John Piper

Last night I listened to the interview of John Piper by Mark Driscoll on The Resurgence. I thought that this interview was awesome. Through this interview I got to see a side of Piper that is rarely displayed through his preaching and writing. He talked about his family, everything from growing up to being the father of an adopted child at an older age.

One of the best parts, at least I thought, was when he began talking about his marriage. He talked about how he is more emotional than his wife. He is the one who is like, “let’s talk.” I thought it was great to see this side of Piper come out. It was very real, and it, to me, showed me that he is much more than just the man behind the pulpit.

The interviewing was interesting. I think Mark Driscoll is a great man of God, but I want to say something that may not sit well with all of you, but I will say it anyway. It was great to see two of the pastor’s which I respect the most talk together in a casual setting. This something that you rarely get to see, and by seeing this I got to see a comparison of attitudes, statements, and the way they composed themselves.

I felt that through the interview I began to feel that Piper is a much more mature and respectable person that Driscoll is. Don’t get me wrong, Driscoll is extremely respectable, but it was amazing to see the difference that the difference in their experience made.

Driscoll is at the point in his carrier where things are really taking off. The Resurgence is doing great, his church is growing, he is writing a lot of books, and he is traveling and speaking all the time. I don’t care how humble you are, this has got to give you some pride. But Piper is on the other end of the spectrum. He has been writing books for years. He has been traveling forever, and Desiring God has been huge for quite some time. He is used to the fame, and I think that he displays a unique humbleness towards the glory which people want to give him.

Piper and Driscoll

Driscoll is too very humble for the oppurtunity and his accomplishments; I just think it was very interesting to see, or more or less, hear the difference in their voices while they were speaking. Maybe I over analyze, but yeah… It is what it is.

I have attached the video of this interview below for you to download and listen to. I got this video and these photos from The Resurgence.

Click here to view the John Piper Interview with Mark Driscoll

Bicycle Heaven

What do you think of when you hear of heaven? Do you think of the smell of sweet, sweet flours? Or maybe you think of being able to run around with no clothes on!? Whatever it is that you think of, it is probably something that you long for right now and do not have. I am guilty of what I am about to talk about, so please don’t think I’m speaking down to anybody. I just find this very interesting.

I was listening to Mark Driscoll’s latest sermon from his Pray Like Jesus series, and he said something that got me thinking… a lot! He said that we all want to go to heaven because of what we will get. We relate it totally and completely to a place… You may be thinking, “yes, you are right. I do believe that heaven is a place.” So do I! But I don’t think that the best part about heaven is going to be what we are doing or where we are; I think it is going to be who is there.

Driscoll used a really cool example. He said that when he is flying, he hates it. He knows he’s gonna get sick, he can hardly sleep, and it is just an overall horrible experience. He then went on to say that it is totally different when his wife is with him though. He said that he loves his wife so much that when he flies with her, it seems as if it is perfect. In fact he probably would say he even enjoys it!

Heaven can be thought of the same way, although I am guessing it will be much nicer and enjoyable than a crowded 747. Jesus will be there. He is the longing and the desire of my heart, and I can only imagine what it will be like to be with him. To just be in his presence is enough for me to happy…

You can check out the website by clicking here…

The four topics are as follows…

1. Regeneration
2. God-Centered Theology
3. Godliness Begins at Home
4. Trinity

I hope you find this blog as powerful as I have.

To read the blog on Mark Driscoll’s blog simply click here…

… I plan on buying this book today. It is supposed to be able to be read in about an hour, so I am anxious to order all four from the entire series, but I am sure I don’t have the funds for that right now, but I want to encourage you all to take the time and read through the series as well. As Christians it is good to know what we believe in and why we believe in it.

Enjoy!

He then continues through the book talking about why Jesus is God, why Jesus is the only god, and what Jesus has done, is doing, and will do in the future upon his return.  Driscoll really just takes an approach in his writing that I have not seen before. It is highly informative, but it flows easier than most books I have read in the past. On top of that this book has so many references and so much information that you will feel as if you took a class in Jesus 101 by the time you finish the book. There are hundreds of scripture references, and dozens of quotes from influential people of today.

All in all this is a great book. It is extremely deep, but a pretty easy read. I would highly recommend it to people investigating the person of Jesus, or to anyone who just wants to learn more about Christianity.  And like with most of Driscoll’s other stuff, it seems to be tailored to young men. So be prepared for anything! Hope you enjoy it.

• Do you date if you don’t plan on getting married?
• When should you start dating?
• What is the difference in “courting” and “dating”?
• Can girls pursue guys?
• If you go on a date, does that mean you are dating?
• How involved should parents be?

I understand the Mark is not the ultimate authority on theses questions, but he does answer them very well. As a young guy I found the sermon very helpful, and I would highly recommend this to anyone who is thinking about dating sometime in the future.  Below I have attached the audio from the sermon and the “ask anything” segment as well.

I am not in any way saying that Mark Driscoll is a heretic; I think he is a great pastor, and I will continue to listen to his messages and read his books.  But what I do want to change is the complete openness to some of the profane humor he uses sometimes.