GraceNotes 2.2 (November 2016)

November 2016

GRACENOTES Equipping the Saints of Grace Bible Fellowship

Serving in the Church By

JR Cuevas

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Is Mormonism Just Another Christian Denomination?

By

Derek Brown

Being a member of a church is different than being a member of 24-Hour Fitness. For one, church membership doesn’t require paying a mandatory annual fee. Also, church membership calls for submission to a particular group of elders with regard to appropriate spheres of life. Still yet, a gym membership doesn’t require service, while church membership does.

Over the years as I’ve witnessed to and talked to Mormons, I have always made it my goal in our conversation to demonstrate that Mormonism and Christianity are two entirely different religions.

The reason I take this approach is because Mormons call themselves Christians, use Christian terms, and claim to be the restored (i.e., true) church of Jesus Christ. These claims are confusing, both to practicing Mormons and those with whom they converse.

Christian living cannot be addressed apart from involvement in the life of the local church. And church involvement cannot be addressed apart from serving. Serving God through serving one another is one of the most basic tenets of biblical discipleship. And yet, it doesn’t require strong investigative skills to find a church with members sitting in the pews who aren’t serving anyone or anywhere. In my personal observation, there are several reaMeet the Saamssons why the lack of serving in the church is Hoys 4 so prevalent amongst American Christians.

First, we mistakenly A Biblical View of view church with a Government 9 consumeristic perspective; in our church involvement, we’ve beGBF’s Philosophy come more interested of Evangelism 10 in gaining rather than in giving. Second, we confuse serving in the church with volunteer work for the community. Third, we mistake service with work. Fourth, we wrongly esteem certain forms of service in the church above others—particularly those roles that are more visible and involve some sense of teaching or leading.

My goal is the same for this brief article. I want you to see clearly that Mormonism is not a branch or denomination of Christianity, but that it is, in fact, something entirely different. I want you to see that Mormonism is, in the final analysis, a false religion that holds no resemblance whatsoever to historic Christianity.

In This Issue

It is necessary, then, to examine the Scriptures’ perspective toward servanthood in the church. What, then, does the Bible have to say about serving in the life of the Christian? First, serving in the church is mandated. 1 Pe Continued on page 13

Joseph Smith: The Founder of Mormonism In order to understand Mormonism, you must first understand its founder, Joseph Smith (1805-1844). Despite his status as a prophet of God in the Mormon Church and the high esteem to which contemporary Mormons ascribe to him, history yields a picture this man is far from flattering. Indeed, the historical record indicates that Smith was a polygamist, false prophet, and occultist. Personally, he was an exceedingly proud man who boasted much of his own insight into divine things and who eventually died in a blaze of gunfire as he sought to escape his captors by the use of lethal force.

Mormons have sought to distance themselves from their founder’s checkered past and character by attempting to depict a man who was both devout and wise, and who endured persecution for the sake of righteousness and died as a martyr. The unfavorable facts remain, however, and the truth is that Mormonism’s founder fails on multiple levels as a trustworthy man or a prophet sent by God. Nevertheless, Joseph Smith remains central to Mormonism and Mormon teachers recognize Smith as the cornerstone of the religion. Former president of the LDS church, Joseph Fielding Smith (1876-1972) accurately conveys the weight that Smith carries in the Mormon Church when he commented: “Mormonism, as it is called, must stand or fall on the story of Joseph Smith.

He was either a prophet of God, divinely called, properly appointed, and commissioned, or he was one of the biggest frauds this world has ever seen. There is no middle ground.” Tragically, Smith has been shown over and over to fail at every category Continued on page 12

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The Pastor’s Study “Your church is either growing or dying; there’s no in-between.” I’ll never forget when an experienced pastor said this at a pastor’s conference I once attended years ago. He was right. Churches are dynamic—composed of people who are complex, complicated, organic, changing, unpredictable. No church stays static or linear long-term.

Every church leader wants the church to grow. Growth is not bad; growth implies progress and many times is a sign of health. Living things need to grow; if they are not growing, then they are dying. The New Testament advocates spiritual growth, individual growth and corporate growth.

Peter the Apostle wanted individual Christians to grow personally in their faith and so exhorted them, “like newborn babies, long for the pure milk of the word, so that by it you may grow in respect to salvation” (1 Peter 2:2). The Apostle Paul wanted the church to grow corporately, local churches as well as the universal church, and so he wrote to the churches of his day saying, we are to grow up in all aspects into Him who is the head, even Christ, from whom the whole body, being fitted and held together by what every joint supplies, according to the proper working of each individual part, causes the growth of the body for the building up of itself in love (Ephesians 4:15-16).

God Himself is an advocate of spiritual growth, as He has been building His church for 2,000 years, with the goal of bringing it to full maturity some day. Paul describes the corporate body of Christ, the church, as a spiritual temple that God is growing: “the whole building, being fitted together, is growing into a holy temple in the Lord, in whom you also are being built together into a dwelling of God in the Spirit” (Eph 2:21-22). Additionally, Jesus’ last words to His disciples before He went back to heaven amounted to a mandate for spiritual growth, or spiritual reproduction, known more commonly as the Great Commission (Matt 28:18-20). Jesus commanded His disciples to go into all the world, preach the gospel, win converts, advance the kingdom, baptize new disciples, plant churches, spread the Word, infiltrate every corner of the world with His gospel, and reproduce. That is growth.

The disciples took Jesus at His Word and they obeyed.

They did not recoil into a holy huddle in Jerusalem, remaining a cul-de-sac of the privileged few, hoarding gospel truth and blessings to themselves. They aggressively went into the community, beginning in their own backyard, and saw explosive growth, beginning in Jerusalem and then

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Real Ch u

spreading all the way to Rome and Spain. Twentieth-century America did not invent the “mega-church.” The first church in Jerusalem quickly became a mega-church.

The first church started with 120 people on the day of Pentecost, fifty days after the Passover when Christ died (Acts 1:15; 2:1). Peter preached the gospel that day to a huge crowd of Jews and 3,000 people responded, believed, were baptized and added to the first church in Jerusalem! Just like that, they became a mega-church.

Within a few days the church grew even more at a rapid rate as “the Lord was adding to their number day by day those who were being saved” (Acts 2:27). Notice, the church was growing as “saved” people were joining; it was not growing by having unsaved seekers attend.

Peter and John were key elders in this first church. And as they preached in the community they found resistance and were arrested. Nevertheless, God blessed the preaching of the gospel and the first mega-church grew even bigger, quickly expanding to 5,000 men, not counting women and children (Acts 4:4). By today’s count, the first church of Jerusalem then had 15,000 plus people. All this amazing growth happened within months of the church’s existence!

The Modern Church Growth Movement It is clear that God and the Bible are not opposed to church growth. But when we talk of “church growth” today there is much confusion and misunderstanding. Church growth today usually does not represent the model of church growth found in the New Testament. “Church growth” today refers to a movement; a distinct philosophy and a stigmatized method, personified in a few prominent personalities. Much of what passes for church growth philosophy today is driven by secular man-made principles that issue primarily from sociological observations, marketing schemes and corporate business models. These customer-driven ideals are then integrated with some biblical jargon and then are passed off and propagated as being Christian in nature, when in fact they are not.

The church growth movement of today is ubiquitous and amorphous—it seems to have leaked out everywhere into mainstream American Christianity and is not monolithic in nature, so it’s difficult to profile. It has many faces and countless proponents and advocates. It’s ecumenical in appeal, pragmatic in application, non-doctrinal in its content, and as a result it acclimates across a wide spectrum of denominations, churches and parachurch organizations. The church growth philosophy continues to mushroom, morph, and reconstitute itself as time goes on,

GraceNotes

Volume 2 , Number 2

urch Growth

by Cliff McManis

so what it emphasizes today differs somewhat from when it first began in the 1950’s.

Back to the Bible With respect to the current dialogue, and confusion, over church growth there is an urgent need to go back to the unchanging gauge of truth in the Bible. For the Scriptures clearly outline the key to church growth. And the main truth about church growth came from the lips of Jesus Christ, the Architect, Lord and Savior of the church. It is found in Matthew 16:18 where He declared emphatically to Peter, “I also say to you that you are Peter, and upon this rock I will build My church; and the gates of Hades will not overpower it.”

Every Christian, especially pastors and church leaders, should desire growth in the church. But that growth needs to be properly defined. Increasing enrollment is not necessarily true growth. Big numbers do not equate with truth or success automatically.

For example, the largest religion in the world is Islam, which boasts more than one billion adherents. Islam is growing numerically, but not because it is being blessed by God. On the contrary, Islam is a false religion and an enemy of the truth, God and the church (John 10:1; Matthew 7:15-16; 1 John 2:21-23; 4:1-6). The same could be said for Mormonism which continues to be one of the fastest growing religions in America. So the litmus test for true, biblical growth is not determined by a superficial tally of heads in the church pews on any given Sunday.

In fact, just the opposite scenario may be true, for the Lord Jesus Himself said, “Enter through the narrow gate; for the gate is wide and the way is broad that leads to destruction, and there are many who enter through it. For the gate is small and the way is narrow that leads to life, and there are few who find it” (Matt 7:1314). Simply put, Jesus said that there are more people choosing to go into false religion, which leads to hell, than there are who go into the true church, which leads to salvation. True believers will always be in the minority—few will find it.

Jesus Himself did not experience massive sustaining growth over the course of His three-year ministry. All but a few rejected Him and screamed for His blood. John says categorically that “He came to His own, and those who were His own did not receive Him” (John 1:11). The apostle Paul, church planter and evangelist extraordinaire, was accustomed to rejection, slow results, and even desertion on the mission field and even in church ministry. At the end of his

Contents 1 Serving in the Church

By JR Cuevas 1 Is Mormonism Just Another Christian Denomination?

By Derek Brown 2 The Pastor’s Study : Church Growth

By Cliff McManis 4 Meet the Members : The Saams-Hoys Interview with Breanna McManis 6 Biblical Foundations | The Person of Christ

By JR Cuevas 7 Song Spotlight | “Come Praise and Glorifiy”

By Austin Thompson 8 A Biblical View of Government

By Cliff McManis 10 GBF’s Philosophy of Evangelism

By GBF Elders 14 Meet the Staff | Derek Brown Interview by Breanna McManis 18 Greater Than the Sum of its Parts

By Stanford Student 20 ENGAGE | Pornography’s War on You and Your Neighbor

By Derek Brown

Editor-in-Chief Cliff McManis Managing Editor Derek Brown Associate Editors Breanna McManis J. R. Cuevas Advisory Board Bob Douglas, Sam Kim, Tim Wong, Peter Lam

Continued on page 17

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Meet the Member Interview with

up in Christian homes Robert: I grew up in more of a religious environment.

Deloris: I grew up in a Christian home, but it was primarily driven by my mom. My dad believed, and to this day I have hope that he did die a believer, but church was so pushed and pushed for him that he didn’t go to church much when we were growing up. I remember taking the Liberty Baptist bus to church, sometimes by myself. Growing up, my mom would always say to me and my brothers and sisters, “If you can go out on Saturday, you’ve got to get up and go to church on Sunday.”

Deloris: I was with three other girlfriends. We cruised every year, and that happened to be our European cruise.

We were not assigned to Robert’s area—we preferred the late seating because we liked to go out on the porch and didn’t want to have to rush. They had to assign us to early seating, and we kind of went and complained. They told us, “Go to the early seating, we’ll send you a note, and once you have that note we’ll have something set up for you for the evening.” That day, before we even went to dinner, they said we could go to the late seating, which was in Robert’s area, and he was our waiter. We were served very well!

Robert: I was like, “Why is this lady still staying after dinner? I need to clean my table and go to sleep!”

Deloris: Don’t believe that! He could only have conversations with us when we were at his station.

So we would stay late (we were always the last ones to leave) so we could talk! That was his game.

When the trip was ending, I told him, “We can call it what it is, a seven day ‘romance,’ if you want.” And he was like, “No, I’m going to call you.” And that was actually the first cruise I left sad—so sad! We talked on the phone one day for about three or four hours until the security came and told him to get off. After we got back, he called, and kept calling.

So we met in August; in September he said he was going to come visit, he came out in January, and in February we were married!

? How did the two of you meet, and when were you

? How many kids do you have, and what are their names

? Where did you both grow up

Deloris: I grew up in San Jose, California. I still live in the same house I grew up in. I have never left, not even for school.

Robert: I grew up in Colombia, the Spanish speaking country in northwest South America. I lived there until I was nineteen.

? When and how were both of you saved

Deloris: I was ten and I was going to St. Paul Baptist Church in San Jose. And that’s when I was baptized as well.

Robert: I was about thirteen or fourteen. I grew up around church stuff like ringing the bell in the church, offering, etc. I re-dedicated my life about twenty times until I got ahold of John MacArthur’s teaching and understood the true gospel.

I think that was at the age of thirty-two.

? Did you both grow

married Robert: We met in Barcelona on August 21st, 1998, aboard the cruise ship, Vision of the Seas. I worked as a waiter on the ship.

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and ages Deloris: We have three. Marilyn is twenty-six; Isaiah is fifteen; Maya is twelve.

ers: The Saams-Hoys Breanna McManis

? How did you find GBF

Robert: We found GBF after visiting about fifteen churches in San Jose.

Deloris: We used to go to Jubilee, and eventually we realized that it wasn’t the church for us. So we started looking around and visiting different churches, and it was really tiring and disjointed. We didn’t feel connected either to a church or to each other. And then I called Grace Community Church and asked if they could recommend a church, and they referred me to their website where it lists some of their graduates. Because Robert had really gotten into reading and listening to John MacArthur, I thought we should look for a church that was like-minded, and it showed GBF. And the same weekend we came to visit, he also had a voicemail from the Martinez family recommending the same church.

? When did you become members

Deloris: We came here in 2007. We had joined another church, and it seemed like we were joining churches really fast. After talking with Pastor Cliff, we told him we didn’t feel comfortable with joining right away. He told us to not to rush. He said, “Take your time and see if this church is for you.” That’s what we did, and it was just shortly after 2008 that we became members. ? What ministries are you both involved in Robert: I’m a deacon and I’m in charge of the ushers and greeters.

Deloris: I’m involved in the women’s ministry, I do the book cart, and I help in the nursery. I also help out with the meal trains when needed and GBF Camp.

? What have been the biggest blessings that you have

experienced during your time at GBF Robert: Meeting new people every Sunday. Every Sunday, there is a new person that comes from somewhere. I can guarantee that every Sunday there is somebody new coming though those doors. It’s nice to just meet people and ask how they heard about us, if they know anyone, and what made them come.

Deloris: For me, it would be the feeling of closeness. We come from a church that was 10,000 people and they still don’t necessarily know that we’re not going there. But here, if we’re not here a certain Sunday, people will ask if we’re okay. There’s always someone I can call or text or send an email to if something is going wrong and I need to ask for prayer.

Robert: And of course the teaching is a blessing, too. We have a pastor-teacher who is faithful to teach the Word Sunday after Sunday, and if he’s not available, somebody else is faithfully teaching. So I would say the greatest blessing is that we are going to a Bible teaching church.

After getting exposed to Dr. John MacArthur’s doctrine and theology, that’s the least we can ask for—the constant teaching of the Word of God. Deloris: And I would say, in addition to that, another blessing was some counseling that we had received from Pastor Cliff early on that helped mend some pieces that were not as strong as they had been. That was a very big blessing as it was a dark time for us when we weren’t sure where we were going to go or how to deal with the influences and friends that we still had. We were trying to distinguish between staying connected and not going to that church anymore and no longer following that teaching. So that was a big blessing and a very big help for me.

? What do you both do for a living

Robert: I work in the medical field for Kaiser. I started off in the emergency room and now I’m in the surgical recovery department as a nurse assistant.

Deloris: And I work in sales and marketing, which I’ve done since college.

? What is something that most people at GBF don’t

know about you Robert: I don’t think most people know that I was adopted. That’s why missions and orphanages and those kinds of things are a must-do for me.

Deloris: I’m the youngest of seven kids. And in my family, I’m often considered the “bossiest.”

Robert: Or maybe strong-willed! ? How can the GBF body be praying for you Deloris: For me, I have a lot of family members under attack right now. So pray for their salvation. I also have a brother who recently died from cancer, and I have a niece who is unmarried but just had her first child who was born premature. So pray for their health as well.

Robert: And also continue to pray for our faithfulness in serving in the church and in everyday life. And pray for us to be good stewards and lights in our community and workplace. Pray that God would use us in the everyday work setting so that people can see Christ in us.

Deloris: Another prayer is making sure that we don’t over-extend ourselves, and just for God to sustain us. †

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Biblical Foundations | The Person of Jesus Christ

By JR Cuevas Who is Jesus Christ? Can you think of a more fundamental question? What separates a Christian from a non-Christian is how he responds to Jesus Christ Himself. The salvation of a sinner depends not on the morality of his deeds or his faithfulness to his religion. What rescues a man from hell and ushers him into heaven is not his level of piety or even “spirituality,” but how He thinks of and responds to Jesus Christ. And responding appropriately to Christ depends fundamentally on understanding His nature. A.W. Tozer once said, “What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us.”

And what comes to mind when a person thinks about God is revealed by what comes to mind when he thinks about Jesus Christ.

Most would agree that Jesus did, in fact, exist. That Jesus was born around 4-5 BC, began his public ministry at age 30, and was publicly crucified three years later is undisputed as a historical fact by both Christians and non-Christians. What is widely disputed is not His existence, but His identity and nature. Was Christ God? Was Christ a human?

Was He both? Was He neither? Was He a hybrid of the two?

Did He continually switch from one form to the other? Was He an angel? Jews, Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses, Roman Catholics, Muslims, Hindus, Agnostics, One-ness Pentecostals, Modalists, Unitarians, Buddhists, and Humanists all have their perspectives and opinions on the Jesus’ identity.

Survey any mainstream American university regarding the same question Christ posed to Peter, “Who do you say that I am?” and prepare yourself for a plethora of answers just as it was amongst ancient Palestinians. But in the same way that the identity of my parents, DNA, and ethnicity is not a matter of popular opinion but factual truth, the same holds true for the identity and nature of Jesus Christ. Our duty as men is not to decide who Jesus is and what He was like, but rather to discern His identity accurately.

In Matthew 16:16, Peter answered correctly: “You are the Christ, the Son of the living God.” Jesus was more than a teacher, prophet, preacher, and healer. He was the Son of God. Philippians 2:5-7 expounds on the very nature of Christ and provides doctrines we can’t afford to ignore: Have this attitude in yourselves which was also in Christ Jesus, who although He existed in the form of God, did not regard equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied Himself, taking the form of a bond-servant, and being made into the likeness of men (emphasis added).

These verses could not be more straightforward. That Christ existed in the form of God means that He is God; that he was made into the likeness of men means that He is man. So what exactly was the nature of Christ? He was fully God and fully man. The Scriptures attest to both the full deity and fully humanity of Christ in what theologians

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have called a hypostatic union.

Christ was not partially God, but fully God. Colossians 1:19 states that it was the Father’s good pleasure for “all the fullness to dwell in Him.” Colossians 2:9 follows up, saying that “all the fullness of Deity dwells in bodily form.” Christ was not a lesser form of God, but the only God Himself—equal to and sharing the same glory as the Father (John 5:18; John 17:5; Phil 2:6). Though He did not always publicly exercise His divine attributes or rights, at no point in His earthly life did Christ ever cease to be God. Thus, to Him the Scriptures apply divine names (Isa 9:6; Isa 45:23; John 1:1; John 20:28; Phil 2:911; Titus 2:13). To Jesus also are applied divine attributes such as omnipresence (Matt 28:20), immutability (Heb 13:8), omnipotence (Luke 8:25), and omniscience (Col 2:13, Isa 40:28). And to Him are applied divine works such as the creation of the universe (Col 1:16) and forgiveness of sins (Mk 2:10). And to Him are applied divine claims (Matt 16:19; John 8:58; Rev 1:8).

What separates Christ from every other religious figure in the history of humanity is that, unlike every other religious figure, Christ is God Himself. As God, He has neither a beginning nor an end. As God, He is the sovereign creator and sustainer of the universe. As God, He is perfect and holy, without sin.

Yet, that Christ was without sin does not take away from the fullness of His humanity. Christ did not exist as a partial man but as a full man. Hebrews 2:14 says that just as man is made of flesh and blood, so Christ “likewise also partook of the same,” implying that He Himself also existed in flesh and blood. Hebrews 2:17 states that Christ “had to be made like His brethren in all things.” He was, in other words, a human being in the same way that you and I are human beings. Christ had a human life cycle: He was born as an infant of a woman (Luke 2:7) and developed in both physical maturity and wisdom (Luke 2:40, 52). He had human physical experiences, was made of blood and water (John 19:34) and experienced hunger, (Matt 4:2; John 19:28), fatigue (Luke 8:23) and stress (Luke 22:44). He also experienced human temptations (Heb 2:18; 4:14; 12:3-4).

Both the reality of Christ’s deity and humanity has redemptive implications for the Christian. Christ was able to accomplish substitutionary atonement because He is both fully God and fully man. His deity enabled Christ’s once-and-for-all death to atone for the sins of all of humanity who believe in Him over the course of all generations (Heb 7:23-28). His full humanity qualified Him to atone for man as a man, flesh for flesh, blood for blood (Lev 17:11; Heb 2:14-15). If Christ was not God, He would not have been able to die once for all of humanity who believe in him and satisfy the justice of God. If Christ was not man, He would not have been able to die in the place of man.

For this reason, “there is salvation in no one else; for there is no other name under heaven that has been given among men by which we must be saved” (Acts 4:12).†

Song Spotlight |“Come Praise and Glorify”

By Austin Thompson This November, I will complete my fifth quarter at the Cornerstone Seminary. My studies there have been an incredible blessing, and I am grateful for the privilege to study and think deeply about the truths of God’s Word with faithful men serving in vocational ministry in all areas of northern California. Over the course of my interaction with Community Bible Church and the seminary, I have observed that “Come Praise and Glorify” by Sovereign Grace is frequently sung with joyful and unmatched enthusiasm by the congregation.

In all honesty, I was not very impressed with this song the first time that I heard it, and it took me a few listens to get the melody down. It wasn’t until I was half way through my Ecclesiology class that I started to understand just how remarkable the song is as a whole. Throughout the quarter, we were required to read the book of Ephesians each week before class. The more familiar that I grew with Paul’s epistle, it suddenly hit me during chapel that the lyrics to “Come Praise and Glorify” were taken straight from the first chapter.

Paul writes in Colossians 3:16, “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” The word of Christ in Ephesians dwelt richly in my thoughts and devotions during that season, and as a result my affection for this song was bolstered and I sang with thankfulness in my heart to God for His sovereign work in the salvation of my soul.

Come praise and glorify our God The Father of our Lord In Christ He has in heav’nly realms His blessings on us poured For pure and blameless in His sight He destined us to be And now we’ve been adopted through His Son eternally God’s people are commanded to praise Him as Lord for His mighty deeds and excellent greatness (Ps 150:1-2), which is seen most fully through His redemptive plan in Christ Jesus (Eph 1:3). Having been chosen by God before the foundation of the world (Rom 8:29), believers are adopted as sons through Christ (1 Jn 3:1), resulting in their holy and blameless status before the Father (Eph 1:4-5).

This adoption is eternal in nature, and nothing can separate born-again believers from God’s love that is in Christ

Jesus the Lord (Rom 8:38-39; John 10:27-29).

Come praise and glorify our God Who gives His grace in Christ In Him our sins are washed away Redeemed through sacrifice In Him God has made known to us The myst’ry of His will That Christ should be the head of all His purpose to fulfill

All men are saved through the grace of the Lord Jesus (Acts 15:11), a gracious gift from God the Father (Eph 2:8-9). The hope of a believer rests in the blood of Christ, which redeems (Eph 1:7) and cleanses from all sin (1 John 1:7). It is through Christ that God made known to us the mystery of His will, which is the summing up of all things in Christ (Eph 1:9-10). As a result of Christ’s atoning work God has exalted Him above all things (Phil 2:8-11), including the Church where He is the Head of the body (Eph 1:22-23).

Come praise and glorify our God For we’ve believed the Word And through our faith we have a seal The Spirit of the Lord The Spirit guarantees our hope Until redemptions done Until we join in endless praise To God, the Three in One Scripture is clear that faith comes by hearing, and hearing by the Word of Christ (Rom 10:17). When unbelievers hear the content of the gospel message, recognizes their need for a Savior, repent, and believe in the gospel, they are saved from their sin and sealed with the Holy Spirit as a promise of their future inheritance in Christ (Eph 1:13-14). No longer dead in their sins, believers have been made alive in Christ (Eph 2:1-5) and rest in the assurance of eternal life (1 Jn 5:20). When the saints of God are at last glorified, they will join in the everlasting praise of the Triune God forever (Rev 4:8).

To the praise of His glory To the praise of His mercy and grace To the praise of His glory You are the God who saves Modern praise music tends towards repetition, especially in the chorus, which can be good or bad based on the con Continued on page 19

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A Biblical View

By Cliff When forming a biblical view of government the most important principle to keep in mind is this: God ordained human government. First Peter 2:11-17 and Romans 13:1-7 provide the foundations for developing a biblical view of government and supply the principles from which everything else should flow. As we examine briefly Peter’s first letter, it is important to keep in mind that he lived under the authority of the Roman government in 64 A.D.—a hostile, pagan government ruled by Emperor Nero that required its citizens to bow the knee to the Caesar and honor him as deity. The call to bow the knee to Caesar would have been a direct compromise to their faith and something Christians at the time would not tolerate. Yet, to refuse worship to Nero would have led to their unjust execution. Nevertheless, Peter instructs his people to submit themselves to this wicked government.

Beloved, I urge you as aliens and strangers to abstain from fleshly lusts which wage war against the soul…Submit yourselves for the Lord’s sake to every human institution, whether to a king as the one in authority, or to governors as sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right. For such is the will of God that by doing right you may silence the ignorance of foolish men. Act as free men, and do not use your freedom as a covering for evil, but use it as bondslaves of God. Honor all people, love the brotherhood, fear God, honor the king” (Pet 2:11-17).

In this text, Peter addresses Christians, and he beseeches them to submit to political authority. They are not overthrow the government, be rabble-rousers, create civil disobedience, or become vigilantes. Remember: Peter’s king slaughtered Christians.

Romans 13 provides a similar exhortation from the Apostle Paul regarding what should constitute a Christian attitude toward government: Every person is to be in subjection to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those which exist are established by God. Therefore whoever resists authority has opposed the ordinance of God; and they who have opposed will receive condemnation upon them-

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selves. For rulers are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Do you want to have no fear of authority? Do what is good and you will have praise from the same; for it is a minister of God to you for good. But if you do what is evil, be afraid; for it does not bear the sword for nothing; for it is a minister of God, an avenger who brings wrath on the one who practices evil. Therefore it is necessary to be in subjection, not only because of wrath, but also for conscience’ sake. For because of this you also pay taxes, for rulers are servants of God, devoting themselves to this very thing. Render to all what is due them: tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom; fear to whom fear; honor to whom honor. (Rom 13:1-7).

Paul is not referring to a Christian government in this text; he is referring to the ruling government—the pagan, unbelieving, sometimes hostile, often compromising government that was in force during the writing of the New Testament. Yet Paul says the exact same thing as Peter. Incredibly, he is specifically referring to a government that would eventually behead him for being a Christian.

Paul also teaches us every country, nation, king, or governor that exists is placed in that position of authority specifically by God—including the good, the bad, or the ugly. This texts tells us that God sovereignly determines who will be in a position of authority. It also explains that if you break the law, you will suffer the consequences of the law, and the government has the right to punish you. If you do not want to have fear of authority or government intrusion, do what is good and right.

Paul uses interesting terminology when he refers to governmental authorities as “ministers of God” and “servants of God.” This means that police officers are ministers of God. Soldiers are ministers of God. Government officials are ministers of God. They were given that authority by God who delegated it to them as a stewardship responsibility.

They are accountable to God the Creator for it. While they may wrongly abuse such authority, they remain accountable to God the Creator to serve with justice and in accordance to the law. This includes every single person who serves in a civil and leadership capacity, which is why Paul calls them

of Government Mc Manis “ministers” or “servants” on behalf of God, for your good.

God has allowed and delegated the authority to execute judgment, including the death penalty, to governing authorities. God instituted the death penalty during the days of Noah long before the Mosaic Law (see Gen 9:6).

When I hear pacifist Christians claim that capital punishment is wrong, unloving, unchristian, and not what Christ believed in, I point them to this particular text in Genesis where God specifically institutes the death penalty as something that can be justly executed by local governments.

As a matter of fact, God instituted the death penalty in Genesis 2:16-17 when He told Adam that he would die if he ate of the forbidden fruit. The death penalty has been in force from God’s point of view ever since Adam’s disobedience, and it is even reaffirmed by Jesus in the New Testament (see Luke 13:5). It came from God, and when Jesus returns again in Revelation 19:11, He will be coming, not as a Suffering Servant, but as a warrior to fight against His enemies and execute the death penalty upon them. It is the biblical position that Paul affirms in this text when he says that God gave them government authority to “bear the sword” as a minister of God. Governing officials are to serve as avengers who bring wrath and justice upon those who practice evil.

Notice also that Paul refers to governmental authorities as “ministers” or “servants” of God in Romans 13. You might be thinking, “Well, they sure don’t act like it!” Unfortunately, many times that is the case. Many rulers abuse authority; but this was not God’s intention. There are some respectable governing officials who devote themselves to pursuing justice, but there are also many evil officials who neglect or undermine the authority God has given them.

Nevertheless, Paul tells us to “render to all what is due them” (v. 7). Tax to whom tax is due; custom to whom custom is due. This is one of my least favorite Bible verses, especially when I drive to seminary class and get hit with a $5.00 bridge tax. Oftentimes, as I hand them my cash and there are hundreds of cars passing through, my first thought is, “Where is all that money going?” Then I turn in my money, smile, and drive off thinking, “That was literally highway robbery!”

But that is the wrong response on my part. Scripture clearly tells us how to handle these situations: Custom to whom custom is due; bridge toll fee to whom bridge toll fee is due.

Fear to whom fear is due; honor to whom honor is due. As believers, this should be our primary perspective and attitude when thinking about human government, because everything else flows from these two passages. Here are

some corollary points to keep in mind when thinking about human government as it was ordained by God: God Determines Who Our Political Leaders Are Ultimately, God is sovereign. That is the truth we find in the book of Daniel. It is God who changes the times and the epochs of history (Dan 2:44; 4:3, 34-35; 6:2627; 7:13-14). He has a plan for history, and it is going somewhere. There is a culmination and fulfillment of history, and the book of Revelation tells us what that is. In order to get there, God removes kings and establishes kings as He wills. In His sovereignty God determines who our political leaders are. During an election season, God takes your vote into account, but He ultimately establishes the political official that suits His good purposes, as we see in the next point.

God Uses all Political Leaders for His Purposes Through the good, the bad, and the ugly, God uses all political leaders for His purposes. In Romans 9:17, God tells Pharaoh, “I raised you up to demonstrate my power in you.” In other words, God is saying that He chose Pharaoh as king, despite the fact that Pharaoh was a murderous, brutal, evil and lousy thug, in order to display his Divine power. To what power is God referring?

The power of the Exodus: the plagues and the parting of the Red Sea. Pharaoh’s power was less than a drop in the bucket compared to Almighty God. We cannot be sure of the exact reasons for why God establishes certain leaders, but we can be certain that in every case, He establishes those leaders for His righteous purposes.

God Created Government to Maintain Order One of the primary reasons God ordained human government is to maintain order, whether it is civil order, or public order such as roads and traffic laws—everything that gives public order to humanity. In Romans 13:1, we see that we need order from an external force because we are finite, sinful, and selfish beings who need God’s help.

God Created Government to Punish Sinners and Restrain Evil As sinners, we need to be restrained in order to keep order, protect other people, and bring about justice. God has given internal restraints so we can preserve order in society, and those internal restraints include the human conscience. By God’s design, every human has a conscience; this is what we call internal governance. If you become a Christian, God gives you another internal governance through the in Continued on page 17

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GBF’s Philosophy of Evangeli

By GBF Elders Biblical evangelism is the faithful proclamation of the good news about Jesus Christ through which we invite unbelievers to repent from their sin and believe in the death, burial, and resurrection of Christ for the forgiveness of sins, full pardon and justification from God, and entrance into a new life of holiness (Luke 24:46-49; 1 Cor 15:1-4, Rom 3:21-26; 6:1-4; 10:17).

The proclamation of the gospel is the first step in our obedience to the Great Commission, Christ’s command to make disciples of all the nations (Matt 28:18-20). While not every evangelistic encounter will lead to making a new disciple, it is our goal that upon every profession of faith, the new believer will be brought into a discipleship relationship at the local church level at Grace Bible Fellowship (GBF).

There are many ways we might fulfill Christ’s call to proclaim the gospel: in one-on-one settings or small groups, from the pulpit or lectern on Sunday, through social media or video conversations, or on the highways and hedges through individual conversations or street–preaching (Luke 14:23). And, while individual methods may differ, every believer is called to share the good news with others (1 Cor 11:1; 1 Pet 2:9).

Although there are many ways we might fulfill Christ’s command to proclaim the gospel, it is His design that we anchor our evangelistic efforts in the local church (see Acts 13:1-3; Eph 4:11). A ministry of autonomous, unaccountable evangelism is neither healthy for the evangelist nor helpful to those with whom he or she is sharing the gospel (Prov 18:1). For this reason, GBF seeks to train, equip, and send evangelists into the greater San Francisco Bay Area who will remain accountable to our local body and represent Christ and GBF in ways that befit a Christian.

Whether or not an evangelistic encounter leads to a profession of faith and discipleship, however, does not necessarily indicate whether the evangelist has proclaimed the gospel faithfully. We see in the book of Acts that there were times when the apostles were met with unbelief although they proclaimed the gospel clearly and accurately (see for example, Acts 5:33; 7:54-60; 14:19-23).

Faithful evangelism is primarily the positive proclamation of the gospel, but will also include, when appropriate, a defense of the faith through biblically-faithful apologetic arguments and thoughtful reasoning from the Scriptures (see Acts 17:2, 17; 18:4; 18:19; 1 Pet 3:15). While it is not necessary for the evangelist to have an exhaustive grasp of every potential argument that an unbeliever might use against the truth of the gospel or the veracity of Scripture, it is often helpful to have some knowledge of and answers to common objections for the sake of persuasion (2 Cor 5:11; 10:5).

The reason we believe that the evangelist is not required to have a rigorous knowledge of every possible objection to the Christian’s faith is because the unbeliever’s chief problem is not intellectual, but spiritual. That is, through the gospel, the unbeliever has all the evidence he needs to believe in Jesus Christ (John 7:17; Rom 1:1620). He is unable and unwilling to believe, not because the gospel is not clear or without sufficient evidence, but because the unbeliever is blinded by Satan (2 Cor 4:1-6) and loves darkness more than light because his deeds are evil (John 3:20-21).

The evangelist’s task, then, is primarily proclamation rather than debate. Discussion and debate about important biblical and cultural issues like human origins, abortion, gender, and homosexuality (to name a few) are important and have their place, but they are not the chief substance of the evangelist’s work. Evangelistic discussion and reasoning should center upon the Person and work of Jesus Christ as the evangelist presupposes the truth of Scripture rather than seeking a multitude of ways of defending the Scripture on the basis of unbelieving assumptions.

Faithful evangelism, therefore, is always conducted in the power of the Holy Spirit. Prayer, then, is essential to the evangelistic task, for apart from Christ, we can do nothing (John 15:5). Evangelistic prayer will include praying for the salvation of the lost (Rom 10:1), for gospel opportunities (Col 4:3), for appropriate and wise speech (Col 4:4) and for the Lord to call and equip more evangelistic workers (Matt 9:38).

While the power for salvation resides in the gospel itself and not in the person proclaiming the gospel (Rom 1:16; 1 Cor 3:5-6), the

Christ to Inida - Pastors’ November 7-9 2016

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ism character and conduct of the evangelist is of utmost concern, for one’s conduct and character may serve to either adorn or discredit the gospel message. Scripture is replete with instruction on how Christians should conduct themselves among unbelievers as they engage them with the gospel.

The Lord’s servant must be active in forsaking pride while pursuing holiness and spiritual maturity (2 Tim 2:22). He must not be quarrelsome or given to debating over foolish controversies (v .2324a). He must be kind to all (v. 24b), yet able to teach the gospel accurately and correct his opponents when necessary (v. 24c), yet always with gentleness (v. 25). And he must be willing to patiently endure evil and scorn from unbelievers (v. 24d). The evangelist will be enabled to conduct himself with this beautiful blend of steadfast conviction and personal tenderness because he knows that only God can grant repentance to the unbeliever (v. 25) who has been ensnared by our arch-enemy, Satan (v. 26). The person to whom we are proclaiming the gospel, then, deserves our compassion, not our anger or spite.

Paul also sought to remove those things in his life that might serve as an offense to those whom he was seeking to win to Christ.

This is what the apostle means when he said that he sought to become “all things to all men” (1 Cor 9:22). Paul was not embracing the trappings of contemporary culture in order to be relevant to unbelievers. Rather, he sought to remove any unnecessary offenses so that people would more readily believe the gospel (see 1 Cor 9:1923; 10:31-33). Paul saw himself as a servant to unbelievers and was, therefore, willing to give up his legitimate rights in order to remove needless stumbling blocks.

We trust that as the believers at GBF take up their evangelistic calling with faith in God and His Word, biblical fidelity, prayer, and a commitment to Christlike character, our gracious Father will richly bless our efforts both individually and corporately. We long to see men and women, boys and girls, turn from their sin and trust in Christ for salvation. We also desire to honor and please our King.

So, for the sake of joy and obedience, we seek to proclaim the gospel to the nations, starting in the San Francisco Bay Area.†

Conference

BIG TRUTH

LITTLE BOOKS ™

GBF Press’s Big Truth Little Books series contintues to grow Five books are now available at the GBF Book Cart or on Amazon We live in a fallen world, and our lives are often beset with physical suffering, emotional difficulty, relational problems, and financial uncertainty. In this short yet insightful volume, Cliff McManis discusses how to deal with trials in a way that pleases God and is best for us individually.

What does an unbeliever need to be saved from? Where does faith come from? Do Christians need to use complex philosophical arguments when sharing the gospel with their friends, neighbors, and co-workers? In this concise volume, Cliff McManis explains how to proclaim the gospel, to bring nonblelievers into a right relationship with God.

How do we make godly decisions on issues that are not specifically addressed in the Bible? In this book, Cliff McManis helps us navigate these tough questions. Drawing from Romans 14, McManis provides us with the principles necessary to make decisions on the "gray areas" of life.

Do you pray for your pastor? Perhaps a better question: Do you know how to pray for your pastor? In this book, Derek Brown helps you understand your pastor's qualifications, responsibilities, and unique pressures so that you might pray effectively for those who shepherd your soul. You will be encouraged and challenged to pray for your pastor.

For centuries the problem of evil has posed a significant challenge to Christian apologists. So how does the ordinary, everyday Christian approach this issue? With sharp exegesis and a careful examination of several popular approaches to this issue, Dr. McManis takes us deep into Scripture where we find clear answers for why evil exists and what God has done to solve the problem of evil once and for all.

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Is Mormonism Just Another Christian Denomination? continued from page 1

suggested by Joseph Fielding Smith. In the words of his namesake, Smith is one of the biggest frauds this world has ever seen.

Mormon Doctrine: Far From Orthodox Christianity In terms of theology, the Mormon foundations are riddled with teachings that conflict with just about every historic Christian doctrine. For example, Mormonism teaches that God the Father not only had a beginning, but that he is one of millions of gods that exist outside of our universe. Such notions collide with Scripture, which teaches that the God of the Bible is the one true God, and there is no other (Is 45:18, 22). Also, according to Mormonism, Jesus Christ is not the God-Man (John 1:1-14); he is the spirit-brother of Satan who was created by God. Salvation is not by grace alone through faith alone (Eph 2:8-9), but something given to us by God after we have done all that we can do. Actually, Mormonism teaches that all people are eventually “saved,” but only those who keep all of God’s commandments will be exalted into a celestial sphere where they will become gods. All of these notions are in direct contradiction to Scripture and historic Christian teaching.

Mormon Scripture: Another Testimony of Jesus Christ?

Although Mormons claim to believe the Bible, they actually harbor strong doubts about its reliability and look to other so-called revelations like The Book of Mormon, The Pearl of Great Price, and Doctrines and Covenants for doctrinal guidance. The Book of Mormon and The Pearl of Great Price were penned by Joseph Smith. Doctrines and Covenants contain Smith’s teachings as well as material from other LDS “prophets.” All three are considered inspired revelation from God. Problems abound for these texts, however. Doctrinally, much in these “revelations” directly conflict with biblical teaching. Beyond that, scholars have demonstrated that The Book of Mormon’s historical and scientific claims are unfounded and bereft of evidence. The origin of the Book of Mormon is sketchy as well.

In 1823, Smith claimed to have been visited by the angel Moroni who directed him to a set of golden plates—buried on a hill near his New York home—that contained a historic record of America’s early inhabitants. Smith then translated these plates into a text that became the Book of Mormon. Although there were few men who claimed to have seen these plates, these claims do not appear reliable, and it is likely that no one was able to corroborate Smith’s story about the existence of the golden plates.

While the Book of Mormon and The Pearl of Great Price consist chiefly of historical claims, Doctrines and Covenants provide Mormons with foundational doctrinal instruction. Actually, much of what Mormons believe in terms of doctrine is not found in the The Book of Mormon but is rather contained in Doctrines and Covenants. In this text we find teachings that affirm that God the Father has a body of flesh and bone, that “celestial marriage” is necessary if one desires to achieve personal godhood, and the formal recog-

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nition of Joseph Smith as a prophet and apostle, among other statements of doctrinal import. Even a brief survey of these texts exposes that their claim to latter-day revelation is easily disregarded.

Compassionate Truth-Telling Many Mormons are unaware of what their religion teaches.

The Mormon missionaries who come to your door every now and again have been well trained, but only in a few key areas of Mormon doctrine. Their knowledge of the Bible is often superficial—except for some important proof texts that allegedly support teaching found in their other “revelations”—and any acquaintance with Christian theology is only marginal.

Their lack of knowledge of Christian teaching implies that engaging with Mormons should focus on positively presenting biblical truth to their minds and hearts. Knowledge of Mormonism is useful, but even more important is that you possess a solid grasp of Christian doctrine so that you are able to (1) discern their errant beliefs; and (2) accurately convey the truth of Scripture.

None of the above is meant to promote a sense of superiority among Christians who know and love the truth. Of all people we know that our faith in Christ is a gift of pure grace (see 1 Cor 4:6). We are blind and helpless apart from God’s Spirit and Word, and we, just like all people, are dependent upon the sovereign intervention of God in order to see rightly (see 2 Cor 4:1-6).

Nevertheless, when tested by God’s Word, we see that the errors of the Mormon church are as deadly as they are obvious. Those who embrace Mormon teaching reside under the wrath of God and desperately need Christians who are committed to compassionate truth-telling and evangelism to engage them in intentional conversation.

Conclusion Perhaps this article has piqued your curiosity about the Mormon religion and you have a renewed desire to talk to Mormons with the hope of leading them to Christ. If so, I would encourage you to begin your evangelistic endeavors by first grounding yourself in the Christian faith. Make sure you know what Scripture teaches before you engage with Mormons. Next, educate yourself about Mormonism. Letters to a Mormon Elder by James White, Mormonism 101 by Bill McKeever and Eric Johnson, Reasoning from the Scriptures with Mormons by Ron Rhodes, and Kingdom of the Cults by Walter Martin are all excellent resources that will help you understand Mormonism from a biblical perspective.

In all your efforts, pray diligently for God’s help, rely upon His Word for persuasion, and trust His Spirit for power. And the next time you hear a knock at your door, you will be ready to share the gospel with those two Mormon missionaries who really need it.†

Serving in the Church, continued from page 1 ter 4:10 states, “As each one has received a special gift, employ it in serving one another as good stewards of the manifold grace of God.” This isn’t a suggestion, but a command rooted in the overall call to holiness as a believer. I’ve become more convinced that flakiness is a result of more than just laziness; it is rooted in an improper view of Christ’s ownership. Faithful service, on the other hand, is the fruit of a right understanding of His lordship. Christians are not merely volunteer workers; they are servants and stewards of the living God. There is no Christian to whom God has not placed a spiritual gift, and therefore there is no Christian who is exempt from service.

Let not many be teachers, but let everyone be servants!

Second, serving in the church is more about character, motivation, and perspective than it is about location and activity. In Mark 10:42-45, and using Himself as an example, Christ describes godly leaders are servants and slaves. The term servant (Greek word diakonos) emphasizes a position of lowliest function taken by someone in order to meet the needs of others. The term slave (Greek word doulos) emphasizes the relinquishing of one’s rights for the sake of the welfare of others. Thus, biblical servanthood is less about what you do and where you do it than it is about who you are and how you view yourself in relation to others. Serving, then, is more than just working hard; it is working humbly. It’s no surprise then that competitive, prideful, self-absorbed individuals who make good CEOs often make poor and irresponsible servants in the church.

Serving in the church requires having a right view of oneself in relation to the needs, welfare, and walks of others.

Third, serving in the church was designed to be multi-faceted. 1 Corinthians 12:14-26 describes the church as a body existing of a variety of members and a diversity of gifts.

Each one is a manifestation of the Spirit for the common good. It’s unfortunate that church members sometimes exalt certain “showy” gifts, positions, or titles in the church as more valuable than other more mundane gifts. In doing so, they create an environment where serving in certain capacities is simply looked down upon. I’ve seen it too often, where members are so hungry for positions of teaching and leadership, though they are not necessarily gifted at it, because they simply don’t realize the value of the less visible gifts in the church. But the Scriptures affirm that every gift is given by God to be used by God for the glory of God. Fourth, serving in the church is for the purpose of the common good, and not individual achievement and recognition. 1 Corinthians 12:7 states that to each one has been given a manifestation of the Spirit “for the common good.” The church is not an Olympic stadium where members are supposed to strive for self-recognition by

outdoing others through the display of spiritual talents.

That was the problem in the Corinthian church, and the same problem finds itself in many churches today. Serving was not meant to exalt individual people, but rather to edify the corporate body. Serving was purposed for the common good, not for individual achievement.

Fifth, serving in the church is not to be done for compensation. It shouldn’t only be those who are paid by the church who are serving in the church. Titus 2:14 describes Christ as one who “gave Himself for us that He might redeem us from every lawless deed and purify for Himself a people for His own possession, zealous for good deeds.” Through His lavish, undeserved, saving grace, Christ sacrificed Himself in order to purchase us for Himself, that we may become servants of Him. In other words, we don’t serve to be paid; we serve because we were paid for! The zeal with which a Christian serves is not dependent on how much money the church is willing to give him for his service, but one that is rooted in a true understanding of the reality of His redemption in Christ.

The fact of the matter is that many churches today function unbiblically according to what is commonly referred to as the 80/20 rule: 20 percent of the people do 80 percent of the work. As someone who has been on the vocational ministry staff of Grace Bible Fellowship for the last two years, I can joyfully attest that the GBF body does not operate as such. Our church is one that is filled with spiritually active, vibrant members - the majority of whom are serving in some capacity. Indeed, one of the greatest privileges that God has given me has been working alongside faithful laymen and laywomen who pour tremendous amounts of time and energy into laboring on behalf of the body. There are few things that are more encouraging than to watch the saints at work. This said, the GBF body must excel still more (1 Thess 4:1, 10). As I write, there remain areas in the life of our church that are in need of helpers and workers. They include the following: • Children’s ministry (Sunday School and children’s church) • Facility setup and teardown • Media • Greeters • Fellowship meal setup and cleanup • Nursery workers As Paul once told Titus in Titus 3:14, “Our people must also learn to engage in good deeds to meet pressing needs, so that they will not be unfruitful.” May Grace Bible Fellowship never be found to be an unfruitful church.†

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? Where did you grow up

Staff Member Derek Brown,

Derek: I grew up in Billings, Montana with my parents and three older sisters. I loved growing up in Montana. Billings was the “big city” in that it had 80,000 people, which was significant in a state that only recently tallied over one million people. I enjoyed the outdoors, had great parents, and I remember my childhood being a lot of fun.

? Was it a Christian household

Derek: I grew up in a practicing Catholic family, which meant that we went to church every Sunday and on the special holidays, we observed Lent, and I went to Catholic school from kindergarten through high school. There was always a sense of the Catholic religion. I believed in God, I believed in Jesus, I believed the Bible was important, and I believed other various things about praying to Mary and praying to the saints. But generally, I believed in God and Christ and heaven and hell and I had those things reaffirmed as I went through my Catholic education.

? How and when were you saved

Derek: When I was in 8th grade, my oldest sister, Kathleen, got saved. She began to tell my parents and me about salvation, arguing that the Bible was the Word of God, that the Catholic Church is teaching false things about God, Christ, and salvation, and she started to explain the gospel to us.

She invited us to her Bible church, and so we agreed to attend as a way to appease her. And it was there at this little Bible church that I heard the gospel preached for the first time, very clearly and accurately from the Bible. I heard it and understood it, but I recognized that I needed to turn from my sin and trust in Christ, and I didn’t want to do that yet. But the seed was planted, and my parents were eventually saved as well as my other sisters, but I wasn’t saved until my sophomore year of college. That year I came home from winter break and went out partying with a friend and I got a DUI, and I remember being handcuffed and put in the back of the police car, and in the back of the police car crying out to the Lord that I was repenting from my sins. It actually felt very different because this time I meant it and I was finally able to turn from my sins and trust Christ. And so it was the winter of my sophomore year of college that I came to Christ.

? What school were you going to at the time

Derek: The University of Portland. So I finished my semester out at the University of Portland and then transferred to The Master’s College because immediately upon my conversion I had an insatiable desire to study the Bible and go into ministry.

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? When did you first desire to go into ministry and why

Derek: Initially, when I wasn’t a Christian, I wanted to b a priest because I wanted to help people, and I had always been decent at public speaking, so I thought I could stir people up by preaching powerful sermons at Mass. But when I came to Christ, something different happened. I began to sense an insatiable passion to know the Scripture and to preach it to others. I wanted to proclaim the truth of God and I wanted to study the Scripture and just give myself in ministering to others. Interestingly, it seems as though God was preparing me for a life of ministry even before I was a Christian. ? What ministry roles have you served in over the years Derek: In a lay ministry function, I’ve served in worship band. I’ve led worship for children’s ministry. I’ve have served with Amy in the nursery. I’ve been on the leadership team for men’s ministry. And I’ve led Bible fellowship groups as a director and also as a teacher. Amy and I also served in a ministry in Louisville for about a year where we would visit shut-ins. At a formal, vocational level, I’ve done full-time middle school ministry, high school ministry, and here at GBF I oversee college and young adults as well as our book publishing ministry and the website.

? You’ve written and contributed to several books, keep an

active blog, and serve as the editor for GBF Press. Clearly, the written word is important to you. When did you first develop a love for the written word and why do think it is so important Derek: Prior to my junior year of high school, I hated writing. It wasn’t until my very last essay of my sophomore year of high school that I actually had any kind of breakthrough with writing. And then my junior and senior year I had a wonderful teacher who encouraged my writing, and so even at age 18 I had a short story published in a small book.

So, the ability has probably been there since high school, but it wasn’t until I came to Christ that a genuine passion for writing became alive in my soul. And this passion was not only to write things for other people to read, but to pursue personal writing and journaling, because writing for me is not only about ministering to others; it is a way of ministering to my own soul by helping me meditate on Scripture and theology and clarify my thinking. So writing for me is a very spiritually nourishing discipline, whether or not I actually publish anything.

But I also love to write for people’s benefit because I have been helped greatly in my walk with Christ by the written

Interview by Breanna McManis word. Books have been essential for my spiritual growth alongside the preaching of the Word. So I want to serve others by providing them with good, clear writing. And frankly, because we have the Scriptures and because we have an eternally important message, I never want to stop writing because there’s always something to say. God shows us that the written word is important by giving us a written revelation. Writing fixes thoughts in language that can be studied, pondered over, retuned to, and so books and writing articles and essays and blogs are vital because they’re a means of spiritual growth.

? How did you end up

working here in the Bay Area Derek: I was going to seminary in Louisville, Kentucky and finishing my Ph.D. I had the desire to teach at an academic level, but I was also feeling a pull to be back in the church full time. I wasn’t sure if I would ever be satisfied in the academy because I believe Christ came to build His Church.

What was interesting is that I had applied to multiple schools, had a decent CV, a fair amount of experience in many different capacities, and knew the right people, but there was nothing available at the academic level. While that was happening, Cliff would call or text me asking when I was graduating.

Little did I know that during that time, he had been thinking and praying about me coming on staff at GBF to work with him. When it came down to crunch time I began to conclude that the Lord was directing me to engage full time at the local church level.

? When did you become a member at GBF

Derek: We became members almost immediately upon arrival, since I had been hired here. So as soon as we got here, we began the membership process. That was during the first couple weeks of September in 2014.

? What are your main roles here

Derek: I oversee the college and young adult ministry. I oversee GBF Press, which is our publishing ministry. I over-

see our online presence, so I deal with the website and social media. I am an elder, so I have elder responsibilities in terms of the whole flock and making decisions with the elder team and leading in that way. ? What has been the biggest blessing that you have experienced at GBF Derek: Working with the staff is one huge blessing. I knew this going in, but when we went to our staff retreat in Carmel it really became clear how unique our situation is in that we not only click on the philosophy of ministry issues, but we actually like being around each other.

We’re friends and we have a good time together and we laugh and crack jokes. Working on the staff has been a huge blessing.

And GBF as a body has been a blessing. My family and I have been warmly embraced by this church, we have several good friends now, and our relationships continue to grow.

We love our church, we love the people, and we feel loved by the people.

I hear of pastors who are reluctant to become friends with the people of their church, but that has never been a thought for me. We love it here and are grateful for all of the relationships we have been able to enjoy.

? Who is in your family

Derek: My wife, Amy. Colton is six, and Easton is five.

? What is something that most people at GBF wouldn’t know about you Derek: Questions of time management notwithstanding, I could watch Bob Ross and the Joy of Painting for hours.

? How can the GBF body be praying for you

Derek: First and foremost that I would be a Christ-like husband and daddy to Amy and the boys. Pray also for my boys’ salvation. And then pray for wisdom and diligence with my roles here at GBF. †

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Pornography’s War on You and Your Neighbor continued from page 20

the women around them and have become satisfied with a digital harem who will not only do all their bidding, but who will not bother him with difficulties that attend real relationships.

And while the statistics clearly indicate that pornography use is much higher among males than females, this trend is presently shifting. The same study I mentioned above found that 76% of 18-30 year old women surveyed confessed to using pornography at least once a month. This is a massive increase from only a few years ago. And similar to how pornography affects men, it disables women from thinking or feeling rightly about romantic relationships, marriage, and the beauty of human sexuality.

Pornography and Your Neighbor But pornography doesn’t aim to destroy only you; it has its sights on destroying your neighbor as well. Your brothers or sisters might be mired in a slough of pornography and they need you to pull them out. Your husband may be caught in the snare of sexual sin and needs you to ask him some hard, life-saving questions.

But pornography is also destroying the lives of those who participate in creating it. The confessions of some former female adult movie stars are heart-wrenching. They speak of traumatic physical abuse, severe health problems, and addiction to narcotics. The use of alcohol, cocaine, ecstasy, hallucinogens, methamphetamines, heroin, tranquilizers, and prescription pain-killers is common among these female actresses, and one can only imagine why: these women are bearers of the divine image, created by God to be protected and loved by their dads and brothers and husbands, but who are being treated as nothing but mere sexual objects by men they barely know. In an effort to help them cope with such vile mistreatment, these women turn to alcohol and heavy narcotics to drown the pain.

The male actors and producers of pornography, while fully culpable for their sin, are also being destroyed by this wicked industry. Enmeshed in an ever-growing, never-satisfied desire to feed their sexual lusts and financial greed, these men are enslaved to their own shame. Some have been able to leave the industry and are now speaking out against it. But many are caught in the industry’s vicious cycle, described by one former actor: “I would go to work and do the porn, to buy the drugs, to bury the pain, of doing the porn.” Love for our neighbor should compel us to pray diligently, not only for those who view pornography, but for those who are responsible for creating it. Their lives, too, are being devastated by this immoral industry.

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Pornography and the Gospel But the negative effects of pornography use and production run infinitely deeper than the psychological, social, and emotional problems they cause. Eternal lives are at stake, for the one who views pornography, and the one who participates in creating it. Jesus tells us that a person characterized by unrestrained sexual lust will end up in hell.

You have heard that it was said, “You shall not commit adultery.” But I say to you that everyone who looks at a woman with lustful intent has already committed adultery with her in his heart. If your right eye causes you to sin, tear it out and throw it away. For it is better that you lose one of your members than for your whole body to be thrown into hell (Matt 5:27-29).

Jesus also tells us that those who deliberately put temptations before others face the same fate.

And he said to his disciples, “Temptations to sin are sure to come, but woe to the one through whom they come! It would be better for him if a millstone were hung around his neck and he were cast into the sea than that he should cause one of these little ones to sin” (Luke 17:1-2).

For those who carelessly indulge in pornography and for those who produce it, certain judgment awaits. The gospel, however, delivers both people from this judgment.

While we can rejoice over the many stories of people who have overcome their addiction to pornography or removed themselves from the industry, we cannot fully rejoice until these stories of personal success become stories of divine redemption. Some people may stop viewing or creating pornography because it is wrecking their life, but unless they see their sin in light of God’s holiness and have that sin forgiven at the cross of Christ, they have only improved their earthly life, not their eternal one.

For Christians who are currently battling sexual temptation, we must see that all the resources we need to overcome these temptations are found in Christ and His Church (2 Peter 1:3). Christ supplies us with a gospel that secures our justification and gives us His Spirit so that we can wage effective warfare on our pervasive but forgiven sins. Our Savior also gives us brothers and sisters to help us root out our sin with sharp questions, warm encouragement, and firm admonishment. And don’t think you can battle this enemy with only one of these resources. Each one is essential in our fight for purity. Use these gospel weapons, and pray for others who have yet to pick them up. †

continued from page 9 dwelling Holy Spirit who helps restrain evil even more.

God also gave us external governance, and this includes formal government. God created government for the purpose of punishing sinners and restraining evil, as we have seen in Romans 13 and 1 Peter 2. Rulers and authority figures, including police officers, are not a cause of fear for good behavior, but for evil. Sinners and lawbreakers should be afraid of the police when they see them, because the police are given for the primary purpose to evoke fear in those who do wrong. Police officers are ministers and avengers of God who bring wrath on those who practice evil to protect and to serve. Restrain evil, preserve justice, and protect the innocent—these are the primary roles of government.

First Peter 2:14 says the same thing: “[G]overnors [are] sent by him for the punishment of evildoers and the praise of those who do right.” Why do we have laws, policemen, and the military? The answer is found in 1 Timothy 1:8-10, where Paul says, But we know that the Law is good, if one uses it lawfully, realizing the fact that law is not made for a righteous person, but for those who are lawless and rebellious for the ungodly and sinners, for the unholy and profane, for those who kill their fathers or mothers, for murderers and immoral men and homosexuals and kidnappers and liars and perjurers, and whatever else is contrary to sound teaching.

This is the law that God gave, and all of it was good.

For example, if you have courtesy towards your neighbors who have nice lawns and you purpose to never step on their grass, you don’t need a law or a sign that says, “Do not step on the grass.” These laws are made because there are people who could not care less, who don’t respect other people, and who step on the grass. That is why we have laws, and that is why God gave laws.

Conclusion God not only ordained human government; He is the one who puts governing officials in their position of authority and removes them when He sees fit. This is a crucial truth to keep in mind during an election season. No matter who finally wins an election, we can know for certain that God, for his own good purposes, has placed that leader in the position of authority. Their presence in office may make things better or more difficult for individual Christians and the corporate Church. Either way, we can lean on the solid truth that our God is in the heavens and He does all that he pleases (Ps 115:3). We need not fear, for God is in control in 2016, as He always has been.†

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continued from page 3 life he said, “all deserted me” (2 Tim 4:16). Yet he was God’s apostle and was faithful in ministry to the end.

Christians will always exist as a remnant in this cursed world (Phil 2:15). Although some would contend that there exists a “moral majority,” the fact is that in this life there is no “Christian majority.” This side of heaven, phenomenal numerical growth will never be the norm for the true church of Christ.

On the contrary, the church, believers, and Christ will be despised routinely by the majority of the world (Matt 5:10-13; John 15:18-25). Satan is the “god” of this fallen world and will continue to blind people spiritually en masse until he is cast into the abyss (2 Cor 4:4; 1 Pet 5:8; Rev 20:1-10). Christians will continue to be outcasts and strangers in this cursed world (Phil 3:20; Heb 11:13-16; 1 Pet 2:11), given over to persecution, scorn and ridicule (Phil 1:29; Col 1:24; 2 Tim 3:12; 1 Cor 4:10-13).

The above truths may seem grim or pessimistically defeatist, but the reality for the future of the church is just the opposite. The church is guaranteed ultimate and ongoing success

by Christ Himself, despite the aforementioned obstacles.

With those sobering reminders said, a more balanced definition of true church growth is better understood. True church growth is measured in spiritual terms and in accordance with God’s will as dictated by Scripture. True church growth amounts to being an obedient church. And an obedient church is a healthy church, and God will bless a healthy church by residing among that church and working through it. And being healthy and obedient is not necessarily synonymous with exponential growth rates in attendance. God will sovereignly add to His church numerically at the rate He sees fit (Acts 2:47; 5:12-14; 6:7; 9:31). It is His church. Our task is to obey Him. And obeying Him means heeding what He has revealed to us in the Bible. †

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Greater than the Sum of its Parts

By Stanford Student The beauty and complexity of the natural world has always amazed us. Science, which seeks to understand how this marvelous creation operates, is founded on the biblical truth that we can comprehend the universe because it was created by a rational God Who made us in His image. However, modern science has largely jettisoned this foundation and seeks instead to explain the physical world purely on the basis of naturalistic causes without reference to the supernatural. We see this nowhere more clearly than in biology. According to Darwin’s theory of evolution, every living thing arose via chance and natural selection operating over long periods of time with no purpose or plan—let alone divine intervention.

Darwin’s theory has created controversy ever since he published it, so how can we know whether it is true? Darwin himself gave the criteria by which his theory could be discredited: “If it could be demonstrated that any complex organ existed, which could not possibly have been formed by numerous, successive, slight modifications, my theory would absolutely break down” (The Origin of the Species). Thus, a common argument against evolution is that the probability of the complex life we observe arising via chance and natural selection is so small it can be considered impossible.

More recently, a variant of this argument called irreducible complexity has arisen. The key assertion of this argument is that many biological systems are comprised of individual parts that interact to perform a function that no part could perform on its own. As a result, the removal of any one part from the system destroys the function of the entire system. Because any potential precursors to the system would be missing at least one essential part, they would have no function, and natural selection could not act on them. Consequently, an irreducibly complex system cannot be formed gradually but must appear all at once, further decreasing the probability of it forming by chance and natural selection.

A common example of an irreducibly complex system is the bacterial flagellum—a rotary motor that propels the bacterium through its environment. While the flagellum is a complex assemblage of more than forty proteins, its key components can be summarized as a rotor (the part that moves), a stator (which converts the energy from the motor into the rotation of the rotor), and a motor (which provides the energy). This simplified flagellum is clearly irreducibly complex because if any of these three basic components are missing, it could not propel the bacterium.

Since in the actual flagellum multiple parts combine to provide the functions of a rotor, stator, and motor, the actual situation is even more complex—and hence less probable.

Because of the prominence of the bacterial flagellum as an example of irreducible complexity, biologists have attempted to explain its evolution in order to refute that argument. One common line of reasoning, followed by Ken Miller (“The Flagellum Unspun”), is that the flagellum itself evolved from the Type III secretion system

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(or TTSS for short), which injects proteins from the bacterium into other cells, much like a syringe. According to this argument, because many core components of the TTSS are similar to some of the core components of the flagellum, the flagellum cannot be irreducibly complex.

This model is an example of an evolutionary mechanism known as co-option, in which elements from one or more existing systems are proposed to have been reused and combined to form a new system with novel function. However, co-option mechanisms typically fail to explain one or both of two key elements: how the proteins that were co-opted arose in the first place and how the new system could have been built up gradually. That latter objection is particularly important in the case of an irreducibly complex system, since the intermediates would have no function, and thus could not have been selected for. They would have rather represented, at best, a waste of resources and, at worst, a detriment if parts were being diverted from existing functional systems to this nonfunctional intermediate.

A common critique of irreducible complexity in general is that the removal of some parts from a supposedly irreducibly complex system sometimes results in an at least partially functional system. This argument relies largely on semantics and can be answered by carefully defining the terms. While the basic claim is true, a limited number of parts can be removed before the removal of further components completely destroys the system’s functionality. Returning to the example of the bacterial flagellum, while individual proteins can no doubt be removed while leaving the flagellum at least partially functional, a flagellum lacking either a rotor, a stator, or a motor would be useless. The flagellum clearly contains an irreducibly complex core, even if some of its components are dispensable.

A third way Miller and colleagues attempt to refute the argument from irreducible complexity is to shift the burden of proof.

In the conclusion of Miller’s argument in “The Flagellum Unspun,” he states that “the claim of ‘irreducible complexity’ is scientifically meaningless, constructed as it is upon the flimsiest of foundations—the assertion that because science has not yet found selectable functions for the components of a certain structure, it never will.” Earlier in the same argument, he asserts that “Anyone can state at any time that they cannot imagine how evolutionary mechanisms might have produced a certain species, organ, structure. Such statements, obviously, are personal—and they say more about the limitations of those who make them than they do about the limitations of Darwinian mechanisms.” Such shifting of the burden of proof is nothing less than a logical fallacy. Evolutionary biologists claim to explain the origin of life from a single common ancestor, and the origin of that ancestor from non-life, and so must provide a cogent explanation for such an origin. When they fail to do so, it is disingenuous for them to claim that the

Greater Than the Sum continued from page 18

real issue is that skeptics of evolution are too narrow-minded or unenlightened to understand how a complex system could have evolved.

Christ to India (CTI) is the U.S. non-profit organization started in February 2016 to support the ministry of Johnpaul and his brother Isaac Pinapati. Below are pics from the recent trip in early November Check out ChristToIndia.org Orphan’s Home

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Irreducible complexity presents a powerful scientific challenge to evolution by demonstrating that systems exist in which multiple independent parts would be needed at once to perform a function on which natural selection could operate. The origin of such systems by chance and natural selection as evolution demands is highly improbable. To the Christian, however, the argument is not merely about how one views the natural world—it is a clash of worldviews. A naturalistic view of science directly contradicts God’s clear revelation in His Word, calling into question His truth.

Irreducible complexity, then, is valuable as a demonstration that science rightly performed does support biblical teaching. It can both reassure a Christian who might be tempted to doubt his faith based on the findings of so-called science and serve as part of the defense we must be ready to give for our faith (1 Pet 3:15). However, it cannot save anyone—only the gospel of God can do that (Rom 1:16). We must remember that we are not fundamentally fighting a scientific theory, but rather the sin that each unbeliever commits when, seeing the evidence for God in the world around him, he denies God’s existence (Rom 1:18–23). Thus, whenever there is an apparent conflict between science and Scripture, Scripture must always prevail. Rightly understood in its proper place, however, science should inspire us to the praise and worship of our great Creator as we seek to understand the complex universe He made (Ps 19:1-6).†

Song Spotlight continued from page 7

text of the song. Ephesians 1:3-14 repeats this phrase, “to the praise of His glory,” three times (6, 12, 14). Whether lyricist Tim Chester structured the first three lines of the refrain for this reason is unknown to me, but it is incredibly powerful in mirroring Paul’s recurring theme throughout the passage— God’s ultimate purpose in the election of sinners to salvation and eternal life is His own personal glory.

When believers sanctify Christ as Lord in their hearts (1 Pet 3:15), God’s glory is on display in the three priorities of the church—exaltation of God, edification of the saints, and evangelism to the lost. It is this attitude that leads us to proclaim with Paul, “…to Him be the glory in the Church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen” (Eph 3:21). I encourage you to spend time meditating on Ephesians 1:3-14 and our redemption in Christ so that the next time GBF sings “Come Praise and Glorify” you will be even more ready to sing with thankfulness in your heart to God.†

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ENGAGE

Scripture, Culture, and the Christian

Government officials in Ohio are raising an alarm for a new epidemic: heroin use is ravaging the state. In 2015, the state recorded 65 deaths due to overdose. In 2016, that same number was tallied within the first half of the year. If epidemics are defined by their breadth and a government’s present inability to arrest the problem, then Ohio is under the scourge of an epidemic.

But there is an even greater epidemic traversing the American landscape. While its affects are not felt in numbers of fatalities, it is just as potent and dangerous as the heroin problem in the upper mid-west. The epidemic is pornography.

November 2016

Pornography’s War on You and Your Neighbor

By Derek Brown

the Male Brain, Dr. Willam Struthers argues that pornography “acts as a polydrug delivering emotional and sensory excitation” which provides the user with a “mood-altering experience.” Because of these effects, pornography has the ability to “dominate [a] person’s life and behaviors.”

Like drug addicts, porn users “become increasingly preoccupied with acquiring [and] viewing” pornography to the point that it eventually “consume[s] their thought life.”

Soon, users become bound to pornography to such an extent that they begin to build their lives around their addiction and spend much of their energy and time fulfilling it.

The statistics are staggering. According to a study conducted in 2014 by the Barna Group, 79% of 18-30 yearolds surveyed admitted to viewing pornography at least once a month, while 67% of 31-49-year-olds and 49% of 50-68-year-olds confessed to this same frequency of use.

Perhaps most alarming is the fact that among those surveyed, 63% of 18-30-year-olds, 38% of 31-49-year-olds, and 25% of 50-68-year-olds stated that they view pornography multiple times a week. Overall, 55% of married men and 70% of unmarried men confess to using pornography once a month.

And, while pornography has historically been the object of male indulgence, women are increasingly viewing it.

According to the Barna study, 76% of 18-30-year-olds, 16% of 31-49-year-olds, and 4% of 50-68-year-olds say they view pornography once a month. 21% 18-30-year-olds, and 5% of 31-49-year-olds admit to multiple viewings per week.

Pornography and Heroin You may have noticed that I referred to the “use” of pornography and not only the “viewing” or “watching” of pornography. This terminology is deliberate. Extensive studies have shown that pornography actually works much like a narcotic. It stimulates similar regions of the brain, quickly leads to addiction, and requires increasingly greater stimulus in order to achieve the desired “high.” In this sense, then, people can be said to “use” pornography, not merely view it or watch it. For many, pornography has become something they “need” in order to function properly. This, in part, explains why so many men (and women) find themselves almost unable to stop viewing pornography without the aid of some form of intervention and accountability.

In his book, Wired for Intimacy: How Pornography Hijacks

Pornography and Your Soul And while pornography is not decimating its users with fatal overdoses, it is destroying people just the same. Peter tells us that fleshly lusts are not something with which to trifle, because they “wage war against your soul” (1 Peter 2:13). And the fallout from this warfare is extensive. Because pornography is a perversion of God’s good gift of human sexuality, it distorts the minds of its users toward this good gift and disables people from using it appropriately. Pornography promotes relational selfishness and creates unrealistic, unhealthy expectations for sexual intimacy while greatly weakening a man’s ability to delight in his wife’s physical beauty. But pornography also robs men of ambition, discourages initiative, perverts inclinations, sabotages desire for godly productivity, promotes passivity, dampens passion for adventure, hinders taste for spiritual truth, and weakens the ability to concentrate. Pornography truly wages war against the whole person.

And it could be that the growing use of pornography in America is one reason—perhaps one of the primary reasons—why men are waiting longer and longer to get married. Through constant pornography use, young men have lost their ability to appreciate the beauty and goodness of Continued on page 16

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