Monthly Archives: September 2011
My Idolatrous Heart: Self-Righteousness
“Two men went up into the temple to pray, one a Pharisee and the other a tax collector. The Pharisee, standing by himself, prayed thus: ‘God, I thank you that I am not like other men, extortioners, unjust, adulterers, or even like this tax collector. I fast twice a week; I give tithes of all that I get.’ But the tax collector, standing far off, would not even lift up his eyes to heaven, but beat his breast, saying, ‘God, be merciful to me, a sinner!’” Luke 18:10-13 It was the late 1980’s. I was emerging from a long journey through confusion and spiritual emptiness. I had a newfound desire for the Word of God. I was growing in my walk with God. I was learning and had a passion for ministry again. The long descent had taken several years and now I had swung around and was quickly heading in the other direction. I was consuming all of the Bible teaching I could get my hands on. I was on a roll. I had gone from being confused to confident. But all was not well. I began to issue edicts for our family. I was determined to banish any traces of harmful influences from the world and culture in which we lived. We were going to be a household that served the Lord (Joshua 24:15). There was no discussion. I decided, and it was. Now, my poor wife not only had whiplash from my rapid reversal of convictions and … Continue reading
Posted in God's Sovereignty, Idolatry, Pride, Self-Righteousness
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My Idolatrous Heart: Pride
The topic of idolatry summons up different meanings for many of us. Many of you who read my weekly blog entries would consider yourselves to be Christians or followers of Christ. For the Christian, the topic of idolatry often conjures up images of statues or images worshiped in other religions. We think of the many references in the Bible to the gods of the nations that God warned Israel against. There were the constant warnings from the prophets, calling the people of God to forsake the worship of gods and return to the Lord. At the heart of idolatry, though, are not the objects being worshiped. Primarily, it is the attitude of the heart. Therefore, idolatry could involve not only objects, but people, aspirations or pursuits, possessions, or even our own convictions and belief structures, if they are not grounded in the Truth. For the unbeliever, these things keep the person from finding their ultimate joy and satisfaction in God. For the believer, though, it can have the same result. Though we have found freedom through Jesus Christ, we repeatedly return to the pursuit of the things from which we were redeemed. We seek to find joy and satisfaction from those things which will never truly satisfy. So, as I continue to examine the impact of idolatry on our lives, I will focus on an analysis of the attitudes of the heart. One of the primary, if not the primary, indications of an idolatrous heart is pride. 2 Chronicles 26 … Continue reading
CCC Recording Update – Saved from Disaster
I have received a lot of questions regarding the status of our recording project, so I thought I would provide everyone with any update this week. It was one year ago, tomorrow the 15th, that we started our preparation for the project. In many ways, it seems like it has not been that long. In other ways, it seems longer. It took us more time than we expected to get ready to record and then we hit the holiday season last year. Once we got rolling again, we put in a few more practices and then headed into the studio. Once we were in the studio, it soon became apparent that it was going to take longer to record than we had anticipated. In fact, it took over three times longer. However, that was a good thing, as we were able to take more time and hopefully get a better recording in the end. We finished recording in June. From there, the work of editing, mixing, and mastering began for Travis King, chief audio engineer, and the crew at 12 Bar Productions. The next several weeks were spent taking our best efforts and hopefully making them sound even better! I am very thankful for technology, at least for my part of the project! A couple of weeks ago, I received a message from Travis saying that he had good news and bad news. The bad news was that, while backing up there project, there was a computer glitch and the … Continue reading
Posted in God's Faithfulness, Ministry, Music, Recording Project, Trust
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Examining My Idolatrous Heart
“The Lord, the God of their fathers, sent persistently to them by his messengers, because he had compassion on his people and on his dwelling place. But they kept mocking the messengers of God, despising his words and scoffing at his prophets, until the wrath of the Lord rose against his people, until there was no remedy.” 2 Chronicles 36:15-16 As I have mentioned before, I listen to the Bible while exercising. Depending on my consistency for exercise, I listen some weeks more than others. I have found it to be a great supplement to my study of the Word and I recommend it to you. I have now made it through 2 Chronicles. The final chapter contains the verses above, which is followed by the judgment of God on His people. These two verses contain several things for us to consider. God is persistent. For years, through multiple prophets, God had warned His people about their idolatry and their rejection of Him and His law. They were without excuse. The people could not say that they were unaware of God requirements. God had even brought smaller judgments and trials on the nation, in order to turn their hearts back to Him, but the revivals were short-lived. They would turn away again. Yet, God continued to warn and call His people to return to Him. The persistence of God flows from His compassion for His people. God was protecting them from the emptiness and passing satisfaction brought by their pursuit … Continue reading
Posted in Church, God's Judgment, God's Patience, Idolatry
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