Showing posts with label two men. Show all posts
Showing posts with label two men. Show all posts

Wednesday, May 30, 2012

Carrying on the Legacy (by Matthew DelValle)

John Piper & RC Sproul (Ligonier Ministries
This is my final post in a series I began over a year ago on “Two Men I Thank God For.” I am so thankful for the ministries of R.C. Sproul and John Piper. They have shifted my focus time and time again away from myself to the glory of God and the splendor of his holiness (Ps. 29:2, 115:1). These men have what I call a holy passion. Their lives and ministries are consumed with the reality of a holy God. This is what drives them. This is the legacy they will leave. And this is the legacy I want to continue.

It is the job of every generation of pastors to continue the legacy of faithful ministry. Paul told Timothy, “What you have heard from me in the presence of many witnesses entrust to faithful men who will be able to teach others also” (2 Tim. 2:2). I want to be one of those faithful men. I want to be entrusted with the Scriptures and teach others the same glorious truths about our sovereign God and our glorious Christ that I have heard, not only from R.C. Sproul and John Piper, but from Pastor Osborne, Pastor Pete, Pastor Jerry, Pastor Bobby during my time at Faith, and now here in Louisville, from Pastor Tom Schreiner, Pastor John Kimbell, and all my professors at Southern Seminary. This is why I am in Louisville going to seminary: To learn to teach others also. I want to carry on the legacy of the faithful men who have taught me.

Pastors: “God-Besotted” Men

What does it take to become a faithful pastor? This is a question I often ask myself. Taking into account varying levels of giftedness, how does one reach the sustained faithfulness of a R.C. Sproul or a John Piper or a Pastor Osborne or a Tom Schreiner or an Albert Mohler? I think what it takes most of all is a radical focus on God above everything else, a striking God-centeredness of life. John Piper writes:

Our people need a God-besotted man. Even if they criticize the fact that you are not available at the dinner on Saturday night because you must be with God, they need at least one man in their life who is radically and totally focused on God and the pursuit of the knowledge of God, and the ministry of the word of God.

How many people in your churches do you know that are laboring to know God, who are striving earnestly in study and prayer to enlarge their vision of God? Precious few. Well then, what will become of our churches if we the pastors, who are charged with knowing and unfolding the whole counsel of God, shift into neutral, quit reading and studying and writing, and take on more hobbies and watch more television?

In other words, it takes a holy passion. It is no surprise to me then that every time I visit home and talk to Pastor Osborne and update him on my seminary studies, he always tells me the same thing: “Don’t lose your passion!” Why does he say that? Out of all the things he could say, he repeats these precise words. What is he getting at?

I think he recognizes, rightly, that the most important thing a pastor must be for his people is “a God-besotted man.” He must be the one man who will forsake other legitimate uses of time in order to read and study and write about the things of God. His entire pulse of life beats to the rhythm of knowing God more truly and loving God more fully. And this, it is known, is the secret to serving God more faithfully.

Satan’s Quest to Kill Passion

But I think another truth Pastor recognizes is that passion can be lost. It can dry up. We can lose our first love. The love of many can grow cold. And that’s why Pastor’s words to me are both an admonition and a warning: An admonition to keep fanning into flame the fire of passion for God, and a warning to not allow the Enemy to douse the fire with his deceitful snares. Therefore I must not become lukewarm in my affections for God lest I gag Jesus and he spit me out of his mouth (Rev. 3:16).

Seminary is an academic institution. Seminary exists to give people an education. It does not exist to give people experience. That is what the local church is for. There are two training institutions for pastors today: The local church and the seminary. Both are necessary. But each has its own function. The seminary does “head” stuff really well. It equips men and women to think well and to think rightly about the Bible and theology. Thank God for seminaries!

But there is a difference between loving the Bible and loving its Author. All my study should serve to help me love God more. The final destination for truth is not the brain; it is the bloodstream. The greatest commandment is not to know right things about God; it is to love God. We fill our heads to fuel our hearts. Again, Dr. Piper says it best:

Right thinking about God exists to serve right feelings for God. Logic exists for the sake of love. Reasoning exists for the sake of rejoicing. Doctrine exists for the sake of delight. Reflection about God exists for the sake of affection for God. The head is meant to serve the heart.

So seminary can be a great place if used correctly. But seminary can also be a dangerous place. Seminarians must be careful. Satan can misuse the seminary to produce proud people. He knows that “knowledge puffs up” (1 Cor. 8:1). And therefore, Satan will try to short-circuit my study. Satan wants nothing more than to snuff out the heart-adoration of Adonai with the heady atmosphere of academia. He wants to produce professionals, not pastors; proud pedants, not poor-in-spirit preachers.

Pray for Me

What must I do then? How can I cultivate and sustain a holy passion? I must stay on my knees. I must go to God in prayer every day, bending his arm to change me and make me more humble, make me more loving, make me more Christlike. And I echo the point of my previous post: The greatest asset of any pastor (and seminarian!) is people who pray for him.

So brothers and sisters, I ask you: Pray for me. Pray for my time here in Louisville at Southern Seminary. Pray that I will study in the strength that God supplies. That I will not just affirm truth with my head but adore truth with my heart. That theology will lead to doxology. That I will work diligently to worship deeply. That God will make me a pastor, not a pedant. That I will always remember that systematic theology did not die on the cross for my sins; Jesus did. That I will stay free from deceitful desires of the flesh and live a life that is above reproach. That I will be faithful and carry on the legacy of many faithful pastors.

I covet your prayers. Thank you for your faithful intercessions on my behalf. I cannot thank you enough.

“I pray that the great, initial passion of our hearts at the beginning of formal theological training would be the great, persevering passion of our hearts at the end, both of our training and of our lives. That we would say, we have not studied nor have we lived for ourselves, but for him who for our sake died and was raised (2 Corinthians 5:15).” ~ Jonathan Parnell

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Wednesday, September 14, 2011

The Greatest Asset of Any Pastor (by Matthew DelValle)


Up to this point in this series I have focused on what R.C. Sproul and John Piper have taught me. The focus has been on teaching, and rightly so. Pastors are teachers (Eph. 4:11). The one skill they must possess is the ability to teach (1 Tim. 3:2). So I have rightly focused on these two men’s teaching ministries.

However, I would be remiss if I communicated that the secret to these men’s ministries is their profound giftedness in teaching. I don’t think that’s why their ministries have such depth and breadth. In fact, I don’t believe the key to effective ministry lies within them at all.

2 Corinthians 2:15-16 is why I think this way: “We [preachers] are the aroma of Christ to God among those who are being saved and among those who are perishing, to one a fragrance from death to death, to the other a fragrance from life to life. Who is sufficient for these things?” If the apostle Paul was not sufficient for such a ministry, what pastor is sufficient for his task?

No pastor can raise the dead. No pastor can impart spiritual life. No pastor can sanctify the saints. It is beyond any man’s reach. John Piper writes,
“A pastor who feels competent in himself to produce eternal fruit—which is the only kind that matters—knows neither God nor himself . . . . We are called to labor for that which is God’s alone to give. The essence of the Christian ministry is that its success is not within our reach.”

So what’s the key then? What makes pastoral ministry effective? What is the greatest asset of any pastor? 

Bold Preachers and Praying Believers

The answer can be found in Acts 4. In this chapter the apostles Peter and John are arrested for preaching in Jesus the resurrection from the dead. About five thousand men had believed the word (vv. 2-4), and the Jewish council inquires of Peter and John, “By what power or by what name did you do this?” (v. 7). Peter answers and concludes that there is no other name but Jesus by which we are saved (v. 12). The next verse is key: “But when they saw the boldness of Peter and John, and perceived that they were uneducated, common men, they were astonished” (v. 13).

This is puzzling. The apostles were bold men; there is no denying that from the text. But why were they so bold? Was it because they were naturally intelligent? Were they so confident in their innate reasoning abilities that they knew they could take on the religious leaders in a debate and win? No, that’s not the reason. The text clearly states that they were uneducated, common men (v. 13). They weren’t naturally intelligent. They didn’t have high IQs. They had no formal education. How then could they be so bold in preaching the word and defending the gospel before the council? Where did their boldness come from?

We see the answer just a few verses later. After Peter and John were released, “They went to their friends and reported what the chief priests and the elders had said to them” (v. 23). And how did these other believers respond to the apostles’ report? “And when the friends heard it, they lifted their voices together to God” (v. 24). They prayed. They prayed for Peter and John. The immediate response of the believers was to approach the throne of God.

And what did they pray? After acknowledging God’s providential hand in all things, they make an astonishing request to the Lord: “And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness” (v. 29). What an amazing thing! Grant O God boldness to your servants! Keep them bold in their preaching of Your Word!

This is an incredible prayer by the early believers. They knew something very crucial: Bold preaching is a gift of God. It’s not innate. It’s not inherent. It’s a gift of God. That’s why the believers prayed for it. They knew Peter and John were not innately bold. They needed grace to carry out their ministry. So the believers asked God for the grace of boldness in the apostles’ lives.

What’s incredible is that God immediately answered their prayer: “And when they had prayed, the place in which they were gathered together was shaken, and they were all filled with the Holy Spirit and continued to speak the word of God with boldness […] And with great power the apostles were giving their testimony to the resurrection of the Lord Jesus, and great grace was upon them all” (vv. 31, 33).

The passage ends exactly as it begins: the apostles preaching boldly about the resurrection of Christ. Only by this point we know why they can do it. It’s not because they’re genius men. It’s because they’re gifted men. They have the gift of the Holy Spirit empowering them to speak the gospel with boldness. Great power is the result of great grace.

The Greatest Asset of Any Pastor

Charles Spurgeon was once asked about the secret to his ministry. His response? “My people pray for me.” Nothing will happen in ministry if God’s people don’t pray. Both the grace to do ministry and the grace that works through ministry come from the Holy Spirit. And the Holy Spirit empowers those who ask for His enablement. This is the greatest asset of any pastor: a praying people.

A.C. Dixon got it exactly right:
“When we depend upon organizations, we get what organizations can do; when we depend upon education, we get what education can do; when we depend upon man, we get what man can do; but when we depend upon prayer, we get what God can do.”

May pastors always depend upon the grace of God in the ministry of the Word, and may God’s people pray for God’s power for God’s preachers.

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Wednesday, July 20, 2011

The Blessed Fruit of Indirect Teaching (by Matthew DelValle)

photo by Paul Cleveland
It is often that we choose to read a book or watch a film or listen to a message because we know what we will learn. We have a general awareness of what we’re getting ourselves into. We read a book on money management so we can learn principles for better stewardship. We watch a documentary on Martin Luther to learn about the Reformation and how it affects us today. We listen to a seminar on parenting to help us train up our children in the way they should go. We pick books to read and films to watch and messages to hear because we know the direct teaching these resources will provide.

What often goes unrecognized is indirect teaching. There is so much we can learn just by observing methodology. The methods used to transfer information are often as enlightening as the information itself. Or to say it another way: How something is said is just as important as what is being said. Therefore, teachers do not just “teach” when they convey information; they also teach by how they convey information.

Over the years of reading, watching, and listening to R.C. Sproul and John Piper, I have been the beneficiary of much indirect teaching. As much as I have learned from them through direct teaching, I have learned just as much through indirect teaching. By asking myself questions like, “Why did he say this here and not there?” or “Why did he explain it that way and not another way?” I force myself to think through not just what is being said but how it is being said. There is great value in this.

We may not read the same authors or listen to the same preachers, but we all receive indirect teaching at some level. So allow me to share just two fruits of the indirect teaching of R.C. Sproul and John Piper in my life. There are many things I wish I could share, but space does not permit me to do so. Nevertheless, my hope is that in listing these two benefits of indirect teaching in my own life, you too will seek to benefit from the indirect teaching of other authors and preachers.

Philosophical Logic
I didn’t take a philosophy class until my senior year in college. I had never opened a philosophy textbook or read the works of Aristotle or anything like that. But I had read R.C. Sproul. Even after taking philosophy in a formal setting, most of what I know about philosophy I learned indirectly from Dr. Sproul. Dr. Sproul is not only a theologian; he is also trained in philosophy. Not surprisingly, his philosophical bent seeps into his books and messages. Quite frequently, Dr. Sproul will use philosophical logic to help make a point.

Perhaps an example will help. At this year’s Ligonier National Conference, Dr. Sproul explained how there are only three possible explanations for our existence:
  1. eternal existence (we’ve always existed)
  2. self-creation (we created ourselves)
  3. creation by something or someone who is eternal
He then commented on the second explanation, saying self-creation is rationally impossible. That is, it makes no sense. It is a logical fallacy because it violates the law of non-contradiction.

What is the law of non-contradiction?
The law of non-contradiction states that for something to be a contradiction, it must be A and not A at the same time and in the same relationship.
The concept of self-creation violates this principle. Dr. Sproul explained it this way:
“To self-create, one has to be before one is.”
This, of course, is rationally impossible. It makes no sense. Therefore, we can reject self-creation as the reason for our existence. Point taken.

Dr. Sproul uses philosophical logic like this all the time. Every time I read one of his books, somewhere in that book he will make a point by sheer force of logic. As a result, he has indirectly helped shape my own thinking and given me tools for evaluating right and wrong. Philosophical logic is one of the blessed fruits of Dr. Sproul’s indirect teaching.

Poetic Sensibility
Ever since I was a young boy, I have had an affinity for poetry. I’ve enjoyed reading it and writing it. However, it was after reading John Piper that my love for poetry blossomed. Dr. Piper has a poetic sense that engulfs all of his writing. He does write poems, to be sure. I have learned much about writing poetry just by reading his poems. But even his prose has a kind of rhythm and rhyme to it that I find particularly captivating. He has a way of expressing truth in a beautiful, poetic manner.

Again, perhaps some examples will help. Look at this sentence from Dr. Piper:
“You will not know what prayer is for until you know that life is war."
If we split the sentence into two parts, we can observe a few things. “You will not know what prayer is for | until you know that life is war.”

Notice the parallel wording in each half: “You will not know / until you know.” Note also the closely rhymed endings: for/war. There is also a balanced rhythm in each part. If “prayer” is pronounced in one syllable like “pray’r,” there are exactly eight syllables in each half. Thus, the whole sentence would read: “You will not know what pray’r is for | until you know that life is war.

This is an example of poetic sensibility in writing. Did Dr. Piper intend to teach his readers this poeticism when writing that sentence? Probably not directly. But indirectly, his method of explaining truth instructs his readers. The value is memorability: it is much easier to memorize poetry than prose. Just think about all the song lyrics you know from heart. By writing this truth about prayer in such a poetic fashion, Dr. Piper is helping his readers remember truth easier.

There are numerous examples of this kind of rhythmic flow in Dr. Piper’s writing. One of my favorites is,
“The wisdom of God has ordained a way for the love of God to deliver us from the wrath of God without compromising the justice of God.”
Another favorite is,
“Grace is the pleasure of God to magnify the worth of God by giving sinners the right and power to delight in God without obscuring the glory of God.”
Both of these sentences have a four-part structure, each part ending with “God.” There is a rhythm in each one that is aesthetically pleasing to read. Apart from the glorious truths being directly taught, there is a kind of beauty in writing being indirectly communicated.

One final example is alliteration. Consider this sentence from Dr. Piper:
More of Christ’s mercy was magnified in multiplied converts to the Cross.”
Note the bolded and italicized letters. For the most part, each word in the sentence begins with a “c” or “m.” Again, truth aside, this is a wonderfully worded sentence. And indirectly, it teaches the discerning reader something significant about literary beauty in writing.

Ask, Observe, and Reap
So I just want to encourage you to read slowly, ask questions, and observe not just what is being said but how something is being said. How is an author conveying a point? What words are being used? What’s the sentence structure? You will be amazed at what you can learn just by carefully considering an author’s methods. And don’t be limited to books! Do the same thing when you watch a film or listen to a sermon. Why was that scene included in the film? Why did he lower his voice at that point? Ask questions, observe patterns, and reap the fruit of indirect teaching!

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Monday, June 6, 2011

What I Learned from John Piper (by Matthew DelValle)

John Piper at 2011 Ligonier National Conference

I didn’t encounter John Piper until age 16. I had not heard much about Dr. Piper at this point. I remember Pastor Pete had assigned his book Don’t Waste Your Life to some of my older friends for a missions trip, and I remember said friends commenting how the book was too deep and they didn’t understand it at all. But I had not read or listened to Dr. Piper myself.

This all changed when Pastor Bobby assigned Let the Nations Be Glad! to read for the missions trips in 2007. I’ll never forget the opening lines of the book. They are etched into my memory:

Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not missions, because God is ultimate, not man. When this age is over, and the countless millions of the redeemed fall on their faces before the throne of God, missions will be no more. It is a temporary necessity. But worship abides forever.

The main reason why we go out and preach the gospel to all people is not mainly because we don’t want to see people go to hell, but because we want God to be worshiped. That is why God ordains the missionary task. He wants to be worshiped. His glory is not honored, his holiness is not reverenced, his greatness is not admired, his name is not praised, his faithfulness is not trusted, his commandments are not obeyed, his justice is not respected, his wrath is not feared, his grace is not cherished, and his person is not loved. Therefore, missions exists because worship doesn’t.

I grew to love the God-centered worldview of Dr. Piper. Something about his teaching just resonated within me. I had to read more of this man who wrote so convincingly about the supremacy of God’s glory as the center of all things.

Later that year Pastor Bobby again introduced me to another book from Dr. Piper: Desiring God: Meditations of a Christian Hedonist. I found the term “Christian Hedonist” intriguing. I wanted to know what Piper meant by it. I was not disappointed. The thesis of the book is Dr. Piper’s most famous sentence: “God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in him.”

Now everything was coming together. Both R.C. Sproul and John Piper had convinced me that the glory of God is the most important thing in the universe. Nothing is more ultimate in the mind of God than the glory of God because nothing is more valuable in the heart of God than the glory of God. But Dr. Piper helped me see another wonderful truth: God’s glory coincides with my joy.

God’s passion for his own glory is the measure of his passion for my joy. If he were to make something else more ultimate than his own glory, he would sell me short. The more God seeks his glory, the more he seeks my happiness in him.

Likewise, the more I pursue God’s glory, the more I pursue my own happiness in God. Nothing can fully satisfy the human heart other than God himself. I was created to enjoy God. “In your presence is fullness of joy; at your right hand are pleasures forevermore” (Psalm 16:11). That’s why God actually commands me to enjoy him: “Delight yourself in the Lord” (Psalm 37:4).

The value of the gospel is just as important as the truth of the gospel. Or as Piper himself writes, “The most precious truth in the Bible is that God’s greatest interest is to glorify the wealth of His grace by making sinners happy in Him.” This is indeed a precious truth. I love the gospel more now than before because I love God more now than before.

This is what John Piper taught me. I am eternally grateful to God for raising up this pastor and teacher to build up the body of Christ. I thank God for what he has accomplished in my life through this man’s teaching (cf. Romans 15:18). It is a wonderful truth that God indeed is most glorified in me when I am most satisfied in him. God gets the glory; I get the grace. He is honored; I am happy. Praise the Lord!

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Wednesday, April 27, 2011

R.C. Sproul Helped Me See the Truth (by Matthew DelValle)

RC Sproul (Ligonier Ministries)

R.C. Sproul was the first theologian I ever read. I remember as a young teenager—around the age of 14—I picked up my father’s copy of Knowing Scripture by Dr. Sproul. My father and I had begun having conversations about God and the Bible and theology at this time, and I remember my convictions about certain truths being challenged. My entire way of looking at things began to change. As we talked, I would be pushed to the Scriptures to try to make sense of what we were discussing.

However, at this time—I must confess—I did not have much skill in rightly dividing the Word of truth. I needed help. So I rummaged around my dad’s library and found Knowing Scripture. I devoured the book. I think I read the entire book in two sittings. To this day, I still use the basic principles I learned in that book in reading the Bible.

So the first thing I learned from Dr. Sproul is biblical exegesis. Simply put, I learned to draw out (ex) of Scripture what is really there, and not put into Scripture what isn’t there. I learned that the aim of the interpreter is to guide (gesis) out of the text the intended meaning of the author.

The second thing I learned from Dr. Sproul is God’s sovereignty in salvation. Having gobbled up Knowing Scripture, I quickly turned to another book on my dad’s shelf from R.C. Sproul: Chosen by God. The absolute supremacy of God portrayed in that book just shattered my entire worldview.

Growing up I knew that I was supposed to do everything for the glory of God; I didn’t realize that God does everything for the glory of God. When God shows his love, he receives glory (Eph. 1:4-6). When God shows his mercy, he receives glory (Rom. 9:23). When God shows his justice, he receives glory (Rom. 3:5-7). When God shows his wrath, he receives glory (Rom. 9:22). Everything God does, he does for his glory.

It had never dawned on me that God is glorified in the damnation of unrepentant sinners. It had never dawned on me that God was in no way obligated to be merciful to me (Rom. 9:16). It had never dawned on me that God would create someone like Pharaoh just to make known his power in destroying him (Rom. 9:17).

You see, I had always thought God saved me because of me—because of who I am. I had it all wrong. God didn’t save me because of me; God saved me despite me. I am a sinner who deserves nothing short of eternal judgment. There is nothing good in me that would cause God to save me. I didn’t make myself a vessel of mercy. I am not in any way more qualified to receive mercy than anyone else. God could have given me
justice—but instead, he showed me mercy.

The reason why God saved me has nothing to do with me; it has everything to do with God. He did it for his glory—to show the riches of his grace (Eph. 1:7-14). I was created to make God look great. It’s not about me; it’s all about the glory of God.

That’s what R.C. Sproul taught me. And for that, I am eternally grateful to God.

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Wednesday, April 13, 2011

Two Men I Thank God For (by Matthew DelValle)

John Piper & RC Sproul (Ligonier Ministries)

I recently attended the Ligonier National Conference. A unique focus of this year’s conference was to celebrate the faithful ministries of R.C. Sproul and John Piper. These are two men I am eternally grateful to God for raising up to the ministry of the Word.

I first encountered the teachings of these men during my very formative teenage years, and ever since those early encounters with their books and messages, I have eaten up more and more of their writings and sermons. Albert Mohler, President of The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, has wisely counseled:
Read all the titles written by some authors. Choose carefully here, but identify some authors whose books demand your attention. Read all they have written and watch their minds at work and their thought in development. No author can complete his thoughts in one book, no matter how large. (source)
I have taken this to heart. I did a brief review of my library, and I have read close to 30 books from these two men combined. I still have unread books by them on my shelf, waiting for me to devour them.

So it is no surprise to me that much of what I write and teach has echoes of Dr. Sproul and Dr. Piper. A student often imitates his teacher. I can honestly say that, more than anyone else, these two men have shaped my thinking and influenced the direction of my life towards pastoral ministry. Listening to their preaching has put a fire within me to want to go out and do likewise.

So in my following articles I would like to share briefly some things I’ve learned from these two men directly from their teaching, some things I have picked up from them indirectly, and the effect their teaching has had on my own life.

My aim in these posts is twofold: first, it is to give honor to whom honor is due (Rom. 13:7). When Epaphroditus risked his life to serve Paul, the apostle wrote to the Philippians, “Honor such men” (Phil. 3:29). It is good and right to express gratitude towards those who have trumpeted the gospel of Jesus Christ and done the work of the ministry in equipping the body of Christ.

Nevertheless, my ultimate aim is not to praise these men, but to praise the God who created them, saved them, equipped them, and preserved them over all these years. That is why the title of this post is “Two Men I Thank God For.” “For from him and through him and to him are all things. To him be glory forever. Amen” (Rom. 11:36).

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