Some News Items...
Toronto Baptist Seminary has a new website (http://www.tbs.edu/). Check it out if you want more information about the school and some of the exciting things that are happening there.
On Friday, June 10th and Saturday, June 11th, Thomas R. Schreiner, professor of New Testament Interpretation at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville, Kentucky will be lecturing on Spirituality in the Book of Romans.
The lectures will be held at Trinity Baptist Church in Burlington (http://www.trinity-baptist-church.com/). On Friday afternoon and evening there will be three lectures at 4:00 , 7:15 and 8:30 PM. On Saturday morning there will be two more at 9:00 and 10:30 AM. The cost for the lectures is $50 at the door.
This annual lecture series is hosted by the Toronto Baptist Seminary and the Jonathan Edwards Centre For Reformed Spirituality.
Thursday, June 09, 2005
Tuesday, June 07, 2005
Bluewater Biker Blessing 2005 Edition
This past weekend I had the privilege of participating in the 11th Annual Bluewater Biker Blessing. For the second year in a row the "Blessing" was held at the Mike Weir Park in Bright's Grove, Ontario. The Lord gave us beautiful weather and I enjoyed speaking with many who I have met over the years as well as meeting some new people for the first time.
In this post I would like to share with you an outline of the things I said to the bikers this past Sunday.
The Biker Blessings is time to plant gospel seeds that I trust God will bless and cause to grow in his own time. He is the only one who knows what is going on in the lives of those who gather. And he is the only one who is able to bring them out of their spiritual darkness into the glorious light of his presence.
The Bluewater Biker Blessing 2005
This motorcycle stuff is big business! During the first quarter of 2005 Harley Davidson apparently did $1.24 billion in business. That is serious money by anyone's standard. Now that I live closer to Port Dover it is amazing to see how many riders make the trip to that little town on the shores of Lake Erie on Friday, the 13th, rain or shine. There is no doubt that biking has become a way of life that appeals to more and more people of all different ages and backgrounds in this particular part of the world.
It is great to have fun and I trust you will enjoy the various events planned later this afternoon. But I want to talk about something serious and important for a few minutes. On Monday, May 16th, my wife's uncle was hit and killed by a train while riding an ATV. He was a farmer who had gone back to check his crops before dinner. He stopped for a train that was running along the tracks at the back of his property. When it had passed by he proceeded not knowing that another train was coming in the opposite direction. In an instant he entered eternity. He went from this life into the presence of the living God. Now, as a Christian believer, he enjoys the presence of his Savior and Lord, although he is dearly missed by those whom he has left behind.
However, the suddenness and violence of his death raises some important questions. Really big questions. What is life all about anyway? Why are we here on planet earth? Everyone thinks of these questions from time to time... but there are special times when these questions come to us in clear and unmistakable ways.
Down through the years, many answers have been given to these basic questions. Some people are not sure why they are here or what life is all about. Some believe they are here to have a good time; to go for all the gusto they can. Others believe they are here to make a difference; to try and make the world a better place. Still others think that they are here to amass as many toys and material possessions as they can as if life were a giant real-life version of Monopoly. Some think our presence on earth is an accident. And more and more people believe there are really no universal answers to these questions. Everyone must make up their own minds, and what is true for one person might not necessarily be true for anyone else. Companies like Harley Davidson (to pick but one corporate example) want you to think that you are here to ride a Harley!
The truth (according to the Bible) is that life is about glorifying and enjoying God. We are here to glorify him by enjoying him forever. Wow... does that sound weird or what! Whoever heard of glorifying God by enjoying him now and forever? But the fact is that you are not an accident. You were made by God. The day of your birth and death are known to him. Before you were born he knew where you would live and even what bike you would ride! You are not junk. You are incredibly valuable. God originally made human beings to glorify him and enjoy him. And God is enjoyable. He is love, peace and wisdom. He is pure, holy, faithful, gracious and merciful. He is the greatest artist and musician. He is life itself. There is nothing more wonderful than knowing and loving and participating in what he is doing in the world. He promises life now and forever in his presence to those who come to him. God is the blessing of blessings! We glorify him when we rejoice in him and love and worship him above all else. We glorify him when we find our ultimate satisfaction in him alone.
But this is not how most people see it. One reason is because some of God's representatives do not represent him very well. But more to the point--we are are unbelievers by nature and we just don't believe what God has said. Consequently, by nature we spend our lives chasing all sorts of things. Things that can never satisfy them in the end. Or we spend their lives living in direct disobedience to God. Either way it is a waste of time. Either way we stand condemned and under God's judgment. And rightly so because only he is worthy of our ultimate love, loyality and delight.
Hey, it doesn't have to be that way. God wants to take us as we are and wash us and purify us and draw us into a personal relationship with himself. This drawing does not strip away who we really are but it draws us up into his larger purpose. This is why Jesus died. He died to bring us back to God. He died and rose again to give us a new start. To give us eyes to see that we were put here to glorify and enjoy God and to continue to do that forever and ever as his own dear children.
The truth is that God himself is the Blessing! Knowing him is not just a matter of churchy type stuff. To know him is to be fully alive. In fact, you have not begun to live until you know him. To put it in way that I think you will understand... you have never really ridden a bike until you ride as one who knows and loves and enjoys your Creator, as one who is forgiven, and who is rightly related to him through his Son.
The only way God is known is through his Son, Jesus Christ. The Son is known through the Scriptures. The Scriptures come to us in the power of the Holy Spirit. If you would like to talk about these things some more... see me after. Or if you would like to get in touch through e-mail see Don Aikin and he will tell you how. Or if you would like a Bible see the Gideon's who have a booth here at the Blessing and they will see that you get one. If you have a Bible, read it. And ask God, who is the author, to help you understand what he is saying to you about your need to be right with him.
If you are here today looking for a blessing on your life, then make up your mind today that you will not rest until you know what it means to glorify God by enjoying him forever. This is the blessing of blessings and if you see this, you will never be the same.
In closing, I want to share with you one man's testimony. These are the words of a song written by Keith Green that describe what he experienced when the love of God broke into his life. It is my prayer that you might all come to know that same love of God and that God might break through into your lives.
"Like a foolish dreamer trying to build a highway to the sky, all my hopes would come tumbling down, and I never knew just why…
Until today, when you pulled away the clouds that hung like curtains on my eyes, I’ve been blind all these wasted years, and I thought I was so wise, but then you took me by surprise.
Like waking up from the longest dream, how real it seemed until your love broke through; I’ve been lost in a fantasy, that blinded me, until your love broke through…
All my life I’ve been searching for that craziness of heart, and with one touch you just rolled away the stone that held my heart…
And now I see that the answer was as easy as just asking you in, and I am so sure I could never doubt your gentle touch again, it’s like the power of the wind…
Like waking up from the longest dream, how real it seemed until your love broke through; I’ve been lost in a fantasy that blinded me until your love broke through."
Your Love Broke Through – Keith Green
In this post I would like to share with you an outline of the things I said to the bikers this past Sunday.
The Biker Blessings is time to plant gospel seeds that I trust God will bless and cause to grow in his own time. He is the only one who knows what is going on in the lives of those who gather. And he is the only one who is able to bring them out of their spiritual darkness into the glorious light of his presence.
The Bluewater Biker Blessing 2005
This motorcycle stuff is big business! During the first quarter of 2005 Harley Davidson apparently did $1.24 billion in business. That is serious money by anyone's standard. Now that I live closer to Port Dover it is amazing to see how many riders make the trip to that little town on the shores of Lake Erie on Friday, the 13th, rain or shine. There is no doubt that biking has become a way of life that appeals to more and more people of all different ages and backgrounds in this particular part of the world.
It is great to have fun and I trust you will enjoy the various events planned later this afternoon. But I want to talk about something serious and important for a few minutes. On Monday, May 16th, my wife's uncle was hit and killed by a train while riding an ATV. He was a farmer who had gone back to check his crops before dinner. He stopped for a train that was running along the tracks at the back of his property. When it had passed by he proceeded not knowing that another train was coming in the opposite direction. In an instant he entered eternity. He went from this life into the presence of the living God. Now, as a Christian believer, he enjoys the presence of his Savior and Lord, although he is dearly missed by those whom he has left behind.
However, the suddenness and violence of his death raises some important questions. Really big questions. What is life all about anyway? Why are we here on planet earth? Everyone thinks of these questions from time to time... but there are special times when these questions come to us in clear and unmistakable ways.
Down through the years, many answers have been given to these basic questions. Some people are not sure why they are here or what life is all about. Some believe they are here to have a good time; to go for all the gusto they can. Others believe they are here to make a difference; to try and make the world a better place. Still others think that they are here to amass as many toys and material possessions as they can as if life were a giant real-life version of Monopoly. Some think our presence on earth is an accident. And more and more people believe there are really no universal answers to these questions. Everyone must make up their own minds, and what is true for one person might not necessarily be true for anyone else. Companies like Harley Davidson (to pick but one corporate example) want you to think that you are here to ride a Harley!
The truth (according to the Bible) is that life is about glorifying and enjoying God. We are here to glorify him by enjoying him forever. Wow... does that sound weird or what! Whoever heard of glorifying God by enjoying him now and forever? But the fact is that you are not an accident. You were made by God. The day of your birth and death are known to him. Before you were born he knew where you would live and even what bike you would ride! You are not junk. You are incredibly valuable. God originally made human beings to glorify him and enjoy him. And God is enjoyable. He is love, peace and wisdom. He is pure, holy, faithful, gracious and merciful. He is the greatest artist and musician. He is life itself. There is nothing more wonderful than knowing and loving and participating in what he is doing in the world. He promises life now and forever in his presence to those who come to him. God is the blessing of blessings! We glorify him when we rejoice in him and love and worship him above all else. We glorify him when we find our ultimate satisfaction in him alone.
But this is not how most people see it. One reason is because some of God's representatives do not represent him very well. But more to the point--we are are unbelievers by nature and we just don't believe what God has said. Consequently, by nature we spend our lives chasing all sorts of things. Things that can never satisfy them in the end. Or we spend their lives living in direct disobedience to God. Either way it is a waste of time. Either way we stand condemned and under God's judgment. And rightly so because only he is worthy of our ultimate love, loyality and delight.
Hey, it doesn't have to be that way. God wants to take us as we are and wash us and purify us and draw us into a personal relationship with himself. This drawing does not strip away who we really are but it draws us up into his larger purpose. This is why Jesus died. He died to bring us back to God. He died and rose again to give us a new start. To give us eyes to see that we were put here to glorify and enjoy God and to continue to do that forever and ever as his own dear children.
The truth is that God himself is the Blessing! Knowing him is not just a matter of churchy type stuff. To know him is to be fully alive. In fact, you have not begun to live until you know him. To put it in way that I think you will understand... you have never really ridden a bike until you ride as one who knows and loves and enjoys your Creator, as one who is forgiven, and who is rightly related to him through his Son.
The only way God is known is through his Son, Jesus Christ. The Son is known through the Scriptures. The Scriptures come to us in the power of the Holy Spirit. If you would like to talk about these things some more... see me after. Or if you would like to get in touch through e-mail see Don Aikin and he will tell you how. Or if you would like a Bible see the Gideon's who have a booth here at the Blessing and they will see that you get one. If you have a Bible, read it. And ask God, who is the author, to help you understand what he is saying to you about your need to be right with him.
If you are here today looking for a blessing on your life, then make up your mind today that you will not rest until you know what it means to glorify God by enjoying him forever. This is the blessing of blessings and if you see this, you will never be the same.
In closing, I want to share with you one man's testimony. These are the words of a song written by Keith Green that describe what he experienced when the love of God broke into his life. It is my prayer that you might all come to know that same love of God and that God might break through into your lives.
"Like a foolish dreamer trying to build a highway to the sky, all my hopes would come tumbling down, and I never knew just why…
Until today, when you pulled away the clouds that hung like curtains on my eyes, I’ve been blind all these wasted years, and I thought I was so wise, but then you took me by surprise.
Like waking up from the longest dream, how real it seemed until your love broke through; I’ve been lost in a fantasy, that blinded me, until your love broke through…
All my life I’ve been searching for that craziness of heart, and with one touch you just rolled away the stone that held my heart…
And now I see that the answer was as easy as just asking you in, and I am so sure I could never doubt your gentle touch again, it’s like the power of the wind…
Like waking up from the longest dream, how real it seemed until your love broke through; I’ve been lost in a fantasy that blinded me until your love broke through."
Your Love Broke Through – Keith Green
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)