Borrowed Light

Read This! 01/10

January 10, 2017Mike Leake

I’ve been going at this for awhile now and my answer would be similar.

Grabbing these spare moments is vital. I try to always keep a book or paper or a Kindle close to me at all times. I find it far more beneficial than getting on my phone and scrolling down my Facebook news feed.

4 Ministry Lessons I Learned From a Small-Town Saint

I absolutely love this.

Marijuana to the Glory of God

This is an issue now. We really need to work on our biblical responses to this question. I appreciate Jeff Lacine’s work here.

12 Ways To Be a Curious Person

I’m intrigued by Barnabas Piper’s new book. Here is a bit to whet your appetite until the book comes out.

Inevitable Side Effects of a Church Growth Ministry Model

Oh, wow. And I agree.

The Real Reason Porno Shops Don’t Have Windows

I think Piper is on to something here. The sky is the enemy of lust.

Somehow I don’t believe I ever showed the video of a guy punching a kangaroo:

Practicing Your Social Media Before Other People

January 9, 2017Mike Leake

“Beware of practicing your righteousness before other people in order to be seen by them, for then you will have no reward from your Father who is in heaven.” Matthew 6:1

In the original context of this verse Jesus is rebuking the Pharisees. They liked to make a big deal about all of the gifts that they gave to the poor. The motivation, Jesus said, was “in order to be seen by them”. It seems that they were more concerned about being seen as givers than actually meeting needs. Meeting needs was the means to achieve their end; namely, being praised by men.

I have to wonder, though, whether or not this verse says anything to us bloggers and social media users.

This is how I came to write this article. I was reading a book on worship ministry and one particular quote caught my attention. “That which is done in secret is what matters most.” (Boswell, 95) That quote got me to thinking about blogging and social media and how it relates to my own personal devotional time. I tend to write about what the Lord is doing in my life. It’s almost like a public journal. But is there a way in which I could share publicly what the Lord is doing privately to the detriment of my soul? Am I exchanging eternal rewards for temporary ones?

I agree with that little quote that what happens in private is the thing that matters most. For one, if I’m not consistently in private who I am in public then I’m just a flat out liar. What I write, tweet, and like on social media ought to be a reflection of who I actually am in private. If it isn’t then I’m well on the path to self-destruction.

But the path of the Pharisee, I believe, was a bit different. He was doing something which was actually good—giving to the poor—but doing it with terrible motives. His end was wrong. I will illustrate what I mean.

You just posted on social media, “Had an awesome quiet time today!”

Now that could mean a few different things. It might mean that you really didn’t even have a quiet time, or maybe you did and it wasn’t so awesome but you know that it’s supposed to be so you just lie about it. Or it could mean that you really did have an awesome devotional time and you want every to know it so they’ll realize what a spiritual giant you are. (That is the path of the Pharisee). Or maybe you did have a great time with the Lord and you want everyone to know it so that they’ll be encouraged and believe that God really does meet His children in the Word and prayer.

And if you are a blogger you cannot tell the state of your heart by whether you check stats or don’t check stats. Getting encouraged because something you say is retweeted is no sure sign that you are falling into the trap of the Pharisee. It might be that you are happy folks are encouraged by something you wrote. But then again, it might also mean that you are puffed up and full of yourself. You can a prideful non-stat looker, just as much as the guy who checks his stats 50 times per day.

At the end of the day it’s all about the heart and what is our motivation for posting what we do? And do I believe the gospel enough to actually pause and check my motivations? Do I trust that what the Bible says about the human heart is also true of my own? And do I agree with Jesus that every idle word matters?

There is a way we can blog and write and be vulnerable and share about what the Lord is doing in the privacy of our devotion which can rob us of eternal rewards. There is also a way in which we can authentically relate to the Lord and share with others about His greatness. I’m shooting for the latter, and repenting of the former.

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Photo source: here

A Pivotal Moment For the Evangelical Church

January 6, 2017Mike Leake 1 Comment

I want to give you a riveting introduction, but I’m questioning the wisdom of it. Let me tell you what I want to do.

I want to give you a picture of 1930’s Germany but write it as if it is 2016 America. In that little snapshot I want to point out (using the Holocaust Encylopedia as my source) the various factors which led to a silent church in the face of Hitler. It wouldn’t be such a bad introduction until I made “the turn” and played gotcha by saying, “I’m not talking about 2016 America but 1930’s Germany!” Perhaps I’d have opened up your eyes to the glaring similarities between our day and pre-Hitler Germany. But then I’d lose you all because comparing someone to Hitler is supposed to be some kind of logical fallacy or something.

Yet, it’s hard for me to proceed with my point without urging you to pause for just a moment and consider the similarities. Forget Hitler for just a moment and simply ask whether or not there might be some similarities between white evangelical types and the Protestant church in the 1930’s.

Are you frustrated by the Obama Administration and all of the cultural changes that have been forced upon folks? Well, that’s partially the way Protestants felt after World War 1 and the failed Weimar Republic.
Do you believe that America is the greatest nation on the planet, but we have fallen on hard times? Do you long to see America as great again? Are you a bit saddened by the way the world views us? Well, replace America with Germany and you are in the same position as a German citizen in the 1920’s and 30’s.
Are you absolutely mortified and a bit frightened by the rise of terrorism? Is this influencing your immigration policies? Do you think that America is being a bit too accepting of other cultures and a bit too much of a melting pot? Do you fear that terrorists will ruin our great nation by infiltrating our ranks? Well, replace terrorist with Communism or Jew and you understand what Germany felt like in the 1930s.

Nazi Germany rose to power so quickly because they hit upon each of these fears and promised to make Germany prominent again. And when Hitler started doing a few things which were obviously wrong, the churches turned a blind eye because they believed there were bigger fish to fry. And, let’s be honest, the safety and security of the Jewish people was never too big on their radar. So they were willing to overlook a few indiscretions because the Führer was giving them so much in return.

Now, it’s very important that you hear me on this point. I am not saying that Donald Trump is Adolf Hitler. The jury is still out. He might be an absolutely terrific President. That’s not my point. And comparing Trump to Hitler is just silly and helpful rhetoric. But what I am attempting to say here is that the factionalism within our nation and how it has infiltrated our churches puts us in a position similar to the Protestant churches in 1930’s Germany.

I have been unsettled for quite some time by the relationship the evangelical church has with the Republican party. And my fear is that if a Trump presidency does enact policies opposite the gospel and ultimately harmful to people that the church will be rendered silent. Our uncritical pursuit of political power and our determination to fry big fish (like abortion) while overlooking a holistic pro-life commitment will put us in the history books on a page next to the scandalous and cowardly position of the German Evangelical Church.

I’m intentionally writing all of this now before Trump puts one policy in place. Because I’m convinced that this battle will be one or lost before it begins. The key question for us as evangelicals is whether or not we will be truly evangelical. Will Christ be our measuring stick for truth or something else? Will we assess our new President, and Congress, and their respective policies by the word of God or by some other measure? Do we have it within us to call out and condemn things in a bi-partisan way? Can we celebrate the good in both parties?

The German Evangelical Church had long before forsaken the word of Christ as their measuring stick and replaced it with a weak liberalism which was not only powerless in the face of Hitler but actively complicit in some of the atrocities. Will the evangelical church of America do the same? Or will we have the courage to believe Christ and stand with him regardless of the political consequences? Will we praise the good we see regardless of which party it comes from? Will we have the audacity to condemn the sinful even if it comes from those who support some of the policies we hold dear?

I’ll confess with the start we’ve had so far I’m not encouraged. But I’m confident that Christ is able to deliver us and recapture the heart of His Bride. May He give us boldness to live and die for the only kingdom which will never topple.