The Pastor's School

It is Wednesday here at Beeson's Pastor's School and things are going ok. I was not sure what to expect from John Yates' preaching Monday night but it was quite refreshing. He is the Rector at The Falls Anglican church in Virginia.
Last night Erwin Lutzer preached and shared a very simple but sharp message. I really do like hearing his accent as he speaks. He is a great communicator. He is pastor of The Moody Church in Chicago.

I have not been impressed with the plenary workshops though. Most of the workshops are repeats of previous years or an old workshop with a new name and face.

There is something that troubles me. I have been seeing a trend over the last several years to cater to the Modernist/Emergent fringe. This group within itself is troubling and deserves a week or so of comments at a later date.

One of my biggest beefs with The Pastor's School as a whole is its strong ecumenical tones. "Can't we all just get along" is something that I am expecting to hear any day. Don't get me wrong. I am not trying to create divisions or drive a wedge but doctrinal differences can really divide if you ask me and rightfully so.

More to come...

Denominations-No-Name Churches

Something that I have seen brewing for years is the no-name church. You know what I mean. Instead of So and So Methodist and This and That Baptist it is now "Fellowship" Church or Mt. Carmel" Church. It seems that churches are opting for the Non-Denomination appearance. I am supremely convinced that this is for one reason; growth. So as not to be offensive, they leave out part of their identity and hope this will draw the masses. I say that it is foolish and wrong. To me this is deceptive and nothing but compromise. Don't be ashamed to be Methodist, Baptist or etc.

I remember being a layman back in the late 80's and the mega church that I attended in Atlanta started answering their phone "Trinity Church" (only an example). This did not happen once but everytime I was around the receptionist. I later brought it up around the Associate Pastor with a few members present and you would have thought I had a watermelon for a head. They just stared and remained silent. At that point I knew I had touched a nerve.
Am I the only one noticing these things?

I do not worship denominational titles I just believe that we need to be up front with people so that they have a basic idea of what kind of church they are visiting or attending.

Denominations-Non-Denomination

"Oh, we are Non-Denomination" or "We are a Non-Denominational church"

How many times have I heard this? Too many to count. Without being sarcastic though, when I hear this I want to laugh. I want to laugh because the people who join or attend a non-denominational church often do so because they want to avoid the stigma or label of a denomination. In doing so, they join a denomination of sorts by going to a non-denominational church. Non-denomination has become a denomination of its own. Maybe it is made of churches and/or individuals who are disgruntled with the status quo. It appears that the "mainline" (as I have heard) churches just don't cut it. So they opt for a church that does not have an affiliation. But just because it does not have a formal affiliation does not mean that it does not line up with a certain denomination.
In my years as a pastor and ministry in general, I have attended a good many ND (Non-Denominational) churches. In my opinion near 100% of them were a little Baptist in doctrine and a good bit more Charismatic in their worship style.
As I have stated in earlier posts, ND is actually a denomination in itself because there is a strong similiarity to certain churches styles and doctrines. Denominations do define us.
I will comment later on this.

Starting Monday, the 24th, my family and I will be at Beeson Divinity's Pastor's School in Birmingham, AL. I will be posting from there and giving you comments as to how it is going.

Denominations-Doctrine

Perhaps there is no other area where the differences arise within denominations than in the area of doctrine.

We understand the term doctrine to mean what we believe, teach and desire to live by. Within denominations we see where doctrine really highlights the differences between us as Protestants.

Let me extrapolate this to give you an idea of where I am coming from.

Typically, in a Baptist church for example, the term Baptism means the public act of being immersed under water as a public showing of your new salvation in Christ.

In a Presbyterian church, this term takes on a different meaning. The child of believing parents may be baptized by sprinkling signifying that that child is a child of the covenant.

In a Pentecostal church, this term takes on an even different meaning. This type of church does hold to the Baptistic view of believer's baptism. The change comes from the phrase "Baptized in the Spirit." Some churches believe that the baptism of the Spirit is an experience different than initial salvation. They see it as a second experience that gives a person much greater spiritual power and boldness, and the ability to live a more victorious Christian life. Some groups teach that the baptism is accompanied by such signs as speaking in tongues.

I am not going to discuss these differences and what is wrong or right. That is for another time.

The point I am sharing is that denominations show marked differences in how we worship and what we believe. If we were to break down the doctrinal differences of the above-mentioned groups Blogger would probably say I am taking up too much time on their server because there are a lot of differences; some trivial, others foundational.

Denominations do define us.

Denominations-Music

While continuing the talk about denominations for a few more days I have been thinking about music.

Denominations, as stated before, define (in a small-medium way) who we are. One of the ways that we are defined within our denominations is music. Now I do not mean that all denominations have the same music. What I am saying is that within a denomination the music will often, but not always, be similiar.

Take, for example, a Church of God church. If you were to visit there you would most likely find lively contemporary music. You might also find drums, electric guitars and etc. The music would be very upbeat even when hymns were sung.

In a First Presbyterian church you might find a large pipe organ and a piano. The music might be very low key and "reverent" as some would describe it. Hymns and maybe a chorus or two might be the order of the day.

Lastly, if you attended a Primitive Baptist church you would not find instruments at all. The singing would probably be exclusively out of the hymnal but with no musical instruments.

I do not bring these up because I am for them or against them. I merely wanted to show that denominations have within its framework a certain style of music that is preferred or followed.

Once again, denominations define us to some degree.

Why so many??

The topic for a little while is denominations.

I have often wondered about denominations and why there are so many. I suppose one reason is the doctrinal differences that make up so many denominations.

Denominations describe who we are and what we believe. They are like last names in a way. A person would look foolish telling you their name is "Ted" and that is all. You may say "Ted, what?" He would say "Just Ted." His last name would tell you what family he is from and in some areas it might tell you where he resides. It defines who we really are. His family is not the "Ted" family. That just tells you a little about him. His last name would separate him from a dozen other "Ted's" that you might know.

That is the way denominations are. They define us.

I welcome your input as to what you think and whether you think denominations are a good thing or not.

That butcher knife

But no one can tame the tongue; it is a restless evil and full of deadly poison. With it we bless our Lord and Father, and with it we curse men, who have been made in the likeness of God; from the same mouth come both blessing and cursing. My brethren, these things ought not to be this way. James 3.8-9

Lately, I have been reminded of this verse. The part that especially gouges me is the “restless” part.

I have noticed as a dad how much our children notice every dagger that comes forth from our mouth. The sharper the dagger the more intent their focus especially if it is about someone that they know. If it is something that is more positive that cannot be recalled as easily. Our flesh loves something mean, spiteful, vengeful, and wickedly delicious about someone. It is even more entertaining to share that something with someone else.

The point of why I am saying this is that our children are mimicking our lives. We are to train them in the ways of God even though when not careful we are training them toward becoming like the world.

Our tongues are razor-sharp and can cut deep. We should be careful with our tongues so as not to gossip, complain, grumble and gripe. We should make sure that our mouths are enhancing like salt not cutting like a knife.
Be careful with your mouth. People are listening, especially little ones who share your home and last name.

When I think about Real Love I think about the Heavenly Father's love for us. Now may our Lord Jesus Christ himself and God our Father, who has loved us and given us eternal comfort and good hope by grace...2Thess. 2.16

We have done nothing to deserve this love; it is just bestowed upon us. In the line of thinking I wonder if I have made my children feel loved like that. Like "You are loved no matter what you do or how you mess up." I fear that as a father I have made my love conditional upon an action. I am not to love only if they deserve it. None of us deserve anything but judgment and wrath. But since I have had the Father's love shown to me should I not show unconditional love to my children? To withhold love from a child for bad actions is cruel and selfish. What we are saying when this happens is "you have not pleased me or made me happy so I am going to punish you by withholding love from you." That is wickedly selfish. But, I have done this just like everyone else. We need to repent of this selfish behavior.

The secret of every discord in Christian homes and communities and churches is that we seek our own way and our own glory. --Alan Redpath

Are You a Stumbling Block?

I have been sitting here on this Monday before the 4th of July thinking about the awesome responsibility it is in being a dad. To think that we are being watched continually by our children is a sobering thought. Dig a little deeper and it gets worse. What if my thoughts were being viewed up on a screen by my children? I do not mean when I am thinking about the greatness of God and His greatness and how He is always faithful. I mean the times that I lust, not necessarily from a physical perspective but from a material perspective. What if I am so focused on something or acquiring something? What if my focus on that something is so strong that I talk about it, read about it, think about it, long for it, and work for it's aquisition? At that time, my children are seeing that my heart is focused, sold-out, driven, and consumed with something other than pleasing Christ. At that moment, I have become a large stumbling block. In reality, I am responsibile for the lack of growth in the Lord that my family, especially my children are experiencing. What they are seeing is a dad (leader) who is coveting something other than his relationship with the Lord. What they are seeing is their dad (their leader to whom they look up to) dancing around a golden _____________{you fill in the blank}.

Our desire as dads should be to make the Lord Jesus Christ appear to be so great and holy in our lives that our children are amazed at how great God is.

A stumbling block is something that trips people up or prevents them from moving forward. Is this you?

Being a Dad

I was thinking about the destruction of the family and how it affects so many things. The biggest loser on TV and movies is Dad. In the 80’s and 90’s he always had to be bailed out by his wife. Now he has to be bailed out by his children. (Ironic since so many children run the home.)

Anyway, I wanted to say to you Dads and future Dads that your role is one of great importance. Your children, and/or future child will look to you for protection and leadership. You cannot fail them. You are playing a vital role in the forming of their personality and their identity as an individual. Don’t fall prey to the media as they do their best to make the Dads appear to be so inept. We have to have Dads who will be leaders and be willing to make sacrifices to raise their child. Be proud to be a Dad/Future Dad. You have a high calling and a huge responsibility.

"The Bible calls debt a curse and children a blessing. But in our culture we apply for a curse and reject blessings. Something is wrong with this picture."-- Doug Phillips