It's a thoughtful day...

Thank you to Pastor Allen for affording us the opportunity to enter into a period of Lenten reflection (and fasting) last Sunday. Depositing our repentance lists and fast intents in the pot on the altar is a physical way we can express the invisible work of the Holy Spirit within us.

This is the traditional gospel reading for today:


Matthew 6:1-6,16-21

Jesus said, "Beware of practicing your piety before others in order to be seen by them; for then you have no reward from your Father in heaven.

"So whenever you give alms, do not sound a trumpet before you, as the hypocrites do in the synagogues and in the streets, so that they may be praised by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you give alms, do not let your left hand know what your right hand is doing, so that your alms may be done in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

"And whenever you pray, do not be like the hypocrites; for they love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at the street corners, so that they may be seen by others. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But whenever you pray, go into your room and shut the door and pray to your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

"And whenever you fast, do not look dismal, like the hypocrites, for they disfigure their faces so as to show others that they are fasting. Truly I tell you, they have received their reward. But when you fast, put oil on your head and wash your face, so that your fasting may be seen not by others but by your Father who is in secret; and your Father who sees in secret will reward you.

"Do not store up for yourselves treasures on earth, where moth and rust consume and where thieves break in and steal; but store up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust consumes and where thieves do not break in and steal. For where your treasure is, there your heart will be also."

More history from which to learn

Pastor Allen loves to use military imagery in his sermons, and the allusion to the Battle of Thermopylae in last Sunday's message was a stirring one, indeed. For those who need more "back story," here is a brief summary, abridged from Wikipedia:

"In August 480 BC, Leonidas set out to meet Xerxes' army at Thermopylae, where he was joined by forces from other Greek city-states, who put themselves under his command to form an army between 4,000 and 7,000 strong. This force was assembled in an attempt to hold the pass of Thermopylae against a massive Persian army of between 80,000 and 290,000 men-at-arms who had invaded from the north of Greece under Xerxes I. Xerxes waited 4 days to attack, hoping the Greeks would disperse. Finally, on the 5th day they attacked. Leonidas and his men repulsed the Persians' frontal attacks for the fifth and sixth days, killing roughly 20,000 of the enemy troops and losing about 2,500 of their own. At that point Leonidas sent away all Greek troops and remained in the pass with his 300 Spartans, 900 Helots, and 700 Thespians who refused to leave.

The small Greek force, attacked from both sides, was cut down to a man except for the Thebans, who surrendered. Leonidas was killed, but the Spartans retrieved his body and protected it until their final defeat. The tomb of Leonidas lies today in the northern part of the modern town of Sparta. Additionally, there is a modern monument at the site of the Battle of Thermopylae, called the "Leonidas Monument" in his honor. It features a bronze statue of Leonidas. A sign, under the statue, reads simply: "Μολών λαβέ" ("Come and get them!") which the Spartans said when the Persians asked them to put down their weapons."

Pastor Allen drew a parallel between this small force and the 300 Israelites with Gideon (see Judges 6-8). Certainly the admonition for us to be courageous against the works of darkness in our time is relevant. And we do seem as outnumbered as the Greeks were by the Persians, and as Gideon's troops were by the Midianites. But there is one important difference. Leonidas's 300, trusting in their own strength, were destroyed. But Gideon's 300, trusting in the strength of Almighty God, prevailed.

May it be ever so among those who name the name of Christ.

Looking backward and forward

Pastor Allen has mentioned this book several times in recent sermons at Dove Mountain. It was also mentioned here at this blog last November 8. In this week's sermon, it was the source of the compelling story Pastor Allen told about the "deep savagery of much of 18th century England," and the subsequent reforms which can be traced to spiritual renewal and conversion.

What was striking in the sermon, of course, were the parallels to today's American culture. The specific sins which Pastor Allen read about in 18th century England are certainly abroad in our times here in the U.S., and there were audible agreements being voiced among the congregation as he read the list.

Pastor Allen is well-read in history, and we should be grateful that he brings so much of the past into his messages. But the point is for us to apply the lessons we learn from the past. In this case, England would have sunk further into debauchery of all kinds had its people not heeded the message of the gospel and repented. For our purposes, it is not relevant that England has since sunk back even further into sin. In many respects, it is merely following the lead of its offspring, the United States, the international distributor of Hollywood-controlled American culture.

On a side note, I will mentioned that in telling this story, Stott is quoting from an older work, entitled England before and after Wesley: The Evangelical Revival and Social Reform, by historian J. Wesley Bready. At Amazon.com, I learned that this book has been out of print for some time, and only rare copies are for sell by private owners at a high price.

Now, this is not necessarily the result of a conspiracy (at least not a conscious one), but with the currently fashionable disregard of history, we should be thankful that writers like John Stott (and preachers like Allen Cooney) have done the research for us, keeping these stories alive to inspire us to action in our time.

Let's show our appreciation by praying for revival and practicing repentance of national sins in our individual lives.

Saluting Maddy!

Congratulations to our own Maddy Cooney, younger daughter of Pastor Allen and Mrs. Huntley Cooney, who has been selected for participation in the Air Force Academy's Summer Seminar in June. The Academy calls this seminar "a unique opportunity for high school juniors going into their senior year to see a realistic picture of what cadet life is about."

When asked why she chose to apply for this program, Maddy said, "I am going to AFA's SS (Air Force Academy's Summer Seminar) because I think I want to attend the Academy. This will help me to determine if the Academy is the right place for me to be. I want to go to the Air Force Academy because I want to fight for and protect the people and ideals of America. The Academy will challenge me physically, academically, emotionally, and spiritually and making me into the best person I can be; ready to fight for the country and for God."

Maddy then added, "I would rather drop bombs on the enemy than shoot at them." She then suggested my title for this blog could be "Death from Above." I think that was influenced by her dad.

Jesus Among Other Gods

I mentioned this book yesterday, and today I want to share a few other of my favorite quotes here. Unlike yesterday's quote, these are all in Ravi Zacharias's own words.

For those who say Christians are forcing their beliefs on others:

"One of India's leading 'saints' Sri Ramakrishna, is said to have been for a little while a Muslim, for a little while a Christian, and then finally, a Hindu again, because he came to the conclusion that they are all the same. If they are all the same, Why did he revert to Hinduism? It is just not true that all religions are the same? Even Hindusim is not the same within itself. Thus, to deny the Christian the privilege of propagation is to propagate to him or her the fundamental beliefs of another religion."

On the origin of ethics:

"Not one proponent of evolutionary ethics has explained how an impersonal, amoral first cause through a nonmoral process has produced a moral basis for life, while at the same time denying any objective mroal basis for good and evil. Does it not seem odd that of all the permutations and combinations that a random universe might afford we should end up with the notions of the true, the good, and the beautiful? Why call anything good or evil?.....Objective moral values exist only if God exists."

On the futility of modernism:

"The surest evidence that evil is not the enemy of meaning is this inescapable existential reality: that meaninglessness does not come from being weary of pain but from neing weary of pleasure. This obvious truth is conspicuously absent in the arguments of skeptics. It is not pain that has driven the West into emptiness; it has been the drowning of meaning in the oceans of our pleasures. Pleasure gone wrong is a greater curse than physical blindness. The blindness to the sacred is the cause of all evil."

I hope these quotes tantalize you into taking a look at the whole book. I recommend it.

The Return of the Prodigal

One of the book clubs I belong to (yes, there are four!) just finished Ravi Zacharias's Jesus Among Other Gods: the Absolute Claims of the Christian Message. The subtitle tells it all: the Christiam message is unambiguous about the identity of Christ. Postmodernism tolerates eveything but its own absolute claims, and the certainty of Christ's lordship stands in direct contrast.

In the last chapter, Zacharias tells a moving story about Catholic scholar Henry Nouwen, who had a deep fascination with Rembrant's The Return of the Prodigal Son (above). When Nouwen was finally able to see the original, he sat gazing on it for four hours! Here are Nouwen's thoughts about this remarkable painting:

"And so there I was; facing the painting that had been on my mind and in my heart for nearly three years. I was stunned by its majestic beauty. Its size, larger than life; its abundant reds, browns, and yellows; its shadowy recess and bright foreground, but most of all the light-enveloped embrace of father and son surrounded by four mysterious bystanders, all of this gripped me with an intensity far beyond my anticipation. There had been moments in which I had wondered whether the real painting might disappoint me. The opposite was true. Its grandeur and splendor made everything recede into the background and held me completely captivated.

Rembrandt's embrace remained imprinted on my soul far more profoundly than any temporary expression of emotional support. It has brought me into touch with something within me that lies far beyond the ups and downs of life, something that represents the ongoing yearning of the human spirit, the yearning for a final return, an unambiguous sense of safety, a lasting home."

We all share this longing for a "lasting home." In Christ we have been provided that hope! Thank God for Rembrandt, and his ability to portray the fulfillment of this hope!

Reviewing the Stones

Since Pastor Allen first introduced the five stones way back in late October, I thought it would be good to review them briefly today. His sermon this past Sunday was on stone #2, proclamation (or evangelism).

1. Prayer
2. Evangelism
3. Bearing witness to the Truth
4. Protesting and resisting
5. Demonstrating