Paul Washer says it like it is…
Category Archives: Culture - Page 2
This is War!
Posted by Jay
on April 28, 2009
Comments Off
Don’t Waste Your Life
Posted by Jay
on April 23, 2009
2 comments
As a classically trained musician I have never had much of a taste for rap music, heavy metal, etc. However, there is a small group of rap artists of the reformed flavor that have been rising up to bring glory, honor and praise to the Lamb who was worthy to be slain. One of those artists is LeCrae. (They have an upcoming tour.) I also have been impressed especially with a song entitled “Martyrs” by another rap artist named Shai Linne. The lyrics to these men’s rap songs have more gospel in them and more correct theology than most Sunday morning sermons in the typical American church. Here is the music video to LeCrae’s “Don’t Waste Your Life” song. While the musical style may not be everyone’s taste we should rejoice at the young people these artists are reaching with the gospel of Jesus Christ! Amen!
The Rape of Solomon’s Song
Posted by Jay
on April 15, 2009
Comments Off
Dr. John MacArthur provides a much needed and powerful article on the trend in American evangelicalism to lower ourselves to the standards of the world when it comes to an obsession with sex.
Head over to Shepherd’s Fellowship to read it …
How Do You Read Romans 1:16?
Posted by Jay
on February 6, 2009
4 comments
“For I am not ashamed of the gospel, for it is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes.” Romans 1:16
How you read Romans 1:16 tells a lot about you. Which of the following best resembles how you interpret the text?
1. Christian
For I am not ashamed of the gospel (the death burial and resurrection of our Lord and Savior), for it (the preaching of that gospel and absolutely nothing else) is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes (not a superficial shallow mental ascent, but a complete dependence and trust upon Christ)
2. Charismaniac
For I am not ashamed of the gifts of the spirit, for they are proof of the power of God and proof of your salvation to everyone who believes…
3. Word of Faith Charismaniac
For I am not ashamed of pleading for money, for sowing your faith seed offering is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes…
4. Roman Catholic
For I am not ashamed of Mary, the Pope, and the Mother Church, for they are the power of God and the only way to salvation to everyone who believes and receives the sacraments, attends meritorious masses, is baptized, keeps the law, does good works, purchases indulgences, endures purgatory, etc…
5. Jehovah’s Witness
For I am not ashamed of the gospel of the New Earth that we peddle door to door, for the Watchtower is the only ones who speak for God and is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes and exhaustively works their tails off for the Watchtower almost every waking hour of the day for their entire life to obtain Jehovah’s favor, which is not guaranteed…
6. Mormon
For I am not ashamed of the restored gospel, even though I am ashamed and embarrassed about our church history and the things our church prophets have said (that was just their opinion and they were not speaking for God when they said all those awful things) for the Melchizadek Priesthood which only we have is the power of God for salvation to everyone who believes and follows the following conditions as outlined in Gospel Principles pages 303-304 (1997 edition): 1.) We must be baptized and confirmed a member of the Church of Jesus Christ. 2.) We must receive the laying on of hands for the gift of the Holy Ghost. 3.) We must receive the temple endowment. 4.) We must be married for time and eternity.In addition to receiving the required ordinances, the Lord commands all of us to– 1. Love and worship God. 2. Love our neighbor. 3. Repent of our wrongdoings. 4. Live the law of chastity. 5. Pay honest tithes and offerings. 6. Be honest in our dealings with others and with the Lord. 7. Speak the truth always. 8. Obey the Word of Wisdom. 9. Search out our kindred dead and perform the saving ordinances of the gospel for them. 10. Keep the Sabbath day holy. 11. Attend our Church meetings as regularly as possible so we can renew our baptismal covenants by partaking of the sacrament. 12. Love our family members and strengthen them in the ways of the Lord. 13. Have family and individual prayers every day. 14. Honor our parents. 15. Teach the gospel to others by word and example. 16. Study the scriptures. 17. Listen to and obey the inspired words of the prophets of the Lord. Finally, each of us needs to receive the Holy Ghost and learn to follow his direction in our individual lives.
7. Universalist Unitarian
For I am not ashamed of the value found in all religions regardless of whether or not they conflict with one another on core issues , for whatever truth is for you, it is the power of God, gods, goddess, no god, or whatever you believe for a better world to everyone who believes or chooses not to believe.
8. Seeker-Friendly
For I am not ashamed of shameless church marketing, for the end justifies the means and pragmatism is the power of God for filling seats on Sundays to watch our awesome worship rock band followed by our hip and and oh, so cool pastor and we’re also giving away free gas cards to everyone who attends our local campus.
9. Liberal
For I am not ashamed of supporting any socialist cause or liberal issue, for a woman’s right to choose and a homosexual’s right to marry is the power of self-empowerment for salvation from the oppressive chains that the white, Anglo-Saxon, Capitalist, fascists have placed on the backs of everyone in this nation.
10. Emergent / Emerging
Romans? Is that in the Bible?
Little Distinction…
Posted by Jay
on January 31, 2009
Comments Off
“Most Christians in our culture live like everyone else. There is little distinction between our lives and the lives of the pagans down the street. We wear the same clothes, watch the same movies, read the same books, send our children to the same schools, and sign the same divorce decrees as everyone else. Furthermore, there ought to be a sign posted in every Christian bookstore that reads, “The views expressed in these books do not necessarily express the views of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ.” I’m not saying, don’t read Christian books. I’m just saying, read them with discernment.”
- Voddie Baucham
The Question Often Asked
Posted by Jay
on December 12, 2008
3 comments
The Dragon of Pornography
Posted by Jay
on December 9, 2008
2 comments
Pornography continues to the be “silent” killer within the American church today. It’s a topic that few discuss and many believe it to be a “normal” process of a man’s life. The Bible screams otherwise and Jesus is clear that if you don’t fight lust you will go to hell. (Matt. 5:28-29) (See an excellent sermon by John Piper on exactly this.)
Pornography is a dragon that will grow and grow until is consumes your soul. (1 Peter 2:11) The following video clip is from a show called “Wretched” hosted by Todd Friel of Way of the Master Radio. It’s a convicting and excellent statement on the dangers of the sin and rebellion that is lust and pornography.
If you are in this sin of lust and pornography you are not alone. You need to realize the seriousness of this sin. It is a direct rebellion against God. There is release of the bondage and captivity of sin through Jesus Christ. There is an excellent group called “Setting Captives Free” that offers help through Biblical counseling. One of the best books I have read on the subject of sexual sin is entitled “At the Altar of Sexual Idolatry” by Steve Gallagher. I would also recommend viewing some of the videos over at I’ll Be Honest. May we continually fight and make war with sin through the power Christ gives us through His Word and His Spirit!
Soli Deo Gloria!
The Idolatry of Christmas
Posted by Jay
on December 5, 2008
Comments Off
Over at “I’ll Be Honest.com” they have posted a profound video message that discusses the idolatry of Christmas and how the world has become the idol of many professing believers in how we handle Christmas.
From their site…
“For the longest time I was treasuring the world and not Christ, and I lived in the darkness. It was obvious to family members as well, and they knew I was going through pornography. They also saw the hatred in my life, and the idolatry to computer games and my career. Yet no one ever told me what awaited me that night if I got in a car wreck, and was killed. I knew the judgment part would come, but I was a Christian, I said the prayer, I went to church, I believed in God. The reality was that I was deceiving myself, and I was going to be going straight to the lake of fire, for an eternity in eternal torment in Hell. God used an email from my mentor at Setting Captives Free to finally wake me up. He told me how he wasn’t going to respond to any of my emails, and how I did not want to be free from pornography. There was more to the email then that, and I hated him after that. I was so upset and disgusted at him for sending me that email, I thought “he doesn’t even care about me.” The reality was he did care, he realized it was time to stop beating around the bush, and tell me the straight up truth. Luke 13:3 – No, I tell you; but unless you repent, you will all likewise perish. - I also needed someone to finally read some verses from the book of 1 John - 1 John 1:6 – If we say we have fellowship with him while we walk in darkness, we lie and do not practice the truth.”
The above video is from a young man on fire for Christ with a true, Biblical understanding of salvation – that salvation in Christ saves us not only from the penalty of sin (the wrath of God) but also from the bondage of sin. Born again believers are new creatures in Christ. Soli Deo Gloria!
So give the true Gift of Christmas to friends, family and strangers – the Gospel of Jesus Christ.
Returning the Gospel Focus
Posted by Jay
on October 7, 2008
Comments Off
How can we preach the Gospel to a man with an empty stomach?
A man’s stomach has nothing to do with his heart’s condition of being a rebel against the holy God. A rich American on Fifth Avenue in New York City or a poor beggar on the streets of Bombay are both rebels against God Almighty, according to the Bible. The result of this lie is the fact that, during the past 100 years, the majority of mission money has been invested in social work. I am not saying we should not care for the poor and needy. The issue I am taking to task is losing our primary focus of preaching the Gospel. - K.P. Yohannan (Gospel for Asia)
Well said Mr. Yohannan! When will the church in America wake up and return to the Gospel of Jesus Christ as the focus? The church today needs to step away from humanism and return to the gospel! I have heard way too many stories of churches sending out “mission trips” only to return with photos of tours, playing games and befriending folks all-the-while never telling them the gospel. This is not missionary work. Missionary work is gospel centered with serving the natural by-product of the proclamation of truth.
The Sinfulness of Sin
Posted by Jay
on August 21, 2008
1 comment
In a day and age where very few churches even mention sin, Dr. Leiter’s message below should hit hard against a culture that has become so desensitized to the utter sinfulness of sin.
One of the most fearful things about sin is its power to harden the one who practices it. The deeper a man goes in sin, the less sin bothers him. . . . Every sinner finds himself now committing sins that he once despised, and the sins that he now despises, he will someday find himself committing. It should shock us to remember that Adolph Hitler was once a little boy playing with toys just like other little boys. Man knows the beginning of sin, but no man has ever known the end of sin.
~Charles Leiter
The Dark Knight…
Posted by Jay
on August 7, 2008
2 comments
This is not usual for me to post on my blog about “culturally relevant” things but as I was browsing some blogs this evening I came across a couple of Christian blogs that are talking about the latest Batman movie called “The Dark Knight”. Some of the blogs are using the content of the movie to describe the condition of man and assessing the evil of evil through the character “Joker” played by the late Heath Ledger.
Before I begin to rail on movies in general let me start by saying that I love to watch movies. I believe there are some fantastic movies out there that get us thinking. For example, John Bunyan’s “Pilgrim’s Progress” was recently made into a feature length film and it is outstanding. The story is true to the book and the acting is wonderful and of course it is Christ exalting and causes us to use our mind to reflect on God and His mercy and grace. However, I draw the line with many of the movies out today and refuse to sit through several hours of a film that attacks Christianity or worse blasphemes Christ.
The American Idol
Posted by Jay
on July 18, 2008
3 comments
It is no doubt that television is the true American Idol. One commenter on a blog I frequent said it best: if you were to sit down and tally up the amount of time you watch TV and the amount of time you spend in prayer and Bible reading which would be larger?
May we step back and assess our lives and realize that idols are everywhere and can so quickly become our god. This video presentation should cause all of us to step back and assess….
Recent Comments