A Prayer for President Obama

President Obama plans on addressing America's school children this week concerning the importance of education.

At www.desiringgod.org/Blog/1986_i_hope_my_daughter_hears_the_presidents_speech, John Piper has shared this prayer for the president as he prepares to talk to the children of the United States:

"Father, the condition of our schools and families is so broken that nothing seems to be working, especially for the poor in our urban centers. Help our president to have the courage to use his amazing place of influence to speak into this situation in such a way that boys and girls would take their studies seriously and put school above sport and homework above hiphop and graduation above gangs.

"O, Lord, create a culture where it is not cool to fail. Give our president the courage to call all children, especially ones who feel hopeless about academic work, to fight for knowledge the way gangs fight for turf.

"And as the president plans his speech, help him to feel as helpless as he really is to meet the greatest needs of our children, so that he turns to Jesus who alone has the answer for the ruin and the wrongs of our cities. In Jesus' name, Amen."

I have noticed the respect that several of the kids in the Contact Church give to President Obama. They wear t-shirts bearing his image, and request prayers specifically for him during our prayer and praise portion of the worship services. They identify with him and listen to him. If other children of the inner city look to him with similar admiration, his speech could be a catalyst in turning some of them away from the temptations to drop out of school, experience drug addiction, and join gangs. I join with John Piper in praying that President Obama's influence will be used to encourage the best from our children.

(On a personal but related side note, our son Christopher faced his very first test in school this past week. He scored 100% on his first spelling test!)

Whose Reputation is More Important?

"Then they said, 'Come, let us build ourselves a city, with a tower that reaches to the heavens, so that we may make a name for ourselves and not be scattered over the face of the whole earth'" (Genesis 11:4).

During our Bible study at the Normandy Apartments on Sunday evening, we were discussing the account of the tower of Babel. In the historical narrative, the people were driven by their concern about their reputation in the world. They wanted to make a name for themselves. They were obsessed with their reputation. They were driven by their pride.

When considering our reputations, at least two important questions must be asked:

1. What do we want our reputations to be?
2. More importantly, why do we want such reputations? What are our motives?

John Piper offers this insightful analysis:

"Our aim is that people would 'glorify God', not us (Matthew 5:16). On the one hand, we know that reputation matters: 'A good name is to be chosen rather than great riches' (Proverbs 22:1). On the other hand, we know that people-pleasing reveals idolatry: '...not by way of eye-service, as people-pleasers, but with sincerity of heart, fearing the Lord' (Colossians 3:22)." (See www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/TasteAndSee/ByDate/2008/2740_Acclaim_for_Christ_vs_Craving_Praise/ for more of the article.)

Trying to make myself look good corrupts my heart. Trying to make God look as good and holy and just and merciful and gracious as he truly is protects my heart. If that is my goal, I'm not sure that I should be very concerned about my own reputation unless it detracts from an accurate view of my Savior.

Parenting Advice and Pastoral Care for Adoptive Families

John Piper has written an excellent piece explaining why fathers should not allow their sons to wrestle girls at www.desiringgod.org/Blog/1664_over_my_dead_body_son/. This is important advice because parents are allowing their girls to enroll in wrestling programs. At least two girls were in Christopher's wrestling class last fall (but he did not wrestle them). As John Piper explains, we need to teach our sons that "men don't fight against women. They fight for women." As counter-cultural as this may seem, it's right.

On the same blog, an article appears suggesting 10 ways to pastor adoptive families and those considering adoption. It's at www.desiringgod.org/Blog/1662_10_ways_to_pastor_adoptive_parents_and_those_considering_adoption/.

Walking With the Wise

"He who walks with the wise grows wise,
but a companion of fools suffers harm" (Proverbs 13:20).

Since I would like to be wise, I try to learn from wise people. Here is a list of some wise authors and some of their books:

Nancy Leigh DeMoss: Holiness: The Heart God Purifies

Tony Dungy: Quiet Strength, Uncommon

Bob Lepine: The Christian Husband

C.S. Lewis: Mere Christianity, The Screwtape Letters, The Great Divorce

John Piper: Desiring God, Don't Waste Your Life

Dennis and Barbara Rainey: The FamilyLife Marriage Bible (New King James Version), Two Hearts Praying as One, Moments Together for Couples

Haddon Robinson: Trusting the Shepherd, Decision Making by the Book

Harold Shank: Children Mean the World to God, Up Close and Personal: Embracing the Poor

Who Are God's Chosen People?

For some reason, I have been asked this question three times by extended family members during the past week. I am not raising this question in order to be controversial. Nor am I raising it in order to resolve all the problems surrounding the Israeli-Arab conflict. (I do not even know all of the issues involved in their conflict.) I am addressing it because I have been asked about it a number of times over the last few days, and because my understanding of the identity of God's chosen people seems to be new to many people.

I believe that God's chosen people include both Jewish and Gentile believers in Christ (the Messiah). In the past, the Jewish people alone were considered God's chosen people. However, Jesus expanded the composition of the chosen people to include both Jewish and Gentile believers. As the apostle Paul wrote, "In him (Christ) we were also chosen, having been predestined according to the plan of him who works out everything in conformity with the purpose of his will, in order that we, who were the first to hope in Christ, might be for the praise of his glory. And you also were included in Christ when you heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation. Having believed, you were marked in him with a seal, the promised Holy Spirit, who is a deposit guaranteeing our inheritance until the redemption of those who are God's possession--to the praise of his glory" (Ephesians 1:11-14). In effect, Paul was saying that God's chosen people are those who have "heard the word of truth, the gospel of your salvation," have "believed," and have received the Holy Spirit as "a seal...guaranteeing our inheritance."

The apostle went on to write, "Therefore, remember that formerly you who are Gentiles by birth and called 'uncircumcised' by those who call themselves 'the circumcision' (that done in the body by the hands of men)--remember that at that time you were separate from Christ, excluded from citizenship in Israel and foreigners to the covenants of the promise, without hope and without God in the world. But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far away have been brought near through the blood of Christ. For he himself is our peace, who has made the two one and has destroyed the barrier, the dividing wall of hostility, by abolishing in his flesh the law with its commandments and regulations. His purpose was to create in himself one new man out of the two, thus making peace, and in this one body to reconcile both of them to God through the cross, by which he put to death their hostility...Consequently, you are no longer foreigners and aliens, but fellow citizens with God's people and members of God's household...This mystery is that through the gospel the Gentiles are heirs together with Israel, members together of one body, and sharers together in the promise in Christ Jesus" (Ephesians 2:11-16; 2:19; 3:6).

Also, please notice the point made by the apostle Paul when he wrote, "You are all sons of God through faith in Christ Jesus, for all of you who were baptized into Christ have clothed yourselves with Christ. There is neither Jew nor Greek, slave nor free, male nor female, for you are all one in Christ Jesus. If you belong to Christ, then you are Abraham's seed, and heirs according to the promise" (Galatians 3:26-29).

In Romans 9-11, Paul expresses his desire for all of Israel to be saved. He explains that many have abandoned God by refusing to believe in their Messiah, but he also expresses the hope that they will return to their God in the future. In the meantime, the believing Jewish people remain the remnant of people in a covenant with God, and believing Gentiles have been "grafted" into the covenant relationship with God through their trust in Jesus the Messiah.

In Christ, God has brought together Jews and Gentiles as believers. Together, they constitute God's chosen people. The chosen people are defined by their faith, rather than their ethnic backgrounds, cultures, or heritages.

(Although my understanding may seem new to many people, I believe it is as old as the New Testament. Furthermore, I am not alone in seeing God's chosen people as Jewish and Gentile followers of Christ. Please see the works of scholars like Dr. John Piper, pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, for similar views. One of his sermons--www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByDate/1992/810_Israel_and_Us_Reconciled_in_One_Body/-- would be an excellent place to start.)

A Proper Perspective on Voting

"What I mean, brothers, is that the time is short. From now on those who have wives should live as if they had none; those who mourn, as if they did not; those who are happy, as if they were not; those who buy something, as if it were not theirs to keep; those who use the things of the world, as if not engrossed in them. For this world in its present form is passing away" (1 Corinthians 7:29-31).

Next week, I plan on voting for pro-life candidates across the board. As usual, some of my candidates will likely win and some will likely lose. How should I respond?

John Piper offers this advice based on 1 Corinthians 7:29-31: "So it is with voting. We should do it. But only as if we were not doing it. Its outcomes do not give us the greatest joy when they go our way, and they do not demoralize us when they don't. Political life is for making much of Christ whether the world falls apart of holds together...This world matters. But it is not ultimate. It is the stage for living in such a way to show that this world is not our God, but that Christ is our God. It is the stage for using the world to show that Christ is more precious than the world.

"So it is with voting. We do not withdraw. We are involved--but as if not involved. Politics does not have ultimate weight for us. It is one more stage for acting out the truth that Christ, and not politics, is supreme."

The entire article is available at www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/TasteAndSee/ByDate/2008/3347_Let_Christians_Vote_As_Though_They_Were_Not_Voting/.

True Womanhood

While reading John Piper's sermon at the True Woman Conference today at www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/ConferenceMessages/ByDate/2008/3296_The_Ultimate_Meaning_of_True_Womanhood/,
I was prompted to think about how my wife Janet exemplifies a godly woman, a woman who trusts in Christ and serves others with a compassionate heart. Normally, I do not think much about what it means to be a woman, since I am a man and I am trying to teach my son to become a godly man someday, too. However, I would like for my son to marry a godly woman in the future, so it is important to think about what true womanhood is.

I thought back to when we were waiting for someone to choose us as adoptive parents for a child. We were leading home Bible studies at an apartment complex through the urban ministry that eventually evolved into the Contact Church of Christ. I was teaching the adults while Janet was teaching the children. After a while, we found out that the mother of one of the boys who was coming to the Bible study was expecting another baby. Due to complications with her pregnancy, she could not leave her apartment except for doctor's appointments. At the same time, the mother of some of the other children who were attending the Bible study was expecting a child, too.

Each Monday evening, an hour before we would start the Bible study, we would take some food to the mother who could not leave her apartment, and enjoy dinner with her. For the most part, I would eat my meal, while Janet and the woman would talk. Then, we would go to the apartment where we would conduct the Bible study, but often Janet would stop and talk to the other woman (who was rumored to be a prostitute) along the way.

Eventually, the children were born. The woman who had been confined to her apartment had a healthy baby girl, but the other woman had a baby boy with Down syndrome. When Janet realized that neither woman had been given a baby shower, she organized a shower for both of them, inviting the women of the Jenks Church to join with her in celebrating the lives of the newborn babies.

Although we continued to wait for the opportunity to become parents, Janet did not become bitter. Instead, she reached out to a couple of mothers who were struggling. She saw that they had no family or friends who could help with their newborn children, so she made sure that they received tons of the essentials needed for the first several months of their lives. Janet did not let her needs prevent her from connecting with others to meet their needs. She displayed Christ-honoring compassion and faith, the marks of a truly good woman.

I hope that my future daughter-in-law will share my wife's character. If she does, Christopher will be a very blessed young man.

The Anniversary of the Birmingham Church Bombing

"...mourn with those who mourn" (Romans 12:15).

Yesterday marked the 45th anniversary of the bombing of the Sixteenth Street Baptist Church in Birmingham, Alabama. Four young black girls were murdered in a hateful, racist attack.

John Piper shares hits thoughts about the bombing at http://www.desiringgod.org/Blog/1389_the_birmingham_church_bombing/.

Mart De Haan raises the question of whether it is appropriate to forgive the unrepentant murderers at http://www.beenthinking.org/2008/09/16/to-forgive-or-not/.

Life-Changing Books

"Of making many books there is no end" (Ecclesiastes 12:12).

Several good books have influenced me over the years. Here are a few:

Life Application Study Bible (NIV)
A couple of years ago, I was on sick leave from my job, recovering from surgery, when a co-worker called. Paula explained to me that she wanted to buy a Bible for her mother who had never read more than a few verses from a Bible in her life. She needed a recommendation. I recommended the Life Application Study Bible, because of its excellent introductions to the books of the Bible as well as its study notes. A newcomer to the Bible needs a little direction, because it can be difficult to figure out how a book or passage relates to the overall message. This Bible helps tremendously. Although it's available in many good translations, I recommended the New International Version because it is both very accurate and very readable. It was the first version I read that I could understand.

Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper
This book challenged me to focus on honoring Jesus Christ in every area of my life because of what he has done for me. Its intent is on pulling us away from selfish, petty, and trivial pursuits to pursuing the glory of God.

Wisdom Hunter by Randall Arthur
This is a novel about an arrogant, dictatorial, and self-righteous pastor who is shaken to his core when his estranged daughter dies suddenly in an accident and his neglected wife dies soon afterward of a broken heart. As the man searches for the granddaughter he has never seen, he starts a journey from legalism to skepticism to real Christianity. Even though it's a novel, Wisdom Hunter is filled with truth and reality.

Rekindling the Romance by Dennis and Barbara Rainey
This book contains great insight into men and women. We bought it at FamilyLife's A Weekend to Remember marriage conference last year. I highly recommend the radio program FamilyLife Today, the marriage conferences, and any book (including this one) by Dennis and Barbara Rainey. You will learn much about your spouse from this book.

Up Close and Personal: Embracing the Poor by Harold Shank, Anthony Wood, and Ron Bergeron
This book inspired me to become involved in urban ministry. It will help any reader in understanding the culture of poverty, the effects of racism, the need for friendship in the midst of poverty, and how to help people come to faith in Jesus Christ. It contains good practical advice about how to help people in need.

Children Mean the World to God by Harold Shank
This book is surprising because of the depth of the theology. I did not expect a book about children to be a book about God and his character. I read Children Mean the World to God in the middle of the adoption process for our son. It gave me the encouragement I needed when the days were dark and I could not see the dawn coming. It will inspire any Christian parent, Bible class teacher, or lover of children to keep making the effort to show love to the children of the world for God's sake.

The Measure of a Man by Gene Getz
This book encourages all Christian men to aspire to the qualities of an elder as described in 1 Timothy and Titus. Whether a man ever becomes an elder is irrelevant; a Christian man needs to make it a goal to grow in the virtues described within this book.

No More Jellyfish, Chickens, or Wimps by Paul Coughlin
This is a parenting book like no other. It deals with instilling children with courage, security, and assertiveness. In addition, it helps parents and children deal with predators and bullies. Its goal is not to produce nice and compliant kids, but rather good and brave children.

Do you have any books that have made a positive impact on your life? Please share information about them in the comments section. Thanks for reading!

Recommended Blog Posts

I appreciate the thoughts of Mike at the Upper Room Blog. I don't know much about him, but I like the way he thinks and writes. In fact, I often say to myself, I wish I had written that post, after reading his blog. He has some good thoughts about "Rethinking Church" at http://theupperroom.typepad.com/the_upper_room/2008/06/rethinking-church.html.

John Piper has listed "20 Reasons I Don't Take Potshots at Fundamentalists" at http://www.desiringgod.org/Blog/1251_20_reasons_i_dont_take_potshots_at_fundamentalists/. I agree with almost all of his list (except my father is not a fundamentalist), but I especially echo the sentiments of Reason #20. People to my left also believe I'm a fundamentalist, and there are a lot of people to my left.

Dealing with Cancer

Today, I read about a prayer request at http://kinneymabry.blogspot.com/2008/05/prayer-request.html. One of the families in the church served by Preacherman is facing a very difficult time with cancer. Please keep them in your prayers. God cares and listens.

A couple of days ago, Trey Morgan celebrated 5 years of overcoming cancer. His story may be read at http://www.treymorgan.net/2008/05/what-i-learned-from-cancer.html. His cancer became a catalyst for appreciating his relationship with God, his family, and his friends.

At http://www.desiringgod.org/resourcelibrary/TasteAndSee/ByDate/2006/1776_Dont_Waste_Your_Cancer,
you may read the advice of another cancer survivor named John Piper (one of my favorite authors). If I deal with cancer someday, I will want to read his advice again in order to regain a proper perspective of my situation.

The Church's Elite

I read an amazing sermon today by John Piper at http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByDate/1992/790_Receiving_Children_in_Jesus_Name/.
In the sermon, John Piper reveals the identity of the elite (but far from elitist) members of God's church. It could be a worldview altering message.

A Few Good Articles to Read

I read a few good articles today.

At http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200804/20080404_changeme.html, an author encourages Christians to continue speaking what needs to be said and doing what needs to be done, despite apparent lack of progress. Sometimes I need such articles to bolster my spirit.

At http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/TasteAndSee/ByDate/2008/2703_Behold_It_Was_Very_Good_But_Now/,
Noel Piper writes about the trip she and her daughter Talitha made to Africa. She reminds us of the importance of caring for the creation that God had blessed us with, and how we can honor God and receive benefits from caring for it.

At http://www.desiringgod.org/Blog/1157_overcome_contradictory_compassion/, John Piper encourages Christians to follow Christ rather than popular political ideology. Both political liberals and political conservatives have blind spots, but Jesus Christ helps us to care about people that political ideologies tend to ignore.

Would You Like to Have a Black Son-in-Law?

"Then Peter began to speak: 'I now realize how true it is that God does not show favoritism but accepts men from every nation who fear him and do what is right'" (Acts 10:34-35, NIV).

Janet and I have a goal of raising our son to be a godly man. We would like to see him develop the faith and character qualities of a biblical elder (a.k.a. overseer, pastor, etc.).

In 15 to 20 years, it's likely that he will be married. Who will he marry? We don't know, but we pray for him to marry a young Christian woman who sincerely loves God.

Preparing for that time, I would like to challenge Christian parents of every race to be open to their children marrying someone from another race. Let's not limit the choices of our children based on something as superficial as race or ethnicity.

If your daughter is white, Hispanic, American Indian, Asian, or another race, would you welcome a young black man like our son into your family as a son-in-law? Would you like to have black grandchildren? If your daughter is black, would you welcome him as a son-in-law despite him having white parents? These are questions I would like to challenge every parent to ask himself or herself.

(Baptist minister John Piper, a white man with an adopted black daughter, has a good sermon about interracial marriage at http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/TopicIndex/48_Racial_Harmony/198_Racial_Harmony_and_Interracial_Marriage/).

Muslim Neighbors

"Do not seek revenge or bear a grudge against one of your people, but love your neighbor as yourself. I am the LORD" (Leviticus 19:18, NIV).

At http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/TasteAndSee/ByDate/2008/2585_How_Shall_We_Love_Our_Muslim_Neighbor, John Piper shares some good insights about loving our Muslim neighbors.

Mercy and Justice

"He has showed you, O man, what is good. And what does the LORD require of you? To act justly and to love mercy and to walk humbly with your God" (Micah 6:8, NIV).

How can we be people of justice and people of mercy at the same time? John Piper shares some great insights in his sermon, "When Is It Right to Repay Evil with Pain?" It may be read or heard at http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByDate/2005/206_When_Is_It_Right_to_Repay_Evil_With_Pain/. It is worth reading and considering.

Convicting Thoughts

"Then he said to them all: 'If anyone would come after me, he must deny himself and take up his cross daily and follow me. For whoever wants to save his life will lose it, but whoever loses his life for me will save it. What good is it for a man to gain the whole world, and yet lose or forfeit his very self? If anyone is ashamed of me and my words, the Son of Man will be ashamed of him when he comes in his glory and in the glory of the Father and of the holy angels'" (Luke 9:23-26, NIV).

"Should the Church in politically or socially trying circumstances remain covert to avoid potential eradication by forces hostile to Christianity? Or would more open confrontation with prevailing spiritual ignorance and deprivation---even if it produced Christian martyrs---be more likely to lead to evangelistic breakthroughs?...Is it conceivable that Christianity's failure to thrive in the Muslim world is due to the notable absence of Christian martyrs? And can the Muslim community take seriously the claims of a Church in hiding?" (George Otis Jr.,The Last of the Giants, quoted by John Piper in Desiring God, p. 273).

Those quotes are haunting. Have we, the American church, become an unloving church? Do we not care about the souls of Muslims, gang members, and other hostile people? Have we become a cowardly church, not willing to take risks to reach such people? Have we become a distracted church, not realizing that we are wasting our efforts on relatively trivial matters?

Those are convicting thoughts, but I must wrestle with them. In order to honor my Savior, I am convinced that I must be a caring, courageous, and focused disciple of Christ. He deserves nothing less.

Suffering and Baptism

"For Christ also died for sins once for all, the just for the unjust, so that He might bring us to God, having been put to death in the flesh, but made alive in the spirit; in which also He went and made proclamation to the spirits now in prison, who once were disobedient, when the patience of God kept waiting in the days of Noah, during the construction of the ark, in which a few, that is, eight persons, were brought safely through the water. Corresponding to that, baptism now saves you---not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience---through the resurrection of Jesus Christ, who is at the right hand of God, having gone into heaven, after angels and authorities and powers had been subjected to Him" (1 Peter 3:18-22, NASB).

I have read a thought-provoking sermon by evangelical Baptist theologian and author John Piper called, "Strengthened to Suffer: Christ, Noah, and Baptism." You may read the entire sermon at http://www.desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/Sermons/ByTopic/23/884_Strengthened.
Here is a portion of his sermon:

Verse 18 said that Christ died for sins and brought us to God. In other words Christ saves us. But the question is: who is us? Whom does Christ's death actually save? That's what verse 21 answers: those who are baptized. But Peter knows that this will be misunderstood if he does not qualify it. So when he says, "Baptism now saves you," he adds, "Not the removal of dirt from the flesh, but an appeal to God for a good conscience." This is virtually a definition of baptism. Baptism is an outward expression of a spiritual, inward appeal to God for cleansing. In other words, baptism is a way of saying to God: "I trust you to apply the death of Jesus to me for my sins and to bring me through death and judgment into new and everlasting life through the resurrection of Jesus."

Baptism may cleanse the body because it was by immersion. But that is not why he says it saves. It saves for one reason: it is an expression of faith. It is an appeal of faith. Paul said in Romans 10:13 that whoever calls upon the name of the Lord shall be saved. Baptism is such a calling. It is an appeal to the Lord.

How does this strengthen us for suffering with Christ?

Like this: When we have come through the water of baptism, we have passed through death and judgment. We have been buried with Christ and we have risen with him. We have passed from death to life. Judgment is past. The suffering we are experiencing cannot be the condemnation of God. That has already been experienced for us by Christ. We have received that by faith and we have expressed our faith in baptism. It stands as a constant reminder that the worst suffering has been averted. Christ took it for us. We will never have to come into judgment. There is now no condemnation. We have already died that death in Christ and been raised in him. Therefore our present suffering is not the wrath of God but the loving discipline of our Father and the preparation for glory.

Memorial Day 2007

"There is an appointed time for everything. And there is a time for every event under heaven...A time to kill and a time to heal; A time to tear down and a time to build up...A time to love and a time to hate; A time for war and a time for peace" (Ecclesiastes 3:1,3,8, NASB).

In honor of Memorial Day this year, I would like to share two articles.

The Uncertainties of War and the Hope of History by John Piper explains why war is necessary at times. It may be read at http://desiringgod.org/ResourceLibrary/TasteAndSee/ByDate/2003/1231.

Our Need to Remember by Phil Ware reminds us of our need to honor those who serve to protect innocent people. It may be read at http://www.heartlight.org/articles/200705/20070528_remember.html.

John Piper and Racial Harmony

Three years ago, I read one of the best books that I have ever read, Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper. In it, Mr. Piper challenged his readers to embrace a life-changing, eternal perspective. He challenged us to live to glorify God and to enjoy living for his glory.

John Piper is a pastor of a Baptist Church in Minneapolis. Although I am neither a pastor nor a Baptist, I share his great love for God and respect for the Bible. In addition, we have at least one more thing in common: both of us are white fathers of black children whom we have adopted. (He has a black daughter who was recently baptized, and I have a black son.) When I read his writings or listen to his sermons, they connect with me.

Earlier today, I discovered that we can listen to a 7-part series about racial harmony at his ministry's blog (http://www.desiringgod.org/Blog/) . I have not listened yet, but I know from experience that it will be worth hearing, and that it will glorify God.