Your Cell Phone and God's Call

Set your cell phone or MacBook or latest electronic gadget on the table in front of you.  Look at it closely.  Imagine you were a person from 1950 looking at your gizmo today.  An iPad might be too much for 1950-man, so lets say it's a cell phone.  What could you know about it?  It's not lit up or making noise.  It's just sitting on the table.

If you stop and think about it, you could probably deduce that the device is something that has been intentionally created; that is, it wasn't accidentally assembled after a tornado ripped through computer plant.  You might also come to the conclusion that the device did not create itself.  There was a designer or a team of designers and they probably had a plan to build the phone.  A purpose for the object was probably also something the builders had in mind.  And the simple reality that someone else built the phone should lead you to believe that the builder deserves much more credit for the phone's existence than the phone itself.  

Like your cell phone, we can think about the creation of the world in much the same way.  The technical term for this is teleological thinking.  As we look at the created world, we can see a creator.  There is order and organization and harmony and design.  All this world came from somewhere and the credit belongs to the creator.  A funny thing happens however--throughout history people look at the world and worship creation, that is, they give ultimate credit to the created things rather than the creator.  This would be like crediting the plastic power button on your phone for the phone's creation and then worshiping the power button.  Of if they don't worship a physical part of creation, they worship an idea.  It's like saying all this world came about by accident and random chance gets all the credit and worship.  But when they say this, what they are really saying is, "I know best and the object of my worship is myself because of my own ideas."  The phone aught not think of itself better than its creator, yet so many people do this regarding their own creation and their creator.  How silly.

Looking at the world and seeing a creator happens because the Creator has designed in some markers into his creation.  This called general revelation.  General revelation is, “The knowledge of God’s existence, character, and moral law, which comes through creation to all humanity. […] General revelation comes through observing nature, through seeing God’s directing influence in history, and through an inner sense of God’s existence and his laws that he has placed inside every person.”[1] (A biblical picture of general revelation is available in Romans 1:18-2:29 and Psalm 19:1-6 for example.)

God has appointed all of his creation to point back to himself.  He has placed his trademark on all he has created just as Apple has a recognized symbol on all their products.  Yet even looking at an iPhone, iPad, or iMac, you don't need the Apple icon to know the item was created by Apple.  There's just something about an Apple products that screams, "I'm made by Apple!"

Interestingly enough, general revelation can demonstrate our sinful ways.  We can see that we've misplaced our worship and that's called idolatry.  Romans 1:16-2:11 provides a solid explanation that man is without excuse--we should know and believe that there is a God apart from creation and we are not that God.  In the book of Acts, the Apostles Barnabas and Paul go into Lystra to proclaim the good news of Christ.  The people there are so amazed, they begin worshiping Barnabas and Paul.  The Apostles respond by showing the people that they themselves are simply parts of the creation and not the Creator.  They go on to say that God has not left himself without a witness because his trademark is on his creation but that they should also listen to the message God has sent them to share. 

God uses the pinnacle of his creation, man, to share the good news of salvation found only through Christ.  This is what Barnabas and Paul were doing.  This is kind of like what the manufacturer of your cell phone does with press releases.  People stand up and tell you about the product and the manufacturer.  Even if you were not at the original press release meeting, you may learn of this information because someone wrote it down.  God has even commissioned his people to tell his story (and he appointed others to write it down).  The most famous of these instructions is found at the end of Matthew 28.  This telling of God's story is called special revelation and the instruction in Matthew 28:16-21 is called the Great Commission. 

Special revelation is, “God’s words addressed to specific people, such as the words of the Bible, the words of the Old Testament prophets and the New Testament apostles, and the words of God spoken in personal address, such as a Mount Sinai or the baptism of Jesus.”[2]

Now again imagine you are looking at your cell phone and it's an Apple product.  A guy walks up and says, "That phone is an Apple iPhone, designed by Steve Jobs."  You can choose to believe the guy or not.  God had many of his people telling the world about himself.  They were often called prophets in the Old Testament.  They told people about God and they themselves served as a mechanism for God's special revelation.  They often wrote stuff down too.  But the people rejected them and sometimes even killed them.

Now imagine that after the cell phone guy walks away, another man shows up.  While he's standing there the phone rings.  You answer it and the voice on the other end says "My name is Steve Jobs.  I created the phone you are holding in your hand."  You look up and the man speaking to you over the phone is the same man standing before you in person.  Again, you could believe or not. 

God has done this too when he said of Jesus at his baptism, "This is my beloved Son, with whom I am well pleased" (Matthew 3:15.)   You to have a choice.  Look at the world like you looked at your cell phone.  That's God's general revelation speaking to you.  Then open the Bible or talk with Christians telling God's story.  That's God's special revelation and he's speaking to you!



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1. Wayne Grudem, Systematic Theology: An Introduction to Biblical Doctrine (Grand Rapids, Mich: Zondervan, 1994), 122-123.

2. Ibid., 123. 

* Both the photo of Steve Jobs introducing the Mac Air in 2008 and Michelangelo's "Creation of Adam" are registered under a creative commons license and are used with permission.  

Using Statistics Among 'Christians'

Not too long ago, both The Gospel Coalition and Ed Stetzer suggested that evangelicals are erroneously using statistics on divorce when they quote the Barna Group saying things like, "In fact, when evangelicals and non-evangelical born again Christians are combined into an aggregate class of born again adults, their divorce figure is statistically identical to that of non-born again adults: 32% versus 33%, respectively" [1].

Who is correct?  Are evangelicals mishandling this information?

I should probably state that Ed Stetzer was not specifically saying that the Barna Group was wrong, but that Evangelicals are wrong in saying, "the divorce rate is the same between Christians and non-Christians"; however, this information comes from the Barna Group so by extension it would seem that the Barna Group and Stetzer were in disagreement.  When I asked Stetzer if we can trust the Barna Group's statement, he said yes and provided me with a brief explanation.  (He as also written out this explanation in further detail on his website.)

I should also disclose that I recently quoted the Barna statistic in a podcast on divorce.  Am I erroneously using data?  Well, I can say that it was not my intention; but I can also say this matter is not about one statistic being correct and another being wrong.  It's about what we are measuring and how we are doing it.

So what's going on here?  On the one side we have Christians who conduct extensive research using census data collected from every person in the nation and often self-reported.  On the other side we have research groups conducting carefully designed questioner-data collection that uses samples.  And we probably have reports from somewhere in the middle that uses data sets from both collection methods.

The national census asks people about their faith and it would seem that many people (especially in the southern US states) simply report that they are Christian regardless of their regenerate (or born-again) state.  Some of these self-reporters feel that they are Christian if they attend church on occasion, or maybe even if they've ever attended a Christian church at some point in their lifetime.  Maybe they believe they are Christians if their parents had them baptized as babies.   Others report that they are Christian even when many theologians would argue that the faith group these people attend is decidedly not Christian, but rather, heretical.  Reports generated from this kind of data collection seem to demonstrate that the divorce rate, for example, is "statistically identical" between Christians and non-Christians.  

On the other hand, researchers like Ed Stetzer--who conduct sample gathering research--design questions that attempt to get at the heart of a person's faith.  They inquire in ways that they believe measures a person's actual commitment to their faith, and sometimes they ask questions to assess faith itself.  They might ask if the person claimed to be a Christian at the time of divorce.  There could be questions about the person's level of involvement or commitment with his or her faith.  Collecting data in a more focused study tends to yield decidedly different results but at the same time, the researcher makes judgements about the persons faith apart from the subject's own self-statement.  In these cases, it does seem that active Christians are less likely to get divorced.

But who is right and who is mishandling statistics?  They're both right and we're probably all mishandling statistics.

When I see a tweet from John Piper talking about marriage and linking to one kind of report I understand that his intention is to celebrate numbers that support that Christians divorce less often.  His intentions are good but the information doesn't accurately report how the measurement was taken; or more specifically, what is accurately being measured. (And it's not like the pastor needs to offer a 22-page academic report on findings.)

When I said that the divorce rate looks like that of the world in a podcast, I too was pointing to numbers and research to make my point without a good explanation or citation of what's being measured.  I probably should have stated the name of the report or that it comes from census information and self reporting data.  (I accept full responsibility for that mistake.)  I could have also pointed out that when data is collected differently, the numbers appear differently.  But our podcast has a wide variety of listeners (both believers, non-believers) and the point was divorce, not statistical research methods.

The truth is, both reports are correct.  If we were to ask how far Seattle is from Salt Lake, one could report the number of hours it takes to drive between the cities, another could state the highway millage, while still another could report the distance as the crow flies and use kilometers.  Do we measure from the edge of the city limits, or the center, or from some other point?  What route do we take if we drive?  How fast are we to go?  Does the way we measure make the answer wrong?  No.  It just needs to be qualified so we know what was measured and how we did it.

The question about divorce rates among Christians is not so much about misusing information as some have suggested, but about what is being measured.  In the case of the divorce rate, it seems one measurement is examining the divorce rate among everybody who accepted the title of Christian for themselves at at least one point in their life, while the other measurement is trying to determine who is actually a Christian and then is only measuring those people. In either case, I'd say the only misuse of the numbers is not stating the background behind the measurement.  That being said, we really do have an obligation to share this information honestly and accurately. And we really aught to examine ourselves the next time we are asked if we are a Christian.

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1.  Barna Group, "New Marriage and Divorce Statistics Released," March 31, 2008 [www.barna.org/family-kids-articles/42-new-marriage-and-divorce-statistics-released?q=divorce, accessed September 28, 2012].  

* Photo by Leo Reynolds is licensed under a Creative Commons License and used with permission.

People Make the Church

Someone once said something to the effect of, "We do not go to church, we are the Church" and a lot of people have repeated that statement.  It's a good line and worth repeating.  It's been said another way: "We don't go to church on Sunday, the church gathers in a building on Sunday and any other day God's people get together" and from statements like this some pastors have started calling their Sunday services 'gatherings.'

The personality of a church becomes far more apparent when we start thinking of the local church as a group of people rather than a building or what happens in it at any given moment.   For starters, it is easy to see that a church tends to reflect its leadership.  What the leadership deeply cares about is regularly shared as a dream, vision, or goal and the people of the church tend to get behind and care about the same dream, vision, or goal.  The methods, style, and depth in the way pastors teach and preach tend to dictate the style and dept of the church and how the entire body approaches the Bible.  The leadership actually shapes the family and this is a good thing (if the leadership is good).

But the shaping doesn't end with the leadership.  The body, that is all the people in the church also have a strong influence upon the make up of the church.  Attitudes shape many things as do the personalities of the people among the body.  When members share the gospel with their friends and co-workers, similar people join the body, often with similar jobs and personalities.  Churches tend to have a lot in common from the leadership at the top all the way down to the newest believer, no matter how much they try to diversify.   The people give shape to the family that God has brought together and often (but not every time) that family has much in common.

Thinking about this, I conducted a little thought experiment.  At Risen Life Church, where I am on staff, we have a team of 12 which includes pastoral staff, administrative staff, and interns.  We also have three church planters and pastors who have partnered with us and often join us for our staff meetings.  I started imagining that myself and one other pastor were planting a church in another part of the valley.  I would image how we would work together and what the leadership would look like.  As I got this picture in my head, I would imagine what the body would start to look like given the area where we might plant.

After getting one picture, I would image that the plant were in another part of the Salty Lake valley, then another, and another.  Each time the church looked different, sometimes really different.  Then I would think about what shape the church would take if specific members in the Risen Life Church body were to join us in the plant.  Each time, the picture looked a little different.  Then I changed the pastor who would plant with me.  With each change, things started looking very different.  How interesting I thought.

My experiment continued as I worked through each member on the team.  Then I paired up other people and saw some changes with myself out of the equation.  Then I added a third or fourth person to the leadership mix.  I couldn't believe how different each church plant looked.  As I imagined these plants growing to maturity, each seemed to have a completely different appearance as they aged.

From here I thought about what Risen Life Church might look like without some of our more involved members.  And as I thought about this, I realized that we've gone through some changes as people have joined our family or moved away.  It truly is remarkable how different a church body might look with different people among the body, each with different gifts.

But the truth is Christ builds his Church.  It doesn't matter how we might pair people together or try to engineer a church plant; if God is not behind it and the personality of the body is not what God intended, it will not succeed.  Therefore, we should be reminded as we see all kinds of different churches with different sizes and styles, types and teaching, depths and denominations, that God is sovereign and it is his hand that shapes all these different churches as they gather.  It is by God's will that a church has the personality it does for the season God gave it.  In addition, each local church body is part of a larger body and we will all one-day be together and see the final picture Christ is painting with us.  The church is not a building, it is a living organization, a body with many parts, and each part is there for a God-given reason.  How amazing, indeed!


*Photo by Hong Change Bum is registered under a creative commons license and used with permission. 

Writing a Doctrinal Statement

It seems every Christian organization, be it a church, school, seminary, conference, denomination, church-planting body, or whatever has a doctrinal or confession statement.  Even I have provided one on this website called, This I Believe.  These things are everywhere.  Some people notice the multitude of doctrinal statements and confessions and only see division while others see diversity and still others see them as a continuing conversation, something of a 'movable feast.'

But the question we should be asking is why?  Why so many different doctrinal statements?  Why the differences?  And why do organizations need them?  After recently finishing my part in shaping the new doctrinal statement at Risen Life Church, I have been thinking about these questions.

As we examine why, we should remember a couple things.  First, there have been disagreements for a very long time and as a result different creeds or doctrinal statements have developed.  In his letters Paul often lays out a confession statement so there is no confusion where he stands. He must do this because there are others preaching and teaching different beliefs and even different gospels.  There is an entire party of believers who hold to the idea that gentile Christians must keep the Law and be circumcised (see Acts 15 and Titus 1:10-11, for examples) .  To resolve this problem a counsel was convened in Jerusalem and a letter was written outlining the outcome (see Acts 15:19-30).  This letter serves as an early New Testament doctrinal statement.  Moving forward in the Church, we see a number of different creeds and confessions.  Entire schools of monks developed because of different views. The reformers had differing ideas and many evangelicals have differences with the reformers today, although they may be unaware.  Most denominations identify themselves by their doctrinal statements and confessions, which unifies them within the organization and differentiates them from other groups.  Differences are certainly not new.

Second, it is important to remember that not all doctrinal statements are equal.  Some organizations set themselves to stand only on those things they believe are of the utmost importance and essential to salvation, leaving room for differences in the lesser things; while other organizations feel they must include all matters of their beliefs as well as methods of their practice.  Some groups hold very strongly to their doctrinal statements while others see them as soft guidelines.  For example, I know of schools who ask their students to "generally" agree with the school's doctrinal statement, while others are very strict that their students firmly agree with every word.  Pastors are often expected to sign a doctrinal statement or write one, although the degree of seriousness to these statements vary among organizations and pastors.  Individuals of organizations may know their creeds well or have no idea that their organization even has a statement of beliefs.  Some churches require parishioners to memorize creeds, confessions, or a catechism as a requirement for membership.  We can read the statements, but sometimes it is best to examine how the group functions within their doctrinal statements and creeds.

A doctrinal statement, article of faith, creed, or a confession of faith is (or should be) a statement or list of things believed that must be shared by the others among the organization if they are to be unified in purpose and practice.  However, these statements normally stick to the most important items and are usually associated with those beliefs which are essential to salvation, but not always. 

So, this brings us back to our initial questions.  Why?

Ultimately, differences arise due to different interpretations of the Bible, reactions to various beliefs, or differencing practices.  In regard to different interpretations of the Bible, these surface when believers hold to different understandings of hermetical principles, place a higher focus on different passages and doctrines than others, or simply have a poor interpretation. In other cases, the Bible may not be as clear in a specific area, and in these instances it is best of we do not hold them with such a strictness.

When it comes to reactions to various beliefs, we find particular statements that stand in support of the hot issues of the day, or against them. This is often the result of different interpretations, but not always.  This became rather serious when believers called for believer's baptism, Luther challenged the pope, others challenged the Eucharist, the charismatic movement shifted into high gear, people started calling the Bible a book of error, women entered the pulpit, and so-on.  There are often code words contained within a doctrinal statement that help us identify where the organization stands but to understand the code words, we have to understand our history and the arguments.  We've got to see the luggage each code work is carrying and we need to understand the history of the baggage.  We even see this with the revisions to the A.D. 325 Nicene Creed at Constantinople in A.D. 381.

Finally, like the reactions to various beliefs we find statements that stand against differing practices.  Church government is sometimes listed in a doctrinal statement although with the exception of a plurality of elders, the Bible is fairly vague on this topic.  Sometimes the method of how worship is conducted or which translation of the Bible the church prefers appears in a doctrinal statement.  Sometimes when churches or organizations hold strongly to preferences they begin to believe that their way is the only correct way and we see this bleed into their doctrinal statements.  Not all church do this, but it does happen.  Another instance is when a single doctrine is elevated above all others and then influences all practices of faith eventually being written into creeds and confessions.  This is most common within the charismatic debates as well as the arguments regarding the role of the different sexes or the end-times understandings.  Often the debates start in the realm of belief but on occasions belief exits the conversation and pride drives the statement.

Despite the reasons for differences, doctrinal statements are good.  If you are a part of a church or maybe a para-church organization, there is great benefit in knowing the doctrinal statement.  As you examine the statements of your organizations, it may be fruitful to start developing your own statement.  What is most important?  What is not?  What is essential? What's not?  These are good questions to ask yourself as you become more and more grounded in what you believe.  And of course, be sure that your beliefs are shaped by what God's Word teaches rather than your preferences.


*Photo by Karen Tan is registered under a creative commons license and is used with permission.

The Explicit Gospel by Matt Chandler

Chandler, Matt.  The Explicit Gospel.  Weaton, Illi: Crossway, 2012.

In his book, The Explicit Gospel, Matt Chandler asks the question, "How can you grow up going to church every week and not hear the gospel?" (12)  He was haunted by this question after watching a series of baptism testimonies that fallow the lines of, "I grew up in the church but. . ." or "No one ever taught me the gospel."  This, it seems, has prompted Chandler to write a book specifically outlining the gospel.

Unlike many academic books that journey through the gospel, The Explicit Gospel is penned by a practicing pastor who understands the personal nature of the gospel.  However, unlike many pastoral books on the gospel, Chandler does not simply stay rooted in the dirty interpersonal aspects of the gospel.  He rightly sees the gospel from two distinct perspectives--the gospel on the ground and the gospel in the air.  The ground and air views are how he creatively describes these two perspectives.

The gospel on the ground is the stuff in the everyday life of people.  It's what we most often hear from the counseling, pastoral ministers and leaders.  The gospel on the ground is about God's relationship with man, man's brokenness, Christ's atonement and his love for us, and our repentance and response to Christ.  This is the very personal gospel story that we often hear from personal perspectives, and it is very much the gospel of the Bible.

On the other hand, Chandler also addresses the gospel in the air.  Rather than the view on the ground, on the pavement with with people, this is the 30,000 foot view.  This is the gospel we often hear about from professors and teachers and the more big-picture driven pastors and leaders.  It is not so much dependent upon the personal relationship as it is about the story of the history of God's redemption.  This is the gospel that starts with creation and is broken by the fall.  Then reconciliation between the created and their Creator through and by Christ leads to the beautiful consummation.  And this too is the gospel of the Bible.

Chandler does a fantastic job and presenting the gospel from both of these perspectives.  His journey takes detailed steps through the Bible, going to great lengths to explain and express the story of the Bible in simple to understand terms.  In addition, he has a section in the book that discusses the dangers of staying only on the ground or remaining only in the air and it is spot on.  His argument beyond the reality that Christians must know the gospel is that we must also find balance.

This is a wonderful book, although a learned student of the Bible may find some sections a little boring and prefer to turn to the Bible itself.  That being the case, the sections on the gospel on the ground and the gospel in the air, as well as the latter chapters on the dangers of a lack of balance are extremely insightful and valuable.  In addition, the very purpose of this book is to communicate to those who do not know and understand the gospel.  Inversely, those with little to no knowledge should read this book and will probably find it extremely enjoyable.

*Jared Jenkins, Adam Madden, and I recorded a podcast centered around the gospel on the ground and the gospel in the air as presented by Chandler.  You can listen to it here or subscribe to Salty Believer Unscripted on iTunes.

Divorce (Re-posted)

[As we discussed divorce on Salty Believer Unscripted, I thought I would repost and article from SaltyBeliever.com that was written more than two years ago.  If you're not subscribed to Salty Believer Unscripted, find it on iTunes or subscribe here.  You can listen to our podcast on divorce here.]  


Not too long ago, I was asked "Is it okay to get divorced?"  This is a huge question.

We first need to ask what is meant by "okay." If okay means entry or exclusion from heaven, I want to be very clear: getting a divorce or staying married has no baring on entrance to heaven or hell or one's ability to pray to God.  Even one sin without Christ's grace will keep a person out of heaven. Faith and surrender to Jesus Christ, who he says he is, and in his death and resurrection dictates entering heaven or being cast to hell.  This is the key to entry in to heaven, not any work, like staying married. Without Christ, even one sin is "not okay." However, we all sin (act in ways that are contrary to God's wishes for us), a lot. If we need to discuss this in more detail, please feel free to contact me.

So then the real question is if you were considering divorce, and God were sitting with us having coffee, how would he advise you in your situation. If this is you, I recommend you put lots of time to honest prayer, just as if he were sitting with you having coffee. Ask him what you might do to improve your marriage. Ask him to show you areas in your own life that may need repentance.  Ask him how you can show your spouse grace.  Ask him to fix your marriage. After you've had that conversation for a while, and if you feel that his involvement and advice is making no difference, ask him why. If you are already praying about this, pray more.

In the Bible, God presents his ideal. His ideal is that people remain married. And if not for humanity's ugly brokenness, we'd all meet this ideal with little effort. But because of the mess that we are, we have to work at it--some much more than others. The entire Bible is full of stories about people trying to work together in some kind of relationship. Paul writes letters to entire churches trying to help them have healthy relationships in work, play, marriage, etc. Obviously, it's hard and it's messy to meet this ideal.

God wants us to meet his ideal, but we won't, we can't. We are too messed up. This is why Christ died. So now we can find grace in our mess, through Jesus.

The overly religious people of Jesus' day, the Pharisees, came to Jesus and asked him if it was okay for anybody to get a divorce. (You can read about this in Matthew 19:1-9 and Mark 10:1-11.) Here's how it went down (I'm greatly paraphrasing):

Religious people: Is it against God's Law to divorce your wife for any reason?

Jesus: Haven't you read the Law? [He's referring to the Scriptures, specifically to what the Jews called The Law, the first 5 books of the Old Testament, written by Moses. These 5 books include lots of stories; it is not just a book of rules like we think of the law today]. God created men and women to be together. A man should leave his family and get married. He should hold fast to his wife. [Paul once wrote that a man should love his wife like Christ loves the church, and Christ died for the church!] God has joined them together so nobody should separate them. (See Genesis 2:24, Matthew 19:6, Ephesians 5:23-33.)

[Jesus pointed out the ideal and expressed that it should be taken seriously.]

Religious people: Oh really, than why did Moses say a man can divorce his wife? [They were trying to trap Jesus or demonstrate that he was teaching counter to the Scriptures.]

Jesus: It's because you have a hard heart. [This is his way of pointing out our ugly, brokenness.] But it was not intended to be this way from the beginning. But you should know, anyone who gets divorced outside of infidelity will commit adultery.

Jesus also explained that even the very act of looking with lust at another person is committing adultery with that person (Matthew 5:28). I am not saying that committing adultery is okay with God; in fact, the opposite is true and society's definition of adultery and God's definition are quite different.  However, you should understand how it's being discussed in the Bible. And ultimately, the religious people were asking if a person will still be okay with God if they got divorced. Jesus is our intermediary so we can always be right with God through Jesus, divorced or not.

That being said, divorce is against the ideal; it's against God's desires for us. God hates divorce (Malachi 2:16). The Bible teaches that we should not take the matter lightly; and if you are considering divorce, you should try at all cost to work through the messiness.

Maybe this is not the answer you wanted to hear, and that's okay.  I realize I didn't give a simple yes or no, but that's because it is not a simple matter. I suggest that you go back to that table at the coffeehouse and talk with God often.  Read his Word in the Bible.  Pray. Communicate with your spouse. And pray together.

*Photo taken by Flickr user, jcoterhals, is registered under a Creative Commons license.

Mission: Speed Week 2012

A question that the Church really aught to be asking today is how we most effectively reach our specific communities to plant the gospel.

In Paul's day, the best plan (at least for a while) was to go to the local synagogues and announce the identity of the messiah, which everybody was waiting for.  Then when that was done or when they rejected the message you'd journey into the market places where the people were and preach the gospel.  You might also consider heading over to the local hotspots where the philosophers met to talk about new ideas.  This is what Paul did, anyway.  Others in Paul's day saw the gospel spread house to house, which is probably not to say door-to-door up and down the street but rather, from one household through relationships to the next.

There was a time when bringing a big tent into town and preaching evening evangelistic services was the thing to do because people were bored and always looking for something different.  Some would simply stand on a wooden box and preach to passers-by. Radio, at one point, was an extremely effective means for planting the gospel, as was television.  Tracts have been useful at certain times, depending on the tract and how it was deployed.  The underground church is effective in places where the church is in extreme persecution.  In some cases missionaries are sent into an area and other times we send church planters and sometimes we use the para-church organizations.  But these things all have a time and place where they are more effective and a time and place where they fall short.   They can not be deployed like the stroke of a broad brush.  And what may have once worked in an area may not always be effective or fruitful.  We must seek the most effective means to reach the lost in the specific culture and community where they are found. 

As I have been exploring this question in the area were I live and serve (Salt Lake City, Utah), I have been examining all kinds of ways those of us who deeply love Jesus can effectively share that love with others.  So recently, we went to the Bonneville Salt Flats.

This was the initial video I used to see if God may be calling others to join me, provide water and other financial resources, or commit to praying for our mission trip.  Sean Patrick and I really didn't know what to expect so we decided we would see what doors God opened and who he would bring to help with the work.  Then with the people and resources provided, we would faithfully design the mission around what we had.

Initially, we were hoping to have enough people and resources to do a church service and venture into Wendover, but God had something different in mind.  He blessed us with a good man to lead the charge--Zak Harris.  Then he brought some other labors, all great guys.  And water.  And sunscreen.  And a shade tent.  And money to buy more water and ice and gas for the van and some food and more water, lots of water. And we had a radio that could broadcast the speeds and times.  Then we got up early in the morning and drove 115 miles to the Bonneville Salt Flats.

The first day was a little rough.  We had entered an entirely different world and had no clue what we were doing.  We set up in the wrong spot, twice.  Walking around in the three miles of the pit, we made some friends and engaged a little, but not as much as we were hoping for.  We struggle to meet anybody along the remaining 4 miles of spectator lines.  But then, at the end of the day, we were shown what we needed to do.  So on the second day we printed up signs and set up and the starting line.  There, we made a few friends and gave away lots of water, all of it in the many coolers we brought.  It was simple and fun and by the end of the day we felt that something had happened. We learned a lot and hopefully we were faithful seed planters, or at least seed broadcasters.

Here's how it went down (The guys speaking are Zak Harris, Jay Workman, Jeremy Jeffs, and John Romane in that order. . . and then it's Zak again):

From this experience we came to realize that in our day and in our area it may simply be most effective to be where people are, enjoying life and loving on people.  That's not too hard.  So we started looking for other interests we share with the people of our culture and other opportunities. In some cases, just like at Speed Week, it might not even be that we share an interest but that we are willing to go into a community for the sake of the Kingdom.

But the truth is, the most effective means of sharing and planting the gospel is not about events or systems or plans.  It is about a lifestyle.  Our ability to reach into our communities should simply be nothing more than the overflow of Jesus in our own lives.  Everybody loves to share what they love.  As we love Christ, we should have a desire to share his love with others in every community circle we find ourselves.  Among friends, in the work-place, at the park or football game, skiing and rock climbing, or anywhere else, with anybody else.  This should be natural and fun and easy.   It might be that the most effective way to spread the gospel in our community is not found a program but in our lives as Christ lives in us.  It might just actually be that simple.

Difficult Matters for the Church

As the Salty Believer Unscripted podcast has grown, Jared Jenkins and I have determined that it's time we take on difficult topics that address questions people are actually asking.  The new series is called "Difficult Matters for the Church" and it will address challenging passages of the Bible and areas of disagreement within the Church, as well as the controversial and spicy issues between the Church and the larger society.  Topics like same-sex marriage, women in ministry, the Christian's role in politics, Mormonism, creationism, environmentalism, social justice, election and free will, egalitarianism, the charismatic gifts, and any other suggestions we receive will not be off the table because nothing is off limits.

To help us, we've enlisted some other pastors.  Sean Patrick (Risen Life Church) and Adam Madden (Christ Fellowship)--two pastors who have previously been on the podcast--have returned and Jason Benson (Real Life Church) has joined us for the first time.  In addition, we have a new podcast intern: Ben Peirce. (We're not sure what a podcast intern does, but we're working on that.)

We'd love to hear your suggestions for this series.  Please don't hesitate to contact us and share your thoughts and questions.  We hope this series will be fruitful as well as enjoyable.

As always, thanks for visiting SaltyBeliever.com and thanks for subscribing to Salty Believer Unscripted.

Subscribe to the Salty Believer iTunes Podcasts: Video | Audio
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* While there may be some overlap, the content of the Video and Audio Podcasts are not the same. 

Soli Deo gloria!
Bryan Catherman   


*Photo by flikr.com user dkshots is registered under a creative commons license and us used by permission.  

Operation Auca: The Power of the Gospel

Only a single generation ago, the Waodani people of Ecuador, were a people of the spear.  They  killed each other with very little reason because they knew no other way.  Over the previous five generations, six out of every 10 deaths were homicides.  Then something changed.

In 1956, Jim Elliot, Nate Saint, Ed McCully, Peter Fleming, and Roger Youderian made contact with the Waodani in an effort to share the gospel.  Initially, these missionaries dropped gifts from the air and eventually they were able to land on a small beach along the river in the jungle.  Three Waodani (a man and two women) met with them on the beach and they were even taken for rides in the air plane.  It seemed that this survey trip was going very well until a band of Waodani warriors speared all five missionaries to death.

Shortly there after, Elisabeth Elliot (Jim Elliot's wife) and Rachel Saint (Nate Saint's sister) returned to Ecuador and soon returned to the Waodani tribe to live among them.  Elisabeth also took her young daughter.  Over time, these ladies were successful in bringing the gospel to the Waodani people and the homicide rate dropped to nearly nothing. Many came to saving faith in Christ and now they walk the trail of Jesus by following his "markings" (the Bible).  

But this is not where the story ends.  If it were not already surprising enough that Elisabeth and Rachel returned as missionaries, about two years later Nate Saint's children, Steve and Kathy Saint, entered the tribe with their aunt Rachel.  Looking at nine-year-old Steve Saint, Mincaye, the man who killed his father knew that it was Steve's obligation to one-day avenge Nate Saint's death.  However, Steve had no clue how to make spears or hunt.  The Waodani man who killed Nate Saint took Steve under his care and trained him.  That man came to be called Grandfather and eventually came to America to see Steve Saint's son graduate from college.  Kathy Saint was baptized in nearly the same location, in the same river where her father died.  Standing on her right and left, baptizing her, were the men who threw the spears into Nate Saint, her dad.

This is an amazing picture of the transforming power of the Gospel.

A documentary titled Beyond the Gates of Splendor tells this story from the wives, children, and even the repentant killers.  It is outstanding and I highly recommend it.

The ESV Study Bible

I've said it before, but I believe that at the time of this post, the ESV Study Bible is the best study Bible on the market.  On my shelves are a number of study Bibles and with the exception of the HCSB Study Bible (which takes a distant second place), the ESV Study Bible is far superior to the rest.  The ESV Study Bible does a fantastic job of providing a great mediating translation (The English Standard Version) of the Bible partnered with the wonderful resources, maps, charts, articles, and commentary of the Study Bible.  

But really, you don't have to take my word for it; others highly recommend and endorse the ESV Study Bible too. Some of these leaders include Tullian Tchividjian, Al Mohler Jr., Joshua Harris, Mark Driscoll, John Piper, Wayne Grudem, and many others.

Here, Tullian Tchividjian takes us through a great look at what the ESV has to offer you, a student of the Bible.

J. I. Packer, Theological Editor for the ESV Study Bible, discusses the ESV Study Bible from his unique perspective.

If it's not obvious by now, I highly recommend the ESV Study Bible and believe everybody should have a copy.  I might suggest however, that you make a little more of an investment and get the leather or imitation leather bound copy because the hardback version seems to have issues with its binding. 


* I have no material or financial connection to the ESV Bible other than my use of it in my pastoral and writing ministries. 

The Release of the Spirit by Watchman Nee

Nee, Watchman.  The Release of the Spirit. New York, NY: Christian Fellowship Publishers, 2000.

I do not recall ever having heard the name Watchman Nee in seminary.  Nee, I've since learned after a friend recommend The Release of the Spirit and other Nee works, was a Christian in China who was jailed for his faith in 1952 where he remained until his death in 1972.  According to watchmannee.org, Nee was uniquely gifted by God as a "Seer of the Divine Revelation."  Nee authored many books to include The Release of the Spirit. [1]

The Release of the Spirit was originally a series of sermons or lessons delivered in Foochow, South China between May 25th and 28th, 1948.  The book was first published in 1955 and the first English edition in 1965.

In this particular work, Nee suggests that man must ultimately be broken if his is to be an effective agent for God, and in fact God cannot use a servant who has not has a release of his inter spirit.  The flesh serves as an impenetrable capsule like an alabaster box.  Once this box is broken, life may come forth (14).  Nee argues that the Holy Spirit orchestrates the breaking, writing, "He makes sure one event after another and one difficulty after another come to us.  These break our outward man so that our inward man may come through" (15).  Most people however, try to avoid being broken not realizing the necessity of the outerman to crack and free the innerman.  "Let us remember," states Nee, "that the one reason for all misunderstandings, all fretfulness, all disappointments, is that we secretly love ourselves.  Hence, we plan a way whereby we can rescue ourselves.  Many times problems arise due to our seeking a way of escape--an escape from the working of the cross" (19).

While the overall point of of The Release of the Spirit is valuable, there is some difficulty with the its starting point.  Nee take a position of trichotomy, that is that man is made up of three parts--body, soul, and spirit.  Even for one who is a dichotomist (like this reviewer), typical arguments from a trichomists position tend to remain within biblical tension.  Nee however, identifies the soul and spirit with definitions that press upon this tension with some force that may be problematic for the dichotomist.  According to Nee, the body is the physical body, the flesh.  The soul is the intellect, thought, emotion, and intangible aspects of personality and being, and the spirit is something different.  "When God comes to indwell us by His Spirit with His life and power," states Nee, "He comes into our spirit at the time when we are born again" (12).  The body is defined by Nee as the outermost man, the soul is the outerman, and the spirit is the innerman.   Therefore, the indwelling by God seems only to be found in the spirit of man and the outerman and outermost man actually inhibit man's spirit fused with the Holy Spirit to come forth.

Nee's presentation flirts with a mystic argument and possibly dabbles in gnosticism.  Rather than God transforming and sanctifying the entirety of the man who is called to love God with all of his heart, soul, strength, and mind, it seems that Nee believes that these parts of man can only hold God back until they are broken and the inner spirit may come forth.  For example, Nee writes,

"Our only hope is that the Lord may blaze a way out of us, breaking our outward man--breaking it to such a degree that the inward man may come out and be seen.  This is precious!  This is the way for those who serve the Lord.  Only by this process can we serve the Lord, and only by this procedure can we lead men to the Lord.  All else is limited in its value.  Doctrinal and theological knowledge does not have that much usefulness.  What is the use of mere mental knowledge of the Bible if the outward man remains unbroken?  Only the person through whom God and come forth is useful" (20-21). 

The tone throughout the book is that emotions, intellect, and the other aspects of the soul are bad or negative and that something else emerges to do the Lord's work.  It is as if the spirit is the only thing infused with the Holy Spirit and the spirit somehow is no longer deprived while the rest of the man is still in a cage.  The soul and body are bad and not useful to God unless controlled by man's spirit.  The counterargument to such a position is that man's body, mind, strength, emotion, intellect, and so-on are given over to the control and transformation of the Holy Spirit and then the entirety of man may be used to pursue God's glory.

An additional difficulty throughout The Release of the Spirit is found in the language choices regarding God's sovereignty.   Or if it is not simply the choice of English words, then it must be the view.  Nee appears to have a small idea or view of God and a large view of man.  It seems God cannot function without us rather than the other way around.  Sinful man appears to hold a great deal over God.   For example Nee says, "It would seem the Lord usually spends several years upon most of us before He can accomplish this work of breaking" (17, italics added for emphasis).  Another example is found only a paragraph later: "But if we do not know how to use our spirit, the Spirit of God cannot touch people through us" (17, italics added for emphasis).

I have come to realize that if this matter is simply about the language choices and translation, than there is less problem than it would seem on the surface.  In addition, had Nee argued that God can and may use you broken or not but it is much better to be used broken, much of this review would have been different.  God used Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, and Judas for his purposes but they were hardened, not broken.  However, we should certainly prefer to be used well by God, willingly as his servant, and this requires first that we are broken.  I realize this perspective comes from my reformed theology which may not be the theology of Nee. 

Because of the theological difficulties I encountered throughout The Release of the Spirit by Watchman Nee, I cannot recommend it without some kind of caveat tailored to the individual.  Admittedly, I found Nee's work theologically troubling even though it appears he had the best of intentions and his over-arching point is good.  That being said, this was an interesting introduction to Watchman Nee and I am thankful for it. 
 

1. "Watchman Nee," http://www.watchmannee.org/index.html [Accessed June 28th, 2012].

Who’s Afraid of the Big Bad Words?

It’s surprising how intimating words can be. When I first entered the Army, I never thought I would understand what anybody was saying. Bathrooms were called latrines. Guns were called rifles and the piece that contains the bullets is called a magazine, not a clip. Tanks are called tracks and helicopters are fixed rotary-winged aircraft. Even worse was the level of confusion around all the acronyms. The Army uses so many acronyms that some things are only known by acronyms because everybody forgot what the acronym was short for in the first place. But I was really frightened when I ran into complicated words within the duties of my job that I had never heard before. Reconnoiter? Posse Comitatus? I felt overwhelmed!

Not too long ago I realized that new definitions and big words are a very normal part of life. I’m not much of a handyman so it was a surprise for me when I learned that a skill saw is a circular saw. And what is a reciprocal saw? Cheater bar? Pneumatics? When I was first married I couldn’t figure out what a blouse was. (It’s a lady shirt, if you didn’t know.) And my wife has a hairdryer attachment called a diffuser. A chipotle pepper is a smoked jalapeno. I don’t know why Americans don’t called it a smoked jalapeno; but really, that’s my point. An egress window is a window that a person can escape through. (Learned that one while buying a house.) If you buy stocks or make investments there’s about a million new words and phrases you’ll have to learn and they include things like liquid and materialized and compounding. When a symphony gets louder, it’s called a crescendo. And I still don’t understand what all the new movie theater features are. I-Max, 3-D, and Real D? (I’m afraid if I were to see the rerelease of Titanic in Real-D, I’d actually be on the ship.)

Learning a new vocabulary happens even within Christianity and Christian culture. Imagine what an unchurched person must think the first time he or she visits a church or gets around Christians. Think about it. How many people fellowship? Non-Christians hang out, or party, or whatever, but they never use fellowship in a sentence unless they are talking about a popular Tolkien book or movie. Few people have things laid on their heart. And even the word church is complicated. The non-churched (and some of the churched) only know this word to mean a building. But the Church is the body of Christ that gathers in buildings that we often call a church.

When we start studying the Bible we may run into big words. Don’t panic. Propitiation comes to mind. (That fancy word means to appease wrath; it’s an atonement that satisfies divine judgment and is only perfectly and finally found in Christ.) As we start turning to study Bibles, introductions, and commentaries we may start seeing really big words. There is no reason to be afraid of the big bad words. The truth is, often these words have nuanced and specific meanings beyond just sounding fancy; but most of the time and for many of us, the simpler word will do. However, some people use the bigger words just to sound smart and confuse others, and that’s a wrong use of big words. In academic settings the bigger loaded words are generally a requirement when professors are publishing and students are hoping to get a good grades. But remember, the tools of the theologian are words, so often they will say circular saw over skill saw, chipotle pepper rather than smoked jalapeno, and crescendo instead of getting louder.

Big words in-and-of-themselves are neither bad nor good unless they are used outside of their appropriate time. But many times in a study Bible, introduction, or commentary the bigger words are the most appropriate. So you may see a word like hypostatic union (which means that Jesus is both fully God and fully man). When used in academic circles, this phrase saves times and correctly conveys the meaning intended because it’s fully packed; but for others, it’s just confusing until they become comfortable with the term and the material behind the word. I remember learning about the penal vicarious substitutionary atonement. It’s a mouthful and most of the time it could be simply stated as Christ’s death on the cross. But seminary types and pastors could discuss and argue many aspects of these specific words that the simpler statement doesn’t capture. How about soteriology (the study of salvation), eschatology (the study of end times), the Pauline corpus (the New Testament writings by Paul), or the autographs (the original biblical manuscripts)? The Olivet Discourse is a fancy way to say the discussion Jesus had with his disciples on the Mount of Olives that is found in the synoptic gospels. Oh, and the synoptic gospels—that’s code talk for Mathew, Mark, and Luke. There’s even fancy talk in other languages. For example, in Latin we have the Imago Dei (the image of God) and the Theotokos (the God barer or one who gave physical birth to God, which is Mary). Theologians also seem to love German. Sitz im leben just means the life setting or the setting of life and a weltanschauung is a world view. I know, it’s nuts but it is just how it goes.

Like many other fields, we need not be afraid of words we don’t know when we study the Bible or other tools. These words should not intimidate us. We may need to learn some new vocabulary (or not), but we need not run from or shut the Bible, introduction, or commentary because of these big bad words.


*Photo of Webster's Dictionary by Amy Barker is is used by permission under a creative commons license. 

Andy Conroy on Class Design

Andy Conroy joined me on the podcast, Salty Believer Unscripted to discuss class design and teaching.  He has joined the podcast before; but this time, he also provided the studio space.

Andy teaches animation at the Salt Lake Art Institute.  He also leads a community group at Risen Life Church, is starting to co-teach a Sunday class on the Synoptic Gospels, and doodles on his notes every time I teach. 

Looking for some ideas about how to design or redesign your Sunday School or community group teaching format?  We might have some ideas.  Have a listen.

Subscribe to the Salty Believer iTunes Podcasts: Video | Audio
(Non iTunes: Video | Audio)
* While there may be some overlap, the content of the Video and Audio Podcasts are not the same. 

The Bible: English Standard Version (ESV)

I can't express how thankful I am that we live in a time where so many different translations of the Bible exist.

The Bible was written over the span of about 1,600 years by over 40 different divinely inspired authors.  The Old Testament was written primary in Hebrew.  If you were even fortunate enough to know how to read at all, you would have had to have read Hebrew.  As Alexander the Great expanded his empire, he made an effort to unify the language.  Many people started speaking Greek but that language was simplified as it spread further away from Greece and become a common man's Greek, called Koine Greek.  

Before the time of Christ, translators embarked on an effort to translate the Hebrew Old Testament into Koine Greek because so many more peoples and nations spoke this language as the language of business.  That first translation from Hebrew to Greek is called the Septuagint, often indicated by LXX.  A while after the canonization of the New Testament (originally written in Koine Greek), Jerome translated both the Old and New Testaments into Latin.  This late Forth Century or early Fifth Century translation is called the Vulgate. (There was also an early Syriac translation called the Peshitta, but we'll reserve the discussion on this translation for another time.)

Sadly, the only way many people could read the Bible (if they knew how to read) was in Greek, Hebrew, or Latin.  Around the time of the Protestant Reformation and slightly before, efforts began to provide a Bible in the language of the people.  Martin Luther, provided a translation in German. Guys like William Tyndale, Myles Coverdale, John Rogers, and John Waycliff worked on various English translations.  It was around this time that the world got the King James Version of the Bible as well as the Geneva Bible, Bishop's Bible, and the Douay-Rheims Bible.

Moving forward a few Centuries we now find over 200 English translations as well as hundreds of non-English language translations of the Bible and an even greater variety of translations of select parts of the Bible. In the Twentieth and Twenty-First Centuries, with the aid of greater archeological efforts, disciplined academic pursuits, and computer technology, many of the translations in English are outstanding!  Of course not every translation is as careful as others and some translations carry with them troubling theological issues or politically motivated choices.

As I examine the many options, I've found that the English Standard Version or ESV is one of the best translations for readability, devotion, study, and preaching.  It is a well-rounded mediating translation of the Bible.  (If you would like more information and videos comparing the 2011 NIV, HCSB, and the ESV, check out "Translating the Bible, NIV11, ESV, and HCSB.") But really, you don't have to take my word for it; others highly recommend and endorse the ESV translation of the Bible, too. Some of these leaders include Wayne Grudem, John Piper, Mark Driscoll, David Platt, Kevin DeYoung, Matt Chandler, Darrin Patrick, John McArther,  Francis Chan, Tullian Tchividjian, and many others.

Here's a better look at the ESV Bible.

While it's extremely obvious throughout this post, I highly recommend the ESV Bible for both personal and church use.  It's a great translation that is widely accessible and affordable.

* I have no material or financial connection to the ESV Bible other than my use of it in my pastoral and writing ministries. 

The Rest of God by Mark Buchanan

Buchanan, Mark.  The Rest of God: Restoring Your Soul by Restoring Sabbath.  Nashville, Tenn: W Publishing Group, 2006. 

As Mark Buchanan was venturing through a much needed sabbatical, he came up with the idea that he should write about his experience of seeking and finding rest.  What resulted was a book full of interesting arguments about man's need for rest, rejuvenation, and play.  Few would disagree with Buchanan--man does need rest, rejuvenation, and play.  However, Buchanan takes his argument a step further and twists in the thread of Sabbath.  The Rest of God seeks to encourage readers to rest as well as understand Sabbath a little differently.  

The book opens with an assumption that the reader holds either one of two positions: a legalistic view of Sabbath or no understanding of Sabbath what-so-ever.  From this assumption, Buchanan sets out to move the reader away from either position.  In order to better make his argument, each chapter concludes with a section he calls Liturgy.  He recognizes that the word liturgy comes with images of "robes and candles and prayer books and lectionaries"; however, Buchanan defines liturgy as "gestures by which we honor transcendent reality" (8).  He argues that the low church has its liturgy too, even if it does not look like what we are accustomed to.  Liturgy of the low church is found in its austerity, spontaneity, and informality (8).  "It helps us give concrete expression to deepest convictions" writes Buchanan of liturgy, "It gives us choreography for the things unseen and and allows us to brush heaven among the shades of earth" (8).  

Each chapter is filled with examples and illustrations as well as attempts to tie his points to biblical concepts. But Buchanan did not set out to write a book about burnout, rest, or productivity--he set out to write a book that teaches his readers to restore Sabbath so they will restore their soul.  "The argument of this book," writes Buchanan, "is that we uniquely take up his invitation by keeping Sabbath, both as a day and as an attitude" (18).  Buchanan fell short of this goal. 

While I absolutely agree that we need rest, recreation, and play, Buchanan's biblical foundation of Sabbath is somewhat weak.  Rather than building a foundation of Sabbath by spending some time early in his book dealing with the variety of times we see sabbath practiced in the Old and New Testaments as well as how Jesus dealt with Sabbath, he uses a large number of examples and illustrations about the importance of resting and slowing down.  Instead of breaking down God's instruction on sabbath so we better understand it, we read stories of sleeping cats and busy author/pastors and guys pushing the danger envelope to jump off bridges and feel alive.  The picture painted by Buchanan is that Sabbath is not a thing to be obeyed but a thing to be done so we get something in return--rest.  Rather than a day of Sabbath or an attitude of Sabbath as something to draw us closer to God, it becomes something only to restore us so we can get back to the work of God and our own happiness.  It even seems at times that there is a hint of finding our strength within ourselves and going to a source of rest in order to be recharged rather that finding it all from God.  His idea appears to be that Sabbath is "a command given to save us from ourselves" (115).  So he argues that Sabbath is doing something different than we do on the other six days; only, he does not seem to stress that even while we are doing this different thing,  Sabbath is really about bringing glory to God and seeking God's face in a rest provided only by God. 

Chapter Nine, for example, is a story of Buchanan and a guy named Nathan.  Nathan takes Buchanan swimming where they spend the day jumping of high bridges and cliffs into rapid water. At one point Buchanan feels like he's going to die.  The result is that he feels alive.  He enjoys life. It's a taste of heaven he says.  His argument in this chapter is that play is necessary to life, which few would argue against.  He says that play shows us what it is to have fun. Who would disagree?  Play interrupts our working routine.  Yes.  But then Buchanan says that "Sabbath is for play" (140).  This is extremely challenging if by play he means a joy found in ourselves and our own adventures apart from God.  "Play and Sabbath are joined at the hip," he writes, "and sometimes we rest best when we play hardest.  Whether it's more like playing with a thunderstorm or playing with a kitten, you can never make up your mind" (142).  But there's a huge glaring problem.  Buchanan writes the entire chapter, all of Chapter Nine, without mention of God.  He makes no connection between Sabbath and the Creator of Sabbath.  Instead, he offers a definition of Sabbath that has no need of God.  With this definition of Sabbath, an atheist could strictly keep Sabbath.  By this understanding, the snow and dirt worshipers of Utah and Colorado are doing a fine job of finding "the rest of God" without God.  This is a problem and it is not a biblical picture of Sabbath. 

I also find it somewhat ironic that during his time of rest and desire to seek Sabbath, the author of other books produced a book on the topic of rest and Sabbath.  This does not seem like much of a sabbatical to seek rest, but instead an opportunity to continue working within his normal routine of authoring books.

On the other hand, had Buchanan written this book apart from his attempts to define Sabbath and his use of Scripture, he could have written a very good secular book on the need for rest in our rest-work cycles.  If it were not for a godless picture of Sabbath presented in its pages, I would have no problem recommending Buchanan's book to work-alcoholics everywhere.


*I have no material connection to this book, financial or otherwise.  However, this book was recommended to me as part of my ordination process.  

Bible Study Tools

Jared Jenkins and I discuss some tools that help us study the Bible.  Of course, none of these tools are perfect, but they are helpful.  You can listen to that discussion along with some specific recommendations in this episode of Salty Believer Unscripted.

In addition, here is a list of some of the tools with a brief discussion of what they are and how they should be used for studying the Bible.


The Holy Spirit. The Bible tells us that the Holy Spirit is our helper and teacher. He is our greatest aid in proper Bible study and teaching. (John 14:16, 26) In addition, the Holy Spirit may use many of the tools listed below to illuminate God’s truths of the Bible to us.

Prayer. Prayer is our communication with God. If we desire to properly understand God’s communication to us, as contained in the Bible, we aught to ask for help and understanding. Prayer should always accompany Bible study.

Self Reflection. Our attitude, desires, biases, and sinful nature can greatly influence how we handle God’s Word; therefore, we must examine ourselves for anything that may improperly influence our understanding of the Bible.The Bible reads us and we need to be open to this reality. 

“The Story” or Meta-Narrative of the Bible. In order to better see context, one should understand the larger story of the Bible, often called the Story of God’s Redemptive History. This is a framework or timeline of the Bible in chronological order. This also includes an understanding of how the Bible is organized. Understanding where a text fits within the Story greatly helps with proper exegetical work and sound hermeneutics.

Jared Jenkins outlines the “scenes” of the Story like this:
Part I - Creation
Part II - Fall
Part III - Redemption
   Scene 1 - A People
   Scene 2 - A Land and a Nation
   Scene 3 - A Kingdom and Kingdom Divided
   Scene 4 - Exile and Expectant Waiting
   Scene 5 - The Gospel - Christ
   Scene 6 - The Church
Part IV - Restoration / New Creation

Translations of the Bible. Different translations may offer non-original readers a different perspective. A good study should include at least one Bible from a formal equivalent (close to word-for-word) translation and one from a dynamic equivalent (thought-for-thought) translation.  A good mediating Bible translation is also helpful.  But do not feel you must limit your study to a small number of translations; more translations help us see some of the word complexities in the original languages.  A parallel Bible is a helpful Bible that puts multiple translations together in one binding for this kind of study.

Study Bible. A study Bible contains boiled down information that comes from many of the tools identified in this list. A Study Bible is an extremely useful tool for studying and teaching the Bible and at least one should be a part of any Bible student's library. The ESV Study Bible is one of the best ones available today.

Concordance. A collection of all the English words contained in a specific Bible translation of the with a scripture reference to aid in locating the word. Most concordances also include a basic Greek and Hebrew word list with key numbers and definitions.

Lexicon. A technical book of definitions and entomology of Greek and Hebrew words.

Cross References. Lists of related passages that help guide a student of the Bible to other locations in the Bible in order to help understand an idea or topic as it is presented elsewhere in the Bible. Using the Bible to interpret the Bible is the best way to interpret the Bible and using cross references greatly reduces the time it takes to find other related passages. 

Bible Dictionary and Encyclopedia. A Bible dictionary provides articles and info on just about every person, place, or thing in the Bible. Encyclopedias are similar but more detailed. Some Bible dictionaries and encyclopedias deal with technical aspects of Greek and Hebrew language too.

Atlas. Collections of maps to help provide some geographical insight. These often also include journeys and other useful geographical information such as recreated drawings of the Temple grounds, alters, clothing, and a number of other helpful visual aids.

Introduction. A collection of introductory information on books of the Bible that include the author, audience, purpose, time of writing, outlines, key themes, and all kinds of other information background information.

Other Believers. Studying with others in community allows us to see how the Holy Spirit is working through all of us as we collectively study God’s Word. The same Holy Spirit working in you is working in me.  One Spirit. . . lots of students.  It is often good to consult other trusted and knowledgeable believers to confirm that you are not way off in your findings.  Notes from other classes or even transcripts of sermons are also helpful in this regard.  A good point to remember is that if you are the only one who as ever discovered what you think you've discovered from the Bible, the chances are fairly good that you are wrong.

Commentary. A commentary is an extensive discussion (typically from a scholar) about the text. These are not inspired like the Bible but they can provide tremendous insight, background information, and technical information. Often they are the result of years of work and study by the author.  I recommend that commentaries are used near the end of your study as confirmation and a check rather than a guide at the beginning of a study.  BestCommentaries.com is a helpful online tool for searching out reviews and rankings on commentaries.

Bible Study Software and Websites. Many programs and websites provide a collection of the above listed tools to make this work easier. Accordance, Logos, Bible Works, and E-Sword are examples of Bible software.  Some of these programs also have phone and tablet apps. Bible.org,  Biblia.com, BlueLetterBible.org, and  YouVersion.com are examples of helpful websites. But keep in mind that some biblical tools websites are really not what they claim to be. 

More resources may be found in the Resources section of this website.

*Photo by Terry Madeley is used by permission and is registered under a Creative Commons license.

New Series on Exegesis and Hermeneutics

Whether you are studying on your own, leading and teaching your family, or teaching in a formal setting, it is extremely helpful to understand how to read and teach the Bible.  There are some fancy words for it (exegesis and hermeneutics) but it doesn't have to be hard.  All good seminaries teach extremely helpful tools and techniques for studying and teaching the Bible, but by no means are these required to properly understand and communicate what God's Word, the Bible says.  The Bible is communicated in such a way that a person can hear and learn from God without an advanced degree in seminary or some kind of secret magic that is only held by top cult leaders.  However, if done poorly, the application will be wrong or misleading.  The adage is true, junk in-junk out.  On the other hand, if careful exegesis is conduced and then proper hermeneutics are applied, a person will come to proper application at least 95% of the time.

The overall idea here is to approach the Bible with the proper process.  Basically:

1. What did the Bible say then?
2. What is the timeless meaning or principles. 
3.  What's the application for me today. 

If you use this process, you'll do well nearly every time.  But how do we get to what the Bible said when it was written?  That's the exegetical work.  And how do we extract the timeless meaning or principles?  That's hermeneutics.   You can employ all kinds of tools; or with a couple simple, tools (even preparing sermons in the mountains for a camp) you can study and teach the Bible well.

Jared Jenkins (EntrustedWithTheGospel.com) and I have finally set out on a series to help Average Joe study and teach the Bible well.  We're excited about this because we believe it's important.  And it maybe that it's a way for us to take great material we received (and payed for) in seminary and give it to you for free.

I wish I could provide you with the name of this series, but as of yet, we can't think of one.  I guess we're just not very creative.  Listen to the introduction in the first Salty Believer Unscripted podcast of this new series and give us some feed back.  Tell us what you think.  And by all means, help us come up with a name!  (You can contact us here.)

You can find the podcasts in the Resources section of this website, download it here, or subscribe via iTunes. 

It is our greatest hope and desire that you grow in your walk with Christ and in that, you know God better and love him more.

Soli Deo gloria!
Bryan Catherman


 Subscribe to the Salty Believer iTunes Podcasts: Video | Audio
(Non iTunes: Video | Audio)
* While there may be some overlap, the content of the Video and Audio Podcasts are not the same. 

The Jesus Storybook Bible & Curriculum Kit

Oh how unfortunate it is that so many children's Bibles are loaded with colorful pictures and moralistic stories but fail to tell the story of God's redemption!  Through these Bibles, many children learn about the people of the Bible but often fail to see how they are intertwined in one great story, The Story.  These children's books miss how all of the stories point to the salvation brought only by Christ.  Even more tragic is the reality that for many children, a bridge is never built to take them from a book of moralistic, colorful stories to an understanding of The Story.  Instead, they are stuck with memories of tales that tell them very little about Christ.  Even worse, they may only be able to conjure up images of cucumber and tomato characters when they think of the God's Word, the Bible.  Then as teens, they mentally push aside the Bible along with their other children's books.  Finally, as adults, they don't know the Bible and remember it only as a book of disconnected stories or even rules about life.  As parents and Bible teachers we must combat this tragedy.

Choosing a good children's Bible is a great start.  The Jesus Storybook Bible by Sally Lloyd-Jones is a well illustrated children's Bible that tells of one interconnected story (made up of 44 selected "chapters") that is constantly pointing to Jesus.  Lloyd-Jones writes every event with Jesus at the center, not a moralist principle or other misguided focus.  It's about Jesus, just as the Bible is.  Each individual chapter is written on two or three pages and can be read to a child in three to four minutes.  The illustrations are memorable and fun.  It's perfect for Bible reading at breakfast with the kids or for bedtime stories or any other time you can read to your children.  In addition, the story is organized in chronological order and every chapter comes with a Scripture reference so an adult can explore the passage in greater detail in an adult Bible. 

My wife and I (but mostly my wife)  read the Jesus Storybook Bible to our children every morning at the breakfast table.  It's fun and easy, but more significant is seeing how my boys (3 and 6) are able to articulate the larger story of Jesus.  They see Jesus in every story.  And having gone through it a couple times now, my oldest is no longer regurgitating the story but actually demonstrating great comprehension of his understanding of God's story of redemption.

But the Jesus Storybook Bible is not just for kids.  As a pastor at Risen Life Church, I've recommend this Bible to many adults.  Some of the people I meet are approaching the Bible for the first time (or maybe coming back to it with only warped pictures of their not-so-great childhood Bible lodged in their memory).  Or they, like many Christians, have never read the Bible in chronological order and fail to see how it all fits together.  I always encourage getting a chronological reading list and start reading; but I also like to recommend that students of the Bible read the Jesus Storybook Bible first. This offers a quick read with a great overview of God's story of redemption.  "Every story whispers his name," Lloyd-Jones correctly writes.  And this is not limited to non-believers and new Christians.  I came around the corner one morning to find my wife sobbing as she was trying to read "The Servant King" story to my boys.  She'd read the biblical narrative many times but there was something in the simplicity of the Jesus Storybook Bible that tapped into the her child-like faith.  God stirred her heart through the pages of a children's Bible! 

The Jesus Storybook Bible is great for children and adults alike.  I highly recommend it.  But a word of caution: just because this is a great children's Bible does not mean that children (and adults for that matter) should not be graduated up to other age appropriate Bibles as they grow in their walk with Christ and their understanding of God's Word increases.  The Jesus Storybook Bible is most appropriate for children in early to middle elementary school. 

The Jesus Storybook Bible has been discussed before on SaltyBeliever.com as well as in the podcast, "Salty Believer Unscripted"; therefore, it should be no surprise that I highly recommend it.  But there's more!

The Jesus Storybook Bible now comes complete with curriculum.  Sally Lloyd-Jones (the author of many children's books) has teamed up with Sam Shammas (who works at Redeemer Presbyterian Church and has co-written other curriculum with Timothy Keller).  These two ladies have taken the wonderful illustrations by Jago and the theatrical audio recordings by David Suchet and developed 44 lesson plans (50 weeks of lessons) for children to pair with the 44 individual stories of the Jesus Storybook Bible.  These lessons include three to five-minute animated videos of The Jesus Storybook Bible as well as incredible print curriculum.

Before I continue this review, I should share that I was intrigued by the idea of the videos and curriculum for adults, even if that is not the intended purpose of the material.  As I pastor adults and am always seeking ways to better teach the Bible, I am most often looking for ways to get the Bible in front of busy grownups (even it they use reading to their kids as an excuse).  The Jesus Storybook Bible works well for this purpose; so I wondered, How much more might the videos and curriculum work to this end?  I requested a reviewer copy of The Jesus Storybook Bible Curriculum Kit in exchange for a review and was granted my request.  (Thanks Sally; you are a blessing!  But honestly, had I been able to purchase the kit, I would have been discussing it on SaltyBeliever.com anyway.  It's too interesting not to talk about!)  In addition, unaware of my exploration Kerryn Talbot, the children's pastor at Risen Life Church has selected The Jesus Storybook Bible Curriculum for our children's church.

The Curriculum Kit includes one copy of the Jesus Storybook Bible, three CDs of the audio recordings by David Suchet, and a DVD that includes 44 animated videos and curriculum for print.  The print curriculum includes some promotional material, a guide on teaching the material, and the curriculum itself.  I'm not a children's pastor, but I am impressed with the curriculum.  It's designed so nearly anybody can teach a children's class.  There is a guide for leading a class with detailed instructions and information about the biblical text.  A game or activity is included as well as a memory verse and a colorful lesson handout.  At the bottom of the handout, there are further tips for parents so they may continue teaching the material throughout the week.  It really couldn't be easier.  But this is not to say that the material is lite; it's solid and teaches the Bible.  Even the memory verse has additional tools for learning because under the verse is a line with about five books of the Bible in canonical order.  The book where the verse is found is bold and in the center of the other books.  Even this will help children (and adults) learn the books of the Bible and where they are in the story.  (It might be nice to also have a timeline of The Story but that might be a little advanced for children.) 

The videos are remarkable.  Fancy they are not, but the quality of the audio recording and artwork makes them mesmerizing.  The videos are not flashy but simple, keeping the focus on the narrative.  Jago's art for the videos comes straight out of the artwork from the book so children will have a greater connection and reinforcement as they see the video, hear the words, and read the story.  The audio CDs can be used in the car  on the move to further reinforce God's Story with kids. (You can see a sample video of "The Servant King" without the title package above.)

Unfortunately, it is in the area of the videos where I have criticism.  Every video starts with a 45 second title introduction to give credit the publisher (ZonderKidz), author (Sally Lloyd-Jones), and the reader (David Suchet).  While I greatly appreciate the work of these individuals and I realize they should receive credit, it is troubling to think that a three or four minute video needs this much introduction. I could see it if the video were longer, but consuming 23% of a four minute video with this material is unfortunate.  As I imagine the teacher in the classroom--trying to keep things moving along smoothy--I see a man or woman in the room early setting up the DVD player in advance in order to bypass the title piece so the kids can get right into the video.  Why create this additional step?  The curriculum kit has already been purchased and the credits are on the box, the curriculum, and the DVD packaging.  Why continue to push the publisher and credits in ways that distract from the teaching of the material in the classroom?  I am also a little disappointed that there is not a "play all" feature for the videos.  It was my hope that I could have new believers over to my home with their kids and we could watch a movie of The Jesus Storybook Bible.  As the DVD presently works, a new video would need to be selected every three to four minutes and a 45-second title piece would need to be forwarded over every time.  This seems extremely distracting.  If I were to make a single suggestion, it would be a "play all" feature where after the first title package, no more are shown.  This would create a wonderful 2-hour movie of God's Story of redemption that few adults would want to miss.

Apart from my minor criticism of the way the videos are presented, I find The Jesus Storybook Bible Curriculum Kit extremely useful to teach the Bible.  The Curriculum Kit is a fresh and exciting approach to a timeless story and it works extremely well with The Jesus Storybook Bible. It's my hope--for the sake of children who will grow up to be Bible-knowing, Bible-believing, God-loving adults--that churches take a good look at The Jesus Storybook Bible Curriculum Kit and parents invest in a copy of The Jesus Storybook Bible for their kids (and for themselves!).  If you are still unclear about how The Story all fits together and how it all points to Jesus, or you just want to see the Bible through child-like eyes The Jesus Storybook Bible is for you!

*Zondervan provided this reviewer a free copy of The Jesus Storybook Bible for review purposes.  While it was done in exchange for a review, the free gift influenced the content of this review very little.
** Photos and videos are shared for the purposes of providing samples and examples and are not intended to serve solely as marketing for The Jesus Storybook Bible.

Church Planting: Plant One or Support One

There was a time when sending missionaries all over the world was the typical approach to making disciples.  Now it seems the movement has transitioned toward church planting.  

Matthew 28:19-20 mandates that disciples must make disciples all over the world and baptize them—which is typically treated as an introduction into the fellowship of Body of Christ—and then continue to teach them so they may grow in Christ. Tragic would be the missionary who baptizes new believers with no church body to connect them with. Therefore, a disciple working in this commission is either a missionary who works with and is in support of a local church, or he or she must be a disciple who plants churches, especially where there are few or none. There is no other option for a disciple in light of this commission. Thus, every disciple must evaluate his or her obedience to Matthew 28:19-20 and consider supporting an existing church or planting one.

Some look around and say there are already enough churches.  Maybe this is an excuse to do nothing.  So I suggest we think about this statement.  Given that there are still many lost souls who do not worship Jesus, most disciples should work to see more church plants.  If every person in a city were to attend a Sunday service, are there enough churches?  Is the Body really ready to remain content with only a fraction of the community worshiping the Living God.  Saying there are already enough churches suggests this is the case.  Yet, Matthew 28:19-20 says otherwise.

Gospel Planting with Adam Madden

We talk about all kinds of topics on Salty Believer Unscripted.  This week the subject was on church planting, or rather "gospel planting."  Jared Jenkins and I were happy to have lunch with church-planter Adam Madden (pictured to the right) and record the conversation. 

Adam Madden is the pastor of Christ Fellowship in the southwest part of the Salt Lake valley.  We greatly enjoy chatting with Adam and are looking forward to having him on the podcast again.

You can listen to our conversation here or subscribe to the "Salty Believer Unscripted" podcast on iTunes.


Subscribe to the Salty Believer iTunes Podcasts: Video | Audio
(Non iTunes: Video | Audio)
* While there may be some overlap, the content of the Video and Audio Podcasts are not the same.