Evangelism: Are We All Involved

Phillip Jensen & Kel Richards - Evangelism: are we all involved? from Audio Advice on Vimeo.

Life Song - Orphan Care

The God the Holy Spirit through the pen of James instructs us that "Religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress..." (James 1:27) May you be moved to prayer and action as you watch what God is doing in Zambia and around the world through the Body of Christ globally. Amen.

When Hurting Helps

Publisher's Description: Churches and individual Christians typically have faulty assumptions about the causes of poverty, resulting in the use of strategies that do considerable harm to poor people and themselves. When Helping Hurts provides foundational concepts, clearly articulated general principles and relevant applications. The result is an effective and holistic ministry to the poor, not a truncated gospel.

A situation is assessed for whether relief, rehabilitation, or development is the best response to a situation. Efforts are characterized by an "asset based" approach rather than a "needs based" approach. Short term mission efforts are addressed and microenterprise development (MED) is explored.

Thinking Theologically About Adoption

Over the Next several weeks I plan to post several video's highlighting orphans and the need for adoption. My hope is that you will be stirred by the Holy Spirit through the Word of God presented through video agreeing that "religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress." (James 1:27) Here is the second video by Russell Moore speaking on the adoption of his two sons.

The Gospel and the Poor

I came upon this video, The Gospel and the Poor by Timothy Keller of Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City on the Blog Between Two World. Keller thesis of The Gospel and the Poor "is that all Christians are to minister in both word and deed especially to those in the
world lacking material goods, ‘social capital’, and power." My hope is it will cause us to think seriously about what true Christian social action actually is. I have attached Keller's notes.

Tim Keller: The Gospel and the Poor: A Case for Compassion from Here's Life Inner City on Vimeo.

An Adoption Story

Over the Next several weeks I plan to post several video's highlighting orphans and the need for adoption. My hope is that you will be stirred by the Holy Spirit through the Word of God presented through video agreeing that "religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress." (James 1:27) Here is the second video by Russell Moore speaking on the adoption of his two sons.

All I Need is CHRIST

All I Have Is Christ from Sovereign Grace Ministries on Vimeo.

Adoption Awareness in the Church

Over the Next several weeks I plan to post several video's highlighting orphans and the need for adoption. My hope is that you will be stirred by the Holy Spirit through the Word of God presented through video agreeing that "religion that God our Father accepts as pure and faultless is this: to look after orphans and widows in their distress." (James 1:27) Here is the first video by Russell Moore speaking on Adoption Awareness in the Church.

“Nothing You Can Do to Harm Me”

John Chrysostom (ca. 347-407) is considered to be one of the great saints of the Church. When John was brought before the empress Eudoxia, she threatened him with banishment if he insisted on his Christian independence as a preacher.

"You cannot banish me, for this world is my Father's house."

"But I will kill you," said the empress.

"No, you cannot, for my life is hid with Christ in God," said John.

"I will take away your treasures."

"No, you cannot, for my treasure is in heaven and my heart is there."

"But I will drive you away from your friends and you will have no one left."

"No, you cannot, for I have a Friend in heaven from whom you cannot separate me.

I defy you, for there is nothing you can do to harm me."
– Between Two World Blog

Do you have John Chrysostom’s ardent faith in the face of what will befall us all? Is Christ, your sovereign comfort, life, treasure and friend as you face death? He is all that and infinitely more. Praise your sovereign King JESUS! Lift high His NAME in all the Earth for no lasting and eternal harm can come to you for all of God’s promises are assured in Christ Jesus our LORD. Amen!

Your Pilgrim Brother,

Pastor John

Together for Adoption

Weep with God.

The Apostle's Creed - Rich Mullins

The Apostle's Creed: Speak it with Your Children

I have made it a discipline with my children just before bed to recite the Apostle's Creed. The discipline has come to bear fruit in various situations as I interact with my children daily. God presence in conversation and kid outbursts have reflected the very words and truths of the Gospel summarized in the Apostle's Creed. I have found my own faith in the Triune God and the beauty of his Gospel grow. I found a quote on the web by J.I. Packer where he says:

"Each worshiper . . . has come into the hands of the Christian God where he is glad to be, and when he says, 'I believe,' it is an act of praise and thanksgiving on his part. It is in truth a great thing to be able to say the Creed."

J I Packer, Affirming the Apostle's Creed (Crossway, 2008) 29.

Truly it is a Great Thing to say with my children the treasure of the Gospel found in the Apostle's Creed.

Depression: A Stubborn Darkness

In this video Ed Welch share the story of his own father's struggle with depression, and give a few thoughts on how to think biblically about depression.



If you have been touch by depression through a friend or family member or you have struggle with stubborn darkness of depression, you may be help by Ed Welch's book Depression - A Stubborn Darkness: Light for the Path. If you would like to read chapter 1 just click.

Catechism Challenge -L.D. 16

Study Questions – L.D. 16

Q. 40 Why did Christ have to go all the way to death?

A. Because God's justice and truth demand it: only the death of God's Son could pay for our sin.

Q. 41 Why was he "buried"?

A. His burial testifies that he really died.

Q. 42 Since Christ has died for us, why do we still have to die?

A. Our death does not pay the debt of our sins. Rather, it puts an end to our sinning and is our entrance into eternal life.

Q. 43 What further advantage do we receive from Christ's sacrifice and death on the cross?
A. Through Christ's death our old selves are crucified, put to death, and buried with him, so that the evil desires of the flesh may no longer rule us, but that instead we may dedicate ourselves as an offering of gratitude to him.

Q. 44 Why does the creed add, "He descended to hell"?

A. To assure me in times of personal crisis and temptation that Christ my Lord, by suffering unspeakable anguish, pain, and terror of soul, especially on the cross but also earlier, has delivered me from the anguish and torment of hell.

1. What is the consequence for your disobeying God’s Word? (Gen. 2:17)

2. Why did Christ have to die? (Rom. 8:3-4; Heb. 2:9, 14, 15)

3. Why did Jesus Christ have to be buried? (Isa. 53:9; 1 Cor. 15:3-4)

4. Can our death pay the debt of another or our own? (Psalm 49:7-8)

5. If Christ has died for us, why do we still have to die? (Phil. 1:21-23)

6. What benefit do we receive Christ’s crucifixion and death? (Rom 6:5-14)

7. How does Christ death on the cross change you? (Rom 12:1; Eph. 5:1-2)

8. Why does the Apostles Creed add, “He descended to hell”? (Is. 53; Matt 26: 36-46; 27:45-36; Heb. 5:7-10)

9. What comfort does Christ descent into hell bring you? (Rom. 8:1)

Audio: Heidelberg Catechism L.D. 16

Catechism Challenge - L.D. 15

Study Questions – L.D. 15

Q. 37 What do you understand by the word "suffered"?
A. That during his whole life on earth, but especially at the end, Christ sustained in body and soul the anger of God against the sin of the whole human race. This he did in order that, by his suffering as the only atoning sacrifice, he might set us free, body and soul, from eternal condemnation, and gain for us God's grace, righteousness, and eternal life.
Q. 38 Why did he suffer "under Pontius Pilate" as judge?
A. So that he, though innocent, might be condemned by a civil judge, and so free us from the severe judgment of God that was to fall on us.
Q. 39 Is it significant that he was "crucified" instead of dying some other way?
A. Yes. This death convinces me that he shouldered the curse which lay on me, since death by crucifixion was accursed by God.
1. What do you understand by the words, “He suffered”? (Isa. 53; I Pet. 2:24)
2. What does it mean that Christ’s sacrifice of Himself on the cross was atoning or propitiatory? (Rom. 3:25; I John 2:2)
3. What did Jesus set our souls and bodies free from? (Rom 8:1-4; Gal 3:13)
4. What did Christ’s atoning sacrifice gain for us? (Rom. 3:24-26; 5:15-17; John 3:16)
5. Why was it important that Jesus be declared innocent before Pilate? (John 18:28-19:15; 2 Cor. 5:21)
6. Is it significant that Jesus Christ was crucified instead of dying some other way? Why? (Deut. 21:23; Gal. 3:10-13)

Audio: Heidelberg Catechism L.D. 15

Catechism Challenge - L.D. 14

Study Questions – Lord’s Day 14

Q. 35 What does it mean that he "was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary"?
A. That the eternal Son of God, who is and remains true and eternal God, took to himself, through the working of the Holy Spirit, from the flesh and blood of the virgin Mary, a truly human nature so that he might become David's true descendant, like his brothers in every way except for sin.
Q. 36 How does the holy conception and birth of Christ benefit you?
A. He is our mediator, and with his innocence and perfect holiness he removes from God's sight my sin—mine since I was conceived.

1. What do we mean when we confess: “He was conceived by the Holy Spirit, born of the virgin Mary”? (Luke 1: 34, 35; John 1:14; Heb. 2:14)
2. What does it mean that the Son of God took upon Him the flesh and blood of Mary? (Matt. 1:18-25; Luke 2:1-20; Gal. 4:4; John 1:14; Heb. 2:14)
3. How could Jesus be called David’s true descendant?
(2 Sam. 7:12-16; Luke 1:26-33)
4. How is Jesus Christ our “brother in every way”? (Heb. 2:14-18; Phil. 2:7)
5. How is Jesus Christ fundamentally different then us in his humanity? (Hebrews 4:15)
6. What does it mean that Christ had no sin? (2 Cor. 5:21; I Peter 2:22)
7. What profit then do you receive by Jesus Christ holy conception and birth? (Heb. 9:13-15; Heb. 2:14-18; Rom 8:3-4)

Audio: Heidelberg Catechism - L.D. 14

Catechism Challenge - L.D. 13

Lord’s Day 13 – Study Notes

Q. 33 Why is he called God's "only Son" when we also are God's children?

A. Because Christ alone is the eternal, natural Son of God. We, however, are adopted children of God—adopted by grace through Christ.

Q. 34 Why do you call him "our Lord"?

A. Because—not with gold or silver, but with his precious blood—he has set us free from sin and from the tyranny of the devil, and has bought us, body and soul, to be his very own.

1. Why is Christ called the only begotten Son of God? (John 1:14, 18; Heb 1:1-2)

2. Why are we called the children of God? (Rom. 8:14-17; Gal. 4:4-7)

3. How are we adopted by God to be His children? (Jn 1:12; Rom. 5:9-10; Eph. 1:5-6)

4. Why do we call Christ our Lord? (1 Pet. 1:18-19)

5. With what did Christ redeem us from all our sins? (1 Pet. 1:18-19; Acts 20:28)

6. Who and what did Christ set us free from? (Col. 1:13-14; Heb. 2:14-15)

7. What is Christ “Lord” over? (Matt. 28:18; Phil. 2:9-11; Rev. 17:14; 19:16)

8. When did our Lord become the great Ruler of heaven and earth? (Rom. 8:34; Col. 3:1; Heb. 1:3)

Audio: Heidelberg Catechism L.D. 13

Catechism Challenge - L.D. 12

Lord’s Day 12 – Study Notes

Q. 31 Why is he called "Christ”, meaning "anointed"?
A. Because he has been ordained by God the Father and has been anointed with the Holy Spirit to be our chief prophet and teacher who perfectly reveals to us the secret counsel and will of God for our deliverance; our only high priest who has set us free by the one sacrifice of his body, and who continually pleads our cause with the Father; and our eternal king who governs us by his Word and Spirit, and who guards us and keeps us in the freedom he has won for us.

1. What three major offices among the people of Israel in the OT? (2 Sam. 7:2; 1 Sam. 30:7; 2 Sam. 5:3)
2. What are Christ’s three offices? (Acts 3:22; Heb. 7:17, 21; Matt. 21:5)
3. What was Jesus Christ anointed by the Holy Spirit to do? (Isa. 61:1)
4. How is Christ the chief prophet? (Acts 3:22-24; Deut. 18:15; John 1:18)
5. How is Christ the only high priest? (Heb. 2:17; 3:1; 7:17, 21; 9:12; 10:11-14)
6. How is Christ the only eternal king? (Matt 28:18-20; Acts 2:34-26)

Q. 32 But why are you called a Christian?
A. Because by faith I am a member of Christ and so I share in his anointing. I am anointed to confess his name, to present myself to him as a living sacrifice of thanks, to strive with a good conscience against sin and the devil in this life, and afterward to reign with Christ over all creation for all eternity.

1. How did you come to be called a Christian? (Eph. 2:8-9)
2. In what way do you share in Christ anointing? (Acts 2:17; 2 Cor 1:18-22; 1 John 2:19-21, 27)
3. How does are being called Christian inform our purpose? What are they?
4. What is our first purpose? (Mat. 10:32; 1 John 2:23)
5. What is our second purpose? (Rom 12:1; Phil 4:18; Heb. 13:15)
6. What is our third purpose? (Rom. 6:12, 14; Gal 5:16-17; Eph. 6:11; 1 Tim. 1:18-19; 2 Tim 2:12)

Audio - Heidelberg Catechism L.D. 12

Reason for Preaching the Gospel from an Atheist

When Peace Like a River - The Story

When Peace Like a River - The Song

How Can Jesus Be Both God and Man

The Gospel Coalition is a group of pastors from around the country and even the world from various denominations, who are committed to the Centrality of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the Church and the world. May the Gospel of Jesus Christ saturate your knowing, being and doing for your good and God's Glory.

The video posted below answers the question: How can Jesus be both God and Man? I hope to post two videos/week from Gospel Coalition pastors which address import theological truths for your growth in the Gospel and Godliness. Amen.

CATHECHISM CHALLENGE - L.D. 7

Lord’s Day 7 – Study Notes

Q. 20 Are all saved through Christ just as all were lost through Adam?

A. No. Only those are saved who by true faith are grafted into Christ and accept all his blessings.

Q. 21 What is true faith?

A. True faith is not only a knowledge and conviction that everything God reveals in his Word is true; it is also a deep-rooted assurance, created in me by the Holy Spirit through the gospel, that, out of sheer grace earned for us by Christ, not only others, but I too, have had my sins forgiven, have been made forever right with God, and have been granted salvation.

Q. 22 What then must a Christian believe?

A. Everything God promises us in the gospel. That gospel is summarized for us in the articles of our Christian faith—a creed beyond doubt, and confessed throughout the world.

Q. 23 What are these articles?

A. I believe in God, the Father almighty, creator of heaven and earth. I believe in Jesus Christ, his only Son, our Lord, who was conceived by the Holy Spirit and born of the virgin Mary. He suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, died, and was buried; he descended to hell. The third day he rose again from the dead. He ascended to heaven and is seated at the right hand of God the Father almighty. From there he will come to judge the living and the dead. I believe in the Holy Spirit, the holy catholic church, the communion of saints, the forgiveness of sins, the resurrection of the body, and the life everlasting. Amen.

1. Will everyone be saved? Who will be saved? (Matt. 7:13-14; John 3:16-18, 36)

2. How are you kept grafted into Christ? (Rom 11:17-21; Eph 2:8-9)

3. What is true faith? (Heb. 11:1-3)

4. What are the causes of true faith? (Eph 2:8-9; Rom. 1:16; 10:17; 1 Cor. 1:21; John 3:3-7; 1 Pet. 1:12; 2 Pet. 1:21)

5. How do you experience true faith? (Rom. 4:18-5:1; 10:10; 12:1-2)

6. What must a Christian believe to live well? (Matt. 28:18-20; John 20:30-31; 2 Tim. 3:16-17)

7. What is “the articles of our Christian faith” called? (Q&A 23)

Audio: Heidelberg Catechism - L.D. 7

Is Jesus the Only Way?

Lee Strobel in his book The Case for Christ demonstrates that Jesus is the only way. This video is an excellent summary answering the question "is Jesus the only way to salvation".

ESV Study Bible - Part 2

The ESV Study Bible is simply the best study bible I have ever used. If you are seeking to dig deeper into God's Word and desire the tools to do it well, get the ESV Study Bible. I hope to do a series on the features of the ESV Study Bible with downloads, so that you may see for yourself this excellent resource for studying God's Word.

I have attached a video introducing the reader to the features of the ESV Study Bible.

What Does it Mean to Give Thanks at All Times with Sincerity?

The Gospel Coalition is a group of pastors from around the country and even the world from various denominations, who are committed to the Centrality of the Gospel of Jesus Christ in the Church and the world. May the Gospel of Jesus Christ saturate your knowing, being and doing for your good and God's Glory.

The video posted below answers the question: What does it mean to give thanks at all times with sincerity? I hope to post two videos/week from Gospel Coalition pastors which address import theological truths for your growth in the Gospel and Godliness. Amen.

CATHECHISM CHALLENGE - L.D. 6

Lord’s Day 6 – Study Questions

Q. 16 Why must he be truly human and truly righteous?

A. God's justice demands that human nature, which has sinned, must pay for its sin; but a sinner could never pay for others.

Q. 17 Why must he also be true God?

A. So that, by the power of his divinity, he might bear the weight of God's anger in his humanity and earn for us and restore to us righteousness and life.

Q. 18 And who is this mediator—true God and at the same time truly human and truly righteous?

A. Our Lord Jesus Christ, who was given us to set us completely free and to make us right with God.

Q. 19 How do you come to know this?

A. The holy gospel tells me. God himself began to reveal the gospel already in Paradise; later, he proclaimed it by the holy patriarchs and prophets, and portrayed it by the sacrifices and other ceremonies of the law; finally, he fulfilled it through his own dear Son.

1. What kind of Deliver should we look for? (Q&A 16, 17)

2. Why must Jesus be truly human and truly righteous? (Rom. 5:12-21; Heb. 7:26-27)

3. Why must Jesus be also true God? (Col. 1:15-20; Isa. 53; 2 Cor. 5:21) Who alone could take upon himself the wrath of God for ALL Sin?

4. Who is your Mediator? (1 Tim. 2:5) What did your Mediator do? (1 Cor. 1:30; 1 Pet. 3:18) How does this truth give you comfort?

5. How can I learn about my Mediator Jesus Christ? (Q&A 19) When did God begin to tell that he would send a Mediator? (Gen. 3:15)

Audio: Heidelberg Catechism - Lord's Day 6

What Do Un-Believers Think of Christians

CATECHISM CHALLENGE - L.D. 5

Lord’s Day 5 – Study Questions

Q. 12 According to God's righteous judgment we deserve punishment both in this world and forever after: how then can we escape this punishment and return to God's favor?

A. God requires that his justice be satisfied. Therefore the claims of his justice must be paid in full, either by ourselves or another.

Q. 13 Can we pay this debt ourselves?

A. Certainly not. Actually, we increase our guilt every day.

Q. 14 Can another creature—any at all—pay this debt for us?

A. No. To begin with, God will not punish another creature for what a human is guilty of. Besides, no mere creature can bear the weight of God's eternal anger against sin and release others from it.

Q. 15 What kind of mediator and deliverer should we look for then?

A. One who is truly human and truly righteous, yet more powerful than all creatures, that is, one who is also true God.

1. What do I deserve? (Rom 6:23) How can I be saved? (Acts 16:30-31)

2. Can you pay your own debt? (Read Matt. 18:21-35 – how big is the guys debt?) Do we accrue more or less debt? (Rom. 2:1-5)

3. Who is responsible for sin? (Ezekiel 18:4, 20)

4. Could the sacrifice of a goat, sheep, bull or your next door neighbor pay for my debt? (Heb. 10:1-4)

5. What kind of Deliver should we be on the lookout for? (Heb. 2:17; 1 Cor. 15:21-22; Isa. 53:9-11; 2 Cor. 5:21; Heb. 7:26; Isa. 9:6-7; John 1:1-4)

Audio: Heidelberg Catechism - Lord's Day 5

Weeping Over My Father

Weeping...I am weeping over my father. It has been 12 years since my father's death. 12 years without his voice. 12 years without his sweet embrace. I miss him. I hurt for him. I do not know where my Jesus has set his soul in eternity. Where is his home? Where has God in all his justice and mercy eternally placed his soul. I do not know. I can not say.

I can only wonder and weep as I remember the tragedy of his life. A life I loved and still love. A life that fills my memory, my thinking, my speech and even my face. Where has he gone? Will I see his sweet face, and peer into those piercing blue eyes once again at the resurrection? I do not know. I can not say.

My heart yearns for the eternal happiness of his soul. My desire is to plead with God to have mercy, even though judgment day for my father was 12 years ago. The last chapter of my father's life did not end happily ever after, but in a horrible moral tragedy that still wanders down the hall of my haunted memory. Always replaying in my mind like a broken record skipping back, again and again. If only that moment could be played back once again, and my father could have turned back to God when the door of this life slammed shut. What hall did my father walk into eternity down? Was it the hall to heaven and everlasting happiness or the hall of hell and everlasting hurt. I do not know. I can not say.

How many lives are like that of my father? If only they could clearly reflect upon their lives before death rips us from life, how different the end of many would be. Johnny Cash was a man who was tormented by his own rebellion and who seemed at the same time to have it all. He was able at the end of his life to clearly reflect upon his life through the redemption he has in Jesus Christ, and call his empire of success and fame...DIRT. May you view all of your earthly goods and accomplishments as dirt, so that you may embrace what is of greatest importance...to love GOD and love OTHERS. Amen.

When Lancelot Comes Riding

Brett Harris of The Rebelution writes his second helpful post in a series called Modern Day Chivalry. I hope this post called When Lancelot Comes Riding will a blessing to young ladies. This is the second post of a fives part series that I hope will lead you in living for a greater glory than your own...God's Glory.

Link: When Lancelot Comes Riding

Great Sportsmanship

Here is a great video by ESPN on the essence of sportsmanship, and how the game of life should be played. Enjoy! (Logan)

Fasting: A Humbling of Ourselves

In my reading on fasting, Wilhelmus a Brakel in his magnum opus "The Christian's Reasonable Service" instructs his readers about fastings main purpose. He says:

"Fasting serves but one purpose: to facilitate the humbling of the soul; it has no significance beyond that."

He goes to explain what the humbling of ourselves consist of.

1. The confessioin of sin, accompanied with grief and shame...
2. Declaring ourselves to be worthy of judgment...
3. A supplicating for grace, frequently accompanied with weeping...
4. A renewal of the covenant with the wholehearted intent to forsake former sins and live a godly life...
5. The giving of alms
   

Father Brakel, as he was known in his day (1635-1711) also instructs the members of his congregation and the church about how long should a fast be and in what manner should it be preformed.

The duration of the fast is limited to a twenty four hour period - from evening to evening...Everyone has personal freedom in doing this...In so doing we will acquaint ourselves with the Lord; we will become more modest and holy, and the Lord generally grants more spiritual grace to such. In setting such a day apart, every one is free as the the extent to which he wishes to do so...It can be that he will desist from his labors if he is self-employed and if it is not to the disadvantage of his family; he can do this without anyone noticing this. Or it can be that he sets this day apart while nevertheless intending to do this work...and to eat a limited amount of food, so as to conceal form others the fact that he is fasting that day. The latter must very much be his objective according to the instruction of Christ in Matthew 6:16-18.

(The Christian's Reasonable Service - Fasting - Vol. 4, p. 3-10)

Operation World Country of the Week

The Church has been called to make disciples of all nations or peoples (Matt. 28:19-20). Because we have been called to such a glorious task for the fame of King Jesus, I hope to highlight one country each week from Operation World for your prayer support. Not only will we be praying that the mission of God will be accomplished throughout the globe (Matt 24:14), but in the process we grow in our understanding of the people of the world and God's work among the nations (Ps. 46:10; Ps. 47:8-9). Please pray for the peace of the nations, which can only be found through faith in Jesus Christ (Isa. 66:12; Jer. 33:9).