American Pickers (Part Two)

Dave Miller — Tue, 12 Apr 2011 02:36:09 +0000

“Scripture is like a river, broad and deep, shallow enough here for lambs to go wading, but deep enough there for an elephant to float.” –Gregory Dialogus

Before I get into the first of three types of Pickers identified in the first part of this series, I want to make something perfectly clear to the reader. I am not saying that American Pickers are not Christians. I’m not saying they are Christians either. Since the First Century, when Jesus established His church, the wheat and the tares have grown up side-by-side. Jesus knew this would be the case (Matthew 13:24-30). Even though you and I can look at the fruit produced by others, none of us can know the heart of another. Jesus is the ultimate judge and His righteous judgment at the end of time will be the only verdict that counts (Rom 14:10, 2 Cor 5:10).

Having said all that: Onward!

The Scripture Picker

From Part 1: Simply defined, American Pickers are people who profess to be Christians, but pick and choose which parts of orthodox (biblical) Christianity they believe. For example, they treat the bible like a smorgasbord, taking their fill of what they like and passing on what they don’t.

Scripture Pickers are not unlike the History Channel’s American Pickers, Mike and Frank. They root around in the bible until they find something that they adore, something that they can take hold of and make their own; something that doesn’t cost them too dearly.

Scripture Pickers also overlook the things in the bible that don’t interest them; things they think are ugly or broken or for which there is no value in today’s marketplace.

But the bible is not a collection of interesting debris inside an old barn; the bible is the inspired Word of God and every single word is valuable for teaching, reproof, correction and training in righteousness. (2 Tim. 3:16)

Example 1:

Matthew 6: 9-13 is one of the two places in scripture where we find what we call The Lord’s Prayer. But can you tell me what comes right after these famous verses? (Mat 6:14-15) “For if you forgive others their trespasses, your heavenly Father will also forgive you, but if you do not forgive others their trespasses, neither will your Father forgive your trespasses.”

Whoa! Hold on just a minute! Does that say that if I don’t forgive other people, then God won’t forgive me? It sure would be a lot easier to just forget about those two verses and memorize The Lord’s Prayer, wouldn’t it?

This is an example of picking the things we like and passing on what we don’t because it is too costly to us personally.

Example 2:

Romans 8:28 is a verse that American Pickers love to quote, and I am foremost among them. “And we know that God causes all things to work together for good to those who love God,” This is a wonderfully comforting verse, and all Christians should love it. But I wonder how many love the next two verses, (Rom. 8:29-30). For those whom He foreknew, He also predestined to become conformed to the image of His Son, so that He would be the firstborn among many brethren;”

Now just wait a minute – what’s all this about predestination and foreknowledge? I thought I was in control of my life and that I chose to believe in God… Not so, God chooses us!

This is an example of overlooking the things we think are broken, or outdated in the Bible. Usually we think this because we revere societal values more than biblical values.

If you know a Christian, or if you are a Christian who ignores difficult portions of scripture, or focuses only on the easy parts, what should you do?

First off, recognize the problem. It is a problem of unbelief in God’s word and His promises. The scripture was once for all delivered to the saints (Jude 3), and we either accept it or reject it in its entirety (Revelation 22:18-19). Take something away, and the Bible is no longer God’s complete and sufficient Word. Add something to it and it is now not wholly of God.

Secondly, and most importantly, confront the problem; confess your unbelief to God in prayer and ask His help in opening your eyes to the full majesty of God’s word. Pray that God would help you see that the Bible is overflowing with truth and grace. Without God, nothing you do will help your unbelief!

Finally, spend more time in the word. Seek out the portions of scripture you have trouble with and ask a trusted Christian mentor about them. Don’t feel bad about questioning God’s word, and don’t be afraid to ask hard questions. Chances are you’re not going to come up with an issue that hasn’t been addressed before. Don’t worry; God’s word can withstand your questions.

So what makes this such a danger to Christianity? Because Christians are encouraged to share their faith; and Christians who are unconvinced of the veracity and authority of scripture spread their weakened and muddled views to others. It’s like a contagious disease passing from one susceptible soul to another. A pastor with a low view of scripture is terribly dangerous because he becomes a Typhoid Mary, singlehandedly infecting scores or hundreds at a time.

“Sanctify them in the truth; Your word is truth.” John 17:17

Resources I have and use:

If you have another three and a half minutes. Dr. John Piper has a very relevant commentary on this subject.

The Paradox of Humility

Dave Miller — Tue, 26 Jan 2010 04:11:09 +0000

Two weeks ago at church, our council of Elders called a man up to the front of the church before the worship service began. They presented him an award for being the most humble Christian at our church. The award was a tiny lapel pin a little smaller than a dime. The man accepted the award with a tearful and red-faced “Thank you all, so much” and returned to his seat. Last Sunday, the man came to church wearing the pin in the lapel of his jacket and the head elder took it away from him because he showed pride by wearing it and didn’t deserve it anymore.

This actually didn’t happen. It is an old joke rephrased. Nevertheless, humility can be a difficult concept to understand. Last week I listened to a two-part sermon preached by John Piper entitled Battling the Unbelief of a Haughty Spirit. You can download it and listen to it yourself here:

Battling the Unbelief of a Haughty Spirit Part 1.mp3

Battling the Unbelief of a Haughty Spirit Part 2.mp3

When I listen to podcast sermons (usually about a dozen each week) I like to take notes on the parts that hit me hard, or speak to my heart. Sometimes I’ll stop the playback and just start writing about instances where I have personally experienced what the preacher is talking about.

Here are the notes that I took while I was listening to the sermons linked above. If you get anything out of this, I encourage you to download and listen to the entire sermon. Not all of what appears below is Piper’s and not all of it is mine.

All acts of unbelief and all acts of sin flow from selfishness and pride. We know what selfishness is, but pride is more complicated. There are two main forms of pride. The first is our traditional understanding of pride that John Piper defines very well as “…knowing we’re good and wanting others to know it.” This is what the bible calls boasting. The other, trickier, sneakier form of pride doesn’t look like this at all; it is called false humility. False humility is when we go out of our way to demonstrate to people how humble we are. Yes, you can be prideful about being humble just like the man in the old joke.

If you are a Christian and you know anything at all about humility, I am confident that you have encountered this type of pride at least once. Here are two examples: The man who volunteers for the worst task at a church function and then for weeks afterward, brags about doing such a menial job. The woman who helps somebody anonymously and then “lets slip” what she did to one friend who she knows can’t keep her mouth shut. These are examples of a craving that people have for other people to think well of them.

Each of these forms of pride is an example of making much of yourself. As Christians, we should be delighting in Christ alone and in God’s mercy to us.

Isn’t it funny, considering our size and place in the universe, that we humans would struggle with genuine humility?

True humility means casting everything on the Lord. Casting your anxieties on the Lord is humility, because proud people don’t feel that they need help from the Lord. Pride makes people deny their anxieties and want to look like they’ve got it all together. Piper says, “…how easy it is to ‘be made much of’ even for my self-denial.” We have to be such cool customers. God is our LAST refuge instead of our first thought. We are afraid to be vulnerable. We are afraid to look human.

Piper says, “God loves people, but hates pride.” The condition of your heart is of utmost importance. It is almost impossible for anyone to tell the difference between genuine humility and false humility in another person, but it is easy for us to know it in ourselves. This is a skill that we work inwardly on ourselves, not an outward skill that we work on others.

If we are making much of Christ and little of ourselves, then we are practicing humility well. And the proper response is to make much of Christ for granting us a humble heart.

Trust AND Obey » unbelief

American Pickers (Part Two)

The Paradox of Humility