Please join us in prayer for Kelly Rodgers, a young lady in our congregation.
Earlier this week Kelly was diagnosed with malaria.
In the last 24 hours her condition has worsened and the doctors have transitioned her to the ICU. Thank you for praying!
In the Name of our Able God!
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Take a moment to read Samuel Rutherford on Christ-the Altogether Lovely. I took this quote from this book. It appears there has recently been a reprint.
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Our text this Sunday is Colossians 1:13-18 entitled the preeminence of Christ. Here is our outline for the sermon:
May the Lord use His Word to prepare your hearts to worship Him. A couple of prayer suggestions:
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Listen to this excellent Q&A audio of Al Mohler addressing several pressing moral issues. Here is a sample of some of the questions:
I thank the Lord for Al Mohler and for those the Lord raises up to help us in answering the many issues that exist from a biblical perspective.
(HT: Challies)
I am currently re-reading Horatius Bonar's book Words to Winner's of Souls. Live upon the Christ mentioned in this paragraph:
'The one true goal or resting place where doubt and weariness, the stings of a pricking conscience, and the longings of an unsatisfied soul would all be quieted, is Christ Himself. Not the church, but Christ. Not doctrine, but Christ. Not forms, but Christ. Not ceremonies, but Christ; Christ the God-man, giving His life for ours; sealing the everlasting covenant, and making peace for us through the blood of His cross; Christ the divine storehouse of all light and truth, 'In whom are hid all the treasures of wisdom and knowledge (Colossians 2:3); Christ the infinite vessel, filled with the Holy Spirit, the Enlightener, the Teacher, the Quickener, the Comforter, so that "of his fullness we have all received, and grace for grace" (John 1:16) This, this alone is the vexed soul's refuge, its rock to build on, its home to abide in till the great tempter be bound and every conflict ended in victory.'
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I shared last week about Anthony's computer being stolen in Ethiopia. Apparently, stealing preacher's computers is a tradition this time of year in Africa? Pray that the theives would be converted as they filter through the God-saturated information on these machines. Here's another report of computer theft in Africa from a good friend of Grace Church:
Brother Jordan,
How are you today? I came back to school in Kenya last Wednesday. My last semester's result is very good. Thank you for all your support.
The sermons from this year's Christian Life Conference at Second Presbyterian in Memphis were a spiritual banquet.
I was especially helped by two of Sinclair Ferguson's messages:
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Pastor Nathan will begin a sermon series through Colossians this morning. His summary:
Come prepared to meet our Lord in His Word...
each week!
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This year is the 500th anniversary of John Calvin's birthday.
Calvin was a man mightily used by God in the days of The Great Reformation. He is also a man caricatured in modern days by many as a theological lunatic. In actuality, though, Calvin was a faithful preacher and expositor of Holy Scripture (I find it especially difficult to listen to people hurl theological rocks at a man who wrote commentary on almost every verse of the Bible, when many of the same critics have not even read the entire Bible! Hmm?).
Dear Mr. President Obama,
Watch at least the first 10 minutes or so of this John Piper video. Please.
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D.A. Carson on the wrath of God:
“To speak faithfully of the wrath of God, very often what we most urgently need are tears. A few years ago on a radio talk show with a large audience in Chicago, the host asked several guests to discuss whether anyone could be saved apart from Jesus. Three pooh-poohed the idea in graphic terms. The fourth was a Jewish-Christian believer on the faculty of Moody Bible Institute. His ethnic background was known by everyone there, so when it was his turn to speak, the host baited him by asking him if he thought his fellow Jews could be saved apart from Christ. This Christian brother began to weep, and then to sob quietly, uncontrollably. After a minute or two, the host said that he had never heard a more compelling reason to become a Christian. So we teach the wrath of God, for faithfulness to Scripture demands it; and we follow Jesus and learn to weep over the city.”
(From: D. A. Carson, “The Wrath of God,” in Engaging the Doctrine of God, ed. Bruce McCormack, (Grand Rapids: Baker Academic, 2008), 63.)
May God increase our tears, love, and action for the lost and hurting!
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"Clearly no man should preach unless he has felt that God has given him a message. It is the business of any man who tries to preach and expound the Scriptures to wait upon God for leading and guidance."
Martin Lloyd-Jones, Studies in the Sermon on the Mount, p. 5
Update from Kurt (read the whole thing)
Hello everyone,
I apologize for being so long in updating you. As you read on, you will discover why we have had limited internet access. For you PRBCers (Kurt's church) ... here is an email with four points.
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This Sunday evening from 4:30-6p at Bridges we will be having a Grace Party.
January 22, 2009 marks the first year anniversary of the death of Amber Mathenia. We have asked her mother, Laura Donovan, and her sister April Sawyer (also my wife) if they would be willing to give testimony about the kindness of the Lord that has been lavishing upon them in the past year in Christ.....
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Part of the reason I gravitate toward men like John Piper is because when you prick them, they bleed Bible. Pick the theme, pick the issue, or the topic. Biblical truth informs the way the godly look at the world. Here's an example related to the current economic "crisis."
Could you rattle off all of these verses in any situation on the spot? If not, why not? Too old? Piper is 63 (I think. Birthday was last week).
Many bloggers have listed their top 10 reads from 2008. I even won one person's stack!
Instead of listing 10 and no one actually reading them, I thought I would list my favorite one from last year. If only one of you will find it and read it, I would feel that this post is worth the time it took to type it!
For an endorsement that carries much more weight than mine, Jonathan Edwards had this to say about the book that had the most impact on my life in 2008:
"...it is much better than any other book in the world."
That's coming from a guy who wrote 60,000 pages!!
Go find this book. And read it. The Soli Deo Gloria printing is only 114 pages with big font and average margins. You can read this book!
A Treatise On Regeneration - by, Peter Van Mastrict.
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On behalf of the other brothers, a sincere "thank you" to all who
prayed for us as we were away seeking the Lord's face, asking for His
direction for the next months of Grace's life, and enjoying one
another's company during this weekend's Pastor's Pray & Plan. It
was a sweet time of fellowship and even deeper bonding and unity. Thank
you again for praying!
Between Friday afternoon and Sunday morning, we were sustained by the Lord to engage in approximately 30 hours of intense prayer, devotion, planning, and discussion.
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From Kirk:
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“One of the gravest perils which besets the ministry is a restless scattering of energies over an amazing multiplicity of interests which leaves no margin of time and of strength for receptive and absorbing communion with God.”
- Andrew Bonar
HT: Gospel Reminders (A fantastic blog to bookmark, RSS, or whatever you do to intentionally make the internet a weapon for serving your soul!)
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The weekend the elders will be away for a "Pray and Plan" retreat. We're not taking a break from you, but a break for you. We're going away for several days to seek the Lord's face in an extended way on behalf of Grace Church.
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Two Foundations seminars will be coming soon. If you are interested
in learning more about Grace, or interested in pursuing covenant
membership, please let us know if you will be joining us for either seminar.
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I can't imagine why anyone wouldn't take a few seconds to drop their name in this hat? Lest you vacillate, remember someone out there has to win stuff like this :)
One of the most amazing things to ponder about the Christian life is that God hears and answers your prayer! Staggering!
For those who are covenant members of Grace Church, I wonder if you can feel the effects of being prayed for more often?
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Jim's
sermon yesterday--"A God-Centered Vision of Vocation"--was remarkable. Once it is posted on our site, you
will serve yourself well to have a careful listen (might be a week or so before it's up?).
I'm planning to try to snag a copy of the book Jim referenced several times, and thought others might also want to track it down too. Here it is: God at Work.
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