - Colossians, Evangelism, Grace, Jesus is Enough, Lent, TRC, Wisdom

Putting on the Armor of Light: Resources for Lent

February 13, 2013 — 6 Comments

For those wondering about what we teach or think about the season of Lent at Trinity. Here’s what we print in the front of our bulletins during this season:

“Lent is the season of the Church calendar that spans the 40 days leading up to Easter. Lent is from the old English word which means “lengthening” and refers to Springtime, when the days are getting longer and lighter. Another name for this season is “Quadragesima” which simply means “fortieth,” counting backwards from Easter to the fortieth day before Resurrection Sunday.

In the history of the Church, no other season has perhaps been so abused or misunderstood as Lent. Historically, Lent began as a discipleship class for new believers. It became customary to have baptisms at Easter, and so new believers would be enrolled in these classes prior to Easter to teach them the basics of the faith, frequently working through the Apostles’ Creed, the most basic Christian confession. Eventually, many leaders in the Church saw the need for all Christians to be annually reminded of the basics of the Christian faith and reminded of the basic Christian disciplines.

Over time, many practices like superstitious fasting and various forms of abstinence became substituted for real Christian disciplines and by the time of the Reformation, Lent had become something of a symbol of the oppression of the Roman church, and therefore many of the great Reformers cheerfully taught their congregations to disregard the Roman church’s rules and regulations for Lent. Standing squarely in the Reformation tradition, we want to remember and embrace their wisdom and courage in freeing the people of God from man made traditions and rules. In Christ, we are free, and no Christian man or woman should be bound by man-made customs or traditions regarding eating or fasting, food or drink, days or seasons. No one should feel any tinge of guilt for doing absolutely nothing different during Lent. Continue Reading…

In Church Calendar, Evangelism, Family, History - Reformation, Lent, TRC, Worship

She Shall Not Be Moved: Francis Atwood R.I.P.

February 1, 2013 — Leave a comment

Psalm 46: God is our refuge and strength, A very present help in trouble. Therefore we will not fear, though the earth be removed, And though the mountains be carried into the midst of the sea; Though the waters thereof roar and be troubled, Though the mountains shake with the swelling thereof. There is a river, the streams whereof shall make glad the city of God, The holy place of the tabernacles of the most High. God is in the midst of her; she shall not be moved: God shall help her, and that right early. The heathen raged, the kingdoms were moved: He uttered his voice, the earth melted. The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge. Come, behold the works of the Lord, What desolations he hath made in the earth. He maketh wars to cease unto the end of the earth; He breaketh the bow, and cutteth the spear in sunder; He burneth the chariot in the fire. Be still, and know that I am God: I will be exalted among the heathen, I will be exalted in the earth. The Lord of hosts is with us; The God of Jacob is our refuge.

I read this Psalm to Fran as she lay dying in Good Samaritan this last Sunday afternoon. The last time I actually spoke with her was at Gritman a few days before that, and she was pretty worried and she asked me to pray for her. I read some scripture to her then, and I did pray for her. But following that conversation, as I continued to think about her and pray for her, this Psalm kept coming to mind which is why I read it to her this last Sunday as she slept.

“God is our refuge and strength, a very present help in trouble.” The Psalm describes an enormous storm, a tsunami, a hurricane, with rock slides, earthquakes, the whole world coming apart, shaking violently, nothing holding together.

And in the face of that calamity, that upheaval, the psalmist sings: “There is a river whose streams make glad the city of God, the holy place of the tabernacles of the most High. God is in the midst of her, and she shall not be moved.” God is in the midst of her, and she shall not be moved. How is that possible? How is it possible not to be moved in the middle of a storm? How is it possible not to be moved in the middle of an earthquake? How is possible not to be moved when a hurricane bears down on your life? Continue Reading…

In Bible - Mark, Bible - Psalms, Evangelism, Funeral Meditation, Sermon Outlines, TRC

Death or Death?

January 24, 2013 — 1 Comment

In various venues, in various talks over the last few years, I’ve found myself pointing out that God’s Plan A is death and resurrection. God’s Plan A is for Jesus to die and rise again. And Jesus told us clearly that following Him means sure death. To follow Jesus is to plan to die. Death is not a possibility. Death is the aim. We aim to die. We aim to run headlong for the glory of God and lay our lives down in love for the One who saved us.

This is not suicide because we do not take our lives in a rush of selfish bitterness. We don’t light ourselves on fire and hope for sympathy. We don’t slit our wrists and hope people will somehow hear our silent cries for help, for attention.

No, we have met the God of the Universe, the God who made this place, the God who runs this world. And He was born of a virgin, and willingly laid His life down for us. He died so that we might die in Him, and He rose from the dead so that we might live in Him. So the plan then is to die. And there is no Plan B. Plan B is only eternal sorrow and isolation.

And the gospel proclaims this grace, the gift of being taken up into the mission of God, the gift of offering up our lives as sacrifices of praise, in the life of the Perfect Son, the perfect sacrifice.

This is the center of the gospel which means that this touches so many different facets of life. But let me just point to two here. Continue Reading…

In Culture, Evangelism, Family, Food, Grace, Justice & Mercy

Planting Weeds & Hoping for Roses

January 21, 2013 — Leave a comment

One of the great lies of modern culture is that if you mostly mean well, everything will end up good in the end. The world says that if you have good intentions, and you do nice things here and there and the good mostly outweighs the bad, you’ll end up OK. No matter that you neglected your children, no matter that you spoke disrespectfully to your parents. No matter that you lied here and there, and cheated a little on the side. No matter that you spun things to make yourself look better than you really are. No matter that you did end runs around your husband or your wife, to get what you wanted before they could object, before they could stop you.

But Jesus says that men reap what they sow. One day you will wake up with a field full of thistles and weeds, and it will not be a great mystery how it happened. Your daughter will run off with a man who at least pays attention to her. Your son will run off to some place where people actually respect him. Your marriage will dissolve in silence and coldness or go up in flames overnight. You can’t plant the seeds of selfishness and evil and then hope the flowers of righteousness will grow magically. You can’t refuse to pull the weeds of sin and then be surprised when all the flowers are overgrown and dead. It’s not a great mystery. It’s folly. It’s insanity. Continue Reading…

In Evangelism, Exhortations, Grace, TRC