A Christmas Devotion: Mary's Real Treasure

What do you treasure above all things?

What person, place, or thing holds the position of supremacy in your affections in such a way that nothing rivals its prominence? What do you hold so dearly that nothing, NOTHING rivals its position on the throne of your heart?

In some ways Christmas Eve may be one of the most dangerous times of the year to come to a worship service. Our hearts are distracted: there are travel plans, turkeys in the oven, trinkets to be opened, and family to be received. Materialism and gluttony are just hours away.

If you find your heart being divided today, I would like to commend to you Mary’s treasure. "Mary treasured up all these things, pondering them in her heart" (Luke 2:19). The old KJV translates that “Mary kept these things,” but all the modern translations have rightly rendered it “treasured.” The Greek word means to safeguard, to defend, to lock tight, to cherish, to protect!

We might ask, WHAT THINGS did Mary treasure? What specifically does Luke 2:19 mean when it says that “all these things” she both treasured and pondered in her heart? 

Ironically, Mary did receive literal treasure in Matthew’s birth narrative. You recall, the Magi brought to Christ three gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh. And what was Mary’s response to these gifts in Matthew 2:11,

"And going into the house [the Magi] saw the child with Mary his mother, and they fell down and worshiped him. Then, opening their treasures, they offered him gifts, gold and frankincense and myrrh."

Mary’s response? Nothing. Silence. I’m sure she said ‘thank you,’ but Scripture does not say she treasured the treasure!! In fact, if there is an emphasis at all on materialism, it’s on poverty not riches. Three times (vs. 7, 12, 16) Luke reminds us that the baby is in a manger, a crude box where donkey drool.

Do not be deceived by ‘treasure’ that looks like treasure, but is not infinitely valuable! What good is mere gold when eternal riches are before you? A block of gold and a lump of coal are both equally ineffective in purchasing joy, forgiveness, peace, or eternal life!

So what did Mary treasure? A good Sunday School answer would be that Mary treasured her son. It would make sense, and I don’t think any of us would complain if verse 19 told us that Mary treasured her baby. Luke could have written, "Mary treasured her child and pondered her family in her heart."

But Luke didn't write that.

There is no doubt that Mary ‘treasured’ Jesus as her natural born son. She was the one family member of Jesus who truly believed and followed Him all the way to the cross, watching the Romans beat and pierce His flesh to the cross (John 19:25).

There is no doubt that Mary loved her baby as a mother should. But that’s not the point of verse 19. Every mother—except for the deranged—treasures their own child in the familial sense.

We know what Mary treasured: she treasured “all these things” (2:19) which refers directly back two verses to verse 17, "[The Shepherds] made known the saying that had been told them concerning the child" (Luke 2:17). And what the shepherds heard goes back to vs. 10-11,

"And the angel said to them, 'Fear not, for behold, I bring you good news of great joy that will be for all the people. For unto you is born this day in the city of David a Savior, who is Christ the Lord.' 

Aha! Here’s the real treasure! Here is what made Mary’s heart glad!

It's not just that she had a baby, but rather the identity and destiny of the baby: a joy not just for her own heart, but joy to all people! A Savior not just to her personally, but to all who repent and believe. 

A multitude of angels attended the coronation of an infant and to exult in this divine decree. The night sky burst into a full panoply of radiant color as holy warrior-spirits beamed upon the Prince of Peace! Singing in unison “Glory! Glory! Glory to God in the highest and on earth peace among those with whom he is pleased!”(Luke 2:14).

Here is my definition of “treasuring": To treasure something means that you would gladly give the whole world to get it, and to joyfully refuse the whole world to keep it!

I suggest that today you and I treasure what Mary treasured: the announcement of the One who is the glory of God and the peaceful joy of men.

--Matthew Everhard is the Senior Pastor of Faith Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Brooksville, Florida.

'I See Dead People.' The Scary Truth about Christian Ghostwriting

I see dead people.

Who can forget that memorable line from M. Night Shyamalan's best movie, The Sixth Sense? In the film, an emotionally disturbed child confesses to his psychologist that he sees ghosts. The movie turns dramatically at this shocking moment. Here, the film gives its strongest hint yet that the lead character, played by Bruce Willis, is not what he seems. He is actually dead.  

Perhaps we are now at such a juncture in the world of Christian publishing.

In the last few weeks, the evangelical and Reformed world was given an inside glimpse of the process of “ghostwriting” when a massive plagiarism scandal broke out in full public view.

For the sake of Christian charity, I will omit the names of the key players and the publishing house(s) involved. Astute readers will already be aware of the circumstances, and they need not be repeated here.  

In full disclosure, I am personally acquainted with one of the men in the center of the controversy. This makes what I am about to say even harder. 

This article is not about the errant citations that fell through the cracks somewhere in the editing process. I regard the term "plagiarism" to be unnecessarily hyperbolic and even inflammatory.

The books attributed to this well known author are generally footnoted extensively. I have several of them on my shelf. In some, literally hundreds of academic citations are provided. But there is a far more significant problem lurking below. We must now say "the books attributed to..." the writer.

Perhaps I should define the term. 'Ghostwriters' are usually relatively unknown writers, researchers, and scholars who write substantial portions--or even all--of the books that are actually credited to better known leaders.

So far as I can tell ghostwriting, which has been called "the standard practice of the industry" by the publishers,  might possibly be supported by any of five possible reasons.

However, none of them seems morally justifiable to me. They are:

1. The person to whom the book is attributed is not a competent writer. Response: All writers need substantial editing. Unfortunately, none of us can see all of our own errors in print. But no one pretends that writing and editing are actually the same thing. Hiring another person to do the actual work of writing and composing while taking the credit oneself on the cover seems to me to be the moral equivalent of singing a solo with the vocal track of another performer playing on the sound system. In both cases, the clear intent is to deceive the audience. If one cannot write well, he ought not pretend that he can.

2. The person to whom the book is attributed does not have the time to write the work himself. Response: Writing requires a great amount of time and work; far more than most realize. However, when a known leader employs others do this work--and yet signs his own name to one or more books every year--he creates an illusion of his own superhuman abilities. He is putting on a show and expects others to buy tickets. When a Christian leader gets to this point, he is actually just selling his own fame. If one has not the time to write, he ought not pretend that he has.

3. The person to whom the book is attributed is not thoroughly knowledgeable about the subject matter on which he writes. Response: None of us are omniscient. All who aspire to write well must do a significant amount of research. Often experts must be consulted. However, having a team of researchers (or a research assistant) do the bulk of the study creates the illusion that the named author is far more knowledgeable about the subject matter than he really is. As with 1 & 2 above, he is creating an illusion about himself that he hopes (and expects) his audience will believe. If one has not the expertise to write, he ought not pretend that he does.

4. Publishers, seeking greater sales revenue, prefer better known leaders to lesser known writers for obvious marketing reasons. Response: Doing business with a view towards making money is not intrinsically wrong in itself. Certainly Christian ethics does not require a business to lose money in order to be considered moral. On the other hand, selling a product--any product--that purports to be something it is not is deceiving to the consumer at best and morally fraudulent at worst.

5. The ghostwriter is not well known and cannot garner an audience of his own at this time; he needs to "get his foot in the door" somehow. Response: Everyone must begin somewhere. Many careers must begin in the "mailroom." Nevertheless, allowing one's own work to be usurped by a more popular Christian celebrity seems to compromise the very integrity of the craft of writing. For this reason, it would seem better not to write at all than to participate in someone else's self-promotion or a corporation’s greed.

Since none of the above rationale seems morally persuasive to me, I am inclined to see a spiritual "deadness" in the entire enterprise of ghostwriting.

I see dead people.

The fact that most Christians (myself included) simply don't know how widespread this practice really is seems more frightening than a horror flick.  

My guess is that there are dozens of well-known pastors and Christian celebrities who have availed themselves to ghostwriters that now dread the possibility that they too may be exposed as frauds. Likely, their audiences would be horrified to learn that they write little to nothing of the books that they hawk under their own names.

When I wrote Hold Fast the Faith, my devotional commentary on the Westminster Confession of Faith, it took me nearly five years to bring it to completion. As an unknown author, almost half of that time was spent convincing a reputable publisher to take on the project. Finally, one did.  

I wrote every word, often late at night after my kids went to bed, or very early morning before the coffee pot even finished brewing. I was working full-time in the ministry, pastoring a church of 400 people, while trying to be a responsible father to my children and husband to my wife.

I know what it takes to write a book and pastor a church at the same time. Believe me, I can imagine how great the temptation would be to cut corners if I was ever offered the opportunity to cheat. It would be so easy!

But writing is an arduous task. One pours out his soul with his words. He shapes his sentences as a sculptor shapes marble. Slowly. Arduously. Good books are not stamped out in a plastic mold by "research teams," they are handcrafted.

Can anyone really imagine C.S. Lewis using a ghostwriter? Or Augustine? Or Calvin?

In other words, I would rather grind out even one book that contained my own spiritual DNA—my blood, sweat, and tears--than publish volumes by passing off some other writer's work under my own name.

One’s conscience would have to die before he would be able to participate in such a sham.

--Matthew Everhard is the Senior Pastor of Faith Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Brooksville, Florida. He is the author of Hold Fast the Faith: A Devotional Commentary on the Westminster Confession of 1647. 

An Advent Prayer for Those Who Pray

Advent, (Latin: adventus): the season of the ecclesiastical calendar, immediately preceding Christmas, when the Christian church has traditionally celebrated the first coming of our Lord Jesus Christ, as well as anticipating His second advent at His return.

Lord Jesus, my Master, help me to bring to mind the significance of your coming.

It isn’t that I have forgotten the essentials of knowledge, but I need to be reminded of the deep truths associated with that knowledge, that in remembering the one I may not overlook the other.

You left the Father’s throne, you did not try to hold on to it, but made yourself to be as one who is without reputation. Lord of Glory, you became a nobody that I might become a somebody! – you took upon yourself servanthood so that instead of being served, as you deserved, you served others, and gave your life for them.

Baby of Bethlehem you became the exalted one, lifted up, and glorified. You were given a Name that is above every name, that at the Name of Jesus (your Name) every knee would bow. It was you Lord, abased for me, whom the Father raised to glory. It was all so personal. The angels were correct from the beginning – Glory to God in the Highest!

I cannot fully grasp the reasoning but I marvel and rejoice that you became my Savior and that all the fullness of the Godhead lived in you. Crucified, raised, and ascended, it is by your grace that you brought truth to me, not my search, nor my want. It was you who brought light to my heart and filled me with hope of eternity.

And so today it isn’t so much an event that happened two thousand years ago that stirs my soul, marvelous though it is to recall, but it is the Advent promise that this same Lord Jesus will come a second time, “in power and great glory,” and gather me together with Him and all the saints in the clouds of Heaven. “So shall we ever be with the Lord.”

In this season of anticipation help me to keep my eye fixed to the horizon. Help me always to be ready, to live ready. Lift me above present circumstance to look for the Son of Man who will come when I least expect Him, and who will gloriously and suddenly appear – my Great God and Savior, the Lord Jesus Christ.

May the Holy Spirit set my heart to longing for that day, that I may not waste my life on trivia but seek first the Kingdom of God. Release me from the distractions that preoccupy me, and grant that I may serve you in holiness and righteousness all my days. That’s my prayer.

Even so, come Lord Jesus!

-Dr. Wilfred Bellamy. Pastor, missionary, and former coordinator of the General Synod, Associate Reformed Presbyterian Church.

A Boy Named Van

"I like to help people." That was the simple, straightforward answer I received when I asked one of our children how they felt about giving an offering to the Lord. With that statement, our ministry began to pray about how we at Willow Creek Church's Children's Ministry should use our offering to bring God glory and also "help people."

We at WCC believe that it is important to teach our children very young the importance of offering our time, talent, and treasure to the Lord.

It is commanded: Psalm 96:8- Ascribe to the Lord the glory due his name; bring an offering, and come into his courts!

God promises to bless those who do: Malachi 3:10- Bring the full tithe into the storehouse, that there may be food in my house. And thereby put me to the test, says the Lord of hosts, if I will not open the windows of heaven for you and pour down for you a blessing until there is no more need.

God uses our tithe and loves those who give: 2nd Corinthians 9:7- Each one must give as he has decided in his heart, not reluctantly or under compulsion, for God loves a cheerful giver.

But most importantly, we are to give as our act of worship because we have received so much from the Lord! So we decided to do for one what we wish we could do for all.

"One Child," a ministry of Mission to the World, is designed to bring church's or individuals together to sponsor a child from across the world, supplying finances so a child may go to school, wear proper clothing, eat daily meals, and study the Bible.

Van Nun Lian Charang, or "Van" is our sponsored child. Van is 6 years old, the same age as many of our children. Van loves to play football, his favorite subject is Bible, and is one of 6 children. Van is just like us. Van is loved by God.

Van also lives in Bangladesh, a country east of India, and education in Bangladesh is not free. If not for the "One Child" ministry, Van would be working in a field rather than attending school. Again, a child, just like ours, loved by God, needing to experience our Savior's love.

Our children may right now only give because they want to "help people." But regardless of the motivation, we at WCC Children's Ministry are committed to honoring God with our time, talent, and treasure. It is because God has loved us, that we are able to love others. Won't you consider doing for one what you wish you could do for all?

-Drew Taylor
WCC Director of Children's Ministry

The Cool Pastor: An Oxymoron or Just a Regular Moron?

I had to do a double-take when I saw the tour bus.

There it was, idling softly in the parking lot, with the pastor’s name and newest book title emblazoned large--in bright yellow letters--across either side. Being advertised on that conspicuous rolling billboard was a “special evening,” (no doubt repeated dozens of times in select cities across the nation) with the newest “it” pastor.

His similitude to a rock star was highly intentional. Autograph sessions would soon follow as well, of course.  

You may not recognize him as a pastor at all at first. It will take a moment for the fog machine to clear up, as he takes center stage. But soon enough you will be able to identify him clearly: he’s the guy wearing the sneakers and the torn jeans, possibly even a hoodie and a snap-back too. He doesn’t carry a Bible under his arm—that would send the wrong signal—he carries his tablet computer.

He is the “cool pastor,” the next big thing.

He didn’t come to your city for a show? No problem. He’s building a satellite campus in your suburb next. In fact, there are already dozens of wannabes cropping up in churches near you. They are the next generation. The hipster pastors.

But this whole celebrity minister phenomenon has me wondering: isn’t “cool pastor” an oxymoron?

Don’t get me wrong. There is nothing wrong with being current. There is nothing wrong with using modern communication tools. There is nothing wrong with speaking in a relevant way to current trends, both societal and cultural.

But the closest thing to the pastoral job description in the Bible is found in 2 Timothy 4:1-5,

I charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom: preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and teaching. For the time is coming when people will not endure sound teaching, but having itching ears they will accumulate for themselves teachers to suit their own passions, and will turn away from listening to the truth and wander off into myths. As for you, always be sober-minded, endure suffering, do the work of an evangelist, fulfill your ministry.

No mention of having panache or chic jeans there. If anything, it sounds decidedly arduous. Difficult. Even subversive.

If I can be completely honest, there was a time in my life when I craved to be considered a “cool pastor.” In the early years, as the morning dawned on my pastoral vocation, I honestly believed it was possible to walk in both worlds, that is to say, the world of cultural approval and the world of Biblical fidelity.

More and more, however, I am not sure this is even desirable.

I am not suggesting that pastors return to monkish albs or don black robes exclusively. (Full disclosure: I do own a robe, but I haven’t worn it in over five years). I am however convinced that my desire to win cultural approval as a minister must die and die soon!

Our current fascination with our pastors’ book sales, name recognition value, and proliferating multi-site video venues ought to be considered a dangerous trend. Never before in the history of Christendom has a pastor’s reputation been graded by any other factors than his doctrine and his personal ethic. Today, we would add his fans.

No, my highest goal as a pastor is not to secure the greatest number of Twitter followers, but rather to model one man: our Lord Jesus Christ. His message must be my own. His methods must be sufficient for me. His majesty must be my highest end.

Though Jesus attracted a large following at times (Matthew 19:2; Mark 4:1; John 6:2) there were other moments when His doctrine and His fiery preaching sent men running in the opposite direction (John 6:66). If we should ask whether our Lord was more often cultural or countercultural, the preponderance of the Gospel materials emphatically suggest the latter.

I am sure there will be some who will appeal to texts such as 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 to justify the coolness factor as the necessary “cross we must bear” to make the Gospel intelligible in a modern context. They will argue that this is how we “become all things to all people, that by all means we might save some.”

But isn’t it ironic how those who use that Pauline text to defend a dogged pursuit of “relevance” end up making the Gospel less relevant to their hearer’s salvation and sanctification? At the very least, interpreting 1 Corinthians 9 as a methodological “free pass” makes light of the historical context surrounding the tensions between the Jewish and Hellenistic Christians to whom Paul ministered.  

To assume the role of the pastor is to assume the role of the prophet. I do not need to dress like John the Baptist, but I had better be ready to preach like him as well as to be treated like him. The pastor must more frequently confront a god-forsaken culture than conform to it.

Whether or not I am even aware of it, the subconscious and non-verbal communication that I put out is as instrumental in articulating the Gospel as the words I preach. Unfortunately, the more conspicuous the “show” surrounding my sermon, the less magnanimous the Gospel appears in juxtaposition. It is obscured by bright lights and video clips, high-wires and hair gel.

I will never forget the moment I met John Piper, although I doubt he could possibly remember it. His brown belt didn’t match his black shoes, and his well-worn slacks and tweed jacket wordlessly whispered, “This world has nothing for me!” He wasn’t the least bit slovenly or unkempt, but his entire demeanor adorned the very message He preached: Jesus Christ is supreme above all things.

Here is the bottom line. The unbelieving world will always do “cool” better than the Church. When the Church adopts coolness and relevance as its corporate values, it slavishly agrees to follow, lagging always one step behind the world. (This is why Christian music always ends up ripping off the sounds and styles of their secular counterparts, while Christian film often has a cheesy “cringe factor”).   

The church is not called to be the caricature of modern culture; it is called to be the critique (even the foil) of that same culture. When we explicitly model ourselves on the unbelieving world—whether its art, architecture, or ethos—we are implicitly and foolishly endorsing it.

As a pastor, I cannot afford to act so foolishly.

-Matthew Everhard is the Senior Pastor of Faith Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Brooksville, Florida. He is the author of Hold Fast the Faith: A Devotional Commentary on the Westminster Confession of1647 (Reformation Press, 2012). He blogs regularly at Whitefieldsprayer.blogspot.com.

Conversion at the Eleventh Hour: Five Truths from the Thief on the Cross

Today I have the privilege of doing the funeral of a man who was converted just days before his death. In his honor, here are five observations from the conversion of the thief on the cross in Luke 23:32-43.

1. The soul continues to exist, even after death. Jesus said, "Truly, truly I tell you, TODAY...!" (Luke 23:43, emphasis added). The criminals were sure to die on the cross. Death was inescapable. Crucifixion resulted in a 100% chance of death. The only question was “when would death come?” The Romans were experts at crucifixion. Nobody ever got off the cross and lived to tell about it.

These are our chances as well--100%. All men die. And yet the Bible is clear that all men will continue on in eternal consciousness after death. James say, "Yet you do not know what tomorrow will bring. What is your life? For you are a mist that appears for a little time and then vanishes" (James 4:14).

Have you ever thought about what will happen when you die? Have you ever considered the fate of your own soul ten seconds after you die? 

2. One of the two destinations is called paradise (or Heaven); the other is Hell. "Today you will be with me in PARADISE" (Luke 23:43, emphasis added).  What makes heaven so great, is that Jesus is there! We will be with Jesus, as He Himself promised the thief personally. If I had to define Heaven in as few words as possible, I would define it as “eternity with the Ever Living God.”

3. If any man should go to Heaven, it is by grace alone. Notice this man's honest confession. "We are receiving the due reward for our deeds" (23:41). How could a criminal like this ever be admitted into heaven? The only answer is by grace! Most people believe that people go to Heaven based on our good deeds. If this were so, the thief had no chance. He was literally pinned to the cross. What good could he do now? He could not serve the poor. He had no chance to ever again walk a "little old lady" across the street. He could not reach into his wallet to drop a quarter into the Salvation Army bucket. Surely he did not deserve forgiveness, and yet Jesus gave it to him by grace alone!  

4. He was admitted to Heaven based on a profession of faith in Jesus. He said, "Jesus, remember me when you come into your kingdom" (Luke 23:42). This isn’t the most complete theological statement about Jesus in the Bible, but it is a faithful one! He called Jesus a King. There is much that the thief leaves out (Jesus' divine nature, His Preincarnate glory, His resurrection etc.) but it is a believing profession. A simple plea of faith. A simple request—“save me.” 

5. It is better to be converted at the latest possible moment, than not at all. The other Gospels tell us that both criminals mocked Jesus at first (Matthew 27:44; Mark 15:32). But Luke's Gospel implies that the second thief had a change of heart for some reason. Perhaps it was based upon the manner in which Jesus testified on the cross. In other words, it was Jesus’ death on the cross that changed his heart. 

But if there is one thing of which I am sure--it is better come to Christ at the eleventh hour than not at all!

-Matthew Everhard is the Senior Pastor of Faith Evangelical Presbyterian Church in Brooksville, Florida. 

Give Wycliffe His Due!

By Wilfred A. Bellamy

 

In the context of Reformation Sunday and the birthday celebrations of the Reformed Faith, all of which are well conceived and justified, one man appears to quietly slip through a crack in the memory of the Church. His name is John Wycliffe.

Our tradition reminds us of the ministry of Martin Luther and of 95 theses nailed to the door of the Cathedral Church in Wittenburg, Germany on October 31, 1517 -- a banner occasion for the Reformed Church. It also brings to mind the several issues of confrontation with Rome that were the hallmark of Luther's career. We recall them with gratitude.

Yet it was John Wycliffe whom history has dubbed: "The Morning Star of the Reformation". Born almost 200 years before Luther, in the obscurity of a tiny village in North Yorkshire, England, Wycliffe completed his early childhood education in a one-room school and made his way to the University of Oxford. There he studied first as a student of philosophy and theology, and then became a full professor in the same field. He was of stoic demeanor, not given to frivolity, a serious minded man whose primary interest was always the inspiration and inerrancy of Scripture. He consistently argued that the Word of God was the primary authoritative source of Christianity and that it would remain so for all time.

Despite the consternation that he caused in the Roman Church, from his earliest days as an Oxford Don, he postulated several of the key arguments later embraced by Martin Luther. He wrote a number of tracts and books to make his ideas known, and especially denounced the notion of a purchased salvation by means of paid-for indulgences. In addition he warmly embraced the Biblical doctrines of "Justification by Faith" as a single act of Sovereign Grace; and Sanctification as the process which means the Holy Spirit directs in the life of the believer. Both almost unheard of in their day. Supremely he saw Christ as Sovereign Lord and God, the Savior of Mankind, and trusted in His substitutionary death.

In his zeal for truth, Wycliffe set to work on his magnum opus , the translation of the New Testament into the English Language. This had the dual benefit of delivering the Word of God to the common people of Britain, while removing the Church from the role of sole interpreter of truth. Wycliffe's action was fiercely opposed by Rome and vigorous efforts were made to destroy his work and unseat him from his position at Oxford. Indeed, some copies of the New Testament were destroyed, but because there were so many of them, zealously copied by believers, many survived.

John Wycliffe, a gentle giant, valiant for the faith once delivered to the saints, died of a stroke in 1384. It was thirty years later that the Roman Church, still incensed and still smarting because of Wycliffe's great influence and his role in pioneering the reformation of the church, had his bones dug up and publicly burned.

But give John Wycliffe his due! He was long gone and safe home. He had already received his "well done, good and faithful servant," from his Lord.

Wilfred A. Bellamy, Ph.D. 

November 2013