Oh My Gado!

Ok, I just had to say it! (I know I've lost some of my readers now forever, but perhaps they weren't really interested in what I had to say anyway. I hope you'll stick around to see what I do next.)
Fellow Liberty grad Samkon Gado is moving to Texas. He was just traded from the Green Bay Packers to the Houston Texans on wednesday. As a native Mississippian living in Texas, I had no real ties to the Cowboys anyway, so I'll probably be cheering for Houston while Gado's there.

Despite the (questionable?) catch phrase that's become associated with him, I can personally vouch for the genuineness of Sam's faith. He is truly a man of God and I have to give him all the more respect because of that.

So Sam, Have a great Season in Houston!

Dr. Page visits SWBTS

First off let me say that I'm not a reporter. Sometime I'll write a post about the good or ills of the 24hour news cycle, but that's for another day.

Today was an important day for SWBTS. I, being merely an uninformed observer probably did not grasp the full import of today's events, but I shall recount to you what I saw.

I had the privilege of hearing our SBC President, Dr. Frank Page today. You too can hear his message by visiting the SWBTS website. Dr. Page spoke on what he claimed to be "his favorite verse" (noting that he makes the claim of every verse or passage he preaches): John 10:10. He warned Christians against underestimating our enemy (Satan). He said that Satan has stolen the church's power, effectiveness, and most importantly our unity.
Dr. Page exhorts Southern Baptists to continue to fight for inerrancy, but also to fight, with the same vigor, for relevancy. He stressed the need for the church to be relevant to today's culture, warning that "the early church was met with persecution, but the modern church is met with a yawn."

He exhorts Christians to find strength in the Holy Spirit to continue this fight and will guide us as we do so.
I have to say that I was thoroughly impressed with Dr. Page himself. He seems to have a heart to unify the SBC and to truly honor God.

Unwanted Wedding Gifts

And now for something different...
I've been married for a brief six weeks and in that time my wife and I have managed to settle into our little home, thanks in part to those who so kindly gave us a myriad of wedding gifts. But, as every one of the married people reading this knows, while many gifts we receive are great and useful, there are also those that make us scratch our heads in puzzlement.

My wife and I now have a small pile of gifts that we did not ask for and don't quite know where to return. I'll not name these gifts, as one of the givers might chance upon my blog and take offence (you DID get a thank you note even though I didn't like your gift.)

I've heard some interesting stories about what people have done with their unwanted wedding gifts. I've heard of them being re-gifted (as some of mine obviously were), or becoming part of a garden, or even being used as "perennial gifts" at Christmas parties. So what kind of things do people do with their unwanted wedding gifts? I'm curious (and I know there are stories out there).

Gluttony?

Once it was one of the Seven Deadly Sins but now it's everywhere but nobody talks about it (except to say that they don't talk about it).

Perhaps it's time to renew not only our condemnation of it, but also our help for those who suffer from gluttony. So to start, let's make sure we all know what this word means (let's face it; it's been ignored so long in Baptist circles that many have forgotten what it means).
Dictionary.com defines gluttony as "excessive eating." It seems that with the rise of obesity in America we should open our eyes. If this is an issue with which people struggle, the Church should be on the front lines of the fight.

Now to establish my own credibility here I'll say (as my friends may be tired of hearing me say) that in order to join the Air Force I had to lose 40 pounds last year. I did that by making some hard decisions and being disciplined about my eating and exercise.

Gluttony is a sin. If we've ever said after a meal "I shouldn't have eaten that" or "I shouldn't have eaten all of that" then we're guilty. James 4:17 (NASB)says "Therefore, to one who knows the right thing to do and does not do it, to him it is sin." The right thing is "stop eating so much" or "don't eat certain things." Hey if it was easy we wouldn't have so many fat people.
(Yeah I said Fat).

If our bodies are the Lord's Temple, what are we saying about our Lord?
Food for thought:
Or do you not know that your body is a temple of the Holy Spirit who is in you, whom you have from God, and that you are not your own? For you have been bought with a price: therefore glorify God in your body. 1 Cor 4:19-20 NASB

The Problem of Postmodernism in Apologetics

Today I was involved in a discussion regarding apologetics, particularly the task of contending against a postmodern viewpoint. The discussion revolved mainly around the difficulty of pinning down a postmodern to a single set of beliefs.

If you ask any number of so called "experts" for a definition of postmodernism, you will likely get as many different answers as respondants. This in itself seems to be indicative of the postmodern worldview -- it seems tailor-made by an individual to fit his or her own felt needs.

In such a worldview, truth(s) must be "relevant" (or meaningful) to the hearer in order to be accepted as true (i.e. "if you say the moon is made of cheese, the statement may in fact be true, but I do not have to accept it as truth because it has no relevance to my own life"). The converse seems to be true also; a claim may be false, but I may accept it because it has particular meaning to me, or I may affirm you're right to believe it even if I do not. Herein lies the difficulty of establishing truth with a postmodernist.

During today's discussion Aristotle's three forms of rhetoric were mentioned:
1)Logos is the appeal to reason, this is what we typically thing of when we think of debates: one offers reasons and evidence to persuade others.
2)Ethos is an appeal based upon the character of the speaker. This argument seems to have great potential in speaking to those who will not be swayed by the logical arguments.
3)Pathos is an appeal to the emotions of the audience. This form certainly has its merits, but to me it seems somewhat empty. I can be pursuasive and passionate, and can appeal to your emotions, but there must be more if my audience is to "stay convinced."

In light of the onset and spread of the postmodern worldview, what options should we pursue as we contend for the faith?

The Slumbering Giant -or- Seeking Expectancy

I went to Faith Night at the Texas Rangers game tonight. According to commentators there were over 40,000 in attendence. I was impressed. I'm terrible at guessing how many people are in a crowd. So I could not tell you just how many people attended the pre-game MercyMe concert.

The concert was great. It's a pity that many know MercyMe just as the band who sings "I Can Only Imagine." They're quite talented. There were several thousand in attendence at the concert. My wife and I were sitting on the hillside among the masses and I began to muse as we listened to the music.

I would assume that most of the attendees at the MercyMe concert were believers. With so many believers (mainly from the DFW area) gathered in one place I could not help but ask what we are accomplishing for the Kingdom of God. I don't mean that gathering at the concert to enjoy music and worship together was in any way wrong. What I do mean to say is that I believe we are somewhat complacent as a church.

The book of Acts records a fantastic revival taking place at pentecost. Acts 2 gives details of what happened when the Holy Spirit moved upon a few hundred believers (the previous chapter recounts that there were 120 disciples present for the election of Matthias as the replacement for Judas.

Now setting aside the issues of charismata and cessationism (and the like), I feel that one may rightly ask why about 15M Southern Baptists in over 40,000 churches are not shaking the world for Christ(Frank Mead, Handbook of Denominations 11th Ed., 2001). To be honest I don't expect an answer. No one of us can assume responsibility for the effectiveness (or ineffectiveness) of our denomination in reaching the world-- we are responsible to God for ourselves and those that we lead.

Sitting amid thousands of my fellow believers I recognize that most of them genuinely do love the Lord and desire to serve him. Perhaps many are in fact serving. Suddenly the moment turns to introspection. I realize that I am not responsible to God for the effectiveness of the other concert attendees, but I am accountable for how faithfully (or unfaithfully) I obey the word of God.

Why blog about this? None of us needs another guilt trip or accusation that we are not doing enough for God. We do not need for me to state the obvious simply for the purpose of filling space on another webpage. The thing is this: God has worked in powerful ways during different times in history. We call these movements of God "Revival." It begins when God moves in the hearts of a few individuals. During times when the church had grown complacent or had been marginalized, God selected a few available vessels and poured his spirit out upon them, using them in a very powerful way.

There are many believers, or perhaps "church people" is a better term, who go about their daily lives in a state of complacency. Maybe it isn't that they mean to be complacent, but they have lost a sense of anticipation that God wants to do something spectacular around, in, or perhaps through them. My exhortation is for us to pray and encourage one another toward that end.

Perhaps the words of William Carey convey the message better than my own could: "Expect great things from God, attempt great things for God." My closing thought is this: I think that too often my expectations and attempts are often smaller than God is capable of. The greater my expectancations are of God (and thus my dependence upon Him), the greater the my works will be for His kingdom.

Setting the Tone

I've said already that I'm new to the blog scene. I've also expressed a hope that at some point people will read what I have to say (hopefully because it will be worth your time).

As I begin I believe it is appropriate for me to "lay my cards out." Readers of my new blog might want to know who I am and what I stand for, and the better question is why should you read my blog? The last question will hopefully answered as I continue to post and to interact with the issues of our day.

First, I am Matt Knight -- this is my blog. Now that that's clear, (because you can read it on the "about me" portion) I want to let you know a little about where the words you're reading are coming from. I've been a believer since I was a boy, growing up in a Southern Baptist church in Clinton, Mississippi (that would be Morrison Heights Baptist Church). I am 23 years old, a graduate of Liberty University in Lynchburg, Virginia.

Currently, I'm a student at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. I would consider myself and conservative among conservatives. I believe there is a lot to be learned from the traditions of the Baptist Church (and no I'm not a landmarkist). Still, as part of a new and young generation I think that we must continue to change to survive and be effective.

So now I'm into my second "card." What am I all about? As a Christian, I hold firmly to the message of the Cross. When I speak of change, I never mean that we should change the message (i.e. the Gospel), although we surely can (and sometimes need to) change the way we present or live the message.

As a Chaplain Candidate I have a keen interest in issues concerning the military and the government. I am interested in the changes that are taking place both in the military and in NAMB, as they will directly impact me and the ways in which I will serve in a military context as a Southern Baptist Chaplain.

I am a husband -- I've been married for five weeks and am learning about what it means to be a husband, and what it means to be a picture of Christ and the church in my marriage. That's a challenge, but one that I am willing to accept.

I've not been involved much in Baptist politics, but I know I'm in for a heavy dose of it since I've chosen to inject myself into this realm. It is important to have the exchange of fresh ideas, and the blogosphere is fluid and a place for new ideas that will have a real impact on the real world, Lord willing.

This is who I am, and I hope that I've set the tone for a readable and meaningful blog.