Sermon Notes - Watching, Waiting and Working

Watching, Waiting and Working, Mark 13:1-37
J. Josh Smith, MacArthur Boulevard Baptist Church, attended January 31, 2010

“To accept everything is an exercise, to understand everything a strain. The poet only desires exaltation and expansion, a world to stretch himself in. The poet only asks to get his head into the heavens. It is the logician who seeks to get the heavens into his head. And it is his head that splits.” G.K. Chesterton

This is the Olivet discourse. It is hard to understand. We must remember that Jesus didn’t preach this to confuse us or the disciples. He gave this to prepare them, and us. It gives us enough but not too much. If He wanted us to know the details He would have given them to us. The message: Jesus is coming. Be prepared.

Mark 13:1 – Jesus has spent the last two days at the temple. They looked back at the temple. Perhaps the disciples were trying to lighten the mood here after some tense moments in the temple?

Mark 13:2 – Jesus knew Titus was coming in A.D. 70.

Mark 13:3 – They walk up to the Mount of Olives. They can still see the temple.

Mark 13:4 – The disciples ask another question based on His previous answer. He answers them with 33 verses of prophecy.

Prophecy includes a reference to two futures: a “near” future, happening soon, and a “distant” future, happening further away. Jesus switches between the “near” – “these things”, and the “distant” – “those days”.

The “near” future – Mark 13:5-13

1. Watch out for deception – Mark 13:5

“Watch out” doesn’t just mean “see” the car, but “get out of the way!” of the car.

All kinds of people will say things in My name. When this happens keep watching and listening to Me.

2. Watch out for desertion – Mark 13:9-13

Don’t abandon the faith. You will be persecuted. Those who persevere to the end will be saved. They rebuked and flogged me and they will do it to you. Don’t think your life will be different. It will be difficult. In the midst of this persecution, focus on the Gospel (Mark 13:10). Just keep being careful (Mark 13:13).

It is good news that Jesus knows what is coming. If you don’t make it to the end – you didn’t trust Him in the first place.

The “distant” future – Mark 13:14-27

Jesus is switching from “near” to “distant” as He talks of “enduring to the end” and uses a reference to “those days”.

There is the strange wording of “abomination” (to God) of “desolation” (utter destruction). (See 2 Thessalonians 2 for further reference)

Mark 13:21-22 – His warning is exactly the same for both “near” and “distant”.

Mark 13:23 – He uses the same words used in Mark 13:5 and Mark 13:9. Don’t worry, I’ve told you everything you need to know.

Mark 13:24-25 – Things are getting worse. Mark 13:20 tells us that we would all be destroyed if God didn’t keep us alive.

Mark 13:26 – Jesus comes to the rescue. It is like being bullied by the entire class, the worst moment of your life, and your big brother comes to the rescue (Hebrews 2).

The “immediate” - Mark 13:28-37

This brings us to the real focus. He wants them to know about the immediate future – right now. Not “near” or “distant”.

Mark 13:28-30 – Learn from the fig tree. “These things” is their time. Immediate.

Mark 13:31-37 – Know that My Word is certain. When God speaks it happens. He gives them things they need to know and do.

1. Watch faithfully – Mark 13:33

We are more sometimes more tempted to leave the faith as time goes on.

2. Wait confidently – Mark 13:33-37

“Keep on the alert”, waiting actively, not just watching passively. A state of spiritual slumber where you are not thinking of things of the Lord is useless for the kingdom.

3. Work vigilantly – Mark 13:34, 35, 37

He is not using the same “alert” word of Mark 13:33. Awake and working, they go together. There is no glory from the master in just being awake.

He doesn’t want to come back finding us busy doing “church” things but, rather, doing the “right” things. What is our task as slaves? Take the Gospel to the ends of the earth – the Great Commission. We have been left here to lead people to Jesus Christ. He wants to see us passionately sharing His good news. He is passionate for lost people and so should we be. How are you doing with the primary task you have been left to do? How is your heart for lost people?

The more you start sharing the Gospel, the more you will suffer and the more you will long for Jesus to come back. The return of Jesus is certain. Embrace the suffering and humility of Christ now so that you will be taken with Him when He returns.

NOTE: These are my notes, taken as I listened to the sermon live. Any errors, misunderstandings or misinterpretations are my responsibility entirely and not the fault of the preacher.

Quote - It is the student who must learn the lesson!

"People sometimes think that salvation imparts . . . godly virtues, fine qualities of Christian character, lovely traits of disposition, and elements of spiritual beauty-without any cost or effort to the believer himself!

Christ's followers are transformed--old things pass away, and all things become new. Those who believe in Him--are fashioned into His image. But these blessings do not come easily. The heavenly graces are not put into our life--as one might hang up lovely pictures on the walls to adorn a home! They must be wrought into our life in a sense, by our own hands. We must work out our own salvation, although it is God who works in us, both to will and to work.

For example, patience is not put into anyone's life--as one brings in a piece of new furniture. You cannot merely receive patience as a gift from God. Patience is a lesson to be learned--through long and watchful self-discipline. Christ is the teacher--but you are the student, and it is the student who must learn the lesson! Not even Christ will learn it for you--to spare you the effort. Nor can it be made an easy lesson for you. It costs to grow patient, and you must pay the price yourself!

The same is true of all the elements of a godly and worthy character.

We are always at school in this world. God is teaching us the things we need to learn. The lessons are not easy--sometimes they are very hard! But the hardest lessons are the best--for they bring out in us the finest qualities, if only we learn them well.

Those, therefore, who find themselves in what may seem adverse conditions, compelled to face hardship, endure opposition, and pass through struggle--should quietly accept the responsibility; and, trusting in Christ for guidance and strength, go firmly and courageously forward, conscious that they have now an opportunity to grow strong, and develop in themselves the qualities of worthy and noble character!"

J.R. Miller, Strength and Beauty

Sermon Notes - People Are Not Always What They Appear

People Are Not Always What They Appear, Mark 12:35-44
J. Josh Smith, MacArthur Boulevard Baptist Church, attended January 24, 2010

Perception is often different from reality. God always sees the reality however. He sees the heart behind the veil. He knows, sees and will expose it all.

1. Jesus is greater than He appears to be – Mark 12:35-37

The scribes had an incorrect and inadequate view of Jesus. Inadequate in that they didn’t think of Him as great as He actually was. Incorrect in that He was the son of David but they didn’t think of Him as the Son of God.

The church is filled with people who have created their own Jesus. A comfortable Jesus. They have created a Messiah they want, just like the scribes.

2. The scribes are not as great as they appear – Mark 12:38-40

Warning others to beware of the scribes while in a room of scribes is very bold. They had the appearance of wealth, respect, notoriety and the appearance of a good relationship with God. Appearance is not necessarily reality however.

They took advantage of widows. They appear to love God and others but in reality love neither. They are not what they appear to be. They have used God to benefit themselves. Jesus does not tolerate those receiving glory for themselves in the name of Jesus. They deceive people into thinking they were something they weren’t.

3. The widow is greater than she appears – Mark 12:41-45

Jesus seems to be people watching here. We just see activity however. He sees the activity and the motivation. He is still doing that today.

This is one of only three times that He calls the disciples over to Himself. The last person He interacts with in Mark is this woman.

"Truly, I say to you…” – in our terms this isn’t a true statement. Large sums are bigger than small. In God’s economy however she put in much more. Her gift cost her something. The other gifts cost them nothing. This is a picture of greatness in the kingdom of God. Greatness is a matter of how God views you, not others.

It is really easy to neuter Christianity so that it has no power, no cost, and no sacrifice, so that it fits in with our life and agenda. Being a Christian, by its very nature, means to deny yourself, take up your cross, and follow Jesus. Is your life characterized by selfless love for Christ, self-denial, and costly sacrifice?

Vague thinking neuters Christianity more than anything else. This text is an example. We don’t stop to think carefully about what it means to us. We don’t let it transform us. He is calling us, just like He did the disciples, to come and look at something. He wants us to learn something here.

What caught His eye?

Her offering was valuable not because of the amount but because of the cost – If she had only one coin she could have given everything or not. With two coins she could have kept one coin and still given fifty percent of her income. By giving two she had nothing left for herself. What does it mean to give everything? Mark 8. It means that you place more value on the things of the Lord than the things you want or need.

God doesn’t work on a % basis. We have messed up if we think our Christianity is done when we give ten percent. That is a great place to start. It is basic. Remember that 100% of your money comes from God. Are we even really sacrificing when we give 10%? It has cost us nothing. We haven’t missed a meal. The widow understood sacrifice. To whom much is given, much is required.

Money is a training ground for learning to sacrifice for Christ. Do we love Him more than ourselves? The issue goes back to a deeper issue of contentment. Could you be content with living on only what you need, and not all the things you want? Not only could you? Do you? Are you willing? This is a tough question because we often confuse our needs and wants, but this is a question and issue we must settle. (1 Timothy 6:6-10)

Her offering not only revealed her poverty it revealed her heart – Matthew 6:21

She values the work of God more than she values food. If the priority was herself then she would have given less. He doesn’t need your money, He wants your heart. Money is a way to determine where you are. Your heart follows your treasure.

Her offering doesn’t reveal her commitment to Christ but it does reveal ours – This is not necessarily a model for faith in Jesus but a model of self-denial. If she is a model of self-denial then how are you doing? Are you catching the eye of Jesus?

Every time Jesus reveals who someone really is He reveals who I really am. Am I someone who likes to have the appearance of a self sacrificing lover of Jesus Christ? He knows. Who I am before God matters more than who I am before you. It ultimately doesn’t matter how others view you.

The good news is that God loves to give new hearts.

Sermon Notes - Jesus: The One with All the Answers

Jesus: The One with All the Answers, Mark 12:13-34
J. Josh Smith, MacArthur Boulevard Baptist Church, attended January 17, 2010

“What is truth?” - Pontius Pilate

“To say of what is that it is not, or of what is not that it is, is false, while to say of what is that it is, and of what is not that it is not, is true.” - Aristotle

“You shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.” - Jesus Christ

Three views of truth. A cynical one that discourages us. A philosophical one that confuses us. Only Jesus gives us hope.

The religious leaders have a lot of great questions but no good answers. When you are tired of the philosophers and the cynics, Jesus always has the answer. The answers, although important, are not the ultimate thing however.

1. He has all the answers to our ethical questions – Mark 12:13-17

They begin by “buttering” Him up. It is all good and true though. They have no idea how profound their “buttering up” is. They then ask the question in Mark 12:14-15.

The Jews were living under the authority of the Romans and wanted their own nation. There were three main factions. Zealots – wanted to overthrow the government and never pay taxes. Sadducees – were not happy with the government but paid the tax anyway. Herodians – said the Romans were right to have the authority and paid the tax willingly.

His answer will either get Him in theological or political trouble and the leaders knew this. Jesus’ answer could have freed us from any allegiance to the governing authority but it didn’t. The human authority is a God ordained authority and we live under it and thus must submit. It is a valid authority and we have a responsibility before God to submit. (Romans 13) The way we submit to governmental authority says something about how we respond to God’s authority. Christians, of all people, should be law-abiding citizens. The only time we don’t have to submit is when we are asked to disobey a commandment of God or we are asked to do something immoral.

We give to God the things that are God’s. His likeness is upon you so give it to Him. Submit fully to Him.

2. He has the answer to our spiritual questions – Mark 12:18-27

They don’t believe in a resurrection or afterlife so trying to trap Him. They don’t understand the scripture as it clearly teaches of an afterlife. They also don’t understand the power of God in that they don’t think He can take care of this problem.

We can’t understand life in heaven by looking at life on earth – Saying we understand heaven is like saying, “I can’t swim underwater so fish don’t exist.” It is a category mistake. In our society marriage is the pinnacle of love and commitment. In heaven He is the pinnacle.

Everyone who dies will rise again – He is very sarcastic here, “Have you never read about the burning bush? How can I be a God of dead people? They haven’t died, they are still living (Abraham, Isaac, and Jacob), so I am their God.” How could He fulfill promises to them unless they are resurrected? We often commit the same error by thinking we make things non-existent by thinking they don’t exist.

3. He has the answer to our relational questions – Mark 12:28-34

There is a distinction between this man and the others because he is asking sincerely. Jesus responds to those who humbly ask.

He brings these two commands together and says they are inseparable. You can’t love God and not love other people.

Four things about Biblical love:

Biblical love is always relational – can’t love Him without first having a relationship with Him through Jesus. It says love your God, which implies a relationship. We don’t read the Bible to get more knowledge. We read the Bible to know God better..

Biblical love is all consuming – It involves our heart thus our affections and desires. It involves our mind. Nothing kills Christianity like vague thinking. It involves our strength, thus our energy. Love Jesus with everything you have in the fullest possible way. Obedience to all other commands without loving God is of no use.

Love God with your mind by making your thoughts about Him. Read your Bible and think often of Him. Love God with your strength by using your strength to serve Him and be actively involved in advancing His kingdom.

Biblical love is selfless - By our very nature we are selfish people. We are love others more than we love ourselves. You can’t love God and others truly unless you are done with yourself.

Biblical love is vertical and horizontal – He had to give two commands. Loving other people is a test of loving God. If you aren’t kind and affectionate to your spouse you don’t love God. If you hate another then you don’t love God.

Do not be deceived into thinking you can love God without loving those closest to you. Ask God to give you supernatural and heartfelt love for those around you.

Mark 12:34 – He says you aren’t far from the kingdom, which means He isn’t in the kingdom. Answers are not the ultimate. You may have all the answers but not be a part of the kingdom of God. You certainly don’t want it to be said that you aren’t far from the kingdom. He should have come and asked for mercy, instead of an answer.

Better than the answers is payment for sin. It isn’t that you have all your questions answered but that you have saving faith in God.

Algebra and Discernment

This great post on long division and discernment from Tim Challies got me to thinking about algebra.

It is a common question of every middle schooler and high schooler. Why study algebra? I've asked myself the same question, although I never asked it about algebra. I enjoyed algebra, and trigonometry and calculus - up to a point. I did ask it about other subjects though.

There really are some good answers to that. It's mainly about exercising your mind.

"Learning algebra isn't about acquiring a specific tool; it's about building up a mental muscle that will come in handy elsewhere. You don't go to the gym because you're interested in learning how to operate a StairMaster; you go to the gym because operating a StairMaster does something laudable to your body, the benefits of which you enjoy during the many hours of the week when you're not on a StairMaster." - Steven Johnson, Everything Bad Is Good For You

It's a way of thinking about problems. It's about discipline, which carries over to other parts of your life. From Challies (By the way, I highly recommend his book, The Discipline of Spiritual Discernment):

"Like using a calculator for division, we can rely on others to give us the bottom line. But like doing long division, it is far better to do the work ourselves and to ensure we understand how to discern. The theological equivalent of using a calculator may be just Googling what John Piper or John MacArthur says about a certain topic and taking that word as law. It may be asking a parent or pastor and accepting what they say without further thought. We are all prone to want to get to the final tally without going through the intervening steps.

But like the kid who cheats by using a calculator, we cheat ourselves if we do not do the difficult work of discernment. As we discern what is good and what is evil, what is right and what is wrong, we train ourselves to think as Christians and we train ourselves to really understand what discernment is. We make sure that we understand the difficult business of discernment—not only the end result but the process of getting there."

You may never have to solve linear equations ever again but you will have to solve problems and understand how others solve them even if you don't, or can't, solve them yourselves.

But who says you will never use it. I do. Take this situation for example.

Mutual funds commonly pay a dividend to their investors. It is paid on a per share basis. So, to make it easy, if you own 100 shares and they pay a $1.00 dividend per share you would get $100. You could take that money and buy a new video game or you could reinvest the $100 back into the mutual fund. When you reinvest you will buy the mutual fund shares at whatever price per share they are at that day. If the mutual fund shares are trading at $20 per share you could buy 5 more shares and thus have 105 shares after the dividend is paid.

Here is where the algebra comes in. This is a real-life scenario, i.e. it actually happened. I'm not making it up to make a point!

A client calls us and said he needs to know how many shares he originally bought of a mutual fund. (Don't even ask where all his documentation was from the original purchase.) The mutual fund just paid a dividend and he now has 1,103.547 shares after he reinvested the dividend. He just doesn't know how many shares he had originally. We know the mutual fund paid a dividend of $.9250 cents per share. He bought, or reinvested, new shares at $12.27. How many shares did he originally have?

Now, I could do a lot of estimating and just keep plugging in numbers to figure out how many shares he had, or I could work through the problem in a logical way with algebra.

So, you tell me. How many shares did he originally have?

You really don't think I'm going to tell you do you? You will have to show me some work first! (Hint: Let "x" represent his original shares.)

The point is that I think you will use algebra - if you know when it is necessary. Like I said, there are other ways I could have solved this problem. I could have called my old mutual fund trading desk, and let them try to solve it, or I could have estimated, and taken a lot of time. I'm sure there are other ways I don't even know about.

In the same way, you will use discernment skills - if you know when it is necessary, which in the case of discernment is almost constant. You can rely on someone else (which involves discernment in itself) or you can do the hard work and grow as a Christian and in the process deepen your relationship with a holy God.

Quote - Have we lost His transcendence?

"Christ is one of the 'family' now. I often wonder if God recognizes His own son the way we've dressed him up, or is it dressed Him down? He's a regular peppermint stick now, all sugar-crystal and saccharine when He isn't making veiled references to certain commercial products that every worshiper absolutely needs."

From Fahrenheit 451, by Ray Bradbury

Sermon Notes - What Will You Do With Jesus?

What Will You Do With Jesus?, Mark 11:27-12:12
J. Josh Smith, MacArthur Boulevard Baptist Church, attended January 10, 2010

Generally, children question authority outwardly and overtly, as adults we do it inwardly and subtly most of the time.

In this text we see the leaders of the church challenging the authority of Jesus. We see them and are amazed that they are questioning Him. Don’t we do the same thing everyday? There is more of ourselves in them than we care to admit. We question His right to assert His authority over us and we fail to see the consequences.

As the creator and rightful owner of all things, He has ultimate authority over everything in our lives but we like to live with an illusion of authority. We don’t reject it outright all the time, we just ignore it.

Mark 11:27 – The Sanhedrin are representatives of the Jewish nation to the Roman emperor. They obviously feel their authority is absolute in the temple.

Mark 11:28 – Referring to the cleansing of the temple. Notice they aren’t questioning what He did but question His right to do it. It doesn’t make sense to them. They ooze with arrogance.

Mark 11:31-32 – An answer for John is an answer for Jesus.

Mark 11:33 – They don’t answer His question. They are nothing but a group of self righteous cowards controlled by fear and unwilling to commit. How foolish to walk in Jesus house and question His authority. We do the same thing. We have a false illusion of our authority. We fail to realize that our money, our marriage, our sex life, everything is His. (Colossians 1:16-17) As if we have the right to do what we will with our lives. We try to find a way to live without His authority, just like the Sanhedrin. It isn’t our money, or our marriage, or our sex life,… We want all the blessing without the submission.

He doesn’t respond to them because they don’t respond to Him, and so it is with us.

They not only questioned His authority but rejected it.

Mark 12:1-12 – This land doesn’t belong to them yet they killed the slaves that were sent. Why did the owner keep sending them? There was only one more to send. Mark 1:11 uses the same phrase – “beloved son”. Sending the son is just like sending the father himself.

This is a story of the leaders of the Israel. Israel is God’s vineyard. (Isaiah 5) The people are God’s people. (Exodus 19) He sends prophets and priests. (Jeremiah 7) The people keep rejecting them.

Why would God keep sending them? Jesus was thrown out of the vineyard which was rightfully His. This is a story of everyone who rejects Christ. You only exist because God wants you to exist. Time after time we reject His authority. This is similar to Luke 15 when the son wants to live outside the authority of his father’s house.

What are the consequences of living outside the authority of Jesus?

1. He will destroy the tenants – No one can blame Him for this. This is what will happen to all who reject Him and He has every right to do it.

2. He will give the vineyard to others – God created Israel to bless them so they may be the primary venue to save the nations. His people rejected Him however. Now His plan is through the church.

3. No one can stop His authority – He doesn’t lose. May question and reject but He is in authority. Mark 12:10-11.

The question remains as to what you will do? Will you question His authority or submit?

Book Brief - White Picket Fences

White Picket Fences

Susan Meissner

WaterBrook Press (October 6, 2009)

"Neil was a good man. He had given her a good life. They had a beautiful home in an upscale neighborhood. Financial security. Two healthy children. Nice cars. They'd taken vacations to Hawaii, Vail, and Orlando. Neil didn't drink excessively, wasn't abusive, and didn't smoke or gamble or cheat on her. He was active in their church, made beautiful things in his woodshop that he gave away, encouraged her to pursue her own career, didn't berate his kids, didn't annoy the neighbors, didn't stay out latee, and wasn't addicted to the office. He was a good man."

Neil, and his wife Amanda, along with their two children, Chase and Delcey, live the storybook life. When Amanda agrees to keep her neice, Tally, while her irresponsible brother is off in Europe to unearth a family mystery, their picture perfect life begins to show signs of erosion. As Tally and Chase work together on a sociology project family secrets begin to emerge that makes it hard to maintain the facade.

While the multiple storylines are handled very well the characterizations seem to have suffered. Chase and Tally are fully realized but the rest of the family seem stereotypical at best. The emotional drama of the family dealing with buried secrets is affecting but I found that it was the secondary theme of the Holocaust that kept this book interesting for me. It was a bit of a stretch, in fact, to keep those two disparate themes from unraveling the whole book. It all seemed to work to a mildly satisfying conclusion.

A brief mention of a major plot device that seemed a bit contrived. The story is propelled by the gradual recovery of a horrific memory from chase's past. Repressed or recovered memories? I'm a little critical of that whole psychology and was thus required to suspend my skepticism throughout the novel. Ultimately, I can't find myself recommending, or reading again, this particular tale. Susan Meissner is a talented author but this story falls flat.

This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Rating: Borrow

Book Brief - Thirsty

Thirsty

Tracey Bateman

WaterBrook Press (October 6, 2009)

Nina Parker is a recovering alcoholic trying to rebuild her relationships. Her husband has custody of the kids, due to her negligence, and she has just lost her job. Returning to her Ozark hometown, with her estranged teenage daughter, Nina confronts her past and is the catalyst for an ancient mystery that will soon involve everyone in the small town.

Despite the author's note to the contrary, this novel feels like it was written solely to capitalize on the current fascination for dark, supernatural, vampire fiction but with a "Christian" twist. It really isn't "vampire" fiction though. It is more a "Christian" novel, supposedly, with a vampire as a character. Unfortunately, it retains some of the sexual tension inherent in the vampire mythology which makes the mixing of the genres just a little uncomfortable. The tenets of Christianity touched on here are superficial at best and misleading at worst.

"If God whould show up, just once, I'd be His."

God has, and does, show up to those who are taking notice. (Matthew 13:1-23)

There isn't a whole lot more to say about this that I haven't said before. I guess you could say this is an attempt to redeem the whole "vampire" genre and use the vampire legend as an analogy of some sort. I really don't know if vampire's and Christianity really mix, I know they don't for me.

This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Rating: Avoid

Book Brief – What Matters Most: Diary of a Teenage Girl

A guest post from DD13:

What Matters Most: Diary of a Teenage Girl
Melody Carlson
Multnomah Books (September 15, 2009)

Things are just starting to look okay again until Maya starts getting bullied by a ‘popular girl’ who thinks Maya likes her old boyfriend. Maya defiantly doesn’t, but in an attempt to get things straight her guy friend Dominic gets the wrong idea. Then to make matters worse her mom gets released from prison and wants Maya to live with her again. In a matter of days Maya’s life is turned upside down. Also Maya’s friend Marissa, who has suffered severe brain damage, doesn’t seem to be getting much better. Maya begins to feel overwhelmed by everything that’s happening. She starts practicing guitar more, and gets pretty good. Before she knows it Maya is asked to join the band “Redemption” with Chloe and Allie who’s former band member, Laura, went off to college. Should Maya join or should she just stay home and have the normal life she’s always wanted?

What Matters Most is a great book that finishes off all the Diary of a Teenage Girl series in a awesome way. Every girl that reads this book can relate to it no matter where they are in life. The author, Melody Carlson, offers good insight through characters and green tips at the end of each chapter. I would recommend this book to any teenage girl who likes teen girl stories, but if you’re the kind of person that likes more exciting books you might not like it as much. Like the other Diary of a Teenage Girl series, Maya is a fun character that loves God. This is a fun book that almost any girl will like.

This book was provided for review by the WaterBrook Multnomah Publishing Group.

Go Ask Your Daddy - Which Translation Is Best?

Only in the past 100 to 200 years or so have we had to deal with this issue. There are now so many translations it is often difficult to make a decision. You do need to find one that you will read. The KJV (King James Version) is a beautiful translation but today most people find the language somewhat difficult, so you probably are going to have a harder time picking that one up to read. Readability should not be your only criteria however. Accuracy is, in my mind, more important. Most accurate translations today are highly readable.

Bible translation "theory" falls into two basic camps, or methods.

Formal equivalency is the "word-for-word" translation of the original language. This process attempts to translate the precise wording of the original. The NASB (New American Standard Bible), ESV (English Standard Version), KJV, NKJV (New King James Version), RSV (Revised Standard Version), and NRSV (New Revised Standard Version) are translations that fall in this category. Most of these translations would be comfortable for someone at the 10th grade reading level or above.

Dynamic or functional equivalence attempts to capture the meaning of the original without focusing so much on the form of the grammar or the words. You might call them a "thought-for-thought" translation. As Dan Wallace says,

"It allows more room for interpretation and is easier to understand."

The NIV (New International Version), NCV (New Century Version), and NLT (New Living Translation), use this method of translation. TLB (The Living Bible) and "The Message" are often put in this category but are really a full "paraphrase" rather than a translation and should be avoided for any serious study of the Bible. You will find most of these translations falling around the 7th grade reading level.

For years I used the NIV, without much thought to the translation methodology. The NIV is a reasonable compromise as it falls into the more literal of the "thought-for-thought" translations, if that makes sense. After learning of the translation methodology however, I prefer to make my own interpretations, rather than relying on the translators, i.e. dynamic equivalence translations. Therefore, I prefer those translations that take less liberty with the original text. This is the Word of God and we should remain very careful in our handling of the text. I find that the ESV translation is best for me.

Lest you think I am being a bit too critical, take a look at this short video (1:55) from John Piper on getting a Bible with all the words.



I do find it helpful to have the NIV available for comparison's sake as it is often useful to compare a difficult passage across translations. However, the same company that publishes the NIV also publishes, or used to (I believe they have stopped publishing this version), the TNIV (Today's New International Version). The TNIV uses "gender-neutral" language not found in the original and is a totally unacceptable version.

No matter which version you ultimately choose the main point is to read it!

Quote - How Does God See Them?

"How dare we reject a person whom God has accepted? Indeed, the best way to determine what our attitude to other people should be is to determine what God's attitude toward them is. This principle is better even than the golden rule. It is safe to treat others as we would like them to treat us, but it is safer still to treat them as God does. The former is a ready-made guide based on our fallen self-centeredness, while the latter is a standard based on God's perfection."

John Stott

Sermon Notes - Beauty, Tragedy and Reality

Beauty, Tragedy and Reality, Mark 11:1-25
J. Josh Smith, MacArthur Boulevard Baptist Church, attended January 3, 2010

Six out of sixteen chapters in Mark are about one area of Jesus’ life. This shows us the centrality of the understanding of Jesus in His death. We cannot live the life without embracing His death.

The Beauty – Mark 11:1-11

It isn’t significant how the colt was there or that He is omniscient but that He knows the way He wants to enter Jerusalem. It is very purposeful.

Hosanna means save us. They think He is the messiah.

1. This is beautiful because this is the entrance of the long awaited and promised Messiah – This is the reception of a king. Mark 1:15

2. This is beautiful because Jesus is no longer hiding His identity – He has been telling His disciples not to tell anybody because He knew the time had not come.

3. This is beautiful because of the response of the people – Hosanna means save us and save us now. They think He is the messiah. They don’t fully understand but is still an incredible time of honor.

4. This is beautiful because all of this unfolded exactly as prophesied – Zechariah 9:9, Psalm 118 and others. What a reminder that God keeps His promises! He has not failed to do everything He promised to do. Without these stories recorded for us, we would not be able to see the fulfillment of God’s promises.

A transition from beauty to tragedy in Mark 11:11. The temple is His house. See Isaiah 56:7. He comes into His house and just looks around. No indication that anyone knows He is even there.

The Tragedy – Mark 11:12

We then read a strange story that seems a little out of place right after this triumphal entry. He talks to and curses the fig tree and then there is no comment about it. Mark uses the next section to illustrate the point of the fig tree.

Jesus goes back to the temple and blocks anyone from getting in. Mark 11:16. This was planned.

1. This is a tragedy because the people were misusing the temple – Mark 11:17. It was supposed to be a house of prayer but it has become, in reality, a robbers den. It had become a hideout where the religious leaders would come after they had stolen. They were protected from those they had robbed of life because of the rules.

The outer courts purpose was to be a place for the Gentiles to worship. In reality they couldn’t come because there was too much selling. It was to be a place of worship but in reality it had become a place where the leaders exercise their power.

2. This is a tragedy because the people misunderstood the temple – we think He was trying to restore the temple, in reality He came to replace the temple. Everyone was so busy they totally missed Him.

They then walk back by the fig tree and Jesus points to the reality. This is a parable. The Israelites are not bearing fruit, as demonstrated in the temple, and were to be cursed. They should have been bearing fruit of prayer and worship. They should have been prepared for the Savior but they weren’t so they will be cursed.

The Reality – Mark 11:22

What separates beauty from tragedy? Mark 11:22. Have faith in God. It separates the fruitful from the fruitless. This is not a formula on how to move mountains. The point is simply the power of simple faith in God. Everything flows from faith. Take God at His word and trust in His promises. Those who believe in His promises act on His commands.

The beauty was He said He was coming and He did. The tragedy was they missed it.

The beauty is that He is coming back. The tragedy is that many won’t be ready.

Luke 12:35-40. Be dressed in readiness. Are you ready? Be ready! Be faithful! Live every moment as if the return of the Lord is imminent. He will keep His promises. He will return. Have faith in God!

Bible Reading Plans

“How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word.” Psalm 119:9

“In truth you cannot read too much in Scriptures; and what you read you cannot read too carefully, and what you read carefully you cannot understand too well, and what you understand well you cannot teach too well, and what you teach well you cannot live too well... the devil... the world...and our flesh are raging and raving against us. Therefore, dear sirs and brothers, pastors and preachers, pray, read, study, be diligent... This evil, shameful time is not the season for being lazy, for sleeping and snoring" Martin Luther

It’s not too late to get started on the most important thing you can do this year, or any year. Read the Bible. Words breathed from God. (2 Timothy 3:16) What could be more important? It may be a little intimidating but it is well worth the effort.

There is no need to be legalistic about it. You don’t have to read through the Bible in an entire year. Just read some portion of it everyday. It may take you two or five or ten years to get through the whole thing. God will honor your reading whether you “stick to the plan” or not.

In my life it hasn’t been a lack of motivation, time or plan that has kept me from the Word but a lack of discipline, or to put it another way:

“Here then is the real problem of our negligence. We fail in our duty to study God's Word not so much because it is difficult to understand, not so much because it is dull and boring, but because it is work. Our problem is not a lack of intelligence or a lack of passion. Our problem is that we are lazy.” R.C. Sproul

James MacDonald says here that it really isn’t as big a task as we think:

“What food is to our bodies, Scripture is to our souls…So open it, and begin to read. You should say, “Dude, it has hundreds of pages. Where should I start?” I hear that so often that I decided to check the Bibles I own. They average around 1,400 pages. So think of the Bible as two big books or four to five regular-sized books. Studies indicate that the Bible takes about 70 hours to read out loud…If you read it for 12 minutes per day, or one and a half hours per week, you would have no problem finishing the Bible in a year, and you’d be so incredibly blessed you would want to start all over again the next year. Reading the Bible is really not as intimidating as most people make it.”

I am currently reading Dug Down Deep by Josh Harris. He makes note at one point of A.J. Jacobs, an agnostic, in writing The Year of Living Biblically, buying a Bible and then reading through the entire Bible in four weeks. Surely, if someone who doesn’t even know if the Bible is true can read it through then so can we. There are no excuses. Get with it! I hope this compilation will provide some thoughts, ideas and motivation to help you read through that which is truly precious. (Psalm 19:10)

A list of plans - Last year, Justin Taylor compiled a great list of different Bible reading plans and he updated the list this year. He notes in another post that all of these plans can be accessed via the web, podcast, e-mail, mobile, print, RSS or iCal.

A lifelong system - Here is a system from a Master’s College professor that emphasizes a lifelong learning of the Word. For those just beginning a regular reading of the Bible he makes a great point of moving through the text and not trying to figure everything out. At first, you should be reading for “gross anatomy” rather than “microbiology”. Try to get the “big picture” rather than trying to understand all the details and theology the first few times through.

A plan - Denny Burk, from Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, offers his plan.

Another list of plans - Zondervan has some suggested plans ranging from the 90 day plan to the 3 year plan, as well as ideas for new Christians such as 30 days with Jesus. (Zondervan publishes the NIV and, previously, the TNIV. Please don’t take this link as an endorsement of the TNIV as it is not. The TNIV is an unacceptable translation. The NIV is acceptable for the most part but that is a discussion for another post.)

Another plan - Here is a “Read through the Bible Program for Shirkers and Slackers” from Andy Perry who says:

“At the same time, plans like those named above frequently cause discouragement as our New Year’s Bible reading resolutions give way to the unexpected X-factors of life which seem to encroach with a vengeance after a few weeks or months. I don’t know about you, but I can’t seem to find a command in the Bible giving special importance to reading all 66 books of the Bible in a year’s time.”

Yet another list of plans - With options for customization, mobile reading, online reading and over 20 different plans, this site is a smorgasbord of options.

A sermon - I can’t find the plan on-line but the church we are visiting recently rolled out a reading plan for their congregation. Here is the sermon in which it was introduced.

Motivation - Bob Kauflin offers his ideas on reading plans here and shares his insight in reading through the Bible last year. His thoughts on why read are especially helpful:

1. If God made sure his words were recorded for us, why wouldn’t I want to read all of them numerous times?

2. Reading large portions of Scripture regularly slows me down so I can think about life from an eternal perspective. I was in tears today as I finished Revelation, realizing the purpose for which I was created and the sure future that lies ahead.

3. In my daily life, I am constantly bombarded with images, philosophies, thoughts, reasonings, and attractions from the world, my flesh, and the devil. I need large quantities of God’s thoughts, empowered by his Spirit, to resist them.

4. I trust my own thoughts too much.

5. Each time I read through the Bible, I’m humbled as I realize how little I actually know and understand God’s Word.

6. Reading a lot of the Bible helps me more easily see how it all fits together.

More motivation - Need more motivation? J.C. Ryle was a great teacher who is very straightforward in his thoughts:

“There is no royal road to a knowledge of the Bible. There must be patient, daily, systematic reading of the Book, or the Book will not be known.”

“Read the Bible daily. Make it part of every day’s business to read and meditate on some portion of God’s Word. Gather your manna fresh every morning. Choose your own seasons and hours. Do not scramble over and hurry your reading. Give your Bible the best, and not the worst, part of your time. But whatever plan you pursue, let it be a rule of your life to visit the throne of grace and the Bible every day.”

“Let us arm ourselves with a thorough knowledge of the Word of God. Let us read our Bibles more diligently than ever, and become familiar with every part of them. Let the Word dwell in us richly. Let us beware of anything which would make us give less time and less heart to the perusal of its sacred pages. The Bible is the sword of the Spirit – let it never be laid aside. The Bible is the true lantern for a dark and cloudy time – let us beware of traveling without its light.”

Even more motivation - And never forget that the Bible we hold in our hands is covered by the blood of martyrs for the faith:

“Tyndale (1494-1536) was a linguistic genius whose expertise in seven languages dazzled the scholarly world of this day. Educated at Oxford University and eventually ordained as a priest, he rather quickly came to see translating the Bible into English as his vocation in life.

Because the vernacular Bible was condemned by the Roman Catholic Church, Tyndale did his work of translation while living on the Continent. He finished his translation of the New Testament in 1525, and copies reached England the following year, smuggled in bales of cloth and sacks of flour. Catholic bishops conducted public burnings of the books. Tyndale began work on the Old Testament but was lured out of hiding by a Catholic sympathizer. He was declared a heretic and met his end near Brussels by strangling and burning at the state in 1535.

For people who have multiple English Bibles on their shelves, it is important to be reminded that the vernacular Bible was begotten in blood. What we take for granted originally seemed impossible.” Quote from Leland Ryken’s book, Understanding English Bible Translation: The Case for an Essentially Literal Approach.

My plan - Finally, come back tomorrow for my personal plan for reading through the Bible, as well as what we, as a family, will be doing this year.

There you go, plenty of options for you. The Bible is so accessible to us today. Online, audio, visual, print, podcast, radio, or TV. Yet we remain so Biblically illiterate. May we all grow to know Him better as we commit to His Word.

A prayer - “O Father in heaven, I pray…that we would love your word. We must have our hearts attuned to what is truly precious, and the Scripture says your word is like "gold, much fine gold...and honey, like drippings from the honeycomb" (Psalm 19:10).

I pray that you would tune our hearts so that we might taste what is really sweet and treasure what is really valuable. And with that new tasting and treasuring, would you incline us and discipline us to take up the Bible and to read it, and meditate on it, and memorize it? Incline us to drink in its living water and to eat its heavenly bread, so that we are made strong in the inner man by knowing God at a level that we have yet known.

So Lord, work in our hearts to incline us to your word; and open it to us and grant us to embrace it. May we extend the benefits, beauty, and preciousness of this word to those around us who have very little contact with the Scriptures, the church, and the Christ that we love so much. Make us a blessing to the world, I pray, because of our encounter with you in your word.

In Jesus' name I pray, Amen.” John Piper

Read but not Reviewed - December 2009

Books I read in the month of December but did not review, with a indication of whether I would read them again.

The Christmas Promise, Donna VanLiere - Yes
The Christmas Secret, Donna VanLiere - Yes
The Man Who Invented Christmas: How Charles Dickens's A Christmas Carol Rescued His Career and Revived Our Holiday Spirits, Les Standiford - No
The True Gift: A Christmas Story, Patricia MacLachlan - No
A Season of Gifts, Richard Peck - Yes
A Stranger for Christmas, Carol Lynn Pearson - Yes
The True Saint Nicholas: Why He Matters to Christmas, William Bennett - No
A Simple Christmas: Twelve Stories that Celebrate the True Holiday Spirit, Mike Huckabee - Yes
When You Reach Me, Rebecca Stead - Yes
A Brief History of Montmaray, Michelle Cooper - Yes

Something Light - One of the Best Laughs Ever

Start the New Year with a laugh!