In this clip from one of his recent sermons, Mark Driscoll brings out the Biblical teaching on false humility and the pursuit of greatness. A disciple of Jesus has been called to greatness, to pursue greatness and do the “greater things than these” that Jesus spoke of. Check it out:

On May 10, 2010 I became a graduate of Geneva College. I received my Bachelor of Arts Magna Cum Laude in Christian Ministries, with a minor in Sociology. I graduated as an Honors Scholar. I am a first generation college graduate. I’m graduating with very little educational debt to repay. And to top it off, I’m preparing to begin work on my Master of Arts in Higher Education from Geneva in August. It’s a lot “accomplished” in many respects.

But at the end of the day, even those good things don’t make me who I am. They aren’t proof or evidence of my faith in Christ. What’s more, they are some of the same things that could easily be used to bolster a faith in myself, an arrogance and pride that puts me on a course towards earth-shattering consequences for Christian academia. But that doesn’t factor in one thing: God’s grace.

I think God, in his grace, has taken that path from me. I think that, even though I would have opportunity to advance myself beyond many of my peers in areas of theology, biblical studies, biblical languages, and maybe even some work in sociology or other aspects of ancient history; even with all that, God has a different plan. And for what it’s worth, it’s utterly foolish. God’s plans for me are utterly, eternally, perfectly, and righteously foolish. And that’s grace. Because whatever happens, people will always know that it was never me: it was Jesus.

Some reading this, maybe some who know me, maybe others that don’t, will say I am out of my mind, that I’m wasting my God-given gifts, that my choices are irrational, that I’m not being careful or discerning, that I’ve not the wisdom to make a decision like this but that I should “wait and see” what God has. Those may very well be fair concerns. I certainly wouldn’t doubt the care and genuine love that those statements would come from. But what is more certain to my mind is God’s power and God’s wisdom.

In 1 Corinthians 1:18-2:5, the apostle Paul tells us a few things about wisdom and power: (1) the Gospel is foolish and weak according to worldly standards, (2) God’s “weakness” and “foolishness” is still greater than the best the world offers, (3) Jesus himself is the wisdom and power of God and he has come to us, and (4) because all those things are true, Paul’s choice was to act according to the wisdom and power of God, not the things that are strong according to the world’s standards. In other words, Paul put away the best his rabbinic and literary training could offer him (which is more than I have to offer, by far), and limited himself to the Gospel, to proclaiming the message and passion that the Holy Spirit had put in him. That same Holy Spirit is the one who accomplished everything in Paul’s ministry.

Now, Paul didn’t deny his gifts. He used them in his epistles all the time. I’m sure his sermons had a number of great things that his background allowed him to do. But it didn’t define him. He couldn’t let it define him. In Philippians 3, Paul lists several of these credentials. And when he’s done with that, he tosses them to the wind, saying that he would suffer the loss of them all to gain Christ. In Galatians 1 and 2, he argues that nothing he had or knew or did could qualify him for his work, but only Christ’s call was sufficient for that. Paul figured something out: if I am going to know Christ, gain Christ, be like Christ, and be faithful to Christ, I have to put away the path that would make me self-sufficient and embrace the humility that Christ demonstrated (Philippians 2).

That is why I am not pursuing an academic career. It’s a path of self-sufficiency and self-promotion. It will get in the way of my pursuit of Jesus. It will make me my own Messiah. I don’t want that. I don’t think God wants that. In fact, I know God wants me working in the West End of Pittsburgh. I think God has a work he wants to do there with the Gospel. I know that he is going to reconcile people of every age, ethnicity, economic status, and background to himself and to one another. I know he’s going to bring together the unlikeliest group of people to worship and honor him and bring the Gospel to Pittsburgh. I know I can’t do it, but I know far better that he most certainly can. So, please, pray with me for this. Ask God for that vision. If he is calling you to this work, check it out. But whatever you do, praise him, because he is the God who watches and protects his people and does everything he intends to do for them, with them, in them, and through them for his own glory.

We consistently move through life with hopes shattered and dreams realized. We live in the paradox of plans that come together miraculously and the best laid schematics that crumble into the dust. In that sort of reality, Christians often find it difficult to walk with faith in a God who says that he is both sovereign and good. While not getting into the whole realm of theodicy (exploring the way that God maintains justice and goodness in a broken world), Pete Wilson’s Plan B provides incredible biblical insight to how we should live and believe when we’re not sure if God’s going to show up in the way that we want him to, if at all.

The book has a fantastic blend of stories, pastoral insights, personal confessions, and a foundation that isn’t laid on anything except Jesus and his Word. Wilson directs our attention away from our situation to the truth of the Gospel: that God has come to us, that God heals us, that God remains with us, and that God has called us to be faithful to him and watch as he glorifies himself and increases our faith, working the worst broken situations to our good. My advice: read this book.

In today’s churches, where there is a surge in the calls for music ministers and worship leaders and a number of pastors and churches dealing with questions of what worship is and what it should look like, Dr. Vernon Whaley’s Called to Worship: The Biblical Foundations of Our Response to God’s Call may come as an answer to prayer for some. Literally deriving principles for worship from the books of Scripture, Whaley attempts to provide a “full-Scripture” framework for understanding worship. Does he succeed?

Dr. Whaley’s desire is commendable. His concept of how it should be done is also good. My sense, is, however, that this book is more influenced by his Baptist roots than an informed exegesis and understanding of Hebrew or Greek (there are a number of “errors” in the language references) Scriptures. This is not to say that his principles for worship are wrong, but they are wrongly derived. It would be my hope that some would benefit from this book and others, seeing its weaknesses, would write a more sound, exegetically-responsible biblical theology of worship. If you’re looking for valuable reading on worship, Worship Matters by Bob Kauflin would be my recommendation.

I’d be willing to walk a far distance for A Million Miles in a Thousand Years: What I Learned While Editing My Life. In a stroke of writing genius, Donald Miller has given people a challenge far more imperative than The Purpose Driven Life and other similar books. While reflecting on the process of adapting one of his previously published books for the silver screen, Don discovered something about life: it’s really a story and it really needs to be a good one, and if we don’t have a good story in our lives, we’re profoundly (and rightly) dissatisfied. So, Don wants his readers to get a better story.

I enjoyed A Million Miles from the first page until the last page of the acknowledgments. The challenge is provocative and vital. The approach is transparent and humorous. The satisfaction from reading is high. A prayerful reader will benefit greatly from pondering and reflecting about the story that they are telling with their lives. Are you living a good story? Are you the character that God has called you to be? Don won’t answer those questions for you, but he does give you the chance to find out for yourself.

How can I deal with sin that just sticks with me? How can I survive the tough times that come my direction? Why should I worry about my friend’s Christian walk? What’s the point of reading my Bible and praying regularly? Although these questions seem only loosely related, Mark Hall’s Your Own Jesus does a tremendous job of presenting the truth that everyone needs to be in a saving, enduring relationship with the God of the universe.

“God has no grandchildren” as the saying goes and Mark shows convincingly the need for believers to not depend on their parents, churches, friends, or books and music to be their source of experiencing Jesus. Believers need to be in their own intimate walk with the Savior Who bought them with His own blood and will bring good, lasting fruit into their lives. For anyone who considers themselves a disciple of Jesus, this book is highly recommended as a helpful resource as you pursue Christ and get to know the One and Only Jesus Christ.

“I know what I call you in Bemba” Vincent said, “Umuntu! It means you’re like me!” Those were words that were told me on a recent trip I made to Ndola, Zambia to assist in the building of a school. In writing The Hole in Our Gospel, Stearns notes that the Gospel we preach has often left out the command to seek justice for the poor and oppressed, to love our neighbor. Stearns is right that we, who have received the mercy of God in infinite abundance, have so often failed to show and share that mercy with our fellow men around the world, who lay dying. So Stearns issues a prophetic, God-honoring call to action…but misses a beat.

His vision is somewhat dampened, I think, by the sense that it is Christians who will put all wrong to right in the world. We are the agents of redemption, but this redemption will be realized and consummated by Christ. I would heartily recommend reading The Hole in Our Gospel to anyone, only exhorting them to trust in the sovereign work of God and not depend upon their own actions, but the Holy Spirit’s effective power.