May 26
Andrew J. NicewanderArt and Culture, Culture, Poetic Prose Christianity, Jack Shephard, Jesus, John Locke, Lost, Redemption
In the end, it was all about lost sheep.
It was about Ben, the Island-bred murderous liar, for whom manipulation was second nature and coercion simply a means to the end of the moment.
It was about Sawyer, the smooth-talking con-man, rough around every edge, singularly bent on murderous revenge.
It was about Kate, the attractive girl-next-door killer, on the run from the authorities and her broken past.
It was about the Kims, husband and wife in name only, owners of a broken marriage and slaves to a dictatorial father/boss.
It was about John, the bitterly angry paraplegic orphan with sever daddy issues.
It was about Jack, the work absorbed, brilliant surgeon, who could fix everything except his own broken, screwed-up life.
It was about Sayid, the torturer.
It was about Charlie, the druggie.
It was about Claire, the young-mother-turned-crazie.
It was about Hurley, the large, superstitious lottery-winning schizophrenic.
It was about Desmond, the yellow-bellied time-traveller.
It was about a diverse group of fallen, flawed and ultimately lonely people.
They tried to fix things, they tried to do things their own way. Every step was a stumble, every stumble a full-on face plant.
In the end, it is all about a Lamb.
A Lamb who was born a miraculous birth.
A Lamb who lived a completely human life.
A Lamb who is without spot or blemish.
A Lamb who sympathizes as a Kind and Dread Sovereign.
A Lamb who bled, died and rose again.
This Lamb redeemed David, the cowardly murderous adulterer.
This Lamb redeemed Jacob, the spineless mommas-boy cheat.
This Lamb redeemed Moses, the timidly fearful seeker of man’s honor.
This Lamb redeemed Peter, the loud-mouthed, impetuous, impatient fisherman.
This Lamb redeemed Saul, the hate-filled, Pharisaical butcher.
This Lamb redeemed the dying, bloody, pathetic thief on the Cross.
This Lamb redeemed me.
The Stories of men are powerful. They’re riveting. They’re didactic. They’re inspiring.
Yet, all such stories of hope and grace and redemption pale in comparison to the glorious Light, our Lion and Lamb, in whom is no darkness.
Feb 25
Andrew J. NicewanderQuote of the Week Christianity, Liberalism, Walter Russell Mead
To mistake an ideology or a social model for the transcendent and always surprising (and irritating!) Kingdom of God is, technically speaking, the sin of idolatry. It is to worship the work of our own hands. What makes it worse is that to some degree in the mainline churches we have replaced faith in the scripturally based and historically rooted doctrines and values of the Christian heritage with faith in progressive social thought.
Instead of proclaiming a gospel of salvation that still brings lost sinners streaming through the doors (ask the Pentecostals and evangelicals who have continued to grow even as we shrink) we issue statements urging the federal government to fulfill its contributions to the Millennium Development Goals and to raise the minimum wage. They preach and plant churches; we have professional development workshops for diocesan employees.
- Walter Russell Mead, from “Petty Prophets of the Blue Beast“
Feb 02
Andrew J. NicewanderSermon Poems Christianity, Ephesians, Love, Ministry, Preaching, Serving
Sermon Title – “Christian Unity and the Pastoral Ministry, #4”
Sermon Text – Ephesians 4:12-16
Preacher – Pastor Larry Vincent
Pastors preach the Word of God to saved and fellow slaves
With Word and Prayer to minister so Christ in us is praised
The Truth of God proclaimed and heard, the knowledge of our Lord
We hear and live, obey and serve, submitting to the Word
There’s danger in the world about, and even in our hearts
Temptations to derail our faith, from devils foul and smart
We’re kept through what our God has said, the mercy of the Word
The Spirit keeps our souls secure, in Jesus Christ our Lord
In Christ we’re loved for all of time, our hearts are washed and cleansed
We’re called to love our fellow saints, though sinners all we be
The words we hear are given feet and hands to love our King
We love our Lord by loving men, the praise of God we sing
In Jesus Christ the lost are saved, we’re ragamuffins weak
We’re knit and joined into His frame, our Head is Jesus sweet
Though feet or hands, we’ve all a part in glorifying God
We love the World and love the Church, as one in Christ we trod
Jan 28
Andrew J. NicewanderQuote of the Week Christianity, Preaching, The Gospel, Truth
We urge decisions (especially during invitations), but base them on emotional pressure rather than the unpacking of the Person and Work of Christ, starting our sermons in the Ephesians 4-6 portions of Scripture without rooting them in the Ephesians 1-3 portions of Scripture. By doing so, we’re setting people up for failure and despair by preaching law without preaching Christ.
Frankly, this is what concerns me most. Sure, I grieve when we don’t preach the text with sobriety—but even when we do, we often highlight what we must do for Christ more than what He has done for us [emphasis added]. Sure we must remember the former, but we need to base it on the latter—without fail. The truth is, we don’t exult in Christ. Seriously, listen to what gets the most “Amens” in your next fundamentalist conference. A message that focuses on compromising evangelicals or rebellious teens or worldly music is apt to be met with a chorus of people saying “Amen!” and “That’s right!” Meanwhile, a message focused on Christ’s atoning work and it’s affect on every day living can be met with silence or a “tell me something new” inattentiveness. It grieves me. I urge those choosing special speakers to choose those who make much of Christ. What else do we have to offer sinners, after all? …
Preacher, get serious about preaching. Get a conscience about it. And for mercy’s sake, if you’re going to criticize John Piper or Sovereign Grace, you’d better bring it. You’d better drive your message deep into the text. You’d better have the approach of a prosecuting attorney who knows that every single thing he says has to be verifiable by hard facts, not clever jokes or circumstantial evidence. Because if you criticize men who are passionate about preaching the text even as you give it a back seat to your own wisdom, you’ll be deservedly ignored. And it’s happening a lot. A lot.”
- Chris Anderson (from his post “It’s Past Time to Put a ‘Zero Tolerance’ Policy on Preaching“)
Jan 21
Andrew J. NicewanderQuote of the Week Christianity, Haiti, Jesus, Mercy, Pat Robertson
I changed my sermon late Thursday night. I lived in New Orleans for Katrina and heard the comments from Christians about God Judging the city and all and it pissed me off. When I heard Pat’s comments last week and then heard a local pastor repeat them at an association meeting I took a break from the book of James to preach on Luke 13. What did Jesus say when we are confronted by a tragedy. He said repent or you will likewise perish. It baffles me that Christian leaders so miss God’s grace and stand in judgment when they should be on their knees thanking God that they were spared and have the chance to repent [emphasis added].
- Aaron Arledge, from The Boar’s Head Tavern
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