I have had the privilege in my life to meet and minister to many homeless people. Whether it was eating cheeseburgers together on the street corner, or in Underground Atlanta, or chicken fingers under the I-10 bridge in Mobile, these people have left an indelible impression on my life.
Any time I have met a beggar or homeless person, the case has always been true in every situation. A beggar, by definition, is at the mercy of the one who shows mercy. The beggar has no rights of his own. It is absurd to think that the beggar is entitled to anything or has deserved rights to anything given to him. You see, what is given is simply that – a gift. And the gift is given freely as an act of mercy motived by compassion and love for that individual. They do not have to give, and quite frankly many don’t. But when they do, they do so out of their own choice. The merciful at all times is sovereign and in control and in no ways obligated or submitted to the will of the beggar or his presumed rights.
Such is the case of us in salvation. We are all beggars. We are all deaf, blind, mute, and lame. We come spiritually bankrupt, poor in spirit, and begging like the publican, “God, have mercy upon me, the sinner.” Any true conversion takes place with this disposition. God, who wondrously displays mercy towards the sinner, does so out of his free grace and unconditional love. God does not have to show us mercy. He is sovereign and chooses to do so out of His own good pleasure. And we are saved, not because we deserve salvation or are entitled to forgiveness, or have the rights or “free will” to make God save us! This is arrogance and an affront to the majesty of God. The grounds and means by which we are saved is the magnificent mercy of God (see Ephesians 2:4, Titus 3:5, and 1 Peter 1:3). No other grounds does salvation come. That is why God says,

“‘I will have mercy on whom I will have mercy, and I will have compassion on whom I will have compassion.’ So then it depends not on human will or exertion, but on God, who has mercy” (Romans 9:15-16).

Mercy is grounded in two things: God’s sovereignty and God’s love. And the two are not in contradiction, but rather are perspectival on the nature of God. And mercy received results in two things as well: the glory of God (Romans 15:9) and humble gratitude. To think that God has extended his love to me and shown me mercy is more than my frame can withstand.
I close this post with two thoughts. Remember the Good Samaritan? What was the context of that parable? Was it not ‘who is my neighbor’ (love your neighbor as yourself)? And who loved his neighbor? The answer was, “The one who has showed him mercy.” And Jesus’ response was, “You go and do likewise” (Luke 10). Well, I forgot what my second thought was. Anyway.
The point is: we are all beggars. We come to get, not to give. God is the giver, and He is sovereign and glorious in that giving. We are receivers, and we are to receive Him gladly, humbly, gratefully, as one truly undeserving, staggered by such mercy, mercy which makes me sing . . .

Thy mercy my God is the theme of my song
They joy of my heart and the boast of my tongue
Thy free grace alone from the first to the last
Hath won my affections and bound my soul fast

Without Thy sweet mercy I could not live here
Sin soon would reduce me to utter despair
But through Thy free goodness my spirits revive
And He that first made me still keeps me alive

Thy mercy is more than a match for my heart
Which wonders to feel its own hardness depart
Dissolved by Thy goodness I fall to the ground
And weep for the praise of the mercy I’ve found

Great father of mercies Thy goodness I own
And the covenant love of Thy crucified Son
All praise to the Spirit whose whisper divine
Seals mercy and pardon and righteousness mine

(Caedman’s Call Thy Mercy)

* = R.D.S.A.

One of the 10 Words (Commandments as you might know them) given by God on Mt. Sinai is, “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain.” YHWH’s name was so sacred that it was never to be spoken or written, lest it be done in vain. Instead, other names like Adonai and El-Shaddai were used.
In the Near-Ancient Eastern times, pottery and tools that belonged to an individual had their initials embossed or engraved in the handle of the piece so that when you saw it or handled it, you knew immediately who it belonged to. When a slave was to extend his hand to someone else, on his wrist or hand was engraved the initials of the one to whom he belonged. It was the custom of that day that whenever something belonged to someone who was the owner, the owner’s initials were immediately seen when the other person saw it.
We often think of taking the name of the Lord in vain by speaking curse words like “g.d.” among others; while it is true that this is taking the name of the Lord in vain, there is much more to this word from God. In Hebrew, there are several stems that are used for verbs. The most common stem is the QAL stem (used 70% of the time). The word QAL comes from the Hebrew word transliterated Qalal which means “to be light”. When it is in the PIEL stem, it means “to make contemptible”, and in the HIPHIL stem it means “to curse“. On the other hand, the Hebrew word Kaved in the QAL means “to be heavy or important”; in the PIEL means “to honor, make heavy“, and in the HIPHIL means “to get renown, make honored.” These two words are polar opposites.
To take lightly means to curse, and to make heavy is to honor and glorify (Kaved is where we get the word glorify in the Old Testament). When those who belong to God in covenant, have been purchased by Him to be His own, a people for His own possession, who have His marking of ownership upon them for the world to see, treat God lightly, esteem His name minimally, and live their lives in contradiction, they are precisely taken the LORD’s name in vain and in effect cursing him. When the world sees the believer, they should no immediately who owns him/her; they should, by their lives, see the “heaviness” of God in the way we ‘live and move and have our being.’ To take God’s name in vain is to show contempt towards God Himself, for in His name is the entirety of who He is, and our estimation of Him will be evidenced in the way we represent Him in our world.
So let’s take a visit to vanity fair. Let’s not look at those who are saying “g.d.” for they are not owned by God; they are not his sheep. But let’s look at those who, when their hands are extended, show whom they belong to. Are we taking God’s name lightly? Have we shown contempt towards Him? Have we in effect been cursing God with our own lives? In this fair there is a higher divorce rate among believers as unbelievers, a valuing of this world and its fleeting pleasures than the world to come and “pleasures forevermore” from the right hand of God. There is more concern for our names’ sake (or our church’s) than for the name of God, and we treat those who are not like us, though created in the image of God, with contempt. We measure righteousness with busyness, devotion with performance, and fruit with efficiency (as though fruit can be worked). God’s ownership is nowhere to been seen except in what we plaster on bumper stickers and billboards, and that we use as a advertisement as a substitute for our own lives.
My concern is outrightly for the name of YHWH. We have taken Him far too lightly, and the evidence is seen in that there are no distinctives between the believer and the unbeliever. We are to be HIS and HIS alone, for He bought us “with a price”; therefore, our lives should be “heavy” and glorify, honor, esteem, value, treasure, cherish, and appraise God for all that He is to us. I tremble to think that I may be living a curse against my King! Do you? How are we representing Him, His character, His heart, His passion? Or do we even know who God really is?! Maybe we have been so wrapped up in working for God, we don’t know the God to whom we belong.
Do not take the LORD your God’s name in vain. Wear it honorably. Live it gloriously. Represent Him faithfully. To take it in vain is to take it emptily, lightly, contemptibly. And to do this would be to curse God. May the world around us not see “light-hearted” Christians preaching a “gospel-lite” message all in the day-to-day life of one’s behavior is another contemptible visitation to vanity fair. This word is a word to those who are in covenant, to those whom God said,

“I will dwell in them and walk among them;
and I will be their God, and they shall be My people.
Therefore, come out from their midst and be separate,” says the LORD.
“And do not touch what is unclean; And I will welcome you.
And I will be a Father to you,
and you shall be sons and daughters to Me.”
Says the LORD Almighty.
2 Corinthians 6:16-18

Lord, may we live “heavy” lives and represent you well. Not to us, O LORD, not to us, but to Your name give glory . . .” (Psalm 115:1).

* When you see a post with an asterisk (*) at the end, it is classified as an R.D.S.A. (Reader Discretion Strongly Advised). The reason they are earmarked is because these are the ones mostly likely to evoke a genuine provocation. I heretofore exonerate myself from any charges lambasted at me.

* As you can see on the right hand of the screen, I have started a Flickr account where I will be trying to post some pictures. I look to place around 100 in the next couple of weeks. I do not have many in my computer right now (I have only been shooting for 5 months), but when I get some more I will post them up. Simply click on the box on the right and peruse through the pics as they come up. Feel free to comment if you like.

* Below I thought I would provide for you some details about my life – what I am doing, reading, and so on. So here’s a starter:

what I am reading:
Dining with the Devil by Os Guinness
Fool’s Gold by John MacArthur, ed.
God in the Wasteland by David Wells
Who Can Be Saved? by Millard Erickson

what I am working on:
Don’t Waste Your Life Bible Study for UPS coworkers
Bibliography and Glossary for Research on Religious Pluralism
Workplace Evangelism Strategy for Christians

upcoming events:
Speaking at Brotherhood Breakfast in Huntsville, AL
Drew and Erin’s Wedding
Speaking at Missionary Commissioning Service @ Payneville, KY
Father’s Day (my dad is the best)

There you have it. Have a great week and hope you come visit P&P again soon!

I hope that you guys have enjoyed the pictures. I will, however, be going to a Flickr account in the future (more info later). I also want to say thanks to all of you who embody the readership of P&P. Many of you I realize are new to P&P, and this blog has been upheld by word-of-mouth referral and gracious recommendations of fellow bloggers. If you believe in this blog, I ask you to carry its message; but regardless if you do or don’t, I am grateful that you have taken the time to include this as a part of your day.
Now that leads me to make this announcement. I am fully aware that some of my posts have been considered as “hard-hitting” and controversial. I don’t expect everyone to agree with me (or something is inherently wrong), and I know that there will be some who will say Amen while others would like to burn the pages these words would be written on. Regardless of how you feel, I want you to feel it. The worst thing would be to have you unprovoked, unmoved, indifferent, and disengaged.
During the next two weeks or so, I will be sharing such posts. As you may have noticed, I have not put many posts lately that are the typical “thoughtful” kind of genre, and that is because I have been giving considerable thought lately to matters at hand for writings forthcoming. Although my writings may have sermonic overtones, I really consider them anecdotal in nature. In them, I will ask questions I hope that you or others would be willing to help answer, comments that are embedded in the very core of who I am, and pleas that are to appeal to all. If you are faint of heart, weak-stomached, or would like to avoid tough words and a sincere message, consider this as the warning – “Reader Discretion is Strongly Advised: Comments made during this window of time may offend, anger, confound, provoke, stimulate, and stir you and cause you to think outside the box. ” I write these not for a larger readership, but for an engaged readership; I am cognizant that some will be turned off, so I am making this post to be a announcement of programming that you may grab your remote and switch to a different channel if you like.
Now that I have made this aware to you, I will proceed to share with you my heart. When I was in college, I wrote in my journal under two headings: heart breathings and heart spewings. Breathings were just thoughts about life and observations I had made; spewings, well, were just that. They were things that pierced me, convicted me, angered me, and beckoned me to speak up. They are like fire in my bones, and for me to remain silent would be for me to implode.
I ask that you to respond with sincerity, with reason, and with transparency; yet respond to the post and please do not make character attacks at me or anyone else simply because you do not like what is said. If you disagree, say so, but explain yourself and why and where you disagree. I do not know how many of these posts I will make (right now around 7-10 or so), but I am telling you now for those of you who think, “There he goes again . . . He is so critical yada yada yada.” Yes, I am critical, and we must not think the word critical with always negative connotation. Being critical is truth-preserving, and without it, we err both in orthodoxy (what we believe) and orthopraxy (what we do).
Enough of that. Interspersed in these posts you might find some pictures, news, or the typical random stuff as well. Anyway. I felt it necessary to make this word to you now so that the forthcoming posts may not catch you by surprise. Thanks again for your time.

I have been thinking a lot about mercy lately, not for the least of which reasons is my desperate and daily need for mercy from God and my fellow man. Yet this thought has been on my mind for some time.

The rocks sounded like a synchronized thud on the dusty road as the adulterous woman lay on the ground, accused and scandalized in public. She lifts up her eyes to her the words of Jesus saying, “Go and sin no more.” We all know the story, but this SS lesson is hitting me hard these days.
Now I turn to Romans 12:1 which contains probably the greatest “therefore” in the Bible (I have tried to come up with the Bible’s greatest “therefore’s” and preach from their context). And it follows, “in view of the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.” This part I think seems to get the least amount of attention in this amazing verse, and I believe it is the key to understanding worship, service, sacrifice, and holiness.
Everything in my life is to be seen and understood in full view of God’s mercy. Because of God’s faithfulness, they are new every morning (Lamentations 3:22-23), and as one who is to glorify God on account of his mercy (Romans 15:9), I must maintain a clear and conscious scope of God’s magnificent mercy. So much wrath I deserve. Hell should be mine. The curse I should bear. Condemnation my sentence. Destruction my end. Yet God has shown mercy indeed, even to me, and like the adulterous woman, I must rise with this mercy received and go and sin no more, for it is mercy that leads us to a presentation of our bodies, for a worship that is sacrificial, for a service that is holy, for a life that is surrendered. Truly mercy is mighty, so out of the depths of sin I rise, like this woman to go with Jesus, the merciful High Priest who has stood in my place (2 Corinthians 5:21), taken my curse (Galatians 3:13), and become the lamb that was slain before the foundations of the world on the mercy seat that the veil may be torn and I, a wretched undeserving sinner, can come and find intimacy and rest in the arms of Him who is holy. This morning, I hear him with the newest of mercies, faithfully saying, “My son, go this day and sin and more.”

ADDENDUM: This I wrote for many reasons, not the least of which is because of the temptation to treat mercy and grace with contempt. I have seen those, who, because of God’s mercy and grace, have felt the liberty to live shady lives with questionable practices under the guise of grace, thinking that grace might be somehow magnified. “What shall we say then? Shall we continue to sin so that grace may increase? Hell no.” (Cotton Patch Version) Grace drives us to holiness, mercy to humility, love to awe, to a life that resembles the Crucifed, yea Risen One.

Over the past 20 years, Bible translation has become a preeminent debate because of the rise of “dynamic equivalence” translations that attempt to “modernize” the English Bible. If you are interested in studying the issue and on whether you can trust the Bible in your hand, here are some books which I have and look forward to studying. I would like to thank Andy for reminding me of the importance and necessity of being equipped to explain and contend for the literacy of Scriptural translations. Here they are.

Carson, Donald A. The Inclusive-Language Debate. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1998.

Dewey, David. A User’s Guide to Bible Translations: Making the Most of Different Versions. Downer’s Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 2004.

Kaiser, Walter C. Exegetical Fallacies: Second Edition. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1996.

_________. Toward an Exegetical Theology: Biblical Exegesis for Preaching & Teaching. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1981.

Metzger, Bruce M. The Bible in Translation: Ancient and English Versions. Grand Rapids: Baker, 2001.

Poythress, Vern S. and Wayne A. Grudem. The Gender-Neutral Bible Controversy: Muting the Masculinity of God’s Words. Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 2000.

_________. The TNIV and the Gender-Neutral Bible Controversy. Nashville: Broadman & Holman, 2004.

Ryken, Leland. Bible Translation Differences: Criteria for Excellence in Reading and Choosing a Bible Translation. Wheaton: Crossway, 2004.

_________. The Word of God in English: Criteria for Excellence in Bible Translation. Wheaton: Crossway, 2002.

Scorgie, Glen G, Mark L. Strauss, and Steven M. Voth. The Challenge of Bible Translation: Communicating God’s Word to the World. Grand Rapids: Zondervan, 2003.

Strauss, Mark L. Distorting Scripture? The Challenge of Bible Translation and Gender Accuracy. Downer’s Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1998.

Wegner, Paul D. The Journey from Texts to Translations: The Origin and Development of the Bible. Grand Rapids: Baker, 1999.

1. I just heard from my uncles yesterday that the pope’s car was sold on E-Bay. Sure enough it was true! He had a 1999 Voltzwagon Golf with around 46,000 miles on it, and it sold to a casino owner for $244,000! Ironically, the pope never actually drove it (because he did not have a driving permit), and the man who bought it just a day earlier bought Britney Spear’s pregnancy test and previously purchased Mary on the grilled cheese sandwich. Talk about a holy roller!

2. Coming to Louisville in April of 2006 is one of the best conference line-ups I have ever seen. The conference is called Together for the Gospel. It is being hosted by none other than Mark Dever (IX Marks Ministries), Ligon Duncan, C.J. Mahaney (author of The Cross-Centered Life and Christ our Mediator), and Albert Mohler (Southern Seminary’s President). Special guets include John MacArthur, John Piper, and R.C. Sproul. Are you kidding me??!!! The date is April 26-28, 2006. What is even more amazing is that it is only $125! If you would like to come, let me know and maybe I can hook you up with lodging accomodations (stay with my wife and me if you like!).

3. Discipleship Journal has a great one-year Bible reading program that is recommended by many. If you are interested in reading the Bible in one year, I encourage you to check this plan out. You may be one to help end the famine in our land.

4. One of the greatest encouragements to me in my devotional life has been a book called The Valley of Vision. It is a collection of Puritan poems and writings that are immeasurably rich and real for the believer. The author is Arthur Bennet and is published by Banner of Truth. It sells on BAMM for $10.05, or you can get a leather hardcover version for $15.74. This book is well worth and soon the prayers then will soon become your prayers now.

Tomorrow is a big day for me, because it will be a HUGE day for two persons whom have affected my life greatly and have manifested kindredness with endurance throughout the years.

Caleb Clanton, my lifelong friend whom I first met on the monkey bars at Julian Newman Elementary in 1st grade, will be graduating with his PHD in Philosophy at Vanderbilt University. It is amazing to see the things that the Lord has done through Caleb both academically and devotionally. Throughout my life, some of the best, most illuminating conversations that I have ever had have been with Caleb on the back porch. I rejoice with him in the completion of his PHD and doing so with excellence. He plans on continuing to teach @ Vanderbilt for the next year, which he has been doing so for the past three years. May Jesus continue to explode in Caleb’s mind and heart as God uses him to explode the minds of the secular elite and the worldviews that hold sinners in bondage.

David Kizziah, whom I call “My Epaphras” (Colossians 4:12), will be uniting with his bride in the covenant of marriage Saturday. After attending Caleb’s graduation commencement, I will be traveling down to Syllacauga to share in the abundant joy of seeing two lives being joined into one flesh for one cause – the glory of God. David was a roommate whom, when I walked down the hall of our house, I would find on his knees or passionately reciting Scripture, or reading some of the great Puritan Paperbacks. He has and continues to be a illustrative demonstration of a man who has sheer delight in God and His Word. He to me is the personification of Psalm 1, of the man who is planted by the waters, who prospers in whatever he does and never lacks fruit, for he loves God emphatically and is imprisoned to His Word undeniably. Katie, his fiance, is a beautiful woman with glimmering countenance and virtue from above. Just to see her esteem for her husband is evidence enough to see the kind of woman she is. After their wedding and honeymoon, I am excited to say that they will be joining us here in Louisville and attending Southern as well. What a wonderful reunion that will be!

I have been richly blessed to have brothers in my life who have through the years weaved their thought, prayers, and encouragement to my life to shape me into the person I am today. To undo me would be to reveal the investments, the tears, the laughter, and the memories of such men whom I am not worthy to have as friends. Yet they are more than friends. They are brothers. I am indebted to God on account of them and only hope that those whom the Lord places in my life such as these and others, I can somehow reflect and imitate their example.

I only hope my 20D will for me this weekend to capture the moment and make memories!

I feel that it is appropriate to share with you some confessions that I have made and continue to make. These are the result of ponderings down interstates, late night musings, and constant introspection over who people think I am, who I believe I am, and who I really am. These confessions are but a few of the ongoing lessons in my life:

1. I confess that I am both a saint and a sinner, and were I to wait until I were merely a saint to speak, then I must surrender the rest of my life to silence. The right to speak truth doesn’t come from my perfect standard in keeping it (for we are all fail in some degree) but the truthfulness and the Source thereof.
2. I confess that I have couched my words too often with the appeal and approval of those those who read/hear me that I might win over their perceptions and therefore conform to the crowds. I must, I have to, live for the Audience of One, regardless of people’s perceptions, and care only for the smile of Heaven, even if my words account for a thousand frowns.
3. I confess that I have denied my conscience and maligned truth for the sake of appeasement and conformity, thereby displaying faithlessness and fickless and the fear of man. I must fear him who is able to cast both body and soul in hell, and take courage; for what he whispers in the quiet place, I am called to proclaim from the rooftops.
4. I confess that often times my writings have been too assertive and deriding, bereft of humility and meekness, and tainted by domineering assumptions and personal ambition. I must rise from bended knee and bowed heart, and speak as one whose words has wounded himself.
5. I confess that those I love, I most often hurt, and do so with selfishness and insensitivity. I cannot be a true lover, with the love of Christ, if I but do not have the interests of others in mind, that in word and deed my life be an offering endowed by the King to those He would express Himself.
6. I confess that my love for the Church, the Bride of Christ, the Building of God, is received by others to be divisive, critical, and unproductive. I must learn to express my convictions and passions for those whom He died in such a manner that they are ravished by Jesus’ glory, convicted by our apathy, and spurned to radical holiness that we may be HIS in the fullnest sense of the word.
7. I confess that I am a fallible man speaking fallible words. I do not stake any claims or entitlements to the truth, but as one who is pilgrimaging through life in constant pursuit of the Truth; however, I do not apologize for His words, for they are infallible and authoritative, words that every human being will one day give an account, words that I must face with fear and trembling.
8. I confess that I am more concerned about the faithfulness of God’s people, that they would represent Him well in our world, culture, and society rather than being trendy, popular, or acceptable to today’s measuring sticks. As a result, I find it necessary to address the utilitarian and pragmatic dominance of thought today disguised as church growth, strategies, programs, etc. To be passionate about God’s name and renown means to be passionate about the vehicles that represent that name – passion expressed either for or against without compromise.
9. I confess that many of my beliefs, convictions, and thoughts shared are unpopular and confrontational. Having my heart disclosed and mind read for everyone to see has been both humbling and healing at the same time. At any given moment, I have seen how the same word has comforted, inflamed, enouraged, and frustrated people. Given the desire to speak truth, I must take care that the message does not become maligned or mitigated by the faults and failures of the messenger. Daily the lens of my life needs cleansing, so I come for a clean vision and a pure passion to think God’s thoughts and feel God’s passions.
10. I confess that when (not if) I have been wrong, I have often been defensive rather than submissive. This is a sign of carnality in me. I must humbly accept the truth when I am wrong and ever long to be spiritually receptive to the leading of God’s Spirit to change me, to convict me, to call me onward to a deeper understanding of Him and what He is wanting to say to me through His Word and through His people.
11. I confess that in order for me to be authentically and thoroughly devoted to my King, I must be willing to confront any and every affront to His kingdom and rule, from without and from within, for the sake of His name and His testimony througout the earth. This means that doctrine must be essential, our culture and world be engaged, and the guises and scheming done in the name of Jesus be exposed. As Luther said, “my mind and conscience must be held captive to the Word of God.” A thorough work must be done in me before a transforming work can be done through me.
12. I confess that my confessions are weak and feeble without the strong arm and benevolent graces of Jesus Christ, whose life I desire to have lived in me, whose love I desire to expressed through me, whose words, I pray are communicated by me. It is Him I confess, as a sin-stained wretch whose pray continues to be, “God, be merciful to me, the sinner!”

* As you may have already noticed, I have inserted a weekly poll for all you who check out P&P. Please, if you have the time, provide your input for the question asked weekly. Your input is greatly appreciated.

* Paul Washer is a young pastor and founder of Heartcry Missionary Society. He has some very provoking sermons that have stimulated much thought in my mind. Some are free to download at the following link. I encourage you to check them out: http://www.heartcrymissionary.com/modules.php?name=Downloads&d_op=viewdownload&cid=12

* Many of you are aware of the gender-neutral translations that have recently been coming out. Wayne Grudem, along with Vern Poythress, has written a book called The TNIV and the Gender-Neutral Bible Controversy. It is a lengthy book (528 pages) that explains proper translation, how we received our English translations, and most importantly why the TNIV (Today’s New International Version) is wrong. If you or someone you know is interested on Bible translation or owns a TNIV Bible, then this would be a relevant read. It is published by Broadman & Holman in 2004. You can find it for $15.74 @ BAMM.com.

* If any of you are interested in doing a book study together with a group or would like to have a good book to give away to some non-Christian friends, I encourage you to check the Don’t Waste Your Life website. I have recently purchased a bulk of 25 to give to my unbelieving friends @ work and those who will come to my Bible Study there in the cafeteria. I am using it as a discussion starter and introduce them to the Christian faith. The only stipulation to the bulk buying is that you give them away at no charge. It is a great deal. You should check it out. A link to this is the following: http://www.desiringgod.org/news_events/promos/2005_dwyl_outreach.html