15 Hopes for the women at Netcast Church

This past weekend we talked about what it looks like to pursue biblical woman. At the end of the message I listed my 15 hopes for the women at Netcast. Those, as well as a quote inspired by the writings of Pastor John Piper is below.


“True womanhood is a distinctive calling of God to display the glory of his Son in ways that would not be displayed if there was no womanhood.” There are certain ways that man cannot display God's glory. When God described the work of his Son as the sacrifice of a husband for his bride, he was telling us why he made us male and female. He made us this way so this relationship would describe more fully the relationship of his son and his son’s blood-brought bride. If you reduce woman to biological features you not only reduce the value of womanhood but reduce the glory given to God in his beautiful creation. Whether a woman is married or single. Do not waste your God-Given womanhood, for it was made by and made for the glory of Christ.”

15 Hopes that I have for the women at Netcast. 

1. That all of your life, you'll be devoted to finding hope and beauty in Jesus.

2. That you won't stop modeling gentleness & compassion to us hard-hearted men at Netcast.

3. That you be women of the bible and not blame your church or a man for your lack of discipline.

4. That Jesus and the meditation on biblical truth be the source of your hope and faith; not a man.

5. That you fight to be heard at Netcast and in the community. Never letting fear quite your voice.

6. That you be women of prayer and faith; and grow in your influence at home and Netcast.

7. That you work to understand the deep mysteries of the gospel.

8. That you be totally committed to ministry within Netcast, whatever your role.

9. That you not waste God-given time on pointless TV shows, social media stalking or gossiping.

10. That, if you're married, you lovingly support the servant leadership of your husband and help him to die to himself as the Lord has called him to.

11. That you encourage, not belittle your husband when he is wrong and you are right.

12. That you develop a fearless war mentality when it comes to worshiping your King Jesus.

13. That you fight for transparency and authenticity, yet be honorable and respectful to others.

14. That you mentor and raise up the younger women at Netcast so they might love Jesus well.

15. That your motivation for the discipleship of others not be your own perfection, but rather your humility. Because young women need to know that imperfect women are loved by a perfect God.

Thankful for Jesus. Thankful for You.

It is my prayer that this Thanksgiving you are able to add one more thing to your list of things you are thankful for. This year, I am overwhelmed with gratitude and thankfulness for our Netcast family and the way that Jesus is displaying his magnificence among us. Every week I look forward to my favorite time of the week which is worshiping Jesus as I gather together with those who I love.

Here is another thing to be thankful for: God's Inexpressible Gift to us: Jesus Christ 

1. Is there a power to love? 
2. Is there a power that can really change people? 
3. Is there a way to have eternal life? 
4. Is there a way for sins to be forgiven?
5. Is there a way for your deepest longings to be satisfied? 
6. Is there a way to know God personally and be his friend? 

The answer is a resounding yes....And that yes is Jesus Christ, God's inexpressible gift to you this Thanksgiving season. 

If you have never personally received Jesus as the Lord and Savior of your life, I commend him to you. And I urge you to trust him and call upon him for all the help you need. "Whoever calls upon the name of the Lord will be saved" (Romans 10:13). Thanks be to God for his inexpressible gift!

excerpt from desiringgod.com

Why sexual implications and nudity on TV isn't good for me.

I actually got a good amount of heat from people when I wrote a post on my thoughts of "Private Practice" and other TV shows that show or imply a bunch of sex. However, BT and Jessica left probably the best comment and insight on the issue. See Below:

This is a long quote, but I thought it was relevant. John Piper writes:

There are, perhaps, a few extraordinary men who can watch action-packed, suspenseful, sexually explicit films and come away more godly. But there are not many. And I am certainly not one of them.

I have a high tolerance for violence, high tolerance for bad language, and zero tolerance for nudity. There is a reason for these differences. The violence is make-believe. They don’t really mean those bad words. But that lady is really naked, and I am really watching. And somewhere she has a brokenhearted father.

I’ll put it bluntly. The only nude female body a guy should ever lay his eyes on is his wife’s. The few exceptions include doctors, morticians, and fathers changing diapers. “I have made a covenant with my eyes; how then could I gaze at a virgin?” (Job 31:1). What the eyes see really matters. “Everyone who looks at a woman to desire her has already committed adultery with her in his heart” (Matthew 5:28). Better to gouge your eye than go to hell (verse 29).

[...]

But leave sex aside (as if that were possible for fifteen minutes on TV). It’s the unremitting triviality that makes television so deadly. What we desperately need is help to enlarge our capacities to be moved by the immeasurable glories of Christ. Television takes us almost constantly in the opposite direction, lowering, shrinking, and deadening our capacities for worshiping Christ.

http://www.desiringgod.org/resource-library/taste-see-articles/why-i-dont-have-a-television-and-rarely-go-to-movies

View on Scripture

Having read a lot of definitions of how people perceive the Bible, I think that this is the most accurate and what I would align most with. Please take the time to read this, I believe that it is very well written. You can tell that there was a lot of thought that went into this.

THE BETHLEHEM BAPTIST CHURCH ELDER AFFIRMATION OF FAITH

I believe that the Bible, consisting of the sixty-six books of the Old and New Testaments, is the infallible Word of God, verbally inspired by God, and without error in the original manuscripts. I believe that God’s intentions, revealed in the Bible, are the supreme and final authority in testing all claims about what is true and what is right. In matters not addressed by the Bible, what is true and right is assessed by criteria consistent with the teachings of Scripture.

I believe God’s intentions are revealed through the intentions of inspired human authors, even when the authors’ intention was to express divine meaning of which they were not fully aware, as, for example, in the case of some Old Testament prophecies. Thus the meaning of Biblical texts is a fixed historical reality, rooted in the historical, unchangeable intentions of its divine and human authors. However, while meaning does not change, the application of that meaning may change in various situations.

Nevertheless it is not legitimate to infer a meaning from a Biblical text that is not demonstrably carried by the words which God inspired. Therefore, the process of discovering the intention of God in the Bible (which is its fullest meaning) is a humble and careful effort to find in the language of Scripture what the human authors intended to communicate. Limited abilities, traditional biases, personal sin, and cultural assumptions often obscure Biblical texts. Therefore the work of the Holy Spirit is essential for right understanding of the Bible, and prayer for His assistance belongs to a proper effort to understand and apply God’s Word.