How to Destroy the Church

by | Apr 3, 2007 | Pastoral Ministry

From his book The Cross and Christian Ministry (which I am reading in my quiet time), D. A. Carson provides some apt application after his discussion of 1 Corinthians 3:16-17: The ways of destroying the church are many and colorful.  Raw factionalism will do it.  Rank heresy will do it.  Taking your eyes off the cross ad letter other, more peripheral matters dominate the agenda will do it – admittedly more slowly than frank heresy, but jut as effectively onthe long haul.  Building the church with superficial “conversions” and wonderful programs that rarely bring people into a deepening knowledge of the living God will do it.  Entertaining people to death but never fostering the beauty of holiness or the centrality of self-crucifyinglove will build an assembly of religious people, but it will destroy the church of the living God.  Gossip, prayerlessness, bitterness, sustained biblical illiteracy, self-promotion, materialism – all of these things, and many more, can destroy a church.  And to do so is dangerous:  “If anyone destroys God’s temple, God will destroy him; for God’s temple is sacred, and you are that temple” (1 Corinthians 3:17).  it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God. These kinds of truths the factionalists of Corinth ignored.  And these truths are all too frequently ignored by their modern counterparts.  This calls for thoughtful self-examination and quiet repentance. Well said. Worth praying about...

Good Idea for Churches

by | Feb 23, 2007 | Ecclesiology, Pastoral Ministry

Chris Meirose points us to Andy Stanley’s new church admin site.  Good idea for churches to offer ideas on what and how they do what they do. North Point Ministries Administration I would also recommend Eric Geiger’s site -a pastor from Florida and author of Simple Church.  See how they plan and execute...

Desiring God Pastors’ Conference – Day Two

by | Feb 6, 2007 | Miscellaneous, Pastoral Ministry

UPDATED It is still cold here. As we came back from dinner this evening it was about 8 degrees. Thankfully, we have not had to be out in it during the conference. The conference began this morning with another music session. I enjoyed the songs, most of which I was unfamiliar with. Interestingly, out of all of the singing, the most robust song among the entire group was the first and the last: “Immortal, Invisible” and “Solid Rock.” I love the newer and contemporary songs we have been singing, but it is obvious that many of them do not lend themselves to the most robust congregational singing, but to a more personal contemplation. Thabiti Anyabwile, a pastor from the Cayman Islands, opened the word to us from Ezekiel 8-11. He read a long and powerful portion from chapter 8. After explaining the text, he offered 10 applications for pastors, in relation to applying the holiness of God to pastoral ministry. From my notes, his ten points are: Help people choose God Himself over idols. Choose your leaders wisely. Take oversight of the people Be clear about the distinctions between justification and sanctification. Meditate on the truth that judgment begins at the household of God. Meditate on the plight of the lost. Surround yourself with those who sigh and cry over sin. Pursue a regenerate church membership Commit yourself to intercession before the Lord comes. Pursue holiness with the joy of the gospel. R. C. Sproul gave the next session on the trauma of holiness in Christ’s holiness. As he did yesterday, Dr. Sproul followed the content of his well-known...

Desiring God Pastors’ Conference – 1st Session

by | Feb 6, 2007 | Miscellaneous, Pastoral Ministry, Preaching

Pastors James Billings, Stacy Johnson and myself had an uneventful drive down to beautiful San Diego, CA to catch a plane out to the frozen tundra of Minneapolis, Minnesota for the Desiring God Pastors’ Conference. From what we can estimate, we’ve experienced about a 90 degree change in the temperature from Hemet to Minneapolis. That means it is absolutely freezing here. We checked the temp at about 11:00 p.m. here and it was 5 below zero (not chill factor). My two crazy compatriots drug me outside our hotel to experience the freeze. James (originally from Wisconsin) trotted himself outside in short sleeves and was exhilarated with the feeling being back close to the land of his roots. Stacy has never experienced this kind of cold before and it concerns me that he wants to continually take a walk outside to experience more of the frozen air. Me personally, I hate this kind of cold and fervently thank God that I am now a resident of sunny Sothern California. The high tomorrow is supposed to reach 6 degrees, which is better than today – I don’t think it got above 0. We arrived at our hotel, the site of the conference, just 40 minutes before it began. Approximately 1300 pastors are present to hear Dr. R.C. Sproul as the keynote speaker and several other men (including Dr. John Piper) speak over the next three days. I must say that the servant attitude we have experienced from the people of Bethlehem Baptist Church has been so very encouraging. The church provided a free shuttle service from the airport to the hotel....