Back at It

I haven't posted in a couple of weeks. Part of that time was spent at the New Jersey shore with my wife, my daughter and son-in-law and their two kids, who are the cutest grandchildren in the world. And then the inevitable return-to-action from a week off.

I began a series on Romans in the winter of 2005, and then what was a brief time-out from the book after chapter 5 turned into the full summer and fall. I picked up the series again in January, and had planned to finish Romans by Christmas this year. While I was away I spent a good amount of time in Romans 12, and it appears that we'll finish Romans 12 by Christmas. It is hard to apologize for walking so slowly through this great chapter when each phrase begs for explanation and application.

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I'm glad to see Jon Trainer back at it at Personal Trainer. I find Jon a good source for links and info, and read his site often. Jon took a break from blogging because of some carpal tunnel issues. He's a good guy and has lots to contribute.

Is there any more perversely enjoyable way to end the week than Purgatorio's Divine Vinyl that appears each Friday? I just can't get enough of this stuff.

The League of Reformed Bloggers has been updated. David Wayne at JollyBlogger keeps this list, and it can be found here. I haven't (just can't) read each of the blogs, but for those who are reformed in theology, it is a good base for both theological and practical material.

I think I owe Milton Stanley a tip of the cap for pointing to this series on Gospel Centered Congregational Worship. Good stuff!

D.A. Carson and Tremper Longman have their respective commentary surveys coming out in new editions. I find them invaluable.

Dead-center right-on hit-the-nail-on-the-head article by Dan Phillips on the issue of inerrancy. Those of us who are 40+ have seen what Philips is talking about actually happen.

The Shepherd's Fellowship (John MacArthur) has put their Pulpit Magazine and blog online for all to see.

A blog I recently discovered is one called The Shepherd's Scrapbook. Tony Reinke is in the middle of a series on studying the Puritans.

Good Reading

Here are a few links that I've marked that are worth passing on:

Tim Challies wrote a superb article entitled What It Means to Be Reformed, and followed it up two days later with a fine article entitled Credo.

Mark Dever wrote a piece on questioning professions of faith. What, you mean "I prayed a prayer" isn't sufficient??

Always helpful, Milton Stanley provides a link to an article on using Scripture more in worship. Milton's site is a fine source of good writing and thinking.

My problem with things Emergent is that it seems too similar to old liberalism in new clothes. Phil Johnson has some worthwhile insights.

Full Circle

I had blogged on June 21 about a lesson that I was learning. It came full circle this week, as the man I had written about has trusted Christ as his Savior. We've had good discussions about the Gospel, justification by faith compared to his previous catholic checklist system, and other biblical themes. He's been devouring Romans (with some help from Douglas Moo's excellent Encountering the Book of Romans . I actually shared with him yesterday what God had taught me about trusting in Him through the last month in regard to this issue.

I had a great time preaching through Romans 9 last week. It is a hard chapter, and the fact that we are an independent (non-denominational) church means that we have no "party line" in the area of Reformed theology. Some agree, some disagree, hopefully all found themselves appreciative of God's immeasurable goodness to us in Christ.

I had linked to a couple of sites a few months ago that provided good quality, free pictures for use in Powerpoint. Here's another one that I found. I thought it was pretty impressive and seems to have a good store of photos.

I finished what I felt was a helpful series on The Da Vinci code challenges. While the impact of the movie was overhyped, I was glad for the opportunity to discuss some theology and church history with our adults.

Among the many superb giveaways at the Together for the Gospel conference was a DVD by John Piper on William Tyndale. Available for $7, this 80 minute lecture was superb. We showed it over two weeks to our adults in Sunday School to a good response. In the last 9 months I've tried to expose our people to some significant areas of church history (a series on the Reformation themes, etc.) and as one older saint told me, "We've never heard some of this before." That is both tragic and encouraging! I'd highly recommend the DVD. The printed copy of the lecture (apparently abridged in some ways) is available free.

A Minister's Preaching

From The Valley of Vision, Banner of Truth, page 191:

A Minister’s Preaching

My Master God,
I am desired to preach today,
but go weak and needy to my task;
Yet I long that people might be edified with divine truth,
that an honest testimony might be borne for thee;
Give me assistance in preaching and prayer,
with heart uplifted for grace and unction.
Present to my view things pertaining to my subject,
with fullness of matter and clarity of thought,
proper expressions, fluency, fervency,
a feeling sense of the things I preach,
and grace to apply them to men’s consciences.
Keep me conscious all the while of my defects,
and let me not gloat in pride over my performance.
Help me to offer a testimony for thyself,
and to leave sinners inexcusable in neglecting thy mercy.
Give me freedom to open the sorrows of thy people,
and set before them comforting considerations.
Attend with power the truth preached.
and awaken the attention of my slothful audience.
May thy people be refreshed, melted, convicted, comforted,
and help me to use the strongest arguments
drawn from Christ’s incarnation and sufferings,
that men might be made holy.

I myself need thy support, comfort, strength, holiness,
that I might be a pure channel of thy grace,
and be able to do something for thee;
Give me then refreshment among thy people,
and help me not to treat excellent matter in a defective way,
or bear a broken testimony to so worthy a redeemer,
or be harsh in treating of Christ’s death, its design and end,
from lack of warmth and fervency.
And keep me in tune with thee as I do this work.

A Minister's Prayer

I read this yesterday in The Valley of Vision, published by the Banner of Truth Trust. I hope it will encourage you.

A Minister’s Prayer

O my Lord,
Let not my ministry be approved only by men,
or merely win the esteem and affections of people;
But do the work of grace in their hearts,
call in thy elect,
seal and edify the regenerate ones,
and command eternal blessings on their souls.
Save me from self-opinion and self-seeking;
Water the hearts of those who hear thy Word.
that seed sown in weakness may be raised in power;
Cause me and those that hear me
to behold thee here in the light of special faith,
and hereafter in the blaze of endless glory;
Make every sermon a means of grace to myself,
and help me to experience the power of thy dying love,
for thy blood is balm,
thy presence bliss,
thy smile heaven,
thy cross the place where truth and mercy meet.
Look upon the doubts and discouragement of my ministry
and keep me from self-importance;
I beg pardon for my man sins, omissions, infirmities,
as a man, as a minister;
Command thy blessing on my weak, unworthy labors,
and on the message of salvation given;
Stay with thy people,
and may thy presence be their portion and mine.
When I preach to others, let not my words be merely elegant and
masterly,
my reasoning polished and refined,
my performance powerless and tasteless,
but may I exalt thee and humble sinners.
O Lord of power and grace,
all hearts are in thy hands, all events at thy disposal,
set the seal of thy almighty will upon my ministry.

I Stand Rebuked - Gratefully

I've done enough funeral services and weddings over the years to know that the Gospel is most often met with a yawn and polite indifference than glad acceptance. Being told that you are sinful, that you stand in a place of impending judgment before a holy God, and that nothing you can do in-and-of yourself makes a bit of difference does not go down well. I'm sure that is what has led to the efforts by some to repackage the message in less offensive ways. But the reality is that even when the cold, hard facts are presented with sweetness (and they should always be presented with love and grace) they are still cold, hard facts. And most of the world ain't buying.

Praying for the sermon I am going to be delivering is a regular part of my prayer life. I regularly remind myself that no matter how gripping my introduction, no matter how insightful my thoughts, and no matter how convincing my argument, it all falls apart without the work of the Spirit. And I gladly admit that - I don't want to be responsible for trying to change the hearts and minds of people. Certainly I play a part - as is true of any pastor and teacher - but God's work through His Word is what ultimately makes the difference.

Typically on Sunday mornings I take some moments before the service and again before the sermon to confess my own inadequacy and ask God for His empowering. But this past week I found myself being a bit faithless, and the lesson learned is worth sharing.

A younger couple visited us on Sunday morning for the first time. I was on my way to the front of the auditorium immediately before the service began and greeted them. The husband told me that they were looking for a church and had heard good things about ours. Afterwards, I saw them talking to a family in our church and came to find out that one of our teenage girls had extended an invitation to attend to this man, who was one of her high school teachers. (Bravo for her, by the way!)

I preached from Romans 8:18-25 on Sunday: Future Glory and Present Pain. I explained the Gospel, talked about our future resurrection, spoke about heaven, and felt that from my standpoint I had done a decent job of explaining and applying the text. But as I saw this couple leaving, I thought to myself that they probably wouldn't be coming back. I saw nothing in our service or in my sermon that would be attractive to people who, if they typical middle-class unchurched folks, were probably looking for more than biblical exposition.

For some reason this stayed with me and on Monday morning I felt a sense of rebuke. I was making an assumption not only about these people, but about the power of God to minister to them. We do have people who visit us and it is clear sometimes from their reactions that we're "not for them" (by their standards). But that's not a guarantee. While the road is narrow and there are few that find it, there are still those few, and in my quick response I had dismissed the very thing for which I pray each week.

It was a good reminder to me, and I determined that no matter what the outward response was, I still needed to trust in God's power. But my lesson-learning was not complete.

On Tuesday morning the man who had visited called our office and asked if he could stop by and pick up a copy of the book we had given out for Father's Day (Jerry Bridges' Transforming Grace). Marilyn, our secretary, told me about the call. I was somewhat surprised, as I had offered him a book at the end of the service and he had declined. He would be coming by at a time when I was out for a lunch appointment, but I was grateful that he was coming by.

When I returned from lunch, Marilyn told me that not only had he stopped by to get the book, but he was extremely positive and almost excited about the service, and in particular the fact that I taught from the Bible for 35 minutes. He gave Marilyn his name and address (I wrote him a letter thanking him for his visit and sharing some information about our church) and made it quite clear that he intended to come back.

So take that, Peter.

The passage I'll preach from this week includes that great chain of salvation's process, beginning with being foreknown and ending with being glorified. I'm praying that this couple comes to know Christ as their Savior. If God should have us be a part in that, I hope I get to baptize them. I might tell them - and our church - the lesson I learned about a sovereign God who, without telling me first, works in the hearts of people.

The application goes beyond just visitors and lost people, though. The same thing is true as we minister to our flock. Change and growth are invisible in the short-term. Only God knows what is going on inside the hearts of people when we preach. So let's continue to do our job of study and preparation, and let's continue to confess our own inability to change people. But let's remember that God has promised to honor His word. That came home very vividly to me despite my unbelief.

Monday Discoveries on Friday

Except it is Friday. Grrr to Blogger. I had a post with a pile of links and tried to "publish post" the other day and was given an error message. Nothing could be recovered. Oh well.

Do you use Powerpoint in your preaching and/or teaching? Indezine will give you about 300 free templates for your use, and Stock.xchng will give you free pictures to use as backgrounds. I use and recommend both. If you want to pay $99 per year, there are some excellent powerpoint templates at PresentationPro. Imagebank is another free photo source.

Monergism.com has links to a series of Adobe pdf sermons on Romans by Presbyterian pastor Tom Browning. You can also find mp3's of the sermons there too.

Check out the New Testament Hyperconcordance.

Recommended books for pastors? Check here. Make sure you read the article "Why Pastors Need Church History."

I love my iPod (a gracious gift from my brother). In addition to a multitude of music and an avalanche of audiobooks, I have a plethora of preaching. Old Truth has a post on How to Buy and Reform your MP3 Player. 9Marks interviews are all availablef for free download.

Speaking of 9Marks, founder Mark Dever had a superb post on the importance of gender roles at the TogetherfortheGospel blog.

Superblogger Tim Challies has a good post on reading that would be worth looking at. So many books and so little time. Tim's article will be helpful.

Love the guys at Fide-O. Here's one about expository preaching and the contention that it is harmful. Hello? Thanks for barking, guys!

Here's a problem that is becoming more and more prevalent. I was joking with our Associate Pastor, Ron Smith, the other day about going back to the old legalistic approach that if you don't come to church, you can't go to heaven.

Brad Hightower at 21st Century Reformation has a nice article on Discipleship.

Want to be encouraged? Read the article, Backdraft Preaching. I emailed this to the author: If I read nothing but "I feel like charred wood on cold ashes. But I don't worry about it. I know God will open the doors again, let the wind rush in", I would have been encouraged. I hope the same is true for you. Thanks to my friend Pastor Glenn Jago for the recommendation.