The Foundation

Happy Tax Freedom Day!

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Tue, 14 Apr 2009 11:56:00 -0400

For the past 3.5 months most Americans have been working for the various governments (federal, state, local) to make enough money to pay this year's tax obligations. But as of April 13th we get to start working for ourselves!

http://www.taxfoundation.org/news/show/24529.html

Jesus Wants the Rose

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Wed, 8 Apr 2009 16:31:00 -0400

Here is a video excerpt from Matt Chandler the pastor of The Village Church. I think this is a very powerful illustration. I know most of us have sat through preaching like his example and it should make us all angry to see the Gospel trampled like that.

Romans 5:8:
⁸But God demonstrates his own love for us in this: While we were still sinners, Christ died for us.

He does all that he pleases

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Mon, 30 Mar 2009 11:49:00 -0400

Psalm 115:3

Our God is in the heavens; he does all that he pleases.

Unleash 09 Sessions

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Chance Witherspoon) — Sun, 22 Mar 2009 13:54:00 -0400

Our good buddy Steve Staton, went down to the Unleash conference at NewSpring and reported back saying that it was amazing...so I figured we would share the main session videos here. Check em out.

Ignatius

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Mon, 16 Mar 2009 07:43:00 -0400

Ignatius from travis hawkins on Vimeo.

What if Satan took control of a City?

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Mon, 2 Mar 2009 08:00:00 -0500

I am reading Christless Christianity by Michael Horton and it begins with the question, What would it look like if Satan really took control of a city? Generally, when we think of Satan taking over a city all kinds of evil images begin filling our minds. Prostitution, murder, and greed just to name a few.

Over fifty years ago Donald Barnhouse offered a different scenario in his weekly sermon on CBS radio.

"If Satan took over Philadelphia, all of the bars would be closed, pornography banished, and pristine streets would be filled with tidy pedestrians who smiled at each other. There would be no swearing. The children would say, "Yes, sir" and "No, ma'am," and the churches would be full every Sunday...where Christ is not preached."

Now this scenario might be somewhat of an exaggeration but I believe it to be true. Wherever Christ and his Gospel is being proclaimed we can be assured that Satan is most active in opposition. But where churches are full and the Good News of the Gospel is exchanged for the good advice of a self-help, moralistic, therapeutic deism, then Satan, however subtle, is beginning to take control.

His own arm brought him Salvation

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Tue, 24 Feb 2009 08:00:00 -0500

Isaiah 59:15-20

The LORD saw it, and it displeased him
that there was no justice.
¹⁶ He saw that there was no man,
and wondered that there was no one to intercede;
then his own arm brought him salvation,
and his righteousness upheld him.
¹⁷ He put on righteousness as a breastplate,
and a helmet of salvation on his head;
he put on garments of vengeance for clothing,
and wrapped himself in zeal as a cloak.
¹⁸ According to their deeds, so will he repay,
wrath to his adversaries, repayment to his enemies;
to the coastlands he will render repayment.
¹⁹ So they shall fear the name of the LORD from the west,
and his glory from the rising of the sun;
for he will come like a rushing stream,
which the wind of the LORD drives.

²⁰ "And a Redeemer will come to Zion,
to those in Jacob who turn from transgression," declares the LORD.

You atone for our transgressions

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Sat, 21 Feb 2009 08:32:00 -0500

Psalm 65: 1-4

¹Praise is due to you, O God, in Zion,
and to you shall vows be performed.
²O you who hear prayer,
to you shall all flesh come.
³When iniquities prevail against me,
you atone for our transgressions.
⁴ Blessed is the one you choose and bring near,
to dwell in your courts!
We shall be satisfied with the goodness of your house,
the holiness of your temple!

Who for the Joy set before Him

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Thu, 19 Feb 2009 10:22:00 -0500

Hebrews 12:2

²Let 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. ³

But to him who does not work

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Wed, 18 Feb 2009 09:05:00 -0500

Romans 4: 4-5
⁴Now to the one who works, his wages are not counted as a gift but as his due. ⁵And to the one who does not work but believes in him who justifies the ungodly, his faith is counted as righteousness,

The Supremacy of Christ

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Fri, 13 Feb 2009 08:27:00 -0500

Colossians 1:15-23

¹⁵He is the image of the invisible God, the firstborn over all creation. ¹⁶For by him all things were created: things in heaven and on earth, visible and invisible, whether thrones or powers or rulers or authorities; all things were created by him and for him. ¹⁷He is before all things, and in him all things hold together. ¹⁸And he is the head of the body, the church; he is the beginning and the firstborn from among the dead, so that in everything he might have the supremacy. ¹⁹For God was pleased to have all his fullness dwell in him, ²⁰and through him to reconcile to himself all things, whether things on earth or things in heaven, by making peace through his blood, shed on the cross.

²¹Once you were alienated from God and were enemies in your minds because of your evil behavior. ²²But now he has reconciled you by Christ's physical body through death to present you holy in his sight, without blemish and free from accusation— ²³if you continue in your faith, established and firm, not moved from the hope held out in the gospel. This is the gospel that you heard and that has been proclaimed to every creature under heaven, and of which I, Paul, have become a servant.

BibleMap.org

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Chance Witherspoon) — Tue, 10 Feb 2009 12:38:00 -0500

Ever wondered where all the churches in Revelation 1 actually were? Maybe not...but if you did, you can now see their location on a satellite image of earth courtesy of BibleMap.org. Just type in the book and chapter of the Bible your reading and you'll see a map of locations found in that section of scripture....pretty cool huh?

Infinite, and an infant

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Wed, 24 Dec 2008 08:00:00 -0500

“I do believe that the very angels have never wondered but once and that has been incessantly ever since they first beheld it. They never cease to tell the astonishing story, and to tell it with increasing astonishment too, that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, was born of the Virgin Mary, and became a man. Is he not rightly called Wonderful? Infinite, and an infant — eternal, and yet born of a woman — Almighty, and yet hanging on a woman’s breast supporting the universe, and yet needing to be carried in a mother’s arms — king of angels, and yet the reputed son of Joseph — heir of all things and yet the carpenter’s despised son. Wonderful art thou O Jesus, and that shall be thy name for ever.”

- Charles Spurgeon

Better news the Gospel brings

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Mon, 22 Dec 2008 07:00:00 -0500

“Run, John, run. The law commands
But gives neither feet nor hands.
Better news the gospel brings;
It bids us fly and gives us wings.”

—John Bunyan, quoted by Jerry Bridges in The Discipline of Grace

Gospel remorse

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Thu, 18 Dec 2008 07:00:00 -0500

“Legalistic remorse says, ‘I broke God’s rules,’ while real repentance says, ‘I broke God’s heart.’ Legalistic repentance takes sin to Mt. Sinai, gospel repentance to Mt. Calvary. Legalistic repentance is convicted by punishment, gospel repentance becomes convicted by mercy.”

- Tim Keller

Trinity & Incarnation

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Wed, 17 Dec 2008 07:00:00 -0500

“Trinity and Incarnation belong together. The doctrine of the Trinity declares that the man Jesus is truly divine; that of the Incarnation declares that the divine Jesus is truly human. Together they proclaim the full reality of the Savior whom the New Testament sets forth, the Son who came from the Father’s side at the Father’s will to become the sinner’s substitute on the cross (Matt. 20:28; 26:36-46; John 1:29; 3:13-17; Rom. 5:8; 8:32; 2 Cor. 5:19-21; 8:9; Phil. 2:5-8).”

- J.I. Packer, Concise Theology

God Incarnate

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Tue, 16 Dec 2008 07:36:00 -0500

"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

“The paradox is amazing. The Creator assumed the human frailty of his creatures. The Eternal One entered time. The all-powerful made himself vulnerable. The all-holy exposed himself to temptation. And in the end the immortal died.”

- John Stott, The Incomparable Christ

In Christ Alone

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Mon, 15 Dec 2008 16:43:00 -0500

“It is not faith that saves, but faith in Jesus Christ… It is not, strictly speaking, even faith in Christ that saves, but Christ that saves through faith. The saving power resides exclusively, not in the act of faith or the attitude of faith or in the nature of faith, but in the object of faith.”

- B. B. Warfield quoted by Sinclair Ferguson, In Christ Alone

Politically Incorrect Guide To Politics

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Mon, 20 Oct 2008 08:24:00 -0400

John Stossel lays out a convincing case against government intervention by showing why we should not expect our politicians to keep their promises, and also how their attempt at keeping their promises usually backfire on us.

Parts 2-6 can be found at the Campaign for Liberty website.

Bulls & Bears

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Tue, 14 Oct 2008 14:21:00 -0400

I thought that these videos of Peter Schiff were sort of funny (in a sad way). Peter Schiff was the economic advisor for Ron Paul and both of them were laughed at and ridiculed by the "experts" for their gloomy predictions about the "invincible" American economy.

Some of these videos of Peter Schiff go back to 2006 and you would think that he was actually able to go to the future and then come back and report what he saw. I mean everything that he said would happen, as far as I can tell, has happened and everybody thought that he was Chicken Little just running around screaming "The sky is falling".

8/28/2006 - Peter Schiff Predicts the US Economic Collapse with Unbelievable Accuracy

Peter Schiff vs Steve Forbes - Part 1

Peter Schiff vs Steve Forbes - Part 2

"From the same mouth come blessing and cursing."

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Mon, 13 Oct 2008 14:05:00 -0400

I have to admit that this describes me pretty well on some Sunday's.

James 3

Baptism Resources

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Chance Witherspoon) — Sun, 24 Aug 2008 12:36:00 -0400

After a long summer blog hiatus we are back in action with a new format for some of our Wednesday night meetings. This week we have chosen to host a discussion on Baptism and as a result everyone (hopefully) in the group who will do some research on the topic and check out some of the resources listed below so that each person will be able to add something valuable to the discussion. Since we have readers of our blog who aren't able to join us in our meetings we hope that you can refer back to these blog posts when confronted with the topic. If you can't make it to meeting you can also share your views or ask questions on the topic in the comment section. Also feel free to post any relevant resources you may know of as a comment.

Baptism Resources

Audio

Doctrine of Baptism in and Filling with the Holy Spirit mp3
Wayne Grudem

The Case for Infant Baptism
Gregg Strawbridge

The Case for Believer's Baptism
Tom Schreiner

Text

Wikipedia Article

BAPTISM
THIS RITE EXHIBITS UNION WITH CHRIST
by J. I. Packer

The Evangelical Doctrine of Baptism
John Stott (pdf)

United Methodist Church- Baptism Overview

Southern Baptist Convention & IMB- Baptism Overview

Compiled List of Other Resources

Credobaptism- Believer's Baptism

Paedobaptism- Covenant Infant Baptism

What is thy only comfort in life and death?

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 07:44:00 -0400

The following is taken from the first question in the Heidelberg Catechism.

Question 1. What is thy only comfort in life and death?

Answer: That I with body and soul, both in life and death, am not my own, but belong unto my faithful Saviour Jesus Christ; who, with his precious blood, has fully satisfied for all my sins, and delivered me from all the power of the devil; and so preserves me that without the will of my heavenly Father, not a hair can fall from my head; yea, that all things must be subservient to my salvation, and therefore, by his Holy Spirit, He also assures me of eternal life, and makes me sincerely willing and ready, henceforth, to live unto him.

As a door turns on its hinges, so does the lazy man on his bed

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Walk) — Fri, 16 May 2008 08:15:00 -0400

Laziness in todays society is often celebrated, even encouraged. Most of us can think of times when overachieving is discouraged and underachieving rewarded. I can think back to some of my engineering classes where everyone was discouraged from scoring well on a test for fear that we would mess up the "curve" for the rest. (and this is from the people who will be responsible for building our bridges, cars, power plants, etc.)

The Bible knows nothing of this glorification of laziness, in fact it speaks clearly about it being a sin as well as being shameful. Douglas Wilson over at Blog and Mablog has written a good post of this topic.

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We will find no real help in looking at the Hebrew word for lazy man, or sluggard. It means . . . well, it means lazy man or sluggard. Some things are so universal that they translate well into any language; we all understand what a shirker is. It would simplistic to say that poverty is always caused by laziness, period, as some believe. But it is equally simplistic to say that no poverty is caused by laziness -- as a number of others believe. The linkage we have in our minds between laziness and poverty is one that the Scriptures helped to create. How many times in Scripture do we find the two mentioned together in one breath?

But the Bible does not just say that laziness is an engine of poverty. There are other aspects of this sin. First, laziness is shameful. However common it might be, the Bible teaches that laziness remains a disgrace. "He who has a slack hand becomes poor, but the hand of the diligent makes rich. He who gathers in summer is a wise son; he who sleeps in harvest is a son who causes shame" (Prov. 10:4-5). As a sin which brings shame, we should consider well some of its identifying characteristics. As we learn, we should remember that laziness has an obvious alternative. "Go to the ant, you sluggard! . . . " (Prov. 6:6-11). If we put these two truths together, we see that at least some poverty is shameful -- precisely because it was brought about by sinful choices. When the judgment is accurate, this is not "blaming the victim," but rather blaming the perpetrator. This does not mean that the honest, working poor are to be blamed -- the Scriptures never do that. But from the frequency of the warnings in Proverbs on the subject, we may conclude that a significant percentage of the poor are in that condition because of their own poor work ethic. So, for those in that condition, they ought to be ashamed. But instead, in our culture we try to shame the person who was inept enough to point out the obvious. Lazy bums don't have to feel ashamed. But you must feel ashamed if you use the phrase lazy bum.

But Proverbs won't give up this point. Laziness has no follow through. A lazy man may have bursts of activity, and he may even get something done during one of them. But he does not maintain; he does not persevere. "The lazy man does not roast what he took in hunting, but diligence is man's precious possession" (Prov. 12:27). Sometimes the lack of follow-through is extraordinary—a very simple thing could be done to bring a project to completion, but he does not do it. "A lazy man buries his hand in the bowl, and will not so much as bring it to his mouth again. Strike a scoffer, and the simple will become wary; rebuke one who has understanding, and he will discern knowledge" (Prov. 19:24-25). The solution to laziness is seen in this passage as well—the lazy must be permitted to eat their own cooking (or not, as the case may be). As St. Paul put it, a man not willing to work shouldn't eat.

Laziness if full to the brim of excuses. "The lazy man says, There is a lion outside! I shall be slain in the streets!" (Prov. 22:13). Sometimes the excuses are unreasonable—the ancient Hebrew equivalent of "the dog ate my homework," or "aliens kidnapped me . . . what year is it?" Other times the excuses may seem more plausible and hence reasonable, but the results are still the same. "The lazy man will not plow because of winter; he will beg during harvest and have nothing" (Prov. 20:4).

Laziness is full of "wisdom." "In all labor there is profit, but idle chatter leads only to poverty. The crown of the wise is their riches, but the foolishness of fools is folly" (Prov. 14:23-24). The lazy man wears his foolish talk like a crown. He may be full of proverbial wisdom concerning work, but his wisdom is like the legs of a lame man (Prov. 26:7).

"The lazy man says, 'There is a lion in the road! A fierce lion is in the streets!' As a door turns on its hinges, so does the lazy man on his bed. The lazy man buries his hand in the bowl; it wearies him to bring it back to his mouth. The lazy man is wiser in his own eyes than seven men who can answer sensibly" (Prov. 26:13-17). Even though the lifestyle is ludicrous, and the folly is apparent to all around, the lazy man has it all figured out. He has more wisdom (in his own eyes) than seven wise men.

Not surprisingly, laziness is an irritation to others. "As vinegar to the teeth and smoke to the eyes, so is the lazy man to those who send him" (Prov. 10:26). This is not surprising. If one of them is lazy, two men will have very different ideas of what constitutes diligence.

Laziness, like many other things in the world, compounds with interest. "Laziness casts one into a deep sleep, and an idle person will suffer hunger" (Prov. 19:15). "The soul of a lazy man desires, and has nothing; but the soul of the diligent shall be made rich" (Prov. 13:4). Laziness is not rest; it does not prepare for work. It only prepares for more laziness. The laziness grows, along with frustrated desire. Unwillingness to work for something is not the same thing as a willingness to not have it.

Laziness provokes hastiness and deceit. "The plans of the diligent lead surely to plenty, but those of everyone who is hasty, surely to poverty. Getting treasures by a lying tongue is the fleeting fantasy of those who seek death" (Prov. 21:5-6).It is a set up for boneheadedness and lies.

For a man who loves the easy way, laziness is hard to explain, because laziness is hard. "The way of the lazy man is like a hedge of thorns, but the way of the upright is a highway" (Prov. 15:19). Proverbs teaches us that laziness is counterproductive; it does not accomplish its desired end. "The hand of the diligent will rule, but the lazy man will be put to forced labor" (Prov. 12:24).

And last, laziness is an object lesson, one to be pointed out to your boys. "I went by the field of the lazy man, and by the vineyard of the man devoid of understanding . . ." (Prov. 24:30). If we are not allowed to talk about it, we cannot teach our sons. And so it must be noted that, at a certain level, laziness is a public event and not a private matter.

Walt Rumfelt Testimony

thecorefoundation@gmail.com (Chance Witherspoon) — Mon, 21 Apr 2008 22:25:00 -0400

We had the privilege of having Walt Rumfelt share his testimony with us last Wednesday night and now have that recording available for download here. Walt was a longtime athletic trainer at Crest High School and recently became terribly ill with an unknown infection after returning from a mission trip to Nepal. Walt spent a couple weeks in the Baptist Hospital and is now home recovering and regaining strength daily. His testimony is a powerful example of the results of prayer, faith, and a divine work of our Lord. His testimony is encouraging for those in the toughest of times and a simple reminder that our God is always with us. Be sure to listen to the testimony, share it with others, and keep updated with Walt's story on his website.