Tag: Religion

Sermon Download: The Parable of the Generous Father

~ Bob Hayton

I was blessed to be able to fill in for our pastor again this Sunday. This was my second “New Years” sermon (see this one from last year).

If you don’t have time to listen to the entire sermon (which is only around 35 minutes), please do look over my notes. I believe this message is really important as it reveals the heart of the Gospel – the Father’s generous love and amazing grace.

I didn’t depend exclusively on any one resource for my message, but I was influenced heavily by Tim Keller’s book The Prodigal God: Recovering the Heart of the Christian Faith. That book is a quick read and would make a great book to start 2013 out with. I highly recommend it. (You can pick up a copy inexpensively from Amazon, Christianbook.com, or Westminster Bookstore.)

Enjoy the sermon and if you have any feedback, please feel free to share a comment or contact me.

          Place: Beacon of Hope Church, St. Paul
          Date: December 30, 2012
          Title: The Parable of the Generous Father
          Text: Luke 15:1-3, 11-32
          Notes: Download PDF
          Audio Link: Listen online or download (right click the link and
          save it to your computer)

Jonathan Edwards on the Problem of Evil

~ Bob Hayton ~ 5 Comments

With the recent tragedy at Newtown Connecticut, the problem of evil is on everyone’s mind. How could such an evil act be perpetrated? How could God allow such evil? Would a loving God really allow the deaths of 20 innocent children?

Tragedies like this, and the questions it raises, lead meany people to blame God. Others point to this problem as evidence that a true God does not exist. Or they reshape their thoughts about God. He is nice and helpful and all, but limited. Like an old grandfather, he is saddened by our losses and didn’t want this to happen. He was just unable to prevent it – or worse, he didn’t see it coming.

In contrast to such man-centered thoughts, the Scripture’s teaching on evil and suffering is that God permits it, and works behind it, to accomplish His purposes. For those who love God and believe in Him (the elect), God works everything together for their good (Rom. 8:28). And ultimately, God “works all things according to the counsel of his will” (Eph. 1:11). God “does according to his will among the host of heaven and among the inhabitants of the earth; and none can stay his hand or say to him, ‘What have you done?'” (Dan. 4:35). He “has made everything for its purpose, even the wicked for the day of trouble” (Prov. 16:4). And Amos 3:6 declares soberingly, “Does disaster come to a city, unless the LORD has done it?”

If God is truly sovereign, then, why did He choose to allow such sin and suffering in this world? Theologians refer to this as “the problem of evil.” Why does evil exist, in such poignant and powerful measure as displayed so chillingly just this last week? This question is not merely for theists. What explanation can atheists give to this puzzling question? They would have to explain how evil, as a category, can exist without a holy God. If there is no God, than who’s to say what evil is?

Ultimately, Jonathan Edwards has perhaps the clearest answer that I have found. I delve into his thought a bit in this article, but here I want to share a quote I recently included in my SS class this past Sunday. May it help clarify your thinking on this point, and see how truly great and glorious God really is.

God’s awful majesty, his authority and dreadful greatness, justice, and holiness… would not shine forth as the [other parts of divine glory] do, and also the glory of his goodness, love, and holiness would be faint without them; nay, they could scarcely shine forth at all… There would be no manifestation of God’s grace or true goodness, if there was no sin to be pardoned, no misery to be saved from. No matter how much happiness he might bestow, his goodness would not be nearly as highly prized and admired…. and the sense of his goodness heightened. So evil is necessary if the glory of God is to be perfectly and completely displayed

[quoted in Chosen for Life by Sam Storms (Crossway, 2007), pg. 186-187]

As a follow up to this thought, here are some earlier articles of mine along these same lines.

The Mouse on the Mayflower

~ Bob Hayton

As a child, I remember watching “The Mouse on the Mayflower” on TV a few times. But I’ve looked in vain for it ever since. This year I searched for and found it on Youtube. It is a 45 minute TV special which traces the story of The Mayflower as told from the perspective of the Pilgrims’ church-mouse. After watching it with my kids, I can see that it may be too religious in some places for TV today.

The Mayflower is especially meaningful to me, since John Alden is my great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-great-grandfather. I shared my Mayflower lineage once before, on my blog. And I also collected scans from a 1925 World Book Encyclopedia on the Plymouth story. This year, I thought I’d share “The Mouse on the Mayflower” with my viewers.

Happy Thanksgiving! I hope you can find some time to enjoy this old classic Thanksgiving themed movie with your family.

This movie is available still on some old VHS copies from Amazon. It is also available on DVD here and here. Learn more about this classic movie at MouseontheMayflower.com.

Book Briefs: “Heart of the Matter: Daily Reflections for Changing Hearts and Lives” edited by Nancy B. Winter

~ Bob Hayton ~ 1 Comment

The Christian Counseling and Education Foundation (CCEF) is a ministry focused on providing biblical counseling materials to the church. Their materials connect the Gospel to all of life and are designed to equip local churches to minister to all of the needs of their congregations. I have previously reviewed some of their books (here and here), and helped teach one of their courses (How People Change). I am constantly impressed by the quality of their work and how practical it is for the real problems people face.

New Growth Press has compiled a collection of excerpts from books written by such CCEF authors as Timothy S. Lane, Paul David Tripp, David Powlison, Edward T. Welch, Michael R. Emlet, William P. Smith, and more. The result is a year-long devotional, Heart of the Matter: Daily Reflections for Changing Hearts and Lives, edited by Nancy B. Winter. This hardcover book includes daily devotional readings for every day of the year. The selections are short and readable, yet thoughtful and weighty. The readings are meant to complement a Scripture text to be read each day.

These devotional nuggets provide a practical out-working of a Gospel-centered perspective on all of life that under-girds the counseling approach of CCEF. The sovereignty of God, the reality of the kingdom, the cross of Christ, and grace-based sanctification are a few of the themes explored in these pages. Included in the back of the book is a listing of the source of each excerpt. Particularly poignant daily readings can be traced back to the book they were excerpted from, allowing the reader to turn to the source for more from the author on that subject. Also helpful is a lengthy index of Scripture passages commented on in the book. This index could be used as a guide for reading through the Bible. As you read passages, you can turn to the index and see if any devotional thoughts are available that intersect with the verses you just read.

Perhaps the best way to demonstrate the high quality of this particular devotional is to encourage you to take a quick read through some sample pages (Introduction and Jan. 1-5) provided by the publisher.

If you’re looking for a new devotional for 2012, look no further than this volume from CCEF. I’m confident its Gospel-centered, practical application of Scripture to all of life will make a lasting impression on your heart. It can help facilitate real change, by the power of the Holy Spirit–and that is what CCEF is all about.

Pick up a copy of this book at any of the following online retailers: Westminster Bookstore, Christianbook.com, Amazon, or direct from New Growth Press.

Disclaimer: This book was provided by New Growth Press. I was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.

About Book Briefs: Book Briefs are book notes, or short-form book reviews. They are my informed evaluation of a book, but stop short of being a full-length book review.

Book Recommendation: “Accidental Pharisees” by Larry Osborne

~ Bob Hayton

I just finished a hard-hitting, yet extremely well-written and lucid book. Accidental Pharisees: Avoiding Pride, Exclusivity, and the Other Dangers of Overzealous Faith by Larry Osborne is an engrossing read and tackles an important problem in today’s church. As a former, hard-nosed fundamentalist Christian, I can attest to the horrors of finding out that you have become an accidental Pharisee. I’ve seen that tendency in my own heart many a time. Larry Osborne tacklees this problem with a pastor’s heart for people. His aim is to protect the many weak and young Christians who are constantly in danger of being hurt and bowled over by well-meaning, accidental Pharisees advocating a variety of causes in today’s Church.

I wish I had time to go into a full review of this book right here. But for now I want to draw your attention to it, and let you know that the Kindle copy of the book is on sale for only $3.99 now through November 5th. Let me excerpt some of Osborne’s conclusion so you can see what he’s aiming to do in this short book.

Following Jesus is not a race to see who can be the most radical, sacrificial, knowledgeable, or quickest to burn out. It’s not a contest to see who’s willing to take the hardest road. That’s asceticism, not discipleship.

For the gospel to remain the gospel, grace and mercy have to remain front and center. When the radicalness of my commitment, the intensity of my zeal, or the extent of my personal sacrifices become the means to receive or maintain God’s acceptance and approval, the good news of the gospel is no longer good news to anyone except those of us who excel.

Make no mistake. My warnings about the dangers of an overzealous faith are not meant as a defense of soft and easy Christianity. They are simply a plea that we remain true to the heart of the gospel, offering rest, help, hope, and salvation to the weary and heavy laden. (pg. 195-196)

Consider picking up the book at Amazon or Christianbook.com. To learn more about the book, check out the reviews that are coming in from the book blog tour that Zondervan is running on this title.

Here’s the book trailer as well.

Disclaimer: This book was provided by Zondervan. I was under no obligation to offer a favorable review.