Provocative Church

Rob Bell's Latest Nooma - Whirlwind

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Fri, 10 Jul 2009 19:03:19 PDT

You can see a limited time viewing of the latest Nooma video, Whirlwind, online.

How can we worship a God who is immune to pain?

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Tue, 07 Jul 2009 11:39:12 PDT

God isn't a distant God, as portrayed by other faiths such as Islam. Certainly it is true that God is transcendent (wholly other than His creation), but also God is immanent (near). Philippians 2:6-8

Listen to how Mark Driscoll discusses this..

"...the Spirit-filled perspective of Jesus allows us to remain Jesus-centered in our thinking, Spirit-led in our practice, and humble in our hardships. This is made possible when we realize that because being Spirit-filled means being like Jesus, such things as poverty, sickness, and hardship are not incompatible with living a Spirit- filled life. Indeed, the most perfectly Spirit-filled person who has ever lived, Jesus Christ, worked a simple job, lived a simple life, and died a painful death as a flat-broke, homeless man by the power of the Holy Spirit and in so doing perfectly and fully glorified God the Father and tasted pure joy.

Sadly, the Eastern religions see God as so detached and distant that God is in no way our savior, example, or power for new life. According to Islam, God cannot suffer, and so their scholars teach that the Holy Spirit left Jesus before he suffered on the cross as a mere man. However, one of my favorite Bible teachers, John Stott, asked a most pointed question in his book The Cross of Christ (which I would commend for your reading): “In the real world of pain, how could one worship a God who was immune to it?”

-Mark Driscoll, Death By Love, p. 211

Since then we have a great high priest who has passed through the heavens, Jesus, the Son of God, let us hold fast our confession. For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin. Let us then with confidence draw near to the throne of grace, that we may receive mercy and find grace to help in time of need. -Hebrews 4:14-16

Two Free Online Resources

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Mon, 06 Jul 2009 19:34:17 PDT

In celebrating John Calvin's 500th Birthday, two ministries are offering free resources to commemorate this event. You can see the video below for more details.

Information Overload

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Fri, 26 Jun 2009 12:22:03 PDT

Too much stuff, so little time. Here again is a lot of good material throughout the week that I've come across. I feel the need to share some of the good stuff with you since I don't have time to comment on it throughout the blog.

This stuff shows up in my Google RSS Reader throughout the week and I use the widget from my "shared items" in my Google Reader to post the most interesting information that I've gathered from the web. Enjoy some fun, entertaining and provocative reading. (my shared items have their own individual rss feed that you can subscribe to directly)

Resisting Coming to The Cross

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Mon, 22 Jun 2009 11:57:26 PDT

I was reading this from the blog, Cruciform Life and I wanted to pass it along to you in whole (but please visit his site and subscribe) with my thoughts because it also reflects my heart too often toward my beautiful Savior.

The reason that I resist coming to the cross because it reminds me that I’m a sinner. Imagine a conversation that might have occurred at the time before Christ.

“I wish I never sinned” said the Israelite at the head of the queue.

The others waiting to make their sacrifices nodded.

The priest narrowed his gaze. “Why do you wish you never sinned?”

The Israelite was amazed that the priest would ask. The answer was so obvious it hardly needed saying. “So I don’t have to keep returning to this altar.”

Sometimes my motivation for avoiding sin is not love for Christ but love for me. I don't want to repent, I don't want to have to acknowledge my sin, I don't want to humble myself, I much rather rest on my righteousness than Christ's mercy.

“I have not come to call the righteous, but sinners to repentance.” - Jesus in Luke 5:32

“The saying is trustworthy and deserving of full acceptance, that Christ Jesus came into the world to save sinners, of whom I am the foremost.” 1 Timothy 1:15

(ht: Cruciform Life)

Reaching the Whole Person with the Whole Gospel

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Tue, 16 Jun 2009 14:33:52 PDT

Don Miller discusses how his church has tried to answer the question, “How do we bring the whole gospel to our community?”

(ht: Tony Stiff)

Win a Copy of BibleWorks 8

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 19:04:49 PDT

Cal.vini.st First Anniversary Giveaway. Over the next month (June 12th – July 12th 2009) you have the opportunity to enter to win one of two major prizes.

Cal.vini.st has procured two copies of BibleWorks 8 as prizes — the premier software tool for original language exegesis of the Biblical text. Each copy of BibleWorks 8 is valued at $349 (US).

Click Here for details on how to enter

Talks from the Advance Conference

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Fri, 12 Jun 2009 10:41:35 PDT

You will want to check out these mp3s. A friend of mine went to this conference and reported back that God kicked his butt. I am looking forward to devouring these audio sessions.

John Piper, Let the Nations Be Glad, Part 1
John Piper, Let the Nations Be Glad, Part 2
Mark Driscoll, What Is the Church?
Mark Driscoll, Ministry Idolatry
Tyler Jones, The Resurgence of the Church
Bryan Chapell, Communicating the Gospel Through Preaching
Matt Chandler, Preaching the Gospel to the De-churched
Ed Stetzer, Keys to Understanding the Church and Kingdom
J. D. Greear, Planting Is for Wimps: Revitalizing a Church around the Gospel
Eric Mason, The Ultimate Shepherd
Danny Akin, Marks of a Healthy Community of Faith
Piper, Driscoll, Greear, Stetzer, Q&A
Chandler, Driscoll, Chapell, Q&A

(ht: JT)

Fuggedaboutit!

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Thu, 11 Jun 2009 11:38:35 PDT

A couple of weeks ago, I received a book from Thomas Nelson publishers for review - and it was truly an offer I couldn't refuse.

I'll Make You an Offer You Can't Refuse, is authored by ex-wiseguy mobster, Michael Franzese. Franzese has taken his years of mobster exploits with the Colombo crime family and passes on to the reader, through a lens of being ethically rehabilitated, lessons learned to succeed in business.

Throughout the book, Franzese outlines several key lessons learned from the seedy world of organized crime that he believes are transferable to the corporate boardroom.

He talks about the strategies needed for winning, the kind of people you need on your team (crew), and how to come ahead in negotiations.

Throughout the book, Franzese uses many interesting antidotes and stories about his past life as a mobster to illustrate his points.

To be very honest, I found those stories the most interesting part of the book. Overall the book is a lightweight addition to the collection of leadership books that fill the bookstore shelves. I found very few of Franzese's lessons, advice and tips that profound or helpful.

After ready many of Franzese's exploits within organized crime in this book, I am more motivated to pick up his book dedicated entirely to that subject, Blood Covenant.

The Best Comedy on Television

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Tue, 09 Jun 2009 20:14:09 PDT

This show allows me to get my geek on...

Big Bang Theory

I think is the funniest show on T.V.

The premise consists of an experimental physicist and a theoretical physicist who share a room across the hall from a gorgeous blond waitress. Throw in a couple of wacky friends and all the trappings of quintessential nerds - and you have an outrageously funny show.

It's on Mondays at 8am on CBS

Information Overload

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 17:15:00 PDT

Subscription Drive

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Thu, 04 Jun 2009 17:14:30 PDT

Every so often it’s a good practice for a blog to have a “Subscription Drive”.

If you’ve been encouraged, challenged, or learned anything from the content here at Provocative Church, please consider Subscribing to our RSS Feed or our Email Subscription!

Also, if you’re already subscribed… Please use the ShareThis button below to email this out or twitter it and tell others to subscribe! That would be greatly appreciated.

You Supply the Caption

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Mon, 01 Jun 2009 05:23:49 PDT

I've never done one of these at Provocative Church...where I ask readers to supply a caption for the photo in the comments section...but when I saw this photo today, I thought I would love to read your creative contributions...so go at and supply your best caption below.

(ht: Springfield News - included are more pics)

The Kingdom of Twitter

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Sat, 30 May 2009 08:08:58 PDT

I have a confession to make. I Tweet. I am a Twitter user. If you are a regular reader to Provocative Church, that confession will come at no surprise. But perhaps many are scratching your heads saying what is Twitter? or Why the appeal? You can read my post HERE to understand more of why I Twitter and what Twitter is all about.

But suffice it to say, Twitter is one of the most rapidly growing sites on the internet. The amount of users signing on everyday is staggering. From a recent article post at TechCrunch,Twitter traffic almost doubled in just the month of April. In March Twitter reached 9.3 million, an increase of more than 5 million visitors, or 131%, from February.

That kind of explosive growth of Twitter got me thinking of just how the church grows. The church is meant not to be a static institution but rather it is a dynamic and explosive movement. In the early church, we see examples of that explosive growth.

Luke writes:

"And Peter said to them, Repent and be baptized every one of you in the name of Jesus Christ for the forgiveness of your sins, and you will receive the gift of the Holy Spirit. For the promise is for you and for your children and for all who are far off, everyone whom the Lord our God calls to himself. And with many other words he bore witness and continued to exhort them, saying, Save yourselves from this crooked generation. So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls."

-Acts 2:38-41

Throughout Acts and these passages you can see the tangible and exponential growth.

Acts:1:15 = 120 believers
Acts:2:41 = 3000 believers
Acts:2:47 = The Lord added to their number
Acts:4:4 = 5000 believers
Acts:5:14 = more and more... Believed
Acts:6:7 = the number increased rapidly

There is an expectancy that where the Gospel of Jesus Christ goes out -people believe, lives change and the Kingdom grows.

That is what you and I can expect when we go out into the world with Jesus.

When we live our life among our family, friends, co-workers and neighbors, filled up with the love of Jesus - an impact is made.

When we serve others with a love and sacrifice motivated by the love of Jesus - an impact is made.

When we winsomely, lovingly and genuinely share with people the love of Jesus - an impact is made.

We may think Twitter's growth is something to marvel at...but it doesn't even compare to the growth, power and movement of the Kingdom of God.

We have a divine story

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Fri, 29 May 2009 08:23:53 PDT

I was reading these words today from Paul Miller's book, The Praying Life.

"If God is sovereign, then he is control of all the details of my life. If he is loving, then he is going to be shaping the details of my life for my good. If he is all-wise, then he’s not going to do everything I want because I don’t know what I need. If he is patient, then he is going to take time to do all this. When we put these all together–God’s sovereignty, love, wisdom, and patience–we have a divine story."

I love a good story...don't you? Whether that story is in a good book or movie, like Lord of the Rings. What's really cool is that you and I are part of a story. We are a part of God's divine story. God is composing His story with our lives. It is a story with twists and turns. A story with climaxes and dramatic tension. A story with adventure, love and laughter. And it is a story where the author (or creator) becomes near to his characters (or creation). Praise God that He entered into our story:

"And the Word became flesh and dwelt among us, and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth." - John 1:14

He entered in our story in order to change our story from one of spiritual death to a story of spiritual life by going to the cross. And He is with us even today through the work of the Holy Spirit. God is with us, working in us and through us in His story.

As God send us out into the world...remember that God is creating a wonderful story of redemption that you and I get the privilege of being a part of. And because we are a part of His story, believe that no matter what challenges or obstacles we may face that we can trust God in the middle of it.

The Devastating Effects of the Economy

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Fri, 29 May 2009 06:55:11 PDT

Here is a Friday Funny.

Even the world's most evil tyrant has been effected by the economy...and wait until the end for the punch line.

Have the Courage to Encourage

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Wed, 27 May 2009 18:51:28 PDT

Today I was at the Georgia campus of Philadelphia College of Osteopathic Medicine for their last meeting during the school year. And during the meeting Dr. Lee Jacobs spoke to the students. Dr. Jacobs was a practicing doctor until 2 years ago when he retired and took the position as Missions Pastor with Fellowship Bible Church in Roswell, GA.

Dr. Jacobs spoke to the students from Colossians chapter 1, verses 3-8

"We always thank God, the Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, when we pray for you, since we heard of your faith in Christ Jesus and of the love that you have for all the saints, because of the hope laid up for you in heaven. Of this you have heard before in the word of the truth, the gospel which has come to you, as indeed in the whole world it is bearing fruit and growing--as it also does among you, since the day you heard it and understood the grace of God in truth, just as you learned it from Epaphras our beloved fellow servant. He is a faithful minister of Christ on your behalf and has made known to us your love in the Spirit."

These are Paul's encouraging exhortations to the Colossians in beginning his letter to them. And yet later on in this letter to the Colossians Paul has some hard stuff, warnings and some correction for the church.

I always appreciate Paul's willingness to build up those in the church, even those who he is going to eventually correct and rebuke. He always starts with a couple of "attaboys" before he gets to the "gotcha". (Galatians may be an exception to that rule :-) )

Paul understood the power of praise and encouragement. For Paul he wasn't trying to manipulate the Colossions by providing some sugar to help the medicine go down...no he had a real heartfelt love and appreciation for them. Praise and encouragement has the ability to bring out the best in other people. It establishes unity and secures a bond of love and friendship.

For me, praising and encouraging others doesn't always come naturally. I often have to make a concerted effort to do so.

I would encourage you today to think of at least one praiseworthy thing about your spouse, or your parent, or your sibling or a friend....and encourage them in that. That might be saying a thank you...or just saying how much you appreciate that character trait in that person. Let's have the courage to encourage others by actually doing it.

The Fame that Fractures - Jon & Kate plus 8

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Wed, 27 May 2009 07:21:23 PDT

Last Monday my family and I watched what has been our favorite show, Jon and Kate plus 8. Of course watching this Monday's season premiere, we knew the show had some issues to address considering all the controversy surrounding Jon and Kate's marriage.

Truly my hope was that as Jon and Kate were able to speak for themselves, that they would set the record straight and put to bed all the vicious rumors. I expected to see the family that I was accustomed to watching, not the one as portrayed in the tabloids. Unfortunately, what I saw was hard to watch and I started to wonder what fame and exposure had done to this Christian family.

Jerod Clark wrote an excellent post at ThinkChristian which I want to commend to you to read. Many of Jerod's feeling and thoughts were mine as well, here is an excerpt.

The Gosselins are an openly Christian family. In past seasons they’ve talked about their church and support from the people there in helping take care of a family of twins and sextuplets. As an example, volunteers would help with doing laundry or taking care of the kids. To TLC’s credit, the religious side of the Gosselins life wasn’t completely edited out of the show.

I think that’s why I wanted to watch the season premiere. I thought maybe this would be a chance for a married Christian couple, dealing with the issues of infidelity and fame, to be highlighted in a positive way. But instead it was another example of a family falling apart – just another example people can point to and say, “See Christians are no different than the rest of us.”

Read the whole post HERE

I don't think that I can in good conscience contribute to the very thing that has undermined their marriage - their fame, by watching their show. But what I can do is pray.

How to Fix Our Eyes On Jesus

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Tue, 26 May 2009 11:18:20 PDT

I was reading today the words from the writer of Hebrews:

"Therefore, since we are surrounded by such a great cloud of witnesses, let us throw off everything that hinders and the sin that so easily entangles, and let us run with perseverance the race marked out for us.Let us fix our eyes on Jesus, the author and perfecter of our faith, who for the joy set before him endured the cross, scorning its shame, and sat down at the right hand of the throne of God. Consider him who endured such opposition from sinful men, so that you will not grow weary and lose heart." - Hebrews 12:1-3

What always grabs me and jumps out at me from that text is the picture of "fixing" our eyes on Jesus.

I embarrassed to confess to you all that too often I find myself fixing my eyes on too many other things than Jesus.

When I have or face a problem, I am often tempted to fix my eyes entirely on that problem...or even at times "fixating" on the issue at the expense of everything else.

I also find myself fixing my eyes on ME and my own desires and my own comfort. I'm interested in what will make ME happy and accomplish MY goals?

But the writer of Hebrews says that the only way we can persevere and finish a life of following Jesus is to keep Him as our focus. But how do we do that? The writer of Hebrews gives us the answer when he describes Jesus as the one who endured the cross and humiliation because of the joy and exultation that would eventually await him as he would sit down at the right hand of the throne of God in glory. What is described here is the Gospel - plain and simple.

Reminding and preaching to ourselves everyday the beauty and power of what Christ accomplished on the cross and through his resurrection is what keeps our focus on Him. The Gospel wasn't just for us at a point of time when we came to faith as Christians, but rather the Gospel is for our faith everyday as Christians.

I have been spending a lot time in preparation a trip to Honduras, working on leading a medical missions team to help the people of San Marcos de Colon. It will be easy in the busyness of this upcoming mission trip and in the preparation getting there to end up focusing on everything else but Jesus.

During this medical missions trip, we can end of focusing just on how many patients we see and treat at the clinics, or we could end up focusing on a difficult situation during the trip and our need to be "flexible" and "fluid" amidst it all, we may even end up focusing on the adventure of going to an exotic foreign country - BUT all the time forgetting why we are there - to bring Glory to God.

That is why we need to keep reminding ourselves of the Gospel, what Jesus accomplished for us and who we are as sons and daughters of the King. As we do so, it will keep our eyes fixed upon Him and we will persevere in the race and journey set before us.

Hard Questions About Jesus

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Tue, 26 May 2009 08:12:41 PDT

This is an excerpt from the British Comedy, Outnumbered. Although the minister looks uncomfortable throughout this interaction...I think the response should be just the opposite. Even though the questions by these children seem silly, they appear to be genuine. And I rather people be asking me questions about God, faith and Jesus, rather than live in indifference and apathy.

If you haven't already checked out this book about handling skeptic's questions, you want to take a look at Tim Keller's book, The Reason for God, now coming in paperback this summer.

Memorial Day

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Sun, 24 May 2009 21:51:00 PDT

Memorial Day is more than just the beach, sunburn and BBQ..it is remembering and honoring those who gave their lives so that we could have our freedom.

Here are some fast facts about this holiday:

It started with the Civil War - Memorial Day was a response to the unprecedented carnage of the Civil War, in which some 620,000 soldiers on both sides died. The loss of life and its effect on communities throughout the North and South led to spontaneous commemorations of the dead.

It was first known as Decoration Day - From the practice of decorating graves with flowers, wreaths and flags, the holiday was long known as Decoration Day. The name Memorial Day goes back to 1882, but the older name didn’t disappear until after World War II. Federal law declared “Memorial Day” the official name in 1967.

In 1971, the Monday Holiday Law shifted Memorial Day from May 30, to the last Monday of the month.

It is customary on Memorial Day to fly the flag at half staff until noon, and then raise it to the top of the staff until sunset.

Read a Novel and Change the World

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Fri, 22 May 2009 12:42:41 PDT

I believe on sharing the wealth. And so I am going to pass along a free book to all my Provocative Church readers that I believe is worth your read. This book giveaway I'm about to tell you about is kinda like "Read a novel, change the world."

Scared is a novel with a conscience. It's by Tom Davis, the director of worldwide orphanage and relief organization Children's HopeChest.

Scared is a book that doesn't pull any literary punches in depicting what real life is like for kids growing up in Swaziland, and other parts of poverty, war, and pandemic-ravaged Africa. Nor does it gloss over the real struggle the rest of us go through when grappling with these overwhelming realities.

What's even more intriguing - is that Scared is not just a novel, it's a movement. Tom puts his organization's money where its story is: Starting in June, Tom and HopeChest will raise $1 million to support educational projects in Swaziland. They are also running a contest for Swazi orphans! The grand prize? A university scholarship.

Tom feels like Scared and its message are so important that he's giving it all away. For the next two weeks (until June 5, 2009), he is giving Scared away in its entirety, as a digital download. Download it here: http://scaredthenovel.com

Word of Promise Next Generation Audio Bible

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Fri, 22 May 2009 12:21:29 PDT

Thomas Nelson had recently released an exciting audio version of the New Testament called the Word of Promise Next Generation Audio Bible. Too often other audio Bibles come across flat in their narration or either overly dramatic, but this version seems to capture a balance.

The big draw of this audio version are the young stars who do the vocal roles. Some of those stars are Cody Linley from Hanna Montana, Cobin Bleu from High School Musical, Alyson Stoner from Camp Rock, and Jordin Sparks the Americal Idol winner.

These are stars that my two teenage daughters not only will recognize but also connect with. When I think of ways to invest in my kids spiritual formation and encourage their love and appreciation for the Word of God, the Word of Promise Next Generation Audio Bible is one great resource in helping to accomplish that objective.

Here is a trailer of the audio Bible:

This audio bible is a great addition to not only your child's ipod, but the parent's as well.

You can purchase it HERE.

It's Official

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Thu, 21 May 2009 13:40:20 PDT

I finally broke down and got them...braces!

My teeth had become a train wreck with shifting and moving..so I knew I needed to do it...it was just a matter of timing. So this morning I got them, top and bottom. The top are clear brackets, while the bottom are silver.

Now my teenage daughter and I have one more thing in common...at least for the next 12-18 mos.

Learning Spanish

breichart@bigcreekchurch.com (Bill Reichart) — Mon, 18 May 2009 15:01:57 PDT

In June I will be traveling to Honduras on two separate trips with CMDA. And one of the biggest goals before I go back is to learn Spanish.

If you are interested in learning Spanish, I have found some great free resources out there:Coffee Break Spanish offers a free 15 minute podcast where you can learn the basics of conversational Spanish.

Out and About Spanish - Audio Spanish lessons with downloadable guides prepared by fellow short-term medical missionaries.