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Hope for Every Slave

Posted by Michael Breznau on 4:33 pm in Podcast, Sermons | 2 comments

There once was a young slave named Samuel, who was owned from birth by a wicked, evil, abusive master. This master owned Samuel’s siblings, parents, grandparents, and even great grandparents, and made it his point to abuse them, misuse them, and work them literally to death. Every slave owned by this master died in bondage.

Half the property was covered with nameless gravesites. It seemed like there was absolutely no way of escape. No one ever had escaped on their own. Sure, some had tried. But no one ever succeeded.

Death was the end of every story.

But one day, a different master, who knew about how these slaves were oppressed in bondage and grueling slavery, decided to do what no one else had ever done before: enter the property of this evil slave-owner and set the slaves free.

When he arrived in the middle of the night, many of the slaves were scared and couldn’t believe there was another master who wanted them to be free from bondage; they thought he would just kidnap them and put them under even worse oppression. Even though this new master pleaded and pleaded with all the slaves to follow him into a new life of freedom, only a few believed he was different. These few saw something different in his eyes they had never seen before. They heard something different in his voice that they had never heard before. And so these few, including Samuel, began to quietly follow this new master away from the slave house and out across the bloodstained fields.

Samuel’s mind spun with all sorts of worry and fear and doubt. Was he making the right choice? Was all that this new master said really going to be true? Was life going to be different, free, and filled with peace? His heart raced with dozens upon dozens of questions.

Then suddenly he heard the all-too-familiar, ear-bleeding thunderclap of a gunshot. The evil slave master flashed through the darkness and sneered into the face of this new master, “Where do you think you’re going?! These people are mine and no one can take them from my grip. Not even you!”

But the voice of the new master was steady and calm, “No, I will remove them from the clutches of your bondage and evil. No more will they be bound for death by your stain of wickedness.”

“Is that so?” said the old master, “You know the punishment for being my slave, don’t you… It’s always death. Everyone dies here. I love death, in fact, it is sort of my idea,” cackled the old master.

“Then I will die,” said the new master, “I will die in their place and they will go free.” The old master laughed with glee, “Really!!? This is better than I ever could have imagined! The master die for the slave?! Ha, I’ve won!”

And with that the old master stuck the end of his rifle into the new master’s chest and pulled the trigger.

With his last breath, this new Master, whose eyes pierced the darkness and whose voice could calm the seas, turned to those who had followed Him into that bloodstained field and said so softly, “It is finished. Now go…. You’re free.”

Ultimate Rescue

And this is Christ’s love for you and me. Now the death that Christ died was actually more shocking, for it was at the hands of you and me. According to the Father’s plan, Christ the Son died in our place so that out from the bondage of sin we could be free.

Yet death was not the end of His story. Sin-driven Satan thought he had won. He thought he would coerce billions of slaves into greater bondage and evil and death. But God had another plan.

With a great shout of victory in the heavens, Christ took the keys of sin and death, and rose from the dead by the power of the Spirit. And the same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead dwells in all who believe in the Christ, who alone sets us free. Satan has been defeated. Love has won. Death is conquered. This is Christ’s love for you and me.

Have you followed Him out of the bloodstained fields of sin and trusted in His perfect and complete work of grace on the Cross? If not, God’s shocking invitation is open to you today. You can be free. You can receive the rescue by simply turning from your sin and trusting in Christ alone for the redemption and forgiveness that only He can give.

Jesus offers hope for every slave. I invite you to simply take the step of faith in Him for the new and eternal life that He offers to everyone who believes.

Freedom-Living

Now turn with me to the land of freedom in God’s grace: If you have been rescued and redeemed, your salvation in Jesus Christ was not cheap, trite, or trivial. It cost God everything. Salvation cost the very life and blood of God the Son, Jesus Christ. So, if you and I have been buried with Jesus Christ in His death and raised to new life through His resurrection, then we are to live out our new nature through joy-filled obedience in love.

How could we, who were enslaved to sin, and in the bondage of Satan’s deceptions and seduction, continue living as if we are still  enslaved to the old master? The thought is unthinkable, for it was Christ Himself who set us free. So do not go on living like you are dead, but alive and free!

Now please don’t misunderstand me here: you and I are not on a rat’s race to repay God for His gift of grace. A gift is a gift, clear and simple. I am not so woodenly saying, “The Christ figure died to set me free, so now I leave the plantation of sin and… obey Him.” In a very real sense, Jesus paid it all and we do not owe Him anything (I am not proposing that we rip that wonderful song out of our hymnals, but we must understand it in the correct context). Christ did not rescue us from the domain of darkness in sin and then enlist us with a “duty-ethic” burden by which we toil away in order to plunk tokens into His hands for the gift of redemption. No! Nothing could be further from the Gospel truth. Our attempts at repaying Him only prove we don’t understand the depth and riches of His gift. Christ’s nail-scarred hands wish for no token repayments; they simply want to hold us in love through our faith in His amazing work of grace.

Our rescue and freedom in Jesus Christ brings us into a love-relationship, not into a duty-oriented obedience. And yet, our Rescuer does call us to display our love and affection for Him through following His will in the obedience of faith. We come to Christ – daily – with nothing in our hands to bring, simply clinging with tears of joy to the One who paid our debt with His blood. From this posture of faith in Christ, He moves within us by the work of the Spirit to act on the obedience of faith.

So let’s honestly ask ourselves, does our obedience – our actions, words, and lifestyle – show that we love Christ more than anything or anyone else on this earth? Who or what do we obey and trust? Do we follow the obedience of sin unto death or obedience unto righteousness?

God’s grace in Jesus Christ, through our new identity with Him in His death, burial and resurrection, changes what we value, what we love, and what we desire. This is what the apostle Paul was talking about in Romans chapter 6.

Paul wrote to the believers in Rome:

“What shall we say then? Are we to continue in sin so that grace may increase? May it never be! How shall we who died to sin still live in it? Or do you not know that all of us who have been baptized into Christ Jesus have been baptized into His death? Therefore we have been buried with Him through baptism into death, so that as Christ was raised from the dead through the glory of the Father, so we too might walk in newness of life….

Now if we have died with Christ, we believe that we shall also live with Him, knowing that Christ, having been raised from the dead, is never to die again; death no longer is master over Him. For the death that He died, He died to sin once for all; but the life that He lives, He lives to God. Even so consider yourselves to be dead to sin, but alive to God in Christ Jesus.

Therefore do not let sin reign in your mortal body so that you obey its lusts, and do not go on presenting the members of your body to sin as instruments of unrighteousness; but present yourselves to God as those alive from the dead, and your members as instruments of righteousness to God. For sin shall not be master over you, for you are not under law but under grace. (Romans 6:1-4, 8-14)

Paul’s implication of God’s amazing work of saving those who believe in Christ is clear: You have a new life! You have been radically changed! You have been raised to walk in new life! You have a new Master! So, it is ridiculous to think (mei genoito – “may it never be”) that we should go on living like we are still in the bondage of sin – we have a new mission and a new purpose.

So when we are struggling with living like one still in sin-slavery, and instead of appearing as one “alive in Jesus Christ” we look more like the walking dead, let’s consider these three responses to the Gospel rescue: (1) Recognize your sin as sin (what is contrary to God’s will, design, and character) (Romans 6:15-19), (2) Look to Christ’s work of love for you on the Cross (Romans 6:1-11), and (3) Turn from your sin toward the love of God in Jesus Christ (Romans 6:20-23).

Embrace the Good News in Jesus by loving Him through joy-filled obedience. The same Spirit that raised Jesus from the dead and brought panic to Satan will give you the strength to obey God’s will and way in freedom, life, hope, and peace. Because He is the God who came to set us free. May you and I walk in the freedom that only Christ affords to the praise of His glorious grace!

Behold the Man upon a cross,
My sin upon His shoulders
Ashamed I hear my mocking voice,
Call out among the scoffers

It was my sin that held Him there
Until it was accomplished
His dying breath has brought me life
I know that it is finished

I will not boast in anything
No gifts, no power, no wisdom
But I will boast in Jesus Christ
His death and resurrection

Why should I gain from His reward?
I cannot give an answer
But this I know with all my heart
His wounds have paid my ransom

From “How Deep the Father’s Love for Us” by Stuart Townend

In Christ Alone,

Michael

**P.S. For the theology buffs out there, I’ve heard numerous analogies and stories about humankind’s position in sin and Christ’s freeing sacrifice that seem to portray the erroneous “Ransom-to-Satan” theory of the atonement. While I’m sure that many teachers, skit-makers, and video-clip makers are not intentionally trying to teach this theory, I did my best to position the “old, wicked master” as sin itself, not Satan. Christ did not pay out a ransom cost to Satan for our sins or souls. He instead took the penalty of mankind’s sin upon Himself through the Cross in order to satisfy God’s just judgment against sin – that which opposes His intrinsic design, character, and will. Thus, Christ’s sacrificial death was the means of a penal, substitutionary atonement.**

Listen to the full AUDIO message entitled “Obedience in Grace: VITALS Series” by simply clicking on the play button below or by subscribing to our iTunes podcast. This message was originally delivered at Youth Unleashed (the Jr. and Sr. High ministry of Evangel Baptist Church in Taylor, MI) on Wednesday, February 13, 2013.

A Tribute to Howard “Prof” Hendricks

Posted by Michael Breznau on 12:43 pm in Devotionals | 3 comments

There are tears of joy and tears of sadness in my eyes this morning. I am torn between the tension of this present life and the life in the world to come. Early this morning marked the passing of the dearly loved Dr. Howard Hendricks, who was affectionately known as “Prof” to those closest to him. He was a teacher of teachers, a pastor to pastors, a mentor to mentors, and left an incredible legacy of faithfulness to God. May God’s peace reign in the hearts of his family as they grieve the loss of this one they loved so much.

His love for Christ’s mission, his family, and his students was heard and seen through every message, lecture, and discipleship session. His passion for life in Jesus Christ was infectious. There was absolutely no question that Prof loved every moment of his job.

For more than sixty years Prof served on the faculty of Dallas Theological Seminary (DTS), where he taught more than ten thousand students. He also ministered in person in more than eighty countries. Through speaking engagements, radio, tapes, films, the sixteen books he authored and coauthored, countless journal and popular-market articles, his service on numerous boards, and his work as a chaplain to the Dallas Cowboys (1976–1984), his reach was and is worldwide. His legacy, in partnership with Jeanne, his wife of more than sixty-six years, includes four children, six grandchildren, and two great-grandchildren.

Holding large audiences enthralled at venues such as Billy Graham’s conference center or Promise Keepers’ stadium rallies, Prof would confide, “It’s wonderful to be here with you, but I have a group of delicious students waiting for me back at the seminary.” ~ by Dallas Theological Seminary on Feb. 20th 2013 in Profiles (http://www.dts.edu/read/howard-hendricks-prof/)

Update: His funeral will be Saturday, March 2nd at 11:00 a.m. at Stonebriar Community Church.

I will never forget the morning when Prof Hendricks told me, “Young man, if I don’t have time to meet with you, then I don’t have time to meet with anybody!” His personal investment in my life continues to impact how I think, pray, preach, teach, disciple, and study God’s Word. While all my teachers at Dallas Theological Seminary played a significant role in guiding my walk with Christ, Prof Hendricks was used by God to radically change my entire outlook on ministry.

Here’s a reflection from a discussion I had with Prof Hendricks on a biblical philosophy of ministry...

“I Am Done Building Churches!” 

One cool, spring afternoon I had the privilege of sitting down with Prof. Hendricks for a little while so I could probe his wisdom and ask a few questions. I will never forget one of his statements during the course of our discussion. He said, “Michael, I am done building churches!” After letting the shock of his statement sink in, he looked me right in the eyes and finished his thought, “I am now building men.”

While he certainly was not saying that building churches was no longer a worthy goal, he was forcefully getting the point across to me that personal, mentor-based discipleship is the key to, in fact, building the Church and expanding the kingdom of God with great impact. Thus, it was a dramatic change of “how” the church is to be strengthened and built. My philosophy for how a local church (and at large, the worldwide Church) is formed, has been tremendously impacted by men such as Howard Hendricks.

I wholeheartedly believe that the structure of a local church should primarily be about deeply committed, self-sacrificial service in the disciple making of others. Such ministry is most explicitly exemplified through the life of our Savior. In Philippians 2:5-11, Paul makes clear to us how Christ literally “emptied Himself” of what was and is certainly and rightfully His, so that He could perform the will of the Father and save so wretched a soul like yours and mine. He ministered in such self-sacrificial love, not for His own glory or reward, but that the Father might be glorified through His own sacrifice (v. 11).

In like manner, we now as the Church of the living Jesus Christ are to live as He lived. We are called to lay down our own needs, wants, and desires for the good of others and the glory of God the Father. Tangibly, this is where “the wood meets the sandpaper.” I believe the church is built by those who in their devotion to Christ, have laid down their own will for the will of the One who saved them. This could mean putting on the brakes before we whiz passed a person in need on the side of the road with a broken-down car. Or, this could entail foregoing a self-satisfying career for the self-sacrificing foreign mission field. Even more importantly, God might lead another to take two or three younger believers under a wing of mentorship for several years, or even decades. Whether this forces some to lose vacation time or just extra personal relaxation, it truly is worth all the effort – for God will be glorified through such self-emptying love.

I believe the church is not built by man-made programs and convenient structures, but by men and women humbly ministering in Spirit-empowered evangelism and discipleship. This means that the church, in its services, is to be utilized for the establishment, encouragement, and sending out of members into the world to shed the light of Christ. Through these members working and serving as ministers of the Light in the world, they by their love will be a beacon of hope that will draw people to the Savior. Then, in an exponential way, the Church will increase as these same people disciple those around them and these new believers in turn, repeat the process of their mentors.

Through the lives of just a dozen men, Jesus Christ changed the world forever. This kind of day-to-day discipleship is what I believe Howard Hendricks was getting at when He spoke with me that spring afternoon. Through a Biblically strong, worshipping church who wholeheartedly loves their Savior and is willing to lay down their temporal needs for the eternal needs of others – this world will be changed and the Gospel will go forth with great authority and power. For the world will see and know the difference. The very words of Christ command you and me to do just this, “A new commandment I give to you, that you love one another, even as I have loved you, that you also love one another. By this all men will know that you are My disciples, if you have love for one another.” (John 13:34-35)

Hendricks-isms 

Here’s my personal collection of favorite quotes from Prof Howard Hendricks. Some may not be entirely original from him, but he was – at the very least – the first person to touch my life with these words. 

• “Conviction by the Truth is not the same as being changed by the Truth.”
• “This Book – will keep you from sin, or sin will keep you from this Book.”
•  “Master the Master’s life.”
• “God has handpicked you to be His mouthpiece to this generation.”
• “I’m done building churches! …I am now building men.”
• “God calls us to faithfulness, not productivity.”
• “You will not build disciples if you pastor like a coo-coo bird in a coo-coo clock!” Don’t come out at the appointed time; say what you have to say, then pop back into your little chamber. You cannot miss the person-to-person – man-to-man ministry!”
• “The Bible wasn’t given to make you a smarter sinner, but rather to change your life.”
• “Personal Bible Study is not a course, it is a lifestyle!”
• “You cannot be holy in a hurry! …Bible study calls not for snapshots but, for timed exposures.”
• “The secret things belong to God and don’t pry Him. The revealed things belong to us and you rest content with that.”
• “Stop star gazing and when the Bible speaks you speak, when the Bible is quiet you shut up.”
• “The biggest problem with praying is praying for someone else and not including you.”
• “Pray short in public and long in private.”
• [Regarding Bible study] “Observation and interpretation without application is abortion! Don’t perform an abortion on the living Word of God!”
• “Everybody wants forgiveness, but nobody wants repentance.”
• “Many Christians are like poor photographs. They are over-exposed and under-developed.”
• “It’s not God’s word because it works; it works because it is God’s living Word.”
• “Don’t ride on your past [education], only build on it!”
• “He didn’t call you here to hang you; he called you here to teach you!”
• “It is a crime to bore people with the Bible.”

Feel free to comment with your personal favorite reflections and quotes, and I’ll add them to the list. I’d love to hear your memories of Prof! 

In Christ Alone,

Michael J. Breznau, Th.M (11′)

P.S. Joey Cochran, my friend (and former classmate at DTS), has also written a brief tribute to Prof Hendricks HERE.

Change: It’s Wrecking My Life.

Posted by Michael Breznau on 11:03 pm in Church & Praxis, Sermons, Theology | 6 comments

Change. Change is not something widely appreciated by most people – including me. I like my socks to be in the same place in the same drawer each morning. I enjoy kissing my wife and children at the same time each night before we go to sleep.

I’m the type of guy who tends to order the same thing at Cracker Barrel or the local diner – at least 8 or 10 times – before my awesome wife finally coaxes me into being “adventurous.” I guess I’m just a man who likes finding a good rut and staying in it for as long as possible. The repeated, consistent rhythms of life give calm to soul.  There’s just something peaceful about using the same Bible I’ve read from for years or wearing my favorite pair of jeans that just seem to look better with age, at least I think so.

Change? Well, it just seems like more hassle than it’s worth or perhaps too risky. What if I lose something I highly value when I change what I eat or wear, or how I behave?

But it gets even worse: our current politicians are constantly talking about change – changing tax brackets and percentages, changing laws governing drugs, healthcare, marriage, military rules, even our personal religious freedoms. So we despise the label “change-agent,” and mutter threats and frustrations about anyone trying to change us. We shout, “There’s no way that is going to happen!”

And then, as if changes in clothing, diet, schedules, and politics were not enough, we find out the church wants us to change everything too! Emergent-liberal progressive change-agents like Brian McLaren, Doug Pagitt, Rob Bell, Tony Jones, Leonard Sweet, Phyllis Tickle, among others all proclaim we should deconstruct everything about the established evangelical church, including the fundamental doctrines of the historic Christian faith.

And so, we justifiably retaliate against the “emergent” change. [I wrote my master’s thesis on the subject of the “emergent church movement” and pointed out the dangerous trends of the movement and it’s proponents. You can access it by clicking here: Emerging from the Emergent. Thesis. Michael Breznau]

Yet still others, who maintain fidelity to sound doctrine and the Gospel mission, say we need to embrace changes in music, apparel, worship, and even preaching style, in order to reach the changing culture around us with the unchanging Gospel of Christ. And like many of you, I balked, ranted, and squawked at the very idea that the church needed to change at all. In fact, I gathered a little following of people who would listen to my rants with nods of approval.

I was proud to be unchanged, strongly traditionalistic, and most importantly – right. I needed to know that I was right.

Strange Change

But then a rather strange thing happened. I started to deeply study God’s Word, and I noticed that the Bible – from beginning to end – was filled with change. In literary terms, God is the static, unchanging character. Yet His goal throughout the biblical story is all about change: redeeming, re-creating, and re-forming humans into the likeness of God the Son, Jesus Christ. You see, you and I are the dynamic, changing characters in God’s story.

Abram and Sarai are changed to the faith-filled Abraham and Sarah (Gen. 17; Heb. 11:8-11, 17-19). Jacob, the Deceiver, becomes Israel (Gen. 32:28-32; Heb. 11:20-21). A bitter, doubting woman named Naomi is restored to joy and faith (Ruth 4:14-17). A Moabite widow named Ruth is brought into Israel’s royal line (Ruth 4:17-22). A young shepherd boy becomes King David (2 Sam. 5:1-5).

God changes the great King Nebuchadnezzar from an egomaniac to a humble worshiper (Dan. 4:28-37). He changed fishermen like Peter and tax collectors like Matthew into legendary missionaries and pastors. Societal outcasts and prostitutes became devoted followers and evangelists. God changed Saul, the hate-mongering, racist, religious fanatic, into the apostle of grace, Paul. And the list could go on and on with names like Joseph, Moses, Mary, Peter, and Timothy, John Mark, James, Thomas, and John.

God changes lives and calls every Christ-follower into a journey of change.

More than all the dynamic, human examples from the Bible, stands the God-man, Jesus Christ. Jesus came to offer Himself as the Way, a way to new life – a total change from something old to something radically new (John 14:6). His forerunner (the announcer or appetizer, per se), John the Baptist, lived and ministered totally outside the accepted religious system as an intentional picture of this new presentation that was about to arrive: Jesus Christ (Matthew 3:1-12).

And when Jesus arrived on the scene everything changed. The conservative religious leaders (the Pharisees) were madder than hornets on a hot summer day, the liberals (the Sadducees) scoffed and mocked; but the needy, hurting, and broken flocked to hear His words of grace, hope, and forgiveness.

My Following or His Mission?

And this is what is wrecking my life… in a very wonderful way. I found I was fighting the wrong fight and my life was only looking less and less like Jesus Christ. The lost, hurting, and needy were not flocking to receive help, hope, and love from me. Instead I only had my following of people just like me.

And the church across the Western hemisphere? Well, by and large we are really good at being “us.” But are people with diseases, hurts, needs, and bruises flocking to us to receive the mercy and message of Jesus Christ, the One we are supposed to fully put on display for the entire world to see?

It is time to change. Yes, it is going to be risky – and I probably will still have my balking and squawking moments. But God the Father has ordained the mission of Jesus to be accomplished by His people as they change into the full, mature picture of His Son Jesus Christ, through the power of the Holy Spirit.

Christ’s call to unity in love and truth will only happen through Spirit-wrought humility and grace. This is exactly what God inspired Paul to write about for the church in Ephesus:

“And He gave some as apostles, and some as prophets, and some as evangelists, and some as pastors and teachers, for the equipping of the saints for the work of service, to the building up of the body of Christ; until we all attain to the unity of the faith, and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to a mature man, to the measure of the stature which belongs to the fullness of Christ. As a result, we are no longer to be children, tossed here and there by waves and carried about by every wind of doctrine, by the trickery of men, by craftiness in deceitful scheming; but speaking the truth in love, 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 4:11-13)

The singular purpose of God’s gifts for the Church is life-change: real, lasting growth toward Christ-likeness. Our lives together should actually begin to look and sound like Jesus. To this, one of my teachers and mentors said rather simply, “Change is the calling of every Christ-follower” (Dr. Howard Hendricks). Change is the goal, not stagnation, fermentation, preservation, or isolation.

Mission Life-Change

But here’s where change gets risky and difficult: Christ’s mission to reach the lost with His life-changing message will only occur through us when we release our cultural idolatries of clothing styles, musical preferences, embedded racisms, and myriad ethnocentricities, and, in turn, embrace change for the sake of the Gospel through the power of the Spirit. Christ’s call to change is part and parcel to Christ’s mission. The early Jewish Christians could have clung to their cultural traditions and prior religious system and enforced them on their Gentile brothers and sisters. And some sure tried to pull this pious looking stunt. Yet such cultural idolatry was sharply rebuked by the apostle Paul and ultimately found to be an enemy of the Gospel itself (Galatians 1:6-10, 2:1-21; Acts 15).

To the church in Galatia, Paul wrote, “For freedom Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not be subject again to the yoke of slavery. Listen! I, Paul tell you that if you let yourselves be circumcised, Christ will be of no benefit to you at all! …For through the Spirit, by faith, we wait expectantly for the hope of righteousness. For in Christ Jesus neither circumcision nor uncircumcision carries any weight – the only thing that matters is faith working through love.”

Paul had zero tolerance for people who tried to enforce extra-biblical standards, traditions, and cultural idolatries. Jesus Christ radically changed Paul, and for him there was no going back to the old system. He had been changed forever.

Sub-Culture Pop Quiz

So what about us? What does God want to change in you? Maybe like me, you’re still holding onto Christian sub-culture idolatries that create unnecessary barriers between people without Christ and His message – lived and proclaimed through us, the Church: 

Perhaps we still believe…

…Types of clothing equate to inward holiness or the absence of holiness.

…Styles of Christian music connect to spiritual maturity or the lack of maturity.

…Applying food restrictions and diets will bring God’s smile upon your life or His frown if you don’t fit the mold.

…Time spent at a church building always correlates to the depth of your relationship with God or the shallowness of your relationship.

…Sizes of homes, investment portfolios, and bank accounts always point to the blessing of God or the lack of His blessing.

…Quantity of Bible-reading and prayer will cause God to love a person more or love them less.

…Punctuality within an American-driven framework is akin to God-likeness (i.e. godliness).  Note: the average person did not own a wristwatch until the early 20th century.

…Safety and relative ease is promised by God for us – in this age – if we are extra-obedient.

…Shows of poverty must mean the person has greater humility.

…Apparent wealth usually means the person has a great deal of pride.

…Watching television or going to a movie theater is inappropriate or even sinful for someone who is “sold-out” for Jesus.

No Way!

Now, I might know what some of you are thinking right now: “Hey, wait a minute! God says for us to do everything “decently and in order,” so we ought to be punctual… and doesn’t this apply to how we do our music too?! The Bible also talks about showing modesty in what we wear; right? And sheesh… going to church is something I love to do! Am I supposed to change that!?”

I have no doubt a thousand other arguments could be raised against this short list of cultural expectations and idolatries. But hear me clearly: I am not saying that modesty, healthy diets, church attendance, punctuality, Bible-reading, and financial wisdom do not matter. They certainly do. However, God’s love for you and me in the Gospel of Christ does not hinge on any of these practices, qualities, or expectations, no matter how noble some of them may be. I love walking into a church building for worship. But it is very possible to spend lots of time in a church building and not even have a relationship with God. I love reading the Bible and spending time in prayer, but my motivation for doing so has radically changed. I do not attend church, read the Bible, or pray in order to gain more of God’s love, instead, I simply love God in return for the love with which He completely loves me in Jesus Christ. And most importantly for our mission: if we use our cultural preferences or expectations as cinder-block partitions between each other and those outside of Christ, we will never be living as God intended. We will fail to demonstrate unity and humility in His love and truth (see John 17), and thereby will never offer the world a clear message of hope in Jesus.

God-made Change

This is the change that is wrecking my life… in a wonderful way. Knowing and following God is not a frenetic chase to earn his favor and blessing; it’s a relationship rooted in His always-abounding and never-ending grace. This change is lowering the altitude of my nose. It’s cutting off my policing action that can become so common among pastors. Yes, pastors are not policemen – we are shepherds. And now, most of all I pray, hope, and desire that everyone under my care will not try to fix all their issues in order to fit a cultural mold, but instead fall wildly in love with the Savior who can change everything. He alone can fix all their issues, addictions, and sin. He is that good, that grace giving, and that powerful. So let Him change you…

Maybe you are not struggling with “Christian” sub-culture idolatries. But, like me, you see other huge areas in your life that need God-made change.

Perhaps you find yourself acting like…

…Having people ask you about the hope of Christ in your life is only supposed to happen on rare occasions.

…Radically engaging in the mission of Jesus (to “go therefore and make disciples…”) is something only pastors and official leaders are supposed to direct and pour their lives into.

…People immigrating to the USA from other continents – especially the Muslim world – should sometimes be looked upon with fear and frustration.

…People who speak clear English deserve more respect than immigrants who severely struggle to communicate (especially when they are trying to give you over-the-phone tech support).

…People with lots of tattoos, piercings, and “a past” should always be watched with wary eyes and asked to cover up their paraphernalia when in “your” church building. You don’t want them to scare away any other visitors…

…God’s love for you gives you license to live totally as you please, rather than in a return-act of love for the God who saved you.

…Your addiction to lust or pornography doesn’t really matter to God.

…Persistent anger, screaming matches, and gossip in your home are less offensive to God than an addiction to nicotine or alcohol.

The Tension 

Do you feel the tension between the God of grace and the problems in your life? You and I need change. God-made change. Perhaps like me, you’ve been creating more walls than bridges when it comes to the Gospel mission. Together, let’s ask God to change us for His glory through the power of His Spirit. Let’s fall wildly in love with the Savior who can change everything. He alone can fix our issues. He is that good, that grace giving, and that powerful. It’s time to embrace Gospel-driven change as God’s people. Change is the call of every Christ-follower. I just cannot believe I resisted His call for so long. May God’s radical grace change you more into the likeness of the Son as you follow His will.

Mawwiage…. mawwiage is what bwings us togeddar…forever!

Posted by Stephanie Breznau on 1:50 pm in Devotionals, Marriage & Family | 2 comments

Marriage is what brings us together… forever. 🙂 Don’t you just love The Princess Bride? They love loyally, fight steadfastly, and endure wholeheartedly… for each other.

Many couples can recount trivial challenges such as the other spouse not replacing the lid on the toothpaste or constantly forgetting to put the toilet lid down. But what about when it gets hard? I mean the bone crunching, excruciating, agonizing kind of hardness.

Michael and I have most definitely faced our fair share of intense challenges in our marriage. Seven moves, an unexpected honeymoon baby, birth and delivery, whooping cough (Pertussis), spending 10 1/2 days in Children’s Medical Center of Dallas wondering if our baby, Hudson, was going to make it through, completing a seminary degree, full-time ministry, financial stress, a difficult second pregnancy with Everlynn, potty training (oh yes, I could write a whole blog just about that), five miscarriages, a very tough pregnancy with our little Carson, and trying to balance our time wisely. Wow, I think that is enough to make anyone go intensely insane, right? 😉

Here is just some encouragement to those of you contemplating marriage, engaged, or newly married:

1. Pray together daily: Michael and I pray together daily, and not only is it a time of praise and thanksgiving for what God has done, it is also a time where we exercise our faith in believing Him for what He is going to do in our lives. This also includes corporate worship through song (unless sickness is present of course). There are few things I enjoy as much as singing praise songs to the Lord on a Sunday morning by my husband’s side.

2. Live sacrificially: It seems like some couples seem to think it is always the wife who is supposed to give up everything when she gets married, has kids, etc. However, Michael and I believe this is a two way street. If the husband comes home from work and the house is STILL a mess, the toddler is wreaking havoc, the baby is running around in a dirty diaper, and the wife is laying on the couch feeling sick and exhausted, it is not for the husband to berate her about all the “failings” that day. Instead it might be time for him to change that diaper, get her a drink of water, and put his arms around her. But this also goes both ways. If your husband is stressed over a work or school project, don’t complain about his lack of attention to you on that day or that he is not helping with the children. Take care of the kids, make dinner, rub his neck and tell him you love him. This applies to intimacy as well. 😉

3. Submit one to another: The Bible says the wife is to submit to the husband (see Ephesians 5:22-33). However, the Bible also says that the husband is to love his wife. It is not loving to treat your wife like she is a doormat. Marriage equals mutual respect for each other. This involves discussing important decisions. There are definitely times when Michael says we need to do something that I don’t want to do, but I do it because I trust that he is wise and (since he rarely asks me to do much outside of caring for the house, Hudson, and Everlynn) I do it (though he never asks me to do anything we haven’t talked about). Most men want a partner in life, not a puppy.  Guys: please treat your wife as equal in value and significance. This goes for the wife too. Girls: don’t discount the decisions your husband makes. Don’t make him afraid to lead because of what your reaction might be.

4. Never do any name calling: Words are like wounds, they will heal but always leave a scar. Think twice before opening your mouth. Instead, try to say, “I love you.”

5. Do not try to change each other: If there is something you do not like about the person you love before you get married, it isn’t going to magically disappear after the vows and honeymoon are all said and done. You have two options here. Either discuss it before marriage (and be open about your own bad habits and such) and try to encourage change, or you need to accept it after marriage. Things can change, but it is up to God and not you. As a wife, I certainly do not want to be a “leaky faucet” so I try to take it to the Lord when something irritates me, and not “get on” Michael constantly (and vice versa). Have a teachable spirit and take constructive criticism to the Lord in prayer instead of reacting. It’s not my job to be the Holy Spirit in his life.

6. Do not correct or criticize in front of others: Thankfully, Michael has never done this to me, but I have been around people who do this. It really does wound! It can discount a person’s opinion and make them shut off communication because they are afraid they are going to be embarrassed or hurt again. If your spouse says something you consider incorrect, inappropriate, or ignorant, do NOT tell them that in front of others. This is a BIG no-no! This also goes for other people correcting or criticizing your spouse. Nip it in the bud! Men, resist the urge to tell your wife she has put on weight (or anything critical about her appearance). I guarantee that she already knows it and feels self conscious. Instead, hug her and ask how her heart is doing. And women, its probably best not to correct your husband’s grammatical or spelling errors. 😉

7. Keep your communication free and open: Set aside around 30 minutes each evening to sit and discuss your day, feelings, etc. Do not let other things crowd out sharing your hearts with each other. These distractions can come from movies, TV, internet, social media, and yes, even children.

8. Go on weekly dates and keep the romance alive!: Michael and I do not have a lot of spare money for dates, but most of the time (usually Monday evenings) I will make a meal and we will eat it at home with a lit candle and romantic music playing. We talk about life and try to avoid talking about work/church stuff and it helps us to stay connected. 🙂

9. Do not let your children crowd out your relationship with your spouse: It is all too easy to get wrapped up in your child”s cuteness, antics, and milestones that it comes before anything else, most importantly your spouse. Make sure that you aren’t ignoring your husband or wife in favor of your kids. Your kids grow up and eventually leave, but it is “till death do you part” with your spouse. When the kids leave, you want to be able to still have a loving and open relationship with your husband or wife.

10. Give your spouse the freedom to be themselves: Whether this is their hobbies, clothing or hair styles, personality, etc. We don’t have money for me to keep up on a lot of the current clothing fashions and such, but Michael always makes sure to budget enough for me to get my hair cut. Even when I am wearing the same clothes from 2 years ago, a stylish cut keeps me feeling pretty and feminine. Budget needs to be taken into consideration. If one of you knows you don’t have the money for something, don’t buy it. Wait until a special occasion comes along and buy it then (after saving for it).

I am by no means a marriage guru, especially after only having been married 4 1/2 years, but after going through some intense hardship, God has not only kept the two of us together, but has knit us even more tightly than ever before. When a couple has the joy of the Lord and a mutual love for Christ, being continually in His word as a couple and praying together draws you even closer. I love it when my friends tell me that their husband is their best friend and companion. There is nothing better than that. So in closing, marriage is not a challenge to me. It is a life-changing, character-growing,and love-expanding experience. Couples who pray together and find joy in Jesus will find joy in each other.

Remember to keep your priorities straight….
God
Spouse
Children
Church 

“Wives, submit to your own husbands, as to the Lord. For the husband is the head of the wife even as Christ is the head of the church, his body, and is himself its Savior. Now as the church submits to Christ, so also wives should submit in everything to their husbands.

Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her, that he might sanctify her, having cleansed her by the washing of water with the word, so that he might present the church to himself in splendor, without spot or wrinkle or any such thing, that she might be holy and without blemish. In the same way husbands should love their wives as their own bodies. He who loves his wife loves himself. For no one ever hated his own flesh, but nourishes and cherishes it, just as Christ does the church, because we are members of his body. “Therefore a man shall leave his father and mother and hold fast to his wife, and the two shall become one flesh.” This mystery is profound, and I am saying that it refers to Christ and the church. However, let each one of you love his wife as himself, and let the wife see that she respects her husband.” (Ephesians 5:22-33 – ESV)

With Love, 

Stephanie

Snow-White Sin.

Posted by Michael Breznau on 5:44 pm in Devotionals, Story Time, Theology | 4 comments

:: Updated with our family video-devotional produced on 1.7.2017 ::

Stains. I hate stains. But alas, as a father of an energetic three-year-old son and a bubbly one-year-old daughter, my role intrinsically involves my shirts and pants being spotted with a whole variety of stains: juice, milk, vomit, jelly, butter, grease, and general goo. Usually we can wash out my assortment of spots with our arsenal of stain-removers. But unfortunately I have found there is one substance that simply cannot be removed: ink. No matter how hard I try to scrub, rub, and wash ink stains out of my clothing, the worse it gets.

You know just what I mean. The ink smears, spreads and seems to become a permanent part of the fabric, as if it was meant to comfortably abide with the fabric as long as the two shall live; ink and fabric in mutual love forever. And so another perfectly good shirt reaches the ultimate destiny: the rag pile.

Magic Eraser?

Not too long ago I was attempting to remove some of Hudson’s fancy “artwork” from the walls in our home. At first he wanted to “help Papa clean,” until he found out that I was trying to erase his “mountains…his big mountains” – yes, mountains of crayon, pencil, and unfortunately, ink. 

“No big deal,” I thought to myself, “This “magic eraser” sponge stuff is supposed to take care of anything.” So I went to work, scrubbing the walls ferociously with my “magic eraser.” Before I knew it the crayon was gone – swiped clean. “Awesome!” I remarked to myself. Away went the 8 and 10 foot long pencil markings too. But then came that beautiful blue and black ink that Hudson so adored. I scrubbed. I rubbed. I scraped. Eventually I began to grind away the wall and punch it to see if it would obey my will with force. The paint was coming off easier than the ink. Oi vey.

No matter how hard I tried, the ink would simply not come off the walls. It didn’t matter what cleaning solution I used. The same is true for my clothing… and our couch cushion (but that’s another story).

No Detergent Will Do. 

All of this sticky, inky mess got me thinking: this is exactly how sin operates in our lives. I once heard another pastor say, “We are not sinners because we sin, we sin because we are sinners.” The whole inky darkness of sin is intrinsically a part of who we are. The apostle Paul said, “Therefore, just as through one man sin entered into the world, and death through sin, and so death spread to all men, because all sinned…” (Rom. 5:12). When the first man, Adam, chose to act out in unbelief and rebellion against the God who created him, we all became part of a singular race of sinners (Genesis 3:1-19; Romans 3:23; 5:12-15). And we all prove our relation to Adam every single day by continuing to sin like sinners.

No matter how hard we try to scrub, rub, or wash away our sin with so-called detergents like good efforts, right-living, loving behavior, church attendance, modesty, baptism, generous giving, or even Bible reading, you and I will never be able to wipe away our sin or take away the impending punishment for sin.

The King-poet David knew the honest depths of his sin and the consequences he faced for his innate and personal depravity. He dove head-long into sin by lusting after the wife of his friend, Uriah the Hittite. He then proceeded to act on his sinful-lust by bringing her into his bedroom and committing blatant adultery. To make matters even worse, he tried to cover up the tell-tale track of his sin by eventually having Uriah killed in battle.

David knew the inky darkness of his sin and when confronted by the prophet Nathan; what does he do? Does David try to strike a sin-bargain with God? David: “Okay, God. I’ve really messed up. Yes, I’ve sinned big time. So, how about I promise to give the Temple administration and the priests 90% of all my profits for the rest of my life? Will that cover it? How about I also promise to never commit adultery EVER AGAIN, never get drunk, and always worship with great diligence on every Sabbath Day? Will that suffice, God?”

No. David does not even come close to any sin-bargaining. He knows the depths of sin – innately and personally – and so he prays:

“For I know my transgressions, and my sin is ever before me. Against You, You only, have I sinned and done what is evil in Your sight, so that You are justified when You speak and blameless when You judge. Behold, I was brought forth in iniquity, and in sin my mother conceived me.” (Psalm 51:2-5)

David understands that something much greater is needed to scrub away his sin. He was born in sin and so are we. And so he prays with deep intensity, “Be gracious to me, O God, according to Your loving-kindness; according to the greatness of Your compassion blot out my transgressions. Wash me thoroughly from my iniquity and cleanse me from my sin…” (Psalm 51:1-2). This sinner-of-a-king knows the only way he will ever be clean is by God’s shockingly amazing and compassionate grace.

Snow-White Sin. 

So why all of this about stain and sin? Well, it’s all because of snow. As I look out the window of my study on this beautiful, wintry day I see soft white snowflakes gently drifting to the ground. The pure, blindingly white appearance of snow is the perfect picture of what only God can do with our sin. The LORD used this beautiful analogy when He spoke through the ancient prophet Isaiah,

“Though your sins are as scarlet, they will be white as snow; though they are red like crimson, they will be like wool.” (Isaiah 1:18)

King David poetically heightened this metaphor in his prayer of repentance,

“Purify me with hyssop, and I shall be clean; Wash me, and I shall be whiter than snow” (Psalm 51:7; italics added for emphasis).

David understood that the only way he could be completely clean from the inky stain of his sin was through the compassionate grace of God. No other detergent would do. Only God’s grace. His sin could become even whiter than snow. Pure. White. Clean. Forgiven.    

Most of you probably know Jesus Christ as your personal Savior. But we can still get caught up into the my-detergent mentality. We begin to think that the better we are (the less we sin outwardly) the more God will love us. I can fall into this trap so, so easily… almost without thinking about it. I begin to believe that the better I preach, sing, pray, or study my Bible, then the more my sin-stain will fade. But here’s the reality: the dark ink of our sin can only be washed away by the grace of God in Jesus Christ. No other person or action or effort will ever erase even one solitary sin. Only God in Christ offers grace and compassion and mercy, and you must come to Him without anything in your hands as extra detergents or erasers.  

David reminds us what God really desires:

“For You do not delight in sacrifice, otherwise I would give it; You are not pleased with burnt offering. The sacrifices of God are a broken spirit; a broken and a contrite heart, O God, You will not despise” (Psalm 51:16-17).

David had to realize God wanted only a heart surrendered in humility, clinging only to God’s sufficiency in grace, not one’s own good efforts and religious zeal. We cannot do it. Ever. We will never be able to fade the ink of our sin. Only by the grace of God through faith in Jesus Christ alone can you and I be free from the stain of sin. So let’s come to God as David did… everyday. David looked forward with hope in the promise of God’s provision of grace in the Messiah and we look back in wonder and faith at God’s provision of grace in Jesus the Messiah. He alone wipes away our stains.

So everyday… Honestly repent of your sins, remind yourself of the Good News of God’s grace in Jesus, and return in humility and joy to the foot of the Cross, where we find grace upon grace forevermore.

Nothing in my hand I bring,
Simply to the cross I cling;
Naked, come to Thee for dress;
Helpless look to Thee for grace;
Foul, I to the fountain fly;
Wash me, Savior, or I die.

~ from Rock of Ages, Augustus M. Toplady

Michael J. Breznau. 2.25.2013

Living in Expectation

Posted by Michael Breznau on 9:29 pm in Devotionals, Story Time | 0 comments

Dawn will break. The day is near. The amazing moment will soon arrive. Our expectation will quickly turn into reality. When will it happen? We do not know for sure. Yet we are certain the time will come. We are certain she will come. Everlynn Sarah will be here with us… and we will behold her beautiful face and nestle her in our arms…. and so we wait.

We live in expectation. For the past nine months – and especially for the past few weeks – we have lived with an unquenchable expectation. Stephanie and I wake up each bright, wintry morning with our thoughts and conversation filled with the question: “Will today be the day?” Every time Stephanie calls or texts me, I immediately wonder: “Is this it?! Has our long-awaited moment arrived?”

Patient Impatience

This life of expectation is a strange tension of patient impatience. Ironically, this oxymoron seems to be our reality. We long for the day when the very real pain, difficulty, and agony of bearing a child will be lifted from Stephanie’s body and exchanged for the beauty of our little baby. This pregnancy, in particular, has been extremely trying and exhausting for Stephanie. Yes, we know it will be worth it in the end. Yet this only heightens our desire for the end to come. So we rather impatiently wait with expectation for the day which will mark an end and a new beginning. This expectation has often consumed our attention, hopes, and desires.

My intense longing (and Stephanie’s groaning) for Everlynn’s arrival is repeated in every prayer. Our lives have changed to conform to this constant hope. Our bags are packed for the hospital (and remain a rather comical tripping hazard in the hallway). Every time we leave the house we fill the car with extra clothes, pillows, bottled supplements, organic lollipops, diapers, and an extra car seat – with the hope that our expectation will become reality. We live in persistent hope…

The Real NEW

Yesterday, as I looked out across our soggy, rainy backyard through our picture-glass window, a thought rose to the surface of my mind: am I living in expectation for the Day when the End will mark the beginning of the New? Does the very real pain, suffering, and groaning of this life and world heighten my desire for the end to come? Do I have an unquenchable longing for Christ’s return when He will make all things new (Rev 21:5)? Does He consume my thoughts and find constant mention in my conversations? Do I wake up in the morning with the burgeoning question on my mind: “Will today be the day?”

This expectation consumed and controlled the life of the apostle Paul:

“For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worth comparing with the glory that is to be revealed to us. For creation waits with eager longing for the revealing of the sons of God. For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.

For we know that the whole creation has been groaning together in the pains of childbirth until now. And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. For in this hope we were saved. Now hope that is seen is not hope. For who hopes for what he sees? But if we hope for what we do not see, we wait for it with patience.” (Romans 8:18-25)

An Even Greater Expectation

Conviction ran deep across my heart as I watched cold rain drops fall on our brown, frost-bitten grass. Has the expectation of Christ’s return and the hope of the new heavens and earth changed the way I live? Has my life changed to conform to this constant hope? As great and wonderful as our expectation for Everlynn’s arrival may be, how much greater should my longing be for Christ at His return?

Living in expectation of the End will change how we live in the Present. There will be a day when all things will be made NEW. The earth will be remade. We will be glorified in the same manner as Christ’s resurrection. Decay, depression, and disobedience will be no more. The pain and suffering of this life will be lifted and gloriously exchanged for the beauty of Christ’s presence, when we shall see Him face to face.

So we expectantly wait…with patience.

In Christ Alone,

      Michael J. Breznau

[With fond memories one week before our little Everlynn’s 1st Birthday… Original date of writing: January 17, 2012]

P.S. This short article is dedicated to our lovely daughter Everlynn, and to a teacher who brought me to understand and behold the hope of the resurrection and its present implications in my life: Dr. Glenn Kreider.

Life’s Underpinning

Posted by Michael Breznau on 1:28 am in Podcast, Sermons | 0 comments

One bitterly cold, late December day, my brother Stephen and I trekked out to see the ice on a river near our house in St. Clair, Michigan. It had been pretty cold for the past couple of weeks and we were both anxious to lace up our hockey skates for the new season. The Pine River was about 60-80 feet wide and approximately 30-40 feet deep, with a strong current taken in from the St. Clair River – this was no little creek. But we thought it would make a perfect hockey rink. Stephen (10 years old) decided to skate around as we tested the ice, and I (14) decided to stay in my boots for this quick trial run.

We headed south down the center of the river about 200 yards and the ice seemed to be in pretty good shape. We weren’t sure how thick it was, but hey, it looked fine. So, with excitement we started heading back down the river toward the trail that would take us home to grab the rest of our hockey equipment. As we neared the shoreline I decided to give the ice one more test by jumping up and down on it a few times. I remember shouting out to my brother, “yeah Stephen, this ice looks great!” – Just at that moment a plunged through the ice and into some very cold, deep water. Yikes.

Sometimes the attractions of the world system are very appealing. It appears the glaze foundation is strong enough to old things together. “Hey, other people are doing it, and they look like their having fun,” we might say. It seems to look strong enough to holds things together. The questions about life away from the foundation of Jesus Christ tempt us to test, to question, to wonder, and to sometimes skate out on thin ice – completely unaware of the collapse or total disaster that lies ahead. We wonder: is following Christ like I’ve been taught really worth it? Can satisfaction and ease be found outside of doing this “Christian thing”? We might think that a job earning $100-200k a year might really give us what we want out of life. We question, “is the underpinning of the world all that bad?” Maybe some of you think having a beautiful, good-looking spouse and a snazzy family will do it for you. We think, “Yeah, that would be the life.” Maybe even some of us believe that having a flourishing, successful ministry will give us peace of mind. We so often use the world’s evaluation tools to judge the Christian life: Are you happy? Are you healthy? Are you at ease? Are you wealthy? And the more we use these gauges, the more we slide out onto a foundation that is destined to collapse…

So, my question for you and for me is this: What underpins your life? What underpinning will you trust in or stand on when you have more questions than answers? What’s Underpinning Your Life? What are you trusting in? Self? Your questions or intellect? Your Good Deeds? Money? Marriage? Material Gain? Or…

After calling and individually instructing the Twelve, Jesus taught from a mountain to a huge group of people who had been following Him and coming to Him for healing. In many ways, they wanted to receive health, ease, and physical well-being. Not necessarily bad things at all. Yet, they needed to understand (as we do) the key issue at stake. They had to face ONE QUESTION that would underpin their lives. Therefore, Jesus closed his sermon in Luke chapter 6, with an analogical story that will help us determine what must underpin our lives. So, please turn with me to Luke 6:46-49. Where we will come face to face with the words of Christ…

Listen to the full audio message entitled “Life’s Underpinning” by simply clicking on the play button below or by subscribing to our iTunes podcast. This message was originally delivered on “Grad Night 2011” at Evangel Baptist Church on Sunday PM, May 22, 2011.

The Spark of Life and the Wish of Death

Posted by Michael Breznau on 1:10 am in Morality & Ethics, Theology | 0 comments

What is Life?

There are moments that occur during the span of one’s life that often profoundly impact their entire perspective and outlook. One of these moments is undoubtedly, for many people, the viewing of a newborn’s entrance into the world. While many young fathers may run away in terror from such close observation, the impact on their world and the mother’s is indeed, quite tremendous. As the mother labors to bring this little creation into the globe we call Earth, and as the father either watches in stark fear, or grimaces at every groan from the comfort of a waiting room, they all wait for one, singular sound. Here in our western culture, hoards of family members and other relatives will also gather around the door of the delivery room to catch the sound of one special noise. Suddenly, amidst the racket and bustling of a busy hospital, everyone hears what they all have been waiting for. As the delivery room doors swing open, the strong cry of life is heard loud and clear.

Life is really all that is known to the living, and death is only known by those who do not speak. Life is considered marvelous and wonderful. Death is regarded by the vast majority as terrible and dreadful. Yet, in our society we make choices of life and death every day. Millions of couples will create new life this year through sexual intimacy, many “unintentionally.”[1] Millions of new, little babies will enter this world with great hope for the future, yet millions of other little children will be aborted before ever leaving the womb.[2]

One grandmother will survive a massive open heart surgery, while another will have her food and water withheld, ultimately resulting in her death.[3] An irresponsible drunk driver will plow his car into an innocent family’s vehicle ending the life of several small children. Others filled with greed and hate will perform armed robbery on a large bank and victimize several opponents with death. The same day valiant firemen will charge into a burning house and rescue a family from the flames. This year military operations will storm a village killing several enemies, yet also lose some of their own.[4] Terrorists seeking political power will attack a city and attempt to overthrow the local government by force – at the point of a gun. A small Asian village will receive a shipment of vaccinations just in time to save them from a widespread and lethal epidemic.[5]

As one muses over the chivalry, benevolence, and the antithetical atrocities above, why is emotion invoked? Why do we as human beings even care what happens to the poor villager in southern Africa, or the enslaved child in Asia? Some may try to explain away the emotive feelings within, but ultimately such denial cannot be justified. There is real care in our hearts for those who are under duress or abuse. Even the most liberal, naturalistic atheist would seem to have some appreciation for those firemen who save the lives of those around him. Yet, on the same token, that same individual may vociferously promote the abortion of unwanted, unborn children.[6] Perhaps the solution to this strange dichotomy can be made clearer through discovering three prominent views that attempt to answer the question, “What is life?”

Just Carbon, Chemical Reactions?

When looking at human life specifically, some are led to believe that the only real, definable difference between us and the Animal Kingdom is a higher level of physical and cognitive development.[7] From that standpoint they then logically move to the position that the singular, relevant reason why human beings should be treated any different than, say for instance, a cow, is because they are members of the species Homo sapiens (humanity).[8] Following his own line of thought, Peter Singer claims that if humanity grants greater significance to itself over and above other life (per say animals etc…) then they could likely be guilty of something similar to the atrocity of white vs. black racial prejudice.[9] He goes on to say he firmly believes that simply being a member of our species is “not morally relevant.”[10] His statements at this point should seem quite outlandish, but one has to wonder how scholars like Singer or Helga Kuhse arrive at such a position.[11]

From a pure naturalistic, rationalistic standpoint such as Singer’s, his ideas make perfect sense, and he is known for proclaiming them relentlessly at times.[12] However, his position stems out of a view which logically does not accept that humans have a soul. He purports that his beliefs come from Utilitarianism[13] or classic utilitarianism, in other words, what best serves the greatest happiness of humanity and the world at large.[14] So, from a utilitarian point of view, he is doing the world a great justice, by freeing it from the moors of burdensome religiosity and hate-filled dogmatism. The actions of the mind or “thoughts” are believed by such naturalists to be simply the connections of the chemical actions of the body. These actions are purely movements of these chemicals as they act and react towards either pain or pleasure.[15] This theory is commonly known as Reductive Physicalism, which essentially means that they have reduced the matter of mind and body (they do not believe in the idea of a soul) to only a physical state. To the naturalists, there is no moral significance to the mind or conscience for it is only bodily functions and responses that control a person’s perception and reception of life. Hence, the mind and body are simply the out workings of the body itself with no outside or special involvement from anything remotely close to a theistic view of God.

For those who hold this view, human “life” is the combination of several factors that convince such proponents of an individual’s worth and quality. Naturalistic philosopher Michael Tooley suggests a list of fifteen key components that relegate life and determine true personhood. Here are a handful of his points of “life,” “(1) the capacity to experience pleasure and/or pain; (2) the capacity for having desires; (3) the capacity for remembering past events; … (5) an awareness of the passage of time; … (9) the property of having mental states that involve propositional attitudes, such as beliefs and desires; … (11) the capacity for reasoning; (12) problem solving ability; … (14) the capacity for using language; (15) the ability to interact socially with others.”[16] This list is a good example of where the logic of pure physicalism will take the thinking person.

If a human is only a highly developed mammal without a soul, then life has to be measured by quality, ability, and experience. After pondering the attributes above given by Tooley, one should wonder if we are all truly life-filled persons when waking up in the morning. In all seriousness, anyone can clearly see that those with congenital birth defects, Down’s syndrome, varying forms of autism, and other abnormalities would not “make the cut” when considering Tooley’s suggested rubric for valued life. For those who purport this view, this is a bitter reality.

Body First, Mind Second

Some scholars have suggested a more moderate approach to reductive physicalism and have concluded that the body gives rise to something that deserves its own – the mind. The body is “number one,” but the mind holds a place of validity and importance secondarily.[17] This is known as Non-Reductive Physicalism. Those who purport this theory, like the pure naturalist, tend to hold atheistic or agnostic views of creation, and therefore are hesitant to give any credence to the idea of a soul. Life is the simple composition of body matter and mind action. Eventually as this development of matter matures, the mind also continues to develop into a full “life.” This form of physicalism as defined by some is, in actuality, materialistic monism masquerading as moderate dualism. Robert Pyne does an excellent job describing this interesting mixture:

Some monists find a middle ground between the extremes of materialism and idealism, contending that the common essence of all things is both material and immaterial. From this perspective (“known as dual-aspect monism”), nothing is pure matter (not even rocks) and nothing is pure spirit (not even God). David Steindl-Rast, a Roman Catholic with decidedly New Age (he would say “new paradigm”) leanings, represents this view. He wrote, “For me spirit and matter are two sides of the same coin, two interwoven aspects of reality.”[18]

For a moment this “dual-aspect monism” may seem to give us an answer to our question of life. It places some regard on the immaterial or spirit nature, and also sees the necessity of basic matter and composition.[19] However, by attempting to blend the two aspects of “life” into one essence and substance, it raises a whole field of other theological questions and implications.[20] Will the soul separate from the body at death? Does the body hold control over the spirit? When does the mind or soul reach maturity and render a particular human a whole and valuable person? Ultimately this belief brings one to the conclusion that there is no real eternality, and that death is merely the expiration of that unique yet temporary combination of mind and body.[21]

Determining life only on the basis of physicality has serious ramifications for one’s definition of life. Even though this theory places some importance on mind function, it still derives its basic factor from body matter and development alone. Therefore, from a secular standpoint, this view continues to hold the door wide open to attempts at defining life apart from theism or any eternal value. This view ultimately leads down the very same path as classic physicalism. For this reason, it does not appear to offer any more lasting solutions for the Christian than the first view in the preceding section.

Body and Soul, Heart and Mind

After observing two views that apparently seem to lead in similar directions, it will now be our goal to define and discuss a view of life that is as close to a biblical model as possible. Perhaps this will satisfy our curiosity, as well as, give us a solution to our question; “What is Life?” Predominantly in philosophical circles, the final major view in discussion is a theory calledSubstance Dualism.[22] According to this view, the body and mind are two parallel, equal, and necessary components of life. Unlike reductive physicalism, this dualistic approach allows for the utmost appreciation for both facets of humanity – the material and immaterial parts. Distinct from non-reductive physicalism, this view does not place one aspect of a person above another; the mind and body are considered equal in importance. Furthermore, differing from a dual-aspect monism, this rationale does not attempt to blend the body and spirit or mind into one unified substance that is inseparable.[23]

Substance dualism also allows for the sin nature to be played out in the lives of humans fromboth aspects of their humanity. Faithful Christian doctrine believes that all have inherited a sin nature through Adam’s fall (Gen 3:5-24; John 16:8; Rom 1:28; 3:23; 5:6-8, 12-13; 8:7). Therefore, this depravity extends not only to bodily functions, but to all intellect, emotions, and soul. This dualistic approach coincides with this idea of depravity as well as with the doctrine of the eternality of the spirit and the final shedding of the mortal body (Rom 8:23; Phil 3:21).[24]

Life is defined by this basic form of dualism as having two essential, co-equal parts. Life is understood to be the combination of the body (material) and the soul (immaterial). One sees in this man-made system perhaps the closest framework resembling God’s view of humanity as found in His Word.[25] Both aspects of life are fully affected by the total depravity received through Adam, yet both were and are created as good in the image of God (Gen 1:31; 1 Tim 4:4-5).[26] The body and soul are both infinitely valuable to the Lord and therefore must be of infinite value to us.[27] Our emphasis ultimately needs to be on the whole person as created by God, but having this faulty, yet helpful framework to build on is of great assistance.[28] So, if the body and soul together constitute a person who is part of the Imago Dei, and that person is therefore of utmost value; when do the soul and body join to become life?

There are three main theories that attempt to explain how and when the soul joins the body.[29] The first is known as the Pre-existent view of souls. This theory holds that souls exist or live in some type of “previous state” and are then joined to the material body before birth.[30] These souls are believed to be taken out of this storehouse of sinful or neutral souls and then placed within bodies by God or some other force. The terrible implications of this view toward Christian theology, led the early church to deem its theories heretical at the Council of Constantinople in 540 AD.[31] Not only does this view allow for a construed form of reincarnation; it also does not have any scriptural foundation, and thus cannot be accepted by orthodox Christianity.[32]

The second and more orthodox view of the soul and body is known as Creationism. This is not to be confused with the origin of the universe, but simply speaks of the origin of the soul. The creationist view holds that God in His omnipotent power creates individual souls for each new conception on earth, and then places them within each body sometime before birth.[33] This theory is focused on the direct, creative act of God at every point of conception (Gen 2:7; Num 16:22; Heb 12:9). This view is largely held by the Roman Catholic Church, as well as some theologians in the Reformed tradition.[34] They argue that it aptly testifies to the sinless birth of Jesus, by God the Father creating a sinless soul to place within His body. However, this seems to lead us down the road of Gnostic dualism for everyone else considered. Is it the wicked body that contaminates the soul? Or is God creating sinful souls and placing them in bodies at conception or development?

It appears that in order for mankind to be born with a sinful nature, the creationist view would have to state that God is, in fact, creating sin-filled souls in order that he might place them in bodies to be depraved people. This theological nugget is hard to swallow. Or, from a classic Roman Catholic perspective, perhaps God is not creating sinful souls, but rather neutral beings with a clean slate on which to draw their life. Such a view is lucidly Pelagian, but is not a far walk from the tree of creationism.

This view has theological implications that also interfere with the doctrine of original sin and the transfer of depravity down through the ages.[35] For this reason, many protestant theologians ascribe to a third theory, known as Traducianism. Augustus Strong defined this view quite concisely when he wrote, “The human race was immediately created in Adam, and, as respects both body and soul, was propagated from him by natural generation—all souls since Adam being only mediately created by God, as the upholder of the laws of propagation which were originally established by Him.”[36] This definition states three important concepts that help us define the joining of soul and body. First, God is understood as having created the world and set in motion the order of propagation – beginning with Adam. Secondly, through this design of reproduction, souls after Adam are mediately, not immediately “created by God.” Meaning, the Lord has rested from creation and his direct creative acts have been set in motion through the order of His universe. He does create each individual, yet He does so through the process of reproduction He set in motion at the beginning of time.

Through this theory, one is able to explain the carrying on of the sin nature and our depraved, inherited wickedness through Adam. But more importantly, one can also logically see that the joining of soul and body is something that naturally occurs at the point of conception for each individual person. Thus, the person becomes a life at conception through the design of God. While most creationists (especially with the Roman Catholic tradition) also believe that life begins at conception, it appears that traduciansim grants a better explanation for this stance. If God is not placing a soul in the body of an unborn infant at some arbitrary time during development, then it seems corollary, through the traducian view, that the joining occurs at conception. Certainly this is a highly debatable stance, yet notable Christian scholar, Kirby Anderson writes of the same logical connection between traducianism and the unborn.

Psalm 51:5 also supports the traducian view of the origin of the soul. According to this perspective human beings were potentially in Adam (Rom 5:12; Heb 7:9-10) and thus participated in his original sin. The “soulish” part of humans is transferred through conception. Therefore, an unborn baby is morally accountable and thus is fully human.[37]

Life is defined by some as merely physical matter and the chemical reactions of the same. Others seek to define it as a combination of the physical state controlling the subordinate matter of the mind. Yet others, who see the reality of God in the universe, have continued to declare that there is more to mankind than simple biology. Sacred life is that unique creation of God that combines both soul and body through His orderly design of human propagation on earth. This marvelous miracle of our Creator testifies both of his power and wisdom, for we as humans are made in His likeness and image (Gen 1:26-27; 5:1; 9:6).[38]

What is the Value of a Person?

The questions of value and personhood are the two fundamental hinges on which all other ethical issues pertaining to human life swing. How we define a “person” will define how we handle death, life and every other important bio-ethical decision. Through the eyes of such naturalistic philosophers such as Peter Singer, Helga Kuhse, and Peter Wenz, life is only the essential components of physicality.[39] This view of humanity, logically moves toward the argument for abortion, broad reproductive control, euthanasia, and other forms of life control, because a person truly only exists to have capacity for the giving and receiving of either pain or pleasure.[40]

If a particular result of sexual intercourse, a fetus, becomes a nuisance or inhibits or prohibits a “developed” person from experiencing mature pleasure in life, then that person is believed to have every right to end the cause of their displeasure.[41] It would only be impermissible for someone to carry out these actions if the victim is determined to be another fully developed and functioning person. If this were so, then the displeasured would only at that time be forced to adjust to the change and accept temporary displeasure. However, to such naturalists, the unborn child (or even a young child) is neither fully developed as a person nor a self-functioning member of society, therefore their life should be allowed to expire without any further ramifications or culturally enforced guilt.

Personhood is everything. If the fetus is considered partially human or compartmentally having potential for being a person, then just like the pure naturalist, this purports that defining personhood is humanity’s job. Referring back to Tooley’s suggested rubric for what constitutes life (pg. 7) one can see what humanity has offered for a solution. This solution unfortunately can potentially open the floodgates of a “practical” infanticide for the overall utilitarian benefit and pleasure of our species.[42] The current day follower of Christ should find these theories both startling and grievous. For none of these theories can justifiably be aligned with the tenor of Scripture.

As believers in the Word of God as the Lord’s special revelation to mankind, we are held accountable to perceive the attributes of our God, and walk according to His ways and commands. This doctrine that we as Christians lovingly hold for the glory of the Father, must affect how we value each and every person in this world.

In Psalm 139:13-16, David writes, “For You formed my inward parts; You wove me in my mother’s womb. I will give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works, and my soul knows it will. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth; Your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Your book were all written the days that were ordained for me, when as yet there was not one of them.”

In this beautiful ballad, David is succinctly declaring that God knew Him and was with Him even before his first day from the womb. R.C. Sproul notes that in vs. 16 is the “only use of the Hebrew word for embryo found in Scripture – ‘unformed body.’ ”[43] This is very interesting in light of David’s praise of God’s awareness, care, and watchfulness over the very earliest beginnings of David’s life. This certainly appears to point toward personhood at conception. Other examples abound of God’s concern for the unborn and His relegation of them as being true persons. In Jeremiah 1:5 we read, “Before I [the Lord] formed you in the womb I knew you, and before you were born I consecrated you; I have appointed you a prophet to the nations.”[44] Here Jeremiah is clearly known and appointed by the Lord, even before conception. God is stating that he was determined as a person with a personal call before he left his mother’s womb. This appears to be pointing us again toward the joining of body and soul at the point of conception or perhaps even at some earlier point.

Upon reflection of verses such as those above, Sproul contends a case for the personhood of the unborn child this way:

Even those who do not agree that life begins before birth grant that there is continuity between a child that is conceived and a child that is born. Every child has a past before birth. The issue is this: Was that past personal, or was it impersonal with personhood beginning only at birth? It is clear that in Scripture personhood begins prior to birth: “Surely I was sinful at birth, sinful from the time my mother conceived me” (Psalm 51:5).[45]

The passage quoted by Sproul in Psalm 51 again gives further credence to the view that our depraved and sinful nature does not begin at some arbitrary time in development, but instead at the very point of conception. If an unborn infant is thus morally responsible in Adam, then it can also be stated that as a moral agent, this child is also fully personal in the sight of God, and should be viewed as such in our opinion as well.

There has been much debate over the reference to varying punishments in Exodus 21:22 for those who injure pregnant women under the Mosaic Law, however, under close scrutiny this verse does not deny the personhood of the unborn, but essentially grants further establishment to this view. Even if one takes a variant view of this verse, the vast weight of Scripture still points very strongly toward personhood at conception.[46] For instance in Amos 1:13, we see God exacting strict and severe judgment on Israel’s neighboring nations, and one particular reason is seen here, “Thus says the Lord, for three transgressions of the sons of Ammon and for four I will not revoke its punishment, because they ripped open the pregnant women of Gilead in order to enlarge their borders.” God is punishing the people of Ammon because they have chosen to treat pregnant women, and ultimately the unborn carelessly merely for their own political gain.

Life is fundamentally precious and valuable to God for it is His very creation. Most importantly, human life from conception to the grave reflects the very likeness of the Creator, His own personal image. Therefore, if personal life is the true creation of God through his orderly, designed universe, then each person young and old, born and unborn, must be cherished, treasured, protected, and defended. To do any less is to disregard the very character of the God we claim to love and serve.

A Death Wish: Is the Choice ours to Make?

Abortion. Euthanasia. Two words that are heavily weighted with pain, sweat, tears, debate, controversy, and millions of dollars spent on political movements from every side. Such issues are never going to be settled easily. Emotions rage and the bitter reality of those caught in the middle of such strife can be utterly bewildering. The innocent lives of mothers and children are often held in a wickedly spinning cycle of propaganda and philosophical agenda. Yet, for all of this, we as individual followers of Christ must come to a decision. Will we side with a view of personhood that reflects naturalism and finds little, if any stretched alignment with God’s moral character? Or, we will decide to lovingly and thoughtfully stand firm on the side of personhood beginning at conception?[47]

In the coming years, issues of abortion and euthanasia are not going to dissipate. In fact, they will likely rise in prominence. It is quite possibly that many, many believers will be faced with the grim decision to “pull-the-plug,” “yank the food and water tubes,” or even undergo forced abortions as part of governmental enforcement.[48] The decision to side with a biblical view of life and personhood may become increasingly less popular and those who stand firm are likely to receive some level of persecution for their beliefs.

However, as has been portrayed in this study, there is really no gray area in this matter.[49] Either personhood begins at the conception of life, or it is left up to the determination of physical functions. If God is the giver of life and if He views life as personhood from conception to the grave (as was demonstrated in this work) then we, as His followers, must regard this wondrous creation as sacred and leave the life and death choices up to the God who granted us breath at the beginning of time (Gen 2:7).

Conclusion

Through looking at the three major views of life and personhood and carefully coming to a biblical position of what precisely begins at life’s inception at what ends at life’s expiration, it is hoped that the reader has now be equipped with a more thorough basis for believing in the sanctity of human life. Ultimately, the issue is personhood. And arriving at such a stance requires one to take a theological position. As stated previously, life is defined by some as merely physical matter and the chemical reactions of the same. Others seek to define it as a combination of the physical state controlling the subordinate matter of the mind. Yet others, who see the reality of God in the universe, have continued to declare that there is more to mankind than simple biology. Sacred life is that unique creation of God that combines both soul and body through His orderly design of human propagation on earth. This marvelous miracle of our Creator testifies both of His power and wisdom, for we as humans are made in His likeness and image.

Therefore, if personal life is the true creation of God through his orderly, designed universe, then each person young and old, born and unborn, must be cherished, treasured, protected, and defended. To do any less is to disregard the very character of the God we claim to love and serve. May His glory be known and His power be shown in and through our lives for His great praise.

FOOTNOTES: 

[1] Kirby Anderson, Christian Ethics in Plain Language (Nashville: Thomas Nelson 2005), 38-9.

[2] Ibid., 38. For further reference, see also: Ronald Munson, Intervention and Reflection: Basic Issues in Medical Ethics, 7th ed. (Belmont, CA: Thomson/Wadsworth Learning, 2004), 570-71.

[3] Sadly, this hypothetical statement is all too realistic for the author. Through first-hand experience, he witnessed the battle for life as his grandmother struggled to survive with very little water and no food for more than ten days. She had no written consent for this type of treatment, yet was placed under this care through the will of her husband – the author’s grandfather. Essentially, starvation was forced upon her because they deemed her only partially functional after a major stroke. Even though signs of recovery were in order, all was disregarded for the sake of her “quality of life.” Although complete forgiveness has been extended to the parties responsible for this action, the irony of what constitutes a “functioning” person remains.

[4] The string of statements in this paragraph is not meant to be prophetic, but merely realistic, hypothetical descriptions of the actions that occur every year all around the world.

[5] Again it is stated that these narrative remarks are not intended to be at all prophetic or unsubstantiated statements, but simply the encapsulation of what one is likely to find across news headlines during the course of a year. This, in a sense, can be assumed true for the sake of argument. In regard to the hypotheses of a small Asian village, the author can personally testify to its accuracy. During a five-week mission outreach in southeast India, the author was involved in medical camps that helped stem the tide of a whole variety of physical ailments and lethal diseases.

[6] The term “abortion” is herein defined as the ending of human life before birth. To this hypothetical atheist, those “unborn, unwanted children” are of course not children at all. But would most likely be considered fetuses or collections of developing mass that do not equal a true person, or that cannot be identified as having full-personhood. This point will be discussed in greater depth in the following sections.

[7] Peter Singer, Practical Ethics, 2nd ed. (New York: Cambridge University Press, 1993), 86-9.

[8] Ibid., 84-6.

[9] Holly, A Matter of Life and Death: What the Bible Has to Say About Violence in the Pro-Life Movement, 19. Within this text, Holly quotes a large section out of an article written by Peter Singer in the periodical Pediatrics, 72, No.1 (July 1983), 128-29. The author was unable to procure the direct material from this journal, but finds the quote by Holly as verbatim to the words of Singer.

[10] Ibid.

[11] Helga Kuhse, The Sanctity-of-Life Doctrine in Medicine: A Critique (Oxford: Oxford University Press, 1987), 6-20. In this work and in several others written by Kuhse that were observed by the author, it is found that she closely coheres to the same basic fundamental views of humanity and life as those of her close colleague, Peter Singer.

[12] Singer, Practical Ethics, viii-xi.

[13] Munson, Intervention and Reflection: Basic Issues in Medical Ethics, 28.

[14] Singer, Practical Ethics, 90-1.

[15] Ibid.

[16] Michael Tooley, Abortion and Infanticide (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1985), 90-1.

[17] Nathan Holsteen, St103 Class Discussion Notes: Angelology, Anthropology, and Hamartiology (Dallas: Dallas Theological Seminary, 2008), 27.

[18] Robert A. Pyne, “Understanding Christian Theology,” ed. Charles R. Swindoll and Roy B. Zuck (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2003), 689.

[19] Ibid.

[20] Ibid.

[21] Ibid.

[22] Holsteen, St103 Class Discussion Notes: Angelology, Anthropology, and Hamartiology, 27.

[23] Pyne, “Understanding Christian Theology,” 694-5.

[24] This idea of the Christian entering a glorified state and having a new body is undoubtedly a subject that needs to be handled with theological care. It is all too easy to have a heretical belief of Gnostic dualism creep into one’s theology, when speaking of receiving “new bodies.” cf. Ibid., 694. Gnostic dualism purports that the body is “inherently evil” and that it is this wicked, material part of human beings that drives us to sinful behavior.  Such a theology is aberrant from orthodox Christianity, because it is clear that both the body and soul were created good in the sight of God and have been made in His image (Gen 1:31; 1 Tim 4:4-5). Furthermore, the sin nature permeates both the body and soul.

[25] While some may hold to a dualistic approach to life and deny the claims of Christianity, it appears that this framework is the most easily understood and least problematic outline to follow for the theologian.

[26] Scott B. Rae and Paul M. Cox, Bioethics: A Christian Approach in a Pluralistic Age (Grand Rapids: W.B. Eerdmans 1999), 130-31. For a further concise definition of the phrase “Image of God” see also: Robert D. Orr, David L. Schiedermayer, and David B. Biebel, Life & Death Decisions: Help in Making Tough Choices About Infertility, Abortion, Birth Defects, and Aids (Grand Rapids: Baker Books, 1996), 120.

[27] Schaeffer, Plan for Action: An Action Alternative Handbook For “Whatever Happened to the Human Race?” 9-10.

[28] Millard J. Erickson, Christian Theology, 2nd ed. (Grand Rapids: Baker Book House, 1998), 554-57.

[29] The reader will find that the usage of the terms “soul” and “spirit” are used interchangeable throughout this paper, although the term “soul” has been preferred in the text for overall unity. These are used interchangeably because it is firmly believed by the author that two separate the two ideas and the resulting trichotomous theory lack biblical support and only serve to create further theological problems. This paper is written from a decidedly dichotomous point of view.

[30] Holsteen, St103 Class Notes on Anthropology: Angelology, Anthropology, and Sin, 59.

[31] Ibid.

[32] Pyne, “Understanding Christian Theology,” 714.

[33] Holsteen, St103 Class Notes on Anthropology: Angelology, Anthropology, and Sin, 60.

[34] Pyne, “Understanding Christian Theology,” 714.

[35] This does not mean that one is outside of orthodox Christian doctrine if they attempt to hold this view. The author simply believes it is not the best theological choice.

[36] Augustus Hopkins Strong, Systematic Theology: A Compendium Designed for the Use of Theological Students (Old Tappan, N.J.: Revell, 1907), 252.

[37] Anderson, Christian Ethics in Plain Language, 42.

[38] Ibid.

[39] Peter S. Wenz, Abortion Rights as Religious Freedom (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 1992), 170-81.

[40] Singer, Practical Ethics, 95-100.

[41] Charles R. Swindoll, Sanctity of Life: The Inescapable Issue (Dallas: Word Publishing, 1990), 12. It is a shocking and interesting notation in this text that statistically, 75 percent of all abortions are performed because it was said, “the child would interfere with their [the parent(s)] lives.”

[42] Singer, Practical Ethics, 95-8.

[43] R. C. Sproul, Abortion: A Rational Look at an Emotional Issue (Colorado Springs: NavPress, 1990), 54.

[44] For further reference to God’s thoughts and dealings with the unborn, see also Isaiah 49:15; Luke 1:40-44 etc…

[45] Sproul, Abortion: A Rational Look at an Emotional Issue, 55.

[46] Ibid., 59.

[47] It is vitally important that we treat all people with dignity and respect, including those who have undergone abortion or who perhaps even perform abortions. Responding with violence against the violence of abortion and euthanasia will only spawn more violence, hatred, and killing. A good exemplar of Godly, moral statesmanship can be found in the historical figure of William Wilberforce, who for decades wisely and carefully fought for the abolishment of slavery in Great Britain. He ultimately succeeded in his efforts and through this we may find hope for the same results as we exert our energy toward saving the lives of the unborn.

[48] Such occurrences are already quite prominent in many places across central Asia and China.

[49] There are no gray areas on the basis of normal situations. However, ectopic pregnancy is one hard case that must be dealt with on a more cautious level. For a biblical and helpful look at this particular issue see: Dumitru Macaila, The Right to Life: The Eastern Orthodox Perspective on Abortion (Salisbury, Mass.: Regina Orthodox Press, 2001), 154-62.

Jesus vs. Easy-Life Religiosity

Posted by Michael Breznau on 11:41 pm in Podcast | 0 comments

The Berlin Wall surrounding East Germany was the singular glaring obstacle to real freedom in Europe from August 1961 until November 1989. For almost 30 years the people of East Germany were locked behind a wall, a wall of communism – a regime that kept the populace bound in a life of fear, freedom-less-ness, and hopelessness. Some were imprisoned or even killed for merely attempting to escape the prison that had become their home. And so, the people of East Germany, eventually settled for what they thought would be the only life they would ever live. Perhaps some of them argued that life behind the Berlin Wall was great, easy, and moving towards a bright hope and future. That is certainly what the GDR (German Democratic Republic) tried to promote through various fliers and advertisements… and so most people settled behind The Wall.

But a wall surrounds us too. I believe the biggest obstacle or wall around most everyone who claims to be a Christ-follower in America is this: Life is great! Life seems easy. Our biggest obstacle between genuinely following Christ is not that life is hard or full of persecution or suffering for Jesus’ sake, but that life is great – and we think we don’t need anything. We are happy to settle for the American Dream and the easy life of evangelical religiosity. And we don’t even know what we’re missing. You and I settle for life in a limited world behind a wall of small doses of Christianity and a palatable amount of Jesus. And we don’t even know what we’re missing….

Imagine with me for a moment that we live in East Germany, and we hear that President Ronald Reagan has shouted out those infamous words, “Mr. Gorbachev, tear down this wall!” And yet, you and I think life is as good as it gets back in East Germany, behind the Berlin Wall. And so we settle into apathy, complacency, as if we don’t care.

We hear news that there’s something more to life than going through religious motions, saying the “sinner’s prayer,” and going to church like nice people should do. Yet we think life is great as it is. No need to change. And we settle. We think we have need of nothing more… really. I believe this is the biggest obstacle, the biggest wall between young people (and older people for that matter) in America and Jesus.

So, how are we supposed to respond to Jesus when life is great?

We are not the only Christ-followers who have faced this obstacle of complacency or apathy. We are not the only ones who have lived in a place of abundance where it is so easy to think life is as good as it gets, and that we don’t need anything. In the Revelation of Jesus Christ, John was inspired by the Spirit to pen a message to a church in the ancient, wealthy city of Laodicea, and the words are shockingly relevant to us today. So let’s turn to Revelation 3:14-22…

Listen to the full audio message entitled “Jesus vs. Easy-Life Religiosity” by simply clicking on the play button below or by subscribing to our iTunes podcast. This message was originally delivered at Evangel Baptist Church on Sunday, November 18th, 2012.

Search and Rescue

Posted by Michael Breznau on 11:54 pm in Podcast, Sermons | 0 comments

When Jesus walked the roads of Israel He was on a mission with a consuming sense of urgency for the lost sheep, first for the house of Israel, but also for anyone who was spiritual lost and apart from God. Jesus came to seek out and save the lost…

If this was and is the heartbeat of Jesus Christ – to be on the rescue mission of the Father – are we honestly being His followers? Somehow I find myself acting in apathy when it comes to the rescue mission of God. We are really good at rationalizing our way out of a sense of urgency when it comes to pursuing the lost. We forget that we were once that “lost cause,” that we were once that “outcast.”

We so easily forget how messed up we really were before Christ changed our lives. We forget that the reality of eternity is hanging in the balance with every individual we pass every single day. Yet all the while we call ourselves Christians, followers of Christ. Yet do our lives really look like His? Are we really on God’s mission? There seems to be something that holds us back – something that sidelines us from the mission…

So seriously, what do you think sidelines us from passionately and consistently living out God’s search and rescue mission?  What does it really mean to look like Jesus? Well, in concrete terms, it means our lives actually begin to look like Jesus – the One who received sinners, ate with them, and actively sought out the lost sheep to bring them home.

The Twelve disciples who followed Jesus everywhere struggled with this same question – they kept getting sidelined, I believe, by the same issue that we deal with. It was also the same issue the Pharisees and other religious leaders of the day were trapped in. And in a subtle yet striking way, Jesus clears the table for both of these groups (and for us) and points out our central problem and the heartbeat of God’s mission that is required for all who follow Him. Let’s pick up the story in Matthew 18:10-14…

Listen to the full audio message entitled “Search and Rescue” by simply clicking on the play button below or by subscribing to our iTunes podcast. This message was originally delivered at Evangel Baptist Church on Sunday, August 12, 2012.