Impacting your world.  Have you ever thought of the possibility?  It is something that is possible.  The Bible says that each person has been made in the image of God (Gen. 1:26-27).  As a result of this each person is valuable to God.  When sin entered the human race, man’s relationship with God was severed and His image in man became marred (Rom. 3:23).  Yet God in His great love provided the means for man to be restored to Himself.  The Father poured out His wrath on the Lord Jesus Christ, for the sins of mankind, on the cross (Rom. 5:8-11).  Through Christ’s death and resurrection we begin a relationship with God, through confessing our need and receving by faith Christ’s payment for sins (Rom. 5:1).

The Bible says that through Christ we become new creations (2 Cor. 5:17).  The person we used to be, no longer exists.  The sin, the guilt, the mistakes are all forgiven through Christ’s payment on the cross.  God makes us a new creation, a new person.  God also gave us a mission.  The mission is to tell people about how Jesus’ death on the cross for sins and His resurrection from the dead has made it possible for people to:

* be forgiven for their sins

* have a relationship with God

Do you want to change your world?  You can do it through fulfilling God’s mission in your life.  Share Christ’s gospel whenever possible!

Recently through listening to the clear preaching of God’s Word by men at the T4G conference (from last year) I became thoroughly convicted.  I realized that I have been so man-centered in my life and my preaching.  I have been thinking like and living like I am the one who is responsible, through methods and strategies, to grow Jesus’ church (at least the one that I pastor).  I have been preaching and teaching in ways that I think will make it “easier” for non-believers to accept the Gospel.  I am so ashamed of myself for this total contradiction of the way that God’s Word describes Christianity and the Church.  I have been rebelling against God in the way that I have been thinking and teaching. 

Unsaved people do not respond on their own to the Gospel.  God is the One who does all of the saving, opening of eyes, etc…  This has caused me to repent and go back to the clear teaching of God’s Word.  Pleading with someone, looking for some kind of emotional response, or hoping to explain in a way that is “just a bit clearer” is not the answer.  God saves and sanctifies.

Christians are unable to do things that send people to Hell.  I knew that this was untrue.  But, somehow with the desire to encourage people to evangelize this idea has been communicated.  God calls us to be His ambassadors (2 Cor. 5), He does not give us, or allow us, to have the ability to cause someone’s eternity to be altered.  God and God alone is the One who is in control of saving people’s souls and transforming lives. 

I pray that God will open more of our eyes, as pastors and as Christians, to go back to the clear bold preaching and teaching of God’s Word.  Also, that He will help us to understand and live according to His Word.  This will result in God-centered Theology and churches, not man-centered.

The Church is suffering because of ignorance of God.  His Word is largely unread and the study of God disdained.  Where has this brought Christianity?  Spiritual ruin.  We are a spiritually shallow people.  Jesus is still saving people, but spiritually shallow people are the result.  Discipleship and training have taken on the form of trying to put more faces in the crowd, instead of teaching and training people so they are complete/mature in the faith.

We have been treating symptoms instead of the disease.  In our search for significance we have traded authenticity for appearance.  People are battered in the storms of life because, although Christ is their foundation, they are living in straw houses (1 Cor. 3:10-15).  Christian leaders, including myself, have been giving people inadequate building materials.  People need adequate materials, the core doctrines of the Word of God, to become everything God has saved them to become (Eph. 4:11-16).  We need to toss this nonsense, felt-needs fluff curriculum, out the window.  Actually for fear that someone else would use it, burn it!  I am ashamed of myself for handing people inadequate building material, God forgive me.  What a fool I have been!  God’s own Word tells me that the Holy Spirit through the Word of God is what builds people’s lives (2 Tim. 3:14-17).  The core doctrines of the Word of God, these are the bricks needed to build upon the foundation of Christ (1 Cor. 3:10-11). 

May God be gracious to help us live and lead according to His Word.  May God help us to give people the bricks they need to build their lives (Col. 1:28-29).

I am seriously considering using the Holman CSB 2nd edition for my preaching and teaching when it is fully released later this year.  I have found it to be a very good translation of the Scriptures.  I will still use the NASB as my primary study Bible.  It has been difficult to switch, but I am pretty sure about it now.

I was thinking recently about the importance of preaching.  I recently finished an article written by John MacArthur on the relationship between inerrancy and expository preaching.  The article was filled with strong encouragement to preach expository sermons exclusively.  I appreciated the article because it reminded me (in our age of quick fixes and topical sermons) that the Bible is God’s inerrant Word.  It is His truth.  It is what He wants people to hear, know, and to live accordingly.

I immediately have different preachers enter my mind while pondering this mess of topical preaching that is ever present in churches.  It seems that some have resorted to topical preaching in an effort to make the Bible “relevant.”  Whether we realize it or not, this is an issue that must be addressed.  If the Bible is God’s authoritative Word, what are we doing “patch-working” it together in a “ten-step program?”  MacArthur’s article brought me back to reality.  It is apparent that our topical preaching and our “Christianity-lite” has not helped the church to become healthy and strong (Eph. 4:11-16).

I thank God that He has revealed His Word and preserved it, so that we may grow in our knowledge of Him.  May God find us faithful in proclaiming His Word as it is written.

This past Sunday night at our church we prayed for God to raise up workers for His harvest.  Individuals prayed for God to raise up men and women for full-time ministry from within our church and from within all the continents.  It is interesting to think about the fact that Jesus told the disciples that there were not enough workers for the harvest.  I don’t know what they must have been thinking, but it probably would have made me a little nervous.  Jesus looked around at all the people, and seeing their incredible spiritual needs, He says that Christ-followers are going to need reenforcements!  Fast-forward to today and the need is still there.  There is incredible spiritual need around this world, and there are still not enough workers for the harvest. 

We should probably take this instruction from Jesus more seriously.  The need for more workers for God’s harvest has always been real, but this is the only life that those reading this post will have.  So Christ-followers, let us confess our sins and humbly ask God to raise up more workers for His harvest.  Let all glory be His and His alone.