Has God impacted your life over the past year or two at Cleary? The book of Revelation tells us that they overcame him by the blood of the Lamb, and by the word of their testimony, and they did not love their lives to the death. Do you have a word of testimony that you would be willing to share with us? Has God healed an area of your life? Has God grown an area of your life? Has God freed you in a particular area of your life? How has God changed you over the last year or two at Cleary? Maybe God has impacted your life through a Sunday school class, a small group, the worship, the sermons, or some other ministry of the church. If this is so, would you please take time to type a 3 minute testimony and comment on this blog at kevinivy.com OR email it to kevin.ivy@clearybaptist.org OR you can drop it off by the church office Monday through Thursday between 8 and 5 (or of course on Sunday). It will only take a moment of your time to share with us what God is doing, or has done in your life through the ministry of Cleary and it will be well worth the time. Don’t put it off….go ahead and jot your word of testimony down now or you will not do it. We really need to know if God is working in the lives of our people.
I would also ask you to forward this blog to everyone you know that attends Cleary Baptist Church so that they too can respond with their testimony. We would love to have as many testimonies as possible as soon as possible. They will play a large role in some future surprises that are coming to Cleary in the upcoming months. Thank you, in advance, for your input.
Monday, July 20, 2009
Wednesday, July 1, 2009
Television and Cinema
I am really struggling lately over the issue of television. I am concerned with how much damage it is doing to the church, the family, and to us as individuals. I wrote a blog about my feelings about television and movies several weeks ago. I ran across an article by Pastor John Piper today as well that I want to encourage you to read. He said,
I think relevance in preaching hangs very little on watching movies, and I think that much exposure to sensuality, banality, and God-absent entertainment does more to deaden our capacities for joy in Jesus than it does to make us spiritually powerful in the lives of the living dead. Sources of spiritual power—which are what we desperately need—are not in the cinema. You will not want your biographer to write: Prick him and he bleeds movies.
If you want to be relevant, say, for prostitutes, don’t watch a movie with a lot of tumbles in a brothel. Immerse yourself in the gospel, which is tailor-made for prostitutes; then watch Jesus deal with them in the Bible; then go find a prostitute and talk to her. Listen to her, not the movie. Being entertained by sin does not increase compassion for sinners. There are, perhaps, a few extraordinary men who can watch action-packed, suspenseful, sexually explicit films and come away more godly. But there are not many. And I am certainly not one of them.
I have a high tolerance for violence, high tolerance for bad language, and zero tolerance for nudity. There is a reason for these differences. The violence is make-believe. They don’t really mean those bad words. But that lady is really naked, and I am really watching. And somewhere she has a brokenhearted father.
I’ll put it bluntly. The only nude female body a guy should ever lay his eyes on is his wife’s. The few exceptions include doctors, morticians, and fathers changing diapers. “I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin?” (Job 31:1). What the eyes see really matters. “Everyone who looks at a woman to desire her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:28). Better to gouge your eye than go to hell (verse 29).
Brothers, that is serious. Really serious. Jesus is violent about this. What we do with our eyes can damn us. One reason is that it is virtually impossible to transition from being entertained by nudity to an act of “beholding the glory of the Lord.” But this means the entire Christian life is threatened by the deadening effects of sexual titillation.
All Christ-exalting transformation comes from “beholding the glory of Christ.” “Beholding the glory of the Lord, [we] are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another” (2 Corinthians 3:18). Whatever dulls the eyes of our mind from seeing Christ powerfully and purely is destroying us. There is not one man in a thousand whose spiritual eyes are more readily moved by the beauty of Christ because he has just seen a bare breast with his buddies.
But leave sex aside (as if that were possible for fifteen minutes on TV). It’s the unremitting triviality that makes television so deadly. What we desperately need is help to enlarge our capacities to be moved by the immeasurable glories of Christ. Television takes us almost constantly in the opposite direction, lowering, shrinking, and deadening our capacities for worshiping Christ.
One more smaller concern with TV (besides its addictive tendencies, trivialization of life, and deadening effects): It takes time. I have so many things I want to accomplish in this one short life. Don’t waste your life is not a catchphrase for me; it’s a cliff I walk beside every day with trembling.
TV consumes more and more time for those who get used to watching it. You start to feel like it belongs. You wonder how you could get along without it. I am jealous for my evenings. There are so many things in life I want to accomplish. I simply could not do what I do if I watched television. So we have never had a TV in 40 years of marriage (except in Germany, to help learn the language). I don’t regret it.
By John Piper. © Desiring God. Website: desiringGod.org
Since this is such an issue to me, I wanted to add below a copy of what I wrote several weeks ago as well, so here it is.
I want to write about something that is killing, and yes I mean KILLING our country, our churches, our families, and we as individuals. I want to reveal the identity of a real killer. This is really a recent revelation, but one that is true. It is one of those things that make you want to kick yourself because you can't understand how you could never have seen it before. The thing that I believe is killing us may surprise you. It is none other than discontentment. But it is not that simple. The discontentment that is killing us is a discontentment that is planted and driven by television and cinema.
The examples I could give are absolutely endless, but I will share with you a few that may hit home.Television and cinema drive discontentment in husbands. On the television, he sees Victoria's Secret models, Hollywood actresses, and women who have had multiple surgeries (and sometimes drugs) in order to achieve what "our society" defines as the "perfect body." (By the way, there are seasons in history where our models today would be repulsive) He then becomes discontent with his wife, his eyes begin to wander, and then his heart begins to wander, and his marriage falls apart, if not in court, in reality.
Television and cinema drive discontentment in wives. On the movie screen she sees handsome men who are hopelessly romantic and say everything right all the time. He is always right on time with the right things and the right words. He seems to be a hero in the home, at work, and yes, even in bed. She then looks at her husband who is kicked back in the recliner, pot belly, balding head, and a hint of body odor and wonders…what did I do? What she doesn't realize is the guy in the movie she just watched is as big of a slob as her husband, if not bigger, and on top of that he is not nearly as loyal, faithful, or wonderful as he appears on the movie screen. It is hard to remember that this is why they are called actors.
Television and cinema drive discontentment in youth. They go watch a movie together and then they simply must have what they see in the movie. After all, if the people on the big screen had little sporty cars with big loud pipes, shouldn't we? If the kids on TV got drunk, smoked pot, spent the night in promiscuity and got away with it, couldn't we? Teens see a movie and the movie dictates for them how they should dress, what they should drive, how they should brush their hair, and how they should live...and that usually costs money...imagine that.
Television and cinema drive discontentment in children. They watch a program where children are portrayed as having a room 30 feet by 60 feet filled with an indoor playground and $10,000 worth of computer equipment and they wonder why they only have bunk beds and a basketball. After all if ______ on TV has it, why can't I? The kids in the commercial seemed to be having a good time. Do you get my drift? Many of us live in homes where husbands, wives, and children are all discontent and the only reason they are all still under one roof is due to necessity. They don't even like each other anymore. It even applies to churches.
People turn on the television and there, portrayed on the screen before them, is a mega church with the best lights, the best band, the best worship, the best pastor, the best children's ministry, the best student ministry, and the biggest budget. After all they even have a single's ministry, a private school, and a McDonald's right next to the bookstore in the foyer. All we have is….well…..church. Then we get discontent, move down the road, and spend our lives looking for First Baptist Six Flags Over Jesus Church rather than plugging in and serving where God has placed us. Do you get my drift? Discontentment is killing us! It is killing our joy! It is killing our marriages! It is killing our families! It is killing our churches! And to be honest, most of the discontentment comes from the television set and the movie screen….sometimes radio as well. We need to learn to guard against discontentment.
Hear the Word of God. 2 Cor 12:10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.Phil 4:11 Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content1 Tim 6:8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be contentHeb 13:5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you haveHow desperately we need to guard against discontentment. That may mean no more movies. That may mean no more television. That may simply mean a good old fashion reality check and a push out of fantasy land into the real world. I believe if we worked as hard at our marriages and our families as we do at keeping up with American Idol or the latest movie or sport we would see a difference that would rejuvenate and revive our spouses, our children, our churches, and ourselves.
Fight discontentment. Flee it. Live your life and live it the fullest…and you can't do that trying to live someone else's life, even if they are a Hollyweird actor. Let us be content and "give thanks with a grateful heart" for all the people and possessions God HAS blessed us with instead of wasting our lives pursuing what He never intended for us to have.
Am i saying, "throw out your TV?" No, but we would all probably be better off if we did.
I think relevance in preaching hangs very little on watching movies, and I think that much exposure to sensuality, banality, and God-absent entertainment does more to deaden our capacities for joy in Jesus than it does to make us spiritually powerful in the lives of the living dead. Sources of spiritual power—which are what we desperately need—are not in the cinema. You will not want your biographer to write: Prick him and he bleeds movies.
If you want to be relevant, say, for prostitutes, don’t watch a movie with a lot of tumbles in a brothel. Immerse yourself in the gospel, which is tailor-made for prostitutes; then watch Jesus deal with them in the Bible; then go find a prostitute and talk to her. Listen to her, not the movie. Being entertained by sin does not increase compassion for sinners. There are, perhaps, a few extraordinary men who can watch action-packed, suspenseful, sexually explicit films and come away more godly. But there are not many. And I am certainly not one of them.
I have a high tolerance for violence, high tolerance for bad language, and zero tolerance for nudity. There is a reason for these differences. The violence is make-believe. They don’t really mean those bad words. But that lady is really naked, and I am really watching. And somewhere she has a brokenhearted father.
I’ll put it bluntly. The only nude female body a guy should ever lay his eyes on is his wife’s. The few exceptions include doctors, morticians, and fathers changing diapers. “I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin?” (Job 31:1). What the eyes see really matters. “Everyone who looks at a woman to desire her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:28). Better to gouge your eye than go to hell (verse 29).
Brothers, that is serious. Really serious. Jesus is violent about this. What we do with our eyes can damn us. One reason is that it is virtually impossible to transition from being entertained by nudity to an act of “beholding the glory of the Lord.” But this means the entire Christian life is threatened by the deadening effects of sexual titillation.
All Christ-exalting transformation comes from “beholding the glory of Christ.” “Beholding the glory of the Lord, [we] are being transformed into the same image from one degree of glory to another” (2 Corinthians 3:18). Whatever dulls the eyes of our mind from seeing Christ powerfully and purely is destroying us. There is not one man in a thousand whose spiritual eyes are more readily moved by the beauty of Christ because he has just seen a bare breast with his buddies.
But leave sex aside (as if that were possible for fifteen minutes on TV). It’s the unremitting triviality that makes television so deadly. What we desperately need is help to enlarge our capacities to be moved by the immeasurable glories of Christ. Television takes us almost constantly in the opposite direction, lowering, shrinking, and deadening our capacities for worshiping Christ.
One more smaller concern with TV (besides its addictive tendencies, trivialization of life, and deadening effects): It takes time. I have so many things I want to accomplish in this one short life. Don’t waste your life is not a catchphrase for me; it’s a cliff I walk beside every day with trembling.
TV consumes more and more time for those who get used to watching it. You start to feel like it belongs. You wonder how you could get along without it. I am jealous for my evenings. There are so many things in life I want to accomplish. I simply could not do what I do if I watched television. So we have never had a TV in 40 years of marriage (except in Germany, to help learn the language). I don’t regret it.
By John Piper. © Desiring God. Website: desiringGod.org
Since this is such an issue to me, I wanted to add below a copy of what I wrote several weeks ago as well, so here it is.
I want to write about something that is killing, and yes I mean KILLING our country, our churches, our families, and we as individuals. I want to reveal the identity of a real killer. This is really a recent revelation, but one that is true. It is one of those things that make you want to kick yourself because you can't understand how you could never have seen it before. The thing that I believe is killing us may surprise you. It is none other than discontentment. But it is not that simple. The discontentment that is killing us is a discontentment that is planted and driven by television and cinema.
The examples I could give are absolutely endless, but I will share with you a few that may hit home.Television and cinema drive discontentment in husbands. On the television, he sees Victoria's Secret models, Hollywood actresses, and women who have had multiple surgeries (and sometimes drugs) in order to achieve what "our society" defines as the "perfect body." (By the way, there are seasons in history where our models today would be repulsive) He then becomes discontent with his wife, his eyes begin to wander, and then his heart begins to wander, and his marriage falls apart, if not in court, in reality.
Television and cinema drive discontentment in wives. On the movie screen she sees handsome men who are hopelessly romantic and say everything right all the time. He is always right on time with the right things and the right words. He seems to be a hero in the home, at work, and yes, even in bed. She then looks at her husband who is kicked back in the recliner, pot belly, balding head, and a hint of body odor and wonders…what did I do? What she doesn't realize is the guy in the movie she just watched is as big of a slob as her husband, if not bigger, and on top of that he is not nearly as loyal, faithful, or wonderful as he appears on the movie screen. It is hard to remember that this is why they are called actors.
Television and cinema drive discontentment in youth. They go watch a movie together and then they simply must have what they see in the movie. After all, if the people on the big screen had little sporty cars with big loud pipes, shouldn't we? If the kids on TV got drunk, smoked pot, spent the night in promiscuity and got away with it, couldn't we? Teens see a movie and the movie dictates for them how they should dress, what they should drive, how they should brush their hair, and how they should live...and that usually costs money...imagine that.
Television and cinema drive discontentment in children. They watch a program where children are portrayed as having a room 30 feet by 60 feet filled with an indoor playground and $10,000 worth of computer equipment and they wonder why they only have bunk beds and a basketball. After all if ______ on TV has it, why can't I? The kids in the commercial seemed to be having a good time. Do you get my drift? Many of us live in homes where husbands, wives, and children are all discontent and the only reason they are all still under one roof is due to necessity. They don't even like each other anymore. It even applies to churches.
People turn on the television and there, portrayed on the screen before them, is a mega church with the best lights, the best band, the best worship, the best pastor, the best children's ministry, the best student ministry, and the biggest budget. After all they even have a single's ministry, a private school, and a McDonald's right next to the bookstore in the foyer. All we have is….well…..church. Then we get discontent, move down the road, and spend our lives looking for First Baptist Six Flags Over Jesus Church rather than plugging in and serving where God has placed us. Do you get my drift? Discontentment is killing us! It is killing our joy! It is killing our marriages! It is killing our families! It is killing our churches! And to be honest, most of the discontentment comes from the television set and the movie screen….sometimes radio as well. We need to learn to guard against discontentment.
Hear the Word of God. 2 Cor 12:10 For the sake of Christ, then, I am content with weaknesses, insults, hardships, persecutions, and calamities. For when I am weak, then I am strong.Phil 4:11 Not that I am speaking of being in need, for I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content1 Tim 6:8 But if we have food and clothing, with these we will be contentHeb 13:5 Keep your life free from love of money, and be content with what you haveHow desperately we need to guard against discontentment. That may mean no more movies. That may mean no more television. That may simply mean a good old fashion reality check and a push out of fantasy land into the real world. I believe if we worked as hard at our marriages and our families as we do at keeping up with American Idol or the latest movie or sport we would see a difference that would rejuvenate and revive our spouses, our children, our churches, and ourselves.
Fight discontentment. Flee it. Live your life and live it the fullest…and you can't do that trying to live someone else's life, even if they are a Hollyweird actor. Let us be content and "give thanks with a grateful heart" for all the people and possessions God HAS blessed us with instead of wasting our lives pursuing what He never intended for us to have.
Am i saying, "throw out your TV?" No, but we would all probably be better off if we did.
Wednesday, June 24, 2009
The Prodigal Father: Part 2
The parable that we are looking at this week is the parable of the prodigal father. I want to remind you that the main character is not the lost son, but the father. Also, I want to remind you of the definition of prodigal. The word prodigal is a very old English word that actually means extravagant. It does not speak of youthful rebellion or sinful living. The main idea behind the word prodigal is that of wastefulness and excess. A prodigal person is a big spender who spreads his resources around, someone who is recklessly openhanded with large gifts.
I want to submit to you that the father was more of a prodigal than his son ever was. We are seeing the prodigal nature of the father in 4 things this week. Already, we have seen the prodigal nature of the father in the Rebellion of the Son, the ruin of the son, and the repentance of the son. If you need to catch up, check out the archives at kevinivy.com and catch up on part one. Today we will see the prodigal nature of the father in the restoration of the Son. Look at what happens in verses 22-24. But the father said to his servants, 'Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.' And they began to celebrate.
Not only did the father forgive him, but he restored him and he restored him in a prodigal (lavish, extravagant) way. He gave him a Robe. Every nobleman had a choice robe—an expensive, ornate, embroidered, one of a kind, floor length outer garment of the highest quality fabric and craftsmanship. Giving him the robe signified a greater honor than one would normally even think to confer on a son. This was the kind of courtesy reserved for an extremely prestigious dignitary. The father was publicly honoring his returning son not only as guest of honor at the banquet but also as a person of the utmost distinction.
He also gave him a Ring. This was the signet ring that had the family seal, so when the ring was pressed into melted wax on a formal document, the resulting seal served as legal authentication. The ring therefore was a symbol of authority.
He went on to give him Sandals. The sandals may sound like the least of the gifts, but they were highly significant. Hired servants and household slaves customarily went barefoot. Only masters and their sons wore footwear. This is not a servant. This is my son.
Finally, we see him kill the Fatted Calf. Such a calf would be grain fed only for an extraordinary occasion, such as the wedding of a firstborn son or a once in a lifetime banquet held to celebrate the arrival of an important dignitary. The animal would be carefully selected well in advance of the occasion, generously fed, diligently cared for, and kept penned up, apart from the herd. It would be enough to feed hundreds of people. Preparation would take the rest of the day, and the festivities would continue deep into the night. It would not be unusual for a party such as this to last three days or more.
The rebellious son had entrusted his life to the father, and the father had absolutely amazed and overwhelmed him by entrusting his resources to him. His father turned out to be the prodigal of the story. The prodigal nature of the Father was not met with open arms by everyone. The story goes on in verses 25-32.
"Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.' 28 But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, 29 but he answered his father, 'Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!' 31 And he said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.'"
Haven’t you always wondered, What happened then? Did he go in and celebrate? Did he walk away angry? Who knows? The ending simply isn't there. It leaves us hanging. There was an ending to the story however. Think about it. The father figure in the parable clearly represents Christ. The younger son in the parable represents the heathen, publicans, and tax collectors: the lost. The elder brother clearly represents the Pharisees, Scribes, and religious leaders. With all of that in mind, we can today fill in the remainder of the story, because we know how the elder brother responded to the father (Christ). The true ending of the story should read something like this: "The elder son was outraged at his father so he turned some of the servants against him and murdered him right in the very midst of the celebratory feast!" Ouch! The prodigal nature of the father (the lavish mercy, the excessive grace, and the extravagant forgiveness) is met with rage by the religious elite.
Christ is murdered. He is beaten, he is crucified, he is buried, and thankfully he is resurrected from the grave. The ironic thing is, even in his death he is pouring out grace, mercy, and forgiveness. The ending was not officially penned in the parable itself and I think that this is good. This allows for everyone who hears the story today to write his or her own ending by how they respond. How will you respond?
Will you crucify him all over again OR will you join the celebration by repenting of your sin, embracing the Gospel, and following Christ? The responsibility to rightly respond is yours.
I want to submit to you that the father was more of a prodigal than his son ever was. We are seeing the prodigal nature of the father in 4 things this week. Already, we have seen the prodigal nature of the father in the Rebellion of the Son, the ruin of the son, and the repentance of the son. If you need to catch up, check out the archives at kevinivy.com and catch up on part one. Today we will see the prodigal nature of the father in the restoration of the Son. Look at what happens in verses 22-24. But the father said to his servants, 'Bring quickly the best robe, and put it on him, and put a ring on his hand, and shoes on his feet. 23 And bring the fattened calf and kill it, and let us eat and celebrate. 24 For this my son was dead, and is alive again; he was lost, and is found.' And they began to celebrate.
Not only did the father forgive him, but he restored him and he restored him in a prodigal (lavish, extravagant) way. He gave him a Robe. Every nobleman had a choice robe—an expensive, ornate, embroidered, one of a kind, floor length outer garment of the highest quality fabric and craftsmanship. Giving him the robe signified a greater honor than one would normally even think to confer on a son. This was the kind of courtesy reserved for an extremely prestigious dignitary. The father was publicly honoring his returning son not only as guest of honor at the banquet but also as a person of the utmost distinction.
He also gave him a Ring. This was the signet ring that had the family seal, so when the ring was pressed into melted wax on a formal document, the resulting seal served as legal authentication. The ring therefore was a symbol of authority.
He went on to give him Sandals. The sandals may sound like the least of the gifts, but they were highly significant. Hired servants and household slaves customarily went barefoot. Only masters and their sons wore footwear. This is not a servant. This is my son.
Finally, we see him kill the Fatted Calf. Such a calf would be grain fed only for an extraordinary occasion, such as the wedding of a firstborn son or a once in a lifetime banquet held to celebrate the arrival of an important dignitary. The animal would be carefully selected well in advance of the occasion, generously fed, diligently cared for, and kept penned up, apart from the herd. It would be enough to feed hundreds of people. Preparation would take the rest of the day, and the festivities would continue deep into the night. It would not be unusual for a party such as this to last three days or more.
The rebellious son had entrusted his life to the father, and the father had absolutely amazed and overwhelmed him by entrusting his resources to him. His father turned out to be the prodigal of the story. The prodigal nature of the Father was not met with open arms by everyone. The story goes on in verses 25-32.
"Now his older son was in the field, and as he came and drew near to the house, he heard music and dancing. 26 And he called one of the servants and asked what these things meant. 27 And he said to him, 'Your brother has come, and your father has killed the fattened calf, because he has received him back safe and sound.' 28 But he was angry and refused to go in. His father came out and entreated him, 29 but he answered his father, 'Look, these many years I have served you, and I never disobeyed your command, yet you never gave me a young goat, that I might celebrate with my friends. 30 But when this son of yours came, who has devoured your property with prostitutes, you killed the fattened calf for him!' 31 And he said to him, 'Son, you are always with me, and all that is mine is yours. 32 It was fitting to celebrate and be glad, for this your brother was dead, and is alive; he was lost, and is found.'"
Haven’t you always wondered, What happened then? Did he go in and celebrate? Did he walk away angry? Who knows? The ending simply isn't there. It leaves us hanging. There was an ending to the story however. Think about it. The father figure in the parable clearly represents Christ. The younger son in the parable represents the heathen, publicans, and tax collectors: the lost. The elder brother clearly represents the Pharisees, Scribes, and religious leaders. With all of that in mind, we can today fill in the remainder of the story, because we know how the elder brother responded to the father (Christ). The true ending of the story should read something like this: "The elder son was outraged at his father so he turned some of the servants against him and murdered him right in the very midst of the celebratory feast!" Ouch! The prodigal nature of the father (the lavish mercy, the excessive grace, and the extravagant forgiveness) is met with rage by the religious elite.
Christ is murdered. He is beaten, he is crucified, he is buried, and thankfully he is resurrected from the grave. The ironic thing is, even in his death he is pouring out grace, mercy, and forgiveness. The ending was not officially penned in the parable itself and I think that this is good. This allows for everyone who hears the story today to write his or her own ending by how they respond. How will you respond?
Will you crucify him all over again OR will you join the celebration by repenting of your sin, embracing the Gospel, and following Christ? The responsibility to rightly respond is yours.
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