About John Chester

John serves the saints of Piedmont Bible Church, a Grace Advance church plant in Haymarket Virginia, as their shepherd, a position he has held since 2012 and hopes to serve in the rest of his life. Prior to being called to ministry John worked as a lacrosse coach, a pizza maker, a writer, a marketing executive, and just about everything in between. John is a graduate of The Master’s Seminary and The Grace Advance Academy. He hails from The City of Champions, Pittsburgh Pennsylvania, and is unbelievably blessed to be married to his wife Cassandra.

A Biblical Response to the Corona Virus

Posted on March 9, 2020 by John Chester

Note – I originally wrote this last Monday, but due to technical problems, was unable to post until today. While as of now deaths linked to the Corona virus have climbed to 12 they are far outstripped by the increase in the death toll of the flu.

Unless you have been living under a rock for the past few weeks you have heard about the Corona virus (COVID-19) outbreak. And if you have watched the news at all you’ve been told how serious it is, and that you should be very, very worried about it. (But don’t panic!) To put it bluntly what is being preached through nearly every media outlet is a profoundly unchristian response to the Corona outbreak, we as believers must respond biblically.… Continue reading

The Great Gasp

Posted on February 19, 2020 by John Chester

One of the, if not strange, then unique things about ministry as the preaching pastor of a church is the perspective I get on the congregation. I’m not speaking metaphorically, I’m not talking about having a special insight, I mean actual perspective. I don’t sit looking at the back of the heads of my church family, I stand in the pulpit and look in their faces.

And I’ve seen some interesting things. I’ve seen a visitor’s face change the precise instant they were offended by the gospel. I’ve seen tears of conviction roll down the face of someone I think of as very godly and advanced in their sanctification.… Continue reading

When You Don’t Feel Like Going To Church

Posted on February 5, 2020 by John Chester

I have a confession to make, a couple of weeks ago I really didn’t want to got to church. I hadn’t slept well Saturday night, and when I did fall asleep (after reading for a couple of hours in the middle of the night) I had an unsettling dream, not the kind that is frightening, but the kind that causes you to wake up angry and agitated ( I dreamt my dog was dognapped, and I was out for justice Liam Neeson style). The weather was changing and every old injury in my body (I’ve broken both ankles, and most of my fingers; had a major hip reconstruction, including osteoplasty; had a major shoulder injury including multiple broken bones from a deck collapse; I played a contact sport, often on artificial turf, at a serious level and skied 30+ days a year into my late 30s and have all of the attendant aches a pain that go with that) ached. … Continue reading

Reprise: The Christian and the Gun

Posted on January 22, 2020 by John Chester

One of the things I have come to realize in my first few years of pastoral ministry, is that unexpected questions of all kinds come, and often as a pastor my job is not to provide an answer so much as provide a road-map to help the questioner come to a biblical answer for themselves. Lately, I think because of events that have recently been in the news, I have been hearing a question I never anticipated, “Pastor should I, as a Christian, get/carry a gun?”

Now before I get into the nitty gritty, in the interest of full disclosure, let me give you a little bit of personal background.… Continue reading

On Politics and The Binding of Consciences

Posted on January 8, 2020 by John Chester

The binding of a fellow Christian’s conscience is strange business. For the purposes of this discussion I’ll define the binding of conscience this way: to tell a fellow believer that their conviction or practice in an area of adiaphora (something that is neither prohibited or mandated by Scripture) is wrong and that they must change their conviction and practice in order to be right.

It seems like a no brianer, right? Well it is a no brainer, for one simple reason. Scripture says not to.

Therefore let us not pass judgment on one another any longer, but rather decide never to put a stumbling block or hindrance in the way of a brother…The faith that you have, keep between yourself and God.