Mar 12, 2014 | Pastoral Ministry
Here are a few more quotes from Manetsch’s book Calvin and His Company of Pastors Regarding Spiritual Counsel and Consolation “Words fail to explain how necessary prayer is. . . . Surely with good reason the Heavenly Father affirms that the only stronghold of safety is in calling upon his name.” Through prayer, Christians are reminded of God’s providential care for them, experience God’s power to heal and help them, and receive assurance of God’s grace to forgive their sins and bring them into eternal life. In sum, Calvin believed, “it is by prayer that we call [God] to reveal himself as wholly present to us.” 290. Goulart’s ten principles to be followed by Christian pastors, or “consolers,” as they apply the medicine of Scripture to the needs of suffering men and women: The pastor should know and have true compassion for the person suffering. The pastor should encourage the ailing Christian to adore the judgment of God and be mindful of his mercy. The pastor should conduct a careful examination of the conscience of the suffering person, probing its condition, deportments, and passions, so as to apply the proper kind of spiritual consolation. The pastor should have at hand a variety of examples of faithful Christians who faced similar afflictions and yet trusted in the grace of God. The pastor should remind the afflicted Christian that other believers have remained faithful as they faced similar, or even worse, trials. The pastor should listen to and affirm what the suffering person says, while gently expanding upon or correcting opinions that are confused or inaccurate. The pastor should encourage the ailing... read more
Mar 10, 2014 | Christian Living, Featured Articles, Reading
One helpful way to spur others on to growing deeper in your discipleship is meeting together with other Christians. I’ve previously given some suggestions on what such a regular gathering might consist. One tool to deepen discipleship in a regular meeting with others is to choose a book to read together and discuss it. What is involved in such a commitment? Here are a few suggestions on how to make the most of reading a book (outside Scripture) together. Commitments in Reading Material Together Determine exactly how much you will read and discuss each week. Make sure everyone involved is committed to complete the reading each week. Commit to not only read, but think through specific applications of what is being read. Commit to read the material chosen carefully, not merely complete the portion agreed upon each week. Don’ts for Good Discussion Don’t commit to something you cannot consistently contribute to significantly. Don’t allow each other to remain general in what they are applying to what they are reading. Don’t merely read quotations that you thought were good. Why were they good? How are they impacting you? Don’t only consider applications for yourself – but consider applications for the church and how what you are reading could build up others. Don’t dominate the time so that others can’t participate. Be mindful. Do’s for Good Discussion Mark up the book you are reading, including notes in the margin to remind yourself how/why what you marked has impacted you. Quickly glance over the the assigned section of reading and your marks before the discussion. Determine the most impactful element of the... read more
Mar 6, 2014 | Featured Articles, Pastoral Ministry, Preaching
Carefully Think Read Matthew 13:44-52 List the parables described here. What are the similarities between each of the parables? What are the differences? What is the emphasis of the first two parables that do not have a stated explanation? What is the emphasis of the thrid parable that is explained? What are the new and old things that Jesus is referring to in the last parable (vv 51-52)? How is this final parable (vv 51-52) a good summary of the three parables before it? Of all the parables in chapter 13? Prayerfully Meditate How do you see your participation in God’s kingdom similar to the man who found the hidden treasure and the merchant who discovered the valuable pearl? The disciples could identify themselves with the parables (v 51). How do you personally identifiy with each of these parables? What is it about the kingdom of God that you find overwhelmingly, joyfully, compelling that you would give up everything to have it? How do you cultivate and maintain such a compelling joy in the things related to God’s kingdom? Intentionally Act Do you find anything in your life distracting you from the deepest joy in the kingdom of God? How can you focus your heart on the kingdom this week? What will you do? How will you respond? How could you use this passage as a means to encourage someone else? Who would that be in your life? Make plans in your heart and schedule to do that this week. Pray for those who will be in attendance Sunday do not love God’s kingdom like the man who finds... read more
Mar 5, 2014 | Pastoral Ministry
Here are a few more notable quotes from Scott M. Manetsch’s book, Calvin’s Company of Pastors: Pastoral Care and the Emerging Reformed Church, 1536-1609. On Church Discipline Calvin insisted that the power of the keys did not give the church the authority to pronounce damnation or salvation – that decision belonged to God alone. Instead, the church’s discipline was always provisional, intended to rescue the wayward in a spirit of mildness and gentleness. In this way, Calvin averred, reformed excommunication was to be distinguished from the Catholic pronouncement of anathema, for whereas the latter “condemns and consigns a man to eternal destruction,” the former warns the sinner of future condemnation and “calls him back to salvation 188-189. Calvin, Beza, and their colleagues believed that ministers exercised the power of the keys in three primary ways. First, the spiritual authority to ‘bind and loose’ was exercised in a general way when ministers preached the gospel in their sermons, announcing God’s righteous judgment upon the wicked and God’s promise of salvation to those who turned to Christ in repentance and faith. Second, the power of the keys was employed more particularly when pastors and lay elders conducted annual household visitations to examine the character and doctrine of church members, or when they admonished sinners in private conferences. Finally, ministers and elders employed the power of the keys through the ministry of the Consistory as they confronted people who were guilty of moral failure and excommunicated from the Lord’s Table those who refused to repent of their error. . . . The power of the keys needed to be exercised with wisdom... read more
Mar 3, 2014 | Christian Living, Featured Articles
From the outset, let me again say, discipleship is more than a meeting. It is living all of life in devotion to Christ. A meeting isn’t sufficient and doesn’t necessarily guarantee discipleship. However, I find that being intentional about pursuing Christ with two or three other people is a very helpful tool to keeping myself sharp and push myself and others to be intentional about our pursuit of the Lord. If you were to begin meeting with another person or a small group of a few people to encourage and deepen your fellowship with Christ, what would you do in that time together? What would guide your conversation and make it most helpful? You could simply keep it organic and spontaneous. I just haven’t found that to be the most helpful in the long run. Over the next few posts, I will expand on each of these and suggest some practical ways to go about each of them. For now, here is a brief suggestion of how you could arrange an hour together, assuming there are three people meeting together. Obviously you can arrange this differently with different elements and times of which you engage. I’m simply suggesting a practical way to get started if you aren’t doing anything currently. I suggest that each week, you take turns each leading one of these areas: Discuss what you are reading in Scripture or a specific book you are reading together and how it is specifically challenging and shaping you. (20 minutes) Review Scripture you are memorizing together (15 minutes). Discuss your application of a key question you were all asking... read more
Feb 26, 2014 | Personal
Last week I listed a number of quotations from Scott M Manetsch’s book, Calvin’s Company of Pastors on ministry and life during and just after John Calvin’s life. Here are a few more on the subject of how preaching was practiced and received in Geneva during the era of the Reformation: The Ministry of the Word …the pulpit stood at the epicenter of controversy and change in reformed Geneva. In the minds of Geneva’s ministers, the proclamation of the Scripture was God’s dynamic instrument for bringing about personal spiritual regeneration, the reformation of the church, and the transformation of society according to the righteousness of Christ. 146 Preaching in Calvin’s Geneva What was noteworthy . . . was not that Protestant leaders like Luther, Zwingli, or Calvin championed Christian preaching per se, but that they viewed the proclamation of the Word of God as the minister’s primary duty and restructured parish life in view of this priority. 148 The Ecclesiastical Ordinances (1541) envisioned that a pastoral staff of five men and three assistants would preach at least twenty sermons in the city each week. 148 The preacher was not the proprietor of a pulpit or the captain of his congregation: it was Christ who presided over his church through the Word. At least in theory, ministers of the Christian gospel were interchangeable. 150 For most of his career in Geneva, Calvin preached once or twice on Sundays, and every day of the week on alternate weeks, a schedule that demanded around eighteen to twenty sermons per month, or two hundred fifty sermons per year. In all, Calvin probably... read more
Feb 24, 2014 | Christian Living, Featured Articles
Last week I suggested a few bullet points of how you could practically serve another brother or sister (or group of people) in deepening your discipleship in Christ. One of the suggestions was to ask specific application questions of one another. Discipleship is more than a meeting. Accountability questions can be dodged and become legalistic. I’m certainly not suggesting they be used in such ways. Use them to simply stimulate each other’s thinking about how to apply the Bible more fervently, specifically, and intentionally to daily life. Recently, the way I have used these questions is to have someone choose a question for the group to think on through the week. When we get back together, we start off by talking about how we lived out (or perhaps did not) the application of the question. It has proved to be a helpful stimulus for me and others. Some of these questions were taken from a list one of our elders found online, and some of the questions were developed by a good friend who used questions he was asking himself after listening to various sermons at church. They are a random list given in no specific order. Here are some of those questions: In what ways am I consciously or unconsciously creating the impression that I am better than I really am? How am I a slave to dress, friends, work, or habits? How did the Bible live in me today? Am I enjoying prayer? Why/Why not? How so? Am I defeated in any part of my life? How, why, in what ways? How do I spend my spare... read more
Feb 20, 2014 | Christian Living, Pastoral Ministry, Preaching
For those who will be attending Summit Woods Baptist Church this Sunday, here are a few ways you could begin preparing your heart for our gathering to hear God’s Word: Carefully Think Read Matthew 13:24-30, 33-36. Make a list that compares the telling of the parable (13:24-33) and the explanation of the parable (13:36-43). List things like the setting of both sections, the characters involved and what they refer to, etc. In one sentence, how would you summarize the main idea of this parable? How does this parable speak to the situation that Jesus has been facing with the fierce opposition surrounding him (Matthew 11-12)? When does Jesus say that expressions of sin and deception will be finally dealt with? How? Prayerfully Meditate Is Jesus referring to how the church is to deal with sin in her midst? How can you tell and why? How would Matthew 18:15-20 fit with what this parable is instructing? Does this parable teach that we should not confront false teaching in the world or apply church discipline? How and why? Think through how this parable should shape the way you think about God and how we should respond to deceptive teachers, false converts, and the general promotion of what is sinful or unbiblical in our world. How should you respond? Why is how Jesus deals with sin and those who promote it painted in such fierce and violent terms? Intentionally Act List ways you could apply this parable to your attitude and actions this week. Use this list as a prayerful reminder this week. How would this parable assist you in praying for... read more
Feb 19, 2014 | Calvinism, Pastoral Ministry
A friend recently recommended I read Scott M. Manetsch’s book, Calvin’s Company of Pastors: Pastoral Care and the Emerging Reformed Church, 1536-1609. How grateful I am for the suggestion. It is a fascinating look into the spiritual life of Geneva during and after Calvin’s public ministry there. Here are a few thoughts from a portion of the book. From the time of John Calvin’s coming to Geneva until the beginning of the seventeenth century, more than 130 pastors participated in what was referred to as Geneva’s Venerable Company of Pastors. These shepherds sought to oversee not only the ongoing work of the Reformation, but the practical shepherding of the churches in and around the city of Geneva. The following are quotes from the book that I have found interesting as to how these shepherds sought to oversee the flock of God among them. So much is the same, little has changed. Regarding one of the final meetings John Calvin had with his colleagues in ministry: . . . he exhorted his pastoral colleagues to be on guard against all religious innovation in the future. “I beg you also to change nothing and to avoid innovation,” Calvin stated, “not because I am ambitious to preserve my own work. . . but because all changes are dangerous, and sometimes even harmful.” 1 On establishing and maintaining right worship: Calvin identified two principal qualities of authentic Christian worship: it is spiritual and it is dependent upon the divine Word. Worship is “spiritual” in that it originates in the ministry of the Holy Spirit who initiates faith in the Christian man or woman and... read more
Feb 17, 2014 | Christian Living, Featured Articles
As I recently taught through Matthew 10, I urged my congregation and myself to consider how we could become more intentionally involved in each other’s lives to stimulate each other on to deeper relationships that produce biblical love and kingdom living. Discipleship is inclusive of engaging both non-Christians and Christians with the gospel. Here are a few bullet-point suggestions that would actually work with either. However, for the purposes of this post, let’s consider how you could invest more of yourself, more intentionally in the life of another Christian – or even two or three others regularly meeting together. Discipleship is not about checking off the following points. The following points are merely suggestions of how you could begin to think through ways to interact intentionally with other believers in a growing and ongoing way to develop more significant relationships for God’s glory. I don’t intend to annotate each suggestion. Use them as a beginning point to consider how it could flesh out specifically with you. In future posts I will give a few detailed suggestions for things such as applications questions, books to read, how to discuss a book together, etc. So here are a few suggestions on how to think about getting together with another Christian to encourage each other in more intentional ways. What to Do Converse Over Biblical Truth Read books of the Bible together Read excellent books Ask specific application questions of each other Memorize Scripture together Pray Together Pray about what you are reading Pray about what you are struggling with... read more
Feb 3, 2014 | Featured Articles, Technology
This past weekend was one of “those” weekends. It used to happen to me so much more frequently. However, I have not experienced it in almost five years: the dreaded laptop crash. I saw it coming over the past few weeks. The reliable and beloved MacBook Pro (2009) was not only slowing down, it was beginning to crawl like an infant. Last weekend, I removed just under 100 gigs of material (apps, docs, pics, music, etc.). Nothing. In fact, the dreaded Mac beach-ball-of-death was showing up on a more frequent basis throughout the week – to the point that it was taking almost as long as a Windows machine to boot, and then with every app I opened, I would have to wait for some 2 to 5 minutes before I could work. Nope. That won’t work. So, instead of trying to relax on my one day off, I spent the afternoon and evening in a last ditch effort to bring back my Mac bliss. I researched articles (on my iPad) on how to speed things up. I purged, I cleared, I dumped, etc., etc. Nothing. No change. At all. I finally came to the conclusion that I would have to do what every Microsoft phone-assistant suggests as a first step: reinstall the OS. Sweat, anger, fear – it all rushed upon me. Honestly, I haven’t felt this in years. I used to go through a Windows laptop every 18 months for a number of years before my Mac conversion. I forgot what it felt like – but the memory was quickly engaged and old feelings flooded back. However,... read more
Jan 25, 2014 | Featured Articles, Leadership, Marriage and Family, Pastoral Ministry
I had the privilege of attending and speaking at the annual Ironmen Summit, put on by Flint Hills Christian Church in Emporia, KS. Every year has been such a rich encouragement to my heart to bring a group of men and sit together under excellent plenary session sermons and practical break-out sessions that spark excellent conversation for weeks to come. This year was no exception. You can listen to all of the sessions HERE. I was honored this year to be a break-out speaker and join the others (Jack Hughes, Rick Goertzen, Craig Bowen, and Rick Holland) for a plenary question and answer session. My break-out group was a practical session focusing on how to be more thoughtful and practical in shepherding and discipling those in your home. As I promised the men, I have linked to a rough outline of my notes, and a few articles that I have found helpful to stimulate my thinking on being more practical in shepherding our homes. I pray they are helpful to the brothers who attended and any who may be able to make use of them. Leading and Loving Your Flock at Home, Session Notes, Outline A FEW HELPFUL ARTICLES 30 Practical Ways for Pastors to Love Their Wives and Families (great for anyone, not just pastors). God on Marriage, Danny Akin – notes from one of his seminars – good practical material here. 3 Ways to Nourish and Cherish Your Wife – notes from a message from C.J. Mahaney 6 Deadly Enemies of Marriage, Tim Challies Study Your Wife – see page 29 of this pdf on Biblical Productivity... read more
Jan 1, 2014 | Featured Articles, Reading
What is your approach to systematically reading through Scripture this year? You don’t necessarily have to have an annual plan that gets you through the whole thing in one year, but most find it most beneficial to have an intentional approach to Bible intake. Here’s a few suggestions: Jim Ellif offers an approach that will give you an excellent, slow, methodical approach to what I think is an excellent way to engage with Scripture in an in-depth manner. I would recommend this plan if you don’t have a significant in-depth approach to Bible study. I love reading through Scripture each year. My regular teaching of Scripture has me studying Scripture at a slow and in-depth pace. I find it very helpful to have a reading plan that takes me through all of the Bible in a year, reminding me of the big picture of each book and of the Bible as a whole. If you are considering an annual trek through the Scriptures, you may find some of the other approaches linked here to be of use. Here are a number of Bible reading plans: Begin in Genesis and read about 4 chapters a day, 5 on Sunday. I forget where I first heard about this one, but it was the first plan I used years ago, and it proved very helpful. Discipleship Journal Annual Plan. I’ve used this plan for about the past four years. It keeps you in the Gospels all year, the Old Testament writings all year, and also takes you through the rest of the Old Testament and New Testament within the year. I like staying... read more
Oct 1, 2013 | Featured Articles, Presidential History, Time/Life Management
Mixing two of my interests (Presidential History and productivity), I was intrigued by this Vanity Fair article on President Obama. I’m quite sure it was part of the 2012 election public relations strategy, but I did find a few interesting approaches from the current President to streamline decision making, keep himself focused, structure meetings, and working with people. Just two short excerpts: Routine and Its Impact on Decision-Making This time he covered a lot more ground and was willing to talk about the mundane details of presidential existence. “You have to exercise,” he said, for instance. “Or at some point you’ll just break down.” You also need to remove from your life the day-to-day problems that absorb most people for meaningful parts of their day. “You’ll see I wear only gray or blue suits,” he said. “I’m trying to pare down decisions. I don’t want to make decisions about what I’m eating or wearing. Because I have too many other decisions to make.” He mentioned research that shows the simple act of making decisions degrades one’s ability to make further decisions. It’s why shopping is so exhausting. “You need to focus your decision-making energy. You need to routinize yourself. You can’t be going through the day distracted by trivia.” The self-discipline he believes is required to do the job well comes at a high price. “You can’t wander around,” he said. “It’s much harder to be surprised. You don’t have those moments of serendipity. You don’t bump into a friend in a restaurant you haven’t seen in years. The loss of anonymity and the loss of surprise is an... read more
Sep 13, 2013 | Personal
Here’s a few shots from what we think was one of our best family vacations yet: New Orleans, LA; Santa Rosa, FL; Franklin, TN; St. Louis, MO. read more
Sep 11, 2013 | Christian Living
Here are a few notable quotes from John Piper’s chapter on John G. Paton, nineteenth century missionary in the South Pacific (from the book, Filling Up the Afflictions of Christ). I encourage you to read these quotes and consider how we approach the difficulties of our own lives from a God-centered perspective: Paton’s ministry’s lasting effect Today, over a hundred years after the death of John Paton, about 91 percent of the population of Vanuatu identifies itself as Christian, perhaps 14 percent of the population being evangelical (57). Responding to cynics who told him not to go: A certain Mr. Dickson exploded, “The cannibals! You will be eaten by cannibals!” . . . . Paton responded: “Mr. Dickson, you are advanced in years now, and your own prospect is soon to be laid in the grave, there to be eaten by worms; I confess to you, that if I can but live and die serving and honoring the Lord Jesus, it will make no difference to me whether I am eaten by cannibals or by worms; and in the Great Day my Resurrection body will rise as fair as yours in the likeness of our risen redeemer” (58). Various quotes: I do not pretend to see through the mystery of such visitations – wherein God calls away the young, the promising, and those sorely needed for his service here; but this I do know and feel, that, in the light of such dispensations, it becomes us all to love and serve our blessed Lord Jesus so that we may be ready at his call for death and eternity (61). My... read more
Sep 10, 2013 | Featured Articles, Pastoral Ministry, Preaching
For the past three summers, I have preached overview sermons through the Old Testament. Three years ago I spent the summer preaching through the Pentateuch (first five books of the Bible). Last year I taught Joshua through the Kings. This summer I just completed a series through the Major Prophets (Isaiah, Jeremiah, Ezekiel, and Daniel). To be honest, these are some of the most difficult sermons for me to prepare and to preach. The difficulty in study lies in the challenge of covering the entirety of large books in such a short time. Teaching these books is equally daunting in trying to cover large sections of very rich material in a short amount of time and often in what seems such a cursory manner. And yet, every summer, I receive a host of positive feedback from many in our congregation as to the benefit they derive in these overview series. Some have expressed their lack of exposure to preaching through the Old Testament. Others have indicated that they have never seen how a particular book was put together. Still others have mentioned how refreshing it has been to see the central theme of each book and how these books relate to one another. We have found much benefit from the past 3 years of studying the Old Testament together. Why should a preacher/teacher spend time preaching/teaching overviews of biblical books? What steps are most helpful in studying for these sorts of messages? What principles govern how you teach them? Let me see if I can help you with a few pointers from what I have been learning over the... read more
Sep 5, 2013 | Biblical Studies, Eschatology, Featured Articles, Pastoral Ministry, Preaching
For those attending Summit Woods Baptist Church this Sunday, here are a few ways to prepare. Carefully Think Read through Daniel 7. How was the imagery of Daniel’s vision interpreted for him in 7:15-27? Make a list of what you learn? What is God’s role in the events described in this vision? What phrases do you see in Daniel 7 that would give any indication as to the timing of these events? Read Daniel 8 – how does this vision differ from the one in chapter 7 in terms of its interpretation? What does Daniel 10 suggest about the unseen spiritual world and earthly affairs? What does all of the vast detail in the vision of chapters 11 and 12 reveal about God’s sovereignty over the affairs of history and the future? What indication do you see in Chapter 12 that these events are yet future? Prayerfully Meditate What effect should the kind of detail about historical and future events, like those described in Daniel 7-12, have on your view of God? Your choices? Your anxieties? Your confidence? How should Daniel’s description about the world’s future impact how we view what is happening in our culture now? What would a God-centered response to our own cultural changes be in light of what we read in Daniel? How could Daniel’s prayer in chapter 9 assist you in your own approach to confessing sin? How could Daniel’s prophecy as a whole assist you in praying about the coming of Christ? Intentionally Act Pray for Christ’s soon coming. How would he find you if the events of his coming were to begin... read more
