Thursday, October 9, 2008
True Woman Conference Live Stream
Hello all, a live stream of the True Woman conference will be available for free online. I highly recommend that you try to catch some of it if you can. Click here to access the live stream. strong and God bless!
Wednesday, October 8, 2008
Look Who's Irrational Now?
I came acrros this interesting article on the Wall Street Journal titled "Look Who's Irrational Now?" I thought it was insightful and true to God's Word. It is well worth your read. Here are some excerpts.
"The reality is that the New Atheist campaign, by discouraging religion, won't create a new group of intelligent, skeptical, enlightened beings. Far from it: It might actually encourage new levels of mass superstition. And that's not a conclusion to take on faith -- it's what the empirical data tell us.
'What Americans Really Believe,' a comprehensive new study released by Baylor University yesterday, shows that traditional Christian religion greatly decreases belief in everything from the efficacy of palm readers to the usefulness of astrology. It also shows that the irreligious and the members of more liberal Protestant denominations, far from being resistant to superstition, tend to be much more likely to believe in the paranormal and in pseudoscience than evangelical Christians."
"Surprisingly, while increased church attendance and membership in a conservative denomination has a powerful negative effect on paranormal beliefs, higher education doesn't. Two years ago two professors published another study in Skeptical Inquirer showing that, while less than one-quarter of college freshmen surveyed expressed a general belief in such superstitions as ghosts, psychic healing, haunted houses, demonic possession, clairvoyance and witches, the figure jumped to 31% of college seniors and 34% of graduate students."
How interesting. Stay strong and God bless!
"The reality is that the New Atheist campaign, by discouraging religion, won't create a new group of intelligent, skeptical, enlightened beings. Far from it: It might actually encourage new levels of mass superstition. And that's not a conclusion to take on faith -- it's what the empirical data tell us.
'What Americans Really Believe,' a comprehensive new study released by Baylor University yesterday, shows that traditional Christian religion greatly decreases belief in everything from the efficacy of palm readers to the usefulness of astrology. It also shows that the irreligious and the members of more liberal Protestant denominations, far from being resistant to superstition, tend to be much more likely to believe in the paranormal and in pseudoscience than evangelical Christians."
"Surprisingly, while increased church attendance and membership in a conservative denomination has a powerful negative effect on paranormal beliefs, higher education doesn't. Two years ago two professors published another study in Skeptical Inquirer showing that, while less than one-quarter of college freshmen surveyed expressed a general belief in such superstitions as ghosts, psychic healing, haunted houses, demonic possession, clairvoyance and witches, the figure jumped to 31% of college seniors and 34% of graduate students."
How interesting. Stay strong and God bless!
Saturday, October 4, 2008
Reformation Conference
Grace Church of Sacramento, the church that my Hebrew professor pastors, is throwing a Reformation Conference. The keynote speakers will be Dr. Bill Barrick of the Master's Seminary along with Steve Fernandez, president of Cornerstone Seminary. What's so appealing about the conference is that it's free! More information can be found by clicking the banner above. Stay strong and God bless!
Friday, October 3, 2008
Praying Backwards - Bryan Chapell
This is the first book I read by Bryan Chapell, and I really enjoyed it from start to finish. The emphasis of this book is what captivated me. Bryan Chapell so graciously deals with our wrongful approach to prayer while teaching how we ought to involve Christ in our prayers. He deals with a variety of issues concerning prayer: praying fervently, praying expectantly, praying persistently, etc. I particularly enjoyed reading what he had to say about Spirit-filled prayer. He writes, "The Holy Spirit fills our heart with this supreme love for Christ so that his purposes are our greatest desire. Thus Spirit-filled prayer is preeminently Christ-loving prayer" (pg. 78). Such Christ-exalting phrases can be found throughout the book. I also appreciated that Chapell dealt with discerning God's will on his chapter "Praying in God's Will," as well as "Praying in God's Wisdom." Teaching on practical discernment is often times neglected when discussing God's will and prayer.Though I think this is a great book on prayer, there were a couple of things that I wanted to see that I did not: He did not press upon me the urgency of prayer as well as discuss the merits of congregational prayer with great depth. It would have also been helpful for me if he discussed the relevance of posture in prayer. Still, Chapell gives great teaching on what it means to pray biblically. It is a book that will be welcome by many who desire to pray biblically and more effectively.
Pages - 194
Reading Difficulty - Normal
Rating - 4/5
Buy or Borrow - Borrow
A New Look
Our blog is getting a face lift. Here are some new features:
1. An updated blogroll
2. Pastor James' Amazon Wishlist with 110+ books
3. More subscription choices
4. A simple, clean template
Enjoy! Stay strong and God bless!
1. An updated blogroll
2. Pastor James' Amazon Wishlist with 110+ books
3. More subscription choices
4. A simple, clean template
Enjoy! Stay strong and God bless!
Wednesday, October 1, 2008
09-21-08 Sermon Review
A Song We Must Sing
John 4:19-24
In our last sermon, we saw what God's Word taught on true worship. We noticed from God's Word that true worship is living life according to God's Word. Worship is not simply singing, it's being saved and striving after Jesus' image. But if that is the case, why do Christians sing so much? Why does singing have a prominent place in our gatherings? What's so great about music? After pondering on it for awhile, I thought of four good reasons why we sing.
Singing is a perfect medium for praise. - Isaiah 43:21 states that God formed His own people with the purpose of having them give Him praise. He delights in the praises of His people. But why sing? Praise does not necessarily have to be singing.
Singing is an interesting phenomenon. It is a universal language (anywhere you go, you will find people express through singing). It is beautiful (People find pleasure in listening to songs). It is emotionally powerful (People relate to songs). It is propositional (People state things in songs). Singing therefore, is a unique, universal medium that engages both our minds and our hearts. It is the perfect medium for giving praise to a God of all peoples who demands worship that is both in spirit and in truth (John 4:24).
God's people have always responded to His grace with singing. - From Genesis to revelations, we find God's people singing. Before the world began, God received praise from the angels. The Israelites sang when God delivered them out of Egypt (Exodus 15). An entire book of the Bible is dedicated to the songs that were sang to God. Paul and Silas were singing hymns together in a prison (Acts 16:25). We see that throughout history, all God's people sang.
Singing edifies one another. - Not only is singing upward to God, it is edifying to one another. In Ephesians 5:18, 19, Paul tells us that one of the results of being filled by the spirit is that we sing psalms and spiritual songs to each other. Though Paul does not state explicitly that singing is edifying, considering the context of Ephesians, it is assumed that Paul sees singing as edifying to Christians. We find similar words in Colossians 3:16. In this case, singing is practiced in order to admonish one another.
Singing is our business for the rest of eternity. - Finally, what we see of heaven in the revelation that John received is the myriads of myriads singing to Jesus. John paints a picture of the heavenly scene in Revelation chapter 5: "And they sang a new song, saying ' Worthy are you to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.'" One day we will join them, and when we do, we will not be silent.
With this said, we can draw two conclusions: First, we have an obligation and reason to sing. Second, we ought to be mindful of what we sing.
John Piper writes, "Thirteen years ago we asked: What should be the defining sound of corporate worship at Bethlehem, besides the voice of biblical preaching? We meant: Should it be pipe organ, piano, guitar, drums, choir, worship team, orchestra, etc. The answer we gave was 'The people of Bethlehem singing.'" The church ought to sing. We should not be shy about it. God's people have never been ashamed to declare His praise. I pray the defining sound of our church music is the people of Living Word Korean Baptist Church singing.
But it's not hard finding people who sing. The Scientologists sing. The atheists sing. The Mormons sing. What makes Christian singing different? Sadly in the state of the American Church, nothing. A Comedy Central show once made a parody of Christian music where the characters on the show made a Christian band. They made their songs simply by changing the lyrics to secular music, and the only words they changed was "Baby" into "Jesus." What is extremely sad is that this really happens. A "worship" leader took the song "You Spin Me Right Round" a popular in 80's song, and made it into a worship song. Interestingly, the only word that was changed was "Baby" into "Jesus."
It is sad to see that Christians care very little about what they sing. I remember when a famous rap artist came out with a song "Jesus Walks." Because of its popularity among Christians, I decided to check the lyrics recently. I almost wept when I saw the lyrics. Why would any right-minded Christian ever sing a long to such a song that portrays Jesus as nothing more than a talkshow host? Why would he be so ecstatic about such a song? This is simply unacceptable.
I pray that our people will think twice about the music they sing and the music they listen to. I pray that the filthy music of our generation will no longer be on the lips of our people. Beloved, there is a better song to sing than what the world offers. There's a song that we must sing. There's a song that rightly engages our hearts and our minds. There's a song that lifts God to His rightful place. There's a song that brings heaven to our soul. There's a song that builds us up. Let us raise our voices with such a song as we join the heavenly chorus. No other song should satisfy these voices of ours. Stay strong and God bless!
John 4:19-24
In our last sermon, we saw what God's Word taught on true worship. We noticed from God's Word that true worship is living life according to God's Word. Worship is not simply singing, it's being saved and striving after Jesus' image. But if that is the case, why do Christians sing so much? Why does singing have a prominent place in our gatherings? What's so great about music? After pondering on it for awhile, I thought of four good reasons why we sing.
Singing is a perfect medium for praise. - Isaiah 43:21 states that God formed His own people with the purpose of having them give Him praise. He delights in the praises of His people. But why sing? Praise does not necessarily have to be singing.
Singing is an interesting phenomenon. It is a universal language (anywhere you go, you will find people express through singing). It is beautiful (People find pleasure in listening to songs). It is emotionally powerful (People relate to songs). It is propositional (People state things in songs). Singing therefore, is a unique, universal medium that engages both our minds and our hearts. It is the perfect medium for giving praise to a God of all peoples who demands worship that is both in spirit and in truth (John 4:24).
God's people have always responded to His grace with singing. - From Genesis to revelations, we find God's people singing. Before the world began, God received praise from the angels. The Israelites sang when God delivered them out of Egypt (Exodus 15). An entire book of the Bible is dedicated to the songs that were sang to God. Paul and Silas were singing hymns together in a prison (Acts 16:25). We see that throughout history, all God's people sang.
Singing edifies one another. - Not only is singing upward to God, it is edifying to one another. In Ephesians 5:18, 19, Paul tells us that one of the results of being filled by the spirit is that we sing psalms and spiritual songs to each other. Though Paul does not state explicitly that singing is edifying, considering the context of Ephesians, it is assumed that Paul sees singing as edifying to Christians. We find similar words in Colossians 3:16. In this case, singing is practiced in order to admonish one another.
Singing is our business for the rest of eternity. - Finally, what we see of heaven in the revelation that John received is the myriads of myriads singing to Jesus. John paints a picture of the heavenly scene in Revelation chapter 5: "And they sang a new song, saying ' Worthy are you to take the book and to break its seals; for You were slain, and purchased for God with Your blood men from every tribe and tongue and people and nation.'" One day we will join them, and when we do, we will not be silent.
With this said, we can draw two conclusions: First, we have an obligation and reason to sing. Second, we ought to be mindful of what we sing.
John Piper writes, "Thirteen years ago we asked: What should be the defining sound of corporate worship at Bethlehem, besides the voice of biblical preaching? We meant: Should it be pipe organ, piano, guitar, drums, choir, worship team, orchestra, etc. The answer we gave was 'The people of Bethlehem singing.'" The church ought to sing. We should not be shy about it. God's people have never been ashamed to declare His praise. I pray the defining sound of our church music is the people of Living Word Korean Baptist Church singing.
But it's not hard finding people who sing. The Scientologists sing. The atheists sing. The Mormons sing. What makes Christian singing different? Sadly in the state of the American Church, nothing. A Comedy Central show once made a parody of Christian music where the characters on the show made a Christian band. They made their songs simply by changing the lyrics to secular music, and the only words they changed was "Baby" into "Jesus." What is extremely sad is that this really happens. A "worship" leader took the song "You Spin Me Right Round" a popular in 80's song, and made it into a worship song. Interestingly, the only word that was changed was "Baby" into "Jesus."
It is sad to see that Christians care very little about what they sing. I remember when a famous rap artist came out with a song "Jesus Walks." Because of its popularity among Christians, I decided to check the lyrics recently. I almost wept when I saw the lyrics. Why would any right-minded Christian ever sing a long to such a song that portrays Jesus as nothing more than a talkshow host? Why would he be so ecstatic about such a song? This is simply unacceptable.
I pray that our people will think twice about the music they sing and the music they listen to. I pray that the filthy music of our generation will no longer be on the lips of our people. Beloved, there is a better song to sing than what the world offers. There's a song that we must sing. There's a song that rightly engages our hearts and our minds. There's a song that lifts God to His rightful place. There's a song that brings heaven to our soul. There's a song that builds us up. Let us raise our voices with such a song as we join the heavenly chorus. No other song should satisfy these voices of ours. Stay strong and God bless!
September 08 - December 08 Schedule
Bible Study Series Healthy Church Membership
September 28th - The Case for Membership
October 5th - pg.11-37 WIHCM – The Word in Membership
October 12th - pg. 38-56 WIHCM – The Gospel in Membership
October 19th - pg. 57-62 WIHCM – The Great Commission in Membership
October 24th - BWF for October
October 26th - No Bible Study – PPA Meeting
November 2nd - pg. 63-82 WIHCM –Commitment in Membership
November 8th - Baptism Class Begins
November 9th - pg. 83-104 WIHCM –Growth in Membership
November 16th - pg. 105-117 WIHCM –Intercession in Membership – Series ends
End of Year Schedule
November 23rd - Thanksgiving Potluck for Youth Families
November 27th - Thanksgiving Holiday
November 30th - Outing TBA
December 7th - Baptism Service
Bible Study – Q & A
December 14th - Bible Study – Christmas
December 21st - No Bible Study – Christmas Sunday – Gift Exchange
December 28th - No Bible Study – New Years Resolution Writing.
December 31st New Year's Service
September 28th - The Case for Membership
October 5th - pg.11-37 WIHCM – The Word in Membership
October 12th - pg. 38-56 WIHCM – The Gospel in Membership
October 19th - pg. 57-62 WIHCM – The Great Commission in Membership
October 24th - BWF for October
October 26th - No Bible Study – PPA Meeting
November 2nd - pg. 63-82 WIHCM –Commitment in Membership
November 8th - Baptism Class Begins
November 9th - pg. 83-104 WIHCM –Growth in Membership
November 16th - pg. 105-117 WIHCM –Intercession in Membership – Series ends
End of Year Schedule
November 23rd - Thanksgiving Potluck for Youth Families
November 27th - Thanksgiving Holiday
November 30th - Outing TBA
December 7th - Baptism Service
Bible Study – Q & A
December 14th - Bible Study – Christmas
December 21st - No Bible Study – Christmas Sunday – Gift Exchange
December 28th - No Bible Study – New Years Resolution Writing.
December 31st New Year's Service
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