The priority that isn’t Tony Payne wrote “Over the past couple of months, pastors and church leadership teams in many parts of the world have been reviewing the year just past, and dreaming and scheming about the year to come. . . . . Perhaps you and your team have been be considering some of the following plans . . . .” He then lists 8 areas of church life and ministry. He comments, “The problem, of course, is that you simply can’t do all this. . . . . So which items are you going to prioritize?”
If you preach like Whitefield, think like Wesley Eric Geiger writes, “In his highly popular book, The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell contrasted the ministry of George Whitefield and John Wesley. . . . . . . . Wesley’s impact was more far-reaching . . . . ” Geiger explains why, and how we can, in his words, “think like Wesley”.
‘Broken,’ ‘authentic,’ ‘surrender’: the problem of Christian jargon Dan Doriani throws a spotlight on a number of terms often used in Christian circles. He comments, ”The need to get our language right applies to all sorts of theological and ethical discussions. Approaching them, we remember Paul forbids quarrels about words and encourages a peaceable approach (2 Timothy 2.14, 24–26). Yet we also know that precise language is a servant of good theology. . . . . So let us strive to use the right words in the right way, for the sake of Christ and his church.”
Say it in a sentence Justin Buzzard writes, “When I was 21, I started preaching once a month at The Santa Barbara Rescue Mission. . . . . One Thursday afternoon I went for a walk with my pastor. He asked me what my sermon was about for later that night. Four minutes into trying to explain what my sermon was about, my pastor interrupted me and said: “SAY IT IN A SENTENCE!” . . . . That piece of advice transformed my preaching . . . .”
Four lessons I’ve learned from the Puritans Dave Arnold writes, “Although I was exposed to a few of the Puritans when I was in college – namely, in my preaching classes – it wasn’t until 2014 that God, by His grace, opened my eyes to these spiritual giants of the seventeenth century and forever changed my life.”
He will hold me fast Ada R. Habershon wrote the hymn When I fear my faith will fail in 1906; the chorus begins He will hold me fast. Matt Merker adapted the words and wrote a new tune for it. This is a wonderful hymn; in Keith and Kristyn Getty’s words, “a unique jewel that would be a comfort and encouragement to God’s people as we live out faith in these difficult times, whether in suffering, persecution or death.”
Tony Payne, of Matthias Media, wrote (in January 2014): “Over the past couple of months, pastors and church leadership teams in many parts of the world have been reviewing the year just past, and dreaming and scheming about the year to come. . . . . Perhaps you and your team have been be considering some of the following plans . . . .” He then lists 8 areas of church life and ministry. He comments, “The problem, of course, is that you simply can’t do all this. You have limited time and resources. So which items are you going to prioritize? . . . . . . . I continue to be surprised at how widely one of the most important of these bullet points is neglected. It just gets overlooked, or put in the too-hard basket, or falls off the end of the priority list in the face of all the other competing pressures and possibilities. It is one of the most important because it is the bullet-point that in many respects drives and enables all the others.” What is that priority? Find out HERE.
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If you preach like Whitefield, think like Wesley.
Eric Geiger writes, “In his highly popular book, The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell contrasted the ministry of George Whitefield and John Wesley. Gladwell articulated that Whitefield was the better communicator, a more powerful preacher than Wesley. Whitefield was also known as a more capable theologian than Wesley, more likely to be compared to Luther or Calvin than Wesley would have been. Yet Wesley’s impact was more far-reaching . . . .” Geiger explains why. He then briefly considers what it means, in his words, “to think like Wesley”. Read the whole article HERE.
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‘Broken,’ ‘authentic,’ ‘surrender’: the problem of Christian jargon.
Dan Doriani writes, “It’s easy, perhaps even necessary, to mock Christian jargon from time to time. . . . . . . . however, we must make distinctions. Some jargon comes directly from Scripture. For example, “saved” appears many times in God’s Word, and it generally has the sense we give it in church circles. “Saved” is an important biblical term, and the danger is not that it’s misleading, but that we use it thoughtlessly, so the term loses its heft. But more often, our jargon has a light connection to Scripture. One thinks of prayer language like “hedge of protection” and “open door.” . . . . “Broken” is an interesting case. In my circles (perhaps not yours), certain pastors and teachers often tell their people they are broken or need to face their brokenness. . . . . There are three difficulties with the jargonish use of “broken.” . . . . There is a third category of jargon—terms that have no biblical basis whatsoever and come from secular culture. “Surrender,” “transparency,” and “authenticity” all belong in this category.”
In his conclusion, Dr. Doriani comments, “The need to get our language right applies to all sorts of theological and ethical discussions. Approaching them, we remember Paul forbids quarrels about words and encourages a peaceable approach (2 Timothy 2.14, 24–26). Yet we also know that precise language is a servant of good theology. . . . . So let us strive to use the right words in the right way, for the sake of Christ and his church.”
Read the whole article HERE.
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Justin Buzzard writes, “When I was 21, I started preaching once a month at The Santa Barbara Rescue Mission. I didn’t know how to preach and I wanted to learn . . . . . . . . I used spare time to work on my sermons for the Rescue Mission. I didn’t have a method. I generally picked a text or two, studied the text, then wrote down a bunch of stuff to say. One Thursday afternoon I went for a walk with my pastor. He asked me what my sermon was about for later that night. Four minutes into trying to explain what my sermon was about, my pastor interrupted me and said: “SAY IT IN A SENTENCE!” He said I wasn’t ready to preach until I could state what my sermon was about in one, clear sentence. That piece of advice transformed my preaching . . . .” [Please note: a link to an interview follows, but this link is broken.] Read the whole article HERE.
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Four lessons I’ve learned from the Puritans.
Dave Arnold writes, “Although I was exposed to a few of the Puritans when I was in college – namely, in my preaching classes – it wasn’t until 2014 that God, by His grace, opened my eyes to these spiritual giants of the seventeenth century and forever changed my life. I remember the morning clearly. It was early and my daughter (who was only a few months old), was sitting on my lap contently. I reached over to grab my Kindle and scrolled through the ‘free books’ section. It was then my eyes fell upon a title Samuel Rutherford and Some of His Correspondents by Alexander Whyte. I knew of Whyte and had read some of his sermons, so I thought I’d download it. And I’m so glad I did! Whyte had me at the introduction, as he beautifully portrayed the life of Rutherford, the great Scottish divine of Anwoth, his exile in Aberdeen, his involvement in the Westminster Assembly, and most importantly, his ardent love for Christ. Not only did I read Whyte’s classic work on Rutherford’s letters, but then went on to read the Letters myself, which drastically impacted the trajectory of my life. Moreover, through Whyte, and then incidentally, Rutherford, their writing opened my eyes to other Puritans; and thus, my journey to understand the Puritans began. With that said, I’d like to share with you four lessons on how the Puritans have impacted me personally.”
Read the whole article HERE.
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Ada R. Habershon (1861–1918) wrote the hymn When I fear my faith will fail in 1906. Matt Merker has adapted the words and written a new tune for it, which was introduced to Merker’s church, Capitol Hill Baptist Church, Washington, DC, in 2013. Keith and Kristyn Getty write, “From the first time we heard this song written by Matt Merker, we felt it was a unique jewel that would be a comfort and encouragement to God’s people as we live out faith in these difficult times, whether in suffering, persecution or death.” Kristyn Getty sings it as a solo in the YouTube video above. Below you can hear it sung by the congregation of Capitol Hill Baptist Church.
You can find more information, including the lyrics and Matt Merker’s story of how he came to write this new version of Ada Habershon’s hymn, HERE.
Creation to New Creation - a Bible Overview 