5 things you should consider about seminary

Some of you have been in seminary or are considering to go to seminary to be trained theologically. Well, praise the Lord for that. As you are praying and thinking about this, or if you are already there, I pray that you make the most of your time learning all you should. I believe that seminary is a huge blessing to those who want to present themselves ready for the ministry by handling the Word accurately.

But apart from that I would like to challenge you to consider these things prayerfully.

1. Seminary will most likely train you but not disciple you.  Seminary is a good place where you  can learn a lot of knowledge about the Bible and theology but it is unlikely that it will focus on your growth in character as you are growing in your knowledge of the scriptures. Your growth in handling the scriptures and accurately dividing the Word doesn’t mean that your character has grown along with your knowledge about the scriptures.

If your seminary doesn’t focus on your discipleship along with your training in knowledge, let me encourage you to pray that the Lord brings along an older man or another believer/pastor that can disciple you as you pray for future ministry in your life. Yes, theological training is important but equally important is the need to be discipled so we learn to be shaped and transformed by the Word that we study.

2. Seminary doesn’t qualify you for ministry. So many people go to seminary thinking that once they are done, they are ready for ministry. That is just not true. A theological degree can speak of the discipline of a man but his character will speak of His love for God and others. A man should consider being a pastor, not because he has a theological degree but because he is qualified according to 1 Ti 3:1-7, Ti 1:5-9. I don’t want to discourage my brothers from pursuing theological knowledge, but I do want them to think of the great responsibility and the privilege of serving God with their education. 

I highly suggest this to you brother: pursue godly character more than the prestige of a degree. Pursue Christ in such way that your delight is in knowing Him and not in what you know. 

3. Seminary will not make you arrive. Graduating from seminary is not the culmination of our studies in our whole spiritual life. Sometimes it’s just the beginning of it. If we graduate seminary thinking that we have attained full knowledge and self-dependency, that is just dangerous. A seminary degree will mean that you know how the handle the word, but what good is to know how to handle the word if you are not depending on it? 

I pray that as you are in seminary, you grow in deeper dependence on the word as you are learning more about it. I pray that knowing deep things about God and thinking great thoughts about Him helps you to love others in a greater manner as you cling more closely to the unquenchable Grace of God.

4. Seminary is not the only way to prepare: Seminary is good. It is helpful and is a huge blessing to be trained under godly men, but as you walk, you will find men that have been trained without a seminary degree. That’s right - there are men who don’t have a theological education but who can divide the word because they have disciplined themselves by reading books and by studying the scriptures diligently. Seminary shouldn’t teach us to underrate ministers who don’t have a theological degree but to be encouraged when we see a brother who knows how to divide the word rightly and believes it.

5. Seminary doesn’t give us the right to make theology a WWE playground: There are things that are wrong in our theology for most of us, but we must understand that we are not always called to fix every theological misunderstanding that a person has. By this I mean that picking debates on everybody's theology doesn’t make you more holy, just more annoying. Sometimes the most effective way to teach others in the midst of our theological differences is not trying to correct them every time we see them but simply loving them consistently.

Avoid debates as much as you can, learn to live in light of the precious doctrines that you will learn, and pray that you will grow to have the right posture to interact with people who differ from you theologically.

As my good friend Martin Manchego once said: “God weights our hearts not our minds.” God is interested that we experience the transforming power of His word, it does no good to us to know how to speak about it if we won’t submit to it. We must seek to be discipled as we grow in our knowledge of the scriptures. We must seek to grow in our character as we pursue a theological degree. We must think of God’s reputation as we pursue a doctorate or masters in theology. Soli Deo Gloria.

5 cosas que debes considerar acerca del seminario

Algunos de ustedes se estan preparando en un  seminario o algunos de ustedes estan considerando prepararse teológicamente. Gloria a Dios por eso. Mientras oras y meditas en esto, o si tu ya te estas preparando, yo oro que aproveches el tiempo aprendiendo todo lo que deberías. Yo creo que el seminario es una gran bendición a aquellos quienes quieren estar listos para poder decidir la palabra de una manera correcta.

Pero me gustaría a que consideres estas cosas en oración.

1. El seminario te va a preparar teológicamente pero no te va a discipular. El seminario es un buen lugar donde tú puedes aprender mucho acerca de la teología de la biblia y en conocimiento de ella. Pero se va a enfocar muy poco en tu carácter mientras que estas creciendo en el conocimiento de las escrituras. Tu crecimiento en el conocimiento de las escrituras y aprender a exponer la palabra correctamente no significa que tu carácter esta creciendo junto con tu conocimiento de las escrituras.

Si tu seminario no se enfoca en tu discípulado mientras estas siendo preparado teológicamente, déjame animarte a orar para que el Señor traiga a un hermano mayor, un anciano, o un pastor que pueda discipularte mientras que oras y te preparas para el futuro ministerio en tu vida. La preparación teológicamente es importante como también la necesidad de ser discipulado para aprender a vivir a la luz de la palabra que estudiamos.

2. El Seminario no te califica para el ministerio. Muchas personas van al seminario con el pensamiento de que una ves que se graduandos, ya van a estar listos para el seminario. Esto no es verdad. Un diploma en teología va a hablar de la disciplina de un hombre pero su carácter va hablar de su amor por Dios y por otros. Un hermano debe considerar ser pastor, no porque tiene un titulo teológico sino porque el esta calificado de acuerdo a 1 Tim 3:1-7, Ti 1:5-9. Yo no quiero desanimar a mis hermanos a que se preparen teológicamente pero quiero que ellos mediten en la gran responsabilidad y el gran privilegio de servir a Dios a través de su educación.

Mi hermano, te animo grandemente: a que persigas un carácter piadoso mas que el prestigio de un titulo. Busca a Cristo de tal manera que tu deleite sea en conocerle a Él y no en lo que sabes.

3. El Seminario no te hará llegar a la cima de tu espiritualidad. Graduarse del seminario no es la culminación de nuestros estudios en toda nuestra vida espiritual. Muchas veces solo es el comienzo de eso. Es peligroso si nos graduamos del seminario pensando de que hemos alcanzado el conocimiento pleno y la auto-dependencia. Un titulo teológico va a significar que sabes exponer la palabra correctamente, pero de que sirve eso si es que no estamos dependiendo en esa palabra???

Mientras que tú estas en el seminario, mi oración es de que crezcas en gran dependencia de la palabra mientras que aprendes más de ella. Oro para que aprendas cosas profundas acerca de Dios y que tengas pensamientos grandes acerca de El que te ayude a amar a otros en lo que te aferras a la Gracia inquebrantable de Dios.

4. El seminario no es la única manera que hay para prepararse.  El seminario es bueno. Es de ayuda y es una gran bendición el ser instruido bajo hombres piadosos, pero mientras caminas en la fe te encontraras con hombres que no tienen una educación teológicamente pero saben exponer la Palabra correctamente porque ellos se han disciplinado para leer libros y estudiar la palabra diligentemente. El seminario no debe enseñarnos a menospreciar aquellos ministros quienes no tienen un titulo teológico pero debemos de animarnos cuando vemos a un hermano quien sabe exponer la palabra correctamente y cree en ella.

5. El seminario no nos da el derecho de hacer de la teología un ring de lucha libre. Hay cosas que no esta bien nuestra teología para muchos de nosotros, pero debemos de entender que todos nosotros no estamos llamados a arreglar los problemas teológicos que cada persona tiene. Con esto quiero decir que buscar debatir para la teología de todo el mundo no te hace más santo, sino mas espeso. A veces la manera mas efectiva de enseñarles a otros que difieren de nosotros, no es tratando de corregirlos cada ves que los vemos pero simplemente amarlos constantemente.

Evita cuanto debate puedas, aprende a vivir a la luz de las preciosas doctrinas las cuales vas a aprender, y ora para que crezcas así puedas tener la postura correcta para interactuar con la gente con quienes difieres teológicamente.

Como mi buen amigo Martin Manchego una vez dijo: "Dios pesa los corazones, no nuestras mentes." Dios esta interesado en que experimentemos el poder transformador de su Palabra, no nos hace bien el conocerla si es que no nos vamos a someter a ella. Debemos buscar ser disimulados mientras conocemos en el conocimiento de las escrituras. Debemos buscar crecer en nuestro carácter mientras que buscamos un educacionalmente teológica. Debemos pensar en la reputación de Dios mientras que buscamos graduarnos con un doctorado o un master en teología. Soli Deo Gloria.

Pensando en voz alta: Quien sabe?

Crees que te puedes esconder?

Quien sabe acerca de tu mentira? Diciendo que estas bien cuando en realidad tienes un sin fin de problemas en el cual no encuentras ayuda.

Quien sabe de tu lujuria? Mirando a otras personas como objetos sexuales con el fin de gratificar tus deseos egoístas.

Quien sabe de tu murmuración? hablando mal de otros, sin saber todo lo que paso, o no entendiéndolos por completo. Pero hablas porque te gusta asumir o tienes estándares altos en los cuales puedes ver el pecado de otros pero no el tuyo.

Quien sabe acerca de tu temor del hombre?  Hablando cosas de una manera correctamente política para no ofender a nadie, aun así sabiendo que eso puede salvar sus almas. Haciendo tus mejores esfuerzos para complacer a la gente, malgastando energía para encontrar cosas que le gusten para acomodar tu carácter al de ellos.

Quien sabe acerca de tu racismo? Mirando a otros con prejuicio por causa de su color de piel, sintiendote superior, piensas que no eres racista pero no te gustaría que tus hijos se casen con personas de otro color. te excusas diciendo "es una cultura diferente." Pero realmente es eso?

Quien sabe acerca de tu infidelidad? Fantaseado que seria si pudieras estar con otras personas sin que nadie se entere. Te excusas diciendo que te dan atención o no te sientes amada, cuando en realidad todo se trata de ti y lo que tu quieres.

Quien sabe de tu legalismo? menospreciando a otros porque no tienes tus estándares, o porque ellos estan en desacuerdo contigo, quizás si ellos siguieran tus reglas, ellos seria mejores cristianos. Menospreciando la obra de Cristo y la libertad que hay en el para vivir en santidad?

Quien sabe de tu avaricia? Queriendo tener mas y mas, nunca satisfecho, siendo consumido con el pensamiento de que seria si es que tuviera mas. Bendecir a otros no es una posibilidad porque tendrías menos.

Puedo continuar con la lista, hay muchas cosas que escondemos, porque somos buenos para esconder cosas, queremos que las personas piensen que somos buenas y respetables. Podemos hermosear nuestra apariencia pero la olor de nuestra alma podrida se va a sentir. No importa cuan hermoso pienses que eres, apestamos, nuestro pecado apesta, nuestra auto-justicia apesta.

Pero quieres saber quien es quien sabe acerca de tu alma podrida? Dios sabe. He lo sabe todo, El lo ve, El es el testigo de cada pecado que has contemplado o cometido en la oscuridad. Y el quieres que nos demos cuenta que El esta ahi, y su presencia, El nos ama, EL es Justo y El ha enviado a su hijo. El te ama de gran manera que quiere que ya no vivas de esa manera, El quiere que vengas a su hijo.

Si podemos pecar en la oscuridad pero no hay nada secreto porque Dios siempre sabe. Arrepiéntete, cree en El y deja tu pecado, Cristo te ama.

Loud Thinking: Who Knows?

Do you think you can hide?

Who knows about your lie? Saying you are fine when you have a lot of trouble and problem in which you don't find any help at all.

Who knows about your lust? Looking to other people as a sexual object with the ends to gratify your selfish pleasures.

Who knows about your slandering? Speaking bad about others, without knowing the whole story, or not fully understanding them. But speaking out of assumptions or personal high standards in which you see others but you are not able to see yourself.

Who knows about your fear of man? Speaking things in a political correct manner to not offend anyone, even though you can save their souls. Making your best to please people, wasting energy to find anything that they may like to accommodate your character to it.

Who knows about your racism? Looking at others with prejudice because of their skin color, feeling superior, thinking that you are not racist, but your wouldn't want your kids to date or marry people of another skin color. You excuse it by saying that "its a different culture." but, really is it?

Who knows about your adultery? Fantasizing what would be if you could be with other people without anyone finding about it. Your excuse is your lack of attention, or not feeling loved, when in reality is just about you, and what you want.

Who knows about legalism? looking others down because you have high standards, or because they disagree with you, maybe if they would follow your rules they could be better christians. Demeaning the work of Christ and the freedom that is in Him to live in holiness.

Who knows about your greediness? Wanting to have more and more, never satisfied, being consumed with the thought of what would be if I had more. Blessing others is not a possibility because it would mean that you would have less.

I could go on and on, there is a lot of things we hide, because we are good at hiding, we want people to think that we are fine and respectable. We can beautify our outward appearance but the smell of our rotten inside will always come out. Doesn't matter how pretty we think we are, we stink, our sin stinks, our self-righteousness stink.

But you wanna know who knows about your rotten inward being? God knows, He does knows, He sees it, He is the witness of every sin you have contemplated or done in the dark. And He wants us to be aware of Him, of His presence, of His love, of His Justice and of His son. He loves you, He truly loves you in such way that He doesn't want you to be the same, He wants you to come to His son.

Yes, we can sin in the dark but there is nothing secret because God always knows. Repent, Believe, leave your sin, Jesus loves you.

Primero Cristiano y después peruano; comentarios y opiniones políticas.

En estos últimos meses hemos visto el crecimiento del envolvimiento de los peruanos en controversias políticas que han despertado la atención del mundo evangélico. Como evangélico, yo mismo me he visto intrigado por esas controversias las cuales llaman la atención.

Pero mas fascinante ha sido ver como los cristianos navegan estas controversias dando sus opiniones a través de las redes sociales. Pero hay algo que me llamo la atención, es la falta de personificación en sus posiciones. Por supuesto los creyentes debemos ser firmes en nuestras posiciones si es que las escrituras las respaldan, pero también debemos recordar que nuestro llamado es amar a otros. Esto no quiere decir que denigramos la verdad por causa del amor sino que pensamos mas alla de una posición moral, y también tenemos en cuenta como es que esto afecta a otros.

Quisiera explicarlo a través de estas dos controversias:

Posiciones pro-vida: 

Estoy de acuerdo en que debemos proteger la vida del niño que esta por nacer y me parece formidable el trabajo que muchos pro-vidas han hecho desde ángulos científicos para argumentar en contra del aborto. El derecho a la vida, es un derecho fundamental de todo ser humano que nos es dado por Dios. Y si, una persona que no ha nacido aun, no puede hablar por si mismo, por ende debemos hacer lo que este en nuestros esfuerzos para preservar la vida de este ser humano que esta por nacer. 

Pero ser pro-vida, se trata solamente de defender la vida que esta dentro del vientre? Si de verdad somos pro-vida, por supuesto que no. Debemos de entender que para algunas mujeres el aborto es una opción para ellas por la falta de recursos. 

Imagínate: Una adolescente que esta embarazada y no tiene ayuda de su familia para criar a su hijo que esta por nacer, la cual estaría sujeta a un sueldo donde difícilmente podría afrontar sus gastos, posiblemente este considerando el aborto como una opción.

Entonces la pregunta viene, es la vida mas valiosa antes o después de nacer? 

Por que digo esto?

Si, debemos hacer lo posible para preservar la vida de un ser humano para que llegue a nacer, pero al nacer debemos de asegurarnos que este ser humano que defendimos en el vientre, pueda tener una calidad de vida al nacer. La cuestión no es solamente estar en contra del aborto, sino que también entender el contexto de las personas que posiblemente estén considerándolo. 

Aun así las escrituras nos de suficientes argumentos para estar en contra del aborto, las escrituras también nos da argumentos para amar y ayudar a las personas que por sus duras condiciones lo estan considerando. Nuestra meta no es convertir a pro-vida a aquellos quienes estén considerando un aborto sino que amarlos, entenderlos y ayudarlos con recursos que les ayuden a re-evaluar su posición y desiciones. Como cristianos, debemos ser conocidos por nuestro amor, no por nuestra moralidad. Debemos amar a las personas que esta situación afecta, de manera tangible. 

Inmigración Venezolana:

Todos sabemos la situación por la que esta pasando Venezuela, ese país se esta hundiendo en pobreza, violencia y hambruna. Por eso, muchos venezolanos han salido de su país para buscar trabajo en otros países, y uno de ellos es el nuestro. Por lo tanto, la cantidad de venezolanos que estan en nuestro país esta creciendo. 

Muchos hermanos han respondido a esta situación de manera hostil, diciendo de que ellos nos quitan trabajos, o que ellos vienen apoyados por el estado, o que son un problema y que estan trayendo delincuencia, o aun estan utilizando argumentos como que  deberíamos preocuparnos mas por los niños de Puno.

Para empezar muchos venezolanos hacen trabajos que la mayoría de peruanos no quieren hacer, y por ende no es lógico que se diga que son apoyados por el estado. A parte, el peru siempre ha tenido problemas con la delincuencia, así que no es justo que ahora le echemos la culpa a ellos. Los niños de Puno?????? En serio???? Eso es un problema cada año, no solo en Puno, sino en lugares remotos en la sierra del peru donde el gobierno no llega. 

Pero quiero retarlos, mis queridos hermanos a que piensen: que tal si la inmigración venezolana es una oportunidad para hacer misiones en ves de una oportunidad para quejarnos? Imagínate que difícil debe ser mantener una iglesia con la situación allá, y que Dios en su gracias les ha traído a nuestra casa para poder mostrarles el amor de Dios a través del evangelio y ayudándolos. 

Hermanos nosotros somos Cristianos primero, y cualquier posición política o social que tengamos no nos da el derecho a menospreciar nuestro mandato a amar a nuestro prójimo como a nosotros mismos. 

Conclusiones: 

Debemos personificar nuestras posiciones, porque aun siendo bíblicas algunas, estas también afectan personas, y mi llamado no es a que cambien su posiciones sino a que entiendan como sus posiciones afectan  su prójimo para que puedan tener una opinión Inter-personal y no aislada en conocimiento sin practica. 

Para esto, debemos evitar demonizar personas con las cuales no estemos de acuerdo, sino mas bien sentarnos y mantener diálogos centrados para poder entender la posición de ellos. Y que es lo que ellos ven que esta en riesgo al mantener esta posición. 

Y aun así no tengan justificación o argumento, nuestro llamado es el evangelio, no el provocar guerras de posiciones políticas o morales. Jesus no dijo id por el mundo y has a las personas: pro-vidas, pro-familia, pro-control de inmigración. Sino que el dijo id y haced discípulos.

Si nos enfocamos muchos en nuestras diferencias y nuestro orgullo político, se nos va a hacer difícil apuntar a otras personas a un reino mas grande que en el que vivimos. Y ningún país en el mundo o en la historia se puede comparar al reino que pertenecemos ya que estamos en Cristo Jesus. 

Es nuestra vida un reflejo de ese reino eterno e incorruptible? 

Amamos a nuestro prójimo, tratando de entenderlos para poder apuntarles a ese reino con nuestras vidas?

1 Juan 4:7-10

7 Amados, amémonos unos a otros, porque el amor es de Dios. Todo aquel que ama, ha nacido de Dios y conoce a Dios. 8 El que no ama, no ha conocido a Dios, porque Dios es amor. 9 En esto se mostró el amor de Dios para con nosotros: en que Dios envió al mundo a su Hijo unigénito, para que vivamos por él. 10 En esto consiste el amor: no en que nosotros hayamos amado a Dios, sino en que él nos amó a nosotros, y envió a su Hijo en propiciación por nuestros pecados.

Uncommon questions for preachers

Philippians 1:15 Some indeed preach Christ from envy and rivalry, but others from good will.

Why do you preach? Preacher. Do you preach because do you think you are the only one who can do it or do you preach because is a noble task that has been entrusted to you? Let me ask you some more questions

Did you pray? You must pray for your soul and the souls of those who hear you. For your soul primarily, so you can preach out of a humble and loving heart for the congregation. That your carnal will and your desires to say things don’t be the motivation of your preaching, but your love for God that leads you to love others. 

Did you consider your congregation? Think and meditate through your sermon preparation, how does your church is struggling, pray for discernment so the Lord uses you as a tool for crushing and healing. Consider the realities of your sheep, don’t make them run if they are limping; don’t expect them to get up if they are sick and paralyzed; but strive to know them. See yourself and see your members through the text, do not dismiss the rules of hermeneutics and exegesis but make a 3D reflexion of your interpretation by exposing the depth of our hearts.

Why do you preach? Remember that the reason you’ve been called is because of God’s mercy toward us but also His love for His people. You’ve been entrusted with people that God loves.

Why those words? Pick words and expressions that brings attention to the clarity of the message not your intellect. People needs to know God’s word not yours. Consider the elementary school kid that sits under your preaching, may he also be saved by your speaking. Do not tickle the ear of the lofty and the intellectual, neither entertain the goats with vain things but feed your sheep.

Who do you serve? We must make sure that our preaching is going to serve God as we portray the person of Jesus Christ. He does not need to be an adherent to the perfect life of your hearers but He needs to be the very life of them. Do not underestimate your motivation, for that is very crucial for what you say and what you don’t. May self-preservation or self-promotion not be the decisive factor of what you may sahy.

Do you believe what you are going to say? Do not forget that even demons can quote the Bible but you must submit to your own words first, so you taste the honey of the word of God. For we can say powerless true things that make no impact to our soul, but we must be conscious that we are given a word that must be trusted first. Do not forget that by His word things came to happen so also believe that by His word He will make some people new creatures.

Are you tired of preaching Christ? If you are tired you better pray, fight and pursue a re-kindle of your relationship with God. Let Him fill you in such way that your cup overflows with His presence, so you can’t stop talking about Him. Yes we all get tired and weary, but if we don’t have a Christ to preach about, its better for us to not preach at all. 

Loud Thinking: Tamed Religion

Everybody has a religion. Everybody has a god that they serve, whether it is shaped like a person or a thing. Our biggest ambitions are clothed with desires that are only expressions of worship to the gods we serve. 

Institutionalized religion is not the problem. The problem is that we are so structured in our beliefs in such way that our religion is hidden from our conscience because we preach to ourselves the same sermon of what is not good over and over again. So we rise up in our desires, seeking to satisfy a god that is consuming us by making us believe that we are free, but really we are enslaved to it. With or without banners, this religion makes itself the abstract identity to which we cling. There is nothing new that we bring to the table. There is nothing new under the sun. Our perception of our new way of life has been always the old way to chain our hearts and souls to that which is fragile.

Yes, religion is complex. And, most religions are submitted to the human desires to be accomplished, fulfilled, satisfied, and secure. However, there is a religion that is not tamed by human desires, but is conditioned and exclusive in itself. There is a religion where freedom is found by enslaving yourself to an Eternal Master. This Master is One that calls you co-heir, calls you son, invites you to His table to eat with Him. 

Christianity is a religion. It’s not a religions of do’s and don’ts. We don’t live in light of restrictions, but in light of our new hearts, where His law is written. Our God doesn’t let us walk in light of our flesh, for He seeks the best for us. He enables us to avoid the ways of destruction, for He always works all things together for our good. In his economy, there is no boast of our own, for everything has been accomplished by Him; therefore, He is our true security, sufficiency and satisfaction.

There is only two kinds of religions we can choose from: the religion of our own desires where we are enslaved to our supposed freedom, or surrounding ourselves with Christ in His work at the Cross. In this latter religion we can find true freedom by submitting to God’s will.

“Paul, a bond-servant of Christ Jesus, ......,”

Romans 1:1a NASB

Loud Thinking: Faith through thankfulness

Luke 17:15 Now one of them, when he saw that he had been healed, turned back, glorifying God with a loud voice, 16 and he fell on his face at His feet, giving thanks to Him. And he was a Samaritan. 17 Then Jesus answered and said, “Were there not ten cleansed? But the nine—where are they? 18 Was no one found who returned to give glory to God, except this foreigner?” 19 And He said to him, “Stand up and go; your faith has made you well.”

Just like the 9 who never came back, how often are we cold to give thanks for our salvation? Dear child of God, have you forgot that you've been bought with a price? have you forgot that your illness and curses were taken by Him who died on your place? We quickly turn to retreats in this world by finding pleasure in it or looking to our accomplishments and we find comfort in self. But we are so slow to acknowledge God's enabling for them, as if our lives were sustained by ourselves. Could you also be complaining for lack of response and blessings which you are expecting and hard yourself to the privilege of giving thanks to God.

We miss a great opportunity to give God's glory when we don't give thanks for what He has done. Faith is an inner posture with an outward respond, giving thanks was an expression of faith for the samaritan. When we are ungrateful, we are in unbelief, we deny the goodness of God, because we just don't get what we want. Or if we have what we want, we don't give thanks to God, because we think we got it because we are  just that good. Has the God of our Salvation has become an accessory to our lives? 

Faith is not just exercised as we ask for things but also when we give thanks for them. If you think that your life is a misery and there is no reason to give thanks for you, just look to what God has done in you in Christ, if you are His. Study each branch on the tree of salvation, every position given to you in Christ, privileges that neither the angels have. 

Has your faith made you well? then give thanks. hasn't your faith made you well? then ask yourself: are you in the faith? Giving thanks for Jesus is giving God's glory because we share the preciousness of the son. God is glorified when His son is estimated as He intended Him to be, and He enjoys when His children partake of this privilege of the redeemed ones.

Pensando en voz alta: Ya diste gracias el dia de hoy?

1 Tesalonicenses 5:18 Den gracias a Dios en todo, porque ésta es su voluntad para ustedes en Cristo Jesús.

Cristiano, cual es tu excusa para no dar gracias el dia de hoy? Dios te ha salvado. El te ha rescatado de la justicia que tu pecado merecia. El te ha redimido, y no te ha reprochado tus pecados en tu contra. El te ha justificado, declarandote inocente delante de sus ojos llenos de amor y justicia. El te ha adoptado, sin reprocharte la rebeldia que le declaraste cuando no le conocias.

Acaso Dios no te ha pedonado tus pecados? No fue El quien dio a su unico Hijo para que tus pecados sean pagados en El? Entonces, la gracia de Dios se ha vuelto tan insignificante para ti, de tal manera que ya no quieres dar gracias? EL hecho de que en su misericordia, El no te ha dado la paga por tus pecados, no te ha alcanzado para entender su grande amor ?

De donde viene tus fuerzas para trabajar? De donde viene tu intelecto? de donde viene tus deseos para venir hacia El? Puedes describir algo en tu vida y decir que El no esta ahi ?

Si tu reconoces Su soberania, como puede dejar de dar gracia, si El es quien gobierna el universo?

Si reconocer tu libre albedrio, por que no usas esa libertad para dar gracias?

Loud Thinking: Did you give thanks today?

1 Thessalonians 5:18 Give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will of God in Christ Jesus for you.

What reason do you have to not give thanks today, Christian? God has saved you. He has rescued you from the justice that your sin demanded. He has redeemed you, and has not counted your sins against you. He has justified you by declaring you innocent before His eyes of justice and love. He has adopted you, not remembering your reckless rebellion that you declared to Him when you didn’t know Him. 

Didn’t He forgive your sins? Didn’t He give His only Son so your sins can be paid in Him? Has the grace of God become too small of a matter for you to not give thanks? Has His mercy in not repaying your evil not caused you to understand His amazing love? 

Where does your strength to work comes from? Where does your intellect come from? Where does your ability to come to Him come from? Can you point to one thing in your life and say that He is not there? 

If you acknowledge His sovereignty, how you cannot give thanks for His ruling? If you think you have a free will, then why don’t you give thanks? 

Do not be a Paul Washer: A word to the controversialist

In the age of twitter, celebrity preachers, and relevant ideas there is a temptation to live our lives in light of controversies. We want to stir ideas and bring up things that no one is talking about. I will use myself as an example to see how this works. Part of my
Christian walk was a period that I call “the time when I got reformed”. I started listening to a preacher who is now very well known:Paul Washer. He was mainly known by his Youth shocking Message , a very convicting and very direct sermon. Washer’s style tends to be very confrontational and very harsh, yet I think he is a faithful preacher and many of the things he says are true. When I listened to him preach I was convicted of my sin I wanted others to hear the same kind of preaching soon. This affected me in several ways:

1 Fatalistic statements: Because of the conviction and the weight of his sermons and the many truths about the contemporary church, I started to share many of his quotes in social media. I really wanted to stir up hearts and get a bunch of hypocrites converted. The thing is that many of my convictions at the moment didn’t translate into practical repentance in my own life, which made my statements fatalistic because I affirmed myself by what he said.

2. Experimental doctrine: While felt affirmed by what Washer said, I quoted him to numb my conscience to the conviction I felt. I thought that I was spiritually right because I heard his sermons and read his books, assuming that this was automatically imputing his experiences to myself in the subjects of holiness, prayer, evangelism, and missions. As with any author or preacher we may follow, we can soon assume we are like them simply because we like them. 

3. We need the word and the Holy Spirit: So many of the things I used to quote to “convert” people from their hypocrisy were attempts to make them feel the weightiness of Washer’s words. The problem is that no one needs Washer’s words. They need to hear the word of God and experience the work of the Spirit. This is not to demean  wise, thoughtful authors who write or preach about christian doctrine. But we must recognize that what makes them reliable is the word they preach. The pointedness of a powerful statement doesn’t have any power unless the Spirit is in it and for that we need to submit to the word first. The things we want people to get convicted from are not necessarily found in what Washer, Calvin, or Dever says but in Scripture itself, since these men are students of scripture, not self. Rely on the word as your first source in order to make loving statements.

4.  Context: It took me a while to understand that men like Washer speak from a particular cultural context that to which I can partially relate, because I’m familiar with it. But we must not assume that what they are saying is their first attempt. There may have been former conversations and an attempt to persuasion with a calmer, nicer tone before they preached the cutting words that I listened to. If our first attempt is harsh, we may lose an opportunity to bring somebody to Christ by the way we deal with them.

5.  Paul Washer doesn’t want you to be like him: We can name many of our favorite preachers and authors and they will tell us that they don’t want us to be like them but like Christ. The goal of a godly role model is to redirect us to the cross and the life of Christ. Washer will admit to being in error and making mistakes, and we should learn from this that even the people we highly esteem have limitations. They would even feel pain that their statements have been misunderstood by us in giving us affirmation in our pharisaism or the way we frame them on twitter.

Getting caught in controversies should not be our goal. Even when we see problems in churches or people’s lives, making strong statements won’t change things by itself. We need to begin working for change by prayer, trusting the Lord in His power. This is not saying that you shouldn’t share quotes or statements that have impacted your life or given you sobriety the way they exalted who God is. This is simply to say that God is the one who initiates and the one who works, and we must see ourselves and others as instruments. Before we begin to act like loose canons, we must first have an experiential submission to the truth. Be encouraged brother and see that God is at work. Pray that any sermon and any book you read would impact you by becoming a reality within you and not just because you like it or think is cool. Otherwise I will have to ask you, “Why are you like this? I am talking about you!”

1 Corinthians 10:31-11:1 So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God. Give no offense to Jews or to Greeks or to the church of God, just as I try to please everyone in everything I do, not seeking my own advantage, but that of many, that they may be saved. Be imitators of me, as I am of Christ.

Thanks to Kyle Gregory for the edition of this blog in order to make it readable.

What are we giving our lives for?

Romans 12:1-2 I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship. Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.

In Christian circles there is a cool Christian brand phrase: “Give your life to God”. This phrase is mainly a reference to the sacrifices of people in church history. But when the phrase is used today, it is usually a vague desire to give our lives for an undefined cause. My desire is to give some definition to why we should seek to give our lives to God:

1. Giving our lives - The language of giving our lives may sound noble but one important question we need to ask is, “What are we giving our lives to?” Our lives in a sense are precious gifts from God, that we don’t have the freedom to just throw away. If we lose our lives it must be for a good reason.

2. The relevance of our lives - In church history we see martyrs who gave their lives for the gospel,whether because of their sound preaching or their efforts to make the gospel known. They didn’t give their lives because they were consumed with themselves but because they were consumed with Christ.

3. Make The Gospel Great Again - The purpose of a call to give our lives is to make the gospel known. We are now ambassadors for Christ, ministers of reconciliation, children of God, and heirs of the Kingdom. This is what martyrs understood rightly, - it wasn’t a supernatural vision or revelation that gave them a willingness to die but a basic understanding of the Christian life which is to obey God and to go to all the world and make disciples. 

Our lives and our sacrifices count for something as we surrender ourselves to God in order to make Him known through us. The call to give our lives may end in martyrdom but either way it begins in selfless love for others. You probably never heard about celebrity martyrs, because there are none in heaven. Preaching the Gospel in places where the name of Christ hasn’t been mentioned or translating the Bible in foreign languages is humble work. Serving in places where we won’t be known and where there may not be books written about us may not be exciting. But how many saints in heaven we will meet whose names were never part of the Christian reading for seminary class or the top 10 christian reading list! Take courage and give the Gospel - the knowledge of the one true God through Christ - even if it costs your life.

I only have one life,

And that will soon be past;

I want my life to count for Christ,

What's done for Him will last. ~ David Livingstone