Desiring God
I got back Monday morning from my first ever trip to Minneapolis MN. To the generation immediately before mine the name of that city is forever associated with the famous strapline: 'Just write to me at Billy Graham, Minneapolis Minnesota.' As a boy I was soooo (sorry I reverted to texting mode there) impressed that one man would get a letter written to a city! Today it is more likely to be known by the younger generation as the home of John Piper and Bethelhem Baptist Church. I ended up going because a dear friend decided I needed to go to this particular conference and paid flights, hotel and fees to make it happen, and as a good Scotsman I couldn't look a gift horse in the mouth!
The theme of the conference was 'Think: The love of God and the life of the mind' which is also the title of a newly published book by Piper. The organization was superb with many thoughtful touches that made one feel welcome. The book store was 'awesome' and, in
spite of being told not to buy any books by Mrs G, I yielded to the temptation and only a limited baggage allowance and sheer fear of going home and facing the music stopped me getting all I wanted, (wives can be spoil-sports sometimes).
I expected to be wowed by all the big hitters who were speaking and Piper, Mohler, Thabiti did not disappoint. R. C. Sproul spoke on video and teasingly gave an overview of the development of philosophical thought before going in for the kill and showing how Paul's assertion in Athens was so profound - 'In HIm we live and move and have our being.' Our host, John Piper had taken some heat pre-conference by inviting Rick Warren of Saddleback to speak. In the end he couldn't make it and spoke on video, this was disappointing all round, especially as the round table discussion planned with Piper might have yielded some interesting points. Warren certainly quoted lots of Scripture and offered his usual approach to practical application - three rules for this, five principles to help you with that, ten steps to healthy whatever - there was certainly a challenge to look over my recent sermons and ask the 'so what?' question. I think Piper got it right when he expressed awe at the sheer communicative skill of the man but also concern about the dangers of a ministry built on application. In the end we want people not just to survive the immediate local difficulty they are going though but to lay a foundation of biblical truth that will still be with them in 30 years time. The only other observation about this invitation comes from the reaction to ordinary folks at the conference, these were not pastors and some had obviously struggled in churches and in groups where Rick Warren's pragmatic and programatic material had caused real confusion and some pain.
The conference had some very human moments. You couldn't help be moved at Sam Storms and Justin Taylor's moving tribute to John Piper and his ministry or the ovious shock to John when they unveiled a new book which had been kept under wraps for three years, 'For the Fame of God's Name: Essay's in Honor of John Piper.' Here is one place where the the transatlantic cultural division runs deep ofr in Britain we would never dream of saying anything nice about someone till they are long dead, lest it go to their head!
The most encourging thing for me was to see the numbers of young people attending and to hear the younger contributers to the seminar program. I had the privilege of hearing Kevin DeYoung and Tullian Tchividian. Kevin has that Stott-like ability to find a way through the clutter of ideas, identify the main issues at stake, sum up the alternative views on offer and give crisp and clear biblical solutions. Tullian is probably one of the best preachers I have heard. He handles the bible well, proclaims it with passion, applies it with terrifying skill, and certainly moved me at one point as he spoke on 'Gospel Math: How Jesus Plus Nothing Equals Everything,' and has shown great pastoral skill in marrying together two very different congregations. It is wonderful for me to see the torch of the gospel in the safe hands of a new generation, may God keep them close to Him and faithful to His word.
