Crawford, Little Rock, Kennebunkport,...and now, Wasilla? Now that Sarah Palin is the Republican candidate for Vice President, the little town in Alaska we call home could be that one proverbial heartbeat away from lasting fame as the hometown of the President. Will there be a Presidential Library here someday (first a bigger regular library would be nice)? Will Air Force One become a common sight in the Alaska sky? Will there be Secret Service agents prowling about every time President Palin comes home?
Of course, I'm getting ahead of myself. She's running for Vice President, not President, and there is that little hurdle of the election standing in the way. But, it has been fun to see our once-obscure town put instantly on the map. Whatever happens in the next two months, Wasilla's claim to fame will be not only as the home of the Iditarod, but also as the home of Sarah Palin.
Whatever one's views of Palin politically, it's hard not to be excited when someone from the "neighborhood", so to speak, hits the big time. It's like rooting for your third cousin who's competing in the Olympics. Even as tenuous as our connection to her may be (see below), we get to bask in a little bit of the national limelight as residents of her hometown. I guess it is just human nature to want a slice of the glory pie, no matter how thin it is.
Of course, it was big news here yesterday. I've only been here a year, so I don't know what other momentous occasions have taken place here. But, I would guess this is the biggest happening to date. Of course, Dairy Queen's grand opening in nearby Palmer last year created a stir. But this is even bigger than that!
We received several e-mails from friends yesterday about it, and some of them asked for "insider" information about Palin. I'm sorry to disappoint, but we have nothing to offer. We know people who have met her. Her high school alma mater is just down the road from the church. But, that's about the extent of any personal connection with our governor. In fact, I learned more about her yesterday than I did the past 14 months living in her home state.
I can say that, generally speaking, she is well-thought of in these parts. Most people refer to her as "Sarah", as though they know her personally. And, given the size of Wasilla, I imagine that a lot of people do. Some have wondered about the wisdom of her decision to accept the the Vice Presidential candidacy when she just gave birth to a child not long ago (and a special-needs child, at that). I trust she and her family made that decision after careful thought and, I hope, much prayer.
In any case, it will make for an even more interesting election this fall.
Saturday, August 30, 2008
Tuesday, August 26, 2008
"With Reverence and Awe," by Hart and Muether
The subtitle of this book is, "Returning to the Basics of Reformed Worship." The authors' aim is to draw out the implications that Reformed theology has for the church's worship. In their words, they have written "a brief overview of how Reformed theology informs the way we think about, put together, and participate in a worship service" (pg. 13). Though written with a view to the ongoing worship debates among Reformed churches, to their credit the authors spend more time and energy explaining basic principles of worship than merely addressing this or that specific issue. The result is a book that is edifying and helpful, even if one doesn't come to the same conclusions as the authors do on any given matter.
I found myself in broad agreement with the book. It is true that what we believe about God and man, our theology, will necessarily influence how we worship. That is the basic thesis upon which the authors build their case that Reformed theology ought to produce worship of a certain character and form. They write, "Reformed worship has always flowed from Reformed theology. Simply put, you can't have one without the other" (pg. 15). Much of the book is then devoted to explaining the principles of historic Reformed theology that will (or ought to) shape how we worship: the sufficiency of Scripture, the holiness of God, the covenant, the Lord's Day, the means of grace, and so on. As a primer on the basic truths underlying biblical worship from a distinctly Reformed perspective, this is a most helpful book.
Some points were especially good. One, the authors point out that worship is the primary means by which God builds up and sustains his people in faith. As a pilgrim people living in a wilderness but looking forward to our heavenly home, it is the ministry of the Word, sacraments, and prayer, specifically as that comes to us in worship, that nourishes our souls in our journey. In other words, Sunday morning worship is not merely a beneficial supplement in our Christian lives, but it is at the very heart of our walk with Christ. This suggests that the primary benefit of worship is not the one-time experience it produces, but the long-term blessing it brings. This reminded me of Marva Dawn's point about the character-building effects of regular worship.
Another excellent point the authors made was the relationship between the church and worship. Quoting another minister, they write, "Growth in true holiness is always growth together. It takes place through nurture, through the work and worship of the church" (pg. 138). The church is called out of the world for the sake of worshiping God, and that worship is by definition corporate worship. This (along with much the authors write) flies in the face both of American culture and of popular evangelical culture. We prize independence and self-reliance, values that are beneficial in many ways, but which make Christ's call to humbly submit to one another in the church particularly difficult (Ephesians 5:21). (I might add to that, Alaskans in particular are a cussedly independent lot!). The point here is that worship is not about my "experience" so much as it is about giving glory to God side by side with all of God's people. To grow in grace, we need the church, and we especially need to worship with the church.
So I did concur with the main thrust of the book. In their call to think carefully about our worship practices (whether actual or proposed) in light of our theology, the authors need to be heard. I may not agree with every conclusion they make, but the basic argument is sound.
The fact of the matter is that, even when believers agree on basic principles of worship (even on the narrower matter of specifically Reformed worship), they will not always agree on how to best apply those principles. What I have learned as a pastor is how desperately I need wisdom, love, and humility in addressing the matter of the church's worship.
One thing that should be said, not so much as a critique but as a response to the book, is that the form of worship is only half the story. The other half is the heart of the worshiper. The authors of this book would no doubt agree with this, but their concern is primarily on the form of worship (though they do speak of the need to worship with reverence and joy). God gave Israel a very specific form of worship but the prophets denounced the Israelites when they worshiped with formal correctness but their hearts far from God (Isaiah 1:12-17; Amos 5:21-24; Micah 6:6-8). If Reformed worship is to be Reformed according to the Word of God, then it must not only be faithful to sound theology in its form, but it must also be the expression of those who truly love God, and are seeking to obey Him. Worship acceptable to God is worship both in forms faithful to Scripture, and from hearts faithful to Christ.
I found myself in broad agreement with the book. It is true that what we believe about God and man, our theology, will necessarily influence how we worship. That is the basic thesis upon which the authors build their case that Reformed theology ought to produce worship of a certain character and form. They write, "Reformed worship has always flowed from Reformed theology. Simply put, you can't have one without the other" (pg. 15). Much of the book is then devoted to explaining the principles of historic Reformed theology that will (or ought to) shape how we worship: the sufficiency of Scripture, the holiness of God, the covenant, the Lord's Day, the means of grace, and so on. As a primer on the basic truths underlying biblical worship from a distinctly Reformed perspective, this is a most helpful book.
Some points were especially good. One, the authors point out that worship is the primary means by which God builds up and sustains his people in faith. As a pilgrim people living in a wilderness but looking forward to our heavenly home, it is the ministry of the Word, sacraments, and prayer, specifically as that comes to us in worship, that nourishes our souls in our journey. In other words, Sunday morning worship is not merely a beneficial supplement in our Christian lives, but it is at the very heart of our walk with Christ. This suggests that the primary benefit of worship is not the one-time experience it produces, but the long-term blessing it brings. This reminded me of Marva Dawn's point about the character-building effects of regular worship.
Another excellent point the authors made was the relationship between the church and worship. Quoting another minister, they write, "Growth in true holiness is always growth together. It takes place through nurture, through the work and worship of the church" (pg. 138). The church is called out of the world for the sake of worshiping God, and that worship is by definition corporate worship. This (along with much the authors write) flies in the face both of American culture and of popular evangelical culture. We prize independence and self-reliance, values that are beneficial in many ways, but which make Christ's call to humbly submit to one another in the church particularly difficult (Ephesians 5:21). (I might add to that, Alaskans in particular are a cussedly independent lot!). The point here is that worship is not about my "experience" so much as it is about giving glory to God side by side with all of God's people. To grow in grace, we need the church, and we especially need to worship with the church.
So I did concur with the main thrust of the book. In their call to think carefully about our worship practices (whether actual or proposed) in light of our theology, the authors need to be heard. I may not agree with every conclusion they make, but the basic argument is sound.
The fact of the matter is that, even when believers agree on basic principles of worship (even on the narrower matter of specifically Reformed worship), they will not always agree on how to best apply those principles. What I have learned as a pastor is how desperately I need wisdom, love, and humility in addressing the matter of the church's worship.
One thing that should be said, not so much as a critique but as a response to the book, is that the form of worship is only half the story. The other half is the heart of the worshiper. The authors of this book would no doubt agree with this, but their concern is primarily on the form of worship (though they do speak of the need to worship with reverence and joy). God gave Israel a very specific form of worship but the prophets denounced the Israelites when they worshiped with formal correctness but their hearts far from God (Isaiah 1:12-17; Amos 5:21-24; Micah 6:6-8). If Reformed worship is to be Reformed according to the Word of God, then it must not only be faithful to sound theology in its form, but it must also be the expression of those who truly love God, and are seeking to obey Him. Worship acceptable to God is worship both in forms faithful to Scripture, and from hearts faithful to Christ.
Thursday, August 21, 2008
Lloyd-Jones on the Sermon on the Mount
As part of my regular sermon preparation each week, I spend a fair amount of time reading commentaries of individual books of the Bible. A good commentary need not inspire, but it should help the reader understand the meaning of any given text. Because this involves technical questions of language and context, reading them can become a dry and even tedious affair. Many of the newer scholarly commentaries, as they interact with the work of other scholars, sometimes read more like commentaries on commentaries rather than explanations of Scripture. And they are big, some taking up the shelf space of two or even three Bibles.
These commentaries are important and have their place, of course. But it is always refreshing to spend some time in a work that speaks to the heart as much as to the mind. In preaching through the Sermon on the Mount in recent months, one gem I've discovered that does just that is D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones' book, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount. It is a collection of 30 (!) sermons he preached on the subject during his pulpit ministry at Westminster Chapel in London.
It is a wonderfully clear and insightful series of messages on what is probably the most familiar but most misunderstood teaching of Jesus. The Sermon on the Mount, and particularly isolated statements from it (e.g., "Judge not, that you be not judged"), has been taken as the ultimate expression of what Jesus was really all about: improving the world with a new social ethic, showing humanity the right way to live, etc. Throughout these sermons, however, Lloyd-Jones places the teachings of Christ in their proper gospel light. Far from being merely a superior moral code, the Sermon on the Mount is teaching that both depends upon the grace of God in Christ, and leads to the grace of God in Christ. As Lloyd-Jones puts it, "...we are not told in the Sermon on the Mount, 'Live like this and you will become Christian'; rather we are told, 'Because you are Christian live like this.' This is how Christians ought to live; this is how Christians are meant to live." And, "There is nothing that so leads to the gospel and its grace as the Sermon on the Mount."
This approach, I hope, has been reflected in my preaching. The moral imperatives contained in the Sermon, which must be declared and impressed upon the hearts of God's people, ultimately ought to bring us back to God's saving and enabling grace in the gospel of Jesus Christ. In preaching through the Sermon on the Mount, I hope my congregation has heard much about the grace of God from the pulpit, even as I have sought to proclaim the righteousness Christ demands from his disciples.
One enduring quality of Lloyd-Jones' sermons is how well he puts things. Here are a couple of quotes:
On loving our enemies: "...our treatment of others must never depend upon what they are, or upon what they do to us. It must be entirely controlled and governed by our view of them and of their condition."
And on prayer: "You will find that the outstanding characteristic of all the most saintly people the world has ever known has been that they have not only spent much time in private prayer, but have also delighted in it."
This is a eminently worthwhile book to buy and read.
These commentaries are important and have their place, of course. But it is always refreshing to spend some time in a work that speaks to the heart as much as to the mind. In preaching through the Sermon on the Mount in recent months, one gem I've discovered that does just that is D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones' book, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount. It is a collection of 30 (!) sermons he preached on the subject during his pulpit ministry at Westminster Chapel in London.
It is a wonderfully clear and insightful series of messages on what is probably the most familiar but most misunderstood teaching of Jesus. The Sermon on the Mount, and particularly isolated statements from it (e.g., "Judge not, that you be not judged"), has been taken as the ultimate expression of what Jesus was really all about: improving the world with a new social ethic, showing humanity the right way to live, etc. Throughout these sermons, however, Lloyd-Jones places the teachings of Christ in their proper gospel light. Far from being merely a superior moral code, the Sermon on the Mount is teaching that both depends upon the grace of God in Christ, and leads to the grace of God in Christ. As Lloyd-Jones puts it, "...we are not told in the Sermon on the Mount, 'Live like this and you will become Christian'; rather we are told, 'Because you are Christian live like this.' This is how Christians ought to live; this is how Christians are meant to live." And, "There is nothing that so leads to the gospel and its grace as the Sermon on the Mount."
This approach, I hope, has been reflected in my preaching. The moral imperatives contained in the Sermon, which must be declared and impressed upon the hearts of God's people, ultimately ought to bring us back to God's saving and enabling grace in the gospel of Jesus Christ. In preaching through the Sermon on the Mount, I hope my congregation has heard much about the grace of God from the pulpit, even as I have sought to proclaim the righteousness Christ demands from his disciples.
One enduring quality of Lloyd-Jones' sermons is how well he puts things. Here are a couple of quotes:
On loving our enemies: "...our treatment of others must never depend upon what they are, or upon what they do to us. It must be entirely controlled and governed by our view of them and of their condition."
And on prayer: "You will find that the outstanding characteristic of all the most saintly people the world has ever known has been that they have not only spent much time in private prayer, but have also delighted in it."
This is a eminently worthwhile book to buy and read.
Thursday, August 14, 2008
Summer vacation
We returned Monday night from a three-week vacation to Wisconsin and Illinois. Though normally Alaskans don't like to travel "outside" during the summer months, saving those trips for the dead of winter instead, we made our vacation plans around the Robyn's brother's wedding. John and Gina tied the knot in Milwaukee. Here the happy groom and bride are making their grand entrance at the reception.
We must be getting used to the Arctic climate here, because Wisconsin was a lot hotter and more humid than I remember it. What better place to chill out than the hotel pool?
After a couple of weeks in the Dairy State, we spent a week in Wheaton, Illinois. One special treat was taking the train downtown to check out Shedd Aquarium. The kids loved the train, and I'm sure the commuters were equally thrilled to have them as their fellow passengers that morning.
Knowing we were going to be in Chicago for months now, Robyn and I bought tickets to a Cardinals-Cubs game at Wrigley field way back in February. Despite our best efforts at cheering the Redbirds on to victory, they lost to the Cubs in extra innings. On the way back to the train station, we were heckled by some gloating Chicagoans. Cubs fans get to boast only once every century, so we didn't mind too much.
The next day I went back to Wrigley with three friends from high school. The four of us haven't been together in twenty years. Except for a few extra pounds, a few more gray hairs (or in my case at least, a few less hairs), we look just like we did in 1987.
We sat in the bleachers and watched the Cards pound the Cubs. Funny, the Cubs fans didn't have much to say to us that day!
It was a busy vacation, and at times actually relaxing. But, it is good to be home again.
We must be getting used to the Arctic climate here, because Wisconsin was a lot hotter and more humid than I remember it. What better place to chill out than the hotel pool?
After a couple of weeks in the Dairy State, we spent a week in Wheaton, Illinois. One special treat was taking the train downtown to check out Shedd Aquarium. The kids loved the train, and I'm sure the commuters were equally thrilled to have them as their fellow passengers that morning.
Knowing we were going to be in Chicago for months now, Robyn and I bought tickets to a Cardinals-Cubs game at Wrigley field way back in February. Despite our best efforts at cheering the Redbirds on to victory, they lost to the Cubs in extra innings. On the way back to the train station, we were heckled by some gloating Chicagoans. Cubs fans get to boast only once every century, so we didn't mind too much.
The next day I went back to Wrigley with three friends from high school. The four of us haven't been together in twenty years. Except for a few extra pounds, a few more gray hairs (or in my case at least, a few less hairs), we look just like we did in 1987.
We sat in the bleachers and watched the Cards pound the Cubs. Funny, the Cubs fans didn't have much to say to us that day!
It was a busy vacation, and at times actually relaxing. But, it is good to be home again.
Wednesday, August 13, 2008
Family Camp 2008
One of the enduring traditions of Grace OPC is the annual summer Family Camp. For three days the people of Grace retreat to a nearby campground (as you might guess, one doesn't have to travel far from Wasilla to find wilderness!) for a time of relaxation, fellowship, play, and ministry of the Word. The church invites a guest speaker each year to give four different presentations or messages, including a sermon on Sunday morning. Past speakers include missionaries, authors, and notable ministers. But three summers ago the church invited some nobody from Oklahoma to speak and he ended up becoming the pastor of the church! (In case you didn't catch the reference, that would be me).
We had an excellent speaker this year. His name is JD Wetterling, an elder in the Presbyterian Church of America, and an author who has written several books and articles. JD has an extremely varied and interesting background: he was a fighter pilot in the Vietnam war, has worked in the business world, has spoken to various groups across the country, and most recently managed a retreat center in North Carolina. Here is JD with his wife Karen at the camp.
JD spoke to us about the "no one" statements of Jesus from the gospel of John, weaving into his messages fascinating stories from his fighter pilot days and from the interactions he's had with various people God brought into his life as a result of his writing. As someone who is usually doing the talking in church, it was refreshing for me to sit back and hear JD minister the words of Christ to us.
You can read JD's impressions of Alaska on his blog here.
One of the traditions at Family Camp is a fishing contest for the children. How was the fishing this year? Let's just say it was a bad few days to be a Rainbow trout. Here are some of the kids from the camp, including Meredith and Maggie, with their catches.
Fishing, softball, campfires, fellowship, games, good preaching - this year's Family Camp included it all. I'm looking forward to next summer's camp.
We had an excellent speaker this year. His name is JD Wetterling, an elder in the Presbyterian Church of America, and an author who has written several books and articles. JD has an extremely varied and interesting background: he was a fighter pilot in the Vietnam war, has worked in the business world, has spoken to various groups across the country, and most recently managed a retreat center in North Carolina. Here is JD with his wife Karen at the camp.
JD spoke to us about the "no one" statements of Jesus from the gospel of John, weaving into his messages fascinating stories from his fighter pilot days and from the interactions he's had with various people God brought into his life as a result of his writing. As someone who is usually doing the talking in church, it was refreshing for me to sit back and hear JD minister the words of Christ to us.
You can read JD's impressions of Alaska on his blog here.
One of the traditions at Family Camp is a fishing contest for the children. How was the fishing this year? Let's just say it was a bad few days to be a Rainbow trout. Here are some of the kids from the camp, including Meredith and Maggie, with their catches.
Fishing, softball, campfires, fellowship, games, good preaching - this year's Family Camp included it all. I'm looking forward to next summer's camp.
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