J. Edward's Famous Sermon

Do you know Jonathan Edwards? He was a revivalist preacher in New England, USA in the 18th century. He is considered to be the finest American philosophical theologian.

I have a copy of his sermon "Sinners in the hands of an angry God". It has been sitting for years in the book shelve so I decided to do an exercise of Law and Gospel.

They were right, as I read Edward's sermon, I could really feel the tongues of fire licking the soles of my feet. It is terrifying to read. A fine sermon on the Law. As I read the sermon I was kept hanging. It was the experience of watching 24 or Lost. I was on the edge of my seat because I was looking for the suspense, the climax. I was saying, hang on maybe good news is coming up, may be in the next page. Nope not there, but may be towards the end?

I finished the sermon. Unfortunately it never came. There were spots here and there of the need to be converted, born again but nope, no Gospel forth coming. Sorry. This has really puzzled me a lot and I wish someone can explain to me my sense of hopelessness. Why is it considered a good sermon? Why do people hail it?

The sermon sounded to me more like "Sinners in the hands of an Angry Preacher".

I am really sorry, that is honestly what I think. I only got the problem, no solution.

From Westminster to Wittenburg

I thought I should post here a link of Pastor Rick Ritchie's journey to Wittenberg here.

There are many reasons why I can not go to Westminster too but that is another story for next time.

For now, this is just to feed the discussion should you care to comment.

Me!Church

I got this from the list I regularly join in the discussion, courtesy of Rev. Bob Vincent. Click here for the Me!Church. But I warn you, if you get stomach cramps from laughing, please do not sue me.

A few years ago, in the city where I live, a bank promoted its name by giving out an advertisement that went along this line of thought --"It is ALL about YOU".

Waytaminit, I thought church was all about Jesus?

Calling Dr. Phil?

I tell you, I have never seen a man so loved by the world, a man with fatherly encouragement for those who are in a hole. Dr. Phil, is the man, he has the formula for everything. Tell him your problems specially about yourself, your relationships and finances and he has the solution for you. Are having problems raising your teens, having a wayward spouse, struggling with some addictions in life - you know who to call - Dr. Phil. You got a problem with weight? No worries, Dr. Phil has a diet program you can get into and it'll straighten you up. Attitude is everything and Dr. Phil is a master of articulating how you can improve and perfect your bad attitude.

So, if you want some advice on how to improve yourself, I recommend you give Dr. Phil a ring. There is one thing I have observed though that Dr. Phil can not do for you. If you have a problem with God because of your sin, well, I doubt if Dr. Phil can help you.

You see, you need a Christian Pastor for that. It is just a pity though that manythem are becoming insecure because of not having the same therapheutic skills like Dr. Phil, when all along they have the message that will always be relevant and always be the true message of God - the Gospel of Jesus Christ. When the pastor is holding this message, he has something Dr. Phil can not give, and this is the message of forgiveness. When your problem is God, no amount of theraphy will do, you need Dr. Jesus for that and the pastor ought to know how to connect you with Him, real fast. Jesus will not tell you to get your act together, he will point you to His Cross.

A Religion to Make Us Happy?

Thanks to Dave Gosse who directed me to this interview with C. S. Lewis. Here is Lewis' answer to the question...

Which of the religions of the world gives to its followers the greatest happiness?

Lewis:

Which of the religions of the world gives to its followers the greatest happiness? While it lasts, the religion of worshipping oneself is the best. I have an elderly acquaintance of about eighty, who has lived a life of unbroken selfishness and self-admiration from the earliest years, and is, more or less, I re­gret to say, one of the happiest men I know. From the moral point of view it is very difficult! I am not approaching the question from that angle. As you perhaps know, I haven't always been a Christian. I didn't go to religion to make me happy. I always knew a bottle of Port would do that. If you want a religion to make you feel really comfortable, I certainly don't recommend Christianity. I am certain there must be a patent American article on the market which will suit you far better, but I can't give any advice on it.

But this is the great irony. Today Christianity in popular preaching and worship services is presented just exactly that - the lifestyle to make you safe and happy. Jesus is there to make us happy, right? Why, to think otherwise is considered strange, unbiblical and even heretical, correct?