The "Just Say No" Game

I’m reading a tremendous book by Robert Wolgemuth right now called, She Calls Me Daddy. I recommend this book for all of you with daughters. My biggest takeaway (and there have been many) is something he calls the “Just Say No” game. This has borne fruit in my life already and I hope it bears much fruit in the lives of my family.

What this game is is the opportunity throughout the day to just say "no" to something, whether good or bad or indifferent, because it’s teaching your flesh that it’s not in charge. Wolgemuth bears witness to the game's work in his daughter’s lives, that they would regularly report as young girls that they had purposefully said no to a snack or a fit of anger, and that it had grown with them to resist larger and larger temptations. He makes an excellent point that you should always praise an act of willpower, no matter how ridiculous it might sound, in youngsters.

So I’ve been trying it and encouraging others in my family to try it. I’ve been amazed, I have a bag of trail mix on the upper shelf of a cupboard right now. In the past this trail mix would not have lasted a day or more. Just because it’s there it seems like I have to eat it. But this week (yes, 7 days), I have only gone to it a few times for energy, which is what I intended it to be for when I bought it! Multiple other times I’ve found myself heading that way but questioning my intentions along the way and asking, “Do you need energy?” No. “Are you hungry?” No. “Are you on a hike?” No. Then the answer to the trail mix is “No.” The god that is my belly (Phil 3:19) screams at me, but you know what? He’s not the boss of me…at least not all the time…and hopefully less from this day forward. There are better things out there than a trip to the trail mix cupboard: for one, staying in some semblance of shape, but two, the weight of glory that I’m being prepared for through sanctification, and three, setting an example for my children to follow with this utterly biblical game.

If I have one minor quibble with She Calls Me Daddy is that though a lot of the principles are firmly found in scripture, Wolgemuth doesn’t give a scriptural reference for many of his principles. But even that has been a blessing for me because it’s caused me to think of my own prooftexts on why this little game is so powerful.

You know who else played the “Just Say No” game? Lots of great saints throughout history, that's who! Look at how Moses is described, “when he was grown up, [he] refused to be called the son of Pharaoh’s daughter, choosing rather to be mistreated with the people of God than to enjoy the fleeting pleasures of sin. He considered the reproach of Christ greater wealth than the treasures of Egypt, for he was looking to the reward (Hebrews 11:24-26).” He played the "Just Say No" game with some really ornate and valuable temptations, but we know he's received his reward (Mark 9:4)!

Who else? Paul, “I discipline my body and keep it under control (1 Cor 9:27, also pretty much the whole of chapter 9).” And “while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come (1 Tim 4:8).”

Others, like Saul, have good intentions at the outset, but every time a temptation comes around, they jump right into yes. Read 1 Samuel for dozens of examples, here’s one:

Saul listened to the voice of Jonathan [regarding the loyalty of David]. Saul swore, “As the LORD lives, he shall not be put to death!”…and David was playing the lyre…and Saul sought to pin David to the wall with the spear. ~2 Samuel 19:6,9-10

Think of others who failed at the “Just Say No” game: Demas (2 Tim 4:10), Judas (Matt 26:15), Solomon (Ecc 2:10-11),  Samson (Judges 14:3), Esau (Hebrews 12:16-17), Cain (Jude 1:11), Eve (Gen 3:6), Adam (Genesis 3:17), Lucifer (Isa 14:12-14)…

Time would fail me, beloved, to name every person we should emulate who said "no" to a fleeting pleasure, and every person we should use as a warning who gave in and said "yes."

But time must allow for the greatest example of this game. He reminds us that this game is not a game of competition. I’m not going to gloat over my wife if I say "no" to an egregious sin and she only says "no" to a smaller one. This is a race that we’re running together, when I discipline my flesh, she wins, and when she disciplines her spirit, I win, and vice versa. Because, if this were a competition we would all lose terribly to someone who played it perfectly.

Jesus of Nazareth was offered the whole world and an escape from the suffering that he was preparing for, “All these [kingdoms] I will give you, if you will fall down and worship me (Matt 4:9).” He was also tempted with salvation from the cross, “Do you think that I cannot appeal to my Father, and he will at once send me more than twelve legions of angels (Matt 26:53)?” But he said "no" to the opportunity to gain the world without enduring the cross. And do you understand why he said "no?" Because if he had said "yes" to those temptations, not only would he have failed in his mission of perfect obedience to his Father, but he would have left us without a propitiation for sin. We would still be dead in our sins and trespasses, and without hope and without God in the world!

So he said "no," and the immediate pain and suffering and separation and cost were more dire than any of us can comprehend or ever will comprehend, but “for the joy that was set before him [he] endured the cross, despised the shame, and is seated at the right hand of the throne of God (Hebrews 12:2).” Because Jesus said "no," to a temporary fleeting pleasure, you now have a perfect sinless Saviour who can wash away every one of your sins, make you complete, and give you his Holy Spirit to war against the flesh, and who is glorified forever as both Creator, Man, God, and Saviour.

Beloved, you are surrounded by so great a cloud of witnesses, so "Just Say No" to every sin…those sins will cling tightly and easily, but you have a race to run, discipline to subject yourself to, an example to follow in Jesus, and an example to set for your imitators.

I love that Wolgemuth asked for weekly updates from his daughters. His reasoning was that if you can say "no" to a second cookie today, tomorrow you are prepared to say "no" to a besetting sin that will rob you of your joy and quite possibly your eternity (He didn’t quote it, but John 10:10 comes to mind).

I look forward to hearing ways that my children, my wife, and myself "Just Say No" to temptation in our lives. And beloved, if you play, and I pray you do, I’d love to hear your victories as well!

Exploring Baptism During the COVID-19 Pandemic

Most baptisms don’t receive a lot of thought: a pool, a minister, a new convert. If we’re fortunate we’ll get a message and a testimony, maybe a meal afterwards. But what have we really done? Have we accomplished anything for eternity in most of our baptisms? Painfully, many baptisms are not baptisms at all: someone just got wet.

In keeping with God using all things for good to those who love him and are called according to his purpose, the current restrictions have provided us with an opportunity to think about and work through things that have become mere tradition.

The history of baptism is not so clear cut as many of us might think. As the gospel found its way into desert places water could become a scarcity, in other places local traditions sought to drown out the symbolism of the event, and sometimes circumstances don’t allow for a full immersion.

When Philip met and explained Christ to an Ethiopian court official, they were in a place devoid of water. After some traveling they came to a place with enough water, and the Ethiopian immediately requested baptism.

[Engraving Credit: William Carey University]

When William Carey and the Serampore mission saw their first converts, they held a baptism at the river Hooghly, the natives in attendance deduced that this new religion worshiped the river just like many other religions in the North of India.

The Swiss Brethren in Zurich wrestled with the idea of baptism for months before any of them were baptized (or as the Catholic and Presbyterians in the area decreed – anabaptized/rebaptized). Because of the close church-state relationship in the area, biblical baptism had been completely lost. There were none who had been baptized previously to administer baptism to those seeking it, so after his confession of faith before the group, George Blaurock was baptized by his friend Conrad Grable. After which, Blaurock baptized Grable and the rest in attendance. Because they did it secretly, they chose the method of effusion (of pouring) rather than of immersion.

[Photo Credit: Steve Sanchez]

The Didache, an early church manual, recognizes that baptism will not always be a simple matter. It records, “Baptize thus: …in living water; but if you have not living water, baptize in cold water; and if you can not in cold, in warm. But if you have not either, pour out water thrice upon the head in the name of the Father and Son and Holy Spirit.”

My friend Steve Sanchez, pastor of Community Church of the Hills in Johnson City, Texas, had the privilege of leading a man to Christ in the Veteran’s Administration Hospital just days before he died in 2016. There would be no way to immerse this man, so Steve baptized him by effusion in his hospital bed. The testimony is powerful, and the mode of the baptism is following in obedience to the commands of Christ and beautifully displays the hope of resurrection in his life.

[Photo Credit: SBC IMB – Siberian Baptist Church]

In very cold places, where it seems prohibitive to immerse new converts, it is common to see baptisms on Resurrection Sunday or earlier where the ice has had to be cut to make a baptismal pool.

During the Civil War the preaching of chaplain Willie Ragland led to the conversion of a soldier named Goodwin. Goodwin sought baptism, but everyone knew the Union army was close. Finally they were given permission to traverse to the Rapidan river unarmed. As they began to sing, "There is a Fountain Filled With Blood", the Union soldiers rushed to the opposite river bank and joined their voice in chorus with the Confederates and witnessed the proclamation of the gospel in Goodwin's life. The danger to lives for observing baptism was huge, but obedience to their God - and declaring his saving power - was more important to the members of the 13th Virginia.

Painting Credit: Resurrection Morn - Hong Min Zou

So this leads to you, dear reader, how are you going to fulfill the command to baptize new believers? Of course you’re not keeping someone out of Heaven if they die before being baptized because you waited for COVID-19 to subside or see a vaccine, because baptism is only an outward proclamation (not a sign, and never a seal) of the inward work Christ has done.

But now you’ve been introduced to some ways the church in the past has baptized its new converts and the struggles they have faced. My brother Scott was recently baptized by our pastor in Ohio, only him and the pastor were present, but the protestari (forward testifying) of the gospel was made via video, and I posit that the intention of the ordinance is fulfilled in this baptism, as the church and world witness it. Take a look:

[Video Credit: First Baptist Church, New Lebanon Ohio]

Regardless, dear reader, now is the perfect time to proclaim the gospel through the symbolism of baptism, buried in death with Christ, raised to walk in newness of life, and invite all who hear it to repent of their sins and place their faith in Jesus Christ.

In the present crisis, you have the opportunity to show the varied and sundry ways that baptism may be administered, that it is not a rite, but a testimony to the saving work of God through Jesus Christ.

I look forward to seeing and hearing how you can make much of Christ in these times of trouble!

Listen Better - Part 7 of 7 - Apply the Sermon

Part 1 - Introduction
Part 6 - Revisit the Sermon

We have not come to the preaching merely to hear what we do not know, but to be incited to do our duty. ~ John Calvin

Leaving a sermon you should be motivated to love God more, hate sin more, help people more, and obey God’s Word more. This is why it is a poor sermon that puffs up the audience to think they have somehow reached the pinnacle of sanctification or that their community has all of its needs met. Many sermons will declare "Peace, peace!" when there is no peace, and in so doing will lull their hearers into a sense of security and comfort when no-such luxury exists in the world.

The sermon should always exalt Christ and humble men. It was to this effect that Benjamin Franklin wrote of the preaching of George Whitefield, “The multitudes of all sects and denominations that attended his sermons were enormous…and how much they admired and respected him, notwithstanding his common abuse of them, by assuring them they were naturally ‘half beasts and half devils.’” Whitefield said of preaching, “It is a poor sermon that gives no offense, that neither makes the hearer displeased with himself nor with the preacher.”

Therefore, this is one of the harder articles to write, I could sink to moralism to tell you how to respond in every case. But, dear reader, the point is not in the act, but in the impetus to respond to how you are convicted. Haddon Robinson went so far as to call a direct application heresy, because in telling a congregation exactly what to do, the preacher denies the work of the Holy Spirit. Robinson instead recommends something to the effect, “This is the principle, and the principle is clear. How this principle applies in our lives may differ with different people in different situations.”

One thing is clear and concrete: If you sit under the most wonderful preaching but fail to act on it, you will at once forget what you heard. James writes that, 

If anyone is a hearer of the word and not a doer, he is like a man who looks intently at his natural face in a mirror. For he looks at himself and goes away and at once forgets what he was like. But the one who looks into the perfect law, the law of liberty, and perseveres, being no hearer who forgets but a doer who acts, he will be blessed in his doing. ~ James 1:23-25

Charles Spurgeon, a man with a vocabulary that could make a dictionary blush for inadequacy, once gave the application thusly,

Dear reader, after you sit under the Word of God next, I implore you, do something with that sermon once you’ve heard it!