I love Chris Rosebrough of Fighting for the Faith. He has been “Fighting for the Faith” for a long time. Fighting for the Faith is a discernment ministry that compares what popular pastors, preachers, teachers, conference speakers, self-proclaimed prophets and prophetesses and self-appointed apostles and apostlets say to the word of God. He is known by the moniker “Pirate Christian.”
He is also a Lutheran pastor with a congregation in Minnesota.
If you need a discernment person, Chris Rosebrough would be a safe discerner. (Along with Justin Peters and Steve Kozar). Rosebrough has been discerning for a long time. I remember looking (and looking and looking) for material discerning Beth Moore back in 2011 and there was very little that wasn’t 100% approving of her. One of the three pieces that I found back then was a review Rosebrough did on her Hebrews speech published in 2006. So, a long time.
As he says in his tagline above, he compares what self-professed Christians say to what the Bible says. Last week he reviewed a speech Beth Moore made on her Youtube channel, where she allegedly explained the David & Goliath event in 1 Samuel 17.
What Rosebrough does in this video is…well…a lot! He announced at the outset of the video that Beth Moore is not a sound teacher. But he does more than just announce. He then turns to the Bible and reads the entire passage from the Bible that the teacher is presenting. He reads before and after, for context. Rosebrough explains the passage as he reads; the context, the history, the background, the meaning of certain words. Full explanation. By the time he is finished the listener has a solid grasp on the passage.
Then, and only then, near the end of this video, Rosebrough turns to the Beth Moore speech. The reader has by now been given such a solid grounding, he or she can immediately see why Moore’s explanation of the verse is not only ridiculous, but nearly blasphemy.
His discernment technique is more than pointing a finger and saying “don’t listen to her!” He teaches (pastorally), he models discernment (spiritual gift usage), and he is clear (“able to teach”).
A few points from the video:
narcigesis: this is a combination of two terms, narcissism and eisegesis. Narcissism because Moore inserts herself and the reader into the text and makes US the point, and eisegesis because that is an interpretive method where the interpreter inserts a preconceived meaning INTO the text instead of exegeting it (drawing meaning FROM the text.
If you are listening to a teacher explain a passage and you realize they have made it all about you, or made it where we are the hero of the story and not Jesus, it’s narcigesis. You might think, “Well DUH!” but satan is subtle and often times you do not realize the passage has been twisted. But listening to Chris Rosebrough, you will learn how to spot it.
Screen shot from Moore’s speech. The tall figure is supposed to represent Goliath, which Moore says represents our problems.
Rosebrough ends the video this way:
Beth Moore is not a sound biblical teacher … She took a text that’s so obviously about Christ and makes it about you and about me shows that she’s not skilled at all in rightly handling God’s word and and pointing you to yourself as your own savior.
Please listen to the video to see not only why Moore is not a solid teacher, but how to approach a biblical text and how to approach discernment.
All by Kay Cude, poet. Used with permission. Right click the image to see larger in new tab, or read below.
LOOKING INTO THE EYES OF THE SIN OF THE FLESH BY Kay Cude, February 26, 2018
How do we guard our hearts if our flesh becomes the lone sentry? How do we make wise decisions if we are its fountainhead of wisdom? How do we walk righteously if our pathway is no longer narrow? How do we abide in Christ as His branch if we believe we are the Vinedresser? How do we judge Scripturally if we are practicing hypocrisy? How do we trust God’s instruction if we are dubious that in all things it applies to us? How do we forgive a trespass if we secretly harbor anger and vengeance? How do we discern rightly if we rely upon feelings and experiences instead of the leading of the Holy Spirit through the study of God’s Word? BY Kay Cude, February 26, 2018
“So then, brethren, we are under obligation, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh–for if you are living according to the flesh, you must die; but if BY THE SPIRIT you are putting to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” (Romans 8:12-13)
“But I say, walk by the Spirit, and you will not carry out the desire of the flesh. For the flesh sets its desire against the Spirit, and the Spirit against the flesh; for these are in opposition to one another, so that you may not do the things that you please. But if you are led by the Spirit, you are not under the Law. Now those who belong to Christ Jesus have crucified the flesh with its passions and desires.” Galatians 5:16-17, 24
THE NECESSITY OF MORTIFICATION “Mortify therefore your members which are upon the earth. Do you mortify; do you make it your daily work; be always at it whilst you live; cease not a day from this work; be killing sin or it will be killing you.” John Owen, 1616-1683.
I wrote recently about Women on the Speaking Circuit and used the example of Jackie Hill Perry, Beth Moore, Diana Stone, Priscilla Shirer, Jennie Allen…
Women who have children at home but gallivant all over the world speaking to audiences of unknown women are doing their role a disservice. The children suffer. The husband suffers. Their church suffers from her absence and suffers from the lack of her ministrations to the younger women IN her life. Why teach women 1000 miles away when there are women who would benefit from her teaching, presence, hospitality, and example 2 feet away down the pew?
Woman are biblically urged to be at home, tend to their home, abide in their home, and perform duties oriented to the home. The Proverbs 31 woman did all she did FOR the home, which is biblically her sphere.
For women who start out and then their ministry gets big and known, there is a tipping point. When I ran my newspaper business it was all about sustainability, repeatability, and scalability. Can I personally sustain this? What are my limits in energy, time, and talent? Can I repeat this over and over day in day out, year after year? Is my business scalable?
“Scalability refers to a business or other entity’s capacity to grow to meet increased demand“, says Investopedia. Can I meet demand on this ministry without having a negative effect on my home and life’s sphere?
There is usually a tipping point where the ministry (and usually it’s a corporation) gets big and the woman who founded it needs to re-evaluate her goals and realistically decide what to do next. It has been my contention that the above named women, and others, made the wrong choice. They invested themselves in their growing ministry, which inevitably took them away from their Godly role at home and church, and they became celebrities, with all that entails, which is usually negative.
The temptation of fame, or money, or even ‘good’ intentions such as ‘serving women’ or ‘serving Jesus’ were too much and they grew their ministry into a parachurch that took their time, attention, and energy away from the place where Jesus said it should be: HOME.
I was at a point like that a while ago. I’m not famous or anything, but I did start to receive requests to come speak. Idaho, New England, North Carolina, further afield in Georgia, different places. I declined them at first because I am still working full time and the dates were during the school year. But it made me think. I do like speaking and teaching. That’s my profession after all. My educational niche is Literacy, bringing text to children and helping them understand it. Doing that with THE text, the Bible, would be great. And to be honest, it’s flattering to get requests and to be ‘in demand’. (Pride, thou art sneaky…)
But no. After prayer and thought, I spoke with my elders and worked through the issue. I finally decided that my role is home, not to grow a ministry to the point where I need to incorporate, develop contracts, and travel away from home and church. Even if I never said another word or wrote another essay, just being IN the pew every week, present and visible, is a ministry.
I’d thought is there not one women I can help here, in my sphere? In church? Of course. Then why go help other women?
I do have a burden for the women I’d named above, and others, watching the negative effect being absent from home had on their families. Watching the temptations of celebrity chip away at their core. How ambition and energy used to sustain a growing ministry impacts them, and sometimes, even their message.
Many of these ministries and conferences become their own parachurch. While laudatory in many cases, some of these organizations increasingly draw women away from their home church, infuse them with false doctrine, and re-seed them back to their church to infect it.
I’ve written about my concern over these gallivanting women, and these growing ministries/conferences/parachurches founded by women, several times.
These are just a few of the essays I’ve written on the topic over the years. You can see I am truly burdened about it.
It’s why I admire and applaud Brooke Bartz, founder of the online global conference Open Hearts in a Closed World. She founded her conference in 2020. There have been 4 annual conferences- ’20, 21, 22, and 2023. It grew rapidly, soon hosting world class speakers and musicians. It quickly was partnered with American Gospel TV and The Master’s University.
This year she fulfilled her goal of moving the conference under the ministerial shepherding of her church elders. She never wanted the conference to become its own parachurch. She wanted to remain submitted, focused on her own sphere. It takes a strong Spirit-filled woman to abandon celebrity. To stick to her goal of NOT allowing the event to grow to the point where one’s identity and dare we say, celebrity, are attached. Here is part of her announcement:
The rest of her statement is at the link above. I loved this part, “in my sphere of influence”. Ladies, our sphere of influence is not the world stage. It is not jetting to this country or that state to impart biblical knowledge, outside of one’s own church and out from under authority of a husband, elder, pastor, or male-led board.
Brooke brought glory to the Lord with the teaching and now more glory by handing it over to the men!
Frankly, I’ve never seen a growing ladies’ ministry be handed over to the men at its tipping point. I’m sure it’s happened out of public view? Perhaps. But this was public, firm, and Godly. I rejoice with Brooke in having a full heart and seeing this wonderful example.
We need to be content where God has placed us, which is the home…church….perhaps a job (if single or other circumstances dictate). We really are not called to be celebrities, jetting in private jets with bodyguards, fielding interviews with globally famous news outlets, holding board meetings, negotiating speaking invitations and book contracts, when all the while the kids are at home eating takeout. The grandkids miss their gramma. Where her spot in the pew is empty. Where the husband is left to pick up wifely duties.
The Lord knows best and we thrive best at home. When we submit to that, He is pleased. Congratulations to Brooke and her husband, and her co-workers in Open Hearts in a Closed World for making such a fantastic decision.
Left, Brooke Bartz, founder of Open Hearts in a Closed World online conference. The conference will continue. It will not be live streamed but it will be videotaped, and available to watch on Youtube after the conference ends. It will be under the authority of Sola Bible Church and that is the Youtube channel one may watch the conference after it concludes this July, as well as the Open Hearts in a Closed World Youtube channel. May the women there be edified and the Lord of our souls be glorified.
I love educator-comedian Gerry Brooks. He used to be a principal in Lexington, Kentucky. He now goes around speaking about the education profession. He is beloved, because he says accurate things about all aspects of schools from Central Office to principals, teachers, children, custodians, lunch ladies, bus drivers, and nurses, paras, parents. He advocates for them all (except for State Education Mandates, Central Office, and parents who don’t parent- that’s why he’s beloved). He says true things about our profession in a hilarious way in videos on Instagram and Facebook. He is highly sought after as a Professional Development speaker, and fills themed Education cruise ships. He has millions of followers.
But I’ve noticed lately that he’s added a tagline at the end of his videos. When he gets off the ‘phone’ in one of his skits, he will roll his eyes exaggeratedly and exclaim, “Good LORRRRD!”
This is unfortunate. Using the Lord’s name as a curse word or as a vehicle for human exasperation is in fact, using God’s name in vain, which violates the Third Commandment that says NOT to do this (Exodus 20:7).
Here is a GotQuestions short explanation about using the Lord’s name and there is more to it than just using it as a cuss word.
“You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.” (Exodus 20:7).
A Surprising Melee Erupted
I posted the above on my personal Facebook page. I tagged Brooks in it. It was a thoughtful and heartfelt post, gentle I thought, and related to my conscience and my decision. I posted the address to the Third Commandment and said I’d have to stop watching his videos.
Social media is perplexing to me. I never know what will catch people’s attention and take off, for good or for ill. This one took off for ill.
The verse literally says not to do it AND that people who do it will be punished. The Lord God above has promised punishment for those who use His name flippantly and vainly. This is serious!
Instead, hundreds of comments came flooding in. I didn’t know my post had made such a scene, because I’d posted it before school, and while in school and doing errands, I do not have access to social media. Nine hours later I arrived home to find the result of saying “don’t take the Lord’s name in vain”. I didn’t read them all but of the scrolling I did I saw only 2 positive and affirming comments agreeing with the Third Commandment. The rest were the usual ad hominem, or dismissing the exhortation “Good Lord” as NOT vain, redefining the name ‘Lord’, or just resorting to mocking.
Well OK then.
What Do the Commentaries Say?
Matthew Henry opens his comment on Exodus 20:7 this way:
The first four of the ten commandments, commonly called the FIRST table, tell our duty to God. It was fit that those should be put first, because man had a Maker to love, before he had a neighbour to love.
So not taking God’s name in vain is of first importance, and a duty.
Matthew Poole Comments:
You shall not use the name of God, either in oaths or in common discourse, lightly, rashly, irreverently, or unnecessarily, or without weighty or sufficient cause.
Is sufficient cause to take the Lord’s name in vain because you need a tagline to end a comedy skit? No.
GIll’s Exposition says,
Thou shall not take the name of the Lord God in vain,…. Make use of the name Lord or God, or any other name and epithet of the divine Being, in a light and trifling way, without any show of reverence of him, and affection to him; whereas the name of God ought never to be mentioned but in a grave and serious manner, and with an awe of the greatness of his majesty upon the mind.
Is Violating the Third Commandment now a ‘Respectable Sin’?
In Christendom there are a few (and getting fewer) sins we agree are bad. Homosexuality, transgenderism, child molestation, or abortion are pretty much agreed-upon as sins and are thus evil. But there’s lots more sins we tolerate. Jerry Bridges wrote an important book called “Respectable Sins: Confronting the Sins We Tolerate“. Here is the Table of Contents:
Wrong is Wrong
I’d never imagined that one of the Ten Commandments would be dishonored and dismissed to the extent that was. Apparently Brooks gets a pass on this because he’s popular.
It’s like when Michelle Lesley @MichelleDLesley said on Twitter “Why do doctrinally sound Christians keep giving Rosaria a pass on preaching to men? If it’s wrong when Beth Moore does it, it’s wrong when Rosaria does it.“
Contrary to popular opinion, a celebrity’s popularity does not excuse his or her violation of the scriptures. The acceptability of the content of their speeches does not excuse violation of the scriptures.
Comments like those replying to my Gerry Brooks post about taking the Lord’s name in vain say more about the individual saying the regretful things than anything else. And the bulk of comments being weighted toward accepting the sin of taking the Lord’s name in vain just tells me again where society is at the current point in history.
Keep Your Conscience Sensitive!
My admonition for you, dear reader, is to stand guard over your conscience. Be vigilant about the commandments. It is easy to fall into accepting things God does not want us to accept when it seems that ALL of Christian society is doing it. We ARE surrounded by paganism, atheism, and apostasy. We are living in a moment where we ask ‘Does a fish know it’s wet?’
We have to know when we’re wet. Even though we may feel submerged in sin all around us, keep your conscience clean and clear.
Peter’s conscience was absolutely seared after he had betrayed the Lord:
And Peter remembered the word which Jesus had said, “Before a rooster crows, you will deny Me three times.” And he went out and cried bitterly. (Matthew 26:75)
David’s conscience was bothered about his adultery and murder of Uriah-
When I kept silent about my sin, my bones wasted away Through my groaning all day long. 4 For day and night Your hand was heavy upon me; My vitality was drained away as with the heat of summer. Selah. 5 I acknowledged my sin to You, And my iniquity I did not cover up; I said, “I will confess my transgressions to Yahweh;” And You forgave the iniquity of my sin. (Psalm 32:3-5).
Those are pretty ‘big’ sins: betrayal, adultery, murder, for which their conscience should have been pierced.
But what we may in today’s time consider a ‘little’ sin was Daniel’s choice to eat or not eat the King’s food. Daniel’s conscience would have been wounded by eating the King’s delicacies.
But Daniel set in his heart that he would not defile himself with the king’s choice food or with the wine which he drank; so he sought permission from the commander of the officials that he might not defile himself. (Daniel 1:8).
Ignore the conscience long enough, it eventually scabs over from all the pricking. It gets seared. You know that seared skin has no nerve endings.
by the hypocrisy of liars, who have been seared in their own conscience, (1 Timothy 4:2).
Paul guarded his conscience. He said twice,
Now Paul, looking intently at the Sanhedrin, said, “Brothers, I have lived my life in all good conscience before God up to this day.” (Acts 23:1)
Paul’s Change of Plans- For our boasting is this: the testimony of our conscience, that in holiness and godly sincerity, not in fleshly wisdom but in the grace of God, we have conducted ourselves in the world, and especially toward you. (2 Corinthians 1:12).
We do our best to obey Jesus, when we fail we rush to repent (and will be forgiven), and we move on with renewed vigor to protect our conscience from becoming dull. Heed your conscience when you feel those prickings.
Celebrity Can Be Deadly
As for thin-skinned celebrities- here are my thoughts. Very often, celebrities live in a bubble. This means they are often isolated and insulated from anything that doesn’t explicitly affirm their every move. The more famous, the stronger the bubble. They only see or hear or expect affirmation and approval. I’ve been blocked by Beth Moore, Rick Warren, and now Gerry Brooks. We saw this with Alistair Begg recently. Internet famous, beloved by his congregation, never really had a melee about anything he’s said, then BAM! His advice to attend a trans wedding caught fire and people pleaded with him to reconsider. Not only didn’t he reconsider, but he came out with a defensive and angry sermon the next Sunday that revealed his disdain and contempt for Americans he’d held inside all along.
In 2010 Sarah Pulliam Bailey wrote a long article about Beth Moore, who had recently ascended to her international popularity. Look at the hoops Bailey had to jump through to get this interview:
[Moore is] closely protected by assistants who allow very few media interviews. After several interview requests from CT, her assistants allocated one hour to discuss her latest book and ask a few questions about her personal life. Each question had to be submitted and approved beforehand, I was told, or Moore would not do the interview. Follow-up interview requests were declined. I was permitted to see the ground level of her ministry, where workers package and ship study materials. But Moore’s third-floor office, where she writes in the company of her dog, was off limits.
It is dangerous to be protected from gentle correction, rebukes, or criticism. Dangerous to be protected from the people we are supposed to serve. The more protected, the thinner one’s skin.
If you say, “well, it’s dangerous these days to rub shoulders with a general populace’, I’d agree. So in this case perhaps, dispense with focusing on international celebrity and say no to speaking engagements, and concentrate on your church and your neighbor. I am going to write more about that in a real life example shortly.
I am grateful for a Spirit who sanctifies me and makes me realize that I am participating in a violation of the 3rd Commandment. If Brooks’ using the Lord’s name as a curse of exasperation previously and I didn’t realize it, I am doubly thankful for the Spirit bringing this to my attention so I could repent.
Conclusion
I hope and pray that the obvious thorn that flew into Gerry Brooks’ conscience will do its work to spiritually rebuke him for using the Lord’s name this way. And I pray that the people who affirmed this as a ‘respectable sin’ will also eventually find their bones melting like David’s in regret and then repent. I hope this happens before they meet Jesus, ‘for the LORD will not leave him unpunished who takes His name in vain.‘
Ligonier Essay: Using God’s Name Frivolously Yet, of all the Ten Commandments, only the third commandment adds the grave warning that God will not “hold guiltless” those who misuse His name (Ex. 20:7). Obviously, God does not hold anyone guiltless who does not repent and trust in Christ, but the attachment of this warning shows that the Lord pays special attention to how His name is used.
Our pastor preached a parable from Matthew the other day. He explained an anecdote from the biography of Adoniram Judson. Judson was raised Christian. He went to college. He roomed with a magnetic, charming non-believer named Jacob Eames who slowly drew Judson away from the faith. Judson did not share this with his parents, but after a while, Judson apostatized. After Judson graduated he finally told his parents he wasn’t a Christian any more.
He asked for his inheritance like the Prodigal, which was a horse and some money. His mom sank to her knees and started praying right then. Judson left anyway. He desired to write plays in New York City. Later, Judson found his life of sin was not as fulfilling as he thought it’d be. This perplexed Judson.
One day he was riding thru a small town he never went to before and lodged at an inn he was unfamiliar with. Innkeeper said there was only 1 room but in the next door room a man lay dying, probably not make it thru the night. Do you want the room? Judson said fine, ‘OK, I’ll take the room, I’m not afraid of death’.
All night people whispered coming and going, taking care of the unwell man. Judson heard moanings and groanings from the man. Finally the man was quiet. Judson was disturbed about the proximity of eternity for the man, thoughts which soon turned to himself. Am I ready for eternity? Judson thought. He became troubled.
Judson fell asleep, awakening the next day feeling good and bounded downstairs for breakfast. He inquired of the man. The Innkeeper said the man did indeed die. Judson was sad, and began to think about the man’s eternity. He asked if the Innkeeper knew the man’s name. “Oh yes, It was Jacob Eames.”
Just 21 years old, charming magnetic vibrant Eames was dead and facing hell forever. Judson was so shocked, because he knew this was from God; the happenstance of finding this little village, this inn, the last room, the dying man he used to room with in college just a year ago, heard his groanings of his last night on earth…now dead. Judson stayed stock still in shock for three hours.
He didn’t convert right then but this was a key moment. Adoniram WAS in fact, scared to death of death. He enrolled in seminary that year and soon after, became one of the very first missionaries to leave America for other tribes far away, dedicating his life to Christ.
The Lord does pursue His people.
I think of that heartbroken mother on her knees praying Adoniram as he left the house. I am sure she continued praying. If you have a prodigal child, don’t stop praying. If the child is one of His, Jesus will seek that lost sheep and bring him home. if he is not one of His, your prayers glorify Jesus in any case. And our chief end is to give Him glory no matter our own desires, circumstances, or feelings.
Further Resources:
Ligonier: 5 Minutes in Church History (audio with transcript): Adoniram Judson
I don’t get a whole lot of comments on the blog. That is OK. People read it, all right, but I don’t think I could keep up with hundreds of comments if they came in. It’s just me here. No staff, nothing fancy.
I approve critical comments as well as positive ones. Some comments are worthy if an instant deletion. The comments I delete are for several reasons.
-comments containing links to false teachers or false doctrines. I do my best to protect my readers from falsity.
-comments with links to hours-long videos and the commenter gave no synopsis of what it’s about. I am not going to spend hours vetting a link if you didn’t spend minutes giving me a summary.
-comments opposing the point of the article with no example, proof, or even a reasoned argument. ESPECIALLY when the person is a coward and doesn’t even use their name to oppose it. Like this one I deleted today, and from a years-old article no less:
Whoever wrote this on this blog is such a spiritual babe with no even discernment. Your whole analysis do not add up
OK, fine to have a negative view of a piece I’ve written. But resorting to ad hominem accusations about my character (“spiritual babe” “no discernment”) without even bothering to explain his or her stance, when the article they’re rebutting is full of links, analysis, and a thorough argument, gets a swift “DELETE” from me.
I’m on Twitter/X, Instagram, Facebook, and WordPress. I’ve had a blog since 2006. That’s 18 years. For 6 years prior to that I ran a hard copy newspaper with an online version, which accepted comments and Letters to the Editor. So, I’ve had 24 years of dealing with the public’s reactions to things I’ve written.
I’m well versed in how to detect the difference between bull hockey, cowardice, and sincere dialog even if it’s clumsy. I have no problem deleting comments. Just because I operate in the public doesn’t mean I have to accept what I consider comments to derail the dialog, or attempts to incite a confrontation, or just an angry person using the shield of anonymous public discourse to bleed anger all over the place.
I have enjoyed the edifying benefit of some commenters opposing something I’ve stated where I found they had a point. Once in a while someone changed my view. They didn’t accomplish that by accusations and name calling. They did it by a kind and reasoned argument. You know, like the kind the Bible tells us to have:
The tongue of the wise makes knowledge look good, But the mouth of fools pours forth folly. (Proverbs 15:2, LSB).
The heart of the wise gives insight to his mouth And increases learning to his lips. (Proverbs 16:23 LSB)
The heart of the righteous ponders how to answer, but the mouth of the wicked blurts out evil. (Proverbs 15:28 LSB)
And especially:
Let your words always be with grace, seasoned with salt, so that you will know how you should answer each person. (Colossians 4:6 LSB)
Mean spirited, thoughtless, unreasoned ad hominem comments only do two things: reveal what is in one’s heart, and tempts the receiver to sinning by rejoining in similar responses.
If you are a person who comments online, please remember the Bible’s standards on the power of our words. Build one another up, even if you have a criticism:
but sanctify Christ as Lord in your hearts, always being ready to make a defense to everyone who asks you to give an account for the hope that is in you, yet with gentleness and fear, (1 Peter 3:15 LSB)
I always thought the Sunday nap was because I was tired. During quarantine 4 years ago, I began to think otherwise.
And on the seventh day God finished his work that he had done, and he rested on the seventh day from all his work that he had done. 3So God blessed the seventh day and made it holy, because on it God rested from all his work that he had done in creation. (Genesis 2:2-3).
I’m blessed to have a regular Monday-through-Friday work week, daytime hours. On Saturday I run around and do errands and cleaning and stuff that I’ve put off during the work week. So it’s like a 6th work day. Thus, when I get to Sunday, I’m tired. I go to church and I take a nap, and that is about all I do.
But during that time of “pandemic” where we are told to remain socially distant from others, work had stopped, I was quarantined inside my home. I was not tired on most days anymore. Oh, sure, when the work-stoppage first occurred, I napped to burn off the sleep debt and stress that had accumulated. But after the first week of the 2020-quarantine, the need for naps stopped.
Create in me a clean heart, O God, And renew a steadfast spirit within me. Do not cast me away from Your presence And do not take Your Holy Spirit from me. Restore to me the joy of Your salvation And sustain me with a willing spirit. Then I will teach transgressors Your ways, And sinners will be converted to You. (Psalm 51:10-13)
His is a magnificent statement of repentance. No wonder God called David a man after His own heart. (Acts 13:22).
You notice that David’s contrition and petition for restoration didn’t include restoring a kingdom to him, or his fortress or his armor or his lands. He did not ask for material things. He wanted the ‘joy of God’s salvation’ – spiritual things. David wanted the spiritual joy of a right relationship with His God.
I often ponder the joy of my salvation. I don’t want to lose that wonder and awe of the miracle of a purified mind and a clean heart. Maybe it’s because I came to the Lord in my 40s, and I remember so well the feeling of moral confusion, impurity, and guilt. One thing I enjoy about salvation is the release of my mind from having to work so hard to justify my sin. Or the efforts of my heart to hide it. Or the difficulty in having my conscience making valiant efforts to tamp down the morally questionable things I said and did.
A willing spirit that finds joy in knowing and obeying our Savior is a release that can only come from Jesus. It’s a gift to us, borne on His blood and His cross. In gratitude, David said he would teach others the ways of God so that sinners would be converted. He is passing along the gift he himself thirsts for and treasures.
Sadly, yesterday, Alistair Begg was no longer listed as a speaker at the 2024 Shepherds Conference at Grace Community Church.
This is a major conference founded and led by John MacArthur specifically to edify and minister to Pastors. After Begg’s January 19 remarks which he counseled a grandmother that it was OK for her to attend the transgender wedding of her grandson, controversy erupted.
Initially, behind the scenes brethren urged Begg to reconsider this counsel. Then, American Family Radio contacted Begg’s ministry and had an extended conversation with his representatives, where pleas to repent were not heard. So AFR dropped Begg from their broadcasting roster.
One whose ear listens to a life-giving rebuke Will stay among the wise. One who neglects discipline rejects himself, (Proverbs 15:31-32).
Later, Begg said some even his own pastoral team disagreed with Begg’s advice.
Controversy continued. So this past Sunday, Begg preached a clarifying statement. In it, the defense of his counsel was worse than the counsel because it included anger, calling his critics Pharisees, and a misuse of the scripture he was preaching which was twisted to justify his defense of his position.
Then what people had been watching for: ShepCon. Apparently a conversation was had between ShepCon leader MacArthur and Begg. Begg withdrew from speaking, with MacArthur associate Phil Johnson telling a news organization “it was necessary for him to withdraw.”
The original advice should have been for the grandmother to refrain from participating as a celebrant and witness to a perversion of marriage. Sometimes one’s absence speaks louder than all the words up to that point.
And now Begg is undergoing the same treatment: our beliefs have consequences. At some point, we must part from a person when their beliefs (or acts) diverge from the Bible’s standards. In this, Begg’s truculent refusal to even listen to advice, never mind the actual original advice he gave the grandmother, indicates a necessary parting.
What would have been the effect, do we think, if the ShepCon organizers had said “Pastor Begg, we disagree with your advice, seeing it is unbiblical, and your misuse of the passage in Luke 15 was wrong exegesis, but come along to the Conference anyway, we don’t want to be seen as judgmental.” He would have felt justified, wouldn’t he?
Earlier in life I learned that what people SAY and what people DO, must match up.
Sometimes actions speak louder than words. Lines in the sand exist for a reason.
Alistair Begg addresses controversial comments he’d made in an interview last September regarding counsel to a grandmother to attend wedding of her grandson and his transgender fiancé. He’d said as long as the grandma had made it clear she disapproved and had shared the Gospel, she should attend. The grandson might be surprised by her love, rather than her absence likely confirming her criticalness and judgmentalism.
The Interview was held between Bob Lepine and Begg, upon the occasion of the publication of Begg’s new book, “The Christian Manifesto.” That interview is here. Slide to 26:30 to hear the question posed to Begg and Begg’s controversial reply.
Though the interview was published in September 2023, it seemed to sink into the murk until it surfaced on January 18 and was shared on social media. A huge controversy ensued, with attendant discussion in all corners of the internet.
One of the major radio stations who carried Begg’s radio program Truth For Life contacted the ministry and had a lengthy conversation with Begg’s representatives, who assured American Family Radio that Begg meant what he said and was not changing his stance. The Radio ministry subsequently dropped Truth for Life from its roster of broadcasted programs.
This week, Begg said his colleagues had told Begg that it would be wise for Begg to acknowledge the tremendous amount of noise on the internet about this issue and to say something about it.
That statement occurred on January 28, 2024 at Parkside Church and was uploaded to the internet. His 46 minute sermon is titled Compassion vs. Condemnation, and the blurb says,
“How are Christians to walk the fine line between affirming and reviling those whose actions declare them to be God’s enemies? That is the question Alistair Begg seeks to answer as he addresses the controversy surrounding the counsel he gave to a grandmother in the summer of 2023. Turning to Luke 15, Alistair reminds us that the inclination toward pharisaism is alive and well within all our hearts. It is something we always must guard against—especially as we press on toward purity and holiness in the midst of an aimless and confused generation. Scripture: Luke 15 Preached: January 28, 2024.
I have not listened to it but I post it here as a follow up to the articles I published earlier on this issue. See what you think.
the-end-time.org 