Enriched Affections

Track 6- Justified

2009-10-19T10:30:00.000-07:00

"Justified"
by Joshua Huff

Verse 1

To gain a people, a holy bride,

Christ was humbled and left His Father's side.

He lived and died to honor God alone

And now He sits beside Him at His throne.

From every nation, from every tongue,

Soon all before Him will bow down to the Son;

For He is King over earth and heav'n,

And to the Kingdom there will be no end.

Chorus:

The wrath of God is satisfied for us,

Christ's sacrifice has proven He is just.

The death He died has given us new life.

Christ paid the price, now we can be justified.

Verse 2:

Though we were fallen and dead in sin

He called a people that could not choose Him.

And if he calls, we cannot reject

For with His blood He saved our souls from death.

This gift of grace that paid the price for me

Has cleansed my heart and set me free.

In bondage I was chained a slave to sin,

But now my will is captive, owed to Him.

This song has gone through more changes than any other song I've written. I began working on it in 2003 while I was in college. As a part of the band that led chapel I was exposed to a wide variety of music, some good and some not so good. While our little group was picking music for the upcoming semester we talked in length about the song Above All and how it was a pretty good song, but could use a second verse. I took on the challenge and came up with a pretty in-your-face verse 2 that clearly outlined the 5 points of Calvinism, or the Doctrines of Grace (doctrines that aren't the most popular at my former college).

We did the song in chapel as a second verse to Above All and got some pretty negative responses, so it was shelved for a time. After I graduated from college, I began writing a bit more. In 2006 I was working on a song and came up with the chorus for what is now Justified. I added a modified version of the verse I wrote for Above All with a few more lines added in and Justified was born.

I have to say, this is one of my favorite songs. I think it clearly outlines the beauty of the Doctrines of Grace which are near and dear to my heart. I love singing about how lost I am without Christ and how much Christ has done to enable me to be a part of His family. The chorus says it all: "The wrath of God is satisfied for us..." This is the theme of one of the most important paragraphs in all of scripture, Romans 3:21-26. Because of Christ, God's demand for justice was satisfied and God also made his children right. In one fell swoop our sin was paid for and our relationship with God was healed. This truth should constantly bring joy to our hearts and make us want to exalt God for all He has done for us, an undeserving people.

The style of this song is very different from your typical worship song. I love the sound of major seven chords, so this song has a lot of them. They give the feeling of a comfortable tension in that they aren't your typical chord, yet they still sound complete and leave you wanting some more resolution. This is the same with the Doctrines of Grace. They satisfy us for now and we have to be content that there is a little tension mixed in there what we won't fully understand.

This is also the heaviest song on the album. If we can't use electric guitars and drums to praise God for His wrath being satisfied then we are in a sorry state. I praise God for the diversity of this band and how we can praise God for the whole range of emotions (affections) that are stirred because of the truths of the gospel.

Track 5- Do Your Will

2009-10-17T17:24:00.000-07:00

"Do Your Will"
by Josh Huff (2005)

Verse 1:

As I walk along this path of life, I tend to lose my way.

I lack the strength to stay the course, to hear God and obey.

My prideful heart will drive me on, thinking it knows best,

But God has said He'll lead me through,

and in that my soul can rest.

Chorus:

O Lord, I need Your help today

Your Spirit needs to guide me as I pray

And though I don't know where to go

Your Word will light the way

O God, give me the strength to do Your will

Verse 2:

Though I don't know all the answers yet,

I serve the one who does;

He's guiding me through tests and trials,

and in Him I place my trust.

My sovereign God will faithfully

direct my willful plans,

Because He promised to complete the work

He fashioned with His hands.

This song was written during a very turbulent period in my life. Moriah and I had been serving at Community Baptist Church for about 4 months and were really feeling the pull to move into some other kind of ministry and perhaps even leave that church. We didn’t know what to do. There were pros and cons for staying and going. We had our own thoughts, but we really wanted to do what God wanted, not just what was comfortable or easy. In this midst of this several scriptures came to mind. One was Romans 8:26-28 which speaks of our weakness in prayer. “…we do not know what to pray for as we ought, but the Spirit himself intercedes for us…” is what Paul writes in verse 26.

Several promises from God’s Word also came to mind. Philippians 1:6 says, “…he who began a good work in you will bring it to completion at the day of Jesus Christ.” There is also the promise from God’s Word that the Bible will be a light to our path (Psalm 119:105). God brought all of these ideas to mind as a comfort in the midst of this trial.

As I sought a way to pray to God and express what I was going through, I wandered over to the piano and began playing. The words just came out and this song began to take shape. A study through James and reading some of Augustine shaped parts of the song as well as I thought about future plans and how we don’t know what tomorrow may bring (James 4:13-15) and how the only place we can really find rest from worry is when we rest in Christ. That is how this song came into existence. You’ll see other ideas woven throughout the text, but those are the main thoughts I wanted to express.

The style is a bit reminiscent of Keith Green, one of my musical and spiritual models. I always appreciated his passion for God and the way He expressed theology with his music. As my family and I move into yet another season of testing and trial, the words of this song speak to me louder than ever. Our souls can only find rest when they rest in Christ. We are trusting that God’s Word will always light the way and that whatever God asks of us, He will enable us to do.

Track 4- Taste and See

2009-10-13T08:55:00.000-07:00

"Taste and See"
Verses adapted from Isaac Watts
Chorus and Music by Josh Huff

Verse 1

Lord, I will bless Thee all my days,

Thy praise is on my tongue;

My soul shall glory in Thy grace,

while saints rejoice to hear Your song.

Verse 2

Come, magnify the Lord with me,

come let us praise His name;

I sought the eternal God and He

has not exposed my hope to shame.

Verse 3

I told Him all my secret grief,

my groaning reaches His ears;

He gave my inward pains relief;

and calmed the tumult of my fears.

Verse 4

To Him the poor lift up their eyes,

their faces feel His grace;

A beam of mercy from the skies

fills them with light and joy-filled praise.

Verse 5

O sinners come and taste His love,

come learn His pleasant ways;

And let your own experience prove

the sweetness of His matchless grace.

Chorus

O taste and see that the Lord is good;

blest is he who takes rest in Him.

Fear the Lord, seek Him for His grace;

be satisfied in all His ways.

This song was put together as the theme song for our Summer Camp from FVBC two years ago. The theme was Taste and See God's Goodness with the primary text coming from Psalm 34, the Psalm on which this song is based. As I was hunting around for lyrics, I came across a Metrical Psalter written by Isaac Watts. A Metrical Psalter is basically the Psalms rewritten in a poetic way so that they can be recited to a certain meter. They are also rewritten to rhyme. There are dozens of these psalters available, and perhaps even more than that. Isaac Watts has produced on of the more famous ones and you can see those online. I found his words to be particularly reflective of what the Psalmist had originally written. They also fit well into the melody that I had been crafting.

Verses 1-5 of the song are almost word for word Isaac Watts' rewrite of verses 1-5 of Psalm 34. The chorus was my attempt at a metrical Psalter from Psalm 34:8-9. I felt that these two verses really incapsulated the meaning of the Psalm and it was my hope to encourage others with these verses. It was a bit difficult to not plagiarize from other song versions of this Psalm. There is another version written by my friend Gabe Zepeda which has similar language in the chorus. But I think all of the versions represent well what the Psalmist was trying to say.

Of all the verses, I think verse 5 is my favorite. It has a note of Future Grace about it as we are called to find proof of God's grace through our own past experiences. I have certainly seen that in my own life as, time after time, I am forced to rely on God's grace and sovereignty. Time after time He has proven Himself good and faithful, laying a strong foundation for me to rest on during future trials. Truly His grace is sweet and matchless.

Track 3- Psalm 23

2009-09-16T08:17:00.000-07:00

"Psalm 23"
by Josh Huff

Verse 1

The Lord is my shepherd, I shall not want.

He leads me beside quiet waters,

He makes me lie down in green fields of warmth,

He guideth my soul for His honor.

And though I walk though the valley, the shadow of death,

I fear no evil for You guide me with Your rod and staff.

You prepare a table before me

In the presence of my enemies.

You anoint my head with oil. My cup overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy

All of my life will follow me.

And I will dwell in the house of the Lord,

And I will dwell in the house of my Lord, forever.

Verse 2

Christ is the Shepherd, He tends my soul.

His righteousness is my armor.

He leads me through trials with gentle love.

He'll satisfy for His honor.

Because You walked through the valley, the shadow of death,

I fear no evil for You saved me from the Father's wrath.

You pour out Your grace upon me,

Even though I was Your enemy.

You've blessed my life with joy.

My heart overflows.

Surely goodness and mercy
All of my life will follow me.
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord,
And I will dwell in the house of the Lord,
And I will dwell in the house of my Lord, forever.

This song is based on one of my favorite Psalms. As with many of my songs, this one began with the music. I was playing around with some major 7 chords, and I started to play the melody that would become the melody of the beginning and end of each verse. Once the melody came into play, I began thumbing through the Psalms to find one that fit the mood of the music and that also could be adapted to be sung in an instructive way. Soon, "Psalm 23" was born.

Almost a year after I wrote the first verse, Sovereign Grace Music came out with their Psalms CD, including a song based on Psalm 23. As I listened, I saw so much of the Christ focus in their songs. While I enjoyed my version of Psalm 23, I noticed that it lacked a pointer to the fulfillment of this Psalm. So, under conviction to be more Christocentric in my writing, I penned the second verse, trying to tie in the themes of the gospel with this Psalm. I was pleased with how it turned out.

Too often we stop with just a few Biblical ideas tied together without bringing in the truths of the gospel. Without the gospel, songs are just moral and we might as well be singing secular music. We can't have true morality without the Spirit, and we can't have the Spirit without the gospel, and we can't have the gospel without Christ. It is truly all about Him, our great Shepherd of the sheep.

Track 2- Mystery of Mercy

2009-09-14T12:32:00.000-07:00

"Mystery of Mercy"
by Josh Huff (March 23, 2005)

Verse 1

In eternity past, before time was made

You started a plan to bring glory to Your Name.

You would create a world, both captive and free

Where creation would declare Your holy majesty.

Then sin entered in, enslaving mankind,

Making men blind to You, loving the night.

But You promised grace and mercy would come,

even though we, Your enemies, deserved none.

Chorus

The mystery of mercy; it is Your sovereign plan.

The mystery of grace; we will never understand

How You could send Your own Son to die

For depraved enemies of Your name, such as I,

To adopt us as children of life, Oh myster of mercy...

Mystery of mercy.

Verse 2

As time wandered on Your plan was revealed

You would send us a Savior who's wounded hands would heal

He would live in our world, as a babe enter in.

The man fully God who would free us from sin.

But He was despised, rejected by men.

He suffered Your wrath as the payment for sin.

As a dead lamb He lay 'til the third morning came

When He conquered death as He rose from the grave.

Bridge

So now that I know that I will never know

Why Your Son would die just to save my dead soul

I'll give You my life and all that I have

And praise You for giving us Christ!

This is one of the first songs I ever wrote. I came about just before Easter in 2005 when I was on staff at Community Baptist Church in Elgin, IL. I was planning the Easter service and was thinking about a few different ideas for a song when Mystery of Mercy started to form. I worked on it for a few hours, then a few hours more, and soon this song came together. I'm sure you'll recognize the Easter theme at the end of the second verse with our conquering Lamb rising from the dead.

As I thought through the mystery of God's mercy, I really wanted to tell the whole story of our salvation. It is truly a mystery why such a great and powerful God would choose to save his creatures that had openly rebelled against Him. I often wonder about my own life as I continue to struggle with sin why God continues to love and care for me. But that is the definition of grace: getting something we don't deserve. We have received so much from God; adoption into His family, eternal life, not to mention the mercy of God to keep us from suffering His wrath for all eternity.

I hope this song is a great reminder of how much God has done for a people that didn't even want the blessings God offered.

Track 1- "Jesus, Lover of My Soul"

2009-09-01T07:33:00.000-07:00

Jesus, Lover of My Soul-
Verses 1-3 by Charles Wesley / Verse 4 and music by Josh Huff

Verse 1:

Jesus, Lover of My Soul, let me to Your bosom fly.

While the nearer waters roll, while the tempest still is high;

Hide me, O my Savior hide, 'till the storm of life is past;

Safe into the haven guide; O receive my soul at last

Verse 2:

You, O Christ, are all I want; more than all in You I find;

Raise the fallen, chear the faint, heal the sick and lead the blind.

Just and holy is Thy name, I am all unrighteousness;

False and full of sin I am, Thou are full of truth and grace.

Verse 3:

Endless grace with You is found, grace to cover all my sin;

Let the healing streams abound; make and keep me pure within:

You, the fount of life do flow, freely let me drink of Thee;

Spring Thou up within my heart, rise to all eternity.

Verse 4:

Heav'nward I life up my eyes, Christ is on the mercy seat;

There I may receive the prize for He intercedes for me.

Sin's dark curse of death has died; Christ the Lamb is all I see;

Joys eternal from my soul; satisfied at last in Thee.

This song is a hymn most of you can find in your hymnal. It was put to a melody that I didn't think quite fit the text. The original tune sounded a bit like the tune for "O, the Deep Deep Love of Jesus"; very minor and sad sounding. I wanted to write something a bit more upbeat and in a major key. Also, I was hoping to make it a bit more accesible by having a bit more repetition in the melody line. So, after noodling around with the melody, I came up with what you will hear on the album. It's a bit of a folk sound, reminiscient of Indellible Grace.

When I finished writing the music for this, I couldn't help but think that the song felt incomplete, and that's not just because I thought it should have 4 verses. The text covered a ton of Biblical topics, including sin, depravity, justification, adoption, protection, and a great focus on what Christ accomplished and still does in the life of the believer. But I wanted some focus on the finish line, on the final prize of actually being with Christ in heaven. That is where the last verse came from.

I actually wrote it right before a Sunday evening service as my dad and I were discussing this very issue. I had some time before the service, so I thought about what we had talked about and God was gracious enough to help me get it together in just a few minutes. Before the service I showed it to my dad (our Pastor of Worship), and he said we should sing it, and that's how verse 4 came to be.

I especially like the imagery of that last line, because that is really what I am looking forward to. We do get a taste of heaven now by enjoying the joys of pleasing God and worshipping God in this life. You could even say that those joys are eternal joys because they spring from what will be an eternal relationship with God. But those joys won't be realized until heaven. In heaven is where those joys will find their satisfaction, their rest, in their creator, Jesus Christ. That will be an incredible day, when we no longer see pain, destruction, or sin, but see Christ and find satisfaction for all our joys.

Enriched Affections- A Purposeful Album

2009-08-26T07:27:00.000-07:00

Over the years I have had a lot of time to think about worship. I was raised a pastor’s kid, with my dad being a full-time worship pastor. In college I even developed a personal philosophy of worship. Throughout all that time, I fell in love with God and worshiped Him through music. But it is so easy to fall in love with the music we worship God with, to get caught up in the emotion of it all, and to not really know the object of our worship. Sure, what we sing may be true, but is there enough truth in it to eliminate all other objects of worship so that the only possible being we are worshipping is God?

As plans for this album began almost two years ago, I began kicking around the title of Enriched Affections. If you notice the first post on this blog, you’ll see that the idea for this phrase came out of Together for the Gospel and also a few trips to New Attitude. C.J. Mahaney had a phrase he mentioned… “If you want to feel deeply, you need to think deeply.” All of this made me think about the affections.

All of us have affections, or emotions, desires, wants, things that make us want to do what we do. In worship, often those affections are lifted up with an upbeat tune, or an intricate harmony. Too often however, there is no substance to go with the emotional lift. Thankfully we have had a number of artists step up over the past few years to help with that problem. Sovereign Grace Music has produced a number of albums that accomplish what I am trying to also do with this album.

In a proper worship song, there is a beautiful marriage, an intricate harmony if you will, of text and tune. There is theology that acts like fertilizer in a nutrient deprived soil. When this theology enters into our hearts, our affections become enriched with God’s Word and we can truly worship the God of the Bible. That is my goal with this album, to properly fertilize our hearts so we can worship God joyfully in spirit and in truth.

I don’t know where it will lead in the future. My hope is that it will become a tool that many churches can use to help their congregations worship God more effectively. But that is up to God. I’m content with whatever He decides.

Over the next few weeks, I’ll be posting the lyrics to the songs on the album and explaining a bit about the doctrine and the history of each song. I hope you enjoy.

Grace and Peace- Josh Huff

Our Right to Vote, and Pray

2008-11-04T06:30:00.000-08:00

It has been a while since I've done this, but I think its about time I throw my hat back in the blogging ring. Today is a very special day, it is election day. Many of you may think that this is the most important day in our nation's calendar, and I would agree. This is our chance as a people, as citizens to influence the future direction of our country. For many, this is a day of personal expression and excitement, while for others, like myself who is from a state that consistently disagrees with my personal politics, it is an exercise in frustration. But for the believer, this day should by the end of a long period of petitioning our God to do what is best for our nation.

I wonder how many of us have taken time to consider what God's desires might be for this country. How much time have we spent searching the scriptures to know the mind of the Lord in regards to our future. Scripture is full of passages that speak to God's involvement in the politics of a country. Here are just a few:

2 Chron 20:6 - ... "O Lord, God of our fathers, are you not God in heaven? You rule over all the kingdoms of the nations. In your hand are power and might, so that none is able to withstand you.

Psalms 22:28 - 28 "For kingship belongs to the Lord, and he rules over the nations."

Jer 27:5 - "It is I who by my great power and my outstretched arm have made the earth, with the men and animals that are on the earth, and I give it to whomever it seems right to me. "

Prov 21:1 - "The king's heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; he turns it wherever he will. "

In light of these verses, we should be supremely confident that no matter the result of the election, God is still the one on the throne and His plans for our nation cannot be thwarted.

The other aspect to a believer's approach to this election should be one of continued prayer. You see, in the same way we show our involvement and influence in our government through voting, so we show that same interest and involvement in spiritual kingdom through prayer. How much time have we spent on our knees praying for the candidates, praying for God's will to be done, praying that our nation would repent and turn to the Lord. If we haven't spent time in prayer over this, that is just as bad as not exercising our right to vote. I confess, this is something I struggle with as well. My prayer life is often limited to my own day to day concerns with never a thought to the greater world outside my little area of ministry at FVBC.

I have been supremely convicted that there is a greater need for prayer than there is for voting. With prayer, we petition the ultimate King of kings. God has given us this great gift of communicating with Him and even being a part of God's actions as He uses our prayers to accomplish His will on earth. James 5:16 tells us to pray and that our prayer has greet effect. Pray should be a regular part of our day, but is it? Do we spend as much time on our knees as we do worrying about the outcome of an election? Where is our heart? Do we trust that God is in control and can and will do whatever He deems best for His people? If we don't, we should. Romans 8:28 is clear on that issue. Whatever occurs, it is the best and will be used to accomplish the best for God's people.

So exercise your greater right as a believer. Yes, by all means vote if you are able, but don't stop there. Continue in your petitioning our great God to continue to do His will in our land for the good of His people and for the ultimate glory of His Name.

Anniversary Day

2008-06-19T07:45:00.000-07:00

So, today is my fourth anniversary, and I wanted to reflect on what marriage has meant to me over the past few years. In Sacred Marriage, Gary Thomas writes that marriage is more about our holiness than our happiness. I think that is a very interesting way of putting it. Although our marriage has been full of happy moments, I think the greatest benefit to me personally is how it has grown my character closer to that of Christ. Holiness is all about conforming to the image of Christ, forsaking the world, and setting yourself apart for God. No one exemplified this more than Jesus. As I've traveled down the road of marriage just a little I can see many instances in which I've had to resist my sinful temptation and do what God would want.

For example, I don't really enjoy washing the dishes. I know my wife shares my same distaste for this task, yet is still needs to be done. We don't have a dishwasher at the moment, so the duty has to fall to someone. I think not washing the dishes would certainly make my happier, but being selfless and putting my wife's happiness first helps me to be more holy, more Christlike. Now, I want to give credit to Moriah. She does the dishes a lot. This is mainly due to her need for the house to be in order and clean (which I really appreciate). But, when there is a chance for me to do them, I need to jump at that to show my love for my wife.

This is just a small thing, but one of many that grows my character. I am so thankful for all that Moriah does, from laundry every week, to cooking, to teaching our girls little things like their colors and how to love each other. I really struck it rich with her, although my theology tells me that God ordained that she would be my wife. Praise God for pairing her with me. I think I got the better end of that deal.

Although this is our fourth anniversary of marriage, we are approaching eight years of being together as a couple. That's almost a third of my life that I've been with this wonderful woman. I'm pumped for what God has in store for us over the next years and decades. I'm sure there will be plenty of happy times, but what I'm really excited about is how God will grow both of us into the image of His Son through our covenant of marriage.

I love you Moriah...

Bible Q & A- Na Session 3

2008-06-05T08:42:00.000-07:00

Questions and Answers concerning the Bible- Al Mohler

This message wasn't really a message. They had people come down to two mics and ask their questions about the Bible. Below is the list and some notes on the answers given. It was great to see the interest. There were at least 50 lined up to ask questions, and he only got to about 10 of them. He is a very smart guy and answered the questions like he had prepared answers ready to go. He speaks from a wealth of knowledge and I think you'll find the responses helpful.

Na Session 3- Al Mohler

"Q & A about the Bible"

What separates the Bible from other books?

-When we say that the Bible is inspired, we aren't paying it a compliment by saying it is so good that it qualifies as holy text. It is inspired for many other reasons

How did we get our 66 books and why were some ommitted?

-Apocryphal writings- the early church considered them important spiritual books, but never on the same level as the cannon (Maccabees, etc.)

-Pseudo-pigraphal- not actually true writings (gospel of Mary not actually written by Mary)

-Gnostic groups- a few who believed they had the key to scriptures that wrote books they believed were true, but weren't scripture

Apostalicity- had to be linked to an Apostle

Catholicity- all churches recognize that these are the correct books

-By the 2nd century, the church had already settled on the 66 books we have now, and they believed it was complete, nothing needing to be added and nothing needed to be taken away

What about passages that are in some Bible's and not others (end of Mark 16:9-20 , etc.)?

-There a significant textual questions about those texts, although he believes they should still be in the scriptures

-The original manuscripts are gone so we don't know exactly what they should look like

What parts of the law are applicable today? Why some things and not others?

- the law shows us our need for Christ and it teaches us how to live

-Different kinds of law

-Moral law (repeated in the NT and inhanced- murder to anger, adultery to lust)

-Ceremonial law (what happens in worship- sacrifices, festivals, holiness code) which is done away with completely in the NT because it is fulfilled in Christ

-We need to discuss homosexuality one of many sexual sins that all of us can fall in left to ourselves

Is the Bible inerrant, infallible, consequentially inerrant, etc.?

-Infallible- it will never fail... this is true, but not a complete statement

-Inerrant- no errors

-If we say that the inconsequential parts may have errors, then what do we say is inconsequential? Every part of scripture is essential. Either it is without error or it is. There is no in between.

Postmodernism

-Takes into account that worldview establishes the way we construct reality

-some truth applies where other truths don't, that there are different people groups with different stories that historicize their background

-this produces the wrong type of humility by saying that no one can really know truth.. truth is only meaningful to the individual

-it states that the reader is the authority, not the writer

-postmodernism denies that there is a great universal truth that we can know and are held accountable to and that there is a metanarrative that ties everything together

What about the Doctrines of Grace and people who don't believe in them?

-people want to have some part in salvation

-semi-palagian: our environment makes us sinful and we only need a certain amount of grace to boost us across the finish line

-it is hard to show people grace when we are strangling them with the doctrines of grace

The Authority of Scripture- Na Session 2

2008-06-03T11:56:00.000-07:00

Mark Dever- The Authority of Scripture

I found this message particularly encouraging in regards to bolstering my faith in the authenticity of the Bible I read today. To understand the depths God has taken to ensure the security of His Word is just astonishing. I hope you will be as encouraged as I was by this message and that it will instill a new confidence in the authority of scripture in your mind.

Just like last time, here are my notes. I apologize for the fragmented nature of them, but it is better than nothing. Enjoy...

New Attitude- Session 2

Mark Dever

"The Authority of Scripture"

-this rising generation struggles with replacing the things of God with the passing things of this world

-The question before us today is

What do we believe and how will we answer questions about belief?

How can we have confidence in the authority of scripture?

Bibliography

-F.F. Bruce- The NT Documents: Are they reliable?

-J.I. Packer- Fundamentalism and the Word of God

-John Wynam- Christ and the Bible

I. The Reliability of the Bible (Apologetic Question)

-focus on the gospels- if we agree that the gospels are historically accurate, then we can move from that to understanding the reliability of the rest of the bible.

A. Is the Bible reliable in reference to all the translations (ESV, NKJV, NASB, etc.)

-all the translations don't negate that the Bible is translatable

-they all say the same thing at the root and basic point

B. Is this really what was written down all those years ago?

-Yes, there are texts old enough to prove that they are still accurate

-The NT is only 50 years removed from the original manuscripts

-The Bible is unprecedented in terms of ancient documents that we still have (22,000 ancient manuscripts)

C. Was what was written down by the original authors accurate and not just propaganda?

-things passed down orally from memory can be and usually are accurate for ancient cultures

-We need to ask why we doubt the reliability and then address those individual issue

-The Bible is historically accurate and is backed up by archeology. The authors take great care to be historically accurate (Luke 1:1-4)

-1 Cor. 7:10 - I, not the Lord, means Paul is adding to what Christ(Lord) said.

-There are a lot of details in the NT that wouldn't be smart in starting a new religion, but are recorded anyway because that is what happened.

-The gospels show the flaws of their own authors

D. Is it true?

-That is the real question to spend our time on, as well as the implications of what it means if it is true.

II. The Authority of the Bible (Question to the Believer)

-Just because I don't know everything doesn't mean I don't know anything.

-We are made to know God... and the fact that we don't know everything doesn't imply that we can't know anything for certain. That is a lie from Satan implanted in the world

OT Verses Exodus 24:4 , Ezekiel 34, Deuteronomy 4:1-2 , Deuteronomy 17:18 , Psalm 19:7-10 , Psalm 119:11, 89, 105, 140,

NT Verses: Acts 1:16, 17:11, Romans 15:4, James 2:8, Acts 4:25, Galatians 3:8, 2 Tim. 3:16, Hebrews 4:12, 2 Peter 1:20-21, 3:15-16

Jesus' verses: Matt. 4:4, Luke 21:33, Mt. 19:5, John 5:46-47, 10:35,

Luke 24, Matt. 5:17-18

-If I am to be a disciple of Christ, I must see the scriptures as Jesus saw them.

-We should be regularly fed by faithful exposition of God's Word

Ephesians 5:10 - we are to find what is pleasing to God through scripture

-You cannot read too much in scripture. What you read you cannot read too carefully... -Luther quote

-We fall into the trap of thinking collecting the words and knowledge of Christ without putting them into practice

Matt. 7:24-27

-God's means of transforming us is by His Word (Romans 12:2)

Ripping, Burning, and Eating- Na Session 1

2008-05-29T08:15:00.000-07:00

Josh Harris- Ripping, Burning, and Eating: A Right Response to God's Word

In the opening message of the conference, Josh Harris spoke to us about three possible responses to God's Word.

1. Josiah (2 Kings 22)- "Ripping"
The Word of God had been lost for at least a generation from the people of God. They were worshipping idols, following their own selfish desires, and doing pretty much everything you'd expect from a people that didn't have scripture growing up. God in His grace moved Josiah to reopen the temple and directed men there to find God's word, preserved in a forgotten corner. When it was read before Josiah, he tore his robes for shame of how he and the people had gone against God. He literally wept in repentance.
How often do we respond this way? Do we weep after reading God's word and seeing how far short we've fallen or do we immediately point to others and rebuke them for their failings? Josh stated that true reformation comes from seeing God's Word and then changing our lives accordingly, as Josiah did with all of Israel. God's Word is powerful, and we must humble ourselves before it and be changed by it.

2. Jehoiakim (Jeremiah 36)- "Burning"
This King was the grandson of Josiah and had a very different response to God's Word. When it was read before him, he tore it apart, a piece at a time, and burned it. He showed no fear of retribution; no fear of God. His heart was a cold piece of stone and his prideful heart though he was above such things as a Word from God.
We may read this passage and be shocked, but how often do we fall into the same trap. We burn God's Word in simple ways, like neglecting to read it, or making it a chore to be checked off our to-do list, or by reading it and ignoring the commands for life-change. We cannot blow off God's Word simply because we don't agree with it or it may be hard to obey. God's Word is God's Word, no matter where it comes from or how it feels confronting our hearts. Josh said that often how we listen is more about the man [preacher] than about the Word. We get excited for certain speakers, and tune out for others. This shows a lack of humility and trust that God can and will accomplish whatever He desires through His word, no matter what the vessel that carries it looks or sounds like.

3. Jeremiah (Jeremiah 15:16)- "Eating"
Jeremiah, in the midst of discouragement, takes up God's Word, eats it, and is delighted by it. Eating takes a great amount of trust in what you are eating. The food becomes a part of us and affects us. This was the reaction from Jeremiah, a reaction of delight and joy.
This delight isn't a reward for complaining to God about our problems. God offers hope to those who repent, not to whining babies that think they know better than God. The Word is what offers us hope in the midst of discouragement.

So, how do we react to God's Word? I hope that as you listen through these messages (linked above) God's Word will again become a delight to your heart and a satisfaction to your soul.

Random Quotes:
"An understanding of the gospel transforms our view of the Bible."
"The Bible isn't about all we need to do for God. It is about all that God has done for us through Christ."

Transforming Conversation

2008-05-25T21:43:00.000-07:00

As I was challenged by God's Word tonight, I was struck with the seeming disparity between the language that goes into our minds and the language that comes out of our mouths. Whether you are at a great conference like T4G or New Attitude or attending your regular church each week, there is a diet coming your way of godly language. Romans 12:2 teaches us that these words of God are supposed to transform us as our minds are renewed through the scriptures. I have definitely partaken in a great diet of godly Biblical messages from the conference already, and I still have Piper to come my way tomorrow. But whatever we are hearing from these resources, there are times when it doesn't go beyond our minds. This plays out in several ways.

An example of this I experienced this weekend was the conversation in our car after a great message from Mark Dever on the Authority of Scripture. You would think that after being challenged by God's Word, the conversation would be reflective of that. Imagine eating a wonderful shrimp scampi with garlic and butter and lemon. You enjoyed it and now the taste lingers with you even after the meal. When you talk to your friends, they smell it on your breath. What you have eaten lasts longer than just the meal. Listening to a message should affect us the same way. Others should be able to tell by our countenance, our spiritual aroma if you will, what we just listened to and it should rub off. If you listen to a great message, or even just an adequate message that accurately reflects God's Word, you should have a desire to speak about that to others. If you quickly are involved in conversation about your favorite episode of the Office, or the latest contestant booted from your reality show, after hearing from God's Word, there is something wrong with your spiritual digestive system.

Our old pastor, Bob Whitney, called this parking lot vomit. He said that many people hear God's Word, eat of it in the service, then, like a bolemic that wants to appear healthy but doesn't want the implications of eating to affect them, they vomit what they have heard in the parking lot before they get in their cars and are soon talking excitedly about the big game coming up or the lunch that is cooking. What is wrong with us, and I include myself in this, when we hear the Word of the living God and remain unchanged? That is how a non-believer is described in James 1:22-25. They hear the Word of God, but it changes nothing about how they live. Where is the delight and the joy it brought the Psalmist of Psalm 119?

We need to return to a love of God's Word, whatever the source. We need to enjoy receiving the Word from sermons, worship songs, books, and most essentially, the Bible itself. If God's Word isn't transforming our conversations, which are small things, how can we expect it to change our lives. Matthew 12:25 tells us that out of the abundance of the heart, the mouth speaks. If you were to record all of your conversation for just one day, would you be proud of the kind of heart that is reflected in that? I'm not sure I would. We must cry out to God that He restore a love for His Word and that it becomes a treasure again to our souls.

I am so thankful that God is reawakening a love for Him and His Word in my heart through this weekend. I pray that the effects will be long lasting. How wonderful would it be if we were known for having profitable, uplifting, encouraging, challenging, and Biblical conversations. The things of this world that we get so caught up in are passing away. We get so invested in T.V. shows about people we don't know and lifestyles we will never have that those people become our focus. We must shift that focus to the eternal. Speech that is truly edifying is speech that focuses on the everlasting. I pray that for myself as I endeavor to love God more.

Grace and Peace...

New Attitude, so far so AWESOME!!!

2008-05-25T15:46:00.000-07:00

These past few days have been spectacular. I have been challenged greatly about my personal view of God's word and am already seeing fruit from these first few sessions. Here are a few highlights

Sessions: We've heard from Josh Harris, Mark Dever, and Al Mohler so far with C.J. Mahaney coming tonight. Josh's message was very challenging in terms of how we receive God's Word. He challenged us to listen, not to the man, but to the Word. It shouldn't matter how the message is being delivered. We should come into the time with a heart and mind focused to receive from God's word whatever He might have for us. I was challenged personally in that area as I was listening to Josh. I wasn't really engaged in his message until he talked about what I just mentioned. After that I took some great notes and really enjoyed what he had to say. Mark was also very encouraging. He spoke about the authority of God's word and spoke to both believers and non-believers, speaking about both the historical evidence for the authenticity of scripture as well as the evidence from the OT, NT, and Christ Himself. I could post all my notes, but I'll just encourage you to listen to the message when you have a chance. I'm sure they'll be available for free in a few days from the New Attitude website.

This morning most of us went down to the Ohio river and spent a good time in Psalm 119, both individually and corporately. Having a quality time in the Word has been something I've always wrestled with. This morning I had such a sweet time in the first three sections. I was really struck by the example of David from verse 20 where he says he is consumed by God's word and in verse 14 where God's words are more precious than riches. I am thankful that God is encouraging my heart to take rest in Him and not to delight in temporal things that are passing away.

The worship has been excellent, and I'm looking forward to bringing back a few new songs. Here are the new ones I've loved so far:
-O Happy Day! by Tim hughes
-Psalm 19 by Terry Butler
-All I Have is Christ by Jordan Kauflin

Well, time to head off for some C.J. Mahaney tonight. I'll post more before bed. Later all, and remember to continue tasting and cherishing God's Word....

Expelled: A movie review

2008-04-29T07:23:00.000-07:00

This past weekend, I had a chance to see the new movie "Expelled: No Intelligence Allowed" produced by and starring Ben Stein. This movie has received a lot of negative press, unlike its documentary brothers such as "An Inconvenient Truth". Why is this? One of the main reasons is that it gets to the heart of how we all got here and it challenges the science community's party line of Darwinian evolution. As I watched this film, many of the truths I have already learned from reading and study were echoed by Stein. Other parts gave me a fresh perspective on Darwinian Evolution's implications on our society. Here are a few things that stood out to me.

The Sound of One Hand Clapping: In our country for several decades now, there has been one side of an argument that has been purported as scientific fact, namely, Darwinian Evolution. This system attempts to answer the question, where did life come from? In Darwin's book, the Origin of Species, he writes that we all evolved from a common ancestor through natural selection, with the strong surviving and the week dying off. There is no intelligence involved in the process, just blind chance. Our education system has accepted this and taught this as if it were the only viable explanation. However, as was said by one of the leaders of the Intelligent Design community, there are two possible answers to the question of how we all got here. One is the blind chance of Darwinian evolution, the other is that some Intelligent Designer was involved in the process.

In our society, half of the argument is missing from the conversation. What Ben was getting at, more than almost anything else in the movie, was that we need to be open and honest about the question in this country and not suppress any idea. Richard Dawkins would have us believe that life began on earth by Aliens planting basic genetic material here, but he is completely closed minded to even the possibility of an Intelligent Designer. So, we are to believe in Aliens, but not in God? Is that the answer from the scientific community? It seems like they are willing to entertain any theory, as long as thoughts of an Intelligent Designer, a Creator, or God are left out of it.

Implications of Evolution: As a person who is ethnically Jewish, the images and the ideas that came from the Holocaust were especially impacting for me. The science of Hitler's day had also bought wholly into the idea of Darwinian Evolution and the idea that we are all here by chance. The holocaust came about as a natural progression of that idea. If you believe that the way to better humanity is to have strong humans and dispose of the week (natural selection), then you would have no problem with euthanasia for the sick, handicapped, or elderly who weren't considered strong. Darwin himself compared humans to animals when he spoke of the foolishness of breeding a dog that had a defect. To him, it was an obvious choice to let the weak die off to make way for the strong. The Nazis believed that the Jews, the elderly, the mentally and physically handicapped, and the deformed represented all that needed to be purged from humanity in order to make the whole species stronger. This led to the slaughter of millions in the name of bettering humanity. Now, I agree with those in the film, that not everyone who believes in evolution will become a Hitler. But, you can't have Hitler or Nazi Germany without the foundation of Darwinian Evolution.

This belief cheapens the human life. It reduces it to having no more value than a strain of bacteria or a household pest. Why would a sick human be any different from a sick horse? According to Darwin, there is no difference, and both should be taken care of in the same way. This has led to the justification of the wholesale slaughter of unborn babies in America. Millions are killed each year because people believe that they are just a mass of tissue that is unwanted. There is no belief in the sanctity of life anymore. Our own politicians have forgotten the words of the Declaration of Independence: "We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness." I strongly believe this as an American and as a member of the human race. It sickens me to think of all the bloodshed that has happened because we have lost sight of our Creator and what He intended for His creatures, whether they are black, white, Jew, Gentile, born, or unborn.

Final Thoughts: I would highly recommend this movie for everyone to see. It has been receiving scathing reviews from the media and the science community. It has them frightened that Ben might accomplish what he set out to do: create a forum for honest discussion about Darwinian Evolution and Intelligent Design. Use this film as a means to talk to your friends about the issues at stake. Read up on Intelligent Design so you know their actual arguments and not just what the evolutionists say about them. Together, we can topple this "Berlin Wall" of our time and open up the scientific community again to the idea of a Creator God.

Romans 1:18-20 "For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who by their unrighteousness suppress the truth. For what can be known about God is plan to them, because God has shown it to them. For his invisible attributes, namely, his eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly perceived, ever since the creation of the world, in the things that have been made. So they are without excuse."

Enriching our Affections

2008-04-22T12:03:00.000-07:00

I recently returned from the Together for the Gospel conference in Louisville, KY. It was quite an incredible couple of days. Of the many elements that I could write about, I'll focus on one near to my heart, and that is the worship time. Bob Kauflin did a superb job of choosing songs that had particularly good lyrics in relation to the sermon that had just been preached. I think in particular of singing with 5,500 other churchmen and women "And Can it Be". After hearing so many great truths about God breaking the chains of our slavery, it was great to reflect on that in our singing. The singing became more than a repetition of words we all knew; it became a joy-filled time of singing back the truths of scripture to God. That, I believe, is essential to having an effecting time of worship before God.

Too often we worship God with our affections and not with our minds. We sing songs with very repetitious lyrics that are about as deep as a kiddy-pool. Our affections are raised, but not based on anything substantial. On the other side, we can often get bogged down with lyrics and melodies that restrict our worship. Our minds become enriched, but the affection is lost as we try to process too much information. The ideal is to marry both of these in a balanced way. That is what I love about a lot of the old hymns and a lot of what Sovereign Grace puts out from their ministry. The songs take great truths from scripture, often quoting scripture, and join them with melodies that raise the affections in accordance with the truths being sung. As a worship leader myself, I really appreciate being led in a way where I think deeply about God and still worship him deeply in my spirit. I hope we all can regularly enjoy worship in that way.