9Marks Blog: Building Healthy Churches

Should you quit going to church when your pastor goes on sabbatical?

Bobby Jamieson — Mon, 14 May 2012 15:21:20 +0000

Come on, this is 9Marks. What do you think we're going to say to that question?

Too-obvious setup aside, our good friend Jeramie Rinne shared some helpful thoughts on the subject with his church in view of his own upcoming sabbatical.

Jermaie's post is a good word not just for those of us whose pastors may taking a sabbatical soon, but for all of us as the summer approaches. Things slow down, people travel, and you may hear more guest preachers than usual. But that doesn't mean you should take a vacation from church.

Instead, keep on meeting with your church and encouraging your brothers and sisters. After all, even in summer, that Day draws ever nearer (Heb. 10:25).

Must Baptism Precede Membership? Of course!

Jonathan Leeman — Sun, 13 May 2012 04:00:00 +0000

Must someone be baptized before he or she can join a church? I've been told by people who know history better than I do that Christians of almost all traditions have said yes for 2000 years. It's really only today that people have thought otherwise.

The historical precedent is pretty compelling in and of itself. It is also helpful to think about what a local church is and what church membership is, which I have tried to do in two previous posts. But understanding the relationship between baptism and membership finally requires us to consider the purpose of baptism. To do that, let's start with a story. We will call this story...

Must Wearing the Team Jersey Precede Playing with the Team?

Player: "Hey coach, the team owner just hired me. I'm ready to play."

Coach: "Great, let's get your jersey on and put you out on the field."

Player: "Wait a second, I'm not comfortable wearing a jersey. I'd prefer to hold off. Maybe I'll play a few games, and then consider wearing the jersey."

Coach: "Well, no, actually, you have to wear a jersey before you can play for us. It's how everyone knows who you are playing for."

Player: "That's ridiculous. First, I admit the rule book talks about players wearing jerseys, but nowhere does it explicitly say that I HAVE to wear a jersey BEFORE the first game..."

Coach: "Ahhh, hmmm, you're right. The rule book doesn't actually say that baptism must come before membership. Maybe we should not require our team to wear their jerseys at all. Some will; some won't. Nobody will be confused by that."

Player: "You're being sacrastic."

Coach: "Yes, I am. But tenderly so. Look, the rule book says players must wear jerseys--period. It doesn't say before or after the first game. It just says they have to wear them. And the point is, you need them from the start because those jerseys are the very thing which tell people whose team you belong to. That's what this little rite is for.

Player: "Okay, fine. But I haven't got to my second point."

Coach: "Yes?"

Player: "Second, I still think you're being a little legalistic. I mean, I'm a team member! The team owner hired me. I don't need the jerseys to prove that I'm a member. It's a done deal. So now I want to go and play, and I think I will play best wearing my old gym shorts."

Coach: "True, the owner hired you, and that's what made you a team member. I'm glad he did. But the owner ALSO wrote rule book which said that all the players have to wear uniforms. And he delegated to me the authority to make sure you wear it. So jersey up!"

[Curtain close.]

Is my parable making sense? Let's start with baptism. Baptism is like a team jersey. To "put it on" is to publicly identify yourself with the Trinity. That's what Jesus means when he speaks of being baptized "into the name" of Father, Son, and Spirit. When you are baptized, you are saying, "I'm with them!" You are putting on the team jersey.

What is local church membership? At its heart, it is the same thing. It is a declaration that we belong to Christ's kingdom and to his universal church. (See discussion here.) How does a local church make that declaration? It does it through baptism (and the Lord's Supper).

So go find my own local church's directory of names. Inside you will find all the people who we have collectively taken responsibility for as members of the universal body of Christ. We have taken responsibility to declare this short list of names to be "Christ's church" whenever we administer baptism and receive the Lord's Supper.

Must baptism precede membership? Yes. I'd even say, of course! I suppose it is possible you could have an extraordinary situation where the order might get reversed by a few weeks. Getting the order right is not a matter of ontological or salvific necessity, per se. But yes, it generally must precede it, because of what these things are. Baptism (and the Lord's Supper) is the mechanism that Jesus has given us for declaring someone to be a member of his body, and this happens among real people in a real place called the gathering of a local church.

What Is Church Membership?

Jonathan Leeman — Fri, 11 May 2012 15:38:04 +0000

In the last post, I answered the question, What Is the Local Church? That brings us to the next question: what is church membership?

Answer: It’s a declaration of citizenship in Christ’s kingdom. It’s a passport. It’s an announcement made in the pressroom of Christ’s kingdom. It’s the declaration that a professing individual is an official, licensed, card-carrying, bona fide Jesus representative.

More concretely, church membership is a formal relationship between a local church and a Christian characterized by the church’s affirmation and oversight of a Christian’s discipleship and the Christian’s submission to living out his or her discipleship in the care of the church.

Notice that several elements are present:

a church body formally affirms an individual’s profession of faith and baptism as credible;
it promises to give oversight to that individual’s discipleship;
the individual formally submits his or her discipleship to the service and authority of this body and its leaders.

The church body says to the individual, “We recognize your profession of faith, baptism, and discipleship to Christ as valid. Therefore, we publicly affirm and acknowledge you before the nations as belonging to Christ, and we extend the oversight of our fellowship.” Principally, the individual says to the church body, “Insofar as I recognize you as a faithful, gospel-declaring church, I submit my presence and my discipleship to your love and oversight.”

The standards for church membership should be no higher or lower than the standards for being a Christian, with one exception. A Christian is someone who has repented and believed, and that’s who churches should affirm as members. The only additional requirement is baptism. Church members must be baptized, a pattern that is uniform in the New Testament. Peter said to the crowds in Jerusalem, “Repent and be baptized” (Acts 2:38). And Paul, writing the church in Rome, simply assumes that everyone who belongs to the Roman church has been baptized (Rom. 6:1–3). (I'll consider this requirement of baptism further in the next post.)

Church membership, in other words, is not about “additional requirements.” It’s about a church taking specific responsibility for a Christian, and a Christian for a church. It’s about “putting on,” “embodying,” “living out,” and “making concrete” our membership in Christ’s universal body. In some ways, the union which constitutes a local church and its members is like the “I do” of a marriage ceremony, which is why some refer to church membership as a “covenant.”

It’s true that a Christian must choose to join a church, but that does not make it a voluntary organization. Having chosen Christ, a Christian has no choice but to choose to join a church.

This article is excerpted not from Church Membership (pictured above), but Church Discipline: How the Church Protects the name of Jesus (Crossway, 2012). A longer discussion is found in the former book.

The Curious Case of the Unnamed Prophet

Michael McKinley — Wed, 09 May 2012 17:58:34 +0000

There's an amazing story recorded for us in I Kings 13. If you remember the context, Jeroboam has built an altar in Bethel to compete with the temple of Yahweh in Jerusalem. Then suddenly, an unnamed prophet let loose a blast against the altar:

And the man cried against the altar by the word of the LORD and said, “O altar, altar, thus says the LORD: ‘Behold, a son shall be born to the house of David, Josiah by name, and he shall sacrifice on you the priests of the high places who make offerings on you, and human bones shall be burned on you.’” And he gave a sign the same day, saying, “This is the sign that the LORD has spoken: ‘Behold, the altar shall be torn down, and the ashes that are on it shall be poured out.’” (1 Kings 13:2-3 ESV)

That's a fantastic prophesy: specific, accurate (see II Kings 23:15ff), piercing, angry in all the right ways. O. Palmer Robertson calls it "one of the most remarkable prophesies found in the entirety of Scripture". I'd kill to preach a sermon like that some day.

But that's not the end of the story. It gets better:

And when the king heard the saying of the man of God, which he cried against the altar at Bethel, Jeroboam stretched out his hand from the altar, saying, “Seize him.” And his hand, which he stretched out against him, dried up, so that he could not draw it back to himself. The altar also was torn down, and the ashes poured out from the altar, according to the sign that the man of God had given by the word of the LORD. And the king said to the man of God, “Entreat now the favor of the LORD your God, and pray for me, that my hand may be restored to me.” And the man of God entreated the LORD, and the king's hand was restored to him and became as it was before. And the king said to the man of God, “Come home with me, and refresh yourself, and I will give you a reward.” And the man of God said to the king, “If you give me half your house, I will not go in with you. And I will not eat bread or drink water in this place, for so was it commanded me by the word of the LORD, saying, ‘You shall neither eat bread nor drink water nor return by the way that you came.’” So he went another way and did not return by the way that he came to Bethel. (1 Kings 13:4-10 ESV)

How awesome is that? What preacher wouldn't love to deliver a home-run sermon and then have your opponent's hand shrivel up? That's a pretty good day at the office.

But the story doesn't end well for our unnamed prophet. Even though the Lord commanded him not to eat or drink, he was convinced to eat at the table of a old prophet. Here's what happens as a result of his disobedience:

And after he had eaten bread and drunk, he saddled the donkey for the prophet whom he had brought back. And as he went away a lion met him on the road and killed him. And his body was thrown in the road, and the donkey stood beside it; the lion also stood beside the body. (1 Kings 13:23-24 ESV)

What's the moral of the story? Don't judge your own spiritual health by the things that God says and does through you. It's not enough to preach good sermons, we must obey the Lord. As Paul told Timothy:

Keep a close watch on yourself and on the teaching. Persist in this, for by so doing you will save both yourself and your hearers. (1 Timothy 4:16 ESV)

A Faithful Witness Whose Testimony Challenges Muslim Insider Movements

Ed Roberts — Wed, 09 May 2012 14:55:22 +0000

The Written Defense of the Rev. Mehdi Dibaj Delivered to the Sari Court of Justice - Sari, Iran December 3, 1993
A born Muslim who decided to follow and serve Jesus and paid the price with his life

"In the Holy Name of God who is our life and existence"

With all humility I express my gratitude to the Judge of all heaven and earth for this precious opportunity, and with brokenness I wait upon the Lord to deliver me from this court trial according to His promises. I also beg the honored members of the court who are present to listen with patience to my defense and with respect for the Name of the Lord.

I am a Christian. As a sinner I believe Jesus has died for my sins on the cross and by His resurrection and victory over death, has made me righteous in the presence of the Holy God. The true God speaks about this fact in His Holy Word, the Gospel (Injil). Jesus means Savior "because He will save His people from their sins." Jesus paid the penalty of our sins by His own blood and gave us a new life so that we can live for the glory of God by the help of the Holy Spirit and be like a dam against corruption, be a channel of blessing and healing, and be protected by the love of God.

In response to this kindness, He has asked me to deny myself and be His fully surrendered follower, and not to fear people even if they kill my body, but rather rely on the creator of life who has crowned me with the crown of mercy and compassion. He is the great protector of His beloved ones as well as their great reward.

I have been charged with "apostasy!" The invisible God who knows our hearts has given assurance to us, as Christians, that we are not among the apostates who will perish but among the believers who will have eternal life. In Islamic Law (Sharia'), an apostate is one who does not believe in God, the prophets or the resurrection of the dead, We Christians believe in all three!

They say "You were a Muslim and you have become a Christian." This is not so. For many years I had no religion. After searching and studying I accepted God's call and believed in the Lord Jesus Christ in order to receive eternal life. People choose their religion but a Christian is chosen by Christ. He says, "You have not chosen me but I have chosen you." Since when did He choose me? He chose me before the foundation of the world. People say, "You were a Muslim from your birth." God says, "You were a Christian from the beginning." He states that He chose us thousands of years ago, even before the creation of the universe, so that through the sacrifice of Jesus Christ we may be His. A Christian means one who belongs to Jesus Christ.

The eternal God who sees the end from the beginning and who has chosen me to belong to Him, knew from the beginning those whose heart would be drawn to Him and also those who would be willing to sell their faith and eternity for a pot of porridge. I would rather have the whole world against me, but know that the Almighty God is with me. I would rather be called an apostate, but know that I have the approval of the God of glory, because man looks at the outward appearance but God looks at the heart. For Him who is God for all eternity nothing is impossible. All power in heaven and on earth is in His hands.

The Almighty God will raise up anyone He chooses and bring down others, accept some and reject others, send some to heaven and other to hell. Now because God does whatever He desires, who can separate us from the love of God? Or who can destroy the relationship between the creator and the creature or defeat a life that is faithful to his Lord? The faithful will be safe and secure under the shadow of the Almighty! Our refuge is the mercy seat of God who is exalted from the beginning. I know in whom I have believed, and He is able to guard what I have entrusted to Him to the end until I reach the Kingdom of God, the place where the righteous shine like the sun, but where the evil doers will receive their punishment in the fire of hell.

They tell me, "Return!" But to whom can I return from the arms of my God? Is it right to accept what people are saying instead of obeying the Word of God? It is now 45 years that I am walking with the God of miracles, and His kindness upon me is like a shadow and I owe Him much for His fatherly love and concern.

The love of Jesus has filled all my being and I feel the warmth of His love in every part of my body. God, who is my glory and honor and protector, has put his seal of approval upon me through His unsparing blessings and miracles.

This test of faith is a clear example. The good and kind God reproves and punishes all those whom He loves. He tests them in preparation for heaven. The God of Daniel, who protected his friends in the fiery furnace, has protected me for nine years in prison. And all the bad happenings have turned out for our good and gain, so much so that I am filled to overflowing with joy and thankfulness.

The God of Job has tested my faith and commitment in order to increase my patience and faithfulness. During these nine years he has freed me from all my responsibilities so that under the protection of His blessed Name, I would spend my time in prayer and study of His Word, with a searching heart and with brokenness, and grow in the knowledge of my Lord. I praise the lord for this unique opportunity. God gave me space in my confinement, brought healing in my difficult hardships and His kindness revived me. Oh what great blessings God has in store for those who fear Him!

They object to my evangelizing. But if one finds a blind person who is about to fall in a well and keeps silent then one has sinned. It is our religious duty, as long as the door of God's mercy is open, to convince evil doers to turn from their sinful ways and find refuge in Him in order to be saved from the wrath of the Righteous God and from the coming dreadful punishment.

Jesus Christ says "I am the door. Whoever enters through me will be saved." "I am the way, the truth and the life. No-one comes to the father except through me." "Salvation is found in no-one else, for there is no other name under heaven given to men by which we must be saved." Among the prophets of God, only Jesus Christ rose from the dead, and He is our living intercessor for ever.

He is our Savior and He is the (spiritual) Son of God. To know Him means to know eternal life. I, a useless sinner, have believed in this beloved person and all His words and miracles recorded in the Gospel, and I have committed my life into His hands. Life for me is an opportunity to serve Him, and death is a better opportunity to be with Christ. Therefore I am not only satisfied to be in prison for the honor of His Holy Name, but am ready to give my life for the sake of Jesus, my Lord, and enter His kingdom sooner, the place where the elect of God enter everlasting life. But the wicked enter into eternal damnation.

May the shadow of God's kindness and His hand of blessing and healing be and remain upon you for ever. Amen. With Respect,

Your Christian prisoner,
Mehdi Dibaj

"I have always envied those Christians who were martyred for Christ Jesus our Lord. What a privilege to live for our Lord and to die for Him as well. I am filled to overflowing with joy; I am not only satisfied to be in prison. . .but am ready to give my life for the sake of Jesus Christ." - Mehdi Dibaj

Note:

Rev. Mehdi Dibaj who was born into a Muslim family became a Christian 45 Years ago. On December 21, 1993 an Islamic court in the city of Sari condemned him to die. The conviction was based on the charge of apostasy, i.e. that Rev. Dibaj had abandoned Islam and embraced Christianity. Once the news of Rev. Dibaj's death sentence reached the rest of the world, the reaction was one of disbelief followed by prayer and action. One of the persons who worked very hard to overturn Rev. Dibaj's sentence was Bishop Haik Hovsepian-Mehr. Bishop Haik, an Armenian pastor, shared the news of Rev. Dibaj's death sentence as well as other violations of religious freedom of Christians in Iran with the world. Due to the world's reaction, Rev. Dibaj was released on January 16, 1994.

Five months after the release from prison, Rev. Mehdi Dibadj was abducted mysteriously and suffered martyrdom in June, 1994.

(This testimony is also available here in audio form in Dibadj's heart language Farsi http://www.farsinet.com/persecuted/dibaj.html

Serving Your Wife Before Serving as a Pastor

Marcus Glover — Wed, 09 May 2012 14:28:59 +0000

The following is a guest post from Brian Croft. Brian serves as the senior pastor of Auburndale Baptist Church in Louisville, Kentucky. In addition to contributing to the 9Marks blog, Brian also writes regularly on his own blog called Practical Shepherding. Brian is married to Cara, and they have four children.

How can an aspiring pastor serve his wife before actually becoming the pastor?

Aspiring pastors are usually chomping at the bit to become pastors. Rightly so. Because of this, those aspiring to pastoral ministry often times dream to the future to one day serve in that capacity and miss some very significant ways he can serve his wife now that he cannot once he becomes the pastor preaching every week. Here are a few of those ways:

1) Sit with your wife in church every chance you get. If you asked a pastor’s wife what she wants most for vacation, most will answer, “I want to sit with my husband during church.” This is why you should not preach while on vacation. If you are not regularly preaching on Sundays, do all you can to sit with your wife. A day will come when you will not and you and your wife especially will be glad you once made that a priority.

2) Stay home on Sunday with sick kids. This is a wonderful way for any man to serve his wife when the kids are little. In fact, one of our pastors modeled this well this past Sunday. He sent his wife to church, while he stayed home with their sick kids so she could come hear the Word. My wife ALWAYS stays home on Sundays when our kids are sick because I am preaching. Until that day comes, serve your wife in these moments. She will be grateful.

3) Get up and down with the kids during the service. One of the most overlooked roles of my wife in our church is that she is always dealing with our children by herself during the service. Most husbands and wives are working together to deal with children sitting in the service, but not my wife. She is doing it on her own so I can preach. When you sit with your wife during the service, take initiative to deal with your kids, correct behavior problems, and answer their irrelevant questions asked in the middle of the sermon. Be the one to take them out if necessary. A day it coming when she will be flying solo on these things.

Aspiring pastors, I am glad you are anxious to dive into pastoral ministry. You should. It is a great joy to serve God’s people in the weekly public ministry of the Word. However, do not allow your ambition for this work to cause you to miss some small, but practical ways your wife will feel very loved and care for by you now.

Actual Pastors, read this post with feelings of gratefulness for your wife. She does so much on her own so we can do what God has called us to do. Never underestimate how much she will appreciate a “thank you” from you in regard to these Sunday tasks with our kids that we easily take for granted.

What Is a Local Church?

Jonathan Leeman — Tue, 08 May 2012 02:34:33 +0000

A local church is a group of Christians who regularly gather in Christ’s name to officially affirm and oversee one another’s membership in Jesus Christ and his kingdom through gospel preaching and gospel ordinances. That's a bit clunky, I know, but notice the five parts of this definition:

a group of Christians;
a regular gathering;
a congregation-wide exercise of affirmation and oversight;
the purpose of officially representing Christ and his rule on earth—they gather in his name;
the use of preaching and ordinances for these purposes.

Just as a pastor’s pronouncement transforms a man and a woman into a married couple, so the latter four bullet points transform an ordinary group of Christians spending time together at the park—presto!—into a local church.

The gathering is important for a number of reasons. One is that it’s where we Christians “go public” to declare our highest allegiance. It’s the outpost or embassy, giving a public face to our future nation. And it’s where we bow before our king, only we call it worship. The Pharaohs of the world may oppose us, but God draws his people out of the nations to worship him. He will form his mighty congregation.

The gathering is also where our king enacts his rule through preaching, the ordinances, and discipline. The gospel sermon explains the “law” of our nation. It declares the name of our king and explains the sacrifice he made to become our king. It teaches us of his ways and confronts us in our disobedience. And it assures us of his imminent return.

Through baptism and the Lord’s Supper, the church waves the flag and dons the army uniform of our nation. It makes us visible. To be baptized is to identify ourselves with the name of the Father, the Son, and the Holy Spirit, as well as to identify our union with Christ’s death and resurrection (Matt. 28:19; Rom. 6:3-5). To receive the Lord’s Supper is to proclaim his death and our membership in his body (1 Cor. 11:26-29; cf. Matt. 26:26-29). God wants his people to be known and marked off. He wants a line between the church and the world.

What is the local church? It’s the institution which Jesus created and authorized to pronounce the gospel of the kingdom, to affirm gospel professors, to oversee their discipleship, and to expose impostors. All this means, we don’t “join” churches like we join clubs. We submit to them.

Next post: What Is Church Membership?

This article is excerpted from Church Membership: How the World Knows Who Represents Jesus (Crossway).

Pray for Revival—in the Other Guy’s Church

Andy Johnson — Wed, 02 May 2012 14:43:07 +0000

What if you spent years faithfully and earnestly praying for revival to come to your community, and then one day, seemingly out of the blue, God dramatically answered your prayers?

All across your city, every day people begin crowding into the church to hear the gospel from God’s Word. On the streets, in their workplaces, in classrooms and homes all over town, previously timid church members are faithfully declaring the gospel and fruit is coming fast. Lives are transformed, marriages are saved, and most of all, one after another God’s enemies are laying down the weapons of their rebellion and are taking refuge in his glorious and merciful Son.

What if all this happened in your own town, right in front of your eyes, in that other guy’s church, just a few blocks down the street from yours?

I suspect we all know what we ought to say in response, but the words of praise and joy are likely to get caught in the backs of our throats.

This has happened before. In 1839 Robert Murray M’Cheyne learned that a great revival had broken out in his church under a guest preacher while he was away on a months-long mission trip. When the Spirit of God seems to bless the ministry of others rather than our own, some pretty important things about the real nature of our loves become glaringly visible.

“DIOTREPHES, WHO LOVES TO BE FIRST”

Of course, this battle between envy and rejoicing is nothing new. The Apostle John writes about the issue in his third letter (3 John). There, in verses five to eleven, he introduces us to two men: Gaius and Diotrephes.

Gaius loves to welcome and support faithful missionaries sent out from other churches because he loves Jesus (vv. 5-8).

Diotrephes, well…not so much. Diotrephes refuses to welcome these workers from other churches for one simple reason: John tells us plainly that Diotrephes “loves to be first” (v. 9). He has no desire to see gospel work done unless he does it. He will rejoice in no fruit unless it’s his fruit. He will tolerate no competition. Diotrephes’ actions and attitudes are, John bluntly says, “evil” (v. 11).

Evil—that’s a strong word. And frankly what frightens me most about Diotrephes is that we’re not told of any lack of doctrinal orthodoxy to justify that label. There is no mention of heresy or inadequate views of Christ. For all we know, Diotrephes’ theology looked just right on paper. But his competitive spirit exposed his supposed love for the gospel as merely love for his own group, his own ministry—ultimately love for himself. Just like any other pagan.

THE NOT-SO-SUBTLE POINT

So here comes the not-so-subtle point of this article: Do not be like Diotrephes! Instead, imitate what is good, meaning the gospel-exalting, non-competitive spirit of Gaius.

But why is this such a big deal? Because not only your heart but the very worth of the gospel in the eyes of the world is at stake.

Listen, you can talk all day about how you praise God for the blessings of gospel prosperity in your church—and you should, to some extent. And yet there will always be a lingering scent of self-interest; it’s your church, after all.

But what if you genuinely praise God for the gospel prosperity in some other church, whether in another country or even (gulp) right across town? What if you demonstrate the same delight to see Jesus’ work held up and delighted in as a result of someone else’s ministry? If you do, that shows that you love Jesus and his gospel and his glory—not just your group, your club, your ministry, your church.

That’s why it’s so important that we cultivate an attitude like Gaius’ in our hearts and in our church members’ hearts. Our love for Jesus and for his glory may never shine brighter than when we rejoice in the progress of the gospel even when there isn’t the slightest chance of us getting any of the credit.

HOW TO CULTIVATE THE SPIRIT OF GAIUS

How can you cultivate this kind of spirit in your church and in your own heart? Here are a few ways.

1. Pray and Read

First, pray and read. Start by reflecting on passages like 3 John that show the unique glory of what we might call a “disinterested delight” in the prosperity of the gospel. And pray that God would grow in you a heart that loves to encourage gospel progress, wherever it happens and whoever it happens through. Why? Because you love to see Jesus glorified.

2. Model and Teach

Second, model and teach. Show your church what this looks like by regularly praying for other faithful churches, by name, in public, from your pulpit, on Sunday morning. Praise God openly for the prosperity he may be giving to other churches that preach the same gospel, even right there in your own town. And pray for Christians and gospel work in other places around the world, too. Teach your people by this that the kingdom of God is much, much bigger than your local church.

3. Support and Celebrate

Third, support and celebrate. And, like faithful Gaius, go all the way and take money you could really use for your own church and give it away. Give it to bless other churches and to support faithful workers who have been sent out for the sake of the name (3 John 7). Again, when your church sends its money to bless and support external gospel work it’s like a megaphone announcing, “We love Jesus and his glory, not just our own group and our ministry.”

Certainly you have to keep some money to responsibly care for your own congregation. I understand that. But do you really need all the money God gives you? Really? Might it not be wonderfully liberating and gospel-clarifying to write a check that declares your church is free, through the grace of God, from the bondage of exclusive self-interest? True churches are not in competition with each other for dollars, or members, or glory. After all, all the money, all the people, and all the glory belong to God.

MAY WE PRAISE GOD FOR OTHER CHURCHES’ SUCCESS—AND MEAN IT

God has a big plan for his whole world, and God will accomplish his work in the world. He will save his children, and secure them in the faith, and grow them in holiness.

Sometimes he may do that through us. Sometimes he may do it through the church down the street. May we grow in our love for the glory of Christ so that either way we can say “Praise God,” and really mean it.

Andy Johnson is an associate pastor of Capitol Hill Baptist Church in Washington, DC.

(Editor's note: For more on why and how pastors should work for the progress of the gospel beyond their churches, keep an eye out for the next issue of the 9Marks Journal, coming soon.)

Long-Term Consequences of Pragmatism in the Church

Jonathan Leeman — Tue, 01 May 2012 21:38:53 +0000

Did you catch Al Mohler’s provocative and important article posted today “Is the MegaChurch the New Liberalism”? Mohler does not quite put it this way, but it essentially poses the question of whether there is something endemic to the nature of megachurches in America that tempts them in the direction of theological compromise.

I say “in America” intentionally. Presumably the tendency to theological compromise is not a property of size. Rather, it would seem to be a property of the pragmatism that characterizes so many mega- (and mini!) churches in the United States. Pragmatism, in the context of a church, refers to the philosophy that churches should do “whatever works” to grow. Along these lines, Mohler cites David Wells “massive critique of the doctrinal minimalism, methodological pragmatism, and managerial culture of many megachurches.”

Of course Mohler knows well enough not to just pin the blame on megachurches; we all deserve it. We are all tempted to change our ministry methods for the sake of reaching a bigger crowd. The problem--to read between Mohler's lines--is that this kind of methodological pragmatism easily migrates into the ethical and theological stances evangelical churches are willing to take.

Since this question draws so closely to the heart of why 9Marks exists, I thought it would be worthwhile to take a moment, back up, and consider whether there is a larger picture worth seeing. The question I want to think about can be posed like this: is there something endemic not just to megachurches, but to post-1950s-evangelicalism as a whole that, over time, tends to undermine the very doctrinal convictions which makes us evangelicals? More specifically, does our doctrine of the church inevitably tend in a pragmatic direction, such that we will eventually leave the gospel and other core theological convictions unguarded?

Evangelicals Yesterday: A Theological Consensus

TIGHT GRIP ON THE GOSPEL: Think back to the 1950s and 1960s. An evangelical was someone who believed in the inerrancy of the Bible, the substitutionary death and resurrection of Christ, the necessity of conversion, the call to evangelism, and the importance of engaging the culture. In order to preserve the gospel, evangelicals wanted to keep a tight grip on gospel essentials, and a loose grip on everything else.

LOOSE GRIP ON THE CHURCH: This often included a loose grip on the local church. Evangelicals rightly observed that church structure and programming are secondary, but this led many to treat these as unimportant. They decided the Bible doesn’t say much here anyway, and they began defaulting toward the latest trends of “what works.” Eventually, the Boomers wanted one thing, the Xers another, the Millenneals still another. In the meantime, parachurch ministries began supplanting churches’ work of discipleship and evangelism.

Evangelicals Today: An Ecclesiological Divergence

TRIBALIZATION: But pragmatism and parachurch ministries, for all their good uses, are poor guardians of the gospel. Since those early days, evangelical paths have diverged as churches have become distracted by one thing or another. Call it tribalization, Balkanization, or the passing of the old coalition, many people agree that evangelicalism has divided into a number of separate camps. Their members orbit around different leaders, different conferences, different books, and often different church models.

PROLIFERATING MODELS: There are the Emergents, the Neo-Reformed, the denominational loyalists (SBC, PCA, Mainliners, etc), the mystical spiritual-formation movement, the Pentecostals and Charismatics, to say nothing of several prominent megachurches which are movements unto themselves. Floating through these camps are an abundance of church models: traditional, house, multi-site, seeker-oriented, purpose-driven, cell, missional, organic, and more.

THEOLOGICAL UNRAVELING: This might not sound dangerous at face value, but in many cases these camps have begun to represent different theological trajectories. Evangelicals find it harder and harder to agree on the truthfulness of Scripture, the nature of the Christ’s atonement, God’s foreknowledge, and the importance of conversion and evangelism. In short, the old theological consensus has been passing away.

A Evangelicals Tomorrow: A Theological Divergence

GOSPEL COMPROMISE? The question that I would like to pose is, did our original evangelical starting point ultimately leave the gospel unguarded? We chose to treat the church with an open hand—pragmatically—in order to help the spread of the gospel. But did this very first step put us at risk of theological compromise? Mohler points toward the example of one pulpit which is promoting a gospel without repentance. But it's not too hard to find other examples.

These issues, as I said, go to the heart of why 9Marks exists. One of our basic convictions is that the local church and its polity present the platinum prongs that hold the diamond of the gospel in place. When one generation of Christians decides to downplay or relativize or pragmatize the local church, they just might find that the next generation no longer values the same gospel.

Feeding on Truth

Michael McKinley — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 16:56:29 +0000

There is literally such a thing as feeding on truth; and the place where these spiritual provisions are enjoyed in abundance may well be called the 'banqueting house'. How superior to everything else in the world is the banquet spread for us by Jesus! The truths and doctrines of Scripture, so rich, better than thousands of gold and silver, are the means, sacred vessels brought from heaven, for conveying to us this food of the Spirit. Here we banquet on the riches of redeeming love. The man who feeds on fame, flattery, riches, power, has nothing better than the husks of the dying prodigal; while those who are Christ's share the luxuries of the marriage-supper of the Lamb.

-- George Burrowes, Commentary on Song of Solomon (page 236)

The Happiness of the Pastor's Family

Marcus Glover — Mon, 30 Apr 2012 14:00:45 +0000

How much does the "happiness" of the family determine where and how long a pastor should serve?

I cringed as I recently read this question in an email. Not because it is not a good question, but because I feel so much for the burdens of the pastor asking it. A pastor asking this question is carrying with him not just the regular burdens to care for souls in his family and church (which is plenty already), but probably wrapped up in this question is the additional and painful burdens of a very hard, discouraging church that has and is affecting his family in concerning ways.

Of course, I cannot articulate where that balance is found; when to continue to sacrifice for the sake of Christ and his church and when the sacrifice harms a pastor’s family so much it now threatens a pastor’s qualification for the office (1 Tim. 3:4-5) or their long-term well-being. Nevertheless, here are 3 factors to keep in mind to help you make a decision if you find yourself asking this question:

1) Always another ministry, only one wife and family. Some of the best advice I ever received was, “You can always have another ministry, you only get one wife.” This is not to give a pastor a license to bail prematurely from ministry because his wife and kids are struggling. It is, however, to jolt the pastor consistently back to his primary priority to shepherd his family first before anything else. A wise discerning decision to this question cannot be made if a pastor is neglecting his wife and kids in the shepherding task.

2) Pastoral ministry is a call to suffer and sacrifice. When our families struggle in ministry, we are quick to assume that is the “sign” to leave and go somewhere else, when what a pastor and his family may really be experiencing is just ministry. The call to follow Jesus is a call to suffer (Mark 8:34, Heb. 13:12-13, Phil. 1:29). How much more is that calling for the ones called to shepherd those who follow Jesus? The call to the ministry is a call for suffering and sacrifice for not just the pastor, but his wife and children. Make sure the common suffering and difficulties faced as a part of this noble, divine calling, is not misunderstood as abnormal, thus a message to leave.

3) Discern what your ministry idols are. The pastor needs to make sure the unhappiness of his family is not the result of unrealistic expectations and idols the pastor and his family can develop about ministry. Are you unhappy because your church is not growing in numbers? Is your wife unhappy because she has not found that deep friendship in the church she longs for. Are your children unhappy because they want a different style of music than your church has? Our families can want, even covet things that are not bad in themselves, but can lead to a place of idolatry in our hearts and quickly make us discontent. Pastors, if you cannot identify where your wife and children are tempted to covet the things that breed discontentment, I suggest you get back to the task of shepherding your family with diligence to identify the root of their unhappiness before you make the difficult decision some have to make. Namely, that this ministry is too much for my family.

There are many good legitimate reasons for a pastor to leave a ministry or even leave the ministry all together for the sake of his family. Yet, make sure the reasons are good and right, for an unhappy family as a result of idols and a desire for a suffer free life will not go away once you leave the ministry.

How T4G Gave Me a Vision for Massive Single-Site, Single-Service Churches

Jonathan Leeman — Fri, 27 Apr 2012 14:38:43 +0000

The room was massive. Around me sat almost 8000 other Christians. The vast majority, of course, were complete strangers. Yet sitting there, ahem, in the "Kentucky Yum! Center" for this year's Together for the Gospel conference, belting out songs like "In Christ Alone," I caught a vision for the powerful joy someone just might experience in a massive single-site, single-service church.

Don't get me wrong. Christians require intimate fellowship, and I am a huge proponent of elders being able to "oversee all the flock"—down to the last member.

Still, there was something uniquely heartening about sitting in a room together with almost 8000 others singing the same song to the same Lord at the same time. Together you pray. Together you hear and feel the impact of words of life. Together you respond once more in songs of confession and praise...

I don't say this primarily for people in small churches, but for people in big churches who divide themselves up into multiple services or sites. Do you know what you just might be missing?

Let me get existential for a moment. Imagine all these preached words about Christ swirling through the air. Then picture the wind of the Spirit bringing those words down into our minds and our chests, taking hold of our rational processes with undeniable logic and our affections with exhilarating power, thereby recalibrating the direction of our desires. Then listen as we sing out those same words in one voice with gusto. Listen as the melodies of our hearts echo off walls, their vibrations pressing back into our bodies. Then watch as 8000 heads drop and eyes close. Peek and look around, if you must.

Now, amidst all these words and movements, tell me that the unity of the moment is not bodily palpable.

I'm not one to typically reach for mystical language, but as I confessed sin and praised God with this massive throng of like-minded believers, I felt strangely, indeed, mystically, united to them. I was with them, and they were with me. We were together because we all wanted the same thing—to see Christ's glory and fame spread, and to enjoy him together. We all wanted our lives, our families, our work to be about him. Somehow, these 8000 anonymous faces didn't feel like strangers or enemies, but friends. I felt no desire to compete with them, or prove myself to them, but to embrace them, and be embraced by them.

Honestly, it was like sitting together at the family dinner table.

And now you want half the family to get up from the table, and either walk down the street to another building, or come back in two hours? And you don't think that will change things?

Presently, I often enjoy this kind of experience on Sunday mornings with my own much smaller local church. Indeed, there it is more profound, more complex, more sweet. But what struck me about this conference experience was that it was nearly 8000 people whom I did not personally know, and yet still I felt this strange sense of Holy Spirit-indwelt, Word-driven unity.

For the first time, I imagined what the church in Jerusalem with its 5000 men (and how many women and children?) must have been like. First, they enjoyed the power of the crowd as the all met together (Acts 2:46a; 5:12; 6:2). Then they separated for fellowship and met in individual houses (2:46b). Power and unity together, followed by a more intimate fellowship when apart.…It’s not a bad formula. Throw some elders into those individual house meetings and you got pastoral oversight as well.

So back to you pastors with multiple-services and sites. It’s no good to say, as some do, “Once your church grows beyond 1000, you might as well split into two services or two sites. What’s the difference?” The difference is that people live in bodies. And bodies together is a different thing than bodies separate. Just ask your spouse or kids. How well can you build a marriage or raise your kids over Skype?

Perhaps the lesson here is, if your preaching will bring that many people, maybe it’s not such a bad thing to build the big building after all.

9Marks Journal now in eReader format!

Marcus Glover — Thu, 26 Apr 2012 17:34:22 +0000

9Marks web resources are now more accessible than ever! We are excited to announce the release of the 9Marks Journal in eReader format. From now on, you can dowload every issue of the 9Marks Journal onto your Kindle or Nook! It's the same resource in a new medium.

So what are the practical benefits of getting the Journal on your eReader device? Here are just a few we could think of:

Take it with you on the go! At home. On the road. On the plane. On the subway. On the bus. In the office. On vacation. In the mountains. In the desert... Okay, you get the point. You can take the 9Marks Journal with you anywhere without requiring Wi-Fi access!
Easy access for pastoral use! Show it to your staff and members of your church. Refer to specific articles and book reviews to help find answers for tough pastoral questions. Sure, you have already been doing this. But now it's even quicker, easier, and more convenient!
Save some energy and some trees! Instead of having to use your computer or carry around a ream of paper, now you can read and refer to the 9Marks Journal on your lightweight, low-energy eReader device. It just makes sense!

To download the Journal onto your eReader device, simply go to the Journal page and click on the download button for either the Kindle (Mobi) or the Nook (ePub). You can also Download the Journal by visiting Amazon.com (Kindle) or BarnesAndNoble.com (Nook) and searching for "9Marks Journal." Each issue needs to be downloaded individually.

All future issues of the Journal will be available for download on the Kindle and the Nook. But if you're looking for past issues as well, we've got good news for you: Several of the past issues are already available for free download here. We encourage you to download these issues and see how you like it.

We hope this new will prove a useful resource for you as you seek to cultivate health in your local church. Try it out and let us know what you think!

Consistent Complementarianism

Michael McKinley — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 20:13:12 +0000

I meet more and more young men who are excited about the concept of male leadership in the home. As far as it goes, I think that’s a good thing.

But I also see a lot of men who assert their headship in their home, but who do not take a consistent approach to the authorities set over them by God (or God himself). A few examples:

1. Some men complain about their wife’s unwillingness to submit to their authority while they (the husband) embrace secret sins in their lives. As if their wife should submit to their authority, but they shouldn’t have to submit to God’s authority.

2. Some men extol the glories of male headship but never think to consciously submit their lives and decision making to the authority of their elders and fellow church-members. As if God designed a husband’s authority to be a blessing at home, but all other authority is arbitrary and unimportant.

3. Some men think nothing of venting their spleen about their boss, the government, or the leaders of their church, all the while insisting that their wife speak about them in tones of hushed respect.

It is spiritually dangerous to be in this position, exercising authority without submitting to it.

But I think this is also an important factor to consider when trying to identify men who can serve the church as elders. I would not want to put a man into a position of authority in our church unless he himself were able to joyfully submit to the authorities placed over him by God. A man who will not submit to others should not have others submitting to him.

I also appreciate the point that Thabiti makes in Finding Faithful Elders and Deacons: A crucial part of an elder’s work is knowing how to submit to other biblically qualified, gifted, and Spirit-filled men who will, from time to time, see a matter differently. It’s proud to think this will never happen, and it’s proud to think the other elders should always submit to you. (pages 102-103)

If you want to be a good leader, perhaps you should begin by being a good follower. If you want to know whether you are a good follower, try asking the people God has put in authority over you!

Discipline and Caring for the Sinned-Against

Jonathan Leeman — Wed, 25 Apr 2012 13:40:27 +0000

"I believe the process of church discipline saved my life. When my marriage unexpectedly fell apart, my church held up the gospel before my eyes through the process of church discipline. When my wife abandoned me, my elders didn't."

This is the testimony of a man whose wife committed adultery and then left him. The tale, like all stories of broken marriages, is deeply grieving. "I had been left without reason by a woman who no longer regarded the teachings of Scripture on marriage." To this day she has not returned. The marriage is over, and she has been excommunicated from the church.

Right now I don't want you to focus on the tragedy. I want you to look instead at the beauty that quietly appears in a healthy church amid such tragedies, like catching a glimpse of Jesus' face in a crowd. Focus on the community of people who loved a man and his unfaithful wife---of all things---through church discipline.

This man, a new friend, told me that his elders did two things:

"First, they pursued my wife with a gracious, firm call to repentance. Forbearing in their timing, sensitive in their decision-making, and erring on the side of patience, they were slow to move but sure of how they would respond if she chose to remain in her sin." He knew they loved his wife deeply, precisely because they begged her to abandon the way that leads to death.

Not that church discipline is always loving. Recently, in fact, I received an email from someone else who has been disciplined by pastors who believe their decisions are always sacrosanct. There's a recipe for abuse.

Still, if a Day of Irrevocable Assize awaits us all, then you must agree that it is loving to wave your arms---wildly if you must---at anyone sprinting toward the cliff. It's unloving to stay silent (Prov. 13:24; 27:5). Church discipline, which begins with private remonstration and reluctantly goes public with excommunication, is just such a waving of the arms: Please, stop! Bridge out!

Pursuing the Sinned-Against

Yet here's what I also want you to see: This man's church did more than pursue his unrepentant wife. They pursued him, the sinned-against.

He explains, "Second, they pursued me, a member in good standing who was willing to do anything to see his marriage restored, with gracious, firm, and constant reminders of the gospel." And this pursuit, he said, "led to an extraordinary subjective experience of God's grace in and through his church."

Really? You experienced God's grace as your wife was disciplined?

Take notice: "When my wife left, my pastor was there to remind me that God had not forsaken me, but, rather, had forsaken his own Son in order to join himself to me.

"When flooded with doubt, erratic emotions, and overwhelming loneliness, my elders reminded me of God's sovereign, fatherly care for me.

"When, by the work of the Holy Spirit in my life, I was able to extend grace and love to my wife despite the almost inconceivable hardness of her heart, I heard them say, 'You are walking well.'

"When it became clear that my wife was committing adultery, they reaffirmed their commitment to walk with me through the entire process."

Does that make sense? When you are sinned against, especially with sin of any significance, it can feel like the universe has lost its balance. The scales of justice are off. As you stagger and reel, you need someone to say, "Yes, the scales are off. That was unjust."

I was once involved in counseling a woman whose husband had cheated on her. An older brother advised me to assure her not only of God's love, but of God's hatred for the sin. "God hates what your husband did. He's against it. He grieves with you." Yes, sin is first godward, but don't forget the human element. Empathize with the hurting like Jesus did (Heb. 2:17; 4:15).

And here is where church discipline comes in. It's one thing to have an empathetic counselor say, "I'm so sorry." It's another thing to have King Jesus' formally authorized representative on earth, the local church, publicly recognize the injustice as an injustice (see Matt. 18:17). It brings Christ's own loving, affirming face into the crowd of your supporters: "Wherever two or three are gathered, there am I with them" (Matt. 18:20).

This is what my friend saw and felt: "Never have I had such an acute sense of God's grace to me as when I stood on the 'other side' of a case of church discipline. There is no greater gift that the church can give to its members who have been victimized by sin than to rightly, graciously administer church discipline in accordance with the teachings of Scripture."

Beauty in Strange Places

Can you see it? The beauty of Christ's love in this strangest of places? Few sins reach with destructive claws so deep into a heart as adultery. It's like the sharpest of knives cutting into the tenderest of spots. Yet it's right there in that torn spot that Jesus would have the church show up, bringing affirmation and healing. It does this, in part, by addressing the sin honestly and explaining Jesus' strident opposition to it.

A church's process of discipline says to the person who has been sinned against, "Right there in that place where you feel most torn open, you, who are made in the image of God, have been wronged. We, his royal representatives, know an injustice has been done, and we want you to know that God sees it. Indeed, he feels it because it's against him, too. He's with you. What's more, he would have us, his beloved children, tell you that he loves you and is for you in that deep place where you feel most ashamed, scared, and hurt. Nothing can separate you from his love, not even your spouse's betrayal."

Do you see it? How the face of Christ shows up even here---in the pursuit of both the sinner and the sinned against.

This article originally appeared at The Gospel Coalition and is reprinted here by permission.

Is There an Office for Pastors' Wives?

Jonathan Leeman — Thu, 19 Apr 2012 14:05:16 +0000

What role should a pastor's wife or elder's wife play in the church? What are her responsibilities? How can she serve as a helpmate to her husband in the ministry?

THERE IS NO "PASTOR'S WIFE" OFFICE

The first thing to say on this topic is that the Bible does not establish an office for "elder/pastor wife." It doesn't offer her a job description. This in turn means an elder's wife should not feel forced into some mold or set of expectations. Rather, an elder's wife should feel free to simply be a happy, healthy, growing Christian who seeks to fulfill the "one another" commands in the context of her church just like every other member should.

Shouldn't the pastor/elder's wife seek to love and serve the church as occasion permits and as gifts allow? Yes, but only because she is a Christian, not because she is an elder's wife.

Some pastors' wives will want to play the piano, run VBS, and lead the women's retreat. Great! Others will find themselves more fully occupied in the home as well as in the work of private hospitality or neighborhood evangelism. Great!

An elder or pastor's wife, like every Christian, should engage in private ministry. But there is nothing in the Bible which says that she must engage in public ministry.

UNHELPFUL EXPECTATIONS FROM THE CHURCH

Now, churches will often place expectations on pastor/elder wives. They expect them to have a public ministry. But here is where elders/pastors should be willing to show courage and seek to protect their wives from unhelpful expectations.

When Mark Dever was asked by the pastoral search committee of CHBC what his wife would do if he came as pastor, he replied that she would be a member who sought to grow in grace and love for the church, but that they should not place any other expectations on her. They would be hiring him, not her.

HELPFUL EXPECTATIONS FROM HER HUSBAND

In general, a pastor should nurture his wife's affection for the church just like any other Christian husband should. He should

minister the Word to her;
encourage her love for the church by speaking carefully about the church and praying for the church with her;
seek to cultivate in her a heart for discipleship, hospitality, and evangelism;
pay special attention to her particular needs and gifts, giving ample allowance for both;
not exasperate or overburden her;
affirm her acts of service and love in the home and church often;
help her to not compare herself to other women, but to seek to be faithful with the gifts and opportunities that God has given her;
and demonstrate his unique and special love for her such that she doesn't feel the competition of his affections for the church.

Shouldn't every Christian husband do all this?

A UNIQUE ROLE

Now, having said all that, a pastor or elder's wife does have a unique role, just like the wife of every man has a unique role: she is married to him. Every wife including the elder's wife must learn how to be the helpmate to her husband in all his stations of life.

So my own precious and patient wife has walked with me through the positions of both staff pastor and lay elder. And unique challenges have confronted her in both capacities. When the temptations and opportunities of office faced me, they faced her, because we are one flesh. Since I am not presently serving in either capacity, she is not presently experiecing the peculiar burdens or joys.

When the time comes for me to consider resuming the work of an elder, we will have to think and pray about her readiness as well. That's not because she will have more to do--a job description that she will have to fulfill. Rather, that's because life and ministry will become more intense on every front. Pressures will increase to fight pride, forgive quickly, ignore criticism, love generously, sacrifice time together, and so forth. For her and for me both, the stakes of the Christian life will become higher, and so it will become that much more practically important that we are both abiding in the gospel.

You might say that being a pastor or elder's wife doesn't add any new knobs to the stereo, it just turns up the volume. But don't misunderstand: the music is good!

BTW: Check out the 9Marks Panel for Pastor's Wives at this year's The Gospel Coalition Women's Conference: "The Pastor's Wife: First Lady, Piano Play, Hostess, Mother Extraordinaire, and All-Around Wonderwoman?" with Kristie Anyabwile, Keri Folmar, and Adrienne Lawrence

New 9Marks website in Spanish!

Marcus Glover — Tue, 17 Apr 2012 14:00:00 +0000

Do you or someone you know speak Spanish? Do you have a passion for cultivating God-glorifying, healthy churches in the Spanish-speaking world?

We are excited to announce the official launch of our brand new 9Marks Spanish website! With the help of several volunteer translators, 9Marks has translated dozens of resources into Spanish and made them available for free in one convenient, user-friendly place online. Like our English 9Marks.org website, the 9Marks Spanish website is designed to be an online resource where church leaders can find practical tools for ministry and up-to-date information about the ministry of 9Marks around the world.

So what will you find on the 9Marks Spanish website? Among other resources, you will find Journals, articles, book reviews, and events—all in Spanish! Our hope is to eventually expand the site to include more 9Marks resources as we get them translated. For now, we invite you to browse the website and pass it along to friends who may find it useful.

The web address for the 9Marks Spanish website is es.9Marks.org. You can also access the 9Marks Spanish website by visiting the 9Marks.org homepage and clicking on the "español" button at the top-right of the screen.

We would like to extend our sincere thanks to our good friend Peter McMillan who has worked diligently to assemble a fantastic team of volunteer translators for this project. It is our joy to serve alongside Peter and many like him who have a passion to serve Spanish-speaking churches around the world.

As we consider what the Lord has done, and continues to do, in Spanish-speaking countries around the world, we rejoice at God's faithfulness and the power of his Word. And we are humbled to play even a small role in equipping Spanish-speaking saints in the work of building healthy churches that display God's glory. We invite you to rejoice with us at this new opportunity to serve our Spanish-speaking brothers and sisters, and we ask you to pray with us that God would bring about much fruit from this new Spanish website.

Is Anybody Out There?

Michael McKinley — Mon, 16 Apr 2012 12:07:02 +0000

If you benefitted from the 9Marks audio interview with Mez McConnell (here), you may be interested to know that Mez's story has been published as a book titled Is Anybody Out There? I highly recommend it.

If you didn't hear the original interview, it's well worth an hour of your time in the very near future. You will be amazed at God's grace in Mez's life!

My Highlights from T4G

Michael McKinley — Sat, 14 Apr 2012 21:59:03 +0000

T4G was amazing. I don’t know anyone who was there who wasn’t deeply encouraged. It’s hard to pull out highlights of what seemed like 3 days full of highlights, but a few things special delights:

· The singing.Yikes. The voices, the words… it was like heaven. I know that’s cliché, but we have clichés for just such a purpose.

· CJ Mahaney’s sermon for discouraged pastors. The “but not” of II Corinthians 4:8-9 is still ringing in my ears.

· The testimonies.These reminders of the gospel’s power to save anyone breathed fresh wind into my sails. Then Thabiti’s message put exegetical feet on all the testimonies.

· Ligon Duncan’s messageon I Kings 19. I don’t know what to say, but if you haven’t listened to it, you should go do it right now.

If you weren’t there, you probably know that the content is up and available at the T4G site. Go check it out!

The Omnipotence of His Silence

Michael McKinley — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 17:33:31 +0000

Christ in his passion was mocked on several occasions and each time the mockery occupied a unique place in his experience. First he was mocked by Israel, next he was mocked by the pagan world, then by a descendant of Edom, a false brother, and finally by all these together. He was mocked by the Sanhedrin, by Pilate’s soldiers, by Herod and then by them all as they stood before the cross….

In the midst of this gruesome abuse our Lord stood unflinchingly, leaving himself at the mercy of his enemies, he who by a word could have destroyed them. But he maintained the omnipotence of his silence.... In his bearing in the midst of vile abuse, the Saviour left us an example that we should follow in his steps. We cannot be faithful to Christ in this world and avoid reproach and contempt, and in this our bearing should correspond in some measure to that of the master when he was so defamed.

-- Frederick S. Leahy, The Cross He Bore (pp. 58-59)

9Marks at T4G: eBooks and more!

Marcus Glover — Fri, 06 Apr 2012 16:12:06 +0000

Next week, 9Marks will be in Louisville, Kentucky, at Together for the Gospel 2012 (T4G 2012). As we have done at past T4G conferences, we will have a 9Marks exhibitor booth located in the main exhibition hall. Various 9Marks staff members will be on hand throughout the conference, so make sure to stop by and say hello!

This year, we are excited to announce the release of our 9Marks Journals in eBook format. At T4G 2012, we will be officially unveiling these Journals on the Nook and the Kindle. 9Marks staff members will be available to provide additional information and demonstrate how it works. As a bonus, we'll be doing giveaways of Nooks and Kindles to a select few T4G attendees! For more information on this, you'll need to stop by the 9Marks booth.

But that's not all, friends! Thanks to our friends at Crossway and LifeWay, various 9Marks books will be available for sale and for free in the T4G bookstores. More information about book sales and giveaways will be available at the conference.

And of course, we are thrilled that our very own Mark Dever will be delivering a plenary address during the T4G conference. In addition, various other 9Marks authors will be speaking as well. Thabiti Anyabwile will be be delivering a plenary address. Michael Lawrence, Mike McKinley, and Mack Stiles will each be leading breakout sessions.

T4G 2012 will take place April 10-12 in Louisville, Kentucky. As always, we are excited about the opportunity to partner with many friends to take part in the Together for the Gospel conference. If you are planning to be at T4G, we encourage you to come see us and take advantage of the opportunities we're offering. Please pray that Lord would bring about much fruit from the conference as a whole, as well as 9Marks' specific involvement.

We'll see you in Louisville!

Younger Pastors Discipling Older Members

Marcus Glover — Wed, 04 Apr 2012 01:23:07 +0000

How does a younger pastor seek to disciple older members?

I was recently emailed by a younger pastor seeking counsel on how to disciple older members in his church. This is a common scenario as more younger pastors go to pastor existing churches where the church is predominantly elderly. First, I want to affirm the general biblical principle that the older are to teach and mentor the younger (Titus 2).

Yet, there are other examples where the younger are not to shy away from challenging the older with the Word of God and the call to godly living. Paul exhorts Timothy not to let anyone look down on him for his youthfulness, but to be an example to all who believe (1 Tim. 4:12). Likewise, Paul exhorts Titus to teach older men and women to live godly and to mentor the younger (Titus 2:1-10).

So then, seeing the biblical imperative for a pastor to teach, disciple, and shepherd both young and old in the church, we must acknowledge the challenges that a younger pastor faces when pursuing to disciple one old enough to be his grandparent. Here are 3 tips I have found helpful from myself going to pastor a church at the age of 29 where most the members were between the ages of 70 - 90 years old:

Go on their turf. Like any discipleship relationship, there must be trust made that the pastor indeed cares for them. The best place to start is to go do what they do, where they like to do it. If they like to hunt and fish, go with them. If they like to garden, show up at their house with work clothes on and work in the garden with them. If they like to walk the neighborhood early in the morning, set up a time where you can come walk with them. Do not underestimate the progress made with older members when they see a simple effort made like this.

Seek to learn from them. Your first effort as a younger pastor should not be to try to instruct them, but allow yourself to learn from all their years of life and experience. Go and ask them questions about marriage, parenting, working the same job for 40 years, dealing with loss, and how they served the church before you were potty trained. There is much to learn from them and they will be more eager to learn from you after you acknowledge the wealth of life experience they can offer you.

Engage them in spiritual conversation. If you do these first two suggestions, I think you will find that spiritual conversations will flow from them. If not, bring spiritual conversations into your interactions when appropriate. Then, challenge them to pursue a spiritual discipline with you. Reading and memorizing Scripture, praying for certain things, reading a small book together, or stewardship of time. They actually may appreciate someone offering to try to grow in godliness with them. Do not assume it has been offered to them before.

My fellow younger pastors, my hope if you take this counsel will be not just a greater understanding on how to disciple older members in your church, but it will show to be what Paul says it should be…a means of growth in godliness for your own soul (Titus 2:1-10).

Your Church and Your Life Planning

Jonathan Leeman — Tue, 27 Mar 2012 17:39:43 +0000

A friend recently emailed me asking how he should weigh leaving his church to take a job in another city. I told him that he was “free in Christ” to stay or go but that I loved his factoring his local church into the decision. Well done.

Too often, it’s easy to make life’s “big decisions” just like a non-Christian would, giving no regard to how it will impact our membership in our local churches. We consider a job offer in another city with scant regard for whether that city has a healthy church. We consider a possible marriage partner without asking whether the person has a track record of loving and serving Christ’s body.

Let me look at the matter another way. We fail, when confronted with such decisions, to seek counsel from the brothers and sisters in our congregations who know us well — often because we have not sought meaningful relationships in the first place.

We don’t consider the impact our going will have on others — the children we’ve been teaching in Sunday school or the fellow people who depend on our weekly encouragement.

We face many difficult decisions about how to raise our children: Am I disciplining too much? Not enough? Should we home school? Public school? But we do not avail ourselves of older and wiser parents in the congregation.

You get the picture. If you are a Christian, it’s worth asking whether you include your church in your life planning. I mean “include the church” in two ways: do you consider it as a factor in your thinking, and do you actually involve the people in your decision making?

God has given all of us a wonderful gift in other Christians who have weaknesses and strengths, talents and resources, that complement our own. Whatever gift we have, we have it for the common good (1 Cor. 12:7; 1 Peter 4:10). We’re to build one another up to maturity (Eph. 4:13; 1 Thess. 5:11; Jude 20–21). Maturity in Christ is a group project, which is why our discipleship should occur primarily in and through the local church. Christian love and obedience put on flesh there.

For instance, Philippians 2:1–11 says to “consider others better than [ourselves]” and to “look to the interests of others.” Then it tells us to have the same attitude as Christ, who became man, made Himself a servant, and went to die on the cross. Let me see if I can apply these verses by fleshing out one example of a big life decision: which home to buy or apartment to rent.

If you are able, “consider others better than yourselves” and “look to the interests of others” by living geographically close to the church. When a person lives within walking distance of a church or clumps of members, it is easier to invite people to one’s house for dinner, to watch one another’s children while running errands, and to pick up bread or milk at the store for one another. In other words, it is just plain easier to integrate daily life when there is relative — even walkable — geographic proximity.

When choosing a place to live, Christians do well to ask some of the same questions that non-Christians ask: What are the costs? Are there good schools nearby? But a Christian also does well to ask additional questions like these: Will the mortgage or rent payment allow for generosity to others? Will it give other church members quick access to me for discipleship and hospitality?

During my family’s last move, the question of living near the church came down to a choice between two houses, both of which were affordable but very different otherwise. House 1 was newer, better designed, more attractive, did not need repairs, and was less expensive. But it was a thirty-minute drive from the church building and near no other church members. House 2 was older, draftier, in need of several repairs (such as a rotting front porch and an occasionally flooding basement), and it was more expensive. But it was only a fifteen-minute drive from the church building and, more important, within walkable proximity of a dozen (now two dozen) church families. I sought the counsel of several elders, all of whom advised me to prioritize church relationships. This actually meant choosing the older, less attractive, more expensive house.

Thankfully, we did, and it has been enriching for our whole family. My wife interacts with the other mothers almost daily, and our children with their children. I met with one brother every weekday morning to pray and read Scripture for a year and a half. And our church families can work together in serving and evangelizing our neighbors.

Must a Christian move close to other members of his or her church? No, the Bible doesn’t command this. We’re free in Christ to live wherever we want. But this is one concrete way to love your church — to consider others better than yourself and look to their interests.

Did the Son of God submit Himself geographically for the church’s good? He left heaven. Now, let’s put on the same attitude our Savior put on for us.

This article has been reprinted by permission from Ligonier Ministries and R.C. Sproul. © Tabletalk magazine. Website: www.ligonier.org/tabletalk. Email:tabletalk@ligonier.org. Toll free: 1-800-435-4343.

The Gospel of Barabbas

Michael McKinley — Mon, 26 Mar 2012 12:00:08 +0000

We don’t think about Barabbas a lot, though he comes up more often at this time of year as churches turn their attention to the events leading up to the crucifixion of Jesus.

Here’s are the two things we know about him:

· His name: It means “son of the father”. Some textual variants of Matthew 27:15-18 give his name as “Jesus Barabbas”.

· His crime: He had been found guilty of starting a riot and murder. It seems likely that he was the most notorious prisoner on hand, because Pilate was trying to give the crowd an unpalatable choice.

But in Barabbas we have an amazing picture of the gospel. Put yourself in his shoes on that fateful day (Luke 23:18-25).

· You are sitting in a Roman jail awaiting your death. You are surely going to be crucified for your crimes against Rome. Day after day you sit in this jail, anticipating the nails, the mockery, the excruciating pain, the blood filling your lungs, the breaking of your legs. That’s the future you have in store for you. You don’t know when it’s coming, but it’s coming.

· But then perhaps on this fateful day you hear a mob outside. Obviously, something is going on. Has word gotten out that today is your day, the day for your execution? Surely the bloodthirsty crowd is there for you.

· And what is this that they are shouting? “Crucify him! Crucify him!” (Luke 23:23) You see there in verse 23 that this went on for a while, as the crowd demanded a crucifixion with loud voices.

· Then the Roman guard comes and gets you. He drags you up in front of the mob and… sets you free. You see Jesus stumbling off under the weight of the cross, perhaps the cross that had been constructed for your execution. This innocent man is being crucified on the trumped up charge of starting an insurrection (Luke 23:5). You, the guilty man, are being set free as if you were innocent.

What a picture of the gospel. Jesus bears our guilt and shame and curse and disgrace and death. We receive the position that Jesus deserved; we are free and innocent of all our crimes. He gets what we deserve; we get what he deserved.

For our sake he made him to be sin who knew no sin, so that in him we might become the righteousness of God. (II Corinthians 5:21)

How to Run an Elders' Meeting

Marcus Glover — Wed, 21 Mar 2012 19:42:38 +0000

What should an elders' meeting look like? What should it include? Who should facilitate it? How long should it last?

If you've found yourself asking any of these questions, we recommend you check out a recent article by our friend Andy Davis about how to effectively conduct an elders' meeting. Having served for the past 13 years as the senior pastor of First Baptist Church in Durham, North Carolina, Andy Davis draws on sound biblical wisdom and years of ministry experience to present a vision of eldership that is both compelling and instructive.

Regarding elders' meetings, Davis says:
"By the astounding grace of the Lord Jesus Christ, the elders have been entrusted with the awesome role of "undershepherds" of his flock. This ministry is done collectively; therefore, the elders must meet together regularly to carry it out. The elders must consecrate themselves to the glory of God and the good of his people, and carry out the shepherding, prayer, discernment, and management tasks entrusted to them. As they do so, they should conduct themselves as Spirit-filled men who seek unity and true understanding of each other's minds. May God use this article to make your elders' meetings as fruitful as possible for his glory."

This article is available online at The Gospel Coalition, and you can read it here. If you are a church leader, especially an elder, we highly recommend you give it a read.

Related Resources:

Book: Finding Faithful Elders and Deacons by Thabiti Anyabwile

Interview: 'Finding Faithful Elders and Deacons' with Thabiti Anyabwile

Article: 'Elders: Lead!' by Bobby Jamieson