Theology You Can Use - The Sufficiency Of The Bible (part 3)

The Sufficiency of Scripture and the Church’s Confession

Tonight we want to talk about the sufficiency of scripture that the Bible is sufficient for everything we need and tonight's actually part 3 for the sufficiency of scripture and so it's not gonna be exposition verse by verse but it's gonna be more of a theological talk as we work through in a loose manner Wayne Grudem systematic theology and so tonight it'll be the sufficiency of scripture by the way is sufficient.

Are the scriptures sufficient? Are you sure? I'm gonna try to challenge that tonight and see if you really believe if the scriptures are sufficient. John Thompson said this we affirm that our all-wise God has revealed himself and his will in a completed revelation the 66 books of the Old and New Testaments which is fully adequate both in content and clarity for everything pertaining to life and godliness including the ordering of the church and the family.

We deny that God's people should treat his word as inadequate for church and family life by supplementing his completed revelation with humanistic psychology corporate business models and modern marketing techniques.

John Thompson believes that the Bible is sufficient for everything from family to church. I think we can start thinking about the ploy of Satan when he said in Genesis chapter 3 to the woman indeed has God said?

Did God really say that? My old pastor said it is a sin of monstrous proportions to deny the sufficiency of scripture. That's pretty big of monstrous proportions and so tonight we want to look at is the Bible sufficient?

We've looked at the authority of scripture so far the clarity of scripture. Can you think of anything else we've looked at with regards to scripture? For those of you who are visiting Sunday morning when I ask a question I don't really want an answer.

Sunday night when I ask a question you can answer out loud if you'd like as long as the answer is correct okay perspicuity or clarity inerrancy good and there was one other one canonicity the canon of scripture and so we've looked at how God has given us his word and it is authoritative over our life we are under God's word not over God's word.

It is clear it can be communicated with accuracy and tonight we're looking at it is sufficient it is complete it is whole it is all sided when it comes to our life. Westminster Confession of Faith the fine sufficiency of scripture like this the whole counsel of God concerning all things necessary for his own glory man's salvation faith and life is expressly set down in scripture or by good and necessary consequence may be deduced from scripture unto which nothing at any time is to be added whether by new revelations of the spirit or traditions of man everything has been given to us and we have a sufficient scripture now.

I got an email this week very pertinent to this whole idea of sufficiency and how would you think you would answer this letter or answer the person who wrote the letter knowing that the sufficiency of scripture is true.

This was in Leadership magazine by Brian McLaren who by the way will be a New England Vision, Vision New England Congress speaker and he wrote this article. It was called how should pastors respond to the homosexual question.

Brian McLaren quote. The couple approached me immediately after the service. This was their first time visiting and they really enjoyed the service they said they had. But one question you can guess what the question was about.

McLaren says. Not transubstantiation not speaking in tongues not inerrancy not eschatology. But where our church stood on homosexuality that still small voice told me not to answer McLaren said. Instead I asked.

Can you tell me why that question is important to you. When I'm asked this question usually it's by conservative Christians wanting to be sure that we conform to what I call radio orthodoxy i .e. the religious political priorities mandated by many big-name religious broadcasters.

Sometimes it's asked by by ex-gays who want to be sure they'll be supported on their ongoing reorientation process. I hesitate in answering the homosexual question. Not because I'm a cowardly flip-flopper who wants to tickle ears but because I'm a pastor and pastors have learned from Jesus that there's more than one way of answering a question.

We've got to be pastoral. That means understanding the question beneath the question the need or fear or hope or assumption that motivates the question. I'm just going to skip the rest because you'll know what I'm talking about.

As I read this final paragraph perhaps we need a five-year moratorium on making pronouncements regarding is homosexuality good or wrong. In the meantime we'll practice prayerful Christian dialogue listening respectfully disagreeing agreeably.

When decisions need to be made they'll be admittedly provisional. We'll keep our ears attuned to scholars in biblical studies. Now if you don't listen anything else listen to this. Can you answer the question.

Is homosexuality wrong. Are the scriptures sufficient to tell you is it wrong or right. Well thank you. But we'll keep our our ears attuned to scholars in biblical studies theology ethics psychology genetics sociology and related fields.

Then in five years if we have clarity we'll speak. If not we'll set another five years of ongoing reflection. I have a question for you. Does the Bible speak with sufficient clarity to answer the question.

Is homosexuality. Is adultery. Is fornication. We can name the sins. But is the Bible clear on that or is it not. Do we need a dialogue. Do we need more ethic questions. Do we need more psychological analysis.

More genetical analysis. What are your responses to that letter. Anathema. Okay. Give any other quick any other responses to that heretical spineless men pleasing. I don't like it that he says somehow we have to be pastoral and pastors just can't tell people the truth.

I think we speak the truth in love. Yes. But we have to tell people the truth. That's what we do. We're truth tellers as Christians. Tonight in the time that we have left I want to talk a little bit about why God's Word is sufficient and how you can be encouraged to know that if you know the Bible you can answer fellow fallacies like that number one.

The Bible is sufficient in this area. It is sufficient in counseling. We learned last time that the scripture sufficient in counseling. Anybody have any comments or responses to what we talked about last message about the sufficiency of scripture in counseling.

You need to stay a tune to the latest Freud Adler Skinner Maslow and other psychological trends to be able to counsel someone. Can you counsel someone. Are you able if you're a Christian to counsel other Christians.

Is that are the scripture sufficient enough for you to tell them. This is right. This is wrong. Man courage. You in this area of godliness. Can you do that. Absolutely. And my exhortation would be stay in the word.

So you have something to give to someone when they need counsel. Just amazing to me when I study the Bible. And then someone will come up and ask me questions. Nine times nine times out of ten. As I've studied the Bible throughout the week I have an answer to give them about something from the Bible that I've studied from the passage I've studied.

Beware of paying money. Congregation to Christian. What counselors be determined to get counseling. No be determined to get discipleship not counseling. Number two in review we learned that the Bible is sufficient to evangelize.

Can you just use the Bible to evangelize. Or do you need to know about genetic structure fossil records DNA. Let me ask you a couple questions. Are people neutral to the gospel unbelievers. Are they neutral.

Are you sure Jesus said no one can serve two masters. Either. He will hate the one and love the other or he will be devoted to the one and despise the other. No one is neutral. I've got a question for you.

When someone says you Christians use the Bible to prove that sin is sin and Jesus is God. That's circular reasoning. How would you respond to that. That's a circular argument. Okay. That's what the Bible says.

Good. It's circular reasoning. You're using the Bible to prove the point. How many people took the apologetic method. The apologetics class. Okay a few. You should know the answer. Steve Cooley. If someone were to say to you this is circular reasoning.

Using the Bible. How would you respond. That'll preach. Our job is to tell them what the Bible says. Spurgeon used to say the scriptures are like a lion in a cage. And your job is not to stand in front of the cage with a little spear protecting those those lions and tigers.

I used to go to the zoo when I was a kid Ringling Brothers Barnum Bailey Circus or the Shriner Circus. And I used to love to get those little tiny spears with the kind of dyed feathers on there. And the little plastic tip.

Can you imagine just standing in front of the Bible defending the Bible against all comers with your little plastic tip spear. What do you do. You let the Bible out. The Bible says this is what God's Word says.

And it's not an argument. It's not trying to to twist their arm. It's you are declaring the truth. Remember beloved. When you preach the gospel you have one goal in mind and that goal should never as a priority be salvation.

That person's soul. Should that be a priority. Could be a good goal. I want that person saved. Therefore I'm preaching the gospel to them. Is that good. But your number one goal should be when you evangelize.

What. To honor God by doing what he says. And he says. Give them the word. Proclaim the truth to them. Turn by the way to Ephesians chapter 2. I talked about this a little bit to the new members this morning.

But Ephesians chapter 2 our job is not to try to debate God or argue God or somehow get tied up in a he said she said our job is to give them the Word of God. And faith comes by hearing a message about Christ.

Roman chapter 10 says. And we need to tell them the truth. I mean how are you going to argue people into heaven who are by nature children of wrath and who are dead in trespasses and sins. You can argue with dead people all you want but they're not going to believe.

And if you look at Ephesians chapter 2 verse 1 it talks about being dead in trespasses and sins. Verse 2 of chapter 2 of Ephesians talks about how Satan has captured their minds. And then in chapter 2 verse 3 it says they were by nature children of wrath.

Even as the rest. How do you try to get a person who's depraved spiritually alive. How do you do that. Well there's only one person who does that and that's God. By the way the very fact that it says they're by nature children of wrath should be in our own minds pushing us to the corner to say it's not gonna be gimmicks.

It's not going to be. There's that. What's the name that guy who has a really gimmicky evangelism book. You're supposed to keep your your Bible in your pocket at the right time. You quick get it out and you quick give them these verses.

And when you try to pray with them you're supposed to put your hand on this shoulder. And then if he's not bowing his head in prayer you can kind of apply some pressure on the back of his neck to make his head bow.

I have it in my office. That's not what we do. We're not trying to trick people. And you know you ever told a lie. Yeah. Well then you're a sinner. You need no we want to tell people the truth. God is not a God who kind of lets bygones be bygones.

God is not a God who helps those who help themselves. Habakkuk 113 says. Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil and cannot look on. God is allergic to sin as it were he has a nuclear reaction to sin.

Can you imagine for one sin Adam and Eve out of the garden. For one sin all the posterity of Cain and cursed. For one sin Moses out of the promised land. For one sin Elisha's servant smitten by leprosy.

For one sin Ananias and Sapphira cut off. So what do we do with people that we meet who are Ephesians chapter 2, 1, 2, and 3 people. We preach them the word. And then you can see the very next word in Ephesians chapter 2 verse 4.

It's not therefore God smashed them all to smithereens. It's not. And God gave them justice because he couldn't compromise his holiness. But it's but, but God is rich in mercy. And that mercy is delivered through the preached word.

Turn to Acts chapter 18 if you would just for a moment and I want to show you a great example of preaching the gospel. And this is the way it should be done. How do you preach the gospel. You just proclaim the word.

You just tell them this is what the Bible says about salvation about sin about Jesus Christ. And if they'll listen great they respond. That's God's business not ours. Acts chapter 18 verse 24 a wonderful pattern for preaching the gospel.

Now a Jew named Apollos an Alexandrian by birth an eloquent man came to Ephesus and he was mighty in the scriptures. This man had been instructed in the way the Lord and being fervent in spirit he was speaking and teaching accurately the things concerning Jesus being acquainted only with the baptism of John.

He began to speak out boldly in the synagogue. But when Priscilla and Aquila heard him they took him aside and explained to him the way of God. More accurately when he wanted to go across to Achaia the brethren encouraged him and wrote to disciples to welcome him.

And when he had arrived he greatly helped those who had believed through grace. That's how anyone believes by the way is through grace. For he powerfully refuted the Jews in public demonstrating by DNA evidence and the Michael Behe's book Darwin's box Darwin's black box that Jesus is God.

Is that what it says? It's fine if you want to read those books. But if you give one of those books to someone to say well I hope the latest Philip Johnson book is going to convince my friend here look at this.

He powerfully refuted the Jews in public demonstrating by the scripture that Jesus was the Christ. I love Paul when he says in chapter 2 of 1st Corinthians I determined to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ and him crucified.

We just proclaim the truth. The scriptures are sufficient to do that. Thirdly scriptures are sufficient for counseling. They're sufficient for evangelism. And thirdly they're sufficient for sanctification.

Scripture Is Sufficient for Sanctification and Decision-Making

They're sufficient for decision-making. I could say how do you make decisions with the scriptures. Well if you're like Blackabee and experiencing God he says on page 172 if the God of the universe tells you something you should write it down.

When God speaks to you in your quiet time immediately write down what he said before you have time to forget. Comments. You have a journal that you're writing down things when God tells you. Okay. Good.

Any other comments. Good. Steve I've seen an advertisement of that on TV. What if you just do this. When you make a decision. You can read your Bible and everything. But I think you should go with your gut.

I think you should go with your feelings. How about that come on. You have to go with it just that kind of burning in your bosom. It'll tell you we live in a feeling oriented society. And if you don't think you're affected by people that make decisions by their feelings.

Then we have another thing coming. I like that little poem. Three men went up on top of the wall feeling faith and fact. Have you heard that little poem. Three men went up on top of the wall feeling faith and fact feeling had an awful fall and faith was taken back.

Faith was so close to feeling that when he stumbled faith stumbled and fell too. But fact remain and held faith up and that helped feeling too. The world says if it feels good do it. And then later if you've got a conscience you can think about what you've done.

And of course the Bible is exactly opposite. I think about things biblically. I do them. And then God rewards me with the feelings that are commensurate with that happiest he who keeps the law as Psalm would say in the Proverbs.

Jerry Reagan sightfully said. I've often wondered why so many Christians seem to need specific clarity from God in the daily issues of life. If an intimate walk with Christ demanded a whole set of daily personal revelations guaranteeing the best path for me how would I ever learn simple entrustment.

Moreover wouldn't I be held responsible for carrying out every prescriptive detail of the revealed plan. I have found scripture a ready and utterly sufficient weapon against the enemy and a thorough implement for spiritual surgery.

Isn't it possible. Are even probable that I am simply being directed through biblical convictions which the spirit has seasoned through obedience over time for his providential and effective use at that particular moment.

Or perhaps I'm experiencing a range of normal biblical thoughts brought on by a combination of biblical truth and Christian experience. Our minds work this way in every other area of life. Why must we suddenly divinize every strong notion and inner impression.

We don't need to do that. We are to trust the Lord with all our what heart and lean not on our own understanding but in all our ways acknowledge him and he'll make your path straight by the way. On a side note Grudem basically says if you get subjective impressions don't ignore them.

And so as we confirm many things that are great in Grudem's book you want to watch out on that one. Number four. Is the Bible sufficient for determining social perspectives on issues like homosexuality women in ministry and marriage.

Can the Bible the Bible tell us. Shouldn't we maybe do more majority. That be it might be a better way. Since when does the the majority make morality about politics. Maybe they should decide doctors psychology.

Doug Padgett said you tell me if you think this is right or wrong. The question of humanity is inexorably linked to sexuality and gender. Issues of sexuality can be among the most complex and convoluted we need to deal with.

It seems to me that the theology of our history does not deal sufficiently with these issues for our day. I do not mean this is a critique. Yes you do. But as an acknowledgement that our times are different it's a different age.

How can you use that old dusty Bible to tell you what's right or wrong about marriage and everything else. This will require us not only to draw new conclusions about sexuality but will force us to consider new ways a being sexual.

I thought the Bible sufficient for marriage and family and everything else. Attack after attack. It's not to me a big deal that the liberals do it but people who call himself evangelical Christians are doing it.

That's what I don't like. Number five. Okay here's what you came for. This is the new stuff. All that's kinda review. The Bible is sufficient for how to run a church. It's sufficient for ecclesiology today.

People want to say to run a church. You have to be a pragmatist. Whatever works whatever gives good consequences. If you're doing something the church and you get the proper ABCs it must be working. By the way.

What are the ABCs of church growth. Attendance buildings and cash. And those three are up. You must be doing the right thing. Attendance buildings and cash. Attendance is up. You might be doing great things.

I wonder how we would gauge Jonah's ministry when all of Nineveh repents and he's doing the boneheaded deal. And I wonder what about Jeremiah who's faithful and glorifies God. And how many converts does he have.

That's why please if you can just do your best. When someone says what church do you go to. And they say how many people attend your church. Does it matter. How many people attend. How many people attend.

Well a lot attend. So therefore must be blessed of God. No I try my best not to say how many people come because it's irrelevant. And if there are a lot of people that attend. Well I pity that poor pastor because he's got a lot of people to stand before God.

For on judgment day these are the people that I shepherded. Pragmatism comes from William James and John Dewey. That's where it comes from. Let me give you some quotes of people who I think want us to run the church in a very pragmatic way.

Rick Warren says explosive growth occurs when the type of people in the community match the type of people that are already in the church. And they both match the type of person the pastor is. I don't think you all want to be like me.

You can put up with me for about three hours a Sunday. That's it. Pardon me purpose-driven church. Page 177 is all my notes. If something works it doesn't mean it's necessarily right. Numbers. Crowds.

Same author went on to say in church quote we want to loosen up the tense muscles of uptight visitors. I'm not making it up. How could I. When your body is relaxed your attitude is less defensive. So that Holy Ghost back rub thing that I was talking about this morning might actually work.

Give them a little back rub. Then give them the ABCs of Christianity, four spiritual laws. Same man said this keep your pastoral prayer short in your seeker services. The unchurched people can't handle long prayers.

We purposely try to have long prayers and long scripture reading. Why? Because we like God's Word. Do you love God's Word? If you don't you're in the wrong church. We want to hear from God. We want to hear from God and it's long pastoral prayers.

Well that's such a long pastoral prayer. We better cut it down because people maybe won't like it. Same author said we must be willing to adjust our worship practices when unbelievers are present. God tells us to be sensitive to the hang-ups of unbelievers in our services.

When I find out there's unbelievers in the church you know what I do? I turn it up all the more. They need to hear the gospel. I want them to hear the words of eternal life. Vance Havner was just this.

He was just sharp guy and here's what he says about pragmatism in a local church. You know how should believers unbelievers respond to the church. He said the Ichabod Memorial Church decides to pack them in with folk music.

Then they say over at Ephesus we'll try a TV personality. Then Pergamos says well we're gonna have a fellow who can play the fiddle and beat tap drums and blow harmonica all at the same time. Then over at Sardis they say we're gonna put on Aunt Dinah's quilting party.

Come dress like they were a hundred years ago and we'll see Nellie home. Then over at Latter-day. See they have a talking horse. I heard about one of those horses some time ago. They ask him how many commandments and he stomped 10 times.

How many apostles and he stomped 12 times. Some nitwit in the crowd asked how many hypocrites there are in this church and the horse went into a dance on all fours. You can fill a church with anybody five bucks if you come.

It's like I said this morning we don't even design the worship service so you're pleased we design the worship service as an offering to God. We hope you're pleased we want to try to teach you to be pleased but it's about God.

He's the object of our worship so when Pastor Joe said Christ is the center of worship that means we adore him. We do everything for him because he's the object of our worship. George Barnett said the major problem plaguing the church is its failure to embrace a marketing orientation in what has become a market-driven environment.

I would pay money for the reincarnation of John the Baptist, Jeremiah, Isaiah Malachi, Nahum and any other prophet to come into one of these churches and stand there and proclaim the truth because they would run those people out unless they were really a believer and then you'd say Lord I needed to hear that word today.

James Boyce said instead of me fitting a religion I found a religion to fit me. I have a question was Jesus a pragmatist? Did he do things to kind of get the crowd? He chased them away. We can get into John 6.

We've done that lots of times. How about turning to first John chapter 4 with me we need to keep our Bibles open. I know tonight's a little bit more kind of philosophical and not necessarily an exposition but first John chapter 4 this idea that we have to study man and be up on anthropology and sociology and psychology so we can figure out how to make a church grow and we're gonna survey the community and figure out what we need to do that.

It may be popular and it may somehow bring a lot of people in but I just think it's it's antithetical to everything we stand for. First John chapter 4 verses 5 and 6 they're from the world therefore they speak is from the world and the world listens to them.

We are from God. He who knows God listens to us but he who is not from God does not listen to us. By this we know the spirit of truth and the spirit of error. We don't need to study men to figure out what they believe.

We need to proclaim the truth real Christians respond. Jesus said in John chapter 10 my sheep hear what? My voice and I know them. Turn to first Corinthians chapter 14. Let me show you my prayer request for what I would hope that unbelievers do when they come to our church.

By the way when people do come to our church as unbelievers if you're turning there I want them to know God's standards and God's holiness and that Jesus is the only Savior he's the risen one and he's the only one offering salvation and I want them to know that and if they don't want to come back at least they have heard the truth.

First Corinthians chapter 14 verses 24 and 25 this is the way our church should be run so if an unbeliever walks in this should happen. What do you think that should be? Well we want to give them cookies certainly we want to be kind we want to be nice.

I try to shake their hand at the end thank you for coming. How can we minister to you. We want to be loving and nice but here's what we want the church is for Christians but if all prophesy and an unbeliever or an ungifted man enters he is convicted by all he is called to account by all the secrets of his heart are disclosed and so he will fall on his face and worship God declaring that God is certainly among you.

Is that what you want when an unbeliever comes? That he gets saved or that he gets entertained? Spurgeon used to say do we feed the sheep or do we entertain the goats? Let me give you a statement and you tell me if it's true or false and then why please.

God's will is for every local congregation to grow numerically. True or false why or why not? Okay it's false why Lewis? How many times we see that in Acts? Especially when there's big trouble and the Holy Spirit added those who are to be saved.

We don't add people to the church we don't somehow say well we've got to manipulate the numbers will lower membership requirements down and you don't have to believe in the Trinity really to be a member because you say you believe in God.

No. Any other comments? Is God blessing this church? It used to be bigger. It's not as big as it has been. Other comments about growth? What kind of growth are we looking for? Maturity. The depth and the maturity of you the Christian.

What are you going to do when your life is turned upside down with some kind of medical problem or health issue or financial issue then what are you going to do? You're going to lay back on the greatness of God that you've learned and you've studied and you've said here is the high view of God that I've learned and I can still trust him even though he might slay me.

Noah was a failure wasn't he? Pragmatically. Poor guy. 120 years only people who believed in him was his family. 120 years and no one believed in him. Jeremiah carried away to Egypt. Jeremiah 43. In my study this week I found that two churches in Revelation chapter 2 and 3 were commended that had no rebuke.

Smyrna and Philadelphia both were small poor, lacked influence but they held their confession of faith to the end. It's not about numbers and it never has been. Let me ask you another question. What the unbeliever wants the church to be we should make it that way.

Why? What should we do instead? Luke, I like your eagerness, A for effort. By the way if you want to pray for the Avendroths this week please do. There's a school competition at Luke's school and he is in the preaching competition.

Fourth grade. He's got a three to five minute sermon. It was a tough week for us as the Avendroths because that school, certainly I want to submit to them and be under them and I'm not trying to rile them up and change everything.

We just want to take what's good. We have little talks at home when their teachers say have you accepted Jesus in your heart and then we come home and download a little bit and say the issue isn't do you accept him in your heart but do you believe with all your heart?

Romans chapter 10. They're a King James only church and so there are other translations that are fine so we talk about that sometimes. And this last one was he had to preach this salvation message that was given to him.

This was on Friday. So we were given the message on Thursday and he had to preach it on Friday in front of the chapel and it talked about God's desire and there was a few theological errors in there and I told Luke you're going to have to preach a little bit different message because this isn't strictly biblical.

What kind of pressure is that? The pastor wants this. Your dad wants that. What are you going to do? And I said there's five kids in three slots. You preach what's honoring to God and if you don't get it, you don't get it.

It's okay. You honor God and it does not matter did I get the competition? Did I win? And so boy it was just big high drama. What do you do? Do you go with your convictions? You know what's going to happen?

And so Luke went to school and I came here to the church. About one o 'clock in the afternoon I get a phone call. Ring, ring. Don't know that number. Mike Avendroth. Hi Mike. This is Pastor Arnold, Twin City Christian School.

I just wanted to talk to you about that message that your son preached. I'm sorry you have to talk to my wife. See ya. I said yes. I work with him. Sorry I wrote some of the notes on there. Luke told me you know we're not supposed to write in there.

Sorry. Oh he says that's fine. He said I could tell you're a little more Calvinistic than we might be at school. And I said well Whitfield the Calvinist and Wesley the Arminian they both love lost souls and we can love them together kind of thing.

And he goes yeah that's right. And he said well I was just wondering if you could help Luke put together a new sermon so he could still preach. He made the competition. I think he's got some gifts and we want to know if you just help him put together a message that would would not you know flame him out because it was so Calvinistic but it would be truthful and you could keep your convictions and you could just help him preach it and I'd really love that.

I said absolutely. That'd be great. So anyway we've been working on that sermon this afternoon and it's entitled You Must Be Born Again from John chapter 3. And if the Lord would have you know would have determined that we couldn't do it we still have convictions and if we don't get the results that seem positive to us at least we have our convictions.

Now when it comes to preaching I have no idea where I am. Yeah Steve? Yes. What do we do? Authentic community. Well the reason why I brought that up is because we don't compromise the message no matter what situation we might be in whether it's at school chapel or here the message stays the same and we don't let the ungodly unbelieving enemy of God rebellious people tell us how we should worship God.

They should walk in here thinking this is the wildest thing I've ever been to. Up there praying and everybody's standing up and they're reading all this Bible stuff. They've all got their Bibles out while this wild man is up there preaching for 55 minutes and they're all telling him to preach more.

Everybody's kind of nice and hugging people walking around with just Bibles everywhere. This is unlike anything I've seen in the entire world. The flip side you walk into a church that's all seeker sensitive and you just feel at home.

Now when I go to seeker sensitive churches I feel like I'm not saved. I have to kind of hide my Bible because nobody else has got them. First Corinthians chapter 1, for indeed Jews ask for signs. Greeks search for wisdom but we preach Christ crucified.

We know you want a sign. We know you want signs and wonders. We know you want a bunch of wisdom. Here's Jesus. But to those who are called both Jews and Greeks, Christ the power of God and the wisdom of God.

Let me ask you this question. Since the church doesn't grow very much in numbers do we need a new Reformation? Do we need a new Reformation? Well one man, I won't mention any names, in California with a big kind of crystal like church, glass everywhere, swimming pool inside.

He said this, he said you need a new Reformation and that Reformation is self-esteem. It's not working so you've got to give the people what they want. You've got to make them feel better. Additionally there was a book published about church growth and they had pastoral sins listed.

Here's the second pastoral sin. Believing that preaching will change people. It's a sin. That starts making me think of Isaiah where they call evil good and good what evil. Quote, preaching is important but it is important only in connection with the rest of what a pastor and church do.