Book Review: Above All by J.D. Greear

The Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) Annual Meeting was held just recently. Their theme was "Gospel Above All" based on 1 Corinthians 15:3-4, which says, "For I delivered to you as of first importance what I also received: that Christ died for our sins in accordance with the Scriptures, that he was buried, that he was raised on the third day in accordance with the Scriptures." The purpose of the annual meeting was not just to conduct business in the SBC was that the gospel is above our programs, politics, preferences, and anything else. The gospel was to be of first importance as 1 Corinthians 15 says.

This same idea about the gospel being above all was not just the theme for the SBC Annual Meeting, it is also the subject of J.D. Greear's new book, Above All. Most of you know J.D. Greear as the pastor the Summit Church in North Carolina and is currently serving his second term as president of the SBC.

When it comes the gospel message, Greear is solid. He talks the gospel as the power of God for the salvation to those who believe as Romans 1:16 says. He writes on Jesus being our substitute who took the penalty of sin. We do not have to do anything to gain God's approval, it has been accomplished in Christ. Because we embrace the message of the gospel, there is a change that happens through the regenerative work of the Holy Spirit. Those who embrace Jesus as Lord, now have a mission. That mission to make disciples of all nations baptizing them in the name of the Father, Son and Holy Spirit. We can all say, "Amen" to these things. We agree on these issues.

We can also agree that we want to see racial unity but only the power of the gospel can do that. Ephesians 2:11-22 tells us that everyone, regardless of nationality, have been reconciled to one another through the cross of Christ. We can say, "Amen" to this without being "woke" or embracing the social justice movement, which Greear seems to be communicating towards the end of the book.

When he addresses the gospel above our preferences, Greear seems to suggest that musical preference in worship should be shaped by all the ethnicity in the church. Yes, it is true that all musical preferences were left out of the New Testament, but our worship should be shaped by the Bible, not by the culture in or around the church. That turns worship into, "Its all about me," rather than, "Its all about God." I was already losing interest in this book already and now I have completely lost interest.

This was hard for me to read and review because I like Greear. I love his first book on the gospel. I have benefitted from many sermons by him, but ever since that sermon from Romans 1 back in January, I have not had doubts about his theology and where he stands on certain issues.

Thanks B&H Publishing for letting me review this book.

Book Review: Not God Enough by J.D. Greear

Most Christians in the U.S. have an image that God is a great big grandpa that lives in the sky. Grandfathers are normally pictured as a nice old man who his grandkids come to who will not discipline them if they misbehave. Many American Christians think God is this way too. He is safe, He is gentle, and He won't discipline. Is that how God is portrayed in the Bible?

J.D. Greear helps us grasp what the Bible says about God and who He truly is, in his latest book, Not God Enough. What Greear is attempting to communicate in this book is that God is bigger than our words can say. God is bigger than our thoughts can think of. God is greater than anything in this world.

Greear writes that God is bigger than any doubt we have. God is holy meaning He is set apart from this world and pure. God is a God of wrath. Many don't like that idea. We think God is a God of love, which He is. God loves the world that He gave His only Son to atone for our sins. God is also a God wrath meaning that sin must be punished. That is why He sent Jesus to take our punishment.

God is a God who we long for because He is good and loves us, but at the same time He is a God is full of wrath because of sin. We like this part of God and dismiss the parts we don't like about God which is basically what we do with the Bible. The Bible points us to a God who loves us and hates sin.

Greear reminds his readers that God is not about you. God is for you, but He is not about you. You don't get a personal Jesus who conforms to your standards. The Bible paints us a picture of a God who is bigger than our words can display or our thoughts can imagine.

Greear does a great job showing his readers that God is bigger than we think. It is sad that many Christians think that God is small when He really is not. Many lost people think the same way. I am delighted to recommend this book for anyone, who has doubts about God and have a small picture of Him.

Thanks BookLook Bloggers for letting me review this book.

J.D. Greear on Being Chosen by God

Ephesians 1:3-14 is beautiful. It contains some many truths about God and the salvation He has given us. In this passage comes one of the most confusing doctrines in all of scripture and that is predestination. Has God chosen us based on our efforts, our future faith, or by His grace.

J.D. Greear addresses these things and more in this sermon:



Recommended Resources:

Two episodes from Doctrine and Devotion:

Election

Perseverance of the Saints

One Misunderstanding on Predestination

Chosen for Life: The Case for Divine Election by Sam Storms

Chosen By God by R.C. Sproul

The Reformed Doctrine of Predestination by Loraine Boettner

Gospel & Politics Forum

One thing this political season has brought out a lot of nastiness in the church. Some people will hash out against one another because of their political view. I know when the video of what Trump said in regards to women came out, I was posting articles that rebuked Trump and call from him to step aside, I was accused of being for Hillary Clinton. I know many Christians have come out against Clinton, and been accused of being a fanboy of Donald Trump, even though they don't support him.

Can Christians talk about politics without causing division? Can a church be unified when they are different political parties represented? Should Christians vote in this election?

J.D. Greear recently hosted a Gospel & Politics Forum where it discussed about being unified in the name of Jesus while being involved in politics.

J.D. Greear on the Bible Belt

For The Church:



Books by J.D. Greear:

Gospel: Recovering the Power That Made Christianity Revolutionary

Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart: How to Know for Sure You Are Saved

Jesus, Continued: Why the Spirit Inside You Is Better Than Jesus Beside You

Gaining by Losing: Why the Future Belongs to Churches That Send

Is There Anything Wrong With Saying, "I Have Asked Jesus Into My Heart?"

Being from a Southern Baptist background, I have heard the saying, when someone gives their testimony, "I have asked Jesus into my heart." That statement was always confusing to me because the Bible knows no such expression. We do have "if you believe in your heart God raised him from the dead, you will be saved " (Romans 10:9). I have also expressions such as accept Jesus which I only saw people in the New Testament receiving Jesus or putting their faith in Him.

These phrases are well known in the South and have been used by people who have been asked if they are Christians. The problem comes when we use that expression without any true repentance and faith. I have known people in the church who say they have asked Jesus into their heart yet there is no fruit.

So, should a Christian use the phrase, "I have asked Jesus into my heart." J.D. Greear writes:

(This phrase) may not be wrong in (itself), but the Bible never tells us, specifically, to seek salvation in those ways. The biblical summation of a saving response toward Christ is "repentance" and "belief" in the gospel.

"Belief"...means acknowledging that God told the truth about Jesus, namely that He is Lord and He has finished forever the work of our salvation..."Repentance"...means "acting" on that belief. Repentance means reversing your direction based on who you understand Jesus to be. It was the first response Jesus called for in His preaching of the gospel (Mark 1:15) and what Paul said God had commanded all everywhere to do now that Jesus has been resurrected (Acts 17:30). Apart from repentance there is no salvation.

You can "ask Jesus into your heart" without repenting and believing, and you can repent and believe without articulating a request for Jesus to come into your heart.

Repentance and faith are the heart postures you take toward the finished work of Christ...The sinner's prayer is not a magical incantation or a recipe you follow to get a salvation cake...Placing an overemphasis on phrases like "ask Jesus in your heart" gives assurance to some who shouldn't have it and keeps it from some who should.

While saying "asking Jesus into your heart" maybe cute and easier for a child to understand, it may not be the best way to express how God saved you. Jesus even said no comes to me unless the Father draws him to me (John 6:44). The Apostle Peter reminds us that God caused us to be born again (1 Peter 1:3). Let this resonate in your hearts, God drew you to Jesus as the only way to the Father and has caused you to be born again.

By saying we have "ask Jesus into our hearts," we have indirectly said that salvation was all based upon me. Even though we know we are saved by grace, we have taken the credit for our salvation. If you are currently using this phrase to describe you became a Christian, please consider that you did not save yourself by allowing God in. As Russell Moore would say, your life is a wreck. My life was a wreck when God saved me and I praise Him for saving me in spite of myself.

If the Gospel Isn’t Shaping Your Church, What Is?

The Gospel Coalition:

Mark Dever, J. D. Greear, and John Onwuchekwa on Being Truly Gospel-Centered.

Around The Web-August 21, 2015

R.C. Sproul's summary on the book of Romans

The Face of Evil, and of Love by Jared C Wilson

Twenty-five Really Weird Things Said to Pastors and Other Church Leaders by Thom Rainer

Josh Duggar Exposed as Ashley Madison Client

J.A. Medders on why he is going to protest Planned Parenthood

4 Principles for the Exercise of Christian Liberty by Sinclair Ferguson

Why Delight in the Word? by Aaron Armstrong

Questions and Questioning: Defending Biblical Authority against the Spirit of the Age by Dave Jenkins

J.D. Greear on winning a church to mission.



John Piper describes the type of person Jesus went on the cross for.

Book Review: Gaining By Losing by J.D. Greear

In America, people are leaving the church. Some are doing it for the wrong reasons. Those reasons include the new pastor is not like the old one. The music is too loud. They don't have a "fun" youth ministry. Others leave the church because they have lost their faith in Christianity. They have seen organized religion in all of it's ugliness and want nothing to do with it.

Yet there are some leaving the church for the right reasons. Wait a minute, there is a right reason to leave a church? Other than leaving a church because of bad theology, which is a legitimate reason to walk out of a church, there is good reason people are leaving a church. The reason: they are planting new ones. In J.D. Greear's latest book, Gaining By Losing, he states that in order for the church to grow, the church must send their people out for missions.

Greear says there are good reasons why the church must focus on sending people out in the mission field no matter where it is. First, the increasingly post-Christian society where people will not walk into a church no matter how cool it may look. Second, Greear said, "Multiplication beats out addition, every time." Third, God's presence with those who send. Finally, Jesus promised greatness in a church that sends people. This may sound almost a prosperity gospelish but I can tell you it does not. We see in scripture how the early church continued to grow in spite of opposition.

The majority of the book deals with what Greear calls "plumb lines," which are directional markers for how his church, The Summit Church, builds their ministry in where they want to go in fulfilling the Great Commission. A few of those "plumb lines" include, swimming in the gospel, how to transform your audience into an army, your church doesn't need a missions pastor, and never giving up. One "plumb line" that caught my attention was about the church not needing a missions pastor. I must confess this one took me by surprise because a missions pastor was responsible to help the church be on mission and organizing mission trips and outreach opportunities. What Greear stresses is that every pastor is a missions pastor. Every pastor should be the one who get the church fired up for missions, not just one guy the church hires to do all of that.

All in all, this is a great book for everyone in the church to read. I think many Christians will see that the church was not just meant to bring people to Jesus but also send them out, which is not the case of many churches these days. This will be also an encouragement to churches to send people out in missions. I know for our church, we have lost people over the years who have gone to plant church whether here in the United States or in another country. This is Greear's best book since the one he wrote on the gospel.

Thanks Zondervan for letting me review this book.

Around The Web-July 31, 2015

A Call to Teenagers to Be Free by John Piper

Why We Fail at Family Devotionals by Tim Challies

Pastor, Appreciate Your Wife's Unique Ministry by Jamaal Williams

Relationships the Currency of Ministry by Dave Jenkins

The Gospel Isn’t a Cul-de-Sac by Brad Watson

J.D. Greear, Jen Wilkin, and Derek Rishmawy give some good advice to dating couples.



Don Whitney talks about the importance of praying the Bible, which he recently wrote a book about.

How Does God See Divorced and Remarried People?

I am not going to lie to you, this is a hard topic. We know in the beginning God is the One who came up with marriage and even said I hate divorce. Jesus said, whoever God has joined together let no man separate. Remarriage is another difficult topic because Jesus said, "Whoever divorces his wife and marries another commits adultery against her" (Mark 10:11).

You and I may know someone that has been divorced and/or remarried as a result of a divorce. Some people may have even told these people they are going to Hell because they have been divorced. I know one woman who worked things out with her husband because she felt she was Hellbound if she didn't. Some people have made divorce the unpardonable sin, but I have yet to see that in Scripture.

How does God look on those who have been through divorce and/or remarriage? In this short video, J.D. Greear answers that question.

Around the Web-January 9, 2015

What to Say to Church Members Leaving for Bad Reasons by Jonathan Leeman

4 Ways to Win the Battle Against Busyness by J.D. Greear

Four Keys to a Consistent Prayer Life by Michael Boling

5 Obedience Killing Lies by Brad Watson

It seems that referees are under a lot of scrutiny as of late especially after the Lions/Cowboys game this past Sunday. This short video shows a ref on his phone as he calling the game. What was so important that he had to take a call in the middle of a game?

Book Review: Jesus Continued by J.D. Greear

There are many Christians who wish that they can either wish they can go back in time, see Jesus face-to-face, and learn from Him, or have Jesus physically next to them as they live out the Christian life. People always pray that God be with them wherever they go and/or whatever they do. I have been in worship services where people ask the Lord to come in the room to meet with them. The truth is the presence of God is always with those who are truly children of God and He is right beside you wherever you go.

Jesus promised when He left this earth He will send an Advocate that will be with us and reminding us His teachings. That Person is the Holy Spirit. The main idea behind J.D. Greear's latest book, Jesus Continued, is why the Holy Spirit inside you is better than Jesus beside you.

Greear talks about who the Holy Spirit is and the importance of having Him with us in the Christian life. Greear addresses the Holy Spirit as the forgotten part of the Trinity which seems to be the norm in some Christian circles. He goes to talk about experiencing the Holy Spirit through the gospel, as you read the Bible, using your gifts the Spirit has given you, in a community of fellow believers, and through circumstances.

When it comes to the Holy Spirit, He is misunderstood. There have a great books written about Him. Some are deep theological books while some are just give a simple introduction. Greear's book serves a simple introductory guide to the Holy Spirit as well as teaching what the Bible says about the, as Francis Chan puts it in one of his books, Cinderella of the Godhead.

Thanks Booklook Bloggers for letting me review this book.

Around The Web-November 7, 2014

Dave Harvey reviews Rob Bell's latest book, The Zimzum of Love

If you are or know someone who is a college student, please read this: College Students and Church Membership

What Is The Heartbeat of Reformed Theology? by Jason Helopoulos

Dave Jenkins reviews Tim Keller's new book, Prayer: Experiencing Awe and Intimacy with God

Speaking of Tim Keller's new book, it is available at Westminster Bookstore

What's Better Than Jesus Beside You by J.D. Greear

Trillia Newbell, author of United: Captured by God's Vision for Diversity, and her husband, Thern, talk about living in an interracial marriage.

Around The Web-August 29, 2014

Six Things Every Freshman Needs to Know by Sammy Rhodes

God Loves My Boring, Unimportant Neighborhood by Darren Carlson

Are You Worthy of Jesus? by John Piper

Eariler this week, David Platt was named president of the Internation Mission Board for the Southern Baptist Convention. Many, including me, are excited about this annoucement. J.D. Greear offers his take on what this signals about our future

Tim Keller on the Disappearing Umbrella Over Conservative Christians by Trevin Wax

4 Ways Pastors Lose Pulpits by Clint Archer

The Worst Thing Your Could Say To A Preacher

How To Be Assured of Your Salvation

Many Christians doubt their salvation. They doubt because of some habitual sin they just can't seem to shake. They doubt because they compare their walk with Jesus to another Christian is who, in their mind, has it all together. How can Christians be assured of their salvation? J.D. Greear answers this question in a sermon he recently gave at the Austin Stone Church.



Books by J.D. Greear:

Gospel: Recovering the Power That Made Christianity Revolutionary

Stop Asking Jesus Into Your Heart

Preaching Through Tough Parts of the Bible

When I started my current position, one of the first things I did was to teach through a book of the Bible. I started with Galatians. I wanted to do as if I was preaching to the church so I studied with the assistance of commentaries and study Bibles. There were some tough parts in there as there are in a lot of books of the Bible.

So the question is, how do you preach through a passage that is not so easy to preach from as other places in scripture. Mike McKinley, Bryan Chappell, and J.D. Greear talks about it in this video.

Sin Can Never Separate Us From God

Our sin and our failures have not, and can never again, separate you from Him. He has put them away forever, as far, as the east is from the west (Ps. 103:12). We have been credited, once and for all, the righteousness of Jesus Christ. He has said to us in Christ, "You are My beloved child. In you I am well pleased...I will never leave you or forsake you," and "surely goodness and mercy will follow you all the days of your life. You will dwell in My house forever" (Matt. 17:5; Heb. 13:5; Ps. 23:6, author paraphrase).

J.D. Greear, Gospel: Recovering the Power that Made Christianity Revolutionary

The Main Sessions of 9 Marks At Southeastern 2013

These six videos are the main session from the 9 Marks conference on Evangelism that was held at Southeaster Seminary this past September featuring Danny Akin, Peter Williams, Mark Dever, Thabiti Anyabwile, John Folman, and J.D. Greear.