Echoes of the Reformation

Western Europe, the heartland of the Reformation 500 years ago, is now the heartland of secular humanism. It is a culture that has forgotten their Creator and the biblical truths that the Reformers bled and died for all those centuries ago. Everything good you can find in Europe stems from the Reformation. It is what took Europe out of the dark ages and gave birth to the arts, the sciences, industrial prosperity, medical breakthroughs, increases in life expectancy, faithfulness in marriage, and most importantly an explosion of preaching of the Christian Gospel. It was a truly great revival, as preachers thundered that salvation only came by grace alone, through faith alone, on God's Word alone, because of Christ alone.

The rise of Darwinism coupled with ungodly men who called themselves "liberal theologians" all conspired to undermine the authority of the Bible. This liberalism was a cancer that Europe has never recovered from. Like in Romans 1 the people exchanged the worship of the Creator for a humanistic deifying of the self. Today in Denmark, like in most of Western Europe, people are drowning in their own affluence, bowing before the Baals of self esteem, success, and sensuality. Tragically, many of the small fellowships that remain have bought into this lie and preach a gospel more focussed on life enhancement than saving damned souls.

Out of this darkness there may be some light. With the advent of cyberspace, young people over here who hunger for truth are able to tap into the teaching and preaching of great modern reformers residing outside of Europe like Paul Washer, John Piper, John MacArthur, and Ray Comfort. My precious brother in Christ Mikael Thomsen is not known by many people in Denmark let alone the rest of the world. But we pray that the message he burns with will travel great distances and into a great many hearts to the glory of Almighty God. This video is a 6 minute sermon jam in danish (with english subtitles) to give you a taste of his preaching and encourage you that it may not be too late for Europe. May you hear echoes of the Reformation . . .



Pray for Mikael and all the disciples of Jesus Christ in Europe. We're not in it for the popularity.

The Day I Came Out (Part 3)

The Battlefront of the Conscience (continued from yesterday)

The atheist can deny all he wants and try to argue against God's existence from an intellectual standpoint. It is both foolish and futile for the Christian to war on this front because knowledge is not the issue and some atheists are a lot smarter than I am. But try as he may, the atheist cannot explain why his conscience opposes his human nature. But we know why because God's Word tells us that God's law is written on everybodies heart and our knowledge of right and wrong testifies both to God's existence, and man's alienation from this God.

Rom 2:14 For when Gentiles, who do not have the law, by nature do what the law requires, they are a law to themselves, even though they do not have the law.
Rom 2:15 They show that the work of the law is written on their hearts, while their conscience also bears witness, and their conflicting thoughts accuse or even excuse them.

"The evidence is not the problem Niels, it's because you love your sin too much". Niels, the atheist, stood there staring at me (actually he was sitting). I was at Defcon One preparing myself for a flying fist coming my way at any moment. I could see that my comment had really detonated a bomb somewhere inside of Niels. But then, suddenly he looked down somewhat embarrassed and said "I guess that's true".

From there I pleaded with Niels to look into the mirror of God's moral law and see his sinfulness. I reminded him that he will answer to the Creator one day Who sees everything he has ever done, spoken, and even thought. Niels could see that he had lied, stolen, lusted (which is adultery in God's eyes), and hated (murder in God's eyes), and that if the Bible is true then he deserved Hell. From there I had a reference point to make sense of the Cross and the hope of the resurrected Christ.

It seems ironic that in a world with so many "seeker sensitive" mega churches built on a catch cry of "relevance" that they have neglected to fully explain the universal guilt of mankind. I can't think of anything more relevant than the fact that "all have sinned". Sure it might get mentioned from time to time, but rarely is it explained. Sin by definition is transgression of God's law (I John 3:4) and I fail to see how an individual could fathom their sinfulness without an understanding of God's law.

Niels was shaken but not stirred to repentance, at least for now. But at least he now goes to sleep at night no longer deluded that his unbelief is based on lack of proof but rather his love of sin. I hope he wrestles with this reality and that it will ultimately drive him to his knees crying out for salvation. Pray for Niels, and for boldness in the mission field of atheism, and for wisdom to fight the battles that matter.

Reasoning from sin, righteousness, and judgment is effective with all sinners. Because they all have a common Maker, and what He says about them is always true.

Go Back To Part 2
Go Back To Part 1

The Day I Came Out (Part 2)

In the Trenches with an Atheist

In part 1 I discussed my recent adventure of going outside the four walls of a church building to do some open air preaching at a rock festival in Denmark. But there is another story from that day about a witnessing encounter with an atheist called Niels that I want to recount.

Yesterday this witnessing encounter was quickened to my memory as I helped a friend of mine Jens-Peter with renovating his house. We were making very good time so he stopped to ask me some questions regarding how I witness to people who don't believe in God. His assumption was that reasoning of sin and righteousness and judgment with a complete heathen would be a waste of time because they reject God's existence. Nothing could be further from the truth.

As I was handing out Gospel tracts (at the rock festival) a guy (Niels) spoke to me in an Australian accent. It turned out that he was Danish but had spent a year living down under. We got chatting about Australia and traded stories. He then asked me about the tracts I was handing out and I told him they had the answer to the million dollar question (it was a million dollar bill). He asked me what the million dollar question was and I asked if he knew where he would go when he died. It turned out he was an atheist and I started witnessing by revealing the proof of God's existence through creation.

Always in the back of my mind is the truth that the atheist already has knowledge of God but suppresses it in unrighteousness. This is why I didn't invest time in dazzling Niels with wizz bang apologetics (I'm not smart enough for the wizz bang apologetics anyway) concerning God's existence when the issue was not one of knowledge but of sin.

Rom 1:18 For the wrath of God is revealed from heaven against all ungodliness and unrighteousness of men, who hold the truth in unrighteousness;
Rom 1:19 Because that which may be known of God is manifest in them; for God hath showed it unto them.
Rom 1:20 For the invisible things of him from the creation of the world are clearly seen, being understood by the things that are made, even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse:
Rom 1:21 Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened.

These verses from Romans 1 tell us "that which may be known of God is manifest" in the unbeliever "for God hath shown it unto them". They are holding "the truth in unrighteousness". And what is it that testifies God's existence to sinful men? Verse 20 tells us the answer. The "invisible" things of God are "clearly seen" in God's creation "even his eternal power and Godhead; so that they are without excuse". Put simply, the creation compellingly testifies to the Creator God Himself. I am not opposed to apologetics but in a situation like this, persuasion is not the problem. The atheist already has knowledge of God's existence and time is better spent trying to awaken this knowledge rather than try and win an argument with him. Because the atheist's problem is not a lack of proof concerning God's existence, but rather one of human pride and a love of sin.

As I spoke with Niels he told me that he didn't believe the witness of creation. Trusting God's word I then stepped out in faith and said something quite provocative to him. I told him "the evidence is not the problem Niels, it's because you love your sin too much". Time stood still for a moment as I beheld the shock on his face, I prepared myself to duck in case his fist came hurtling my way. One thing was for sure - now I had Niels' undivided attention!

To be continued tomorrow - The Battlefront of the Conscience

Go On To Part 3
Go Back To Part 1

God's Directions v Man's Inventions

Because that, when they knew God, they glorified him not as God, neither were thankful; but became vain in their imaginations, and their foolish heart was darkened. Professing themselves to be wise, they became fools (Romans 1:21-22).

This article from the Washington Post.

Let My People Go, AIDS Profiteers
By Sam L. Ruteikara
Monday, June 30, 2008;

KAMPALA, Uganda -- The President's Emergency Plan for HIV-AIDS Relief (PEPFAR) has been mired in the Senate for months. Last week finally brought signs that a vote, and passage, could be near. The program would cost $50 billion -- that's $165 from each American to fight AIDS, or $1.3 billion from New York City alone. But will the money allocated for AIDS stop the spread of the virus in sub-Saharan Africa, where 76 percent of the world's HIV-AIDS deaths occurred last year?

Not if the dark dealings I've witnessed in Africa continue unchecked. In the fight against AIDS, profiteering has trumped prevention. AIDS is no longer simply a disease; it has become a multibillion-dollar industry.

In the late 1980s, before international experts arrived to tell us we had it all "wrong," we in Uganda devised a practical campaign to prevent the spread of HIV. We recognized that population-wide AIDS epidemics in Africa were driven by people having sex with more than one regular partner. Therefore, we urged people to be faithful. Our campaign was called ABC (Abstain, or Be Faithful, or use Condoms), but our main message was: Stick to one partner. We promoted condoms only as a last resort.

Because we knew what to do in our country, we succeeded. The proportion of Ugandans infected with HIV plunged from 21 percent in 1991 to 6 percent in 2002. But international AIDS experts who came to Uganda said we were wrong to try to limit people's sexual freedom. Worse, they had the financial power to force their casual-sex agendas upon us.

PEPFAR calls for Western experts to work as equal partners with African leaders on AIDS prevention. But as co-chair of Uganda's National AIDS-Prevention Committee, I have seen this process sabotaged. Repeatedly, our 25-member prevention committee put faithfulness and abstinence into the National Strategic Plan that guides how PEPFAR money for our country will be spent. Repeatedly, foreign advisers erased our recommendations. When the document draft was published, fidelity and abstinence were missing.

And somehow, a suspicious statistic attacking marriage appeared. The plan states that the HIV infection rate among married couples is 42 percent, twice as high as the rate among prostitutes. Our requests for the source of this statistic were repeatedly ignored. In fact, the 2004-05 Ugandan HIV/AIDS Sero-Behavioral Survey found that HIV prevalence among married couples is only 6.3 percent, far lower than infection rates among widowed (31.4 percent) or divorced (13.9 percent) Ugandans.

When Washington insiders were alerted to these scandals, the words "abstain" and "be faithful" were quietly reinserted into the plan -- on paper. But that doesn't guarantee these methods will be implemented or promoted. Meanwhile, the dubious marriage statistic remains.

As fidelity and abstinence have been subverted, Uganda's HIV rates have begun to tick back up.

Western media have been told this renewed surge of HIV infection is because there are "not enough condoms in Uganda," even though we have many more condoms now than we did in the early 1990s, when our HIV rates began to decline. Condom promotions have failed in Africa, mostly because fewer than 5 percent of people use condoms consistently with regular partners. Indeed, the loudest HIV-prevention message in Africa is "universal access" to condoms, testing, anti-retroviral treatment, and assorted other drugs and devices. All these commodities must be transported, stored, distributed, advertised and resupplied endlessly.

Meanwhile, effective HIV prevention methods, such as urging Africans to stick to one partner, don't qualify for lucrative universal-access status.

Do not misunderstand me: Treatment is good. But for every African who gains access to HIV treatment, six become newly infected. To treat one AIDS patient with life-prolonging anti-retroviral drugs costs more than $1,000 a year. Our successful ABC campaign cost just 29 cents per person each year.

International suppliers make broad, oversimplified statements such as "You can't change Africans' sexual behavior." While it's true that you can't change everybody, you don't have to. If the share of men having three or more sexual partners in a year drops from 15 percent to 3 percent, as happened in Uganda between 1989 and 1995, HIV infection rates will plunge. It is that simple.

We, the poor of Africa, remain silenced in the global dialogue. Our wisdom about our own culture is ignored.

Telling men and women to keep sex sacred -- to save sex for marriage and then remain faithful -- is telling them to love one another deeply with their whole hearts. Most HIV infections in Africa are spread by sex outside of marriage: casual sex and infidelity. The solution is faithful love.

So hear my plea, HIV-AIDS profiteers. Let my people go. We understand that casual sex is dear to you, but staying alive is dear to us. Listen to African wisdom, and we will show you how to prevent AIDS.

The Rev. Sam L. Ruteikara is co-chair of Uganda's National AIDS-Prevention Committee.

Faithful Are the Wounds of a Friend

I recently copped some criticism from one of my very closest friends over my post concerning Tony Campolo. He felt that a stern response was warranted but was fearful (probably due to prior experiences of bitter response) about doing so because of the friction he didn't want to generate. We really need to question our friendships if they can't withstand loving correction. I assured my friend that I always want him to feel at liberty to rebuke me when necessary and within the bounds of Scripture.

Brothers and Sisters, I fear that this is symptomatic of the therapeutic age we live in. We live in a day where an individual's self esteem has become sacred and scape goats abound for our own sinful actions. Shepherds fear confrontation because even the smallest rebuke seems to generate long term ill feeling and it is not uncommon for church members to feel hostility from their pastor in response to being biblically critiqued. People may say that they have a high view of Scripture but only so long as they can maintain diplomatic immunity.

Why are we so surprised that we need rebuke in the light of our inherent sinful nature. Spurgeon said that if someone rebukes you for something you haven't done, receive it anyway because the day will come when the shoe will fit.

Proverbs 27:6 says this "Faithful are the wounds of a friend; profuse are the kisses of an enemy." I contend that one of the strongest measures of a person's godliness is the way they take rebuke. One who longs to be conformed to Christ embraces the rebuke of a genuine brother because he fears offending God more than being offended personally. And beware those commendations from the enemy. I've seen more than one Christian leader taken down by his inner circle of yes men. I've also heard plenty of sermons against negativity (chapter and verse please). If by negativity they mean people who dare to disagree with them then it is a suicidal philosophy for they become isolated from the precious wounds that help us conform to Christ.

In closing I want to throw one other thought out there. Jesus laid down His life and went as a sheep to the slaughter - how are you doing in the area of dying to self. Jesus went ballistic when His Father's house became a den of thieves - are you more offended when people insult you or when they blaspheme God. I contend this is a good test of one's meekness.

I will not comment on the Tony Campolo post here - I'll do that later. I don't want to distract from the point I'm trying to make here because Pastors have a hard enough job to do without having to tread on the egotistical egg shells of an insecure congregation. Please - embrace the wounds that a true Christian brother or sister delivers so that we can become more like Christ.

Charismatic Credit Card Machine

My family and I attended a Pentecostal fellowship located near our home last sunday. One thing synonymous with Pentecostal churches is dancing or as a friend of mine once called it "the Pentecostal two-step". I know this is not everyones cup of tea but I don't think it is an issue worth arguing over.

Ironically, dancing almost got banned at my wedding by a faction of old timers from the Pentecostal tradition. A tense stand-off brewed as we faced the very real prospect of some cessationalists being forbidden from dancing! I can still remember from my early days as a Christian being told (tongue in cheek) by a Pentecostal preacher that he didn't believe in pre-marital sex because it might lead to dancing. Though I jest, I think the issue has very much to do with the idea that one form is dancing before the Lord while the other is dancing with the opposite sex - at least I thought so until my pastor banned me from doing the "moonwalk".

But the "Pentecostal two-step" is a dance that has been sanctioned by the movement. I have always contended, however, that church members should be required to show proof of their ability to do the "two step" without impeding the "hand raising" gestures of others before they kick up their heels in a public gathering.

All of these memories came flooding back last sunday when I realised that they had installed a credit card facility in the meeting hall. I was actually seated two rows behind the machine as I witnessed the surreal images during offering time (music playing) of people lining up in front of the machine with credit card in hand all the while doing the "two step". I then watched with amazement as people managed to coordinate operating the machine and doing the "two step" at the same time. This feat was simply beyond my athletic ability so I opted for the far less hazardous "money in the bucket" method.

But on a deeper level I must confess to cringing as I witnessed these goings on. The idea of the machine in the church building bothered me and I don't know why, perhaps it seemed irreverent. Maybe I'm getting old fashioned and should start a modernised Amish community with VHS players and Analogue TV. Is it me who has the problem here or is there something wrong that I can't put my finger on. Please comment on this - I want to hear your thoughts

The Day I Came Out (Part 1)

The four walls of a church building are a great way to conceal the message God gave His Church to tell a dying world full of hell bound people about their only hope of rescue.

This story is about the day I came out of these four walls and took the message of the glorious Gospel to the public place.

Summertime in Denmark, where the reformers trod 500 years ago, and what can we expect to find outside the four walls of a small (very small) church building. For one - a rock festival. I've always maintained that I love the summers in Denmark - it's just the other 11 months I have a problem with. I decided to head down to a nearby music festival, where thousands of young people were indulging in activities designed to speed up the death process, find a public place, stand on a soap box . . . actually my tool box, and preach the Good News.

I always get very nervous when I do this because it's one thing to make a spectacle of yourself, but the indifference and apathy can be quite suffocating in europe. When I got there I saw hundreds of people lying around drunk, hung over, or trying to drink away their hangover, many of whom were smoking things that didn't look like normal cigarettes. When I saw what was going on around me I burned with extra urgency to tell these people about their Creator, about sin, righteousness, judgment, the Cross, resurrection, repentance, saving faith and eternal life.

We walked past a tent where there was police sitting. I assumed they were there to deal with drug use and drunkenness, or maybe if someone attacked me . . . yeeeaaaah right!!

I found a place outside the venue on a local road where hundreds of people were walking back and forth between the campsite and the concert venue. I stood up and started preaching and managed to draw a crowd of about 25 people or so. Some of the faces seemed to express genuine conviction, but then another face of conviction appeared in the corner of my eye. It was a guy dressed in a police uniform walking my way and it was not the walk of a man responding to an altar call. As he came closer I could see that it was not so much a look of conviction but more of a desire to see me convicted - legally speaking.

The policeman arrived just in time to hear the end of the message. The only similarity between this and a church service was that he wasn't planning on inviting me back. We got tracts out to some of the gathering before the long arm of the law told me I had to stop and leave right now. I told him I thought it was a public place (we were on a pedestrian thoroughfare) and I wasn't impeding traffic flow. He told me that it wasn't public (though he didn't say who owned it) and I was making people embarrassed. Ummm . . . hello, who's the minority group here??? He then told me something that excited me telling me to go and preach in "speakers corner". My eyes lit up as I asked where this speakers corner was - "London" he replied.

Please pray for those of us who preach in this part of the world.



This video captures the reason why we preach an do mission. Ultimately it is to bring glory to a glorious Savior.

To hear the full sermon "Ten Shekels and a Shirt" by Paris Reidhead go here:
http://www.onceuponacross.com/sermonaudio.html

It is one of the most profound sermons I ever heard and what really stirred me to preach for God's glory.

Go On To Part 2

Describing the Indescribable

The late SM Lockridge was known for thundering great sermons from the pulpit of his church in San Diego. This captures some of that as He tries in vain to describe Jesus Christ.



I wish I could describe Him to you!

The Bottom Line Goes Ecumenical - Everybody Get's Mocked Equally

Interdenominational Light Bulb Changing

How many Calvinists does it take to change a light bulb?
None - God has predestined when the lights will be on and when they will be off.

How many Arminians does it take to change a light bulb?
Only one - but first the light bulb must make a decision for change.

How many Charismatics does it take to change a light bulb?
One - because his hands are already up in the air anyway.

How many Baptists does it take to change a light bulb?
CHANGE???!!!

How many Pentecostals does it take to change a light bulb?
ten - one to change the light bulb and nine to pray against the spirit of darkness.

How many TV evangelists does it take to change a light bulb?
One - but for the message of the light to continue please sow your seed . . .

How many Fundamentalists does it take to change a light bulb?
Only one - because any more would be compromise and ecumenical.

How many Charismatics does it take to change a light bulb?
None - unless the Lord leads you to change it.

How many Dispensationists does it take to change a light bulb?
Two - one to change the bulb and one to keep the promises to the old bulb (ok a little abstract)

How many Promise Keepers does it take to change a light bulb?
None - unless coach MacCartney says it's manly to do so.

How many Hyper Calvinists does it take to change a light bulb?
None - only God knows if the light bulb is one of the elect and every Calvinist knows that only God can change a light bulb.

How many Episcopalians does it take to change a light bulb?
None - they assume darkness is the nature of the bulb but it would be harmful and disrespectful to violate the personality of the bulb.

How many Evolutionists does it take to change a light bulb?
None - it will change by itself.

How many Lutherans does it take to change a light bulb?
Seventeen - five to form a commitee to find and nominate nine people for an open discussion on the issues of bulb changing so they can appoint a final commitee of three people to draft a final resolution about the bulb change of which one will change the bulb, one will supervise the bulb changing procedure, and the other will return a month later to check the performance of the bulb.

How many Seventh Day Adventists does it take to change a light bulb?
Just one - as long as it isn't on Saturday.

How many Atheists does it take to change a light bulb?
One - but they're still in darkness.

How many Seeker Friendlies does it take to change a light bulb?
Is that what the light bulb wants?

How many Emergents does it take to change a light bulb?
It all depends on what reality the light bulb chooses to live in.

How many "Liberal Christians" does it take to change a light bulb?
111 - 27 to reconstruct the dilapidated house that a burnt out bulb would be found in, 15 to set up a food and clothes pantry for those working on the house and those who will soon live in the house, 8 scholars to think of new ways of understanding light, three more scholars to discuss how much we've misunderstood the bulb, 32 to love the old bulb in the same way that Jesus loved bulbs, and 26 to love the new bulb the same way.

The Smokescreen of the Social gospel

One of the great long term masquerades of "evangelical Christianity" has been none other than Tony Campolo. For years now he has somehow managed to persuade a lot of prominent evangelicals of his evangelical-ness by simply labelling himself as an "evangelical" (if only the same principle worked for being a lawyer or a doctor). Admittedly the term evangelical gets a good working over these days but one would assume that it would mean that you would understand the primary reason why Jesus came . . . . ummmmm earth to Dr Campolo, John 3:16 will give you a big clue . . .

Listen to this audio as Todd Friel from "Way of the Master Radio" sheds light on Tony Campolo's dodgy doctrines.



Noone is questioning whether Christians should care for the poor. William Booth (founder of the Salvation Army) springs to mind as someone who tirelessly labored to care for the poor whilst being preoccupied with matters of eternity. Could some person with a basic grasp of Scripture please inform Tony Campolo that the poor person's basic problem is sin that needs forgiveness, and the rich person's basic problem is sin that needs forgiveness, and the poor person who benefits from a feeding program has a basic problem of sin that needs forgiveness. After all, the heart of the human problem is the problem of the human heart. Rich and poor will all die one day and unless they repent and trust the Savior they will burn in hell, rich and poor alike. Our primary mission is the ministry of reconciliation, not reconciliation of social inequality.

The great deception of the social gospel of Dr Campolo comes about because he is advocating something that a true Christian should do. The smokescreen is that caring for the poor becomes the Gospel when in reality it is a by product of a regenerate heart rather than the Gospel itself. Christian brother and sister - please watch out for that curve ball.

Perhaps at the root of all this lies a faulty understanding of regeneration. Perhaps the idea of decisional regeneration (being saved by saying a "sinners prayer") has led to the desire to try and labor in the area of motivating the "visible church" to good deeds. Perhaps if they understood that regeneration is a supernatural work of God that changes the human heart and causes us to walk in God's statutes then bleeding heart liberals like Tony Campolo might repent and start preaching the biblical Gospel, you know, the one that is the power of God unto salvation.

Eze 36:25-27 I will sprinkle clean water on you, and you shall be clean from all your uncleannesses, and from all your idols I will cleanse you. And I will give you a new heart, and a new spirit I will put within you. And I will remove the heart of stone from your flesh and give you a heart of flesh. And I will put my Spirit within you, and cause you to walk in my statutes and be careful to obey my rules.