Seventeen82

If you were asked to name a human relationship that is a picture of the gospel, what would you say? Most of us would probably answer with “marriage” and we would not be incorrect, a la Ephesians 5 (and Hosea 1-3; Ezekiel 16; Jeremiah 31:32...). But the bond between a husband and wife is not the only human illustration of gospel truth to which Scripture points. Certainly the parent-child relationship can be highlighted as a reflection of God’s love for his people. Earthly fathers who give good gifts to their children are used as an a fortiori argument for the truth of God’s provision of the Holy Spirit to his children (Matthew 7:11). A mother’s attachment to and compassion for her nursing child mirrors God’s loving remembrance of his people (Isaiah 49:15, 66:13). Even outside familial connections, Jesus speaks of a different relationship still when he highlights its ability to show the world the truth of the gospel. In fact, Jesus desires that when people observe this human relationshi...

  A few weeks before my wedding, many older, wiser individuals had advice for me. They could tell I was excited about my upcoming marriage, so they wanted to make sure I had realistic expectations. They would start their sage words with “You just wait…” Then they would tell me how things wouldn’t always be good. They told me that marriage would be hard. They told me to enjoy these newlywed years because it fades fast. I remember thinking, “Wow, they must really dislike their spouse.” It happened again when we bought our first house. Then again when we were expecting our first child. Even as I told other pastors that my church plant was going well, they couldn’t resist the urge to chime in with a, “You just wait…” Every time I’ve had those conversations, I walked away wondering, “Why are these people so bitter?” I tend to be a negative person myself, but when it came to happy things like marriage and children, I was shocked at all the negativity. As you’re reading this, some of you ...

    If you’re anything like me, your Bible often acts like a half-organized scrapbook.   Each time you open the front cover, there are bulletin inserts or hand-written notes that threaten to spill out onto the floor, but you keep them there anyways because of their significance.   Then, as you continue opening the Word and flip to a passage, you’re likely to pass by specifically placed flower petals or sticky notes or scraps of ribbon that remind you, somehow or another, of a particular passage.   Those keepsakes take you back to a memory—perhaps the sermon that you heard on that passage or the time a friend encouraged you with a flower and a verse—and you cling to that memory because it deepened your faith or simply made you smile.   Sometimes, however, you come across a passage and it stands out in your memory without any memorabilia.   For me, one such passage is Revelation 4, and the memory surrounding it is that of a child’s excitement. It ...

                 A number of years ago, I went to lunch with a minister from a church in my hometown. I was a senior in college and had plans to begin seminary the following Spring. Over the course of the meal, we discussed all manner of challenges and blessings related to ministry in the local church. Towards the end of our lunch, I asked this pastor if he had any advice for someone pursing a call to ministry. He replied: “Read fiction. Fiction is what keeps us connected to our congregations and grounded in our thought.” I’ll never forget those words. Of course, at that point, I thought he meant that reading fiction allowed a pastor to relate more effectively in a cultural or social manner to his congregation. I now realize it means something far more important than mere social or cultural interaction – although that is certainly a benefit. In fact, I believe his words had two parallel meanings that change based on your own personal...

  Behold ye among the heathen, and regard, and wonder marvellously: for I will work a work in your days, which ye will not believe, though it be told you... Thou art of purer eyes than to behold evil, and canst not look on iniquity: wherefore lookest thou upon them that deal treacherously, and holdest thy tongue when the wicked devoureth the man that is more righteous than he ? Habakkuk 1:5, 13 Have you ever noticed that when a child gets a splinter and you bring out tweezers (or worse—straight pin) suddenly, to them, you are some maniacal barbarian who has never really loved them anyway? Instead of trusting you to do what is best, they will question you, ask to see your supervisor, lodge complaints, question your qualifications, and ask where you got your credentials to keep you from doing what is best for them. To them, metal pinchers and needle and alcohol or peroxide are all more painful and threatening and present more danger to the...

Prayer is one of the most accessible means of grace for God’s people. Wherever one may be, in joy or trouble, in public or private, one can pray. Prayer is an essential means of grace where God sanctifies, comforts, strengthens and nurtures his people to grow in a stronger relationship with him. Warfield helps us understand that prayer is the essence of true religion. When we kneel before God, not with the body merely, but with the mind and heart, we have assumed the attitude which above all others deserves the name of religious. And this religious attitude by way of eminence is obviously just the attitude of utter dependence and humble trust. He who comes to God in prayer, comes not in a spirit of self-assertion, but in a spirit of trustful dependence.   As one comes to prayer we realize the need for dependence upon the Holy Spirit, “for we do not know what to pray for as we ought” (Rom. 8:26). The Holy Spirit intercedes for us, for “he who searches hearts knows what is the mind o...

    You ever put a lot of time and effort building something only to see it fall flat on its face when put into action? Ever prayed, and prayed, and prayed for a deep desire to come true, only to have the moment pass without any movement, at least in the way you were hoping? Put a lot of work into a relationship only to get nothing back? I know you have, because we all have. Taking the lead on things can give you a rush, but the buck is going to stop with you. So how you handle the pressure that comes with it can be tricky, and there are some things we do at the start that change how we go about those labors, many times for the worse. Heavy is the head that wears the crown. So what do you do when what you've poured a ton of time and energy into a thing that doesn’t work out? After the day has come and gone for the project, or the person, and you are left holding the bag? How are we to process failure at this point? Where can we go to find release from the responsibility (whi...

  "I have come into my garden, my sister, my bride" ~ Song of Solomon 5:1 Since the beginning of this year, I've been going through the book of Revelation during our church's Sunday evening service. In preparing one of the lessons, I came across this very interesting illustration in Joel Beeke's commentary on Revelation (Dr. Beeke is scheduled to be one of the speakers at this year's Family Bible Conference): Christ knows what is going on today in your church from Sunday to Sunday. He knows what is going on in your heart, in your mind, and in your life. He loves each church and is concerned about her. Sometimes we get the wrong idea about Christ. We think of our Lord walking among the candlesticks of the churches as a kind of policeman, whose flashing lights signal you to pull over to the side of the road. As the officer walks around your car, he is not impressed that you polished it that morning or have installed new headlights. He is looking for faults, for...

  Pastor’s Corner March 7, 2021 The church is to aid parents in raising their children “in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Ephesians 6:4). This goal is not just an impartation of knowledge and morals. This work is a subset of Christ’s Great Commission to make disciples by baptizing them and teaching them to observe all things. The end result is that we are to be making disciples, especially in those covenant children God has entrusted to each local church.  It is time we took a hard look at how we are trying to do this. It is easy for youth groups to turn into a social activity or adventure club. There is nothing wrong with social and recreational youth events. It is when we lose the connection between these events and making disciples that we have a problem. Like a giant funnel, all of our programs, events, and activities need to be leading our youth to become and growing as a disciple of Jesus.  In the last few decades, churches have seen that man...

I have this vivid memory from my youth of my father and his devotional life. I was a wayward youth, pursuing the sins of the world instead of the grace of Christ. There were times when I would come stumbling home around dawn … and I would find my father at the kitchen table. Laid out in front of him was his worn out black leather New Geneva Study Bible, a notebook and a cup of coffee. Each morning, he would get up around 5 am to start his day in devotions, and in his notebook he would take notes on his devotions and then write out his prayers … and the cup of coffee was there to make sure he stayed awake! Some years later, I would come to find out that many of those mornings when I was coming in from a long night out, my dad was praying for my salvation. He had even put me on the prayer list at Faith ARP in Sumter, SC, and those faithful saints prayed for me as well. Praise be to God, their prayers were answered!  When I think of devotion to Scripture and prayer, that memory of my ...

Often times, in our increasingly anti-ecclesiastical culture, people  who still hold a place for church in their lives, nevertheless,  question the authority of church leadership, the nature of the church, and their  own  relationship within church authority structure s .  Some  believe that all spiritual authority for their own lives, rests  solely  in themselves.  Others will go to the court of public opinion, held today in all manner of social media forums, and there try fellow believers. In either case, there is little or no appreciation for or patience with responsible church leaders seeking to exercise God-given spiritual authority for those under their care. When you add all of that to long standing debates between those committed to Presbyterian polity and those committed to Congregational polity, it is helpful to revisit a classic passage on what we call church discipline. And as we do, we need to ask ourselves, what is “the church” ...