Being part of a church plant often times has a lot of people playing many different role. In our context that means I am one of the defacto graphic design artists. Which is funny for me to even type, since I know legitimate graphic design artists, and what they do is definitely above and beyond the things I do. Anyway, here is a couple things I’ve gotten to create while at FGC.
Part of our goal at Free Grace Church is to equip all our members to be able to dive into the scriptures and understand what they mean. Many times Churches propagate a view of the preacher as a learned scholar who must have spent years in formal education, and reads all the original languages. The truth is, as teachers, we just look for the best resources, and ask God to give us the words. This wont come as a surprise to you if you know us; the ivory towers were out of the budget. So in order to help equip you in your own study, here are our resources for our series in Malachi. We hope you’ll find them helpful, and use them as a tool for further study in your own walk with Christ.
Verhoef, Pieter A.The Books of Haggai and Malachi, , Eerdmans, 1987.
E. Malachi, anchor Bible Series. Yale Press, 1998.
John Piper’s series on Malachi
Cheung, Vincent. Commentary on Malachi
Enjoy!
First, some self disclosure. I work in a fast paced retail environment. I am consistently presented with new and amazing products that scream, “you need me, and you know it!” More often than not I find myself heartily agreeing, and then repenting of a lack of contentment. So when Crossway asked for bloggers to review a book about contentment I was fired up for 1) a free book by an amazing publisher and 2) a book that is directly relevant to an issue that I and millions of other Americans either struggle with or woefully submit to.
So what do you need to know about this book?
1) It’s intensely personal.
Altrogge writes as if he were sitting across from you at a Starbucks. As you read you’ll find him being open and honest with his heart, and challenging regarding yours. The more you read through his book the more you’ll feel personally connected. Reading The Greener Grass Conspiracy is more like having an extended conversation than a download of information. Altrogge accomplishes this by using colloquial language that’s fitting, and doesn’t distract, as well as including discussion questions at the end of the book to invite introspection.
2 It’s very concise.
If you get this book you won’t receive a tome of exhaustive knowledge regarding contentment. You will receive a book packed with content, questions, and devoid of fluff. This should be good news to you, because if you’re anything like most Americans you feel trapped by an insane schedule that doesn’t allow for lengthy reading. You probably feel like you don’t have time even for bible reading let alone another book. If that’s you then be encouraged that Altrogge won’t waste your time with fluff, over-extended examples, or pointless repetition. He’ll give you exactly what you need: Truth, and a challenge to apply it.
3) It’s funny.
You will laugh when you read this book. If you think a book has to be serious in tone and voice to be effective The Greener Grass Conspiracy will definitely challenge that mindset. Relax, and enjoy the humor.
4) It’s relevant.
If you’re an American you probably struggle with contentment and falling into the “conspiracy”. The reality is that every day we breath in marketing, ads, promos, media and a million other things that exist to make you feel like you are inadequate without “x”. Even if you don’t feel like you struggle with contentment you can turn to this book as a quick refresher to zero in on christ-centered contentment.
5) It’s NOT an academic or purely exegetical work.
Altrogge doesn’t write to ivory tower academics; rather, he writes to normal every day people like you and I. You will not find extended analysis of passages in classic theological fashion. Altrogge keeps his vocabulary simple, straightforward, and impact full. Now, if you are a fan of larger works that are written at a “higher level”, first read Altrogge’s book, and then go through the endnotes and read the larger more academic works he references.
6) It’s gospel centered.
I’ve saved the best and most important thing for last. Altrogge repeatedly points to the gospel and Jesus as our ultimate source of contentment. With such a practical topic like contentment it can be easy to be legalistic or hyper spiritual. To say something ridiculous like, “real Christians live on saltine crackers, peanut butter, and leaves while giving everything else away.” Or something equally ridiculous like, “your a child of the king so get a Mercedes while swimming in diamonds because if you love Jesus you’ll have everything you need.” Altrogge points strictly to Jesus and the gospel as our supreme source of contentment. This blows past categories of monastic deprivation and prodigal spending. The gospel shatters these categories and calls us to live in light of the work of Christ. What will that look like? Pick up The Greener Grass Conspiracy and find out.
“Greener Grass Conspiracy” Trailer – Stephen Altrogge from Crossway on Vimeo.
Becoming a father has been a watershed experience in my life. While there are a multiplicity of areas where little Sydney is going to impact my life, and challenge me to grow, I want to focus on an area that has been immediately impacted. The area is my understanding of theology. As a young guy who spends a lot of time in books and the world of theology there is always the looming threat of allowing the study of God to become a mere academic pursuit divorced from my devotion to Him, and my joy in Him. This results, in many instances, in my theoretical understanding of God surpassing my practical expression of that truth. Of course, theres a simple way to say that: I’m a hypocrite. This post isn’t however about my hypocrisy, but rather how little Sydney impacts it. Since she’s come home, God in His graciousness has been showing me a lot of theology packed into a sweet little seven pound package. In the coming weeks I’m going to share with you some of these lessons, and pray they bless you as they’ve blessed me. The tentative topics are:
Sydney teaches the love of a father
Sydney teaches dependance
Sydney teaches sin and sanctification
Sydney teaches revelation and baby talk
Sydney teaches self sacrifice
While the blog has been quiet as of late, life definitely has not been. Every year has something new in store for the Telloian family and this year is no different. So far in 2011 a lot has already happened. Free Grace Church has become a full Acts 29 member, and we’re looking for a new building to grow into. Sarah and I both graduate in May, and this is the first semester I haven’t had to take classes. We’ve grown in our relationships with friends and family. I’ve had the opportunity to work with some amazing people at the store. Lastly, saving the best for last, Sarah and I have a new addition to the Telloian family! Sydney Hannah Telloian was born March 18th at 10:35am. Sarah and I are absolutely thrilled at the privilege to love, raise, and steward this little girl from baby to maturity. All in all, Sarah and I continue to marvel at God’s grace in our lives. To think that in the last five years God has changed me from a self centered pagan hedonist, looking to indulge any desire while breaking as many commandments as I could; to a man humbled by my need for His mercy seeking to live out the gospel, love my wife, raise a daughter, and serve my community is amazing. Not because I’m amazing, but because Jesus does amazing things. Life has always leaned toward the crazy-whirlwind end of the spectrum, but we wouldn’t have it any other way. It’s in that whirlwind that we find ourselves dependent on Jesus, seeing him work, and are most grateful at his provision and care in our lives.
This Sunday I had the privilege of sitting under some great preaching on Malachi 1:6-14, and was a inspired by how Gods rebuke and call for repentance was rooted in his character, nature, and identity. This meditation flows from the words of Malachi and how our relationship with God hinges not on our actions, our righteousness, or our intentions but our identity.
Jesus is a father,
I deserve to be disowned.
Jesus is a master,
I deserve to be discarded.
Jesus is a king,
I deserve to be tried for treason.
Jesus is the Lord of Hosts,
I deserve to be destroyed by his armies.
But Jesus!
Was disowned.
Was discarded.
Was tried.
Was destroyed.
So now in Jesus,
I’m a son.
I’m served.
I’m innocent.
I’m saved.
So now in Jesus i live!
Just like everything that comes out of Mars Hill Church, Seattle, Money:God or Gift, by Jamie Munson, is an intensely practical book about stewardship, God’s desire for our giving, and our heart’s inclination toward God. You’ll quickly realize two things as you read through the pages of this slim book. 1) This book has virtually no “fluff” at all, and 2) Our hearts are much more connected to our bank account than we often acknowledge. We are all created to worship something, and this inclination can be expressed both religiously and secularly; as well as intentionally or unconsciously. In our culture we find that money is often times our god of choice, and Christians are often times an example of idolatrous devotion to this false God. We can worship money or we can worship God, not both. The challenge of Money is that it boldly calls you to choose, and confronts the hypocrisy of claiming both. Money is also about stewardship. The theology of stewardship is a mega-theme throughout scripture. Munson says, “Everything we have comes from God and belongs to God: life, family, money, resources, time, job, talents . . .everything. We are stewards of what God has given us. He owns it; we use it.” (Money p19) It is off the foundations of worship and stewardship that Money delivers concise theology as well as practical wisdom on how we can handle our finances in a God-glorifying, grace-motivated way.
This book is a gut-check for me. It is bold enough to confront me with my sinful tendencies, encourage me where God’s grace is at work, and make me ambitious for future growth. Munson challenges me keep a close watch on my motives and heart, and does not allow me to coast on misleading thoughts. Thoughts like: I’m not in debt so I must be responsible; I tithe so I’m already ahead of the learning curve; Jesus, I’ve given enough, the rest is mine to do what I want. This book challenges me to think about whether Jesus is really lord of ALL my life, including my credit card. There were points reading this book where I was rejoicing at fruit in my life, sorrowful over sin, and connecting deeply with the themes and topics of this book.
So should you read this book? Absolutely. In fact if you want a copy, and you’re in the Fresno area, I’ll give you one for free (while supplies last). I highly recommend this book, especially considering the wealth of resources available that do a horrible job of addressing our hearts and money. Since Money has a ton of great quotes I’ll limit myself to sharing from the first half of the book only.
I was reading Genesis 22 the other day and was struck by all the references to Christ therein. When Jesus returned from the grave he showed his followers how the sum of the Old Testament is about him; pointing to his coming, his character, and what he would do. Learning to read the OT in light of Christ has been a huge blessing for me, both in understanding the interconnectedness of the two halves of the bible, as well as seeing the great faithfulness of God over the centuries. I wrote the following poem to capture some of what hit me reading Genesis 22. I know it doesn’t rhyme, but hopefully it blesses you. You can read Genesis 22 HERE.
Jesus is. . .
Jesus is the radical demand.
Jesus is Abraham’s obedience.
Jesus is clarity in confusion.
Jesus is the father’s willingness to sacrifice his dearest.
Jesus is the Lord’s provision for our greatest needs.
Jesus is the Ram slain in our place.
Jesus is the promise of future redemption.
Jesus is the source of our abundance.
Jesus is the blessing to the nations.
Hey all! I’m excited to be back and posting again. Now that school is finished, and I’ve had some time to refresh the writing juices it is time to begin writing again. I’ll try to keep the flow of content regular now that I have less(ish) demands. The goal for the next couple months will be two posts a month. Those posts will appear both here as well as the Free Grace Church blog. Obviously posts of a more personal nature will be solely posted here. All that being said I look forward to writing, and wish you all happy reading!
P.S. If you want to subscribe to the FGC blog to also receive insightful posts by Josh Brahm and Matt Troupe you can click HERE.
Sorry all for the lack of posts in October! Life has been incredibly full with work, ministry, school, and life in general. My plate is full, but life is good. You can look forward to new posts in the future; especially when school finishes in December, and I can once again write for pleasure and not obligation.
