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Members of a local congregation of the Presbyterian Church in America assent to five declarations and promises. The Book of Church Order (BCO), the constitutional government guide for the PCA, says that upon assenting to these five declarations and promises one enters “into a solemn covenant with God and His church.” Today I want to give a brief overview of these five statements, seeking to explain what is expected of our members. First, here are the five declarations and promises, from BCO 57-5: Do you acknowledge yourselves to be sinners in the sight of God, justly deserving His displeasure, and without hope save in His sovereign mercy? Do you believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as the Son of God, and Savior of sinners, and do you receive and rest upon Him alone for salvation as He is offered in the Gospel? Do you now resolve and promise, in humble reliance upon the grace of the Holy Spirit, that you will endeavor to live as becomes the followers of Christ? Do you promise to support the Church in its worship and work to the best of your ability? Do you submit yourselves to the government and discipline of the Church, and promise to study its purity and peace? Let me make some observations:... Keep Reading

My apologies to those who are looking forward to or expecting a return to the Genesis sermon series. We will get back to Genesis in March. In the meantime, I will be preaching a six-part series on church membership. Let me explain why I believe this is an important topic for a sermon series. First, church membership is biblical. While the Bible never using the specific term “church membership,” the concept is ingrained in the New Testament vision for the church. From submission to church leaders (Heb. 13:17) to bearing one another’s burdens (Gal. 6:2) to using gifts to serve others (1 Cor. 12:7) to the practice of church discipline (Matt. 18:15-17), there is an implicit commitment to the church body that membership encompasses. Paul uses several analogies to describe the new community of the church: a body (Eph. 2:16), a household or family (Eph. 2:19; 1 Tim. 5:1-2), and a building (Eph. 2:21), all of which speak about the integral connectedness of the individual parts. The point is that when God saves us, we are not only saved from sin, but we also are saved into a new community. Our salvation and our relationship with God are not merely private, individual experiences. Church membership represents our understanding of and commitment to God’s saving work in building the church. Second, church membership is counter cultural. We live in a culture that celebrates and even exalts the individual. Messages like “follow your heart” and “you can do whatever you aspire to” elevate the individual to the authoritative position. We can even contend that such a self-focus lifestyle transcends culture and is ingrained in sinful human nature. It is the water we swim in. Therefore, if we are going to “swim upstream” and live in community with and submission to others, we need regular reinforcement in the biblical call to the church membership. Being a good church member is not normal for human nature. ... Keep Reading

“Honor your father and mother, that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.” (Exodus 20:12) You might have only noticed because of Paul’s comments in his letter to the Ephesians, but it’s there we read that the Fifth Commandment (“Honor your father and mother…”) is the “first commandment with a promise.” (6:2) He may not have graduated High School English, because he never seems to get around to telling us about a second one with a promise. But I routinely fail to close parentheses. Nobody’s perfect (humanly speaking, anyway. If you take a look at this commandment, he’s referring to the part where God says to honor our parents, “that your days may be long in the land that the LORD your God is giving you.” (Exodus 20:12) But, what’s up with that? What is the big deal about length of days in the land? And what’s it got to do with us? We’re not ancient Israelites, and neither were his Ephesian hearers who he wrote this to. So, what gives? There’s a recurring theme in Scripture, appearing right from the git-go, starting in Genesis 3. Immediately following their encounter with Satan in the Garden, Adam & Eve are exiled from the garden, and God bars re-entry, setting the Cherubim with flaming swords at the gates of Eden. Later on, after the Israelites are rescued from bondage in Egypt, God causes them to wander in the wilderness for forty years, most of the original generation never entering the promised land. Just a remnant makes it. Not even Moses makes this first cut. ... Keep Reading

Do you ever experience FOMO? The fear of missing out? “They” say (whoever “they” are) that part of social media addiction is the fear of missing out on something. It is just common that no one wants to be “left out in the cold.” Even introverts want to be included. Do you know who got left out of the biggest event of history? The angels. Sure, they were there and are mentioned in the story. But Peter says they longed to look into these things (1 Pet. 1:12). The angels were left on the outside looking in. To what? Redemption. The angels are not recipients of redemption. The writer of Hebrews emphasizes this when he writes, “For surely it is not angels that he helps, but he helps the offspring of Abraham” (2:16). Jesus was born in human flesh, not angel flesh, and died as a ransom for humans, to free us from our bondage to sin and death. Angels who have not fallen into sin have... Keep Reading

Last week I initiated this two-part series on the importance of the Word of God as a means of grace. I contend that if we do not attend to the word of God “with diligence, preparation, and prayer; receive it with faith and love, lay it up in our hearts, and practice it in our lives” (WSC 90), we short circuit God’s grace in our lives. Last week I sought to woo our hearts to treasure Scripture rightly. We make time for the things we value. If we value the Bible as a means of God’s grace in our lives, we will make time for laying it up in our hearts. Today, I want to talk about those practical habits that bring God’s word into our hearts and lives. I highlight four. Attend to the preaching of God’s Word. Paul writes in 1 Corinthians 1:21, “It pleased God through the folly of what we preach to save those who believe.” And one of his final exhortations to Timothy is, “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching” (2 Tim. 4:2). As counter cultural as it may seem, God has ordained the preaching of his word to be a primary means of grace for his people. There are very few places where people gather to listen to a message on a regular basis (especially after one finishes school). We are an entertainment saturated culture where attention spans dwindle. But God has chosen the folly of preaching “to save those who believe.” Therefore, we must be diligent to attend to the preaching of God’s word. This means being in church on a regular basis. Also, we should make Sunday mornings a priority for our week. That includes getting a good night of sleep to be physically alert. We can prepare our hearts and minds for the sermon by reading and reflecting on the Scripture text ahead of time. Listening to a sermon is not a passive activity, but takes proactive engagement, expectant of God’s grace. ... Keep Reading

I have made it a practice in my ministry on an annual basis to highlight the importance of the Word of God as a means of grace. If we do not attend to the word of God “with diligence, preparation, and prayer; receive it with faith and love, lay it up in our hearts, and practice it in our lives” (WSC 90), we short circuit God’s grace in our lives. I would be failing as a shepherd if I was not leading the flock of Christ to the green pastures of God’s word. So, hear my annual appeal afresh. Let me start with a foundational presupposition. I believe that we all make time for the things we value. Therefore, our commitment to let the word of Christ dwell in us richly (Col. 3:16) is not a question of how busy we are, but a question of what we value. The psalmist says, “Oh how I love your law! It is my meditation all the day” (119:97). Do you see that connection? The psalmist loves God’s word (“law” in Ps. 119 speaks not particularly of a list of rules but of God’s covenant with his people; I think it is safe to hear this word encompassing the entirety of God’s word, which centers of Christ as the covenant keeper and sealer). His love energizes his meditation “all the day.” He understands that there is something valuable about God’s word, and that motivates the daily discipline of meditation. That word “discipline,” however, is deceptive because it carries a connotation of sacrifice. I do not believe the psalmist would count his daily activity of meditation a sacrifice. It is a delight and benefit. ... Keep Reading

At our last Session meeting an Elder ask me for “my perspective on giving.” This is my response. I wish above every church door a banner would read, “No perfect people allowed; only the fallible, hypocritical, and feeble permitted to enter.” I struggle with the discipline of giving to God. I like the fact that our church considers the whole church service worship, the preaching, our public confession not just our singing. I miss the act of passing the collection plate. I like the weekly reminder mid-service to grab my checkbook to write a check and make a conscious decision to worship by giving. Although most of my adult life I have attended churches with a collection box in the back of the sanctuary, I prefer hurriedly writing my check before the plate makes it to me as a conscious way of worshipping, a reminder to give to God. I remember my dad taking the church envelope out of his coat pocket with a pre-written check. I like the weekly prompting to reflect on my giving to God. I do not utilize the box, QR codes, and phone apps as I should. Because I struggle with the practice of giving, I find myself thinking transactionally. “God, I have not given as you requested; that is why things are not going well currently.” I know this is bad theology when we treat God as the “big slot machine in the sky.” ... Keep Reading

In ministry training, one area of focus is planning worship services. A minister of the gospel must know the why and the how of a worship service. One key component of the worship service is the Call to Worship. This is a summons from God to enter his presence with hearts ready to worship. Since the summons is from God himself, we look to Scripture for a Call to Worship. One of the most commonly known passages is Psalm 100. Read again this familiar text: 1 Make a joyful noise to the Lord, all the earth! 2 Serve the Lord with gladness! Come into his presence with singing! 3 Know that the Lord, he is God! It is he who made us, and we are his; we are his people, and the sheep of his pasture. 4 Enter his gates with thanksgiving, and his courts with praise! Give thanks to him; bless his name! 5 For the Lord is good; his steadfast love endures forever, and his faithfulness to all generations. Notice that there are seven commands. This is where we understand that this is a Call or a summons from God. He commands: make a joyful noise, serve the Lord, come with singing, know that he is God, enter with thanksgiving, give thanks, and bless. While there are nuances to each command, there is a common thread that ties them together: Worship the Lord as the greatest in your life. He is our greatest delight, our greatest strength, our greatest hope. The superlative commands direct us to place God in the highest place in our hearts and lives, with no competition. ... Keep Reading

Let’s talk about money. I know for many, talking about money is uncomfortable. It is a personal topic and we do not like others getting nosey and passing judgment. The Bible, however, has a lot to say about money, especially the Proverbs. One has observed that the Proverbs have more to say about money and the issues related to money than any other topic. By one count, there are 109 unique proverbs addressing this topic (these do include the proverbs confronting sloth, which I treat as a separate topic). Throughout human history money has always been a source of temptation and a stumbling block. Therefore, it is the way of the wise to allow Scripture speak into our lives about our money. I’ll break down my observations under six headings. Big Picture: Honor the Lord Like all the other topics that Proverbs addresses, the issue of wealth or money is a matter of the heart. If we treasure God and his ways in our hearts above all else, we will handle money rightly. Proverbs 3:9-10 captures this picture big perspective, “Honor the Lord with your wealth and with the firstfruits of all your produce; then your barns will be filled with plenty, and your vats will be bursting with wine.” When we put God first, everything in our lives will be rightly ordered. There are Many Things Better than Wealth The Proverbs never condemns wealth, nor do they commend it as ultimate. Wealth can be seen as a blessing, but it never is viewed as essential. The Proverbs communicates a healthy perspective on wealth through several comparisons. In 3:14-15 wisdom is better than the gain from silver and gold. 15:16 says that the fear of the Lord is better than great treasure. In 16:8 righteousness is better than great revenues. 16:19 says it is better to be of a lowly spirit than to gain spoil with the proud. 19:1 tells us that integrity is better than wealth. And 19:22 says that it is better to be poor than a liar, implying that truthfulness is better than wealth. Lastly, 22:1 says a good name is better than great riches. Through these comparisons, Proverbs teaches us to keep wealth in its place. There are many things more valuable than wealth.... Keep Reading

I have found the perfect proverb to address church conflict. In a broken world of sinful people, church conflict is inevitable. And, unfortunately, church conflict is one of the causes of people leaving and staying away from the church. Christ calls us to be peacemakers. Therefore, we must know how to address and work through church conflict. First of all, we must identify the root cause of church conflict. Some might assume that conflict arises from differences. Differences of preferences. Differences of convictions. Differences of perspective. But God made us to be different. Our differences can complement one another and strengthen the body. So, we cannot, and should not, say that differences are the root of conflict. What is the root of conflict then? This “perfect proverb” brings us to the heart of the matter. At root is our heart attitude towards the people with whom we are in conflict. Proverbs 10:12 says, “Hatred stirs up strife, but love covers all offenses.” How we deal with differences with someone we hate is vastly different than with someone we love. That’s what this proverb addresses. Let’s unpack how this applies to church conflict. ... Keep Reading