Dr. Champlin's Anniversary in Heaven

One year ago today, I learned of the home going of a man of God who probably impacted my life more than any other when it came to the development of my philosophy and passion for missions. This man's life and ministry influenced many people on three different continents. Dr Darrell Chaplin was not just a college professor, he was a mentor, a counselor, and a friend. I will never forget his messages and stories of walking on hot coals and of converted witch doctors who impacted their nation. However, my all time fondest memory was during my senior year. I don't remember the date, but I do remember coming under tremendous conviction of sin in my life during a Wednesday evening service. Normally midweek services were pretty informal, but after this message I went down on my knees in my pew and confessed my wicked pride. I was broken in a unique way. After some time I stood up and realized I was not the only one on my knees. Individuals and pairs of students were scattered all over the white chapel. There was no music, most people had long since gone. There was simply a work of God in hearts, and the only thing that could be heard was soft sobs and whispered prayers. I can remember making my way outside and thinking about all I had to do for class the next day, and how I was supposed to preach for the student body chapel. I prayerfully walked back to my room and told a friend what God was doing. A few of us gathered for more prayer. By this time, I had no thought of class work or assignments, I only wanted Christ and His presence. I don't remember who first suggested it, but we decided to ask Dr. Champlin (who stayed with his wife in the men's dorm) if he would like to join us in prayer. He was probably ready for bed, but he was so encouraging and immediately invited us in for a time of prayer. We all prayed around, and I remember getting up from my knees wishing it was not time for lights out, but that we could spend the entire night at the throne of grace. The next morning I became nervous about what to preach in chapel. As I was preparing for the day, a fellow student rushed to my room and said that Dr. Champlain was calling for me. I immediately went to his apartment. He was so encouraging and I was so humbled to learn that he had been praying for me. He shared the attached outline with me in that meeting - on what was then a bright red piece of paper. He told me that he had been reading in Nehemiah for his devotions that morning, and that he was impressed with the revival principles within the text. He had written them down and wanted me to have them. I did not end up preaching that day. In fact, I spent the entire chapel in the weight room praying while someone else led the chapel service. I will never forget the lessons I learned during that little touch of revival. Lessons about brokenness over sin and the parallel joys of pure and perfect communion with Christ will remain with me forever. I have kept Dr. Champlin's outline from his morning devotions of "Revival Principles" with me all these years. It is a treasure to me of a man who took time to pray, to encourage, and to be a tremendous example of a spirit filled missionary to a simple student like me. Perhaps there are others reading this post who knew Dr. Champlin. What memories do you have of him and his wife Louise? Please post memories below if you would.

Five Qualifications for President

The morning after Ted Cruz suspended his campaign for president, I posted a silly comment about how I would not be supporting the candidate who financially supported Hillary Clinton's campaigns for Senator and President no fewer than 7 times. I naively assumed that most of my Christian friends would feel the same way. I assumed wrong. I was genuinely dumbfounded to begin reading about friends immediately throwing their support and vote behind Donald J. Trump. Some of these new supporters had previously and publically been in the #nevertrump camp. Now they were trying to morally, and rationally justify their support for a man they admitted was "wicked," "immoral," "proud," and other less than reputable descriptions. I was truly surprised by how many conservative Christians shifted their support from one who they considered to be "the best choice" to one they referred to as "the best chance" overnight - and openly admitted it.

Since my opinion was already public, and since I have tried to leave some thought provoking comments and memes from time to time on facebook feeds, people started trying to explain to me that I did not "fully understand what is at stake this election." Some of the most common arguments begin with, "nobody's perfect," or "we're not voting for a pastor." Some have even stated that "too much is at stake to vote for the best candidate this election." Finally, someone asked, "Do you have a biblical reason for voting for the person you are planning to vote for?" I believe this question hits the nail on the head. I believe that everything we do should be based on Scripture - even our vote.

When a Baptist church (or any congregationally ruled church) selects or ordains a pastor, the Bible gives that church a list of specific qualifications that must be true of the candidate or he is not a biblically qualified candidate. When a person is looking for a spouse, the Bible gives certain qualifications and qualities that must be present before someone can be considered for marriage. While the Bible gives lots of examples of good and bad leaders, it does not gives a list of biblical requirements when voting for heads of state...or does it?

By the end of George W. Bush's second term, I began to think through and personally create my own list of non-negotiable presidential qualifications. I admit that some of the following are preference, but some are strictly biblical qualities of a leader that must be present if God is to empower and use that leader with grace and wisdom. The following is the list I mentally developed about 8 years ago. I have not supported a party since. I am presently registered as an independent. I have voted based on principle and the character of the individual candidates, rather than a party since 2008.

Considering the following five biblical and personal qualifications, I will probably not be voting for either of the current candidates proposed by the Republican or Democratic parties.

1. HE MUST BE A MAN. God ordained three human institutions, and God designed men to lead them all. According to the Scriptures, a man should be the head of the home (Eph 5:22-24). A man should be head of state (1 Cor 11:3; I Tim 2:12-14). A man should be the "bishop" or overseer of Christ's church (1 Tim 3:1-7; Titus 1:6-9). Male leadership is God's ideal, and has been since creation. The desire of women to rule over men is a direct result of the fall (Gen 3:16). By the way, The constitution does not contain the word "she." It's signers clearly intended for our country to be lead by men. Consider this quote from the U.S. Constitution: "The executive Power shall be vested in a President of the United States of America. He shall hold his Office during the Term of four Years, and, together with the Vice President, chosen for the same Term, be elected, as follows..." I cannot vote for a Clinton or a Palin because I do not believe they meet the biblical or constitutional qualifications to be president.

2. HE MUST BE A MAN OF HONESTY AND INTEGRITY (Prov 12:22; 19:1; Matt 5:37; Phil 4:8-9). I do not believe that either Clinton or Trump have proven themselves to be honest or people of consistent integrity.

3. HE MUST BE A MAN OF HUMILITY. The Bible clearly states that God hates pride (Prov 6:16). God resists proud people and only gives grace to the humble (James 4:6; 1 Peter 5:5). Trump is literally the proudest man I have ever known. In his acceptance speech of the Republican nomination, he actually said, "Nobody knows the system better than me. Which is why I alone can fix it." Really? Trump sincerely believes that he is the ONLY man on earth who ALONE can make America great. My Bible says that God hates and resists the proud. I am not looking for a pastor to run the country, but I also cannot accept a man who brags that he has never asked God to forgive him for anything either. People often present wicked leaders from the Bible as examples of how God can use anyone. However, these people miss the truth that God only uses humble, righteous leaders to bless his people, while God uses proud, wicked leaders to bring chastening upon his people (Pharaoh, Nebuchadnezzar, Jeroboam, etc.). David was a murderer and an adulterer. This is true, but he was also a humble, repentant man after God's own heart. Someone could reasonably argue that David was "more evil" than his predecessor, Saul. The difference was not the number or severity of their sins, but rather their responses to their sin. God did not reject Saul because he was a sinner, God rejected Saul because he was a proud sinner! I have never seen an ounce of humility in either of the mainstream candidates. Time and again, the current candidates have made significant errors or flat out lied and they refuse to humbly apologize or admit fault. I do not reject them for being sinners, all candidates are sinners, I reject them both for being proud, arrogant sinners. I cannot biblically vote for either Clinton or Trump because neither of them are humble, and God only gives grace (-the gift of God's supernatural enablement to do His will) to humble people - period. Read that sentence again. God only gives grace to humble people. A vote for Clinton or Trump is a vote for the chastening of America at best.

4. HE MUST BE A SACRIFICIAL PATRIOT WITH A PROVEN TRACK RECORD OF DEFENDING THE CONSTITUTION. This is obviously not a biblical point, but one that I personally require when considering a candidate. I think the best commander in chief is one who has served his country in the military. I do not require military service, but I think veterans make the best presidents. There are other ways to prove your sacrificial love, and consistent defense of the constitution. Clinton has proven her wanton disregard for the constitution and the military time and again. When asked what he has sacrificed for his country, Trump replied "I think I've made a lot of sacrifices. I work very, very hard." Based on his answers (and George Stephanopoulos asked him 3 times), it is quite evident that Donald Trump does not even comprehend the concept of sacrifice. Making lots of money by working hard, employing thousands of people and building big buildings for profit has nothing to do with sacrifice. Trump too has already made comments about executive orders that lead me to believe he has possibly never read the U.S. Constitution. He recently stated that he doesn't have "time to read," so betting he has never read our nation's founding document is probably a pretty safe bet.

5. HE MUST BE A MAN WHO FEARS GOD AND HONORS THE BIBLE. The Bible plainly states that "The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom" (Pro 9:10). I want a wise president. If the fear of the Lord is the foundation and beginning of wisdom, then a president CANNOT begin to lead a country with wisdom unless he fears God and honors His written revelation to man - the Bible. I do not require that my presidential choice be a born again child of God. I do not believe Washington or Lincoln were born again believers, but I do expect, based on the clear statements in both the Old and New Testaments, that wise leaders MUST fear God and honor His Word (like Washington, Lincoln, Reagan, etc. did). The reason our country has shifted to a position of honoring immorality and condemning the unborn to nothing but a "choice" is not because we have had a democrat in the white house or liberals in the supreme court, but rather because we have leaders running our country who believe God is a fairy tale and humans are nothing more than evolved animals. I cannot vote for a woman who states that "unborn people do not have constitutional rights," and neither can I vote for a man who indicates that his favorite Bible verse is "An eye for an eye." Trump is the first republican presidential candidate to promise to protect the LGBTQ community but not even mention the unborn in his acceptance speech - let alone promise to protect them. Neither Clinton nor Trump fear God or honor His Word.

For me to vote for either of the big, two party candidates as they stand today would be a direct violation of my faith and conscience - as formed by my understanding of the Word of God. Such a violation would be sin for me (Rom 14:23), and I will not do it.

With these mostly biblical prerequisites in a candidate, I end up voting based on two biblical mandates. First, my vote must glorify God (1 Cor 10:31). Second, my vote must promote salt and light (Matt 5:13-14). Notice I did not say "protect" salt and light. I will not vote for a candidate who might select conservative judges - that is not a biblical mandate. I will not vote for a candidate who is less of a disaster than another candidate might be - that is not a biblical reason either. I will vote for a humble man who desires to glorify God with his life, and will lead our nation by grace and wisdom. I do not vote for the "best chance," I vote as a salt and light in a sin darkened world. If my vote, like my testimony, ends up being a small percentage of the U.S. population, I will not be surprised. Christ promised that true disciples will be the minority. I do not consider my life to be a waste simply because it is a minority in this world, and neither is my vote. I will simply continue to serve my Lord and Master as a Spirit-filled salt and light in all venues and all opportunities of society (including voting). I will keep preaching Christ and making disciples until the next election when I pray more and more salt and light voters will vote for the glory of God rather than the lesser evil of the two, majority choices.

Let me say that I do not condemn a brother in Christ who votes for Clinton or Trump believing that his vote glorifies God and somehow reflects the light of Jesus, but I do have a problem with Christians who do all kinds of rationalistic gymnastics to try and support the idea that Trump really is a man of God. He is not. So, let's all pray for revival, continue to serve the Master, and show deference to all of God's people whether they vote or not. To be honest, I am not fully convinced that Jesus would vote at all. He seemed pretty focused on His kingdom, rather than the kingdoms of this world (John 18:39; Luke 4:5-8).

We Can Have Revival Now!

With all the recent talk about "The end of America as we know it." I was greatly challenged and encouraged by this quote from a book I was reading last night: "When Wesley would preach he was often assaulted physically just for preaching the gospel. Mobs were raised again and again against him and his fellow preachers. Occasionally a Methodist meeting house would be utterly destroyed and the officers often favored the culprits. England was as unlikely a place for a great revival as one could imagine. The Puritan revival had been suppressed with great violence. Independent-minded and Bible-believing preachers were everywhere abused, jailed, run out of the country, or their property confiscated. England was hardly civilized, utterly foreign to what we now know as England. Yet God breathed upon John and Charles Wesley, on Whitefield and the preachers whom God raised up with them, and a mighty revival transformed England. Besides leading to the salvation of millions of souls the Wesleyan revival indirectly started a Sunday school movement, caused prison reforms, stopped the slave trade, caused immense reforms in government, and largely created what we know as traditional English character, justice and society. The unbelief, the lewdness, the immorality and dishonesty among the people and among church and government leaders when the Wesleyan revival began were far more discouraging than is true in America today. In view of the mighty revival God gave in Wesley's day,  his foolish and faithless to believe that God could not now stir America and England and anywhere else in the world where men shake God and pay God's price for revival, as mightily as He did in Wesley's day. The problem is not with the hardness of world conditions and wicked hearts. The trouble is with the laborers. 'The harvest truly is great, but the labourers are few.'" ~John R. Rice

Rice also writes that four infinite resources of God make revival always possible. 1. The infinite grace of God 2. The infinite power of the Word of God 3. The infinite, miracle-working power of the Spirit of God and 4. The power of persistent, prevailing, brokenhearted, believing prayer. He states, "When a group takes full advantage of these resources available, they cannot avoid revival." (We Can Have Revival Now! page 104)

WARNING POLITICAL PET PEEVES:

WARNING POLITICAL PET PEEVES: I have enjoyed studying and following politics since I was a boy. I have voted every opportunity possible, even since living outside the country for more than a decade. I do not usually say much about politics on facebook - not because I am not passionate about my beliefs and opinions, but because some people share their opinions so often that most people grow weary of finding political posts in their feed. However, this rant will be one of my rare exceptions.

I have developed two pet peeves this political season that I want to publically confront. (Please believe that I have no one in particular in mind as I write these.)

Pet peeve #1: "Our only choice is to vote for the lesser of two evils." This is so wrong on several levels. First, it is never right to chose or vote for evil no matter how bad the alternatives are. Evil is evil. Choosing or voting for "evil" is sin no matter how you try to rationalize your decision (Amos 5:15a; Proverbs 24:20-25).

Second, there are legally and literally millions of choices available this presidential election. The last time I voted for president, my ballot offered 8 options. One of those options was "write in." Do not fall for the lie that you only have 2 options, and they are both evil. This is simply not true.

Third, you do not need to violate your conscience by voting for a lesser evil. In fact, you must not violate your conscience when you vote. The Bible teaches that everything you do should be done in faith. "For whatsoever is not of faith is sin (Romans 14:23). You may chose not to vote and thereby sin not, but you cannot vote for evil and be free from sin.

Pet Peeve #2: "A vote for A is a vote for C." I have heard nearly every single presidential candidate (running and dropped out) use this emotionally, guilt trip loaded and completely illogical line. There is no field or genre on earth that supports this fallacy. Let me break down reality in simple terms. A vote for A is a vote for A. A vote for B is a vote for B, and a vote for C is a vote for C. (Thanks for the years of algebra, Mom) ;) If C is the best man for the job, and you decide to vote in faith for C, don't let any con man try to badmouth you into thinking that your vote is somehow "wasted," or even worse, "a vote for the most evil candidate." Such rhetoric may come from the mouth of a sincere person, but it is completely irrational. Don't fall for this. Rant finished.

In but not of the World

"A ship will ride the waves until the water gets into her; she was made to ride the water and not for the water to be in her. The church is all right as long as she is in the world; she is all wrong when the world is in her." ~ Billy Sunday, 1922

One Thing

"The Bible doesn’t talk about hundreds of different things; the Bible talks about one thing in hundreds of different ways. That one thing can be described in two words: redemption and missions" ~ George Murray

Charles Neanderthal Darwin?

I started reading a book about Charles Darwin today. I have thought it many times before, but it occurred to me yet again today that Darwin's head is shaped almost exactly like a Neanderthal's scull. Does anyone else see the similarities in the shallow, almost receding forehead and pronounced brow ridges? How ironic it is, at least in my mind, that Darwin's anatomy supports the reality that Neanderthals are actually modern men, and not a distinct human species. 

Filled or Disobedient

Hudson Taylor: "God Himself is the great source of power. Furthermore, God's power is available power. We are a supernatural people, born again by a supernatural birth, kept by a supernatural power, sustained on supernatural food, taught by a supernatural Teacher from a supernatural Book. We are a led by a supernatural Captain in right paths to assured victories. The risen Saviour, before He ascended on high, said to His disciples, "Ye shall receive power when the Holy Ghost is come upon you." Not many days after this, in answer to united and continued prayer, the Holy Ghost did come upon them, and they were all filled. Praise God, He remains with us still. The power given is not a gift from the Holy Ghost. He, Himself is the power. Today, He is as truly available and as mighty in power as He was on the day of Pentecost. But has the whole Church ever, since the days before Pentecost, put aside every work and waited for Him for ten days, so that power might be manifested? Has there not been a source of failure here? We have given too much attention to methods and to machinery and to resources, and too little to the source of power - the filling with the Holy Ghost. This, I think you will agree with me, is the great weakness today, and has been the great weakness of service in the past. Unless remedied, it will be the great weakness of the future. We are commanded to be filled with the Spirit. If we are not filled, we are living in disobedience and sin, and the cause of our sin is the cause of Israel's sin of old - the sin of unbelief."

The sin of bloodguiltiness...

"Millions are perishing today without the knowledge of Christ, and will go on perishing, simply because the Church is not doing the work for which she was redeemed and empowered with God's Spirit. When we are brought face to face with this truth, our hearts will spontaneously cry out in contrition and shame. We will confess our sins. What sins? The sin of bloodguiltiness; the sin of disobedience; the sin of unbelief; the sin of selfishness and worldliness, grieving the Holy Spirit and quenching Christ's love and His kingdom. These sins will become a burden greater than we can bear, until we have laid them at our Lord's feet and seen Him remove them." (Andrew Murray, "The Key to the Missionary Problem" p.111)

Correct Orthodoxy Does Not Equal Powerful Evangelism

"Evangelical orthodoxy is powerless in itself to spread the gospel. Unimpeachable Protestant teaching in the pulpit, and the plainest of gospel declaration in the church services, may be seen in combination with entire neglect of the Lord's Great Commission." (quoted from The History of the Church Missionary Society as recorded in Andrew Murray's "The Key to the Missionary Problem") 
Sadly this is an all too common testimony of 21st century evangelicalism as well. I see lots of sermons, books, blogs and conferences with "Gospel" in their title, but very little Great Commission going on. We have lots of fellowship and education, but little filling of the Spirit and evangelism.

Not what we should be...

"However devotedly a small part of the Church is doing its utmost, the great majority of her members are not what they should be. They do not truly desire to make Christ known to every creature as speedily as possible. This aim does not rule the Church - she is not prepared to do her duty." ~Andrew Murray 1901

The one great need of the day...

"As we look at the extent of the field, and the greatness of the work that still has to be done, at the utterly inadequate force which the Church has at present on the field, we are crushed. We do not see sufficient signs that she is ready to place herself and all her resources at her Lord's disposal. We see our absolute impotence to give life either in the Church at home or the work abroad, and our entire dependence upon the power that comes from above in answer to prayer and faith. We are amazed at the love of our Lord to His people and to the perishing, and the promise He waits to fulfill. We feel that our only hope is to apply ourselves to prayer. Prayer, more prayer, much prayer, very special prayer, should first of all be made for the work to be done in our home churches on behalf of foreign missions. This is indeed the one great need of the day. 'Our help cometh from the Lord, who made heaven and earth.'" (The Key to the Missionary Problem, by Andrew Murray, page 107)

Not "For" but "Through" the Missionary

"Missions is not what the church does for the missionary but what the church does through the missionary...-seeing that the church, as the focal point of God's plan, is in the world to fulfill her mission, not merely to maintain her existence. This means that the churches need to be proactive in the fulfillment of the Great Commission, not just reacting to appeals by missionaries." (Antioch Revisited, by Tom Julien, page 25)