Book Review: Reasons We Believe

If you’ve spent any time defending your faith or even simply listening to popular media, you have heard many objections to the Christian faith. These objections become so common that it is likely that you even here the same few repeatedly. Instead of seeking out answers that are available in a plethora of formats, they continue to promote the same, tired excuses not to believe in order to ease their conscience. But simply answering questions isn’t going to regenerate the soul in bondage to sin. Even with truth clearly presented, people will continue to “suppress the truth in unrighteousness” (Romans 1:18). Only the Holy Spirit through the power of the Word of God can soften a hard heart and regenerate the soul.

From this perspective, Nathan Busentiz writes his book Reasons We Believe: 50 Lines of Evidence That Confirm the Christian Faith. Throughout the book he simply presents what the Bible says and how it applies to a Christian defense. Too often in our apologetical zeal we are led down rabbit trails and forget that our aim is to present Scripture and proclaim the gospel. We get trapped in defending against insignificant claims or present “evidence” that has no bearing on the gospel. Busenitz does a nice job of using Scripture and letting the Word of God speak; trusting the Spirit to do the work on the heart.

Reasons We Believe is organized into six sections; the first as an introduction to faith that uses reason and five sections dealing with the evidence. The five sections include Reasons We Believe in God, Reasons We Believe the Bible, and Reasons We Believe in Jesus, and they are broken down into ten short sections explaining each piece of evidence to consider. Most of the chapters are only a few pages long, but they guide the reader to all he needs to know on the topic. Busenitz introduces the line of evidence, presents the Scripture that applies, and reasons through the effect the evidence has on our understanding of Christianity. Throughout its pages the book references a broad spectrum of Christian sources and cites them in footnotes that are helpful for further study.

While Reasons We Believe isn’t an exhaustive source for apologetics, it is a great place to get a summary of important evidences for the Christian faith and a good starting point for those who want to dig deep. Nathan Busenitz has written the book in a way that a person can either read a few pages to pick up helpful information or spend hours researching the concepts he presents.

The Trellis and the Vine Giveaway

Boy do I need to get back to this blog. I have fallen behind with a busy spring and planning our adoption. This summer looks to be a lot more open to get back to posting and reviewing books.

One book I hope to review soon is The Trellis and the Vine. As of right now my book buying budget is sitting hopelessly at ZERO. Then along comes Mike Leake, and his blog Borrowed Light, offering to give on away for free. Enter the drawing and see if you can win (please let me borrow it to write a review for our church).

Book Review - Adopted for Life

How many books have you read on the topic of adoption? How many books on adoption can you even think of? There aren’t many out there; especially very few from a biblical perspective. Going through an adoption home study, our agency requires a few books to study before approval for adoption; all books which had to be borrowed from secular sources. This is quite sad considering adoption is a much larger part of the Christian life than most probably realize.

Russell Moore has, through the sovereignty of God, been drawn to see the beauty of adoption through the painful struggle of infertility. Through the battle of bringing two Russian boys into his home, God taught him much more than what at first appears to be “mere charity.” Moore weaves his adoption experience and glorious biblical truths together in his book Adopted for Life: The Priority of Adoption for Christian Families & Churches.

Moore’s first chapter, titled Adoption, Jesus, and You: Why You Should Read This Book, Especially If You Don’t Want To, sets the stage for the message of the entire book. Most who are reading this think that they have no need to read a book about adoption as they are not going to be adopting any children. However, according to the Bible (James 1:27), true Christian faith is all about adoption. Russell Moore beautifully explains throughout Adopted for Life that not only is it a priority for every believer to be involved in adoption, but that every believer has already been involved in adoption.

The truth is, adoption is all over the New Testament; it is the heart of the gospel. Those who were once enemies of God – children of the devil – have been made to be children of God, heirs to His heavenly inheritance. Every person who has truly turned from sin and surrendered to Christ has been grafted into the family of Abraham, become a brother of Christ, and given promises that can only be made to sons of God. Understanding the relationship between the gospel and adoption will only deepen your relationship with your heavenly Father. “As we become more attuned to the gospel, we’ll have more of a burden for orphans. As we become more adoption-friendly, we’ll be better able to understand the gospel.” (pg. 18)

According to Moore, being adopted means “we’re part of a brand-new family, a new tribe, with a new story, a new identity.” (pg. 36) When we turn our backs to our old life, we embrace a new life as part of a new family, with new brothers and sisters sharing a new Father. Our old life has past and we look forward to a new inheritance in heaven. No longer do we call ourselves citizens of the world, but aliens in the world who have homes prepared by our new Father. Our ancestry is no longer German, Norwegian, English, Asian, African, but we now have Jewish roots in the line of Abraham.

Adopted for Life then expands on the gospel metaphor and begins to make it applicable to every member of God’s family. As James 1:27 states that true biblical faith results in caring for orphans, Moore explains that “a culture of adoption and a culture of evangelism coexist together.” (pg. 75) Adopting children into your home isn’t about filling your family, but rather His family. “Adoption is…evangelistic to the core. When a Christian family adopts a child, that family is committing to years of gospel proclamation, of seeking to see this child come to faith in Christ.” (pg. 181) In a world that sees children as a commodity or a burden, “Imagine if Christian churches were known as the places where unwanted babies become beloved children.” (pg. 79) As we combat the drastic effects of evolutionary philosophies, Moore wonders if “Perhaps the most practical way your congregation can show Darwinism to be wrong is to showcase families for whom love is more than gene protection.” (pg. 80)

If we desire to be faithful to God’s commands - both to care for orphans and to the Great Commission – the church will make adoption more of a priority. Russell Moore gives practical advice in Adopted for Life for individual families and churches to begin to be more obedient in this ministry (i.e. adopting orphans, providing resources, offering prayer, emphasizing adoption teaching, starting church adoption funds, and embracing the church as a new family). He brings needed conviction for stagnant faith that won’t leave its comfort zone. And he reveals the glorious joy to be found in being an adopted son of the Creator of the world.

Family Scripture Memorization

Now this is a great way to memorize Scripture. I have had these songs stuck in my head for days. Very catchy. My 16 month old daughter loves them!

Book Review - Gospel Powered Parenting

It would be an understatement to say that many books have been written on parenting. Thousands have surely been written in the last few decades. So why another one? William P. Farley says that it’s obvious by looking at the next generation that “Christian parenting is in disarray.” In his book Gospel-Powered Parenting, Farley addresses the concern that many in the church have: too many children raised in Christian homes are turning away from Christ.

The reason for this, says Farley, is that the church has forgotten that the priority of Christian discipline and instruction of children is that of the parents, not the church. He says, “The point of this book is that God normally exercises his sovereignty through parents who faithfully practice biblical parenting.” (pg. 22) “Effective parents equip their children to overcome the world – not by changing and controlling their environment (things external to their children), but by going after their children’s hearts.” (pg. 24) Gospel-Powered Parents realize the power of the Gospel to change lives and trust in the new birth to bring changed behavior.

The focus of Gospel-Powered Parenting is exactly that; the Gospel. “Going after children’s hearts” means that we recognize that children are born as enemies of God and they need the grace of God applied to them in the cross to overcome their sin. A couple of assumptions by many Christian parents can be deadly to a child’s soul: that they are born innocent or that because they participate in church functions they have received new life in Christ. These will doom a parent’s efforts to raise a child biblically. “New birth is known by its fruits, not by a decision. The most important fruit is hunger for God himself. Effective parents assume this, and patiently wait for sustained fruit before they render a verdict.” (pg. 30)

The first half of Gospel-Powered Parenting is a focus on the Gospel itself. The chapters explain the need for parents themselves to be bathed in the Gospel and then their responsibility to parent with a focus on the child’s eternity in mind. The Gospel is explained in terms of the fear of God, His holiness (and wrath), and God’s grace and love displayed to us on the cross. It is important for Farley to emphasize clarity on the Gospel as the remainder of the book explains how it is applied to parenting.

The final few chapters of the book are more practical in their help to apply the Gospel in parenting. Farley notes that there is actually very little written in the Bible about how to raise children. This, he says, is because “the gospel is the classroom that teaches us everything we need to know to become effective Christian parents. If we really understand the gospel, and know how to apply it to our marriages and parenting, we have all the tools we need to pass the baton to our children.” (pg. 46)
“Parents who trust in the power of the gospel teach it to their children. They relate their dinner discussion to it. They teach it through their discipline. They attend churches that preach the gospel clearly and decisively. They center their family devotions on it…They relate all of life to Christ’s incarnation, life, death, resurrection, and ascension. They read and teach the entire Bible to their children, but they always relate its parts to its center, to the gospel.” (pg. 184)

These more immediately applicable chapters of Gospel-Powered Parenting suggest five basic tools that are essential to assuring that your children hear and experience the Gospel in your home. The tools are: marriage, fathers, discipline, teaching, and affection. Our marriages preach to our children. They tell children whether or not we truly embrace the humility and forgiveness that the Gospel preaches. Farley says that marriage is the most important tool we have in communicating the Gospel to our children. Fathers become the primary model of Christ in the family. Both boys and girls learn their relational identity from their fathers and a church and family is energized by the servant leadership of men. Discipline focused in the Gospel uses “the rod” to awaken the heart of the seriousness of sinful rebellion and bathes children in loving forgiveness, guiding them to repentance in prayer. Gospel-powered parents recognize that it is not the church’s or the state’s responsibility to educate and train their children. No matter what type of education is chosen, it is based on the knowledge that parents are responsible to educate and evangelize the souls God has entrusted to them. Finally, Farley says parents should shower their children with affection, showing them that they truly care for their little souls.

William Farley’s Gospel-Powered Parenting is an extremely important book for all who desire to parent biblically. It is a reminder of the immense responsibility of Christian parenting and God’s design is to bring children to a knowledge of the Savior through Christian homes. This book points us then to the purpose of parenting: “Ultimately the goal of parenting is not your child’s happiness. It is not your happiness either. It is not their academic or career success. It is not your reputation. The goal is the glory of God.” (pg. 198) And it reminds parents to trust in the power of the Gospel to overcome our parenting failures: “So the gospel not only teaches us how to parent. The gospel salves the wounds of our imperfections, and it encourages us to persevere through our failures.” (pg. 220)

Book Review - Family Driven Faith

Anyone who has some exposure to youth ministry is aware of the alarming statistics that reveal somewhere between 70% to 85% of young people will walk away from church within their first year away from home. An honest parent will admit that they are afraid that as soon as their kids leave home that they will be led away from Christ. Churches around the nation recognize the crisis and pour substantial resources into their youth ministries to attract and keep young people in the church. But as Alvin Reid, Professor of Evangelism and Student Ministry at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary, notes, “The largest rise of full-time youth ministers in history has been accompanied by the biggest decline in youth evangelism effectiveness.” Something is drastically wrong.

Voddie Baucham Jr. has noticed the dilemma and attempts to explain the cause and offer a solution in his book Family Driven Faith. According to Baucham, “We are looking for answers in all the wrong places. Our children are not falling away because the church is doing a poor job – although that is undoubtedly a factor. Our children are falling away because we are asking the church to do what God designed the family to accomplish. Discipleship and multi-generational faithfulness begins and ends at home.” (pg. 7)

In Family Driven Faith, Voddie Baucham explains how he believes the rise in the youth ministry movement has encouraged the fall in the efforts of the family to be the primary evangelism, teaching, and training ground for children. We often feel like the spiritual training should be left up to the professionals or we are not properly prepared or equipped to teach children, but as Scripture repeatedly reveals, God has ordained the family to be the daily driving force in the discipleship of children. “[Many churches set] out to do for teens what God commands parents to do. It is not the job of the youth pastor to evangelize my child – that’s my job. It is not the youth pastor’s job to equip (disciple) my child – it’s mine. And it is not the youth pastor’s job to send my child out to engage the world; you guessed it – that’s my job too.” (pg. 177)

The bulk of Family Driven Faith is devoted to painting the biblical picture of a family. It describes what a marriage is to look like and how it is to be the primary relationship in the family as a foundation for the Christ-like love that is to be modeled and shared in the home. It illustrates a family that is centered around the gospel; focusing on exposing the sinful hearts of the children in order to guide them to forgiveness and new life in Christ. It portrays a family that is a place of love and forgiveness and is a safe haven for rest and encouragement that distinguishes the Christian family from the world. Family Driven Faith describes the godly family that daily worships, prays, and studies together building biblical, multi-generational faithfulness. Baucham writes personal stories and offers tips and encouragement for parents to lead their families in worship and devotional time.

The heart of Voddie Baucham’s message is unpacked in the final two chapters as he lays out what he believes to be the biblical model of the church. “While I believe the vast majority of those who shepherd segregated portions of congregations are well meaning and would never presume to replace parents in their biblical role, I believe the modern American practice of systematic age segregation goes beyond the biblical mandate…the church’s emphasis ought to be on equipping parents to disciple their children instead of doing it on their behalf.” (pg. 178) Family Driven Faith isn’t another program to complement the youth ministry; Baucham explains that it is a complete paradigm shift. It is a decision made in each individual family to take back the role of youth discipleship from the professionals and lead as God designed in the beginning: parents teaching and modeling the love of Christ daily and deliberately in the home. “This is a problem that must be addressed one home at a time. The answer to our current crisis is a renewed commitment to biblical evangelism and discipleship in and through our homes.” (pg. 189)

And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates. - Deuteronomy 6:6-9

Takin' It To the Home

Jeremy started this monthly “Taking It to the Streets” column (as printed in EBC monthly newsletter) as sort of a journal to share his successes and failures in taking the gospel outside the four walls of the church as to be an encouragement to each one of us to do the same. And I am sure many people who have read through it have felt discouraged because they don’t feel they have the right gift or enough opportunities to evangelize. So we are going to look at evangelism, this month, from a different perspective; perhaps helping you realize an opportunity right in front of you.

One day as I was relating an evangelism opportunity at work to Molly (my wife), our conversation led to how I am exposed to more unbelievers so I have more evangelism opportunities. It seemed somewhat discouraging at first, but as the discussion developed, we quickly learned that she has been given a much greater evangelism opportunity; the awesome privilege to be a full-time evangelist to our children. And I have a full-time secular job that supports the mission field right in our home.

Before we address an application for you, let’s go back in time a few-thousand years to the creation of the world and to the beginning of God’s revelation of Himself. In the book of Genesis we are told that God created Adam and Eve to rule over the earth and then He tells them to “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth.” We know that this is a more poetic way of saying, “make lots of babies.” But for what reason?

The reasoning becomes clearer as God’s revelation of His plan unfolds. The psalmist in Psalm 73:24-26 desired a good thing in finding his satisfaction in unity with God. Jesus prayed in John 17:22 that His people may be one with Him. The Great Commission (Matthew 28:16-18) tells us that our mission as Christians is to make disciples (Evangelism!); bring people into a relationship with the Savior. So as history progresses, we begin to see that God creating people and commanding them to “be fruitful and multiply” wasn’t simply to fill the earth with warm bodies, but it parallels the New Testament command to “make disciples of all nations.” The reason we have children is to make Christians!

For many of us, this will be our mission field. Some people are called to be foreign missionaries; some street evangelists; some full-time pastors; and most of us are called to be evangelists right in our own homes by bringing children up in the “discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4). The call to be fruitful and multiply didn’t go away in the New Testament, it was magnified; even clarified.

What a great responsibility and opportunity we have been given. We often get discouraged when we think we can’t be as bold sharing the gospel, but we are missing such a great opportunity. God has provided many of us with the fantastic privilege of being full-time evangelists right in our own homes. What other evangelist has eighteen years to teach and to model the gospel to his hearers? What greater responsibility do we have than to teach the gospel to those whose lives are completely dependent on us?

We Christians have far too easily followed the cultural norms in pursuit of the “American Dream” instead of living like foreigners in this world (1 Peter 1:1). We pursue worldly entertainment, wealth, and comfort while neglecting our call to be a peculiar people (1 Corinthians 1:18-28), sold out to making worshippers of God. The world sees children as a burden on their personal pursuits, a commodity to be set aside when convenient, a symbol of pride, or simply the next thing to do. The world doesn’t want to have too many children because it might cost too much money or interrupt career pursuits. Some will say, “A boy for me and a girl for you, then praise the Lord, we’re finally through!” We joke with people who have many children by asking, “Haven’t you figured out how that works yet?” But we don’t celebrate the honor we have to bring life into this world and to be lifelong evangelists in our home. Keeping up with the culture too easily distracts us from such a wonderful calling.

We should recognize the great blessing that children are from God and seize the opportunity God has given us to be witnesses in our own home. It was God’s created order for a man and a woman to marry and spend their marriage modeling Christ’s love for the church and making children who will come to know Jesus Christ. This doesn’t necessarily mean that you should have ten kids, but you should be asking, “How can I make it a priority for my marriage to fulfill the Great Commission in the lives of children?”

Here are a few ideas to spark your creativity:
If you are starting a family, consider what sacrifices may be required to make it a priority for creating worshippers of Christ in your home.
If you have children already, ask what efforts are needed to make the gospel the focus of your parenting.
If your children are gone, seek ways to support your children’s efforts in gospel-centered parenting and also encourage those in the church who still have children.
Everyone can be involved in children’s ministry. We are kidding ourselves if we believe all of the children in the church are believers. Become a gospel mentor to them. Children’s ministry is a mission field.
Seek ways to relieve the suffering caused by children being brought into this world outside of God’s design. Can you bring a child into your home through adoption? Can you provide support to a young mom who can’t afford a child?

When we hear of evangelism, we think of “Go, and make disciples of all nations” but for many of us it starts at home with “Be fruitful and multiply.”

"these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. 7 You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. 8 You shall bind them as a sign on your hand, and they shall be as frontlets between your eyes. 9 You shall write them on the doorposts of your house and on your gates." Deuteronomy 6:6-9

Book Review - The Potter's Freedom

Since the beginning of man’s existence we have tried to understand the relationship between the responsibility of man and the absolute sovereignty of God. On one hand we understand through Scripture that God is in complete control over every circumstance most notably in the death of Christ for the redemption of a sinful people. On the other hand we also see in the Bible that each person will be held personally responsible for his own actions. Harmonizing the two concepts in the human mind has been a challenge throughout history since right after the time of Christ with Augustine and up to the Reformation with John Calvin developing what today is a debate between Calvinism and Arminianism.

In 1999, Norman Geisler made an attempt to reconcile these challenging truths in his book Chosen But Free. He put forward his understanding of God’s sovereignty in what he labeled “moderate Calvinism.” A year later, James White responded to Geisler’s book with The Potter’s Freedom: A Defense of the Reformation and the Rebuttal of Norman Geisler’s Chosen But Free. White, and many who hold to Reformed theology, felt that Geisler misrepresented the Reformed viewpoint, thereby making it look foolish in order to make Geisler’s view appear to be more generous. White says Chosen But Free presents itself as “moderate Calvinism” but actually expresses itself as an Arminian attack on Reformed doctrine (pg. 336)

The Potter’s Freedom is very well written and easy to follow for casual readers. While discussing a very in-depth theological topic, it is written in a way that is simple to follow, especially if the reader keeps a Bible open along side. The chapters are organized to discuss four of the five points of Calvinism (Total Depravity, Unconditional Election, Particular Redemption, and Irresistible Grace) and compare the viewpoints of Geisler’s and White’s in light of the verses that both men address. One chapter explains the Reformed view of the doctrine, then the following chapter answers the objections and questions many have with Calvinism. White does this with great detail in examining the debated verses by explaining the context and the meaning of the words in question. All of this detail is very understandable and helpful to most readers.

James White begins The Potter’s Freedom with an explanation of what he believes is the “vital issue”; who is the only being in the universe that is truly “free”? We like to believe that we have a “free will,” but White says God is the only one who is totally free to choose as he pleases. “God is the absolutely free Creator, the Potter, who has complete sovereignty over the pots, humans, who, as fallen creatures, find their wills enslaved to sin, in bondage and unable to ‘cooperate’ with any offered grace.” (pg. 36)

What does this matter to the Christian? Why should we care about such theological discussions? White says, “The Potter’s freedom is precious to the Christian, for it is the very basis of salvation itself. Our sovereign Creator is free to be the good, holy, merciful, loving God that He is.” (pg. 337) It is comforting to us to know that despite the wretchedness of our evil hearts which were at enmity with God, He freely chose to lavish us with goodness anyway. And since He changed our hearts from God-hating to God-loving we can be confident that it is His power that will keep us to the end and through eternity, where nobody can boast that the strength of their own faith is what saved them, but the absolutely free choice of a loving God who gave us what we did not deserve through the substitution of His Son paying our death penalty.