How Far Are We Willing To Go?

And after this he went out and saw a tax collector named Levi, sitting at the tax booth. And he said to him, "Follow me." And leaving everything, he rose and followed him. And Levi made him a great feast in his house, and there was a large company of tax collectors and others reclining at the table with them. And the Pharisees and their scribes grumbled at his disciples saying, "Why do you eat and drink with tax collectors and sinners?" And Jesus answered them, "Those who are well have no need of a physician, but those who are sick. I have not come to call the righteous but sinners to repentance. - Luke 5:27-32 ESV

We find something absolutely amazing in Jesus' calling of Levi to be one of His disciples.  Jesus was willing to go where He was most needed.  Jesus saw the value of a soul, no matter what walk of life that soul came from.  This leads us to a very important question that we must ask ourselves.  How far are we willing to go to share Jesus with someone else?

Levi was a tax collector, and they were considered the scum of the earth by the Jewish people.  Those that were religious would have definitely looked down on them.  However, when Jesus saw Levi, He didn't see scum, but rather He saw a soul.  When you and I pass by those that our society looks down on, what do we see?  Do we see inconveniences?  Do we see problems?  We should see people that Jesus loves just as much as he loves us.  We should see that people in our culture are hurting and desperately wanting someone to love them unconditionally.

Unfortunately, too many in our churches today are not willing to go very far to share Jesus with those in their community.  We have our Christian friends, our Christian music, our Christian outings, and a host of other things that keep us isolated from the very people we are supposed to be sharing Jesus with.  How many friendships do you have with those that are non-believers?  How much time to do you spend around other Christians versus the amount of time that you spend with those that are non-believers?  I can't help but wonder how Jesus would be received, if at all, by many of our churches today because of the company that He kept.

I truly believe that our community, and our entire culture, is starving for the Body of Christ to rise up and show them the unconditional love of Jesus.  God as really dealt with my heart that I want to go as far as necessary to share the love of Jesus with others in our community.  What about you?  How far are you willing to go?

Beloved, if God so loved us, we also ought to love one another. - 1 John 4:11 ESV

Making Some Changes

Changes!  Changes!  Changes!

I wanted to take some time and let everyone know about some of the changes that I am making concerning my blog.  I am really excited about these changes!

Vantage Point

The first change that you will notice is the name of the blog.  I have changed the name of this blog to Vantage Point.  The posts here will be devoted to seeing the world through the lens of Scripture and developing a Biblical worldview.  I will be dealing with the issues that Christians are facing in our culture and world today and sharing thoughts on them through the lens of God's Word to help us develop a Biblical worldview.

What Happened To The Pastor's Perspective?

I have created another blog for The Pastor's Perspective @ http://thepastorsperspective.blogspot.com where I will still be posting a daily devotional as time allows.  Please go by and visit the new address for The Pastor's Perspective so you can still follow it!  I am also working on a website for The Pastor's Perspective @ http://www.thepastorsperspective.com where you will be able to follow both blogs as well as the radio program that is hosted on Blog Talk Radio.  The new blog is already up and running, but it will be another couple of weeks before the new website is completely finished.

Why The Change?

You might be asking why I am making these changes.  My new blog Vantage Point will be totally devoted to writing about current events and issues that Christians are facing in our culture and examining those events through the lens of God's Word.  The Pastor's Perspective Blog will be totally devoted to devotionals and thoughts that will encourage and help you grow in your walk with Christ.  I want to keep the blogs separate because I don't like to mix politics with preaching God's Word.

Please be sure to update your bookmarks with the updated addresses for both blogs.

The Pastor's Perspective Blog
http://thepastorsperspective.blogspot.com

Vantage Point Blog
http://clintconner.blogspot.com

The Pastor's Perspective Website
http://www.thepastorsperspective.com

Note:  Both blogs will be available on the new website along with the radio program

Hiding His Word In Our Hearts

"Thy word have I hid in mine heart, that I might not sin against thee." - Psalm 119:11

First, let me say that it is good to be back blogging!  Last week we had a Prophecy Conference at FBC with Dr. Billy Martin.  It was a great week, but I did not have the opportunity to update my blog at all last week.

I want to share something that has been heavy on my heart over the last several months.  I have observed that our churches seem to be severely lacking when it comes to God's Word.  The statistics are very disturbing to say the least.

• Only 16% of churchgoers read the Bible everyday.

• Only 32% read the Bible at least once a week.

• Only 37% say that reading and studying the Bible has made a significant difference in the way they live their lives.

We must do something about this!  As I said, the statistics are very disturbing to say the least.  Just a little over 1/4 of our congregations are reading their Bibles only one time each week.  It is no wonder that our churches are in the shape that they are in!  Could you imagine only eating physically one time a week?  Most of us couldn't even imagine eating only one time a day.  We all know that if we skip eating that we are not going to grow physically; in fact, we are going to get weaker.  Why is that we do not apply the same standard to our spiritual lives?  How can we expect to grow spiritually if we are never in God's Word, or if we just read it once a week?  We are spiritually starving ourselves to death!

The most disturbing of these statistics to me is that only 37% say that reading and studying the Bible has made a significant difference in the way they live their lives.  This should not be!  If you are truly a child of God, every time that you read God's Word, it should radically change you!  I truly believe that what we have in many of our churches is a bunch of lost people trying to read the Bible and understand it, which is the problem.  I hear so much about how people say that they cannot understand the Bible.  Now let me be very clear, even as a Christian, you are not going to understand everything you read in the Bible, but you should have a general understanding.  As a child of God, when you read His Word it should convict you and stir your heart, it will change you!

I believe one of the biggest contributing factors to this epidemic is that many pastors and churches push reading your Bible through every year.  I have heard countless preachers talk about how many times they have read their Bible through during their lives.  I have even heard them make condescending remarks about those who have never read their Bibles through during the year.  It is not important whether or not a person reads their Bible through each year, but rather it is more important that they read their Bibles everyday.  We must encourage our people to get in God's Word everyday, even if they only read a few verses each day.

I will be the first to admit that I don't spend time in God's Word like I should, and if you are honest you would have to admit the same.  Purpose in your heart, that moving forward you are going to spend time in God's Word each day, but more importantly, that you are going to allow His Word to radically change how you live.  Get in the Word!!!

"The law of thy mouth is better unto me than thousands of gold and silver." - Psalm 119:72


"Unless thy law had been my delights, I should then have perished in mine affliction." - Psalm 119:92


"O how I love thy law! it is my meditation all the day." - Psalm 119:97


"How sweet are thy words unto my taste! yea, sweeter than honey to my mouth!" - Psalm 119:103


"Thy word is a lamp unto my feet, and a light unto my path." - Psalm 119:105


"The entrance of thy words giveth light; it giveth understanding to the simple." - Psalm 119:130


Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, help me to spend time in Your Word each day!  Father, I pray that as I read and study Your Word each day that You would radically change my heart and my life to look more like Christ.  Father, give me a burning desire for Your Word!  In Jesus name, Amen!

What's That?

"These were more noble than those in Thessalonica, in that they received the word with all readiness of mind, and searched the scriptures daily, whether those things were so." - Acts 17:11



I apologize that I have not been blogging over the last several days.  I am trying to get back into my normal morning routine, so here we go!

Today, I want to do something that is a little different than normal.  Have you ever heard the words exegesis and eisegesis?  If you are like most of people, you are probably saying to your self right now, "What's that?"

Exegesis - an attempt to discover the meaning of the text objectively, starting with the text and moving out from there.

Eisegesis - to import a subjective, preconceived meaning into the text.

I am afraid that most of us have been taught to interpret the Bible through eisegesis, by bringing our own preconceived ideas and beliefs of what we have been told the text says.  However, that is absolutely unscriptural to do so.  Notice above in Acts 17:11 that the Bereans received the Word with all readiness of mind and that they searched the Scriptures daily to see if what they were being taught was accurate.  What a huge difference we see in how they received and studied the Word than what you see in our modern day church culture!

When we interpret the Bible through eisegesis we start with an idea or conviction, then we search for Bible verses to prove our point.  This is very dangerous because we can take verses out of context to support just about any point of view.  We see this so much in many of our Evangelical and especially in our Fundamental churches.  When we interpret the Bible through eisegesis alone, we are going to have a twisted view of Scripture.

We must learn to interpret the Bible through exegesis, where we attempt to discover the meaning of the text objectively, without bringing any of our preconceived ideas about the text.  I want you to notice what Francis Chan has to say about exegesis: "I was taught to interpret the Scriptures through exegesis alone.  Start with God's Word; pray that the Spirit gives you clarity; then study to see what the text actually says.  The Holy Spirit inspired the writing of the Bible, so who better to help us as we seek to understand it!  Scripture tells us that the Spirit not only inspired the Bible, but also illumines it for us today."  If you will honestly and sincerely study the Bible through exegesis alone, it will surprise you how much of the Bible that you were actually misinterpreting before and taking totally out of context.

You and I can easily pursue just about any lifestyle we desire and then find Scripture to show everyone that it is alright to live that way.  We see this being done by many Christians in our churches today, and we also see it being done by many pastors from behind the pulpit.  Here is the question that I have for you, what would it look like for you and I to live exegetically?  If you and I were to start with Scripture and allow it to dictate our actions, how would you and I live?

The bottom line is that we have so many Christians and even pastors today that are interpreting the Bible through eisegesis and not exegesis.  As we approach God's Holy Word, we must lose all of our preconceived notions and beliefs about what we have been told that it means, and we must search the Scriptures for ourselves through exegesis alone.

Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, as I read Your Word, help me to lose all of my preconceived ideas about the text and allow Your Spirit to guide me in understanding.  I pray that as I read through Your Word that the Holy Spirit would open my eyes to what the passage is actually saying and help me to apply that truth to my life.  In Jesus name, Amen!

He Gave

"For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." - John 3:16


This is the most famous and well known Bible verse that there is.  Most of us learned this verse in Vacation Bible School or Sunday School as children.  I would even dare say that many if not most people that are lost could even quote this verse.  I'm afraid that most of us as Christians take this very familiar verse for granted when it comes to some of the powerful truths that it teaches us.

I want to draw your attention to the words "that He gave."  This tells us how much God truly loves not just the world as a whole but how much He loves you and I as individuals.  God the Father loved you and I so much that "He gave."  Have you truly thought about that weight of those three words "that He gave" or have you been guilty of just glossing over it?

The reality of John 3:16 is that God completely, absolutely, and totally gave Himself for us!  He took on the form of a man in Jesus from Nazareth, left the glory and splendor of Heaven, to be rejected by His own people and then to suffer, bleed, and die on a cross.  Think about it, God, the Creator of the entire universe became a curse when He hung on the cross; He was taking all of the punishment that you and I deserved for our sin.  God Himself, the Person of Jesus Christ, gave up everything for you and for me; He literally gave you and I everything when He gave Himself as that perfect sacrifice required for our sins to be forgiven.

The question to you and I today is: if God gave Himself absolutely for us, then shouldn't you and I be willing to absolutely give ourselves to Him?  We must be willing to completely and totally abandon everything for Jesus Christ!  The sad reality is that most Christians know very little if anything at all about giving up anything for Christ.  We are so worried about the consequences of what we are giving up to follow Christ.  However, the truth is that when we grasp the reality of John 3:16, that God totally and absolutely gave Himself for us, we will have no trouble giving ourselves absolutely to Christ, no matter the consequences.

There have never been three more powerful words than "that He gave!"


Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, thank You so much for giving Yourself completely and absolutely when You hung on the cross to pay for my sins and take the punishment that I deserved.  Help me today and everyday to totally, completely, and absolutely give myself to You.  May I totally abandon myself to You and Your will.  In Jesus name, Amen!

He Hath Said

"Let your conversation be without covetousness; and be content with such things as ye have: for he hath said, I will never leave thee, nor forsake thee." - Hebrews 13:5


I normally don't do this, but as I was reading through one of my devotions this morning, the Lord really spoke to my heart.  I was reading from Spurgeon and I want to share what he had to say about three words from the above verse, "He hath said."  Even though it is only three words, the reality of what those three words communicate is tremendous.

If we can only grasp these words by faith, we have an all-conquering weapon in our hand. What doubt will not be slain by this two-edged sword? What fear is there which shall not fall smitten with a deadly wound before this arrow from the bow of God’s covenant? Will not the distresses of life and the pangs of death; will not the corruptions within, and the snares without; will not the trials from above, and the temptations from beneath, all seem but light afflictions, when we can hide ourselves beneath the bulwark of “He hath said”? Yes; whether for delight in our quietude, or for strength in our conflict, “He hath said” must be our daily resort. And this may teach us the extreme value of searching the Scriptures. There may be a promise in the Word which would exactly fit your case, but you may not know of it, and therefore you miss its comfort. You are like prisoners in a dungeon, and there may be one key in the bunch which would unlock the door, and you might be free; but if you will not look for it, you may remain a prisoner still, though liberty is so near at hand. There may be a potent medicine in the great pharmacopoeia of Scripture, and you may yet continue sick unless you will examine and search the Scriptures to discover what “He hath said.” Should you not, besides reading the Bible, store your memories richly with the promises of God? You can recollect the sayings of great men; you treasure up the verses of renowned poets; ought you not to be profound in your knowledge of the words of God, so that you may be able to quote them readily when you would solve a difficulty, or overthrow a doubt? Since “He hath said” is the source of all wisdom, and the fountain of all comfort, let it dwell in you richly, as “A well of water, springing up unto everlasting life.” So shall you grow healthy, strong, and happy in the divine life. 

Spurgeon, C. H. (2006). Morning and evening : Daily readings (Complete and unabridged; New modern edition.). Peabody, MA: Hendrickson Publishers.

Our Relationship With God's Word

"But he answered and said, It is written, Man shall not live by bread alone, but by every word that proceedeth out of the mouth of God." - Matthew 4:4


Have you established a passionate relationship with God's Word?  I want to share a quick thought today about our relationship with God's Word.

Have you ever thought about what it would be like if you were to go several days without eating any food or drinking any water?  It would only take a few days before you start to manifest physical signs in your body of the lack of food.  The longer you go without food and water, the weaker you will continue to become, until you finally die.  Do you realize the same is true when it comes to our spiritual lives?  The same is true, it will only take a few days before you start to manifest the spiritual signs in your life of the lack of food.  You will continue to become spiritually weaker and weaker until your flesh totally consumes you.

As believers, we must read God's Word everyday and meditate upon it.  Otherwise, we deprive ourselves, not only of a priceless gift from God, but also from the spiritual food that is necessary for us to live.  Here is what Martin Luther said about the Bible: "The Bible is alive, it speaks to me; it has feet, it runs after me; it has hands, it lays hold of me.  The Bible is not antique or modern.  It is eternal."  The Word of God is truly an eternal and transforming treasure that the Lord has given you and me.

A passing acquaintance with God's Word is not sufficient for the child of God.  If you and I seek to obey God's Word and understand His will, we must immerse ourselves in His Word.

Are you spiritually hungry?  Are you starving spiritually?  Have you ever wondered why your spiritual life seems so weak?  It is because you have not formed a passionate relationship with God's Word and made it part of your life.  How is your relationship to God's Word?  Do you feast from it everyday or just sample from it when the urge hits you?

Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, thank You for giving me Your Word.  Help me to cherish it, treasure it, learn it, and live it in my life.  I pray that You would speak to my heart every day as I read and meditate upon Your precious Word.  In Jesus name, Amen!

Choices

"Wherefore we labour, that, whether present or absent, we may be accepted of him." - 2 Corinthians 5:9


Your life is a series of choices.  You make them from the time that you wake up till you go to sleep everyday.  You make the choice to get out of bed in the morning and this starts a series of choices that you will make the rest of the day.  Some choices you make will be good and some will be bad.  As a Christian, you must strive to make choices that are pleasing and honoring to Jesus Christ.

I must say honestly that I am very disturbed and troubled by the choices that many in our churches make today.  These are people that have made a profession of faith in Jesus Christ.  Even though with their mouths they profess Christ, they make choices that show Christ in not really a priority in their lives.  Jesus Christ demands preeminence in your life, He will not settle for second place.  Are you giving Christ preeminence in your life?  Do you skip out on church to do other things?  Do you neglect to spend time in God's Word each day because you have more pressing things to attend to?  Do you fail to spend time every day in prayer because you are too busy?  If you are going to tell the world that you are a Christian and that Jesus Christ is your Savior, YOU MUST MAKE HIM PREEMINENT ABOVE ALL ELSE, NO MATTER WHAT IT IS!  This is a choice that you and I must make in our lives everyday.  Do the choices you make show Jesus Christ to be preeminent in your life?

I'm afraid that far too many of us are making choices that show how little we really think of our Savior and how little He really means to us.  Jesus Christ, God Himself, took our sins upon Himself and suffered our punishment on the cross that we deserved, and saved our wretched souls from eternity in Hell.  In light of this, why is that we choose not to make time to read His Word, why is it that we choose not to make time to pray to Him, and why is it that we choose not to make it a priority to be faithful to His Church?  If Christ has really done for us what we say He has done, then why do we choose to put other things and other people before Him?

If you sincerely want to lead and model a life that is pleasing to Christ, then you must make choices that are pleasing and honoring to Him.  CHRIST DESERVES NO LESS THAN PREEMINENCE!

"Life is a series of choices between the bad, the good, and the best.  Everything depends on how we choose." - Vance Havner


Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, help me today to make choices that are pleasing and honoring to you.  Help me to make Jesus Christ preeminent in my life.  May I put you above all other things and above all other people.  I pray that the choices I make each day will show the preeminence of Christ in my life.  In Jesus name, Amen!

Spiritual Nourishment

"If thou put the brethren in remembrance of these things, thou shalt be a good minister of Jesus Christ, nourished up in the words of faith and of good doctrine, whereunto thou hast attained." - 1 Timothy 4:6


Do you spend much time in God's Word?  How you answer this question will determine much about your life.  It will determine the strength and direction of your faith.  It will determine your priorities.  It will radically affect every area of your life!  I like the way one preacher put it when he said, "the Bible should not be prominent in our lives, the Bible should be preeminent!"  Is God's Word preeminent in your life?

You must decide whether or not God's Word will be the light that guides your path each day or whether it will be just a dim nightlight that occasionally flickers in the dark.  This is a decision that only you can make, but it is the most important decision you will ever make other than trusting Christ as Savior.  Your decision will have an impact on your life in ways that you cannot even imagine right now.  Either way you decide, it will radically affect your life!

God's Word is our map and blueprint for how to survive and thrive in this pilgrimage that we are on.  It is our source of strength and comfort for our journey.  The Word of God is a source of wisdom and truth that never fails.  Will you make God's Word preeminent in your life?

Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, thank You so much for Your Word!  Help me to make You Word preeminent in my life, that it would be light for my path and strength for my journey.  I will purpose to study and meditate upon your Word daily and apply to every area of my life.  Lord, use Your Word to stir my heart and radically change my life as I serve You.  In Jesus name, Amen!

Pondering Your Path

"Let thine eyes look right on, and let thine eyelids look straight before thee.  Ponder the path of thy feet, and let all thy ways be established." - Proverbs 5:25-26


What are you focused on today?  Are you focused on your job, your family, or yourself?  E. Stanley Jones made the statement "Whatever we focus on determines what we become."  That is so true!  If you were to look at me and my life, you probably would have no problem determining what my focus is on.  As I look at people in our churches today, I can pretty much determine what their focus is on.  The Bible tells us that our focus should be on the Lord Jesus Christ, His Word, and His House.

I would like to challenge you today to ponder who and what your focus is on, and to ponder the path that you are on spiritually.  I'm afraid that far too many of us have our focus on things and people other than Jesus Christ.  Here are some convicting questions that you should ask yourself each day.  Am I focused completely and 100% on Jesus Christ?  Am I focused on God's Word?  Am I focused on being faithful to God's House?

Are you willing to ponder the path that you are on?  If we will ponder our path and then make our focus on Jesus Christ, His Word, and His House, we can have our ways established.  Maybe the Lord is trying to get your attention today.  Is He dealing with you about being more faithful to His Word?  Is He dealing with you about being more faithful to His Church?

Today, ponder the path that you are on, focus 100% on Jesus Christ and make Him preeminent, that your ways may be established.

Prayer For Today:

Heavenly Father, help me today to ponder my path.  May I focus completely and 100% on you and make You preeminent in my life.  Help me to be more faithful to Your Word and to Your Church.  As I focus on You Lord, establish my ways and direct my path.  In Jesus name, Amen!

10 Signs A Church Is In Trouble

Yesterday on The Pastor's Perspective we discussed a study done by Thom Rainer called "10 Signs A Church Is In Trouble."  Here is the list.

1. If the pastor does not have adequate time to be in the Word or if he chooses no to do so.
2. If the members are spending time arguing about how money should be spent.
3. If none or only a few of the key leaders are actively sharing their faith.
4. If there is no clear process of discipleship in place, just a plethora of programs and activities.
5. If corporate prayer is not a major emphasis in the church.
6. If church members are arguing about worship styles or worship times.
7. If church members expect the paid staff to do most of the ministry, instead of the staff equipping the members to do the work of the ministry.  ("Why didn't he visit me in the hospital?")
8. If there are ongoing disagreements about matters of the church facilities.
9. If the church has more meetings than new disciples.
10. If the leadership of the church does not have a coherent plan for what is taught in small groups and Sunday School classes.

Mr. Rainer said that if four or more of these signs were present he would let the leadership know that remedial efforts were in order.  He said that if six or more signs were present then the congregation was in immediate trouble.

Do you see any of these signs in your church?  

Welcome to The Pastor's Perspective!

I would like to welcome you to my blog!  I am the pastor of Fairystone Baptist Church here in Stuart, Virginia and a former missionary to Paraguay, South America.

The primary purpose of my blog is to share Jesus Christ with others.  I also want to share things with you that the Lord has shown me so that others might be encouraged and that they would be drawn closer in their walk with Jesus Christ.  The Word of God is my final authority on everything.  There are going to be times when I do step on toes, including my own!  It is my desire to share thoughts on the Bible and current events from a Biblical perspective.

I pray that you will find my blog to be a blessing and help!  Our Christian walk is a journey, and it should be a time of us growing closer to Christ.  This is something that is desperately needed among Christians and in the Church today!  I also welcome your thoughts and feedback on any of the topics that I share.  I hope that you will visit often so that we have the opportunity to walk and grow together!

God Bless!

1 Corinthians 9:16
Pastor Clint