Franklin Graham interview

I love the doctrine of vocation, as well as the following story which illustrates it. 

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One of Martin Luther’s new converts came up to him and said, ”I am a believer now and I want to serve God.  What do I do?”  Luther inquired about what he did for a living, to which the man responded, “I’m a cobbler; I make shoes.”  Then came Luther’s sage response: ”Make a good shoe and sell it at a fair price.”    

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I remain convinced that “serving God” is not as complicated a matter as we are apt to think.  The Bible speaks to this in many ways, but here are two verses to start with:

“So, whatever you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God.”  1 Corinthians 10:31

“… aspire to live quietly, and to mind your own affairs, and to work with your hands, as we instructed you, so that you may walk properly before outsiders and be dependent on no one.”  1 Thessalonians 4:11-12 

Heidelberg Catechism, Q&A 1

A. That I, with body and soul, both in life and in death, am not my own, but belong to my faithful Savior Jesus Christ, who with His precious blood has fully satisfied for all my sins, and redeemed me from all the power of the devil; and so preserves me that without the will of my Father in heaven not a hair can fall from my head; indeed, that all things must work together for my salvation. Wherefore, by His Holy Spirit, He also assures me of eternal life, and makes me heartily willing and ready from now on to live unto Him.

http://www.oakhill.ac.uk/packer/index.html

Just one more reason to support organizations, like The Psalm 139 Project, who provide ultrasound machines to crisis pregnancy centers.

This linked post is a must read: http://www.scriptoriumdaily.com/2009/10/22/the-end-of-paul-tillichs-life/   

As I read the tragic details of Paul Tillich’s life, I could not help but recall the words of Jesus in Luke 6:43-45, “No good tree bears bad fruit, nor again does a bad tree bear good fruit, for each tree is known by its own fruit. For figs are not gathered from thornbushes, nor are grapes picked from a bramble bush. The good person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good, and the evil person out of his evil treasure produces evil, for out of the abundance of the heart his mouth speaks.”

It is my observation that most liberal theology leads you on, leads you astray, and then abandons you to be crushed on the rocks of unbelief.

and

Read John Piper’s booklet on exegesis / arcing here: Biblical Exegesis: Discovering the Meaning of Scriptural Texts 

Listen to Piper talk about Arcing:

Verse 1:
In sixteen-one-one not too considerate,
The Bible was in Latin very few men could read it
So James did his own version
Written by a special team
And they wrote it all in English,
Boy the priesthood really screamed

Chorus:
Just priests and nuns could read the book in Latin
Gave ‘ em lots of power over everybody ‘ s soul
Yes, King James made the Bible far more common,
Everyone could read it,
Yes that really was the goal

Verse 2:
The Vulgate was in Latin
Guess old James thought this was dumb
Just to know know what God said
Latin scholars they ‘ d become
The people don ‘ t know Latin
and can ‘ t understand the thing
“So we ‘ ll write it in their language
and they ‘ ll read of Christ the King”

[chorus]

Verse 3:
The Pope he thought that it wasn’t really wise
To let the people read God ‘ s word using their own eyes
He thought fer sure
that the common folk would yell,
‘ Cause what the Church was teaching
wouldn ‘ t save the folks from … well

[chorus]

Verse 4:
So they read through the Hebrew
and they read through the Greek
and they read Aramaic
So God ‘ s word we could now seek
They produced the Holy Bible
In the language that we speak
So you could have your own copy
and can read it every week

[chorus]

(Instrumental)

Verse 5:
Although it is Old English
Don ‘ t let it bring on a frown
Just know God ‘ s word is greater
In there yes the truth is found
So read the Bible daily
Though you might not be inclined
‘ Cause in there is the Good News
That saves body, soul, and mind

[chorus]

Verse 6:
Just remember it ‘ s a priviledge
You can read His Holy Word
You can read it with your own eyes
Not just what at Church you ‘ ve heard
Thank King James and his scholars
Who translated God ‘ s word whole
And we ‘ ve got it in a codex not
on some ungainly scroll

[chorus]

Verse 7:
So they read through the Hebrew
and they read through the Greek
and they read Aramaic
So God ‘ s word we could now seek
They produced the Holy Bible
In the language that we speak
So you could have your own copy
and can read it every week

[chorus]

Roderick Edwards