Reprise: Is Rome a Christian Church?

Posted on June 27, 2018 by John Chester

Note:I am running this reprise about the theology of the Roman Catholic church in anticipation of my next post. And yes that is a teaser.

There has been a lot of talk in recent months about evangelicals, Roman Catholics and the pope. Whether John Piper’s recent tweet, or the recent march of Evangelical leaders to the Vatican, or the unprecedented interest among prominent evangelical celebrities in the most recent papal election, many are asking anew, or for the first time, is Rome a Christian church and are Catholics brothers in Christ?

Mike Gendron from Proclaiming the Gospel Ministries ruffled more than a few feathers when he said:

“I’m very concerned because what this does is it confuses the average evangelical.

How to Care for Your Pastor

Posted on June 22, 2018 by Shawn Wilhite

the-shepherd October is pastor appreciation month. Here is something to help us consider how to love our shepherd. “Here are some great exhortations from Shawn Wilhite, a man who loves the Lord, the local church, and his pastor. Shawn’s exhortations are well thought out, lived out, and come from both experience and study.” — Jason Vaughn

How do you, as a congregation, care for your pastors? Pastors are tired, yet joyful; discouraged, yet constantly refreshed; and they have one of the most joyful, rewarding, and refining work. But how do and should congregational members care for their pastors—even associate pastors or staff?… Continue reading

Jesus Baptism — Inaugurating His Ministry

Posted on June 20, 2018 by Jason Vaughn

Why was Jesus baptized? Out of all the issues presented in the Gospels this one can be troublesome on the surface if we interpret Jesus baptism like our own. Jesus is fully God and fully man. Never was He in sin, have sin, or commit sin. In fact, being God makes Him holy, pure, undefiled, and righteous. Yet He is fully man, just like you and me. He ate, slept, got tired, stressed, had a full range of emotions, was tempted, and yet He never sinned (Hebrews 4:15).

So why does a blameless man, fully God, need to “confess His sins before the body and associate with His own death, burial, and resurrection; and then be immersed in water?”… Continue reading

Ministry in a Nutshell *Reprise

Posted on June 19, 2018 by Zach Putthoff

Planting and waiting. That, I am learning, is the essence of biblical ministry. It is perhaps the most important lesson I have been learning over the last few years, at least as it concerns my life as a pastor.

Of all the things that I long to see happen in, around, and as a result of my ministry, I have no power whatsoever to make happen. I cannot save a single soul. I cannot make a single Christian more like Christ. I cannot cause a single saint to endure to the end of his life in faithfulness to Christ.

Beyond these things, I cannot heal a single marriage. … Continue reading

A Review of My New Preaching Bible (As Promised)

Posted on June 13, 2018 by John Chester

A couple of months ago I invested in a new preaching Bible, and no it’s not the “Preacher’s Bible” from Steadfast Bibles. Don’t get me wrong, I think the “Preachers Bible” (here after PB) is a fine product, it’s just not for me, because it is not what I prefer, especially for preaching. What sets the PB apart is it’s wide margins and non-porous pages that resist bleed through from a fountain pen. And those are great features if you mark up your Bible and make notes in it with a fountain pen. I don’t. I prefer the text of my preaching Bible to be clean.… Continue reading