"Is Religion the Cause of Most Wars?"

You've probably heard the claim that most wars have been caused by religion. I found this short article over at the Stand to Reason Blog to be helpful in responding to that claim.

One helpful thing to ask of the person who brings this or any other major claim is, "How did you come to that conclusion?" In otherwords, if they make a big claim, the burden of proof is on them. So let them bring evidence and don't immediately take the role of defending against an unsubstantiated claim. Of course, it is helpful to do your research and have a ready defense.

"Your 7 Job Responsibilities as a Church Member"

Did you know that you, as an ordinary church member (assuming you are a member), have responsibilities to your church body? I assume you do since Rod has just been preaching on how we, as members of Grace Church, agree to live out our commitments to Christ and his body. Here is a list of several responsibilities from Jonathan Leeman I found at the gospel coalition blog.

1. Attend church regularly (Hebrews 10:24-25)
2. Help preserve the gospel (Galatians 1:6)
3. Help affirm gospel citizens (ie. participating in affirming new member's profession of faith and exercising church discipline) (2 Cor. 2:6-8)
4. Attend member's meetings (this one really ties into points 1-3, read his article for more details)
5. Disciple other church members (Eph. 4:15-16)
6. Share the gospel with outsiders (2 Cor. 5:19b-20)
7. Follow your leaders (Eph. 4:12)

Leeman ends by writing what he says to those who are going to become a member of the church he is an elder at. It is helpful to remind us, who are so prone to individualism, of the collective responsibility we have for our local church family. Here is what he says,

Friend, by joining this church, you will become jointly responsible for whether or not this congregation continues to faithfully proclaim the gospel. That means you will become jointly responsible both for what this church teaches, as well as whether or not its members’ lives remain faithful. And one day you will stand before God and give an account for how you used this authority. Will you sit back and stay anonymous, doing little more than passively showing up for 75 minutes on Sundays? Or will you jump in with the hard and rewarding work of studying the gospel, building relationships, and making disciples? We need more hands for the harvest, so we hope you’ll join us in that work.

Life together is a serious, hard, and joyful thing. May God give us more of a vision for the calling we have within the church.

Are You a One Issue Voter?

I am a single issue voter. By that I do not mean that a single issue qualifies a person for a particular office. I don't mean that I do not care about a multitude of policies and positions. I care about government debt, about health care, and a host of other issues. What I mean is that there are positions that, if a candidate holds them, disqualifies him or her from office.  That might be a bit shocking, but it shouldn't be.

It shouldn't be shocking because you are a one-issue voter too. Everyone is. There are certain issues that would automatically disqualify someone from public office in your view too (assuming you are really a thinking person). If you don't think so, read how John Piper puts it in his 1995 article "One Issue Politics, One-Issue Marriage, and the Humane Society" (I saw this on Denny Burk's blog).

No endorsement of any single issue qualifies a person to hold public office. Being pro-life does not make a person a good governor, mayor, or president. But there are numerous single issues that disqualify a person from public office. For example, any candidate who endorsed bribery as a form of government efficiency would be disqualified, no matter what his party or platform was. Or a person who endorsed corporate fraud (say under $50 million) would be disqualified no matter what else he endorsed. Or a person who said that no black people could hold office—on that single issue alone he would be unfit for office. Or a person who said that rape is only a misdemeanor—that single issue would end his political career. These examples could go on and on. Everybody knows a single issue that for them would disqualify a candidate for office. 

It’s the same with marriage. No one quality makes a good wife or husband, but some qualities would make a person unacceptable. For example, back when I was thinking about getting married, not liking cats would not have disqualified a woman as my wife, but not liking people would. Drinking coffee would not, but drinking whiskey would. Kissing dogs wouldn’t, but kissing the mailman would. And so on. Being a single-issue fiancé does not mean that only one issue matters. It means that some issues may matter enough to break off the relationship. 

So it is with politics. You have to decide what those issues are for you. What do you think disqualifies a person from holding public office? I believe that the endorsement of the right to kill unborn children disqualifies a person from any position of public office. It’s simply the same as saying that the endorsement of racism, fraud, or bribery would disqualify him—except that child-killing is more serious than those.

As a Christian voter, I realize that being pro-life does not qualify a person for office, but being pro-abortion automatically disqualifies a person. 

I don't claim that this points exactly to who we should vote for. There may be several options. There may be an election where every candidate is "disqualified." I would not say that means we don't vote. We do have to make tough choices, but we ought to give weight to the things God says are most important. Government sanctioned killing of unborn humans is too serious to overlook in a leader.

Ultimately we don't trust in politics. We trust in the Lord, but the Lord does require us to think as Christians in every act we undertake, even voting.

HT: Denny Burk for pointing to the Piper article.

One-to-One Bible Reading Evangelism

At the very beginning of last semester, we went on a beach retreat and I gave out the book One to One Bible Reading by David Helm. This short book is a helpful resource and example of how to do
evangelism and discipleship one to one (or in a small group) just going through a book of the Bible together. I highly recommend that book (a few are available in the fellowship hall).

I want to bring the idea back up because I don't want it to slip out of our view. It is so easy to get busy (especially as mid-terms approach) and to assume we "don't have time" to approach a classmate or coworker about whether they would be interested in meeting up to read and talk about the Bible. While we are all busy, I don't think we are too busy to do this. We can't be. The gospel is of first importance (1 Corinthians 15).

So, let me encourage you to learn how to study the bible with another person (maybe practice with a friend from church - it will be an edifying and equipping time). Then ask God to give you one friend to invite to meet up with you to read and learn about God from the Bible. I think you will be surprised that many of them know little about the Bible and will want to at least look into it.

Here is an article about a young woman who has been doing this type evangelism. Also, I would be glad to meet up with you and help you think about how to be grow in this area.

Facing Anxiety about the Future and Decision Making?

All young adults have to work through how to make decisions that will affect their lives. The question, "What is God's will for my life?," seems to surface routinely.

Recently, there was a two part (short) series, by Pat Quinn, about this topic over at the Biblical Counseling Coalition blog. I recommend them to you.

1. Wisdom for the young part 1 - This one briefly discusses the fact that on the most important things, God's will is clearly spelled out in his Word.
2. Wisdom for the young part 2 - This article then talks about the areas of life where Scripture doesn't function as a road map but more of a compass (ex. where should I go to school? What should I major in?). 

A short quote from the second article

Use the gospel to motivate them to give themselves to God, refuse worldly values, and renew their minds continually... A heart motivated by mercy, a body committed to God, and a mind transformed by the Word will ultimately be a life without deep regrets. This is truly the “good life.”

He references Kevin DeYoung's short book Just Do Something,  and I whole-heartedly recommend that book to you as well.