John Piper on the Cure of Souls in Despair

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I read this little book this weekend and was really helped by it. Piper deals well with the difficult issue of depression. This would be a helpful book to give to someone going through such a dark period. It is also a really helpful book for pastors, helping us to think through how to aid people in such situations. Piper draws deeply from Puritan authors who dealt with this topic. Too often today pastors are thought of as CEO’s, speakers, managers, etc., though in previous days we were thought of as “physicians of the soul.” I intentionally chose the title of this post to highlight the “cure of souls” which used to be the typical understanding of the work of the pastor.

The introduction and first chapter lay out the basic issues with helpful discussions of the place and value of medicine. Piper notes that medicine has a place and that there is nothing inherently wrong with its use. He does also note, though, that this does not negate the need for spiritual help. A chemical imbalance may trigger despair and medicine can help this. However, the doubt, etc. which may arise from this also needs to be addressed by the gospel.

Chapter 2 is an excellent discussion of the fact that the “dark night” comes to all at some point. Piper writes:

“It will be of great advantage to the struggling Christian to remember that seasons of darkness are normal in the Christian life. I don’t mean that we should not try to live above them. I mean that if we do not succeed, we are not lost, and we are not alone, as the fragment of our faith clings to Christ” (33-34)

There is much helpful guidance here about navigating and helping others navigate these dark times which come to almost all of us. Simply acknowledging that this is fairly common is a great help in contrast to those who seem to suggest that the typical path is one that grows brighter each day.

Chapter 3 counsels that one key way through the valley is to keep doing what you know you ought to do. Piper writes:

“Waiting for the Lord in a season of darkness should not be a time of inactivity. We should do what we can do. And doing is often God’s appointed remedy for despair” (45).

He quotes George MacDonald:

“bethink thee of something that thou oughtest to do, and go to do it, if it be but the sweeping of a room, or the preparing of a meal, or a visit to a friend. Heed not thy feelings: Do thy work” (46).

Again Piper writes:

“If your feelings are telling you that staying in bed is the best thing today, preach to your feelings and tell them how foolish they are.” (47)

In touching this chapter just briefly, it may seem that Piper’s advice here is cold. That is not the case. It is refreshing and helpful; but you must read the chapter to get the full context. The counsel given here is very similar to the poem “Do the Next Thing.”

Chapter 4 examines the issue of unconfessed sin as the possible cause of the darkness. He is careful to say this is not always the case, but it can be. We fear confession because we struggle to believe the gospel- that God will forgive. Piper puts it well:

“The almost incredible of confessing and renouncing sin is that the Lord does not then rub it in our face but cancels it” (55).

Of course confessing to God may be easier than confessing to other people. This is dealt with as well, with Piper stating:

“The tender words, ‘I’m sorry, will you forgive me?’ are one of the surest paths to joy” (56).

Chapter 5 argues that the way out of darkness is looking away from ourselves. Self-absorption will only lead to more darkness. Chapter 6 then takes up John Newton and his relationship with William Cowper as an example of loving those in the dark of despair.

I encourage all pastors to take the time to read this book as a part of training ourselves in the cure of souls. This is our work. Piper helps us grow in this are and in his footnotes points us to a wealth of Puritan literature on the topic.

Mr. Pipes and the British Hymn Makers

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Mr. Pipes and the British Hymn Makers, Douglas Bond
(Christian Liberty Press, 1999), pb., 242 pp.

This was a delightful read! We are officially Douglas Bond fans now! This book is significantly different from the Crown & Covenant books, however. In fact, as we began this book, my boys thought it was a bit slow coming out of a run of books which included battles, etc. However, they were soon caught up in this story as was I.

The story follows is centered around a summer spent in England by two fairly typical American children, Annie & Drew. At the beginning they expect to be miserably bored spending a summer in an old town named Olney. However, once they meet Mr. Pipes, the organist of the local Anglican church, everything changes. Pipes, an older Englishman, enthralls them with stories about hymn writers, their faith and their adventure amidst taking them fishing, exploring and sailing on the river Ouse. Along the way they learn many things about British culture and cuisine as well. The great truths found in the hymns they learn come to life as they hear them and see their reality in Mr. Pipes. In the end both children, who previously had attended church just on occasion, express their faith in Christ.

There is so much to admire in this book. What drew my boys in was the description of a great holiday- sailing, fishing, visiting key historical places, etc. I found myself longing for just such a holiday, myself! There were great places for laughter and excitement in the reading. Then, the deliberate straightforward advocacy of the great hymns was thrilling to me. We already sing hymns with our children, at home and in church, but it was great to have a fun book which reinforced this and in many ways explained why this is a key value in our family. It was also fun to learn some new hymns.

Furthermore, the description of the spiritual awakening of the children, particularly Drew, was very well done. It was not the standard cookie-cutter evangelical portrayal. Rather, Drew begins to note the real joy expressed in the hymns, how they cut across his sinful nature, how they look to eternity in contrast to his lack of preparedness for eternity. The fictional Mr. Pipes is a good evangelist. He is not merely interested in getting these children to repeat some words. He is looking for conversion, a change of heart. As things develop, and they are contemplating the hymn, “The Church’s One Foundation,” Pipes says to them:

There exists no greater privilege in all the world than membership in Christ’s true church….
I want you both to be lovers of Christ’s church- yes, with all her warts- for she ever shall prevail, and those in her true communion on high will dwell with our blessed Redeemer Who bought His bride, the church, with His precious blood. (191)

After this there is a pause, a thoughtful silence, after which Drew responded, “I want to serve in Christ’s army.” Mr. Pipes responded, “Ah, yes. But it is a most demanding army filled with grand champions from ages past…. But, my dear lad, it is the most noble service under the greatest of Captains” (191). This is exactly what I want my children to hear, and they really helped to get the wheels turning in my boys’ minds, leading to some good conversations about the need for a new heart.

There is more that needs to be said about this book, but it will have to wait for another post. We strongly recommend this book. It will aid you in encouraging the use of good hymns, raise the gospel for your children and might even make them want to try hot tea- my boys just today decided Earl Grey tea didn’t taste as good as it sounded in the book. 🙂

Richard Alleine on the Oversight of Souls

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Alleine (1611-1691), like his other Puritan counterparts, understood the importance of oversight. Addressing his hearers on the importance of guarding their hearts (Prov 4:23-27), he mentioned others whom God has ordained to watch over us. He quoted Hebrews 13:17 and then wrote:

“We deal so plainly and so closely with you, we are so instant in exhorting, reproving, warning, and watching over you, because we must give an account of how we discharge our duty towards you”
(Instructions About Heartwork , 7)

May our ministries also be shaped by this crucial truth.

Bunyan on the Privilege of Church Membership

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“Church fellowship, rightly managed, is the glory of all the world. No place, no community, no fellowship, is adorned and bespangled with those beauties as is the church rightly knit together to their head, and lovingly serving one another…. Hence the church is called the place of God’s desire on earth (Ps. 132:13-16).”
(The Desire of the Righteous Granted)

Baptist Identity Conference & Humility

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The Baptist Identity Conference held here at Union last week has been the topic of much blogging, for which I am glad. If you have not seen the links elsewhere, you can look here to download audios of all the sessions.

These presentations are useful for pastors. If you are a Southern Baptist pastor, these are significant discussions about the future of the denomination with which you affiliate. If you are not a Southern Baptist, there are some helpful deliberations in general about how we interact with fellow believers, cooperating, etc.

The thing that was most encouraging to me, however, was the tangible sense of humility present in most of the sessions I was able to attend. Humility was even specifically addressed by many of the participants. Regardless of your denominational affiliation (or lack of), humility is something which desperately needs cultivating in American Christianity. When too many pastoral bio’s describe ourselves in embarrassingly glowing terms, when the culture around us sees “arrogance” and “pastor” as practical synonyms, we need a fresh baptism of humility- and in this case I think my paedo-baptist friends will agree with me in desiring a full immersion rather than just a sprinkling. 🙂

To this end, let me again recommend C. J. Mahaney’s book, Humility: True Greatness (previously commented on here).

While reading another book (Kim Riddlebarger’s The Man of Sin) I was struck by how often pride/arrogance is the mark of those who rise up against God. The building of the Tower of Babel is an effort in self-exaltation:

“Come, let us build ourselves a city and a tower with its top in the heavens, and let us make a name for ourselves, lest we be dispersed over the face of the whole earth.” (Gen 11:4, ESV)

Any time our efforts in building any institution (denomination, school, programs, etc.) has as its goal making a name for ourselves, we will deserve the same condemnation as those in Babel. In this situation, we cannot expect God’s blessing and must expect to find him destroying our works.

Or note Nebuchadnezzar who when he expresses his pride in building his own kingdom is humiliated by God being turned into a beast for a time (Daniel 4). Could it be that some “Christian” beastliness which occurs is the result of our proud, self-centered efforts to wrest praise for ourselves?

Note also Daniel’s prophecies of key anti-God leaders. While Christians differ on the referent of these prophecies, the mark of arrogance is unavoidable.
Daniel 7:8, 11– This horn had eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth that spoke boastfully…. Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire.
Daniel 8:25– By his cunning he shall make deceit prosper under his hand, and in his own mind he shall become great.
These words describe arch-enemies of Christ. Woe to us when they too easily describe us.

We claim to follow the one who said:
“How can you believe if you accept praise from one another, yet make no effort to obtain the praise that comes from the only God?” (John 5:44, NIV).
We cannot truly pursue the glory of God and our own glory at the same time.

Rather than new initiatives or campaigns we need a serious and sober call to humility. I see it being modeled by some leaders. We pastors must lead the way in our example. Truly the way forward is down. May with the hymn writer be:

Content to fill a little space,
If Thou be glorified

The Hittite Warrior

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Hittite Warrior, Joanne Williamson
(Alfred Knopf, 1960; Bethlehem Books, 1999)
pb, 237 pp.

This is a book we read two years ago- my boys would then have been 8, 7, 5 and 2 (the two year old just fell asleep!). The story is set in the time of the Judges and does a good job of describing the people groups and religions of the time. I remember thinking it may have been a bit intense in places for us at the time, but it was a very compelling story.

Uriah, a Hittite, is the main character. The story moves from the time when his homeland is overrun, to his life among the people of Tyre. There he meets a Hebrew and discovers the terrible human sacrifices to the god, Moloch. In the end he finds himself among the Hebrews whom he expected to be lesser people. However, he meets Deborah and Barak and is there for the great victory of the Hebrews over their oppressors.

The story is full of adventure, action and intrigue. It also gives a good introduction to the culture of the time. The bad thing about waiting so long is that I cannot recall as many specifics. However, I do remember thinking that the presentation of Deborah was a bit odd. Watch for that, but it can be overcome.

The Joy of Reading to My Children

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Last night I was reminded of how much I love the time of reading to my children each evening before bed. Nothing out of the ordinary occurred. I simply was reminded again of how wonderful this time is. We are reading a great book(review forthcoming) that is funny, interesting and brings up the gospel in very helpful ways. As my youngest (4yrs old) was drifting off to sleep, the others were laughing together, asking questions, and pondering quietly the gospel. This is no mere duty. It is a joy, a pleasure, a treasure, truly a solace for me, something for which I long and which rejuvenates me. It is truly one of my favorite parts of the day. This is why I chose the name of Longfellow’s poem for this blog.

Don’t get me wrong. Most nights have challenges, and some have many (the youngest not drifting off to sleep, difficulties in getting to the point of reading, my own tension resulting in unnecessary sharpness, etc.). It is not that things go perfectly. Rather, it is that in this time I can see that we are building shared memories and experiences, that they are learning facts and deep truths, and we, regardless of how the day has gone previously, are now settled together enjoying a good book.

If you don’t have such a time with your children I encourage you to begin such a one. How and when may vary widely. We have shifted along the years to meet different circumstances. It is never perfect. But, I would not miss it for the world. I feel impoverished when we miss a day.

Example of Pastoral Preaching

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This is not a great title, but I did not have a better one. I want to point you to the sermon preached at our church yesterday by Lee Tankersley on Luke 6:17-49. Lee always does a good job with the text, but this Sunday, due to the nature of the text, the pastoral struggle was particularly evident. I am not sure if it shows up in the manuscript as much as it does in the audio, but Lee stressed his concern on the one hand not to interpret the text so as to open his people to being taken advantage of and on the other hand not wanting to insulate us from the piercing of the text. This is the heart of a pastor and not merely a preacher. This is evidence of one who realizes his task is not merely to craft an interesting oration but to teach people how to live, indeed to mold lives according to the Word of God. The struggle under the weight of this task is apparent in the sermon.

While people’s styles are different, this is the manner in which preaching must be approached. We are to preach to the people right there in front of us, really expecting that they will take seriously what we say and act on it. And we are responsible then for how we teach them to live. I encourage you to take some time to listen to this example of one brother doing just this.