Hey everyone, I have a new blog, because i am sick of blogging on myspace.

www.jimmypurchase.com

or if that doesn't work

www.jimmypurchase.wordpress.com

GO to them and go to them everyday!

My church is doing a sermon series on Mark Batterson's "In a pit with a lion on a snowy day". The book is all about taking risks and not being afraid because God is with us.

I got really mad when I used to go to First Baptist Pompano. They had this sermon series called "40 days to know Fear". It was the lamest thing I have ever heard. The name Jesus was mentioned no more than 3 times at a couple services because the emphasis was on how you live, instead of on the gospel. It was like I was attending a self-help seminar  

I thought that these types of sermon's are not for me, because I'm awesome and I am someone who reads a lot of John Piper, John Calvin, the early church father Augustine, A.W. Tozer, Dietrich Bonhoeffer, loves and adores Wayne Grudem's "Systematic Theology", contends for reformed theology, and reads books by dead puritan authors.

What's funny is part of me wanted to complain about how this "Lion chaser" sermon series is too easy and light hearted and that we need to be preaching deep theology while brining it back to Jesus so he is the main point of the service. Then I started to think, I am not saying I have achieved it, but I think since pursuing humility has been my biggest goal so far this year I realized I need to hear this series and I need to read the book. Because the truth is, I do have a hard time taking risks.

I have alot of money type decisions to make. I need to buy a car and I need to find a place to live in Pembroke Pines, I'm getting married, I need to get ready to provide for a family. And I don't make that much to do it all, but I know I'm supposed to do it all. I don't think my reason for taking risks is me bring selfish. They are reason's like, I don't have a new Honda CRV is because I want to have money in the bank so I can provide in the future for my future family. I would think if I was being selfish I would buy a car and an Xbox 360 right now with no hesitation.

So even though, the book is ridiculously repetitive, and some would say John Piper's stuff is as well, there is a great message in it and I think God may have appointed this time for me to learn about God ordained risks that I need to take.

http://www.heritagebooks.org/bookstore/catalog/product_info.php?cPath=222_318&products_id=8016

Brad talked to me about his friend from college who got this idea to read an old puritan book a month for during 2008. But not just any book, there is a specific reading list.

Now, you maybe thinking, "These are all old books written by a bunch of dead guys!" and they are, but these books are such a big part of church history. I have read one of the books on the reading list before and it is just great literature. I have never been one of those guys who want to go back to Christianity in the 1500's. But when it's good.... it's good.

For all 12 books Heritage Books are only charging $65, usually all 12 books would go for $90 or so, but they heard about how everyone wants to get in on this reading list so they cut the cost.

I'm begging you, put down the Rob Bell and Donald Miller and get on this thing. I really think this is going to be life changing.

I don't know really what it is with worship leaders or worship "pastors" these days. They go along leading worship through music at their church, then later go on the computer, pick up a book, and grab their latte and talk about how worship is not music, it is a lifestyle and shouldn't be confined in a church. Even though (maybe to keep their paycheck, which I can understand) they still go to their church on Sunday morning to lead music. This lifestyle idea isn't anything new, it's a biblical idea so it's been around since 300ad. But for some reason this is the new "trend" in today's music communities.

I don't really have a problem with it, I think it's a cute idea. I would rather live a Gospel centered lifestyle than a worship centered lifestyle. But I DO see where these people are coming from:

The scriptures do say, "Everything you do, do to the glory of God" (1^st Corinthians 10:31) and they say it a lot. I see the logic, anything that brings glory to God is an act of worship. So your life should be a sacrifice of worship to God everyday. We are to be living sacrifices holy ad pleasing to God (Romans 12: 1-3)

Usually people who believe this are a little extreme, so they stop going doing church and live very solitary lives. This does not mean you stop going to church, meeting with people, or stop singing songs about and to Jesus. I am wayyyy different. I strongly believe in corporate worship and singing songs that go along with a corporate vibe. I believe there is something powerful when 400 people get together and sing awesome songs and read awesome scripture. But scriptures DOES talk about both corporate and lifestyle as equal.

Just read Colossians 3:16-17 and Hebrews 10:25

I think that a truly saved Christian needs to live (when it comes to worship) with a good balance. Live your life with a "do everything to bring God glory" mentality, as well as having a good community, meeting together, type of church that meets every week to WORSHIP, sing songs and to learn from scripture. Just like Col 3:16-17 says.

When it comes to sharing the Gospel, some put way to much focus on the gifts and not the giver. Some do not talk about being with God forever, instead they talk about escaping Hell. The end result is loving the fact that you got to escape Hell and now you are in a "Better Place" Heaven. So i really think Christians and Pastors need to ask themselves this question, and i think it will give the answer to whether they are saved or not.

Would you be happy in Heaven, if God wasn't there? 

However, I do have a huge huge huge problem with the ending of the song, "This world has nothing for me, I will follow you". Here is why:

P.S. Please, do not tell me this song is about a non-believer coming to Christ. If it really is about that, then why are Christians singing it in church?

In addition, everyone go to www.myspace.com/therobbieseayband and listen to his new cd, I think it is the 2nd best worship album in the last 3 years.

Because there is one faith that was once and for ALL (unchanging) delivered to the saints.

A lot of churches are saying we should take America back for God, that America has fallen so far away from the Christian values set by our founding fathers. The problem with the phrase "Taking America back for God" is the word Back. This means at sometime America belonged to God. My question is when was this? when was America God's country? This is a book I'm reading now by Gregory A. Boyd, "The Myth of a Christian Nation (How the quest for Political Power is Destroying the Church). The words in parentheses are mine but this is a direct quote from the book, I really think he has some great points.

"(Do not get all Donald Miller and say i'm sorry for how christians did these things..) Did America belong to God when Europeans discovered America and stole the land away from the Indians or when they murdered the natives by the millions and broke every covenant they ever made? Did America belong to God when they kidnapped and loaded five to six million Africans on cargo ships? Was it when Americans lived in Wealth by the sweat and blood of their slaves? Did America belong to God during all the KKK racism and all the hurt and pain of the civil rights movement? was this the time when America was the "One nation under God" that most Pastors want to take us back to?

Some may ask, then when did the idea of "Gods Country" come from? The founding Fathers might of thought that they were creating a nation full of "Christian" morals, but the paragraph above shows that the Christian morals meant nothing. (Much of the myth of Washington's alleged Christianity came from Mason Weems influential book, "Life of Washington." The story of the cherry tree comes from this book and it has no historical basis. Weems, a Christian minister portrayed Washington as a devout Christian, yet Washington's own diaries show that he rarely attended Church).John Adams, the former president, wrote in a treatise with Tripoli (now Libya) "The government of the United States of Americas not, in any scene founded on the Christian Religion". This Treaty was ratified by more than two thirds of the U.S. Senate and signed by John Adams himself! In order for America be part of the Kingdom of God, you would see Jesus in it, and my question is do you see Jesus in your nation? you may say, "But it used to be like Jesus before they took God out of schools!" If that is your thought, look at History (and the paragraph above) and tell me if America ever did anything like Jesus."

-Gregory Boyd (Chapter 5)

look, i believe we are called to reach the nations (the great commission), but its all in how we word it. When we are wording something like, "Taking America back for God", Boyd has a point, America was never Gods, if it was, we would know it because when something is apart of the Kingdom of God, you'll know it.

The point: We are all sinners, we all need the gospel, we need to stop worrying about the morals that America has and worry about if our neighbor is following Christ or not. This is why the quest for political power is destroying the Church. If the morals of America is really more important than saving souls….. Someone has a problem

*Gregory Boyd is a Open Theist and makes comments like, "God doesnt ordain anyone, he just commands them". Which is something i dont agree with at all*