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regarding ministers

There is a tendency among people, especially older generations, to expect ministers to be Super-Christians. They expect the minister to be everything they want him to be and to do nothing that anyone would dislike. I cannot imagine any of the first century "famous" believers fitting these expectations. Paul was a rascally fellow...who liked a fight, used some extreme language in his writing (and who knows about his "sermons"), and even advised the use of wine (gasp!). Peter denied the Lord three times, needed several visions to get it into his head that Gentiles were okay, and still separated from the Gentile believers when men from James came to visit. Even Jesus, though He did nothing wrong, certainly did not fit the common model for Pastoral uprightness: thus, they killed Him.

Ministers should be careful; but everyone should be careful. What we need from ministers more than sinlessness is a Model of Humility and Repentance. We need them to instruct us on how to be "stronger brethren." Even if we take the model of "Super-Christian" and apply it to pastors, all that really means is that they Stumble more than the average believer and Get Up more than the average believer, for that, after all, is what Christianity is practically. Fall, fail, be foolish; then repent, believe, and move on in the strength of Christ. Pastors need to model those later elements. What inevitably happens when they attempt to live to the expectations of the congregation is that, instead of this fueling Holiness, it ends up fueling Hypocrisy. Instead, they should strive for Holiness, and be ready to model Humility.

As a minister, I think ministers need to hear that too. Yes, Absolutely, Amen, we should "work harder than all the rest...but not [us] but the grace of God working through [us]." And just there, at the grace of God, we should also work harder to model, for all to see, how powerful and freeing is God's grace, by turning from sin to God. That should be the model our people come to expect: not Holiness as much as Humility. No super-christians; just a Super(-Duper) Jesus Christ.

When I Don't Desire God

John Piper has three categories of books: devotional, occassional, and, how do I say this, those books to which John refers when he says, "every book I write is the same book." Devotional books include, of course, Life is a Vapor, Taste and See, and perhaps even the Swan series. Occassional books include The Justification of God and Counted Righteous. The Piperian volumes include Desiring God, The Pleasures of God, and When I Don't Desire God.

I love John Piper, but am probably overly-familiar with his core set of teachings. I hanker to hear some new thing from him, on occassion. Though, few people say what he says like he does, bless God, and so we should go to him for reminders and refreshers regularly. So I ended up skimming the first half of When I Don't Desire God.

But the last few chapters are some of the most vital John has written. I skimmed the first several chapters, but I reread some of the last several. Chapters 9-12 are especially helpful. And, according to the grace of God given to John and Desiring God ministries, they have provided the entire book in PDF format along with study helps on their website. You can download them here.

Gilead, pg. 39

But I've developed a great reputations for wisdom by ordering more books than I ever had time to read, and reading more books, by far, than I learned anything useful from, except, of course, that some very tedious gentlemen have written books. This is not a new insight, but the truth of it is something you have to experience to fully grasp.
Thank God for them all, of course, and for that strange interval, which was most of my life, when I read out of loneliness, and when bad company was much better than no company. You can love a bad book for its haplessness or pomposity or gall, if you have that starving appetite for things human, which I devoutly hope you never will have.

Gilead, pg. 19-20

I wrote almost all of it in the deepest hope and conviction. Sifting my thoughts and choosing my words. Trying to say what was true. And I'll tell you frankly, that was wonderful. I'm grateful for all those dark years, even though in retrospect they seem like a long, bitter prayer that was answered finally. Your mother walked into church in the middle of the prayer--to get out of the weather, I thought at the time, because it was pouring. And she watched me with eyes so serious I was embarrassed to be preaching to her. As Boughton would say, I felt the poverty of my remarks.

Listening to: 4th Avenue Jones, The Evolution of Hiprocksoul
Tremendous new (to me) Christian artists.  Like the disc title implies, their sound is a mix of laid back soul, rock vibes, and hip-hop sensibilities.  Add to that the odd sensation of finding one's self worshiping.
Reading: John (ESV) and the Ridderbos and Carson on John.  I prize Ridderbos but enjoy Carson's even handled Evangelical approach.  J. Christman recommended Hendricksen, from the "New Testament Commentary" series.
Enjoying: The odor of my young son's spit up on my clothes.  Think fresh slices of apple with cheddar strips.  But more, it reminds me of him (isn't this THE cutest picture).

Here's why I love Ridderbos (picked at random):

The discourse reaches a provisional conclusion in Jesus' answer. He now states unambiguously that he is the life-giving bread and thus brings the dialogue to the point--always decisive in the great contest between faith and unbelief--of not only what he teaches and does but of who he is.  To that end he makes on of the many "I am" pronouncements in which his "I" is the read predicate. Over and over the question is what really is the bread for which a person should "labor"--the bread that does not perish--and where it comes from. Now Jesus says that he is that bread. The intent is not primarily to describe the salvation granted by Jesus..., namely that aside from other things he is and gives also the bread of life, but rather that anyone...in search of bread that does not perish should accept Jesus. He not only grants that bread but is that bread...The question of faith is decisive for the bread question and not--as the multitude thought--the reverse.

The point being that Jesus is not describing what He gives but what He IS when He says, "I am the bread of life." This distinction, which John notes and Ridderbos extrapolates, is fundamental to our faith and radical to the way we live the normal christian life: He must be all in all, bread be damned if it's bread you want and not Him.

Gilead

I am forty-four pages into Gilead, by Marilynne Robinson. I actually put it down last night thinking, "I need to move slower through this. I should stop and think about what I just read. I should go back and take just a few pages a day." This Pulitzer prize winning novel is already one of my top ten favorite novels of all time, and I'm not a quarter of the way through it.

How do I describe it?...
The book is a letter from an old third generation clergyman to his young son. The man is dying and wants to share himself with his son. I'll be posting quotations, although as I examine the pages I noted, I may end up quoting the entire book. Do better: take and read.

For me writing has always felt like praying, even when I wasn't writing prayers, as I was often enough. You feel that you are with someone. I feel I am with you now, whatever that can mean, considering that you're only a little fellow now and when you're a man you might find these letters of no interest. Or they might never reach you, for any of a number of reasons. Well, but how deeply I regret any sadness you have suffered and how grateful I am in anticipation of any good you have enjoyed. That is to say, I pray for you. And there's an intimacy in it. That's the truth.

Solomon Pictures

The baby is ours, the blanket was Joanna's design and craft(wo)manship.

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Samzdiva

That is, Sam's Club meets Godiva. Almost a full year ago, I can remember it like it was yesterday, I tasted a Godiva chocolate-chocolate ice cream bar on our anniversary trip (which we combined with our moving-across-the-country trip). Unbelievable: Never have I experienced chocolate like that.
Well, believe it or not, at our local Sam's Club Superstore, guess what they sell for their $1.50 chocolate bars: Godiva. That's three dollars less than what I paid for it, and it was worth it at that price. Ask for it by name next time you stock up on mass quantities of consumer goods.

youth ministry

tonight was the sort of night in youth ministry that, well, that i deserve. three teenage boys, loosely affiliated, that is, united around their desire to dissipate the evening. i was that boy not very long ago. i remember making teachers cry and making youth leaders quit. that simple, placid thought injected some hope into what would have otherwise been a wash. i used to be there, now i'm here. miracle? undoubtedly.

Hank Hill goes to the mega-church

You are probably a fan of the "King of the Hill" television series. You are also probably aware of and ambiguously-affectioned towards "mega-"churches. If so, then you'll absolutely love this video.
HT: CRBlog

"every single word"

Matt Wireman has an ENORMOUSLY helpful, challenging, and thought-provoking three-part series on how Every Word is Inspired and Profitable:
Part 1: "Is Every Word Inspired and Useful?"
Part 2: "Really...Every Single Word?"
Part 3: "You're Serious About the Word 'Every,' Aren't You?"

quick question

Can those of you who use an RSS reader still read an entire post in your reader even though I've got that "read the entire post" link? If you can't, I'll discontinue that. Let me know.

Code Names

Do you have a code name? The name by which people mistakenly call you? In college my friends and I were "Dan" for David, "Curtis" for Chris, "Mark" for Mike, and "Bryan" for Ryan. Likewise now my entire family suffers this mallady: Jenecia becomes "Denise," I'm still "Dan," and little SOLOMON was coined today, "Simon." You can't make this stuff up. So if you are ever tracking our family, be on the lookout for a threesome checking into the hotel under the names "Dan, Denise, and Simon Gritts." What are your code names?

Meditation on Psalm 88

I had the opportunity to meditate on the most depressing chapter in the Bible the Saturday before Easter. It was a sweet meditation, which those with an interest in Biblical Theology may find especially helpful, though hopefully everyone will be benefited.
Psalm 88

Observations
Who could truly say all these things without being guilty of hyperbole? Only Jesus. Why only Jesus? He is the only one in history who could say these things truthfully. His life drew near to Sheol (v. 3). He went down into the pit (v. 4). He was without strength (v. 4, Simon of Cyrene had to help Him carry His cross). He was forsaken among the dead (v. 5; cf. Ps 22). He was slain and laid in a grave (v. 5). He was cut off, remembered no more, by the Father (v. 5). God put Him in the depths of the pit (v. 6). God's wrath rested on Him (v. 7). His friends left Him (v. 8). He was an object of loathing (v. 8). He was shut up in a tomb (v. 8). He called to God, spread His hands to God, and was afflicted (v. 9).

At the same time, each question in vv. 10-14 is almost rhetorical in light of Jesus. In Jesus all these hopeless questions find their yes (2 Cor 1:20). For example, for Jesus, the dead one, God did perform wonders (v. 10). Jesus, a departed spirit, did rise up to praise God (v. 10). Jesus' resurrection does declare God's lovingkindness in the grave (v. 11). Jesus proclaimed God's faithfulness in His resurrection (v. 11). Jesus shines God's wonders into the darkness of death (v. 12). Jesus brings the righteousness of God into our world, which so happily forgets about God and His glory (v. 12).

Yes, all the hopes of all the world find their 'amen' in Him. Yet, again, though great hope hides herein, we end with the Psalmist on the same note with which we began: Jesus cried to His Father, but was rejected (v. 13). God hid His face from Jesus (v. 14). Jesus was helpless (v. 15). Jesus suffered the wrath, the dreadful assaults of God (v. 16). Jesus was overcome (v. 17). Jesus lost His friends and loved ones in His suffering (v. 18). None stood with Him.

Comments
What may be the most remarkable feature is how the Psalmist points exclusively to God as the doer, the troubler of his soul. The only human agency mentioned in this terrible affliction are the friends who abandon him. This seems strange in a book full of statements against enemies and foes. The Psalmists sees only God. This points to the Messianic note on which we've been meditating. Jesus was alone in the garden with God. Jesus feared the Cup of God's Wrath; not Pilate or the Jews. Jesus feared God. The cross was about God.
Also, as we meditated on the Psalm's questions answered yes in Christ, the middle section of this Psalm, the answers are equally God-centered. The affliction and the purpose of the affliction are all about God. You can't make this stuff up.
Therefore, though my sin was a genuine cause, Christ's passion is about God foremost. Holy Week, Easter: these are about God. Let the effect of this be, not the lessening of my sorrow and grief, but the heightening of them, along with adoration and thankfulness for God's great love and kindness: "O Lord, God of my salvation."

Application
The sorrow, pain, fear, loneliness, and frustration are part of path that leads to the glory we will know when our Crucified Lord returns. Stay on it, no matter what.

Together For the Gospel

The conference was refreshing. You can hear it all reviewed better elsewhere. I had a wonderful time hanging with... my dad (3 Griffiths' generations pictures here), my good friend Chris, Kevin, Caleb, Brian, and others. It was good to see my TBI friends again: Molesky, Lent, Wireman, Rairick, Wisdom, BLund. Also, blast from the past, some NBBC brothers appeared, hopefully into the joyful light of Christian Unity: Mike, Dan, Adam, Dan, Dan,...did I get all the Dan's?

Caleb Widmer

I have meant for some months now to introduce my friend Caleb Widmer to you all. Caleb is a young recording artist with a passion for the church. By that I do not mean that he regularly attends or that he hopes churches buy his music. I fear that is as far as many recording artists "love for the church" extends: "i'd love you to buy this cd, please." No; Caleb is actually committed to the church in that he serves her. Caleb is the worship pastor at Waukesha Bible Church in WI.
But what is even more remarkable about Caleb is that he's really very, very good. His songs are well written and he has an excellent ear. Some music pastors put out CD's that sound, well, like a church did it. But Caleb has been given a gift to make music and a passion to do it in conjuction with a local church, a body of elders, and for their immediate as well as long term good. His band's current name is "Driven to One." Buy their CD's, especially their last one ("everything as planned"). You can listen first on their site. Highly sing-able, congregational even, and when not, worshipful. And look for their new release coming out...? You'll be the first to know.

"The Way I See It"

Starbucks' interesting quotes page: the way i see it. I particularly liked #76, which is where the link takes you.

Happy Solomon!

Finally, some pictures of Solomon in which he smiles. He's a smiley baby, but when he sees a camera, he calls it "the little flashing devil," he's more apt to stare in fear and bewilderment than heave-off with his gummy grin.
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