Committed to the Word

Perhaps one of the greatest weaknesses among American church attendees in our day is a lack of discernment. In our complex days when we live in a culture which is so overpowering because of the media capabilities, many who call themselves Christians have a difficult time making wise choices.

No doubt the biggest reason for this is because they are not being trained to think biblically. Churches today want people feel good about themselves and help them in their relationships. Some of this may be practical and beneficial, but people need to be taught what God says from His Word so that they aren’t led astray by a seductive society.

Where are the churches that are seriously training their people from the Scriptures? Where are the John Calvins and Martin Luthers of our day? We need a real return to the Bible or you won’t be able to tell the difference between the church and the world.

At Believers Fellowship we’re committed to the Word.

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Today was the last broadcast of Cutting It Straight on KSLR. I am thankful to Baron Wiley and Kevin Bel for all their help in making these broadcasts possible. It was a joy to work with them and I benefitted personally from putting these messages together. I'm thankful too, for any who were encouraged by these broadcasts.

The blog will continue but not with the same frequency which we have had in the past year.

May God Bless you with a fruitful 2009 to the glory of our Savior, Jesus Christ.

A Dying Breed

In a few weeks John MacArthur and the rest of Grace Church will be celebrating his 40th anniversary as pastor. Think about that, for the past 40 years John MacArthur has been faithfully preaching God’s Word week in and week out at Grace Church.

I first attended Grace Church in 1974 and there isn’t any question that John MacArthur is the one person that the Lord has used the most in helping me in my understanding of the Scripture.

One of the highlights of my ministry was last year when John came and preached here at Believers Fellowship.

Unfortunately, men like John MacArthur seems to be a dying breed in our day. Not many are as faithful to preach God’s Word nor are many as faithful to the church.

At Believers Fellowship we desire to follow in the faithful footsteps of men like Dr. MacArthur and see the Word clearly proclaimed.

Spiritual Malpractice

Today I am at The Master's Seminary as I continue to work on my doctorate in expository preaching.

Preaching is hard work and it requires intense study and preparation. When I was working on my masters degree there was another student who was a medical doctor. He told me that seminary was harder than medical school.

It should be. Ddoctors perform the important function of dealing with the physical body and we are all thankful for them. But the pastor deals with the eternal part of the person – his soul. Therefore, the pastor’s training should be more intense.

Now, you don’t have to go to seminary in order to be an effective and fruitful pastor, but the tragedy of our day is that there are so many unskilled pastors standing in the pulpit and committing spiritual malpractice.

Presenting Every Man Complete in Christ

At Believers Fellowship we are committed to presenting everyman complete in Christ. We want to see people come to know Christ as Lord and then grow to maturity in their faith.

The primary way we do this is by teaching the Word of God and focusing on the person and work of Christ. We want to teach about the cross and Christ’s work there on our behalf. We want to listen to the Words of Christ and look carefully at the works of Christ.

Many ministries focus on people and teach for the purpose of making people feel good. Rather than starting with Christ, these ministries begin with man. Churches today are organized around what people want rather than what Christ, the Lord of the Church, wants.

As times get more difficult in our country, people will discover that a man-centered ministry won’t really help.

At Believers Fellowship we want to keep the focus on Jesus Christ, the Lord.

What's the Difference?

Expository preaching is committed to explaining what the text of Scripture means and giving an exhortation to a proper application.

There is a lot of preaching which is not expository. Preachers may say they do exposition but they are not careful to define what is meant by expository preaching.

You might say, “What’s the difference? As long as the sermon helps me, then that’s all that matters.” Not really. If you don’t get the explanation right then you can’t make a right and helpful application.

And, when things get hard in life, unless you can turn to the Scripture with a confidence that you understand what it means then your faith will suffer. Weak explanation leads to weak living.

At Believers Fellowship we are committed to expository preaching. We want to know what God said.

I Don't Understand

I have the great privilege of serving at Believers Fellowship. As we start another year I am looking forward to the privilege of ministering God’s Word as often as possible to as many as possible.

Our goal is to present every man complete in Christ. The only way to do that is through the ministry of the Word of God. The Bible is inspired, inerrant, powerful, relevant, and completely sufficient to minister to any person in any condition of life.

I don’t understand why other churches don’t demonstrate a higher commitment to the Scripture. I am concerned when I hear of churches that rely more on something else whether it be music or children’s programs or whatever.

Also, many churches don’t want in-depth teaching of the Bible. They are more into stories or testimonies than serious study of the Bible.

I’m thankful for a congregation that expects to hear what God says in His Word.

This Could Be The Year

The Book of Revelation tells us that Christ’s return must shortly take place. That means it is something that could happen without any necessary delay.

We are also told that Christ’s coming is near. That means it is imminent. Christ’s return is ready to take place. Christ’s coming is on the verge of happening and could possibly occur at any moment.

Perhaps 2009 will be the year that Christ comes back. When you look at the world you can point to many things that would make you think that everything is lining up and getting ready for the return of the Lord. Not only do current conditions appear to be lining up but you realize that changes in our modern world can happen very quickly.

We should be warning people to be prepared for Christ’s return. We must preach the gospel and encourage people to trust Christ.

At Believers Fellowship we are looking for the return of the Lord.