'This Generation'

Brainerd: Oh, That I May Never Loiter On My Heavenly Journey!

this series of videos is so convicting and encouraging. My life is simply pathetic compared to this man's, and I say that to my shame. As the new year draws near, may we all understand the preciousness of time and resolve to spend it for His glory.
Do view this series of videos, going to the upper left hand corner at the end of each video and clicking on the next video to continue on in this series. Part 7 is the final video in the series...

Do we really worship God?

"God is Spirit, and those who worship Him must worship in spirit and truth" - John 4:24






I am working my way through the Gospel of John; when I came to this verse, it caused me to stop and think. As I pondered on it, I wanted to find out the meaning of the word worship. What does it truly mean, do we even know? In the church I attend, parents bring drinks and snacks into the sanctuary for their kids and themselves as well to partake of during the worship service. Children play video games on hand held electronic devices during the service, or they lay under the pews and color or play with toys; can we not teach children what reverence means? Perhaps not, especially if we do not comprehend it ourselves. I do not believe one can worship God if you have no reverence and awe of Him, this is where it starts.

I got out my Mounce's Complete Expository Dictionary and looked up the word 'worship', here is what I found; from the Greek word proskyneō, meaning to fall down and/or worship. I also went to blueletterbible.org and got this definition, ' in the NT by kneeling or prostration to do homage (to one) or make obeisance {a gesture of respect, as a bow} whether in order to express respect or to make supplication.' So I wonder, when we gather to worship God, do we fall down prostrate? Do we even kneel? It would appear, at least in my church, reverence and awe are sorely lacking, so worship is not done respectfully. There is no inward worship, no giving of heart, mind and soul to the adoration of a God who is worthy, holy, sovereign, mighty, merciful, loving, faithful, trustworthy and full of grace. To worship in spirit is to worship with 'the disposition or influence which fills and governs the soul of any one, the efficient source of any power, affection, emotion, desire, etc.' {from blueletterbible.org}, this is inward, as opposed to outward religiosity which fills churches all across this globe. Here is commentary from Matthew Henry, "The stress is not to be laid upon the place where we worship God, but upon the state of mind in which we worship him. Note, The most effectual way to take up differences in the minor matters of religion is to be more zealous in the greater. Those who daily make it the matter of their care to worship in the spirit, one would think, should not make it the matter of their strife whether he should be worshipped here or there. Christ had justly preferred the Jewish worship before the Samaritan, yet here he intimates the imperfection of that. The worship was ceremonial, 10. The worshippers were generally carnal, and strangers to the inward part of divine worship.

Then there is this from gotquestions.org, "True worship is God-centered worship. People tend to get caught up in where they should worship, what music they should sing in worship, and how the worship looks to other people. Focusing on these things completely misses the point. Jesus tells us that true worshipers will worship God in spirit and in truth (John 4:24). This means we worship from the heart and the way God has designed. Worship can include praying, reading God's Word with an open heart, singing, participating in communion, and serving others. It is not limited to one act, but is done properly when the heart and attitude of the person are in the right place. Worship can be public praise to God (Psalm 22:22, 35:18) in a congregational setting, where we can proclaim through prayer and praise our adoration and thankfulness to Him and what He has done for us. True worship is felt inwardly, and then comes out through our actions. "Going through the motions" out of obligation is displeasing to God and is done completely in vain. He can see through all the hypocrisy, and He hates it.


If one's understanding of God is shallow or superficial, their worship will reflect that; weak preaching compounds the problem. Worshiping God is an inward action that reveals itself in outward adoration and action, this worship is rooted in a proper understanding of the *attributes of God which results in deep reverence and awe. Only when we comprehend God's attributes can we have such reverence and awe, which leads to proper biblical worship. Sadly, this is more the exception than the rule in the visible church. May the Lord work in our hearts proper reverence and awe, may we understand and desire to know this God so we can worship Him just as His word says, 'in spirit and truth'.





* For those who may be interested, you can download Paul Washer's study on the attributes of God entitled "The One True God" by going here.

Learning Contentment

Being content in all situations is a lesson we must learn in order to advance in our walk with Christ. Outward situations and circumstances should never be the source of our contentment/discontentment. God will put us to the test, in most cases, taking us to the edge so we may truly cultivate contentment within. Thomas Watson teaches this priceless pearl of a lesson in his sermon entitled 'the art of divine contentment'.

Here is a snippet...

We must be content, not only when God gives mercies, but when He takes away. If we must "in every thing give thanks,"^{1 Th. 5. 18} then in nothing be discontented.

Perhaps God hath taken away the cistern, that he may give you the more of the spring; he hath darkened the starlight, that you may have more sun-light. God intends you shall have more of himself, and is not he better than ten sons? Look not so much upon a temporal loss, as a spiritual gain; the comforts of the world run dregs; those which come out of the granary of the promise, are pure and sweet.

Your child was not given but lent: "I have, saith Hannah, lent my son to the Lord;"^{1 Sa. 1. 28} she lent him! the Lord hath lent him to her. Mercies are not entailed upon us, but lent; what a man lends he may call for again when he pleases. God hath put out a child to thee a while to nurse; wilt thou be displeased if he takes his child home again; O be not discontented that a mercy is taken away from you, but rather be thankful that it was lent you so long.

The Doctrine of Repentance

Is salvation possible without repentance? No, not according to God's word. Sadly, you would be hard-pressed to find any powerful preaching on repentance in today's visible church, which is why I enjoy reading the works of the Puritans. I have read this sermon by Thomas Watson and think I will read it again. I invite you to read it as well. Here is a sample...


To discover what true repentance is, I shall first show what it is not. There are several deceits of repentance which might occasion that saying of Augustine that `repentance damns many'. He meant a false repentance; a person may delude himself with counterfeit repentance.

1. The first deceit of repentance is legal terror
A man has gone on long in sin. At last God arrests him, shows him what desperate hazard he has run, and he is filled with anguish. Within a while the tempest of conscience is blown over, and he is quiet. Then he concludes that he is a true penitent because he has felt some bitterness in sin. Do not be deceived: this is not repentance. Ahab and Judas had some trouble of mind. It is one thing to be a terrified sinner and another to be a repenting sinner. Sense of guilt is enough to breed terror. Infusion of grace breeds repentance. If pain and trouble were sufficient to repentance, then the damned in hell should be most penitent, for they are most in anguish. Repentance depends upon a change of heart. There may be terror, yet with no change of heart.

continue on here...

The way is narrow

PLease do not kill me

Godliness

This is from a few years back; the message is convicting. Is God the center of our everything? Do we live solely for the glory of God?

Our Obedience

This is the real test of claiming Jesus as Lord...

The meaning of the Lord's supper

This is a short, concise and powerful teaching on the true meaning of this ordinance...

How do we acquire faith to believe?

I have heard Gospel presentations that include putting one's faith in Christ, or placing one's trust in Him; is this biblical and how does one do this? The Bible commands us to believe, but can we do this on our own? If we are born sinners, slaves to sin as our Lord tells us in John 8:34, then how can we who are in bondage to sin, which overpowers us, how can we place faith and trust in God? Is this not teaching salvation by works? Where does this faith and trust come from, is it buried deep within our depraved natures, do we have the ability to believe in Christ on our own? This debate will continue until Christ returns.
For a deeper look, let's go to Ephesians 2:8-9 for an explanation of this dilemma. You must go into the original language to understand and unpack these verses; for that, we turn to Jim McClarty...

Pre-Trib Rapture?

This is the clearest teaching I have heard in support of the pre-trib rapture. Pay CLOSE attention to the fourth and fifth videos, they are the clinchers...

Does Theology matter in our Gospel presentation?

Yes!!! In light of the recent attention given Tim Tebow, I feel it necessary to post this video.
Listen to this...

How God uses Suffering

Many times we go through trials blinded & dumbfounded as to what is going on. This I think is due in part to weak preaching in America as well as scant time spent in His word. If you are presently in a trial, take heart. John MacArthur has a sermon series just for you...

Go here for part one, and here for part two.

You Go Voddie!!!

This is what America truly needs, men who will boldly stand up and profess truth. Give this a listen...




Thanks Linda for bringing this to my attention!!!

Mortifying Ungodly Emotions

I listened to this and I could not agree more with Brian Borgman. If you suffer from depression, or know someone who does, pay close attention to this sermon...

For Ladies Only!

With the growing apostasy swirling all around, it is becoming increasingly difficult to find solid biblical teaching. There is a dear sister in Christ who heads up a woman's bible study and whose teaching is solid and biblical. Let's take a look...

The Doctrine of Limited Atonement

Again, the kingdom of heaven is like a merchant in search of fine pearls, who, on finding one pearl of great value, went and sold all that he had and bought it. (Matthew 13:45-46)

We live in a culture that demands immediacy. We like things quick and easy and when we don’t get what we want when we want it, we grow impatient. One sociologist, has coined the term “The McDonaldization of society” which describes a culture that takes on the characteristics of a fast food restaurant. Sadly, we see this influence in the evangelical church where short, entertaining messages have replaced biblical and doctrinal preaching. For those who are convinced that Christ is all, there is no sacrifice too great for the immeasurable prize of knowing Christ. That is the message of Jesus in the above parable. When we pick up our Bible’s and we diligently search and examine the doctrines of our faith, when we labor and pore over the word of God, sacrificing time and precious energy, God promises that we will find a pearl of great value.

continue on here...

Consider your ways

This is an excellent sermon from J.C. Ryle, it is just as relevant today...

Consider your ways

There is a generation of Christians in this age who grieve me to the heart. They make my blood run cold. I cannot understand them. For anything that man's eye can see, they make no progress. They never seem to get on. Years roll on, and they are just the same — the same besetting sins, the same infirmities of disposition, the same weakness in trial, the same chilliness of heart, the same apathy, the same faint resemblance to Christ; but no new knowledge, no increased interest in the kingdom, no freshness, no new strength, no new fruits, as if they grew. Are they not forgetting that growth is the proof of life — that even the tree grows, and the snail and the sloth move? Are they not forgetting how awfully far a man may go, and yet not be a true Christian? He may be like a wax figure, the very image of a believer, and yet not have within him the breath of God — he may have a name to live, and be dead after all.

Brethren, these are the reasons why I write so strongly. I want your Christianity to be unmistakable. I want you all to grow really, and to do more than others. Let us all henceforth remember Sardis and Laodicea — let us resolve to be more holy and more bright. Let us bury our idols. Let us put away all strange gods. Let us cast out the old leaven. Let us lay aside every weight and besetting sin. Let us cleanse ourselves from all filthiness of flesh and spirit, and perfect holiness in the fear of God. Let us renew our covenant with our beloved Lord. Let us aim at the highest and best things. Let us resolve by God's blessing to be more holy, and then I know and am persuaded we shall be more useful and more happy. I name some things for prayerful consideration.

Let us believers take more pains to edify others! It is incredible and sad to see how Scripture speaks on this matter, and then to observe the conduct of many of Christ's people. Paul tells the Corinthians, that the members of Christ "should have the same care one for another." He says to the Thessalonians, "Edify one another, even as also you do." He says to the Hebrews, "Exhort one another daily, lest any be hardened through the deceitfulness of sin;" and again, "Consider one another to provoke unto love and good works; exhorting one another, and so much the more as you see the day approaching." Brethren, I fear we fall very short of the New Testament Christians in this respect. We are sadly apt to lose sight of this edifying one another when we are in the company of believing friends. Prayer, and the Word, and godly conversation are not put in the foremost place, and so we separate, being nothing the better, but rather worse. Far too often there is so much coldness, and restraint, and reserve, and backwardness, that a man might imagine we were ashamed of Christ, and that we thought it proper to hold our tongues, and not make mention of the name of the Lord.


the entire sermon is available here...

O come O come Emmanuel

Charles Spurgeon Movie

The Gospel

I just finished reading Paul Washer's '"The" Gospel' in the latest edition of Heartcry magazine. This edition {volume 69} should be available soon for download here.
As I read this I thought, are there two different Gospels? Is there a 'free will' Gospel and a Gospel based on grace thru Christ because man is totally depraved and unable to come to Christ apart from regeneration? It can't be, there is only ONE Gospel, not two. Yet, all across this nation, we hear men beckon sinners to invite Jesus into their heart, or to make their decision. Maybe this is so hotly debated because we do not even know what the true, biblical Gospel is.

Here is a sample of that Gospel...



"Paul did not have "a" Gospel that was peculiar to him. His was not a 'Pauline' Gospel as opposed to a 'Petrine' or 'Johannine' Gospel. Though something of the personalities of these apostles is evident in their presentation, the Gospel they shared was the same. They would know nothing of the frequent language of our day that speaks of different variations, versions, and flavors of the Gospel as though there could be more than one. It is clear from Scripture that there was an unbroken continuum between what Jesus did and communicated to His followers and what Paul believed and preached.
In the Gospel of Jesus, genuine conversion is always accompanied by sincere and costly discipleship. Jesus frequently culled the large crowds that followed Him by making radical demands upon them: "if anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My disciple". He even warned His own disciples, "if anyone wishes to come after Me, he must deny himself, and take up his cross and follow Me..." In the Gospel of Paul, the same radical demands of discipleship are found.
In the Gospel of Jesus, men are taught that a mere profession of faith alone is no sound evidence of salvation. Jesus warned that not everyone who says to Him, "Lord, Lord" will enter the kingdom of heaven, but only those whose lives are marked by obedience to the will of God.
Finally, the Gospel of Jesus abounds with warnings about future judgment and the terrors of hell. The matter was so crucial to Jesus that He gave the following warning even to those whom He considered to be His friends: "I say to you, my friends, do not be afraid of those who kill the body and after that have no more that they can do. But I will warn you whom to fear: fear the One who, after He has killed, has authority to cast into hell; yes, I tell you, fear Him!"

There is but one Gospel, which stands above the editor and the censor, and which must not be changed, adapted, or repackaged. Any attempt to do so, regardless of the reason or motivation, will result in a different Gospel, which is NO Gospel at all!' - Paul David Washer

Loving Christ

1. If we love a person, we like to think about him.
We do not need to be reminded of him. We do not forget his name or his appearance or his character or his opinions or his tastes or his position or his occupation. He comes up before our mind’s eye many a time in the day.

Continue reading here...

Seek Him Violently

True Missionaries

The story of Jim Elliot, Nate Saint and fellow missionaries Roger Youderian, Ed McCully, Pete Fleming is simply amazing, even 50 plus years later...
What an absolutely awesome God we serve...

The Unquenchable Fire

J.C. Ryle, 1878

"He will gather His wheat into the barn — but He will burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire!" Matthew 3:12

This text describes in words, that which should make our ears tingle — Christ shall "burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire!"

When the Lord Jesus Christ comes to purge His threshing floor — He shall punish all who are not His disciples with a fearful punishment. All who are found impenitent and unbelieving — all who have held the truth in unrighteousness — all who have clung to sin, stuck to the world, and set their affection on things below — all who are without Christ. All such shall come to an awful end! Christ shall "burn up the chaff!"

Their punishment shall be most SEVERE. There is no pain like that of burning. Put your finger in the candle flame for a moment, if you doubt this, and try. Fire is the most destructive and devouring of all elements. Look into the mouth of a blast furnace — and think what it would be to be there. Fire is of all elements most opposed to life. Creatures can live in air, and earth, and water — but nothing can live in fire! Yet fire is the portion to which the Christless and unbelieving will come. Christ will "burn up the chaff with unquenchable fire!"

Their punishment shall be ETERNAL. Millions of ages shall pass away, and the fire into which the chaff is cast, shall still burn on. That fire shall never burn low and become dim. The fuel of that fire shall never waste away and be consumed. It is "unquenchable fire."

Continue here...

Wouldn't this be a great reminder

This post is very much needed {and convicting too, I might add}, it comes from acidri's blog ...

This sign is found in Iloilo. The City of Iloilo is a highly urbanized city in the Philippines and the capital city of Iloilo province.

How wonderful would it be to find this sign at the exit gate of every church. To be read as you got out of the church building. Nice!

And [Jesus] said to them, “Go into all the world and proclaim the gospel to the whole creation.” – Mark 16:15