Don’t let your tone of voice ruin your sermon
Striking the right tone, like all aspects of preaching, requires persistent vigilance.
Striking the right tone, like all aspects of preaching, requires persistent vigilance.
Dear Timothy, Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. The last time I wrote you, recall that I sought to stir up your mind by way of reminder, to use the words of our dear brother Peter, that you must find your contentment in Christ alone, else you…
There are numerous ways a church or even those who are preparing for ministry can pray to bless their missionaries. Because the church might not always know those immediate, pressing issues in the missionary’s life, praying from God’s Word is always valuable and applicable in every season and place. Here are seven simple ways to…
Editors’ note: This article begins on occasional series on the SBTS blog, Why Every Student Should Read . . . This series is intended to spotlight and commend for further investigation pastors, teachers, theologians, books, sermons, and figures from church history as well as from the current evangelical scene. ___________________________________________________ Martyn Lloyd-Jones is one of…
Pastor, your spiritual health matters to your church. Your pursuit of Christ impacts your people. You know this, of course, but does your daily schedule reflect it? When you allocate time and energy toward the spiritual disciplines, do you do so with a view toward what is at stake? God’s sovereign purposes are not dependent…
I recently met with about 80 contractors who will be working on a new building for the church I serve as pastor. I introduced myself and the 200-year history of our church, told them about our mission to glorify God by proclaiming Jesus Christ and serving others, and then I turned it over to our…
The experience gained, the relationships forged, and the doors opened to those who use their seminary years to serve in a church—even if in an unpaid position—will prove a blessing throughout the rest of life.
In the same way that basic training cannot fully prepare a soldier for the hellish nature of a real war, seminary cannot fully prepare a future pastor for the bullets and hand grenades that will be launched at him in the local church on the field of real ministry. If I have learned anything in…
I am beginning my second semester of doctoral studies. I thought it may be beneficial to write (from a current student’s perspective and one that recently finished his M.Div.) some of the things I wish I would have known before beginning seminary. It is by no means exhaustive and they are not in order of…
Every kid in America heard that question umpteen times growing up. The answers are as varied as the kids themselves. My 13-year-old daughter’s dream vocation seems to change as often as she changes her clothes. College students hear a version of this age old question, too. Most often it’s, “What’s your major?” The follow up…
This morning I will preach my father-in-law’s funeral. For 32 years of our marriage, I dreaded this terrible task because he was not a believer. He wanted no part of Christ or his gospel. We prayed for him, witnessed to him, sent others to talk to him, and five years ago even took him to…
I am excited. While I would not choose this direction for our country or our culture, and though I lament the very real harm that this Supreme Court decision will do in millions of lives, I also believe that a sovereign God rules supreme in human affairs and He is at work making of the…
Editors Note: The following excerpt is from Brian Croft’s chapter titled “Clear the Runway: Preparing Your Church for Revitalization” in A Guide to Church Revitalization. This new title from SBTS Press is available for download Monday, June 15, 2015. _____________________ It was a cold Wednesday evening when I walked into this struggling church. A young,…
In my first year as a student at Southern Seminary, I took 48 credit hours in nine months: six classes in the fall semester, one class over J-term, six more classes in the spring semester, and three more in the month of June. (I would have taken even more if I could have, but that…
If you want a church to be saturated with truth, then stay there and walk through life with them.
Religious liberty is one of the hallmarks of the American constitutional order and a matter of Christian conviction. Far too many Christians fall into the trap of believing religious liberty is somehow granted by the United States Constitution. The framers of that Constitution understood, to the contrary, they were merely recognizing a right that…
When Christians default to sinful assaults on other believers, the glory of Christ is dismantled and everyone gets hit.
The biblical call to “fear the Lord,” means much more than our term for respect.