A display of divine greatness and mercy

Monday night will go down as one of the most unusual in the Ascol household. As those of you who have followed my twittering or facebook updates have read, last night I received the shock of my life. Literally. Here's the story.

It was a dark and stormy night. Again, literally. We were several hours into one of our famous Florida electrical storms. The skies looked similar to this photo, which was taken out our back window a couple of years ago.

Around 1:30 AM police were at our home investigating a possible burglary (in our garage--which is a whole 'nother story of its own!). After determining that if someone broke into our garage, he (or she) was gone, one of the officers strongly suggested that I lock the doors on our cars in the driveway, due to a rise in robberies from automobiles in the last year. He and his colleague suggested that we all go investigate whether anything was missing from the cars and to secure them.

It was still raining--by that time more than 2 inches had fallen in the previous 12 hours. And, the skies were still being illuminated by lightning and impressive thunder. I went out first, barefooted and wearing shorts and t-shirt, and walked up to our Buick Skylark. In a perfectly timed instant, the moment my right hand gripped the door handle the most brilliant flash of light and loudest crack of thunder I have ever witnessed provided a most electrifying experience.

Beginning at my right hand and traveling up my arm, down my side and right leg and foot, I got the shock of my life. I was thrown back several feet and on to the ground. The policemen let expletives fly and hovered over me, asking me questions that made no sense. Another bolt of ligtning struck nearby and they helped me up and back inside my house, as they called for paramedics. The ambulance arrived within minutes and 4 paramedics started checking me out by running various tests on me, including an ekg.

By God's grace I remained fully conscious and showed no signs of being burned. I declined their offer to go to the hospital. After giving me further instructions, they left, I changed clothes and futiley tried to go back to sleep. After getting up and quietly reflecting on the night's events for a couple of hours, I was able to wind down around 4:30 and get some sleep.

This afternoon my doctor helped me understand the nauseated and dizzy feelings that crept over me. My nerves, he said, have been "inflamed" and would take a while to calm down. The good news is that I never lost consciousness and there is no evidence of neurological damage (though some would probably challenge that). Basically, it is as if I am at my wit's end all the time. Noise, bright lights and too much movement are...well, nerve wracking! He gave me an injection and ordered some other medications and put me on 48 hours of bedrest. That is where I am as I blog this. In my pajamas. ;-)

The hope is that I will recover sufficiently to preach Sunday (though I have had to pull out of teaching Dads and Sons Wednesday and will miss a couple of days of our Pilgrim's Progress VBS) and then to travel to a board meeting for the Midwest Center on Monday, after which I will meet my family for several days of vacation. That will take me into the month of August which has been set aside for a brief sabbatical, part of which will be spent traveling.

What all of this together means is that I anticipate very little blogging over the next 6 weeks.

Though our family has been able to see some humor in all of this, we are also aware of its seriousness and are very grateful to the Lord for His mercy in these events. I recognize that His mercy and goodness would not have been diminished in the least had the lightning killed me. Nevertheless, His mercy has been manifested to me in that not only have I been spared serious injury, but also the frayed-nerves-feeling seems to be slowy improving.

Several friends have let me know of their prayers, and I am deeply grateful for these displays of grace and kindness to me.

The Lord reigns. As Elihu confesses, He sovereignly directs both thunder and lightning. By these heavenly displays He gives a clear witness of His greatness, in the words of Matthew Henry, "even to the most stupid and unthinking." Even I got that.

"At this also my heart trembles,
And leaps from its place.
Hear attentively the thunder of His voice,
And the rumbling that comes from His mouth.
He sends it forth under the whole heaven,
His lightning to the ends of the earth.
After it a voice roars;
He thunders with His majestic voice,
And He does not restrain them when His voice is heard.
God thunders marvelously with His voice;
He does great things which we cannot comprehend."
Job 37:1-5

Amen.

Founders Ministries Podcast

Founders has begun to podcast. Our goal is to average one Founders Podcast per week addressing topics related to recovering the Gospel and reforming local churches. The podcasts will feature interviews, lectures, sermons and discussions with pastors and church leaders who are praying and working toward this end to God’s glory.

In the first podcast Tim Brister interviews me on topics that include the 2008 National Founders Conference (held June 24 - 27 in Owasso, OK), church planting, church renewal, and Resolution #6 on Recovering Regenerate Church Membership and Church Discipline, that was passed this past June at the Southern Baptist Convention in Indianapolis.

You can access it at www.recoveringthegospel.net (click on "Go to Podcasts" on the Welcome page)

The Founders Ministries Podcast is also available on iTunes.

Spiritual Depression...for free

That is, the course is free. This Fall the Founders Study Center is offering the course, "Spiritual Depression" with lectures by Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones. You may audit it at no cost. All of our courses are made available at minimal costs (which do not nearly cover the expenses of providing them), but by God's grace we are able to offer this one to auditors for free.

If you have never read Lloyd-Jones' book that is based on the messages he delivers for this course, I strongly encourage you to do so. It is not merely for people who battle depression. It is for anyone who wants to understand the Gospel and how the Gospel works in the daily life of a believer.

For more information, click the banner on the right and visit the Founders Study Center. Registration for this and the other Fall courses is now open. For more information, contact the Study Center Director, Ken Puls.

Racism, the Gospel and Presidential Politics

I grew up in racially volatile times. Racial integration came to my elementary school in 1967. It was a confusing time for blacks and whites alike. My high school had race riots for six consecutive years before my senior year (1975) broke the cycle. Both my mind and body were scarred during those times.

In one particularly painful (and bloody) episode, while being admitted to the Emergency Room at the Baptist Hospital in Beaumont, Texas, the Lord gave me a glimpse into the perverse racism in my heart and exposed my superficial understanding of sin and grace.

That experience built upon an earlier one that came when, as a middle-schooler, I chose to read and write a report on John Howard Griffin's Black Like Me. Griffin helped me understand that I did not know what I did not know about racism.

I resolved then, as a young teenager, that I would forever stand against racial bigotry. I stood up for black friends who were threatened by white friends. I wept and burned with anger when my white pastor refused to baptize my black friend, Josey. At the principal's request, I gave a speech over the Public Adress system of South Park High School, pleading for racial harmony. I gave another one, after asking our coaches to leave, to my racially divided football teammates.

So, I thought I was racially sensitive and enlightened and free from bigotry, until that Christmas night in th ER. But the bitterness, hatred and rage that poured out of me against not just the black men who had beaten me but against a whole race of people shattered my self-righteous delusions about living above the fray of racial tensions that characterized so much of my context.

Since then, I have learned something about the doctrine of remaining sin and have come to understand that there are some things that I simply cannot understand about the insidious sin of racism. That is why I read Eric Redmond's post today with such interest and appreciation. It is entitled, "How Can Any Christian African American Vote for Obama? Throwing the Race Card on an All Black Table."

Eric, who served us very well in his Founders Breakfast address last month, thoughtfully analyzes this issue from an insider's perspective. You may not agree with the arguments that he highlights--indeed, he doesn't ask you to--but you can gain helpful insights into many of the racial issues that are woven into the fabric of American society. He gives several thoughtful reasons why sincere African American Christians will indeed vote for Obama. It is a very helpful read, especially for white folks.

I commend it to everyone who believes that Jesus Christ "is our peace who has made both one, and has broken down the middle wall of separation, having abolished in His flesh the enmity, that is, the law of commandments contained in ordinances, so as to create in Himself one new man from the two, thus making peace, and that He might reconcile them both to God in one body through the cross, thereby putting to death the enmity" (Ephesians 2:14-16). The same Gospel that reconciles sinners to God also reconciles sinners to each other and is able to build blacks and whites and every other race and ethnicity into the one body of Jesus Christ.

As that happens, God's wisdom and glory are put on display in His church.

CT on Resolution #6

Christianity Today reports on the adoption of Resolution #6 at the Southern Baptist Convention in Indianapolis. The story has some interesting quotes and I am grateful to have been quoted accurately.

Radio Interview on "Iron Sharpens Iron"

Chris Arnzen will interview me today starting at 3:00 EST on the theological roots of the Southern Baptist Convention.

You can listen to the interview live in New York & Connecticut on WNYG-1440AM Radio or over the internet at www.sharpens.blogspot.com or www.wnygspiritofny.com. There will be opportunity to call in with questions at: 1-631-321-WNYG (9694)

Happy Independence Day

Sarah, my firstborn child, started a blog when she went to Greece recently to serve with missionaries from our church who work with refugees (primarily from Central Asia). Today she has posted a letter from John Adams to his wife, Abigail, written after the vote to declare independence from England, July 2, 1776.

Though he missed the day of celebration by 2 days, his sentiments about the significance of that action were prescient. The day, he said, "ought to be commemorated, as the Day of Deliverance by solemn Acts of Devotion to God Almighty. It ought to be solemnized with Pomp and Parade, with Shews, Games, Sports, guns, Bells, Bonfires and Illuminations from one End of this Continent to the other from this Time forward forever more."

Read the rest of his comments as well as Sarah's thoughts here.

FC 08 Update

The Lord has been incredibly gracious to us throughout the conference. Only two sessions remain. Tonight, Andy Davis will speak on the importance of Scripture memory. His discipline in this as well as his instruction on it are challenging and encouraging. Tomorrow morning, Phil Newton closes the meeting with a message on bringing reformation to a church. Phil has the unusual experience of having planted a church and then leading it through a significant reorientation in polity and doctrinal vision. It will be great to hear from both of these pastors who are capable, faithful expositors of Scripture.

The conference has been live-streamed and each session will be available via archive after this week. So far, over 2200 people have logged in to watch some or all of the sessions.

EDIT: Audio recordings of each message are being made available here. The first 5 messages are already up.

Each message has been substantive, helpful and warmly received. Ed Stetzer's talks on the theme were particularly challenging. But, don't take my word for it (or anyone else's for that matter), listen to them for yourself. It will be well worth your time.

FC 08

The 2008 Founders Conference begins today. Stetzer, Baucham, Nettles, Whitney, et al will speak under the theme, "Lengthening the Cords and Strengthening the Stakes." Our host church, Bethel Baptist in Owasso, Oklahoma, will provide a live stream of the sessions, which begin today at 3:30 PM Central Time. Click here for the link that will take you there.

Tim Brister is liveblogging the conference, so you can check out his report here.

Tue 24 3:30 PM--Ted Christman, Exposition of Psalm 1
Tue 24 6:30 PM--Andy Davis, Dangers in Reforming a Church

Wed 25 9:00 AM--Tom Nettles, Biographical Sketch of Daniel Marshall
Wed 25 10:30 AM--Voddie Baucham, Building a Solid Doctrinal Foundation
Wed 25 6:30 PM--Ed Stetzer, Keynote Address

Thu 26 9:00 AM--Don Whitney, Reforming Through Discipline
Thu 26 10:30 AM--Ed Stetzer, Keynote Address
Thu 26 1:30 PM--Tom Nettles, Leadership Dialogue
Thu 26 6:30 PM--Andy Davis, Importance of Filling Your Life with Scripture

Fri 27 9:00 AM--Phil Newton, From Planting to Reforming

Read this post!

Not this post. This one. It is by Nathan Finn, who teaches at Southeastern Baptist Theological Seminary. Dr. Finn understands the issues that are confronting modern Southern Baptists and articulates them as well as anyone. As a historian, he is not easily swayed by myopic characterizations of what Baptists have been or ought to be. His thoughts on the Conservative Resurgence (CR) are refreshingly free from any political posturing or fear mongering. The quotes that he provides from the two key architects of the CR (Paige Patterson and Paul Pressler) are very instructive for all Southern Baptists who desire to move forward in the ongoing effort to see Jesus Christ honored in our churches and His Gospel boldly proclaimed throughout our world.

Go read his article. Then pray that the Lord will grant Southern Baptists wisdom and humility to recommit ourselves to obeying the Great Commission without reservation.

SWBTS on Resolution #6

Even Southwestern Seminary, of which I am an alumnus (MDiv, 1983, PhD, 1989), has commented on the resolution on regenerate church membership. The following is taken from their June 20, 2008 e-newsletter.

Southwesterners contribute to SBC church membership resolution
by Keith Collier

FORT WORTH, Texas (SWBTS) -- Several individuals from Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary made significant contributions to the resolution on regenerate church membership adopted at the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) annual meeting, June 11.

One of the contributors to the resolution was Bart Barber, pastor of First Baptist Church of Farmersville, Texas, and an alumnus of Southwestern. Barber's submission was taken from a resolution approved by the Southern Baptists of Texas Convention in November, which was originally drafted by Malcolm Yarnell, associate professor of systematic theology at Southwestern.

Yarnell was also responsible for helping amend the final resolution adopted by the SBC. Yarnell co-edited the book Restoring Integrity in Baptist Churches, which addresses the need for regenerate church membership and church discipline.

To view the entire resolution, visit http://www.bpnews.net/blog/article.asp?ID=176.