This Changes Everything

I’ve often said that there’s one passage of Scripture that if I consistently applied it to my life—then everything about how I live would change.

I’ve frequently written that I think the same passage is a primary reason many people find it difficult to follow Jesus—because this passage is so convicting and calls for such radical sacrifice.

I’ve often thought that this same passage summarizes my prayer for the ultimate result of my parenting—that my children would choose to live out this one passage.

What’s the passage?

Philippians 2:1-11 

1 “If you have any encouragement from being united with Christ, if any comfort from his love, if any fellowship with the Spirit, if any tenderness and compassion, 2 then make my joy complete by being like-minded, having the same love, being one in spirit and purpose. 3 Do nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than yourselves. 4 Each of you should look not only to your own interests, but also to the interests of others.

5 Your attitude should be the same as that of Christ Jesus:

6 Who, being in very nature God, did not consider equality with God something to be grasped,

7 but made himself nothing, taking the very nature of a servant, being made in human likeness.

8 And being found in appearance as a man, he humbled himself and became obedient to death—even death on a cross!

9 Therefore God exalted him to the highest place and gave him the name that is above every name, 10 that at the name of Jesus every knee should bow, in heaven and on earth and under the earth, 11 and every tongue confess that Jesus Christ is Lord, to the glory of God the Father.”

Imagine

Imagine if the life and death of Christ—His self-sacrificial giving—were the model we followed every day in every relationship…

• How would we relate differently to others if instead of seeking (demanding) that they encourage us, comfort us, and love us, instead we lived to encourage, comfort, and love others because we already have Christ’s encouragement, comfort, and love?

• How would we relate differently in our homes—with our spouses, parents, and children—if instead of insisting that family members thought like us, we sought to understand, empathize with, and be one with our family members?

• How would we relate differently at work and in church if instead of seeking our own agenda, we did nothing out of selfish ambition or vain conceit, but in humility consider others better than ourselves?

• How would we relate differently with our friends and with our “enemies” if instead of looking out for “Number One,” we each looked not only to our own interests, but also to the interests of others?

• How would our attitudes toward others change if we maintained the mind of Christ and did not demand equality, but made ourselves nothing, serving others, sacrificing for others, and humbling ourselves before and for others—even to the point of laying down our life for another?

The Objection

Our flesh objects, “That’s not fair. I’ll only give like that if the other person is willing to give the same amount!”

I’m eternally grateful that Christ did not think like that. If He had, then I’d still be dead in my sins, because He would not have chosen to die for my sins.

It’s Not About Me

I’m “preaching” to myself here. This passage is “eating me for lunch.” That is, it’s convicting me deeply about how self-focused I’ve been instead of being Christ-centered, Christ-like, Christ-empowered, and other-focused.

Through Christ’s power, I want to live like Christ for Christ’s glory.

Through Christ’s power, I want to put others first, just as Christ sacrificed Himself for us.

My Statement of Faith and Practice

Churches and para-church groups create a Statement of Faith and Practice that summarizes what they belief about Christianity and how Christians can reflect Christ as they live the Christian life.

For me, Philippians 2:1-11 has become a summary Personal Statement of Faith and Practice.

In Philippians 2:5-11, I find my statement of faith—an incredible summary of what I believe about Christ’s birth, life, death, burial, resurrection, ascension, and eternal glory.

In Philippians 2:1-5, I find my statement of practice—a radical summary of how I believe I should live the Christian life through Christ, like Christ, and for Christ as I serve others.

Join the Conversation 

How could this one passage—Philippians 2:1-11—change how you live your life and relate to others?

RPM Ministries: Equipping You to Change Lives with Christ’s Changeless Truth

Tags: Christ, Christian Living, Humility, Philippians 2, Philippians 2:1-11

Changing Lives at the ABC

Today I’ll be presenting the Pre-Conference for the Association of Biblical Counselor’s  National Conference. 

I’ll be speaking on Equipping Counselors for Your Church.

The Big Idea

You’re passionate about equipping God’s people for every-member-ministry as biblical counselors. However, you’re tired of seeing great effort expended on “programs” that don’t launch, don’t last, or don’t result in leaving a legacy of loving leaders.

So am I.

That’s why in this pre-conference we’ll learn a biblical, field-tested, best-practice approach to equipping God’s people for biblical counseling using the “4E” ministry training strategy of envisioning, enlisting, equipping, and empowering godly ministers for one-another ministry.

The Learning Objectives

Upon successful completion of this presentation, you will be able to:

1.) Envision God’s Ministry: Create the mission, vision, passion, and commission (MVPC Statement) necessary for launching an effective lay training ministry.

2.) Enlist God’s Ministers for Ministry: Prepare the congregation/organization for change and promote the ministry by recruiting lay people to the MVPC Statement.

3.) Equip Godly Ministers for Ministry: Develop curriculum that comprehensively addresses biblical content, Christ-like character, and relational competence within the context of community.

4.) Employ/Empower Godly Ministers for Ministry: Oversee the ongoing “organizing of the organism” by leading ministries built to last and growing from good to great.

If You Can’t Attend, You Can Still Benefit

If you can’t attend, you can still benefit from Equipping Counselors for Your Church.

Read a Sample Chapter from Equipping Counselors for Your Church

Download over two dozen free resources associated with Equipping Counselors for Your Church

Watch the Book Video Trailer as a Blog post or on YouTube 

Listen to a Radio Interview about Equipping Counselors for Your Church 

Purchase your own autographed copy at 33% off at the RPM Store

Join the Conversation 

Where do you turn for equipping others for one-another ministry?

RPM Ministries: Equipping You to Change Lives with Christ’s Changeless Truth

Tags: 4E Equipping, Association of Biblical Counselors, Biblical Counseling, Discipleship, Equipping, Equipping Counselors for Your Church, Speaking

9 Top Blog Organizers

David Murray recently posted an excellent blog The New Superheroes of the Web. 

David writes:

“The new superheroes of the web?

Who are they?

Content curators.

What are they?

In The New Superheroes of the Web, Steven Rosenbaum calls them the ‘web’s secret power…individuals with a passion for a content area [who] find, contextualize, and organize information. Curators provide a consistent update regarding what’s interesting, happening, and cool in their focus. Curators tend to have a unique and consistent point of view–providing a reliable context for the content that they discover and organize.’

And in our information-flooded world, do our boggled minds need these superheroes! Into the data-Tsunami step these superheroes, shielding us from the overwhelming waves, listening to the digital noise, identifying precious nuggets, important news, and fresh voices, then organizing it for us, their grateful readers.

Thankfully there are a number of Christians among these superheroes. And if you want to keep your head above the water, you desperately need them. Here are the ones I depend upon…”

Below, I re-list the Blog Curators that David lists. He also lists Twitter curators. Click here to read his full blog post. 

Blog Curators

Tim Challies: The most consistent Christian curator out there. Via his A la carte posts, Tim provides 5-6 links, six days a week, with a wide mix of theology, culture, technology, books, controversy, photography, etc. If you have to choose one, he’s the one.

Justin Taylor: Posts excerpts and links 3-20 times a day! Bit more highbrow/academic emphasis than Tim, with interest in philosophy, culture, and biblical theology. Leans slightly Baptist, New Calvinist, Crossway-authors in his choices – which is understandable. If you’re trying to keep in touch with theological and cultural trends, Justin is your man.

The Gospel Coalition: On the top right corner of their web page, you’ll find the “Right Now” section, which daily refreshes with new links to theological and cultural pieces. At times tends towards New Calvinist/Crossway in their picks, with the same names tending to appear as on Justin Taylor’s site.

Trevin Wax: Like Tim Challies, Trevin is a great writer of original content. But most days he also highlights links in his “Worth a Look” or “Trevin’s Seven” posts. He’s a Southern Baptist, which obviously influences his choices, but he also has a knack of picking up fascinating content in politics, sport, culture, etc.

Bob Kellemen and the Biblical Counseling Coalition: Either at his own Changing Lives blog or at the Biblical Counseling Coalition, you can pick up Bob’s “Five to live by.” Usually Thursday or Friday, and I usually click on all five of these carefully selected counseling and Christian living posts.

Blogging Theologically: Aaron Armstrong selects 3-5 posts most days in his “Likes I like.” Operates in the same general territory as Tim Challies, with special interests in Christian books. His book reviews are also always worth reading.

Everyday Theology: Marc Cortez, a Professor at Western Seminary, will connect you with both serious and humorous content, but I especially value his links to helpful education content for teachers/professors, etc. He’s a sort of mixture of Tim Challies and Justin Taylor.

My Addition

David Murray: I would also add David Murray’s own Check It Out posts for his insightful lists of current Christian living, pastoral ministry, and counseling links. You can find them at David’s blog: Head Heart Hands. 

Join the Conversation

Which blog curators would you add to this list?

RPM Ministries: Equipping You to Change Lives with Christ’s Changeless Truth

Tags: Aaron Armstrong, Biblical Counseling Coalition, Blogging, David Murray, Gospel Coalition, Justin Taylor, Marc Cortez, Tim Challies, Trevin Wax

5 to Live By: The Top 5 Christian Blog Posts of the Week

Linking you to the top 5 Christian blog posts of the week—posts that provide robust, rich, and relevant insights for living. 

10 Narnia Resources

If you love The Chronicles of Narnia, then you will really appreciate Andy Naselli’s amazing collection of resources in 10 Narnia Resources. 

5 Words of Counsel for Pastors

Pastor Brian Croft suggests 5 Areas in Which a Pastor Should Be Growing. 

5 Words of Counsel for Elders

Pastor Thabiti Anyabwile shares 5 Exhortations to Fellow Elders. 

Really Practical Theology

I’ve often said that the two most important questions we can answer for daily Christian living are: 1.) What is your view of God? 2.) What is your identity in Christ? David Murray brilliantly highlights the importance of the first question in Really Practical Theology. 

Views of the Millennials

Joe Carter at The Gospel Coalition reports that Younger Millennials (ages 18-24) report significant levels of movement from the religious affiliation of their childhood, mostly toward identifying as religiously unaffiliated, according to a new survey from the Public Religion Research Institute and Georgetown’s Berkley Center. Read the results in Views of the Millennials.

Join the Conversation 

Which post impacted you the most? Why? What blog posts have you enjoyed this week that you want to share with others?

RPM Ministries: Equipping You to Change Lives with Christ’s Changeless Truth

Tags: Andy Naselli, Brian Croft, Chronicles of Narnia, David Murray, Elders, Gospel Coalition, Pastoral Ministry, Thabiti Anyabwile

Living Worthy of the Gospel

This Friday, I’ll be the keynote speaker at the annual Fellowship Dinner for the Biblical Counseling Center.  

I’m especially honored because their director, Dr. Ron Allchin, led me to Christ thirty-eight years ago. In fact, I’m speaking on the same passage—Philippians 2:1-18—that I spoke on for my first-ever message when I was sixteen—when Dr. Allchin was my Youth Pastor.

Here’s the outline.

Title: Christ-Centered Counseling: Helping One Another to Live Worthy of the Gospel—Philippians 2:1-18

The Big Idea: We Live Worthy of the Gospel by Living Through Christ, Like Christ, and For Christ

The Big Picture: Then and Now—Equipping People to Speak and Live Gospel Truth in Love

I. Our Means for Christian Living: We Live Worthy of the Gospel by Living Through Christ—Phil. 1:27-2:1

A. When This World Knocks You Down, Be Sure You’re Living for Christ’s Kingdom: Phil. 1:27-30

B. When This World Knocks You Down, Be Sure You’re Living Through Christ’s Power: Phil. 2:1

II. Our Model for Christian Living: We Live Worthy of the Gospel by Living Like Christ—Phil. 2:2-8

A. When This World Knocks You Down, Keep a Radical Focus on Other-Centered, Christ-Like Living: Phil. 2:2-5

B. When This World Knocks You Down, Keep a Radical Focus on Truth Applied to Life: Phil. 2:5-8

III. Our Motive for Christian Living: We Live Worthy of the Gospel by Living For Christ—Phil. 2:9-18

A. When This World Knocks You Down, Remember: It’s All About Him: Phil. 2:9-11

B. When This World Knocks You Down, Remember: It All Leads to Gospel Joy: Phil. 2:12-18

The Big Question: Now and Forever—Will You Invest in Eternity?

Tags: Biblical Counseling, Biblical Counseling Center, Philippians 2, Ron Allchin, Sermon, Speaking

A Prayer for Sunday Worship: Martin Luther

“Lord God, Heavenly Father, 

I consider myself Your dear child and You my beloved Father.

Not because I deserve it, nor could ever merit it, but because my dear Lord, Your only begotten Son Jesus Christ would be my Brother.

Of His own accord He offers and makes this blessing known to me. Since I may consider myself His brother, as He regards me, You will permit me to become and remain a child of Yours forever.

Amen.”

- Martin Luther

RPM Ministries: Equipping You to Change Lives with Christ’s Changeless Truth

Tags: Luther, Martin Luther, Prayer, Sunday Worship, Worship