Wesley's Covenant Prayer

"I am no longer my own, but thine. Put me to what thou wilt, rank me with whom thou wilt. Put me to doing, put me to suffering. Let me be employed for thee or laid aside for thee, exalted for thee or brought low for thee. Let me be full, let me be empty. Let me have all things, let me have nothing. I freely and heartily yield all things to thy pleasure and disposal. And now, O glorious and blessed God, Father, Son and Holy Spirit, thou art mine, and I am thine. So be it. And the covenant which I have made on earth, let it be ratified in heaven. Amen" (Wesley's Covenant Prayer as used in the Book of Offices of the British Methodist Church, 1936).

No Other Foundation with Dr. Michael Haykin

Learn the History of Christianity in one day with world class scholar Dr. Michael Haykin: No Other Foundation at Ajax Alliance Church, October 17th, 2009, 10am-3:45pm. Cost: Free. Click here for more info.

Thy Righteousness is in Heaven

“One day as I was passing into the field, this sentence fell upon my soul: ‘Thy righteousness is in heaven.’ And with the eyes of my soul I saw Jesus at the Father’s right hand. ‘There,’ I said, ‘is my righteousness!’ So that wherever I was or whatever I was doing, God could not say to me, ‘Where is your righteousness?’ For it is always right before him.

I saw that it is not my good frame of heart that made my righteousness better, nor yet my bad frame that made my righteousness worse, for my righteousness IS Christ. Now my chains fell off indeed. My temptations fled away, and I lived sweetly at peace with God.

Now I could look from myself to him and could reckon that all my character was like the coins a rich man carries in his pocket when all his gold is safe in a trunk at home. Oh I saw that my gold was indeed in a trunk at home, in Christ my Lord. Now Christ was all: my righteousness, sanctification, redemption.”

- John Bunyan, Grace Abounding to the Chief of Sinners

HT: Of First Importance

Quote of the Day: C.S. Lewis

"If I find in myself a desire which no experience in this world can satisfy, the most probable explanation is that I was made for another world" (C.S. Lewis, Mere Christianity).

Bray on Justification

I just enjoyed listening to Dr. Gerald Bray on Justification, John Piper, and N.T. Wright here. It humbled me to think of how easily we can be influenced by popular opinion and popular theology without even realizing it. We need to be deeply rooted in the Scriptures and to understand the history of theology so that we can, by God's grace, see more clearly.

N.T. Wright's View of the Atonement

Lee Irons looks at the issue. The bottom line, according to Lee, is that Wright uses traditional terms with untraditional definitions.

Here's his conclusion after looking at the evidence from Wright's own writings:

• sin is an impersonal evil force, not personal rebellion against God;
  
• sin has bad consequences, but does not elicit God's punitive wrath against the sinner; and
  
• the cross is to be understood as some version of the Christus Victor theory in which Christ defeats evil by letting it do its worst to him, not as a penal satisfaction of divine justice.

HT: JT

Unquote of the Day

"Just because it's in the Bible doesn't mean you should preach it"

(Robert Schuller in an interview with Michael Horton on the Whitehorse Inn).

For a transcript of the interview go here.

HT: JT

Quote of the Day: Suffering for the Gospel

In his newest book Filling up the Afflictions of Christ, John Piper reprints this remarkable letter from John Calvin to five young Frenchman about to be martyred in 1553 for carrying the gospel into France:

We who are here shall do our duty in praying that He would glorify Himself more and more by your constancy, and that He may, by the comfort of His Spirit, sweeten and endear all that is bitter to the flesh, and so absorb your spirits in Himself, that in contemplating that heavenly crown, you may be ready without regret to leave all that belongs to this world.
Now, at this present hour, necessity itself exhorts you more than ever to turn your whole mind heavenward. As yet, we know not what will be the event. But, since it appears as though God would use your blood to seal His truth, there is nothing better for you than to prepare yourselves for that end, beseeching Him so to subdue you to His good pleasure, that nothing may hinder you from following whithersoever He shall call…Since it pleases Him to employ your death in maintaining His quarrel, He will strengthen your hands in the fight and will not suffer a single drop of your blood to be shed in vain.

Your humble brother,
John Calvin

HT: Tullian

Quote of the Day: Missions and Calling

Missionary martyr Jim Elliot:

"Our young men are going into the professional fields because they don't 'feel called' to the mission field. We don't need a call; we need a kick in the pants. We must begin thinking in terms of 'going out,' and stop our weeping because 'they won't come in.' Who wants to step into an igloo? The tombs themselves are not colder than the churches. May God send us forth."

Elisabeth Elliot, Shadow of the Almighty: The Life and Testament of Jim Elliot (New York: Harper, 1958), 54.

HT: Robert Sagers at Between Two Worlds

Quote of the Day

"If ministers wish to do any good, let them labour to form Christ, not to form themselves, in their hearers"

[John Calvin quoted in John Stott, The Message of Galatians (Downers Grove, IL: InterVarsity, 1968), 118].

When Sin Looks More Enjoyable Than God

Quote of the Day

"Sin tastes sweet but turns bitter in our stomachs. Holiness often tastes bitter but turns sweet in our stomachs" (Gary Thomas).

HT: Challies

Quote of the Day

"It is truth alone that capacitates any soul to glorify God." -- John Owen

HT: Ian Clary

Top Five Commentaries on Every Book of the Bible

Keith Mathison of Ligonier Ministries has complied one of the best lists I have come across. This will be very helpful for anyone who teaches the Bible on a regular basis. Enjoy!

HT: Challies

Ajith Fernando Audio and Video

I had the privilege of hearing and meeting Ajith Fernando today at Tyndale Seminary in Toronto. There was much Scriptural wisdom as he talked about witnessing to people of various religions in a post-Christian cultural context. Because I enjoyed him so much, I thought that I would post some of his previous talks here for your edification.

How Must a Pastor Die, Part 1

2006 Desiring God Conference for Pastors

January 30, 2006

Ajith Fernando

Listen |

How Must a Pastor Die, Part 2

2006 Desiring God Conference for Pastors

January 31, 2006

Ajith Fernando

Listen |

Download: Audio

How Must a Pastor Die, Part 3

2006 Desiring God Conference for Pastors

January 31, 2006

Ajith Fernando

Listen |

Gospel-Faithful Mission in the New Christendom
Ajith Fernando Apr 22 2009
Category: Conference Message
Series: 2009 Gospel Coalition National Conference Audio Video

Toil in Disciple-Making Ajith Fernando (1-31-2007), Dallas Seminary Chapel

watch audio only audio/video

If you have any more links, please let me know.

Reading for Fathers

• Free online book by Mark Driscoll called Pastor Dad: Scriptural Insights on Fatherhood; you can read it online, print it, or buy a printed copy
  
• Fatherhood: What it Is and What It's For by Tony Payne; preview it here; if in US or Canada, buy it here.

Happy reading!

HT: JT

A Biblical Strategy to Fighting Lust

Here is good message from Rick Holland on fighting sexual lust.

Using Proverbs 5, he identifies six biblical strategies that will ensure sexual purity:

1. Undertake the pursuit of biblical instruction (Prov. 5:1-2).
2. Undress the deception of sexual sin (Prov. 5:3-6).
3. Understand the value of safe distance (Prov. 5:7-8).
4. Unmask the regret of sin’s aftermath (Prov. 5:9-14).
5. Unlock the satisfaction of marital fidelity or intimacy (Prov. 5:15-19).
6. Unleash the power of God’s omniscience (Prov. 5:20-23).

HT: Justin Taylor

Solo Sex: What's So Bad About Masturbation & Sexual Fantasy

A description: "Masturbation, pornography, sexual fantasies...what's so bad about these? No one gets hurt, right? Aren't they better than indulging in actual sexual indecencies with other people? CCEF faculty member Winston Smith addresses the issue of what's sinful (if anything) about these supposedly "victimless" indulgences." Check it out here.

HT: Challies

Prayers We Need to Pray Again in Church

"ALMIGHTY and most merciful Father; We have erred, and strayed from thy ways like lost sheep. We have followed too much the devices and desires of our own hearts. We have offended against thy holy laws. We have left undone those things which we ought to have done; And we have done those things which we ought not to have done; And there is no health in us. But thou, O Lord, have mercy upon us, miserable offenders. Spare thou them, O God, who confess their faults. Restore thou them that are penitent; According to thy promises declared unto mankind in Christ Jesu our Lord. And grant, O most merciful Father, for his sake; That we may hereafter live a godly, righteous, and sober life, To the glory of thy holy Name. Amen."

"ALMIGHTY God, Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, Maker of all things, judge of all men; We acknowledge and bewail our manifold sins and wickedness, Which we, from time to time, most grievously have committed, By thought, word, and deed, Against thy Divine Majesty, Provoking most justly thy wrath and indignation against us. We do earnestly repent, And are heartily sorry for these our misdoings; The remembrance of them is grievous unto us; The burden of them is intolerable. Have mercy upon us, Have mercy upon us, most merciful Father; For thy Son our Lord Jesus Christ's sake, Forgive us all that is past; And grant that we may ever hereafter Serve and please thee In newness of life, To the honour and glory of thy Name; Through Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen" (Both prayers from the 1662 Book of Common Prayer by Thomas Cranmer).

See Gordon Cheng's post on why we need to pray again like this here.

The Gospel and the Poor

I read this piece by Tim Keller a while back and it really impacted me. This should be required reading for everyone involved in ministry to the poor. It is also required reading for every Christian because we are all called to care for the poor. Elders at churches would profit greatly from it. Executive Directors of ministries should require their people to read this so that they have a sound biblical theology of the relationship between the gospel and the poor to undergird their practical day to day ministries.

Ajith Fernando Speaking in Toronto

One of my favourite Bible teachers in the world and author of such books as Jesus Driven Ministry and The Call to Joy and Pain: Embracing Suffering in Your Ministry is speaking in my home city.

Lecture: Authentic Christian Witness in Multi-Religious Settings

Thursday June 25; 12 noon to 1:30pm

"Today's missional leaders in North America and around the globe must be equipped to communicate the Good News of God's reign in contexts that are religiously pluralistic. In this lecture Dr. Ajith Fernando will discuss how to be an authentic Christian witness in a multi-religious setting. The lecture will take place at Tyndale University College and Seminary, Toronto, in Room 1008. To register, please contact Cathy Nguyen at cnguyen@tyndale.ca or 416-226-6620 ext. 2109."

Saturday, June 13, 6:45 PM at Thistletown Baptist Church
Free admission - all are welcome!

Enter a place of dreams - dreams of a young woman named Keisha. You will be transported to a dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind, a dimension where people act the way they're dressed and the students sing. You will move into a land of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas, where nobody gives bizarre behaviour a second thought. You will cross over into a Community College Musical. Keisha will learn the important lesson Jesus taught His disciples at the last supper: "Apart from me, you can do nothing" (John 15:5). Keisha's Community College Musical is indeed a dream world, where truth is learned in strange ways.

Join Jehovah Shalom Youth Choir and Band for this special night of song and drama - and invite a friend. Light refreshments will be served.

• Community College Musical poster (pdf)
• Community College Musical image for email and web (jpg)
• Community College Musical black and white bulletin insert (pdf)

If Homosexuality is Simply Another Sin, Why is it Treated Differently in Churches?

David Short responds below:



If viewing this by email, you will have to go to the website to view the video.

Why Did Jesus Have to Die? What Actually Takes Place on the Cross?

David Short responds below:



If viewing by email, you will have to go to the website to see the video.

How Do you Respond When People Say that Science has Buried God?

Check out David Short's response below:



If viewing by email go to the website.

You will be Amazed!

Watch the whole thing, it is definitely worth it:



If viewing by email go to my website.

Missional Living 101

Some practical tips on how to build relationships with non-Christians and how to flee the Christian sub-culture.

HT: JT

The Gospel Coalition Workshops

The workshops are now online.

Two of the workshops are available in video (as well as audio):

• C. J. Mahaney, "The Pastor’s Charge"
• Joshua Harris, "Ministering in a Church-Hopping Society"

The rest of the sessions are available in audio only:

• Thabiti Anyabwile, "The Decline of African-American Theology"
• Buster Brown, "Preaching in a Christianized Culture"
• Steven Chin, "Working Faithfully Under a Senior Pastor"
• Graham Cole, "Homosexuality and the Bible: Texts, Hermeneutics, and Pastoral Wisdom"
• K. Edward Copeland and Charlie Dates, "Mentoring Younger Pastors"
• Andy Davis, "The Gospel and Social Action"
• Joshua Harris, "Ministering in a Church-Hopping Society"
• David Helm, "Biblical Reflections on Building a Staff"
• Bill Kynes, "Complementarianism: Definition and Priorities"
• Crawford Loritts, "Staying Faithful, Staying Relevant: The Use and Abuse of Polemical Preaching"
• Tom Nelson and Matt Perman, "The Gospel and Money"
• Colin Smith, "Transformational Expository Preaching"
• Stephen Um, "On Ministry and Revolving Doors: Practical Challenges and Ideas for Ministry in a Mobile Society"
• Sandy Willson, "Gospel Mission to the World: Arrogance or Love?"

Three of the sessions had corrupt audio, and the files are being worked on. It may be some time, however, before they become available:

• Michael Bullmore, "The Functional Centrality of the Gospel"
• Tim Savage, "Power in Weakness: The Heart of Gospel Ministry"
• Scotty Smith, "A Biblical Theology of Worship: On Preference and Other Matters"

HT: Justin Taylor