chance to win

The Monergism Bookstore (part of Monergism.com) is having a sweet giveaway. Go here for your chance to win.

1st place: 1599 Geneva Bible Anniversary Edition
2nd place: ESV Study Bible
3rd place: ESV Literary Study Bible

Enter away.

-joe

Alex & Sarah Costa

I've known Alex since college, although we recently have gotten to know each other better. I had the privelege of attending his wedding last summer to Sarah. On top of the fact that it was a joyful Christian union, the music was top-notch.

I'll let him tell you some more about what he and Sarah are doing for the Gospel.

What is the name of and location of your mission?
I'm currently in transition. For the past three years, I worked with Campus Crusade for Christ at Ohio State. But now, my wife and I are moving to Long Beach, California to work with CCC's Latino ministry, Destino.

Why did you decide to get into the ministry?
I became a believer some time during my freshman year of college. Within three months of accepting Christ, I knew that I was called to full-time ministry. Since then, that feeling never wavered. My reasons for continuing in the ministry are similar to my reasons for wanting to originally get into it. I want to devote the best hours of my days to seeing the Gospel transform the lives of people. Some time around my sophomore year in college, my heart for world missions started growing. Surely anybody could be in ministry while doing a full-time job in the marketplace, but God is leading my wife and me overseas in the long-term. We want to see people who never heard of Jesus come in to a loving relationship with Him.

What kinds of things do you do in your work to spread the gospel?
I preach the Word. The power of the Gospel is a heart-level belief, and as it says in 10:17, faith comes from hearing. Because of this, I try to give as many people as possible an opportunity to hear. Also, I meet with guys in a discipleship relationship, and we share the Gospel together.

Who has been the most influential person in your life?
I'll break it down to four categories. 1) Obviously, Jesus. 2) Dead person - Spurgeon. Particularly his seven volume commentary on the Psalms "The Treasury of David." I haven't read every Psalm, but he goes so in depth, and his theology is rich. 3) Living person that I haven't met - This may be controversial, but I'm going to have to go with Paul Washer. God used him to remove me from having a mindset of decisionism to having a mindset of regeneration. In other words, I no longer look for people to pray a prayer to receive Christ so that I can count them in my tally of people who I have converted. I look for the signs of true conversion. I look for regeneration. God used Paul Washer to teach me that. 4) Living person that I know personally - My wife Sarah. That may sound cliche, but I seriously wish that you could compare my life before our wedding and after. My walk with God took off after we got married. Just her presence makes me more faithful in almost everything I do, including my study of the Word.

Where do you see yourself in 10 years?
Sarah and I want to go overseas to the unreached. I'm going to start seminary in the Fall, while I'm in Long Beach, and hopefully graduate in six years. God could throw a wrench in there, but I believe that we'll leave the USA shortly after six years. We're praying that God would send us to India. Children are a blessing from the Lord, and I want to be blessed richly in that area. So hopefully in 10 years, my wife and I will be in India with our huge family reaching the lost and seeing Jesus move mountains in people's hearts.
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I hope you'll join me in praying for the Costa's as they move out west over the summer. Also, if you're interested, they would love to have your financial support too. They have a site called Two Bones that is dedicated to their ministry and Alex blogs over at Spurgeon Dreamer.

Up next week is the man, the myth, the legend: Matt Henning.

-joe

a bunch of stuff

Here's the best of the best from my reader this week:

A whole lotta stuff on twitter, texting and entertainment: Al Mohler on texting, John Piper on entertainment, reflections from imonk, Melinda from STR on twittering, Christianity Today chimes in, Piper continuing from Josh Harris' post.

Some things that made me laugh: Spurgeon quote from Pyro, a poem by Andrew Peterson,

Free stuff from Challies, free song from Phatfish and a free song from willy porter, and a chance to win a couple copies of The Bookends of the Christian Life.

A good article from imonk on the Bible study fiasco out west.

A good thinker from Russell Moore on how to actual live out the gospel in counseling someone with a very difficult sin: part 1, part 2 and part 3.

A couple of great pamphlets from Boundless.

And a couple of things to encourage: learning from flawed faith and coming to Jesus messy.

-joe

missionaries

In order to help out my missionary friends, I've decided to dedicate some space to them each week on my blog. These are men and women that I support either monetarily or through prayer as they seek to spread the Gospel of Jesus Christ. I encourage you to take some time and pray for them and, if you have the means, support them in their work.

I'm also adding a column along the side of my blog with links to many of my missionary friends so that you, too, can join in the great joy of spreading the gospel of Jesus Christ to all people.

-joe

the cross centered life

I just finished up a short (and I mean short, 85 pages) book by C.J. Mahaney called The Cross Centered Life.

If you are looking for a good, short, easy read on the true nature of the Christian life then go out and pick up a copy.

From the book:

Reminding ourselves of the gospel is the most important daily habit we can establish. If the gospel is the most vital news in the world, and if salvation by grace is the defining truth of our existence, we should create ways to immerse ourselves in these truths every day. No days off allowed.

"To preach the gospel to yourself," [Jerry] Bridges explains, "means that you continually face up to your own sinfulness and then flee to Jesus though faith in His shed blood and righteous life."

What I hope you see is that the cross centered life isn't just one option among many that God offers. It is the life that every Christian is called to.

Yes, we are all called to the cross centered life, may God grant us the grace to live it.

-joe

for alex costa

A while back (maybe even a couple of years) a friend of mine, Alex Costa, had a post decrying the use of pithy catch-phrases in the Christian culture.

Today, as I was finishing up Kevin DeYoung's book Just Do Something I read this and thought of one particular phrase that he hated: "Let go and let God."

And so, without further ado, I give you this:

I know I've been pretty hard on my generation, especially the men. I don't write as one who is the model of manly courage or decision making. And I don't write to crush your spirits. Remember, even if we have made mistakes--or are in the middle of mistakes--God loves to help the helpless. He loves to forgive the brokenhearted and give second and third chances to those who've gone through a dozen mistakes already. The Spirit is stronger than our timidty and wiser than our foolishness. But instead of "letting go and letting God" we nee dto make every effort to grow up in our faith (2 Peter 1:5ff).

Quite blaming God for your inaction and go after living a life for the glory of God.

-joe

from an old professor

I frequently read the blog of a former professor of mine. I tend to agree with little to nothing he has to say and, because of that, I won't be linking to his blog in this post lest he should gain a wider audience for the things he says.

Today he had a quote from a lady that went like this:

"The question of which scriptural teachings are “non-negotiable,” and which bear multiple plausible interpretations, continues to divide the church, as it has ever since Peter and Paul debated the circumcision and dietary laws."

-- Marilyn McEntyre, "Dogma and Disagreement", God's politics

Let me just say a couple of things about why this kind of statement is dangerous to the church (I would say dangerous to the Gospel, but the Gospel is never in danger because it will always win.)

1. Peter and Paul didn't have an ongoing theological debate where both sides thought they were right. Paul corrected Peter and Peter recanted the position. (Galatians 2, Acts 10 and 15)

2. This was not a quibble over differing views of circumcision and dietary laws, it was vital to the Gospel. (It was either free or it was with works, see Galatians 2.)

3. By not stating the real nature of the debate (the Gospel) she opens the thought that ALL matters of faith and practice are open to interpretation.

4. The debate between Peter and Paul clearly shows that when it is a matter pertaining to the nature of the Gospel it is not open to interpretation (since God intervened with a vision to Peter.)

These kinds of "questions" being asked are dangerous because of their deceptive nature and hostility toward the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

-joe

the telling of the heavens

From The Treasury of David, Psalm 19:

It is not merely glory that the heavens declare, but the "glory of God," for they deliver to us such unanswerable arguments for a conscious, intelligent, planning, controlling, and presiding Creator, that no unprejudiced person can remain unconvinced by them. The testimony given by the heavens is no mere hint, but a plain, unmistakable declaration; and it is a declaration of the most constant and abiding kind. Yet for all this, to what avail is the loudest declaration to a deaf man, or the clearest showing to one spiritually blind? God the Holy Ghost must illuminate us, or all the suns in the milky way never will.

Romans 1 says that these declarations make all men guilty before God because they have seen them and not given him His due glory. Oh, that Psalm 19 and Romans 1 would awaken us to the importance and immediacy of evangelism.

They may have the heavens to declare them guilty but we have the Truth to declare them righteous and free! Why are we so small minded not to pray, as Paul commands in 1 Timothy, for all peoples to be saved? Why are we so slow to act when every night we see the judgment of God on our neighbors?

-joe

a bunch of stuff

Here are some of the things that really caught my eye this week in blogland:

Here are some chances at free stuff from the Resurgence and Challies. (By the way...I won last week from Challies! Thanks, Tim, for the books that will hopefully be arriving soon.)

A trio of links from Z:

All three of his posts on Spiritual Alzheimer's. (Think Piper's book Future Grace in super, super condensed form.

And, a quoted post on the emergency of giving.

A little something that made me laugh even though it is kind of sad: 100 million in budget cuts.

Obduracy has become a new favorite word thanks to the Pyros.


Excellent prayer from Melinda at STR.

A little bit of encouragement from the 9 Marks blog.

-joe

guitar

Does anyone know anything about my guitar? It's a 12-string Alvarez with a nice yellow tone and no pick-guard (I took it off.)

It seems to have gone missing from my office at the church, along with its case...and no one seems to know where it went.

So...if you took it or know who did...just make sure it gets back healthy.

-joe

back faster than i thought

Matt and I knocked out 45 miles on the Knobstone in 3 days. We finished yesterday around 4pm. I'm sore, my feet are blistered and it was a great time.

Meditated on John 17:1-5

“Father, the hour has come; glorify your Son that the Son may glorify you, since you have given him authority over all flesh, to give eternal life to all whom you have given him. And this is eternal life, that they know you the only true God, and Jesus Christ whom you have sent. I glorified you on earth, having accomplished the work that you gave me to do. And now, Father, glorify me in your own presence with the glory that I had with you before the world existed." (ESV)

I'll resume regular posting next week.

-joe

on the trail

I'm leaving in about 30 minutes for a 4 day excursion in southern Indiana. The Knobstone Trail (or Little Appalachian) is gonna be sweet. I'll steal some photos from my buddy Matt when we get back.

Have a great Holy Week.

-joe

the best of the week

I subscribe to a lot of blogs (too many to say outloud, although it is considerably less than this time last year.)

Below are some of the best things I read this week:
The Pyromaniacs disect a bad view of the will of God in a two part series here and here...(they are long)

Every week for awhile Challies has been giving stuff away here.

Gleason via Vitamin Z writes about the glutton of TV.

I never knew this...and it's funny: jumping the shark (I've really enjoyed DeYoung's blog over the past couple of months.)

And, for those of you who don't know, I share quite a bit from my reading here. You can even subscribe to it here.

Have a great Friday,

-joe

a new favorite

Could it be that I have found a book to replace my first love, A.W. Pink's The Sovereignty of God? I think, my friends, that I have.

I am devouring Joseph Alleine's book A Sure Guide to Heaven (originally published as An Alarm to the Unconverted.)

From the first couple of chapters contrasting true Christian repentance with false christiany guilt.

It is one thing to have sin alarmed only by convictions, and another to have it crucified by converting grace. Many, because they have been troubled in conscience for their sins, think well of their case, miserably mistaking conviction for conversion...You may have forsaken a troublesome sin, and have escaped the gross pollutions of the world, and yet in all this not have changed your carnal nature.

You may take a crude mass of lead and mould it into the more comely proportion of a plant, and then into the shape of an animal, and then into the form and features of a man; but all the time it is still lead. So a man may pass through various transmutations, from ignorance to knowledge, from profanity to civility, then to a form of religion, and all this time he is still carnal and unregenerate, his nature remains unchanged.

Contrast that with the true believer:

He that could see little sin in himself, and could find no matter for confessions, now sees the rottenness of his heart, the desperate and deep pollution of his whole nature. He cries "Unclean! Unclean! Lord, purge me with hyssop, was me thoroughly, create in me a clean heart." He sees himself altogether filthy, corrupt both root and branch...Hitherto, he saw no form nor comeliness in Christ, no beauty that he should desire Him; but now he find the Hidden Treasure, and will sell all to buy this field. Christ is the Pearl he seeks.

His hatred boils, his anger burns against sin. He has no patience with himself; he calls himself fool, and beast, and thinks any name too good for himself,when his indignation is stirred up against sin. He could once wallow in it with much pleasure; now he loathes the though of returning to it as much as of licking up the filthiest vomit.

The great inquiry is, whether the judgment and will are steadily determined for God above all other good, real or apparent. If so, and if the affections do sincerely follow their choice and conduct, though it be not so strongly and feelingly as is to be desired, there is no doubt but the change is saving.

-joe