In his classic book, Lectures To My Students, Charles Spurgeon wrote, “Scarcely one man in a dozen in the pulpit talks like a man.” This is a problem all too common today. Some preachers feel inclined to take certain routes in their sermon preparation, leaving them to be very unnatural in their delivery, as if…
What is it like to read your Bible and pray on the International Space Station (ISS)? Implied in the question is the notion that Bible reading and prayer are somehow enhanced given the vantage point. There certainly is an acute awareness and appreciation of God’s creative and providential work given the literal “worldview,” and…
Christ’s disciples always need the Word of God and they need faithful teachers to help them understand what it means and how it applies.
The church should never stray far from its historical faith. Still, between sermon prep, home visits, weddings, and other commitments, the average pastor often struggles to find time to read church history. Following are three reasons pastors should do so—for the good of their churches and their own souls.
Matthew Hall, newly appointed dean of Boyce College, knows what it feels like to be different. He knows what it feels like to be an outsider, to wake up every morning knowing he’s not like everybody else. Hall was one of three children, and his family spent six years of his childhood as missionaries in…
Having joined the Southern Seminary faculty in 1887 as assistant professor of Hebrew, Greek, and homiletics, John R. Sampey served the institution until his death in 1946, a few weeks shy of his 83rd birthday. His long tenure at SBTS also entailed nearly 13 years as the seminary’s fifth president, during which time…
EDITOR’S NOTE: In what follows, Juan Sanchez, SBTS assistant professor of Christian theology and senior pastor of High Pointe Baptist Church in Austin, Texas, talks with Towers writer Andrew J.W. Smith about his book 1 Peter For You. AJWS: What does the church today need to hear from the book of 1 Peter? JS: Well, particularly in…
1 Peter For You (The Good Book Company 2016, $22.99), Juan R. Sanchez As any regular listener to “The Briefing” or anyone paying attention to the current political climate can attest, Christians live in a world growing more hostile by the day to their distinctive message. Keystones of Christian theology like the sanctity of marriage…
KJV Creedal Bible Tom J. Nettles Review by S. Craig Sanders In an age marked by staggering biblical illiteracy in the pews and even less awareness of historical theology, retired Southern Seminary professor Thomas J. Nettles delivers in the newly-published KJV Creedal Bible a brief commentary of the early church’s four seminal creeds and a defense of…
It has been estimated that the average human being utters between 10,000 and 20,000 words per day. Consider that fact in light of Solomon’s words in Proverbs 10:19: “When words are many, transgression is not lacking, but whoever restrains his lips is prudent.” If the average person speaks between 10,000 and 20,000 words each day, then we are looking at 10,000 to 20,000 opportunities to sin.
Moving back to the states for missionaries can be jarring. Reverse culture shock is real. Everything feels new, from HOA rules to driving etiquette to homeschool regulation. But the one thing we could wish would be familiar, even easy—with a measure of comfort in a homey sort of way—is attending church. Unfortunately, that’s not always the case. In my own experience I’ve recently returned from the Middle East to find the American church to be almost an entirely distinct species. It might be the culture shock talking, but sometimes it seems that we have about as much in common with the people next to us in the pew as penguins do with robins. And I’m guessing that I’m not the only missionary to feel this way.
No one denies that a preaching class and some coaching can help anyone become better. What we question is the possibility that someone with no natural giftedness and ability can be taught well enough that he can become really good.
Whether you labor in a church of thousands or a church of twenty where everyone has the same last name, pray that king Jesus would be glorified by your life and your ministry.
David Brainerd was a missionary to the American Indians in New York, New Jersey, and eastern Pennsylvania. Brainerd’s primary method in his mission work was Christ-centered preaching. According to Brainerd, Christ was the energizing center of every sermon but he is also the mark, or the goal of every sermon.
Pastors, I know your schedule is busy. But don’t forget to pray for your people this week.
Go to a college that recognizes Jesus as the Lord of the world and encourages students to follow Jesus as Lord.
J. I. Packer urged Christians to read two old books for every new one. We asked a we a few faculty members to recommend one new book and two old ones in the same category for summer reading.
Is it really such a bad thing to have wide open spaces in our planners? Might this be the very thing we need in order to refocus our priorities and make the most of the short season of time we’re given with our children?
