The way that Christians in general talk these days, would probably lead you to think that if you aren’t doing *big* things for God (i.e. changing the world) or seeing tremendous results you aren’t doing something right… maybe God just doesn’t like you or maybe He possibly forgot to give you your share while he was passing out the proverbial blessings of ministerial fruit… and at the end of the day you feel like you are, as my friend Rich Goldman would say, “swimming in mundane,” leading a very ordinary and boring Christian life, wondering if you missed the secret meeting where they laid out the details of changing the world.

Well, what if I told you that this whole, if I could borrow a phrase from Jerry Falwell for a moment, “Big-Hairy-Audacious-Goal” (you know, the “BHAG”) business was a little off the mark… and in reality it was actually unnecessarily causing the vast majority of us to become entirely too anxious and easily disappointed; wallowing in a pool of self-pity and despair?

Maybe you would agree with me… or maybe you would chant along with the “big-vision” lovers, saying, “What’s so wrong with having huge dreams and going after them and even accomplishing them?” Nothing! It’s perfectly fine and often biblical. Matthew 28 does call us to reach ALL of the nations… that seems pretty big to me! And I love all the great Andy Stanley vision casters out there. But taking a peak into the Bible… I just don’t see this *heroic* and *celebrity* Christianity thing being the *norm* of the Christian life.

“Wait,” you say! “You will stifle many leaders and great champions for Christ with all that talk!” Hog wash, I say! “Why,” you ask? Because if you truly read the Bible and truly catch some special “vision” from God (which I think is highly overused… but that is not for this discussion), I won’t be able to stop you with any type of talk. You will do great things for God regardless.

“So, biblically… do you have any evidence for this??? What about that one verse in Proverbs (that I have to use Google to find the reference…)??? Without “vision” the people will parish!!!” First off, stop using the random obscure translation for that verse and realize it doesn’t mean that (The NET Bible footnote says this: “The Hebrew word “vision” (from the verb חָזָה [khazah, “to see”]) refers to divine communication to prophets (as in 1 Sam 3:1) and not to individual goals or plans.”). Sorry leadership gurus. Secondly, look at the life of Jesus. First 33 years of his life? Pretty normal and average if you ask me. Just working hard as a general contractor. Building stuff. Being awesome in the most normal of ways. Remaining faithful and holy. Then 3 years of crazy awesome stuff for God. Then the most intense suffering imaginable. Well, in my count, normal outweighs “BHAG” 33 to 3.

“Wait, wait, wait… slow down there Jordan. You know, we talk about being ambitious for God all of the time in church, right?!? What about Philippians 4:13??” Well, actually… that verse plays right into my hand when we understand the context… and really should be the theme passage for this entire post. It is actually contentment that is missed out on, not doing “world-changing” things. Being content in EVERY situation; whether we do big things for God or small things… we can do it all through Christ who strengthens us for his great glory.

Let’s continue to look elsewhere.

1 Thessalonians 4:10b-11 - “But we urge you, brothers and sisters, to do so more and more, to aspire to lead a quiet life, to attend to your own business, and to work with your hands, as we commanded you.”

Paul calls them to 1) Lead a quiet life, 2) Attend to their own business, and 3) Work with their own hands. Seems pretty *normal* to me.

1 Timothy 2:1-2 - “First of all, then, I urge that requests, prayers, intercessions, and thanks be offered on behalf of all people, even for kings and all who are in authority, that we may lead a peaceful and quiet life in all godliness and dignity.”

Why does Paul command prayer? So that they may lead *normal* lives in godliness!

I could stop here and be done… but let’s dig a little deeper into the whole “God’s will” and “vision” for our lives.

1 Peter 4:12 - “Dear friends, do not be astonished that a trial by fire is occurring among you, as though something strange were happening to you.”

It shouldn’t be a surprise, according to Peter, that suffering comes along our way. It shouldn’t be surprising that things don’t go the way we had planned. That results don’t come. That we actually lose ground.

1 Peter 2:20-21 - “For what credit is it if you sin and are mistreated and endure it? But if you do good and suffer and so endure, this finds favor with God. For to this you were called, since Christ also suffered for you, leaving an example for you to follow in his steps.”

Peter here lets us know that we are called to suffering… Later, 1 Peter 4:19 lets us know that it can be the very will of God! Suffering is a way bigger theme in Scripture than we give it credit for. Paul even calls it a gift in Philippians 1:29.

My point is this: God’s will for you is not so much catching some awesome vision but rather becoming holy. Maybe that includes some type of “sun stand still” moment… maybe that means actually changing the world… but more than likely… it won’t… more than likely you will be living a very normal and mundane life where you are; and remaining faithful and growing holiness will be the goal… still.

So… Grow in holiness. Remain Faithful. Then die and be forgotten.

Because at the end of the day, it is not about people remembering your name or life. It is not about going out and building your own little kingdom. It is not about having something great to put on your tombstone. It is about pointing people to the greatness of Christ. That is all that matters. And as far as I am concerned, you are probably going to reach a lot more unbelievers with your faithfulness in the boring portions of life and the suffering that comes your way than while being underneath the lights of fame and greatness.

Honestly, I think we have painted the picture of the normal Christian life incorrectly. We say, “God’s will for your life is to: Be like Paul! Be like Jesus! Be like Peter! Be famous and great in God’s name!” But what did that mean for them? Paul? Suffering. Stoning. Pain. Jesus? The Cross. Enough said. Peter? Suffering. Also a cross. That does not seem to fit inside the grand “vision” that people try to paint for us these days. The common thread among even the great “celebrity” Christians is what? Suffering. God’s more normal will is suffering! Not fame. And think for a moment about all the other “nameless” Christians that lived during the New Testament times that far outnumber the spiritual giants. God used them in the quietest of ways. God’s sovereign plan does not include the *vast majority* of us being “celebrity” Christians. Are those “celebrity” Christians bad people? Absolutely not. But we probably won’t be them.

Why is it that we understand that we probably won’t be LeBron James, Barak Obama, or Oprah (not that I would really want to be any of them…) but we can’t get our minds around the fact that we probably won’t be the Apostle Paul or Peter? We cannot look to them as the *only *model of effective and biblical Christian living! We cannot just look to the Mark Driscoll and Andy Stanley’s of the world as our only model. They are the rare breed. Let me put it this way: There were only 12 direct disciples of Jesus. Don’t expect to be one of them. Not everyone will be given the opportunity to be a great and famous Christian. The overwhelming majority will be called to live a godly life within their own mundane circumstances and sufferings.

Why give so much air-time (or better phrased, blog-time) to this? Because I think many people are leading depressed and disheartened lives because they were sold the idea that if they didn’t come up with huge numbers and results for Christ they were a failure. Clearly they didn’t have enough faith. Or didn’t pray enough. Or didn’t read their Bible enough. Or… well, you get the point. But in reality, according to the Bible, this just isn’t the case. Some of the most holy and godly men and women will be names you have NEVER heard of and have had near ZERO results. Their example of faithfulness is extraordinary.

Now hear me say that the mundane is not the *only* life that is pleasing to God. Please do not take that away. It is not the only way. But it is a completely valid, biblical, and generally more common life that is given to us from God. Don’t waste it in self-pity and bitterness. Use it for God’s glory. Be faithful where you are. Be holy where you are. Regardless of status. Regardless of fame. Regardless of smallness or bigness.

P.S. Please don’t get all up tight with this post because of my word choice of “normal.” I am not defining it in a way that means we should live like the world. This is not a post endorsing the idea of doing everything that non-Christians do. Context is king in how I define the term.

All Bible verses are quoted from the New English Translation (NET).

Last sermon of the semester… and I cant even come up with a title… sorry for the lack of creativity!!!

Was pretty sick heading into this sermon so I felt like I was in a fog the entire time… So there are probably points when I look lost.

I was a little behind in preparing for this sermon (created it and gave it on the same day…), so it wasnt as good as I was hoping… a little disorganized throughout.

Was rolling along pretty well… until I realized I was running short on time. Therefore I squeezed a good amount of information into the last 2-3 minutes and morphed my conclusion into my last point so I could still hit them both.

Not my best sermon eye contact and fluidity/smoothness wise… but okay overall. P.S. sorry for the lame title… I tried my best to think of something catchy or cool…. but I failed utterly.

Not a big fan of this sermon personally. I felt like I had to do an injustice to the text to only explain one verse of a narrative text that spans so much more. I felt as though I left many things unexplained and unfinished. I almost did not post it, but hopefully it can be of some use.

I had the privilege to hear from D.A. Carson (and meet!) the past two days (twice at Heritage Baptist Church and once at Liberty University; the morning session for Liberty was cancelled due to snow). He became progressively better over the weekend and truly challenged me in a way that not many can. He is the prefect blend of scholar and pastor. There are not many who can *melt my face off* with biblical truth like him. I took down as many notes as I could throughout each session and will be posting them below. I have also listed the links were you can find his talks (some may not be up yet). Note that I had cool indentation type things for each sub point, but they dont show up on here… sorry!

Luke 10:25-37

- Made up of two Dialogues
- In both cases the lawyer (theologian – he studies the law [the Pentateuch]) poses a question and Jesus responds with a question back. Then the lawyer answers and only then does Jesus give an answer.
- The parable of the good Samaritan is only a set up to Jesus’ question.

v25-28
– In ancient times, students would stand up when they desired to present a question. The lawyer stood up to *test* Jesus. i.e. he stood up to fake respect. He was asking a question just to show how smart he was.
– He quotes Deuteronomy 6 and Leviticus 19 in his response.
c.f. Mark 12:28-34
– The context of the answer controls everything!
– Why does Jesus in Mark answer with both Deuteronomy 6 and Leviticus 19? Remember that during this time the world was polytheistic. The wisdom in his answer here is monotheism. Jesus did not cite this to show you how to get saved!
– What makes sin so bad is it is sin against God (c.f. Psalm 51)
– What if God and then others were the center of my thinking? From waking up to sleep?
– This lawyer cites these (Deut and Lev) in a different context than Jesus did. He cites them to say in essence that obedience is the key to salvation.
– Jesus responds with a terrific sense of humor. Ex. “well done chap. go ahead and try that.”

v29-37
– The lawyer responds slightly embarrassed and needs to justify himself.
– So much of our sin is bound up with self-justification (This is a minor theme of Luke)
– In Jesus’ day, society was highly structured (could tell one’s class by speech, clothing, etc.)
– They stripped the man, thus there was no way to identify who he was or to what class he belonged.
– The Samaritans were DEEPLY hated. It is hard to capture the dislike.
– An attempt at illustrating the gravity of the parable – A fundamental conservative baptist preacher and a well known Presbyterian minister pass by the man… and then the Muslim stops to help.
– In the 2nd century B.C. the Jews attacked the Samaritans and destroyed their temple.
– 2 denarii covers around two weeks. He also promises to cover future expenses.
– In the ancient world there was no credit. If you owed someone money, you paid back by selling yourself or your family into slavery.
– Not only did the Samaritan save the man from death but he saved him from slavery!
– The notion of a crucified Messiah was completely alien to the Jews (including the disciples). Dont Messiah’s win?!
– Everything from Luke 9:51 on is under the shadow of the cross – “heading to Jerusalem.”

What do we learn from this?

1) Eternal life really is inherited – it cant be earned.
2) The narrative as a whole (Luke’s point) is that Jesus is the ultimate good Samaritan. (He was despised, an outcast… yet saves us from death and slavery).
3) Jesus expects his followers to behave like him (The Gospel transforms).
– Dont ask questions, like the lawyer, to make excuses. Just serve!

Luke 16:19-31

- The beginning of idolatry is the de-goding of God.
- Look back to 16:13, 16:11, 16:14-15.
- Not all idols are intrinsically wicked.
- An intrinsically good thing becomes a bad thing when it becomes a God thing.
- God does not detest what we highly value because he is egotistical and cant handle the competition but rather because he knows that idolatry destroys…
- Money, self-justification, and idolatry.
- Look back at the context – Luke 15 – The Prodigal WASTES the fathers possessions. Luke 16 – The Manager WASTES the rich mans possessions. Luke 16 – The Rich man WASTES his own possessions. The theme of wasting what God has given is big here.
- 2 Parts: The Narrative of two different men (v19-23) and the Dialogue (v24-31).

v19-23
- Rich Man – Note:
– Wearing purple = rich. Only two ways to get purple clothing then. Thus if you have it, it is for purely wealth and flaunting purposes.
– Fine linen = even his underwear is first class.
– feasting everyday = gourmet! waiters! rich!
– Has a gate! Not just a big house.
– Has dogs – in the ancient world dogs were not pets. they were either wild or guard dogs. he had guard dogs!
– Not to be given a name in a story means you are a minor character (in the Ancient world).
- Lazarus – His name means, “the one who God helps” Dont judge too quickly on if God has helped him.

v24-31
- Abraham’s side = Being at the 1 Patriarchs right hand! (Think last supper with John and Jesus).
- What the rich man sees sets off three cycles of conversation.

Cycle 1 – verses 24-26
– The rich man doesnt address Lazarus! He didnt stoop to speaking to him in life or death!
– He demands services from Lazarus when he didnt even give him dog food!
– Even in Hell the rich man cannot imagine giving up his self-importance!

Cycle 2 – verses 27-29
– Still there is no sign of repentance! No apologizing! Still doesnt address Lazarus!
– If he cant be a table waiter (Lazarus), maybe an errand boy!

Cycle 3 – verses 30-31
– Luke knows where this book is going… Jesus rises from the dead and many dont believe in him.
– Even the most spectacular of miracles will not guarantee Christian faith.

Lessons for us:

1) There is a sphere of rejoicing to pursue and sphere of torment to flee.
– Many complain and warn of people being so heavenly minded that they are no earthly good. But if you really are prepared for heaven, your life will be changed now. Being heavenly minded is much better than being earthly minded.
2) Hell is NOT made up of a lot of people who are sorry for what they did, want to leave, and want to repent of their wrong doing. It is made up of people who for all eternity still cherish their own sin.
– These people still want to be the center.
– These people want relief over repentance.
3) The things in which we take so much pride may make us blind to our need of grace.
– Everything (our good works, etc.) flows from our reconciliation to God. You cant have the social change without the Gospel. All that does is create moralism and hypocrisy.
– Lust for ANYTHING is highly corrosive.
4) We must listen to the witness of Scripture or we are damned.
– Nurture peoples love for Scripture!

Link to Heritage Sermons

John 3:1-21 *This message was by far his best and quite possibly the best message I have ever personally heard. I missed so much in my own notes. I would recommend you watch the whole thing. I will insert a few of my friends notes were I feel like they were clearer than my own. Also note that some of my notes will be a little paraphrastic because there was so much info to take down. I will also add words at points to clarify what he was saying.*

- What is the gospel? News. But what about?
– The essence of news is announcing. That is what you do. Many say of the gospel, “preach the gospel, if necessary, use words.” This is like telling the 11 o clock news caster to deliver the news and if necessary use words. We must declare it!
- The Gospel is what God has done in Christ supremely in Christ’s cross and resurrection to reconcile rebels to himself.
- You must know the bad before you can know the good.
- It is not just how we become just but how we are transformed. [My friend James quoted him as saying, "The Gospel isn’t just about how one becomes JUST before God but also how He TRANSFORMS us"]
- We are transformed by the power of God to live differently.
- There is also a relational component to what God does. An indirect effect of the Gospel: reconciling people to each other.
- Eschatological component.

John 3:1-21 – 1 component of the Gospel

(1) v1-10 – What Jesus said about being born again

- Nicodemus – apart of the Jewish ruling council (which rules most of the nation – legislatively and all), not an average Pharisee; a brilliant biblical scholar and expert.
- If there is nothing to suggest it in the text, dont push it!
- “come at night” – John loves using facts in symbol laden ways. He is approaching Jesus out of utter (spiritual) darkness.
- A.D. 200 – Rabbi title only for those who went through school, but not here… by Nicodemus calling him Rabbi he is attaching a certain amount of respect to him.
- Nicodemus is claiming to see something in Jesus; something important. Jesus responds by saying he actually sees nothing.
– You might see the miracle but not the kingdom!
- There was no way Nicodemus was so stupid as to think that Jesus was talking about a legitimate re-birth.
– Jesus was explaining that to really see the kingdom you have to start all over again! Nicodemus then responds by saying that you can start all over again! (how be born again?).
- Born of water and spirit = born again (parallel statements).
- We must think… where did Nicodemus have knowledge that Jesus could appeal to?
– In the domain of your expertise, what does spirit and water mean?
– Look to Ezekiel 36. The coming of the new covenant.
– All Jesus added was the metaphor of new birth itself.
- The teach of Israel is supposed to know this! He has the entire Old Testament memorized… in Hebrew!
– People are cleaned up and transformed.
- Even if you cant explain the mechanics of spirit transformation you can always see the effects!
- Do you really think the Spirit of God is so weak that it produces no effect?

(2) v11-13 – Why Jesus could speak so authoritatively about being born again

- Why does Jesus choose to say “we?” Sarcastic response back to Nicodemus for using “we” earlier.
- You are finding it hard to understand the stuff here on earth… how are you going to understand the throne room of God?! Tell you what… I have been there!
- Jesus can speak so authoritatively because he has come from the right hand of God!
- The gospel brings men and women to God! Not reason, not mysticism.

(3) v14-15 – How Jesus brings about this new birth

- Numbers 21:4ff (Nicodemus would have them memorized! All Jesus needs to do is allude to it)
- Do you know how often whining in the Bible is viewed as idolatry? Whining is idolatry!
- If you want to understand the fundamental basis – Look to Numbers 21.
– We are a sinful, idolatrous brood, due for judgment, under God’s curse and wrath.
– How do we escape? Not a snake on a pole. The son of man on a pole.
- “lifted up” on the cross. To escape THIS death we must look to him.
- Belief = trusting. Abandoning self. Bowing the knee.

(4) v16-21 – Why Jesus was sent to bring about this new birth

- It was all grounded in the love of God! He didnt owe salvation to anyone!
- Eternal life is the fruit of the new birth.
- When God loves the world – It is NOT like our love (you will have to watch the full thing to capture the fantastic illustration he used for this).
- John’s gospel – the world is a damned place. A world of darkness, under condemnation. There is nothing lovable about it. (we often think God finds us irresistible and he cant live without us – wrong!)… it is a terrible place … BUT God loves us anyway because he is that kind of God!
- God loves us not because of who we are but DESPITE who we are!
- Unless you learn to wallow in the limitlessness of the love of God you cannot be mature! [once again, my friend James quoted him a little differently, saying, "You cannot be genuinely mature as a Christian unless you learn to wallow in the limitless dimensions of God’s love for you"]

Q+A Session

— How are we to use repentance in the Gospel (specifically with reference to the unbeliever)?
– Most unbelievers have no idea what this word means.
– Remember, its not the use of a particular word that matters! Just get the non-negotiable across. Turning from old lifestyle and frame of reference.
– If it is genuine belief it necessarily means turning away from all that Christ isnt.
— John 3 – Is it born again or born from above?
– The word’s root makes it seem to be “from above” but word meanings arent always from the etymology! Think of a butterfly. HOW the word is used is more important.
– John probably meant both. But I stick with the translation I am using [when I am speaking].
— What is the greatest threat to a proper understanding of the gospel?
– SIN!
– Depends on what part of the world you are in!
– Hedonism can undercut the gospel without changing any doctrine. The new tolerance threatens. consumerism threatens.
— Are invitations a hindrance to the Gospel?
– [Quotes a story of D.L. Moody] I’d rather have people making lots of mistakes than not doing anything!
– With a poor presentation we are in danger of “healing my people slightly” without understanding the real issues.
– [Most invitations today ask if we want the "abundant life." What idiot doesnt want that?] But we dont hear what those in the 1st century heard with John 10:10 abundance. This was in the context of a story about sheep.
– We must explain the categories!
– How faithful is the presentation? THAT is the big question!
— What is the balance between law and gospel?
– Law presents the fundamental need of God
– 600+ times the Bible says God stands over us with wrath
– The grace of God without the problem becomes cheap grace
– You cant get the gospel right until you see what the problem is
– [Quotes a story on John Wesley and the law] Tim Keller says: Dont begin with the law. Begin with idolatry. Idolatry portrays the same thing but in a relational way.
– This generation gets betrayal better than trespassing.
— Your points about being transformed and living differently sound like works based salvation?
– The inevitable result of genuine salvation is change in your life. By their fruits you will know them. This does not mean we are perfect or grow at the same rate…
– Holiness becomes attractive over something we must put up with
— Scott McKnight says Christology over soteriology?
– He is right in what he affirms but wrong in what he denies.
– It is not either/or it is both/and. Why pit these two things against each other?
– Dont correct an error bu asking for a pendulum swing.
– How biblically ought they to be intertwined?
— Should disagreements on such topics as dispensationalism and covenant theology be worthy of breaking fellowship over?
– Local church? sure. but you can still share and be kind.
– Some say “anything that doesnt directly effect salvation is irrelevant.” That is dumb! They are essentially asking the question, “what is the least I can believe and get away with it?”
– The right approach is, “how can I understand more correctly so I can think God’s thoughts?”
– If God didnt think it was important, why did he give it?
– We are advocating the debasing of the knowledge of God – that is idolatry!
– We can disagree and be civil
– The constant panting over lowest common denominator theology leaves us with nothing to think about… nothing to glory in, nothing to pant over.
– HATE lowest common denominator theology!
– you cannot become a faithful expositor if you have already adopted a least common denominator theology
– Stay civil and humble.
— How do we best preach the full gospel in light of our busy culture?
– Dont duck the truth!
– We arent THAT busy. Not like the industrial revolution.
– In every culture there are problems to face.
– When you get up in the morning do you check your email or read your Bible? It is a choice.
– You never drift into self-discipline.
– Stop making excuses about how busy you are.
– It is not how busy you are, but what you do with it.
– Dont let the world squeeze you into its mold.

Link for Liberty Sessions