On Pastor's Night Table

by Pastor Dennis Brown

I was recently asked to write a piece for the monthly newsletter in which I share what I am reading. As you can tell from my Sunday messages, I am a voracious reader and often have around ten books that I am perusing.  I do believe that “you are what you read,” and it has been my lifelong pursuit to expose myself to the very best—the good, the true, and the beautiful to shape my own life which I hope can be passed on so that your life can be shaped by some of those same things. So here are a few things I am or have been reading in recent days:

·  Daily Bread: McCheyne’s Bible Reading Calendar. Robert Murray McCheyne was a great Scottish preacher of the 1800’s. He recognized how hard it could be to read the Bible particularly if you start from the very beginning. So he developed a reading plan where you read from four parts of the Bible each day—both Old and New Testament. I recommend it highly and you can get it on your Kindle for a token.

·   Calvin’s Institutes of the Christian Religion. After Sinclair Ferguson visited us last fall, I was reminded of his seminary class based on the Institutes. The Institutes may be the greatest theological summation of truth ever composed since the days of the New Testament. It is like Mount Everest, and it is written in a beautiful, elegant style. But it can be overwhelming. If you want to have a go, e-mail me at dennis.brown.pca@gmail.com and I can give you some helps.

·   Calvin’s Letters. I have been obsessed with Calvin and his influence which is so profound. His letters take you back to the days of the Reformation when people were being burned at the stake for their faith (some by Calvin!). How did they survive? How did the Word and the Spirit help them and us in our comparatively much easier lives?

·    The Inklings of Oxford by Harry Lee Poe. Here is the Amazon description: “Oxford’s fabled streets echo with the names of such key figures in English history as Edmund Halley, John Wycliffe, and John and Charles Wesley. Of more recent times are those of C. S. Lewis, J. R. R. Tolkien, and the other members of the renowned literary circle to which they belonged, the Inklings. What would it be like to walk this medieval city’s narrow lanes in the company of such giants of Christian literature, to visit Magdalen College, where Lewis and Tolkien read aloud their works-in-progress to their friends, or the Eagle and Child pub, the Inklings’ favorite gathering place?” The book is a beautiful pictorial guide to this magisterial place.

·    Martyn Lloyd-Jones’ Sermons on Romans. These are awe-inspiring sermons that I cannot get enough of. Also, John Stott’s commentary on Romans has been most helpful.

·    Experiencing the Trinity by Darrell Johnson. I have seen things about the Trinity that I have never seen before. So did Darrell Johnson. He describes how it rocked his world.

·    Walking with God through Pain and Suffering by Tim Keller.

·    Morning and Evening by Charles Spurgeon.

·    With Calvin in the Theater of God: The Glory of Christ and Everyday Life by John Piper and David Mathis (based on a series of talks given at the Desiring God conference a few years ago).

·    The Imperfect Disciple by Jared Wilson

·    History of the Reformation by Merle D’Aubigne. A classic work on what life was like in the Reformation.

·    The God Who is There by D.A. Carson. An overview of the Bible for both believers and skeptics.

·    The Good God: Enjoying Father, Son, and Spirit by Michael Reeves.

·    God and Churchill by Jonathan Sandys. Churchill always felt he was a man of destiny. While he wasn’t a professing believer, he had great respect for the God of the Bible and was shaped in many ways by his Biblical vision.

·    Union with Christ by Rankin Wilbourne.

·    John Owen by Sinclair Ferguson.

Upcoming Events

• Today. From now on the Children's Ministry newsletter can be accessed from the church Facebook official business page: https://www.facebook.com/FriendshipTaipei/

• February 18th, Chinese New Year Service, 11:00am–12:00pm. We will hold an abbreviated service on Sunday, Feb. 18th, on account of Chinese New Year. There will be no Sunday School classes that day.

• February 25th, “Meet the Kims” Lunch, 1:00–2:30pm. Join us in room 501 for lunch and a chance to meet and learn more about Peter Kim, the Pastoral Search Committee’s nominee for Senior Pastor. You must register for this event, and registration is limited to 20. Register here.

• February 27th, Monthly Prayer Group, 7:30-9:15pm. “The Engine Room,” FPC’s monthly prayer group, will meet at the church apartment this month, near the Shida night market. Come join us for an evening of kingdom-centered prayer. We gather at 7:30pm and go into prayer from 8:00 to 9:15. All are welcome. Contact Peter Brown for the address (pb2059@gmail.com).

• Wednesdays (beginning Feb. 28th), New Community Group for Men, 7:30-9:00pm. The group is called “Gospel-Centered Work,” and will run for 8 weeks. It will meet at the church apartment and consider the question, “How does faith impact your work?” Learn to connect Sunday morning with Monday morning. Sign up at the welcome table outside the sanctuary or contact Peter Brown for details (pb2059@gmail.com). 

• March 4th, Town Hall Meeting, 1:00–2:30pm. All members and regular attendees are welcome at this family-style gathering over food and conversation to discuss the Senior Pastor candidacy of Peter Kim. Peter will have delivered the message during the worship service, and will present his philosophy of ministry at the meeting. It will also be a time to review his contract and discuss any other questions. Be sure to join us for this family meeting in room 1701 (7th floor) of the building at 261 Roosevelt Road.

• March 8th, Tim Keller Event in Taipei Tim Keller, Paul Tripp, and Gordon Huang will be giving a talk from 3:00 to 10:00pm on Thursday, March 8th, at the Taipei International Convention Center, titled Gospel—The Power of God That Changes Everything. For complete details, follow this link: https://goo.gl/njJQCg.

• March 11th, Congregational Vote, 12:30–1:00pm. All members are asked to attend this brief meeting directly after the service to vote on the candidacy of Peter Kim for the position of Senior Pastor. We will gather in the sanctuary on the 4th floor of the church building.

• March 25th, Baptism Class, 1:30–2:30pm. [Please note--this event has been moved to Sunday, April 8th] There will be a Sunday School class for adults on the topic of baptism. The class will be held in room 1801 (8th floor) of the building at 261 Roosevelt Road. All are welcome.

5 Questions With...(new) Deacon Stephen Tsai

            (new) Deacon Stephen Tsai

1. How did you first get involved with Friendship Presbyterian? My wife and another Christian from her workplace set out to find a place we could call our home church while we lived in Taiwan. The first church in Taipei we attended was well known and recommended, but after attending several services we decided it wasn’t the right one. The teachings they preached sounded good on the surface, often referencing God’s love and grace, but under the nuance and subtlety was a deeply legalistic message. Although it seemed harmless, even good, my wife and I were both enslaved by messages like that in the past.

For twenty-six years, I had gone to Taiwanese-American churches steeped in legalism and mysticism. Their teachings deeply damaged me for most of my life. My wife has a similar past. Then, in 2006, God led us to a pastor and church that was theologically sound where the good news finally reached us.

Finding a church in Taiwan that was centered on the gospel was a priority for us. FPC was the second church we attended. My wife knew right away it was the place we were meant to go. It took me another two or three services to come to the same conclusion. (What can I say? I come to conclusions slowly).

2. What do you do Monday through Saturday? I do not have a paying job, so, in one sense, I do whatever I want! However, I have tasks that I am deeply committed to. One is studying. Pastor Dennis had recommended that I look into seminary courses by Third Millennium, a ministry intended for training leaders who may lack proper theological resources in their home countries. I heartily endorse the curriculum for anyone interested. It is free and available in several languages. At first, I did this just out of curiosity, but it has become a real joy in my life lately. I am also currently leading FPC’s #tbt community group. I am not a leader or teacher by nature, so it takes me a long time to prepare for each study--about three hours a week. I attend the T.G.I.F. group as a participant. And I practice Jiu-Jitsu. I have trained in martial arts for almost thirty years. My physical abilities have decreased with age and injuries so, these last few years, I have quit the striking arts (hitting, punching, kicking, etc.) and focused on grappling (wrestling, grabbing, submissions). It allows me to enjoy the physical challenge and competitive sparring with fewer injuries. I started Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu in 2010 and used to train daily and compete. But it has been on the back burner these days, as I shift my priorities to studying.

3. What is something people might be surprised to know about you? I am, or was, really into motorsport. It started with cars, just typical American teenager stuff like drag racing and modifying cars. Over the years my hobby evolved. It went from street to racetrack, and from cars to motorcycles. I eventually got my certification to race motorcycles and have completed several classes/courses on advanced riding. Nowadays, due to lack of funds and time I do not get to the track regularly. But I still get professional instruction and train at a race school every couple of years as a refresher and for fun.

4. What do you find most challenging about being a Christian today? The promises of this world. Our career promises financial security and purpose. Money promises security and leisure. Education promises self-fulfillment and social admiration. Significant others promise true love. The list goes on. We are constantly bombarded by these promises, spewed out by all forms of media and deeply embedded into the personalities of those we call our friends and family. It seems impossible to escape.

The real struggle for me is to preach to myself every moment I can remember to and turn to God. I often fail, both consciously and unconsciously. But I have faith in God’s promises and know God will enable me to reject the enslavement this world offers.

5. What is your favorite book of the Bible, and why? It used to be Romans because it is so densely packed with theological wisdom. But lately, Galatians has really spoken to me. I really relate when Paul writes that adding anything to the gospel reverses (“distorts” in ESV) it. That message hits me hard because it’s something I unintentionally do all the time.

Gospel + (good works; serving; being a moral person; going to church; etc.) = salvation. That is the direction my mind keeps going back to, even if I know better, intellectually. So when Paul is writing, it feels like he is writing directly to me.

Paul reminds us that God called us, we did not call Him, and that any change to the gospel makes it about what we do for God, rather than what He has done for us.