AUGUST + SEPTEMBER 2016
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TABLE OF CONTENTS AUGUST + SEPTEMBER 2016 Welcome to the August/September edition of TRUTH + LIFE Magazine, featuring this month’s theme of being “salt and light” in today’s culture. Enjoy articles from Dr. Neufeld, Phil Callaway and Isaac Dagneau with guest writers Rafik Daudjee and Keri Vermeulen. Learn about our upcoming Christmas tour with Phil Callaway and much more.
ARTICLES 4 ENGAGING + IMPACTING THE CULTURE
DR. JOHN NEUFELD
6 BE THE SALT + LIGHT RAFIK DAUDJEE
10 WELCOME CLAIRA PHIL CALLAWAY
FEATURES 2 LAUGH AGAIN CHRISTMAS 8 READING PLAN 12 ASK PHIL 20 NEW TESTAMENT GREECE TOUR BY LAND AND SEA
14 THE FIRST STEP IN
ENGAGING CULTURE
ISAAC DAGNEAU
18 PROTESTING THE TIMES KERI VERMEULEN
And the Lord’s servant must not be quarrelsome but kind to everyone, able to teach, patiently enduring evil. 2 Timothy 2:24
TRUTH + LIFE Magazine is published bi-monthly by The Good News Broadcasting Association of Canada, Box 246, STN A Abbotsford, BC V2T 6Z6. All content is copyright © The Good News Broadcasting Association of Canada unless otherwise indicated. BACKTOTHEBIBLE.CA
AUGUST + SEPTEMBER 2016
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Engaging +
Impacting THE CULTURE DR. JOHN NEUFELD
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here has, I fear, been a siege mentality among some Christians regarding culture. Whether it is the culture’s attitude toward human sexuality, the legalization of what were heretofore illegal drugs, the abortion of unwanted children or the movement toward legalizing and even demanding doctor-assisted suicide, we have a growing feeling that things are bad, and that the Christian church and its teachings are going to be hard pressed. Sometimes, in an effort to bolster our hope, we may quote Jesus’ words recorded in Matthew 16:18. “I will build My church, and the gates of hell shall not prevail against it.” By quoting this Biblical passage, we tell ourselves that the church will survive, no matter how great the cultural assault that is waged against it. But, I fear we have grossly misunderstood this verse. Gates are
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BY DR. JOHN NEUFLED
a defensive, not an offensive image. The picture Jesus paints for us is that of hell being fortified with gates, trying to hold off the onslaught of the armies of the church. The church is battering down the gates, and robbing Satan of his captives, and delivering them safely into the saving and loving hands of Jesus. Furthermore, the words of Matthew 16:18 were spoken by Jesus after He had taken His disciples on a long walk to Caesarea Philippi, which is located on the foothills of Mount Hermon. The city itself is located on an enormous wall of rock. The Jewish King Philip had dedicated this city to the Roman Caesar. Caesar considered himself a god, and Philip was eager to please his overlord. A temple to the pagan Roman god Pan was built upon the rock. There in Israel, we find evidence of the insidious attack of the a pagan culture, seducing Jews into a worship of Roman demonic religion. AUGUST + SEPTEMBER 2016
According to Matthew 16, Jesus deliberately took His disciples to that very city to teach them an important lesson. He begins with a question. “Who do men say that I am?” And then His second question. “Who do you say that I am?” And with that Peter responds, “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” And with Peter’s answer, Jesus begins to teach them of the mission of the church that will come into being after He is gone. First, He tells them, “On this rock I will build My church! In the heart of pagan shrines and demonic religions, I will build My church.”
If we could only see matters as Christ saw them. And then the good news. Satan will view this as an onslaught against his kingdom, and will close his gates to you. But his gates will not prevail. AUGUST + SEPTEMBER 2016
And so, to the question of Christian engagement with our culture. If we could only see matters as Christ saw them. Instead lamenting that we are losing the culture that was once Christian, perhaps we have seen it wrongly. Instead of trying to defend our territory, what would it mean if we saw our role as declaring the gospel of the kingdom of God to a lost and dying world? Instead of losing our kids, why not equip our kids, and send them to work places, schools and universities equipped as evangelists and influencers? We might just find the gates of hell groaning under the assault of the message of the gospel.
DR. JOHN NEUFELD is the Canadian Bible Teacher of Back to the Bible Canada, and is well known both nationally and internationally for his excellence in expositional Bible teaching. Dr. Neufeld is passionate about bringing the truth of God’s Word to life across Canada and beyond.
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Be the Salt + Light to the Immigrants in Canada RAFIK DAUDJEE
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mmigrants come to Canada for many reasons but they also come with pain, fears and needs that only Christ can fill. Christ helps fill this through Christians who are alive to God. Christians are loving, caring, laughing and are willing to share and to be involved at the very point of people’s needs. We present a powerful witness for Christ. As Christians, we can be the salt and the light so that those in desperate need and circumstances can taste and see the Lord. At The Salvation Army facility where I work, a refugee came to me to express how thankful he is that we welcomed him and helped. He then told me that the staff are very different at our facility. He noticed that there is something different about the staff. This “difference” he felt and experienced was the salt. The staff loved this man unconditionally and helped him where his need was. We were there for him when he needed assistance, provided shelter,
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offered three meals a day and encouraged him through his refugee process. I believe he got the taste of salt (Jesus) and saw the light. While working with our refugees, I always like to get to know their culture. Many immigrants come with a religion and a culture that is different from our own. Genuinely getting to know their faith and culture is a good step to getting to know them as individual people. It also helps to discover the bridges of faith and culture upon which you can use to reach him. Be careful - our own western culture is seen to be the equivalent by many as “Christian” and this has been a very tragic obstacle to reach out to immigrants as our society at times is contradictory to the Christian belief system. We need to communicate the Gospel in the language and culture that they will understand. One Christian leader befriended a lady in Tim Hortons. During AUGUST + SEPTEMBER 2016
Easter he was planning to invite her to his church program. He wanted my advice. I suggested that he invite her and her family altogether for some tea or food at home rather than his church. The common bridge in all culture is food, home, clothes, education, work and, lastly, prayer. Secondly, we must build friendships that are genuine. For the salt to be effective, it must come out of the container into the world of hurting, dying, suffering, sinning people. Jesus was a friend of sinners. Seeking the Lord will open a door of hospitality or help to reach out to
Christians must be the Good news before they can share the Good news.
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the immigrant. Reach out in prayer. It does not cost you anything to pray. It is powerful and effective. I often ask if they want me to pray; whenever someone tells me to pray for a need, I immediately do it right there. When God answers a prayer in Jesus’ name, the immigrant will begin to open his heart to the Gospel. Lastly, Christians must be the good news before they can share the good news. The words of the Gospel are to be incarnated before they can be shared. Immigrants, when they observe our Christ-like lives, will be attracted to the Gospel much like a magnet.
RAFIK DAUDJEE is currently a counsellor at the Belkin House in Vancouver B.C. where he helps the homeless and needy. Growing up as a Muslim in Tanzania, he eventually had an incredible conversion to Christianity, moved to North America, and began doing ministry.
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Dr. Neufeld’s Daily Bible Reading Plan 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30
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Ezekiel 16-17 / Psalm 36 Ezekiel 18-20 Ezekiel 21-23 Ezekiel 24-26 Ezekiel 27-29 Ezekiel 30-32 2 Kings 25 / 2 Chronicles 36 / Psalm 74 Jeremiah 37-38 / Psalm 46 & 109 Jeremiah 39 & 50-51 / Psalm 80 Jeremiah 52 / Lamentations 1 / Psalm 137 & 79 Lamentations 2-3 / Psalm 70 Lamentations 4-5 / Psalm 81 Jeremiah 40-42 Jeremiah 43-44 / Obadiah Daniel 1-2 / Psalm 112 Daniel 3-4 / Psalm 71 Ezekiel 33-35 Ezekiel 36-38 Ezekiel 39-41 Ezekiel 42-44 / Psalm 99 Ezekiel 45-47 / Psalm 136 Ezekiel 48 / Psalm 147 & 96 & 100 Daniel 5-6 / Psalm 146 Daniel 7-8 / Psalm 149 Daniel 9-10 / Psalm 87 Daniel 11-12 / Psalm 129 Ezra 1-2 / Psalm 84 Ezra 3-4 / Psalm 126 Haggai 1-2 / Zechariah 1 Zechariah 2-4
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OCTOBER 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29 30 31
Zechariah 5-7 Zechariah 8-10 Zechariah 11-14 Ezra 5-6 / Psalm 121 & 122 Esther 1-2 / Psalm 120 Esther 4-6 / Psalm 124 & 125 Esther 7-10 / Psalm 111 Ezra 7-10 / Psalm 67 Nehemiah 1-4 / Psalm 114 Nehemiah 5-7 / Psalm 73 Nehemiah 8-9 / Psalm 119 Nehemiah 10-13 Malachi 1-4 Luke 1 / John 1:1-18 / Psalm 110 & 150 Luke 2 / Matthew 1-2 / Psalm 113 Matthew 3 / Luke 3 / Mark 1 / Psalm 117 John 1:19-51 / Matt 4 / Luke 4:1-15 / John 2 John 3 / Luke 4:16-44 / John 4 / Psalm 23 Luke 5 / Mark 2 / John 5 / Psalm 131 Mark 3 / Luke 6-7 Matthew 5-7 Luke 7 / Matthew 8 / Luke 8 Mark 4 / Matthew 9-10 Matthew 11-13 Mark 5-6 / Luke 9 Matthew 14 / John 6 / Psalm 93 & 123 Matthew 15 / Mark 7 / Matthew 16 Mark 8 / Matthew 17-18 Mark 9 / John 7-8 Luke 10 / John 9-10 Luke 11-13
GIVE THANKS TO THE LORD, FOR HE IS GOOD! HIS FAITHFUL LOVE ENDURES FOREVER. PSALM 136:1
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SEPTEMBER
2016
AUGUST + SEPTEMBER 2016
featureD series this month From Creation to Creation – a series introducing the book of Revelation from Dr. John Neufeld
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Welcome Claira PHIL CALLAWAY
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t was 3:45 PM when my son Jeff left me a voicemail: “We’re heading to the hospital. Likely a false alarm. It’s three weeks early. I wouldn’t worry at all. Last time you had to sit in the waiting room for about a week, remember?” I did remember. Eighteen months ago, my son and his wife Raelyn were out hunting moose when her water broke – not the moose’s water, but Raelyn’s. We waited days for our first grandchild. I guess that’s why they call it a waiting room. We ate pizza. We watched all 84 episodes of Downton Abbey. So this time, I wasn’t worried. But still I called my son at 4:00 p.m. “How’s it going?” “Well, the nurse thinks it won’t happen until midnight.” “Take care,” I said. “I mean, cast all your care on God. We’ll pray.” And we did. We prayed the prayer
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we’d been praying for eight months and three weeks: that this baby would be okay and that God would use this child to bring some light into the world. The text came at 4:47: “Going into delivery. Better come.” Two minutes later: “Come now. Hurry.” Then, 19 minutes later: “Baby is here. Bring pizza!” On the way to the hospital, my wife Ramona recounted the births of our three. It kept me focused. When our first child was on the way, she was determined there be no medication. But when it started, she insisted they medicate me. Then, four hours into delivery, she said, “I want drugs. Give me lots and lots of drugs.” So they did. She woke up when the boy was in grade three. Claira is our third grandchild, all of them girls. I’m setting up a barbed wire fence to keep the boys out, and I’ve been scoping out pink golf clubs. AUGUST + SEPTEMBER 2016
You can teach a child to swing a club at six months, you know. Is there anything quite like the birth of a child to remind us that we live in a crazy world? A culture that insists on ignoring the old boundary markers? The phrase “And everyone did what was right in his own eyes” pretty much sums it up.
Is there anything quite like the birth of a child to remind us that we live in a crazy world? But as I held a sleeping Claira and her wide-eyed big sister in my arms that night, I sang a little song Twila Paris taught me: “This is no time for fear. This is a time for faith and determination. God is in control. We believe that his children will not AUGUST + SEPTEMBER 2016
be forsaken.” Culture can make its plan, but the line never changes. No matter how the deception may fly. “There is one thing that has always been true. It will be true forever. God is in control. We will choose to remember and never be shaken. There is no power above or beside him we know. God is in control.” Welcome Claira Beatrice Callaway, five pounds, 13 ounces. It’s a crazy planet you’ve landed on, but God is here. I am, too. You’re gonna like me a lot! Twila Paris, “God Is In Control,” in Beyond a Dream, Star Song Records, 1993.
Phil Callaway is the host of the hit radio show Laugh Again, and an award-winning author and speaker.
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ASK PHIL Have a question for Phil Callaway? Now’s your chance to ask it! Visit Laughagain.ca/AskPhil and submit your question. This fall, Phil will answer select questions in a Facebook live event. Be watching our Facebook page and website for updates.
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The First Step in Engaging Culture ISAAC DAGNEAU
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ow should a Christian engage culture? At first glance, this question seems simple, but after clarifying the terms used, it becomes a lot larger than you think. When each word is defined in this question, it becomes, “How does a son or daughter of God, who follows and worships Christ through the Spirit in community, participate and involve oneself in the majority of people’s mindsets, attitudes and behaviours in the arts, entertainment, religion, politics, etc., in a specific area and time?” So how do we answer this large question? Instead of attempting to answer it in full, let’s simply take the first step: realigning our vision. Our vision is what we look to every day – our goals and purpose. This is our first step because your vision directly impacts your engagement in this world. Think about it. If your vision is
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yourself, then every way you engage with this world is for the purpose of pleasing or gratifying you. You’re probably catching on by now, but the only way we can engage culture like Christians is if we have Jesus as our vision. When Jesus is our vision, we naturally become right-minded. We need this right mind to engage culture.
When Jesus is our vision, we naturally become rightminded. We need this right mind to engage culture. Alright, so how do we realign our vision to Christ? In the letter to the Philippians, AUGUST + SEPTEMBER 2016
Paul gives a beautiful, theological and poetic portrait of Jesus. In Philippians 2:6-11, known as the “Hymn of Christ,” Paul emphasizes Jesus’ ultimate humility and exaltation. “[Jesus], who, though He was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, He humbled Himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even death on a cross. Therefore, God has highly exalted Him and bestowed on Him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.” Before Paul writes this poem, he urges the church to be unified, AUGUST + SEPTEMBER 2016
humble in spirit and others-oriented – followed by, “Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus.”(Philippians 2:5) You see, a right mind looks like being unified as a church, humble in spirit and others-oriented. Why? Because this is the mind of Christ, and Paul is now saying that it’s ours! He then goes on to show us what Christ did so that we’d look to Him, which then leads us to live in that rightmindedness. This right mind is essential for engaging culture, but it first takes a vision set on Christ. Remind yourself daily of Christ’s ultimate humiliation on the cross and His ultimate exaltation from the Father. That’s what keeps your vision set on Christ. ISSAC DAGNEAU is the leader of indoubt, a ministry of the GNBAC that seeks to bring God’s Word into the lives of youth and young adults through creative media arts.
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At indoubt we help young adults tackle real life issues with biblical truth. Have you heard our PODCAST? Listen to a new episode every Monday, plus the latest blog articles and videos. Visit indoubt.ca The 2017 SCRIPTURE CALENDAR from Back to the Bible Canada PLACES THAT CHANGED OUR FAITH | 500th Anniversary of the Reformation Featuring beautiful photographs and a daily Bible reading plan from Dr. John Neufeld.
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A
t no time in history have cultural movements been more influential – and inflammatory. Much of what we observe on social media and news stories is about protest. There seems to be endless groups parading and marching, brandishing shocking signs, shouting for attention, laying blame and rallying against opposition. If the protest lasts long enough, it becomes a movement.
great” and to live “free” helped pave the road to complete despair. By the time I was 30, I was hopelessly addicted to drugs, had left my career in journalism and, for a few months, I was even homeless. It was six years ago I finally surrendered my whole life to go Jesus’ way at a place called Recovery Church. He set me free from addiction and put me on an amazing journey through abundant life.
I remember my own time, as a young non-believer with an idealistic (and rebellious) heart, trekking through Vancouver in a few marches and political protests. Based on my “activism,” I ranted at home about what gasoline my parents should put in their cars, argued vehemently on behalf of anyone’s rights and stated that traditional marriage was plain dumb. In those days, my mom was afraid I might come home with a dope-smoking cult member in tow. What actually happened was worse – my quest to be a part of “something
During my decade as an addict, I got caught up in Vancouver’s Harm Reduction movement - then in its early stages, but today very much part of popular culture. It’s designed to bring less harm to addicted people. I had lived under the influence of its approach, through a doctorprescribed drug called methadone, designed to keep people from craving opiates. It is highly addictive and must be taken daily. It has big value on the street and there’s potential for overdose. Methadone does help to mitigate some of the dangers
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Keri Vermeulen
Protesting The Times KERI VERMEULEN
associated with addiction, such as decreased criminal activity and disease. But it doesn’t present the option of complete freedom available through Christ. Isn’t that the way with most movements, whether it’s about recognizing 101 gender identities, providing free drugs to addicts, or racial and political protests? It’s not that the ideals behind many of these movements aren’t good - often they are - it’s that they sweep over us in a slow tidal wave of secular religiosity. Present a different viewpoint, and you become the enemy. So how do we stand up for the Jesus Way in this culture of protest movements? In my case, when I finally came off of methadone (with God’s power), I was angry at the system that kept me bound. I wanted to protest! To shout out against harm-reduction policies and tell them they were wrong! But God got hold of my opinionated heart. “Do not protest, walk among them.” AUGUST + SEPTEMBER 2016
Following Jesus is not a cultural movement, nor a protest against the world. It is unmatched freedom that comes from personal decision. The only way to present that to culture is to get close to it. A friend of mine at Recovery Church saw my journey with God to freedom and followed suit by coming off of methadone a year later. But she didn’t do it because I told her she was wrong. She did it because I showed her it was possible. There are people on the front lines of movements who need to see Christ. Let’s move around in culture, being careful not to get caught up in protest or argument. Show Jesus is the source of change, freedom and peace, by living it outwardly. Shine.
KERI VERMEULEN is editor of the Light Magazine, and owner of Shine Write, a content and copywriting business. Although she is sometimes prone to argue her own opinion, she has become more accustomed to following the peace and wisdom found in Jesus - even when it means being quiet.
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