Purpose Driven

Well I just want to thank God for vacations! Just when it seems I can't take anymore stress at work lo and behold it's my turn for a week off from the everyday grind so my wife and I are going to visit my parents in Missouri. Please pray for our son and my nephew who are house sitting while were gone. But before I leave the blog world for nearly a week let me leave you with one last video of my pastor Jonathan Sims as he closes out a week of revival at First Baptist Church of Muscle Shoals, Alabama.

You can listen to this sermon titled "What Salvation Looks Like from God's Perspective" in it's entirety HERE.

John 3:16

You can listen to this sermon titled "Five Simple Truths of Salvation" in it's entirety HERE.

Mysterious and Glorious

I am reading The Glory of Christ by John Owen and I am finding it a wonderful study of the depths of Christ and His Glory. Here is what I read this morning in chapter six.

The glory of his obedience becomes more wonderful when we realize who he was who thus obeyed God. He was none other than the Son of God made man. He who was in heaven, above all, Lord of all, lived in the world, having no earthly glory or reputation, obliged to obey the whole law of God perfectly. He, to whom prayer was made, prayed himself night and day. He, whom all the angels of heaven and all creatures worshipped, fulfilled all the duties which the worship of God required. He who was Lord and master of the house became the lowliest servant in the house, performing all menial duties. He that made all men in whose hand they are all as clay is in the hand of the potter, observed among them the strictest rules of justice, in giving to everyone his due, and out of love giving good things to the undeserving. This is what makes the obedience of Christ so mysterious and glorious. —John Owen (1616-1683)

Quote taken from The Glory of Christ by John Owen, The Banner of Truth Trust; 1994 p. 54

Fear of Man is Idoltry!

You can listen to this sermon titled "The Fear of Man" in it's entirety HERE.

Justification by Association

Over the past few years I have grown increasingly concerned about the state of evangelicalism. There has been a rapid decline of doctrinal integrity, and evangelical churches throughout the country have lost their theological bearings, especially regarding the doctrine of Justification. According to the sixteenth-century Protestant Reformer Martin Luther, justification is the doctrine upon which the church stands or falls. If Luther was right, and indeed he was, many churches have fallen by the wayside. No longer do such churches preach justification by grace alone through faith alone because of Christ alone; rather, they preach justification by association.

The general appeal of the evangelical church is just this: eternal salvation is granted to anyone who will associate himself with Jesus. Often, the reasoning of such evangelical pastors goes something like this: "if only we can get people into our churches by whatever means possible, then maybe we can get them to like us, especially if we run our churches like big corporations and implement all sorts of cool programs that are purpose-driven. Then maybe, if we can get them in, and if we can get them to like us, then just maybe we can get them to like Jesus." This, in a word, is the twenty-first century doctrine of justification by association —what a novel concept. by Rev Burk Parsons

Excerpt taken from October 2004 issue of "Tabletalk" from Ligonier Ministries and R. C. Sproul article by Rev. Burk Parsons who serves as the minister of education at Saint Andrews Chapel in Sanford, FL

Substitutionary Atonement

You can listen to this sermon titled "Worship in the Midst of Warfare" in it's entirety HERE.

People Pleasers

Are you a People Pleaser? Do you know how to spot one? Here is a list of 10 character traits of a People Pleaser taken from Lou Priolo's book titled Pleasing People: How Not to Be an Approval Junkie.

01. He fears the displeasure of man more than the displeasure of God.
02. He desires the praise of man above the praise of God.
03. He studies what it takes to please man as much or more as what it takes to please God.
04. His speech is designed to entice others to think well of him.
05. He is a respecter of persons.
06. He is over sensitive to correction or the dissatisfaction or disapproval of others.
07. He outwardly renders eye service to man instead of sincere service to the Lord.
08. He selfishly uses the gifts and the abilities God has given him for God's glory for his own personal benefit.
09. He spends more resources in establishing his honor instead of the honor of God.
10. He is discontent with the proportion God has given him, always wanting more.

Examine Yourselves!

This is my pastor Jonathan Sims he is in Muscle Shoals, Alabama preaching revival at First Baptist Church this week and I want to thank them for these great videos. You can watch them in there entirety at their website http://fbcms.org/. I will try and post a clip of each sermon.

You can listen to this sermon titled "The Evidences of Genuine Conversion" in it's entirety HERE.

This Week in Blogdom

Phil Johnson over at Pyromaniacs shares a startling judgement coming from emerging church pastor Doug Pagitt.

Tim Challies new book The Discipline of Spiritual Discernment is now available for pre-order.

Here is a link to a Charles Hadden Spurgeon sermon on Limited Atonement.

Justin Peters, exposes the dreadful heresies promoted by the health-and-wealth gospel, Word of Faith preachers like Benny Hinn and the Copelands at The Master's Seminary chapel. You can download the MP3 here Exposing the Word of Faith Movement.

Dealing With Arminians

It seems to be very popular today within Arminian circles to attack the doctrines of grace which may be better know to some as Calvinism particularly the doctrine of election, and I have seen of late those who attack Calvinism and then go so far as to call it Hyper-Calvinism to further confuse the issue. I heard Dr. John MacArthur's sermon titled "The Doctrine Of Election, Part 2" this morning and just wanted to share a quote where he address's the issue of how to deal with an Arminian regardless of the angle they are coming from. ( Download MP3 )

I think if you’re dealing with someone who doesn’t like the doctrine of election, if you’re dealing with someone who doesn’t like the doctrine of predestination, if you’re dealing with someone who is, what is known as Pelagian or Arminian from Arminius who denied this doctrine, if you’re dealing with those people, here’s a passage that really stops them cold in their tracks.

1 Corinthians 1:26, “For consider your calling, brethren, that there were not many wise, according to the flesh; not many mighty, not many noble.”

Just take a look at the congregation. All right, you’re sitting there in the church at Corinth, look around...look around. See the ones who have been called effectually into salvation, how many of the world’s wise are there? How many of the world’s mighty are there? How many of the nobles are there? How much royal blood is there in your church?

Verse 27, “But God has chosen the foolish of the world to shame the wise, God has chosen the weak things of the world to shame the things which are strong, and the base things of the world and the despised. God has chosen the things are not that He might nullify the things that are in order that no man should...what?...boast before God.”

I’m telling you what, folks, Arminians are up a creek without a paddle in this passage. This says God wanted to be glorified. God wanted to receive all the glory. No person who is saved could ever boast about his own salvation and it served God’s glory best for Him to choose the foolish and the weak and the base and the despised and the nothings and the nobodies. Now listen, if the weak and the foolish chose God, this passage doesn’t make any sense. If the weak and the foolish chose God, then who gets the credit? The weak and the foolish. So how does this end human boasting? It turns the whole passage into nonsense. And verse 30 he says, “But by His doing...His being God...you are in Christ Jesus.” You’re in Christ Jesus because God did it so that verse 31 says, “If you’re going to boast, boast...where?...boast in the Lord.” I mean, it’s all over the Bible. This passage isn’t about man’s choice, this hasn’t anything to do with man’s choice. This is about God’s choice. And if it’s about man’s choice, then how does it end human boasting? It turns the whole passage into utter nonsense.

Evil Surmisings

1 Timothy 6:3-6 "If any man teach otherwise, and consent not to wholesome words, even the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and to the doctrine which is according to godliness; He is proud, knowing nothing, but doting about questions and strifes of words, whereof cometh envy, strife, railings, evil surmisings, Perverse disputings of men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth, supposing that gain is godliness: from such withdraw thyself. But godliness with contentment is great gain."

The reason why men’s minds are corrupt is because they do not stick to the truth as it is in Jesus: supposing that gain is godliness, making religion truckle to their secular interest. From such as these Timothy is warned to withdraw himself. Whoever teaches otherwise, and does not consent to these wholesome words, he is proud, knowing nothing; for pride and ignorance commonly go together. Paul sets a brand only on those who consent not to the words of our Lord Jesus Christ, and the doctrine which is according to godliness; they are proud, knowing nothing: other words more wholesome he knew not. We learn the sad effects of doting about questions and strifes of words; of such doting about questions comes envy, strife, evil surmisings, and perverse disputings; when men leave the wholesome words of our Lord Jesus Christ, they will never agree in other words, either of their own or other men’s invention, but will perpetually wrangle and quarrel about them; and this will produce envy, when they see the words of others preferred to those they have adopted for their own; and this will be attended with jealousies and suspicions of one another, called here evil surmisings; then they will proceed to perverse disputings. Such persons as are given to perverse disputings appear to be men of corrupt minds, and destitute of the truth; especially such as act in this manner for the sake of gain, which is all their godliness, supposing gain to be godliness, contrary to the apostle’s judgment, who reckoned godliness great gain. Good ministers and Christians will withdraw themselves from such. "Come out from among them, my people, and be ye separate,’’ says the Lord: from such withdraw thyself. —Matthew Henry (1662–1714)

Burden of Fear

The "Positive-Preacher" can be found today all across this country in every denomination with his ear tickling messages of becoming a better Christian at the expense of neglecting the "SIN" or "HELL" issue so as not to offend peoples consciences with a message of fear and condemnation. But is this popular trend of being a positive only preacher a true mark of a Christ-like preacher?

"Any theory which takes off the pressure of responsibility that rests upon every man, that removes from any man's conscience the burden that Christianity puts there, or lessens his feeling of the awfulness of sin, is unchristlike and dangerous. Christ placed the burden of fear on unrepentant men's consciences; and any one who takes off that burden of fear, is not Christ-like." —Henry Ward Beecher (1813 -1887)

Quote taken from The Sermons Of Henry Ward Beecher, Fifth Series 1871.

Islamic Assumption

This post should draw some friendly comments. Over at Pulpit Magazine they have published a great article titled "Considering the Qur'an" which address the significant problems with the claim that Muslims make that "it is the Bible that has been corrupted. Hence, it is argued, the Jewish and Christian scriptures have been tainted, not the Qur’an".

"By it’s own admission, the Qur’an must be consistent with previous revelation from God. But it does not take long to see that the Bible and the Qur’an are not compatible. “It should come as no surprise to well-informed Muslims who know that, in the final analysis, the claims of Christianity and Islam are incompatible. This incompatibility is behind the Islamic assumption that, in one way or another, the Bible has been corrupted.” When it is demonstrated that the Bible has not been corrupted, both from textual evidence and from the claims of the Qur’an itself, it is the Qur’an—not the Bible—that is discredited."

New Again

What's in a Title?

Below are two sets of actual sermon titles preached in the last year or so from two local churchs, one is taken from a seeker-friendly church and the other from a church who's allegiance is to the Lord Jesus Christ and the sufficiency of the Word of God. Can you tell which is which? Which set of sermons would you rather hear? Or better yet; which set of sermons sound more like what your hearing every Lord's day?

Sermon Set 1

• The Gospel According To The Grill
• Does Anyone Understand Me?
• Does God Care About My Sexuality?
• Acceptance
• Let's Go Frog Kissing
• Finding Community

Sermon Set 2

• How to Handle False Teachers
• The Righteous Judgment of God
• The Total Depravity of Man
• How To Be Right With God
• The Blessings of God's Amazing Grace
• Secure In Grace