Tag: Pastor Andrew

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Bible Reading in the New Year (Pt.3)

December 16, 2016 by • Devotional Thoughts, Pastor Andrew • Tags: , •

By Pastor Andrew Gordon

Originally posted in the New Year season of 2015. 

This is the final installment of a group of posts concerning Bible study in the New Year. I hope that these posts might give you some practical tools to discipline yourself unlike the typical New Year’s resolution. In this post I will share examples of how I structure my time in the word.

In “Bible Reading in the New Year (Pt.2)” I explained that I try to go through one book at a slower pace to listen to what God is saying at the verse and paragraph levels, while at the same time reading larger chunks of scripture to try to grasp what God is saying through the overall flow of a book and scripture as a whole. Here is what that looks like for me:

3-4 days a week I am in a book studying smaller chunks of the Word. I try to be going through a book rather than randomly picking a new passage each day. This helps to really get to know the purpose and flow of the book. I read the passage once, then go back through it again. This is how I set up my page for taking notes:

Bible Study Notes

The observations help you move toward the author’s Big Idea–what did this writer try to communicate to his audience? Then the Big Idea helps you move toward a Theological Principle. In other words, each passage teaches us something about who God is that is applicable for all times. So the Theological Principle helps us see specific applications for our own lives.

The other 3-4 days, I read a chunk of scripture. This is often 3-5 chapters. Take notes about the main themes, repeated concepts, and what you’re learning about God and his people through the passage.

Note: In 2017, we are going through the Journible for the Gospel of Mark. The set up is different than the note page above, when I was going through James. But hopefully with several different examples, you will find a method that works best for you. 

You can decide how this looks, but I usually do not go back and forth everyday between small passages and large ones. Normally, I let the structure of the smaller passages dictate when I break from that to longer reading. For instance, maybe I want to get through a section in Mark before I go back to Genesis for a few days. Maybe you will want to split it between the first half of the week and the second. It’s up to you. If you are trying to keep up with the Bible-in-a-Year plan and the Journible, there will be some built in “catch up” days. After all, it gets easier and easier to quit altogether when you have a stack of unfinished days to check off the list.

In all of this, I cannot over emphasize the importance of prayer in this process. Each day, open with a prayer of praise to God, confession of sins, and a request for insight and wisdom from your Bible study that day. After studying and meditating on the Word, pray that God would help you apply it in meaningful ways throughout your daily life. Look for opportunities to specifically plot out how you will apply it, and ask God for his help.

Memorize the Word

“I have stored up your Word in my heart, that I might not sin against you” (Psalm 119:11). This is one of the best ways to understand the passage. It will also bring the passage to your mind throughout the day to fight off temptation with the Word of God like the example of Jesus in Matthew 4 in the wilderness. Start with one verse at a time. or even work through a chapter over a longer period of time. Repetition and being full of the Bible will help shape you in a Christlike way into a person who bears the fruit of the Spirit.

For memorization I use note cards, repeated writing, and multiple readings of the passage. There are also helpful apps available for your devices. I find the app FighterVerse is particularly helpful.

Submit to it!

Look for specific areas of your life where you can apply what you are learning. God’s Word will push you to grow and change. But if you are not submitting to that growth and change, you will soon come to believe that you do not need it and will fall away. But if you submit to the Word you will experience this type of clarity:

“Your Word is a lamp to my feet and a light to my path” (Psalm 119:105).

–To see what we are doing at WBC in 2017, check out this post here. 

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Bible Reading in the New Year (Pt.2)

December 14, 2016 by • Devotional Thoughts, Pastor Andrew • Tags: , •

By Pastor Andrew Gordon

Originally posted in the New Year season of 2015. 

This is the second part in a quick series on establishing habits and rhythms of reading and studying God’s Word in a meaningful way. Our New Year’s Resolutions often bite the dust early, but how can we change that trend when it comes to Bible reading? In part 1, I wrote about several reasons why we should read and study scripture regularly. Today’s post will hopefully provide you with some practical ways to develop good habits this year in the Word.

How do I get into a routine of reading and studying the Bible?

“Train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come” (1 Timothy 4:7b-8).

Routines can be of great value, but sometimes, actually training or disciplining ourselves to establish them is difficult. I hope this section is extremely practical for anyone who is just starting to set aside a time and a place for Bible reading and prayer all the way to the one who is established but needs some encouragement. How can we discipline ourselves for godliness?

1) Find a place. One of the important things about studying the Bible is finding a place where we can shut out distractions. If you are going to hear from God, the last thing you need is to be hearing from the TV, radio, and smartphone all at the same time. So find a place where you can avoid distraction. Keep it consistent for a while, but be willing to switch it up on down the line.

2) Find 5 minutes. If you are not regularly in the Word, and your day is jam-packed; don’t try to start with getting up an hour earlier than you always do. That is a recipe for failure by way of the snooze button. A very wise man once told me to set my alarm just 5 minutes earlier for a week or two or even a month. Use that time to read a passage and meditate on it as well as prayer. Your body will not miss the five minutes of sleep, and you will find you desire more time in the Word. Then after a set period of time, add 5 minutes. Eventually you will be in a routine of up to a half hour, hour, or more.

[Aside: Do I have to do it in the morning? Of course not. But I find that there is too much value in the morning to justify moving it to another time during the day. I want to open my day with God being the first voice I hear in a world of news, sports, Twitter, and Facebook.]

3. Meditate. I’m not referring to some mystical search for inner peace. But sit with the passage asking what God is teaching the original audience about himself and about mankind. Then seek out applications for how you can apply what you are learning. Pray that God will open your eyes to the text and its meaning. The meaning in scripture can be difficult and deep, but it’s never hidden.

4. Choose what you read with purpose. I will go into some more specifics of my practice in the next post. However, in short, I try to make sure I am doing two things in my study of the Word. First, I want to always be studying on a verse by verse basis, walking slowly through a book. Secondly, I want to be reading chunks of scripture to help myself see the bigger picture of God’s revelation as a whole. You can decide what days work best to do which. But try to build some consistency. God is teaching us things in each verse and paragraph as well as in the flow of his revelation on a large scale. For the days you read longer portions, there are plenty of Bible-in-a-year plans out there you can easily find via Google or apps like YouVersion.

5. Find a Friend. We are not walking through the Christian life alone, and reading God’s Word is no different. Find someone in your life that you can trust to challenge you to stay in the Word. This person should be able to ask you at anytime what God is teaching you. This will challenge you to both be in the Word and be able to answer the question well. If you are married, stick with your spouse in this or a close friend of your same gender. When two are paired, and one falls, the other can pick him/her up.

Note: In 2017 at WBC, we will be offering a Bible-in-a-Year plan for reading big chunks. For the shorter, deeper study, we will being going through the Journible for the Gospel of Mark. Click here for more information. Since many of us are doing the same thing, it shouldn’t be hard to find a partner for encouragement and accountability.

In the coming days, I will add an example of what my routine looks like. Remember, this is very important to our spiritual lives. But start small, and commit to grow.

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Bible Reading in the New Year (Pt.1)

December 12, 2016 by • Devotional Thoughts, Pastor Andrew • Tags: , •

By Pastor Andrew Gordon

Originally posted in the New Year season of 2015. 

In just a few weeks, many people will go to the gym for the first time in 11 months. Others will have a brand new diet to commit to long term…you know, at least 3 weeks. And many of us will commit to reading through the Bible this year. Some of us will make it a week or so longer on our Bible reading resolution than our diet and exercise plans. Some of us, starting in Genesis, will make it to Leviticus and will get bogged down in the Law before quitting.

Getting in the Word daily takes discipline, but it is vitally important to our lives (Psalm 1). What better time to establish new habits and routines than January 1? But how do I make this resolution stick? Over the course of 3 posts, I will suggest (1) why we should be in the Bible on a daily basis followed by (3) how to establish these rhythms, including (3) examples from my personal practice.

Why is it important to read the Word daily?

If asked, almost every professing Christian would say that it is important to read the Bible regularly. However, fewer could explain why. I would venture to predict that those who cannot explain why they should be reading and studying the Bible would be the same ones who struggle to do it on a regular basis if ever.

In Psalm 19, David begins by praising God for how he has been revealed in creation. The glory of God is clearly displayed for us all in the wonders of creation. In verse 7, David takes a turn from creation and dives in to worship of God for his Word. “The law of the LORD is perfect, reviving the soul; the testimony of the LORD is sure, making wise the simple” (Ps. 19:7, ESV). David understood that though the “heavens declare the glory of God” (v. 1), God’s Word reveals his glory as well. See, creation fills us with wonder. But it should fill us with greater wonder that the God who created all of that would desire to have a relationship with us. What’s more, he reveals the way to have that relationship through his Word.

David rightly knew that the Word of God holds the message of eternal life. The Word teaches us how to live as God’s people. God does not leave us guessing. Since the God of the universe has chosen to speak to us, through the Bible, are we compelled to listen? Don’t we want to hang on every last word? If you need convincing, try reading Psalm 1 or the great song of the Bible, Psalm 119.

When God speaks, his power is put on display. Through reading his written word and humbly accepting it, we are yielding ourselves to his power to transform us more into the likeness of Christ. We open ourselves up to be the people he has called us to be in terms of holiness and evangelism. We learn the heart of God so that we might love what he loves and hate what he hates.

If you believe that God is glorified through creation, then you have to see him through his Word!

The Bible is sufficient for the Christian life. This means, we do not have to rely on God to audibly speak to us or add to what he has already revealed in scripture. In 2 Peter 1, Peter says that it is by the knowledge of Christ and his promises. These are found in scripture. James teaches us to look into scripture to evaluate ourselves and to live in light of what we find (James 1:22-25). God’s Word is sufficient for our lives, and God wants us to know him through the words he has spoken.

I hope this post will set up the two to follow. We should not just be sitting under preaching of the Word. Rather we should be mining the depths of God’s revelation. Next, I will post some help in establishing some patterns. Later, I will add a 3rd post with some examples of how I read and study God’s Word.

Until then, I invite you to check out this post on how NOT to read through the Bible this year here.

Lastly, This post from last week helps set up how WBC plans to work through Bible study together in 2017.

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Dr. King and Me

January 19, 2015 by • Discipleship, Pastor Andrew • Tags: , • 0 Comments

By Pastor Andrew Gordon

Seven years ago, I sat in my college cafeteria after the annual Martin Luther King Jr. chapel and displayed my ignorance as I complained about celebrating a man who had several alleged character flaws. I remember saying something like, “I mean, I am all for civil rights. I want equality for all people. But couldn’t we pick somebody who had a little less of a sketchy past to be the one we commemorate every year?” To me, there was nothing inherently racist about this statement. To me, I was simply speaking truth to a taboo subject.

On that day during my freshman year, I lost one of the first friends I made on campus. The friend sitting across from me was a black man. How he managed to keep calm, while I spewed my ignorance can only be explained by the grace of God in his life and God’s mercy in mine. He skillfully and calmly changed the subject eventually, and we moved on. But when he confronted me later, I apologized that I had not been sensitive in what I said. But I still had no concept of how badly I had hurt him with my words.

To be honest, as I have grown from that day, I still don’t know that I will ever understand how badly my words cut him. The reason is because I have never been in his shoes. I know that one of the ways that I hurt him was by complaining about a man who stood up for what he believed in and lived sacrificially and peacefully to bring about change in a world of embarrassingly wide-spread prejudice and injustice in our nation. Without even realizing it that day at lunch, I still represented that same prejudice 40 years after Dr. King was assassinated. See, many of the freedoms that my friend did enjoy were direct results of the boldness and courage of Dr. King. And there I was complaining that we had to remember someone who left such an invaluable legacy to the citizens of this country…all because he was not perfect.

Many of you reading this have already begun to hate college-freshman-Andrew. Some of you still probably wouldn’t like me (I have not yet attained, but I press on toward the goal). But there are some of you probably reading this thinking, “Wait! I don’t know why what you said was so wrong. I have said (or believe) the same thing.” And I ask those of you in this latter category to bear with me with an open mind. I believe the ideas you and I once shared to be ignorant and highly damaging to interracial relationships, especially among believers.

Before I explain why we all should be celebrating the life of Dr. King, I ask you to be honest with yourself as I had to be in answering this question: Am I trying to explain away the character of this man so that I don’t have to do the messy work of putting myself in the shoes of my black brothers, sisters, and fellow citizens to really understand their lives (this includes other minorities, but it was revealed to me specifically in my interactions with black Americans)?

Black Americans can extensively document discrimination that has taken place against them or those close to them in their lives to this day. But I was too proud and too busy to listen. I never once asked my friend what he thought on this day. I simply assumed that my thinking was his thinking because it was “rational” by my calculations. And to this day, I know little to nothing about his life and his family. Why? Because I was too blinded to ask him questions while also offering a safe environment for him to answer honestly. By speaking against Dr. King that day, I was speaking against my friend. What I missed in 2008, I pray that we will not miss out on in 2015.

Why celebrate MLK Jr. Day?

This man exemplified turning the other cheek like our Lord Jesus because he believed that standing up for the oppressed must be done in a way that followed the example of Christ. He believed that peaceful boldness was the right alternative to violence. He stood up because his nation did not exemplify the values she claimed to stand upon.

We should celebrate because Dr. King’s boldness inspired thousands to stand up for the oppressed and thousands more to identify and destroy their own prejudices. He truly believed that the gospel had the power to reconcile people in a way in which the kingdom could be reflected in relationships here on earth.

We should celebrate because though he was not a perfect man and had alleged character flaws, the character flaws of those God used throughout Scripture to do great things are not “alleged.” Their sins are explicitly stated. Just look at the list of people that are given to us in Hebrews 11. Just to name a few: Noah, Abraham, Sarah, Isaac, Jacob, Moses, and should we even start on David?!

What’s the point? Sin is absolutely inexcusable from God’s standpoint. And all of these famous people of faith sinned. But there was One. There was one who lived in sinless perfection out of complete obedience and faithfulness to his Father. And through his death, our sins were paid for. Forgiveness became available. As I look upon the goodness of the gospel and the horrors of my sins, I am compelled to see people in a new perspective. One man’s sin does not make him equal to the sum total of those failures. Christ’s blood covers those who repent and believe just as it covered Abraham, Moses, David, and me.

The gospel urges us to rejoice in the way God uses people. It urges us to stop, listen, and try to understand those who are different than us, specifically those who are hurting or oppressed. The gospel urges me to stop using someone’s sin as an excuse to downplay everything he stood for publicly. The gospel urges me to shut up for a few moments and listen. May God use me in spite of my sin. And, Lord, please keep me from sin.

Empty for Christmas

December 13, 2014 by • Devotional Thoughts, Pastor Andrew • Tags: , • 0 Comments

By Pastor Andrew Gordon

I am hopeful you will see this as a little more than just another “Reason for the Season” post. Those posts usually (and correctly) point out that Jesus is the reason for the season, and we must not get so caught up into the consumerism and entitlement of our society and take a moment to pause and thank God for his Ultimate Gift. Again, all of that is due this time of year. But I want to share a further reflection.

Jesus is more than just Christmas, right?

Jesus is more than just pause-worthy before our big feast, right?

Jesus’ birth is more than just one in a few billion, right?

He must be more, but what does it all mean?

I want to focus on a thought from Philippians 2 where I believe that Paul expresses beautifully what it meant and still means for God to become flesh.

Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus, who, though he was in the form of God, did not count equality with God a thing to be grasped, but emptied himself, by taking the form of a servant, being born in the likeness of men. And being found in human form, he humbled himself by becoming obedient to the point of death, even the death on a cross. Therefore, God has highly exalted him and bestowed on him the name that is above every name, so that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father. -Phil. 2:5-11, ESV.

I think Paul is reflecting on the first  coming of Christ in order to draw out a way of life for those who are following Jesus. It’s truly beautiful. Let’s look at what Christmas was before we look at what it means. Christmas was the event in which God became man.

There have been many well written books, articles, and posts out there about the theological and practical implications of the Incarnation. If the Incarnation is false, we lose the rest of what we stand for. You can read more on this here. Yet, I want to focus on just one aspect: The Son of God “empties” himself to humility (even shameful humility on a cross) out of obedience.

The importance of Christmas is what occurred when God literally and truly became man, sacrificing dignity while maintaining perfect deity. He emptied himself of all privilege and prestige that comes with being God. Other places, we see that God did this out of love for us (John 3:16; Romans 5:8). Here Paul tells us that Jesus’ humiliation -becoming man and dying on the cross- is the reason the Father has highly exalted him and given him the name above every name.

Christmas begins the earthly “humiliation” of God that leads to his glory renown (v. 11). God is always worthy of all glory, but it is fully displayed to the world in Jesus Christ. The Incarnation assumes that we have no hope outside of God’s intervention. The Incarnation proves that it pleased God for this to be the way of salvation. The Incarnation sets the tone for how Christians are to think and then act.

This Christmas, let me ask you something: When we were all headed for hell because of our sin, did Jesus ask, “Why should I die for those liars, thieves, adulterers, and murderers?” No. The plan was to save sinners. That’s just not fair though! God should never have to suffer just because we messed up and chose to sin! But yes, yes he did. He did not have to suffer and die because of any external obligation. Jesus chose to suffer, because it was decided before the foundations of the world that we would be chosen in him to be holy and blameless, adopted as his sons for full inheritance (Eph. 1:3ff).

“Have this mind among yourselves, which is yours in Christ Jesus…” As people of Christ, the incarnate God, we have no choice but to follow in Jesus’ footsteps. That means as a believer I don’t get the luxury of fighting for what I have earned. It means I am willing to lay down what is “due” me for the sake of others as obedience to Christ. Jesus said that if we wish to follow him, we must take up our cross and follow him. First and foremost our witness to Christ’s example is to display the gospel in word and deed. In our culture, we sometimes interpret “cross” as “soapbox,” “rights,” or “privilege.” But Jesus, the only one with the right to take up any of those three, denied that path for cross-shaped humiliation and beckons us to follow.

You are not God. I am not God. We cannot be anyone’s incarnate Savior. But we can be what God calls us to be as a voice for the voiceless. First and foremost our witness to Christ’s example is to display the gospel in word and deed. We should also be advocates for those who are being oppressed in his name. And we do not do it because we have to. We do not do it because we are the ones oppressing them (though I am far from blameless here). We do it because, Jesus was born as a vulnerable babe, wrapped in cloths, and placed in an animal feeding trough as a foreshadow for his ministry and death. We do it because Jesus said we were to follow his lead and bear witness to what we have seen in him.

If you want to send a shoe box to a kid on the other side of the world, awesome! If you want to donate to a shelter, do it! But I want to encourage believers this Christmas season to be open to potentially messy relationships with those who are oppressed or needy. Let’s empty ourselves of any privilege we think we “deserve” this season. We do not deserve it, but even if we did; Jesus gives us a higher example to follow.

Please share your thoughts or even some tangible opportunities for other readers to take and run with to follow Christ in emptying ourselves for others this Christmas.