Southern Baptist Convention ~ June 15, 2016 ~ St. Louis
Ted Traylor ~ Convention Sermon
Message: Unity Over Self
Illustrations: 1)Absalom. 2)Instead of standing shoulder to shoulder, we look at, and fight each other.
Psalm 133 King James Version (KJV)
133 Behold, how good and how pleasant it is for brethren to dwell together in unity!
2 It is like the precious ointment upon the head, that ran down upon the beard, even Aaron’s beard: that went down to the skirts of his garments;
3 As the dew of Hermon, and as the dew that descended upon the mountains of Zion: for there the Lord commanded the blessing, even life for evermore.
Steve Gaines and J.D. Greer had a beautiful display of this Psalm and Unity as they ran for SBC president! They placed unity over self.
1)Unity is released. The oil runs down the high priest. In the 133rd Psalm, oil is referred to running down Aaron’s beard and garments.
2)Unity is refreshing. The dew from Mt. Hermon will flow down to Zion.
3)Unity is rewarding. It is reflected by cooperation. Love one another. Refuse to be stingy and critical. Refuse disunity. In 1931, the Southern Baptists achieved unity through the Cooperative Program (CP), the International Missions Board (IMB), and the North American Missions Board (NAMB). The CP is unifying and scriptural.
John 17:20-23 King James Version (KJV)
20 Neither pray I for these alone, but for them also which shall believe on me through their word;
21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
22 And the glory which thou gavest me I have given them; that they may be one, even as we are one:
23 I in them, and thou in me, that they may be made perfect in one; and that the world may know that thou hast sent me, and hast loved them, as thou hast loved me.
Southern Baptist Convention ~ June 14-15, 2016 ~ St. Louis
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Business Highlights:
1)Golden Gate Seminary in San Francisco underwent a name change to Gateway Seminary.
2)Women should not be drafted. Women may enlist in the armed forces. That decision is entirely up to each individual.
3)Southern Baptists voted to NOT endorse the displaying of the Confederate Flag. It offends some of our black brethren and others. Retired Judge Paul Pressler from Texas who always comes to the Southern Baptist Convention, wanted to address this issue. He was not afforded the opportunity to speak and as a result, he was very angry. James Merritt won the moment with the following quotation that rang with clarity to all who heard it:
“All the Confederate Flags in the world are not worth one soul of any race.”
4)The Southern Baptist Convention voted to support Israel. A vocal minority who believed in “replacement theology,” expressed their viewpoint that Israel is no more special in God’s eyes than any other country. [Replacement Theology is a view held by a minority of evangelicals. They believe that God is finished with using the nation of Israel in His plan, and that the Lord only works through the church now. A thorough exegesis of the scriptures and end times prophecy reveals this viewpoint to be false]. Their spokesman even claimed he was an orthodox Jew from Israel. Nonetheless, the SBC voted overwhelmingly to support Israel.
5)There should be a sensitivity given to Gays and the LGBT, yet it is vitally important that they acknowledge their sin, prayerfully leading to their repentance.
6)Several budget items were presented from the SBC Executive Committee, and “rubber stamped” by the messengers who came to the convention. There were 7,321 registered messengers at the 2016 convention.
7)Seminary Update: “Out of the ten largest seminaries in America, six of them are Southern Baptist.” Paige Patterson Another interesting fact is that Conservative Seminaries are thriving, while secular Seminaries are dying. Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (SBTS) in Louisville, Kentucky, has over 5,000 students – the most pastoral students EVER in one school at one time.
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Voting For The President Of The Southern Baptist Convention
The Three Candidates:
1)David Crosby from First Baptist Church of New Orleans, Louisiana, endorsed by Fred Luter.
2)Steve Gaines from Bellevue Baptist Church, Memphis, Tennessee, endorsed by Johnny Hunt.
3)J.D. Greer from Summit Church, Raleigh-Durham, North Carolina, endorsed by Jimmy Scoggins.
Presidential Vote: After 2 votes, Steve Gaines was three votes short of the needed votes. There was to be a third vote. Greer conceded to Gaines, while Gaines later stated he was going to concede to Greer. Steve Gaines was elected since he was a bit higher in the votes from the last vote. It was a work of grace and unity for these candidates to concede to each other. Steve Gaines is our new president.
J.D. Greer and Steve Gaines were an interesting contrast. Steve Gaines represents a classic flagship SBC church, following Adrian Rogers as their pastor. J.D. Greer is oriented towards the millenial generation, and incredibly, had a jihad declared on him while he was serving as a missionary overseas. His picture was displayed before radical Islamics, and a death warrant was placed upon him. That is why I voted for him.
Southern Baptist Convention ~ June 14, 2016 ~ St. Louis
President’s Address: Ronnie Floyd
Paul Ryan (Speaker of the House): “The stakes could not be higher.”
Theme: Racism
Message: The Stakes Are High – God gave Ronnie this message after twenty one days of fasting and prayer. In the midst of terrorism, we have called 1,000 missionaries home.
We want to save a gorilla and murder babies. Gay marriages are accepted. Rainbow colors fly over the White House. Our religious liberties in America are at stake. The Israelites were taken to Babylon.
Esther 4:13-17
13 Then Mordecai commanded to answer Esther, Think not with thyself that thou shalt escape in the king’s house, more than all the Jews.
14 For if thou altogether holdest thy peace at this time, then shall there enlargement and deliverance arise to the Jews from another place; but thou and thy father’s house shall be destroyed: and who knoweth whether thou art come to the kingdom for such a time as this?
15 Then Esther bade them return Mordecai this answer,
16 Go, gather together all the Jews that are present in Shushan, and fast ye for me, and neither eat nor drink three days, night or day: I also and my maidens will fast likewise; and so will I go in unto the king, which is not according to the law: and if I perish, I perish.
17 So Mordecai went his way, and did according to all that Esther had commanded him.
We are here at the right time to accomplish the purposes of God.
If Satan cannot get us to do the wrong thing, he will get us to do the right thing in the wrong way. Both are sin.
America is in a crisis. We face either an awakening, or falling into an abyss. America is in an economic, relational and racial crisis. “All men are created equal.” Declaration of Independence. Dread Scott Decision.
1)Now is the time for Southern Baptists to come together.
John 17:21 King James Version (KJV)
21 That they all may be one; as thou, Father, art in me, and I in thee, that they also may be one in us: that the world may believe that thou hast sent me.
2)Now is the time for Southern Baptists to lead. Structures are needed to support the work of the church.
3)Now is the time for Southern Baptists to evangelize. Evangelism is the main thing, but is dying in our denomination and churches.
4)Now is the time for Southern Baptist to give. Cooperative Program (CP).
5)Now is the time for Southern Baptists to prayer. We are meeting to pray tonight. Acts 4:31 “And when they had prayed, the place was shaken where they were assembled together; and they were all filled with the Holy Ghost, and they spake the word of God with boldness.”
Bring prayer back to the schools, but also bring it back to the church! 9/11/01 2996 people were killed, 6,000 were injured. We need 1)prayer and a 2)great awakening.
Jeremiah 7:28 “But thou shalt say unto them, This is a nation that obeyeth not the voice of the Lord their God, nor receiveth correction: truth is perished, and is cut off from their mouth.” -We do not want to be this nation. Ronnie Floyd closed the message with an altar call for pastoral commitment.
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Jerry Young spoke on A National Conversation On Racial Unity in America. He referred to the recent tragedy in South Carolina. Racism is a sin problem. We are salt and light. We are contaminated salt and concealed light. We need to press the salt and turn on the lights. The one who murdered nine in Charleston wanted to create fear and terror – but he went to the wrong place – to church. “Love is greater than hate.” Marshall Blalock
Pastor’s Conference of the Southern Baptist Convention in St. Louis
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Greg Laurie Senior Pastor of Harvest Christian Fellowship in Riverside and Irvine, California. Greg Laurie is a personal hero of mine, and I was thrilled to see him in line to close out the pastor’s conference. I was also thrilled to see the Southern Baptist Convention call one to speak who was not of our denomination. He is the best soul winner I have ever heard. When I worked with the United States Justice Department in Washington, D.C. in the 1980’s, I listened to Greg’s program called “In The Beginning,” while driving around the District. Greg’s DNA spells soul winning. My wife and I went to the Billy Graham School of Evangelism over twenty years ago, and Greg was speaking in one of the seminars. We went to different seminars in order to hear all of the material available, and I told my wife to go and listen to Greg. She enjoyed his message greatly. At this conference tonight, he gave out free books called “Tell Someone.” I grabbed a dozen for my friends and loved ones. His workers offered me cases of the books but we had to catch a flight out of St. Louis and it would have been too much weight. Following his conference message below, is Greg’s testimony of salvation from his blog site. You may be quite surprised at his extremely rough background. Pastor Steve
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Greg Laurie’s Message To The SBC:
“The Gospel in America is not failing because it is not believed, but because it is not heard.” Greg reflected on the previous address by outgoing SBC president Ronnie Floyd. Our nation needs Christ and a Great Awakening. There will be an emphasis on prayer tomorrow night for revival in America. Much is at stake. Let evangelism be our priority.
In the midst of Greg’s message and in perfect timing, Passion sang “Even So Come.” (Jesus Is Coming Soon)
Greg Laurie reemphasized our need for revival. He said: “God is giving us wake up calls, the latest was in Orlando.” (Greg referred to the night club shootings that happened in Orlando during the pastor’s conference).
Greg Laurie’s mother was divorced seven times. Greg was on drugs at the age of 17. Greg walked into the Jesus movement at Calvary Chapel. A revival leads to a Great Awakening. Stories of revivals spark revivals.
What is revival?
1)Revival is waking up from sleep. It is getting back to the New Testament church.
2)We need to humble ourselves and pray.
3)Biblical preaching can bring revival. Illustration: Jonah.
4)Revival starts with YOU and ME.
5)A Revived Person will be an Evangelistic Person. “Knowing Him and making Him known,” is the motto at Calvary Chapel. It starts with you.
If you want to start a fire in the pew, it starts in the pulpit. Every message needs to end with a Gospel invitation. The power of the Gospel lies in the death and resurrection of Christ. We need to give invitations for people to receive Christ. We can evangelize or we can fossilize.
*Greg has been blessed over the years with a relationship with Billy Graham. He asked Billy, if he could be a young evangelist all over again, what would he do differently? Billy told Greg Laurie that “…he would preach more on the death and blood of Christ.”
Greg’s Blog Is Below. Strike “Home” to begin, “About Me” for his very detailed testimony, or simply surf down farther for his writings on Bible stories, blog articles, his other web sites, sermons, illustrations, quotations, revival news, etc.
July 2nd, 2016 Posted in sermons | 11 Comments »I think the United States of America is standing at a crossroads. We have never been in worse shape morally. Crime continues to explode. Families continue to splinter. The fabric of society continues to unravel.
What we need in America today, and for that matter, around the globe, is a far-reaching, heaven-sent revival.
Revival is a word that we bandy about a lot. We use it often in the church. Some churches will even announce their “revivals” ahead of time: “Revival – this week only. Monday through Friday. Starts at 7 p.m. and ends at 9 p.m.” They may be having some great meetings, but if it is a genuine revival, then it is not something they start or stop. A revival is something God supernaturally does.
As I’ve said before, a revival is when God’s people come back to life again. An awakening, on the other hand, is when a nation comes alive spiritually, sees its need for God and turns to him.
The word “revive” means to be restored to its original condition. It reminds me of people who like to restore old cars. They will find an older Corvette or Thunderbird or something else and then work to make the car look like it did originally. And they are sticklers about original paint and original parts.
In the same way, to be revived means to get back to God’s original design. Revival has been defined as “nothing more or less than a new beginning of obedience to God.” Revival is the spark, if you will, that starts the engine.
Any genuine revival that has ever happened in human history has brought about repentance in the lives of people, a change in the community and evangelism en masse.
We need a real revival – not just an emotional experience, not just a tingle down the backbone. We need to see God work because our nation needs it as never before. We don’t need some “new” thing; we need to get back to the very standards God has given us, and we need to practice them.
I like what the Old Testament prophet Jeremiah said: “Thus says the Lord: ‘Stand in the ways and see, and ask for the old paths, where the good way is, and walk in it; then you will find rest for your souls’” (Jeremiah 6:16 NKJV).
In the days of the early church, the one that Jesus started, the Christians turned their world upside down. The church of today, which is much larger than the first-century church was, has considerable resources and incredible technology to utilize. Yet it seems as though the world is turning the church upside down. Why? Because we need a revival. We need to be revived before God.
In the book of Revelation, this is what Jesus said to his own church:
“I know your deeds, your hard work and your perseverance. I know that you cannot tolerate wicked people, that you have tested those who claim to be apostles but are not, and have found them false. You have persevered and have endured hardships for my name, and have not grown weary. Yet I hold this against you: You have forsaken the love you had at first. Consider how far you have fallen!” (Revelation 2:2–4 NIV)
It’s clear these Christians weren’t lazy. They were discerning. They were hardworking, persevering believers. They were not growing weary. They were out there making a difference. Jesus was saying, “That’s great. But we have a problem here. You have left your first love.”
In spite of all their activity, they had lost that first passion when Jesus was all in all. So Jesus gave them the three R’s of revival: Remember. Repent. Repeat. He said, “Remember therefore from where you have fallen; repent and do the first works” (verse 5 NKJV, emphasis added).
I am not saying that works will save us, because that is not what the Bible teaches. The Bible tells us, “For it is by grace you have been saved, through faith – and this is not from yourselves, it is the gift of God – not by works, so that no one can boast” (Ephesians 2:8–9 NIV).
Works don’t save a person, but they are good evidence that he or she is saved. If we have truly met the living Jesus, there will be works in our lives. As John the Baptist said, we need to bring forth “fruit in keeping with repentance” (Matthew 2:8 NIV), fruits that are consistent with a life that has truly come to know Christ.
Repentance means being willing to change. Repentance means being sorry enough to stop. The Bible says, “Godly sorrow brings repentance that leads to salvation and leaves no regret” (2 Corinthians 7:10 NIV).
God has given us his prescription for the healing of a nation, and it includes repentance. He said, “If my people, who are called by my name, will humble themselves and pray and seek my face and turn from their wicked ways, then I will hear from heaven, and I will forgive their sin and will heal their land” (2 Chronicles 7:14 NIV).
God is essentially saying, “My people need to take these steps. My people need to pray. My people need to turn from their wicked ways.”
The church needs a revival, but we must each ask ourselves this question individually: Am I personally revived? As we look at revivals in the Bible and in history, we see they often began with an individual.
While the church needs a revival, America needs an awakening. There are times in human history when God has intervened, when God, in his grace, has stepped in during a very dark time, a time when there was a moral breakdown, and brought about a spiritual awakening. It wasn’t orchestrated. It wasn’t a campaign planned by people. It was a work of God where he poured out his spirit. That is what we need in America today.
June 27th, 2016 Posted in sermons | 3 Comments »Sometimes when I watch television with my wife, she will select something that to me is, to put it delicately, boring. We have different tastes in general, but I’m willing to watch whatever it is she is watching. Sometimes I doze off, and she’ll say, “Greg, you fell asleep.”
There is nothing wrong with taking a little nap, especially if something is boring. But I will wake up denying it, of course. We usually don’t want to admit it when we’ve fallen asleep. That is the way we are. We don’t think we were asleep.
Revival can be described as waking up from a state of sleep. A revival is when God’s people come back to life again, while an awakening is when a nation comes alive spiritually and sees its need for God and turns to God. The church needs a revival. And America needs an awakening.
Thomas Jefferson said, “I tremble for my country when I reflect that God is just, and that His justice cannot sleep forever.”
The Bible tells the story of another place that needed an awakening. It was none other than the ancient city of Nineveh, the capital of Assyria, which was the superpower of that day. The Ninevites were really cruel people and were known for their savagery. When the Ninevites would conquer a nation, they often would torture their prisoners before they executed them. Rather than hide their depravity, they celebrated it and proclaimed it. They even built monuments to their own cruelty.
It reminds me of the Nazis in World War II and of ISIS today.
The Assyrians were the enemies of Israel, so when God told Jonah, an Israelite, to go preach to them, Jonah thought it through. He knew God’s nature and how willing God is to pardon. And his fear was that if he went and preached to them, God would forgive them. Jonah deduced that if he didn’t go to Nineveh, God would judge them, and it would be one less enemy Israel would have to deal with.
The population of Nineveh was around 1 million, about the size of San Francisco. It was a very big city for ancient times. The Ninevites lived large, driving the best chariots and enjoying the finest food and the most exotic entertainment. They had a business and commercial system like none in the world. Assyria had been the reigning superpower for about 200 years, but unbeknownst to them, their days were numbered.
It would not be all that long until Babylon would come and overtake them. But God was giving Nineveh one last chance.
I wonder if God is trying to speak to America right now. I wonder if he is saying to our nation, “You need to wake up, and you need to turn back to Me.” If God could use someone like Jonah to bring about a spiritual awakening, then he certainly could use someone like you or me.
One person put it this way: “If God could bring a mighty revival in Nineveh, with no better representative than Jonah and no more gospel than he preached in their streets, he can surely do the same for America.”
Jonah was stubborn. He didn’t want to preach to the Ninevites. So he spent three days and three nights inside the belly of a great fish, and finally he came to his senses. He had a personal revival.
When Jonah finally went to Nineveh, it resulted in the largest spiritual awakening recorded in the Bible. People fixate on the story of Jonah and the “whale,” but they miss the bigger story of the biggest revival in ancient history.
First God sent revival to Jonah. Then Jonah brought revival to Nineveh.
C.S. Lewis said, “A moderately bad man knows he is not very good: a thoroughly bad man thinks he is all right. … You understand sleep when you are awake, not while you are sleeping.” In other words, if you think you are a great person with no problems, then you really are more asleep than you realize.
Nothing can happen through us until it first happens to us. It has to start with us. Sure, we can go out and tell people about Jesus Christ. But let’s make sure we are models of what it is to follow Christ.
Christians today need the faith of the Christians of the first century, the faith that turned the world upside down. Consider this: Everywhere the apostle Paul went, there either was a riot or a revival. There was always action. It never got boring. It doesn’t mean being obnoxious or creating a scene, but it does mean getting some reaction to your faith.
I feel the time has come for the church to start making a disturbance again. Revival is when God gets so sick and tired of being misrepresented that he shows up himself. That is what we need to pray for now.
I think those of us who are Christians all have, in effect, a Nineveh we are called to, some place where we leave our comfort zone, some place where we admit our need, some place where we reach out to someone we would not normally reach out to.
Revival is getting back to the Christian life as it was meant to be lived. Revival is being in the bloom of first love for a lifetime, walking closely with God.
Revival is nothing more or less than a new obedience to God. Then, as Nietzsche put it, it is “long obedience in the same direction.”
Only God can send an awakening to America. But revival can happen right where you are, right now.
June 14th, 2016 Posted in video | 5 Comments »Separated by miles and centuries, what could an ancient civilization, frozen in time, have in common with modern-day America? Watch to find out:
June 4th, 2016 Posted in sermons | 7 Comments »Is there a way to pray in which we can see our prayers answered more often in the affirmative? I think the answer is yes, there may be. And I think we can find some answers in what we call the Lord’s Prayer.
This is a glorious prayer, a very familiar one that Jesus gave us.
And it is a model for prayer:
“Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done on earth as it is in heaven. Give us day by day our daily bread. And forgive us our sins, for we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us. And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one.” (Luke 11:2–4 NKJV)
In all fairness, if we were to be accurate, we would not call this the Lord’s Prayer. Nowhere in the Bible is it called such. This is not a prayer that Jesus would ever pray himself. Jesus would never pray, “Forgive us our sins,” because Jesus was sinless. (If you want to read what could more accurately be called the Lord’s Prayer, the prayer only Christ himself could pray, read John 17.)
It is not just a prayer to recite verbatim, although there is nothing wrong with that. Rather, it is a template for prayer, a model for prayer.
Notice this prayer begins with, “Our Father in heaven, hallowed be Your name. Your kingdom come. Your will be done.” This reminds us that to see our prayers answered in the affirmative more often, we need to pray according to the will of God.
Jesus modeled this in the Garden of Gethsemane when He said, “Not as I will, but as You will” (Matthew 26:39). It is OK to pray for whatever you want to pray, but don’t ever be afraid to add these words: “Your will be done.” Put the matter in God’s hands, and ask for his perfect will. But understand this: Sometimes God answers our prayers differently than we would like him to.
The primary objective of prayer is to align our will with the will of God. That is when we will see our prayers answered in the affirmative. It has been said that prayer is not overcoming God’s reluctance; it is laying hold of his willingness. Prayer is not getting our will in heaven; it is getting God’s will on earth.
And how do we know what God’s will is? It is through careful reading and study of the Bible. As you study Scripture, you will discover God’s plan, his purpose and his will.
Having aligned your will with God’s will, you can then bring your personal needs before him. Next Jesus taught us to pray, “Give us day by day our daily bread.” This verse is telling us that God is interested in what interests us. He cares about our needs. It is surprising, really. As Job said, “What are people, that you should make so much of us, that you should think of us so often?” (Job 7:17 NLT) Good question. I don’t know, but I think the answer is that it’s because God loves us.
Also, if you want to have your prayers answered in the affirmative, you must confess your sin. In this model prayer, Jesus taught us to pray, “And forgive us our sins. …” A better way to translate it would be, “Forgive us our shortcomings … our resentments … what we owe to you … the wrongs we have done.”
If you don’t think you need forgiveness, then you are not spending much time in the presence of God. I think the person who is really growing spiritually will be acutely aware of his or her own spiritual shortcomings. It has been said that the greater the saint, the greater the sense of sin and the awareness of sin.
Next, we also should forgive others: “For we also forgive everyone who is indebted to us.” People are going to hurt you. People are going to disappoint you. People are going to let you down. There is no getting around it. But if you want your prayers to be answered in the affirmative, if you want to live a productive life, then you must learn to forgive, regardless of whether it is deserved.
Another principle for answered prayer is this: As much as possible, stay out of the place of temptation. This template for prayer in Luke 11 closes with the words “And do not lead us into temptation, but deliver us from the evil one” (verse 4 NKJV).
There is no way to completely remove ourselves from temptation. There is no escaping it. It is like the bumper sticker that says, “Lead me not into temptation. I can find it myself.” We do a pretty good job of that. So the idea here is to pray, “Lord, don’t let me be tempted above my capacity to resist. Help me not to get myself into a situation where I will be vulnerable.”
A final principle for answered prayer can be found a few verses later in Luke 11, where Jesus said, “And so I tell you, keep on asking, and you will receive what you ask for. Keep on seeking, and you will find. Keep on knocking, and the door will be opened to you” (verse 9 NLT).
Sometimes in prayer we ask for something once, perhaps twice.
Then, when we don’t get the answer in the affirmative, we conclude that it must not be God’s will. But Jesus was effectively saying, “Keep asking, keep seeking, and keep knocking.”
As J. Sidlow Baxter once said, “Men may spurn our appeals, reject our message, oppose our arguments, despise our persons, but they are helpless against our prayers.”
So don’t give up.
May 29th, 2016 Posted in sermons | 1 Comment »We like power.
And it seems like we never have enough of it.
Get a group of guys together, throw a car into the mix, and it won’t be long until the subject of horsepower comes up. How much horsepower does that car have? How fast will it go?
Throughout history, it has been all about the acquiring of power. First it was manpower. Then there was steam power. Then there was nuclear power. But what we seem to lack most is willpower. It seems as though humanity can harness the powers of the universe, but we can’t control ourselves.
Some people say they find it hard to be a Christian. But I don’t think it’s hard to be a Christian; I think it’s impossible – without God’s power in my life. If I try to live the Christian life in self-effort and my own strength, I will fail miserably.
We all have been given a choice in life. We have a God who loves us and has a plan for us. Or, we can choose our own way. And we each decide for ourselves which of these two ways we will go.
Many times when people are young, they think they are indestructible. They think they are the one exception to the rule. And despite all the lives that have been ruined by drugs or drinking or other things, they still get chewed up and spit out by the same things that destroyed the lives of those who have gone before them.
Have you ever wondered why people try to hand you samples at the mall? I’m sorry to break this news, but it isn’t because they love you. It’s because they want your money. Marketers know that if they can give us one little taste, we will want more. For example, just sample one complimentary, hot, glazed Krispy Kreme doughnut, and the party is over. It is hard to eat just one. You have that little taste, and off you go.
The same is true in life. You have your first experiment with something, and you want more, more, more. Maybe it’s that first drink or that first hit off a joint or that first act of sexual promiscuity. You find out it is actually kind of exciting. It is actually kind of fun.
The Bible even acknowledges there is a pleasure in sin for a time. It happens at the front end. There is the excitement. There is the rush. There is the buzz. But then come the repercussions. Then come the long-term effects. Then come the results of that choice. And they are not pretty. They are miserable, in fact.
The Bible tells the story of a sad, tormented man who lived in a graveyard and had no one to help him. But Jesus was determined to reach this man. And as Christ was crossing the Sea of Galilee to the country of the Gadarenes, where this man was, a big storm came up. At one point, the storm became so violent that Jesus spoke to it and said, “Peace, be still!” (Mark 4:39 NKJV).
Jesus was determined to get to this man who needed him. He would not be stopped. And he will not be stopped in his pursuit of someone he loves. Jesus told the story of a shepherd who had 100 sheep, and one went astray. So did the shepherd say, “Oh well. Win a few, lose a few”? No, the shepherd left the 99 and went after the one sheep until he found it and, rejoicing, brought it back.
Have you ever lost something you love? You just got your new sunglasses – really nice ones. And, of course, you lose them. You can’t lose that junky pair with scratches all over the lens. It was the good pair you just bought. So what do you do? You search and you search until you find them.
That is how God is toward us. In his search for us, failure is not an option. He won’t give up.
Jesus knew that in the country of the Gadarenes, there was a sad, tormented man who had no help. He went to meet with that man to touch him and to transform his life. And what the culture could not do, Jesus did with one sentence. He cast out the demons who were possessing the man and sent them into a herd of pigs. Then the pigs proceeded to run themselves over the side of a cliff.
This man who once hung out in a cemetery was totally transformed. In fact, his transformation was so dramatic that he didn’t even look like the same person. So how did people react? Mark’s Gospel tells us, “And the crowd began pleading with Jesus to go away and leave them alone” (Mark 5:17 NLT).
I would have expected Mark to tell us, “The whole city came out to meet Jesus and fell on their knees and asked him to forgive them, too.” Or, “The whole city came out to meet Jesus and worshiped him for the transformation in this man’s life.” But instead, the whole city came out and begged Jesus to go away.
Why did they want him to go away? Because Jesus was bad for business. There was no more bringing home the bacon for them. So they wanted Jesus to leave.
And that is really the choice we have in life. We ask Jesus to either come in or go away. But if whatever it is we are doing is so bad that we don’t want Jesus to be a part of it, then we shouldn’t be doing it.
You see, our society has no answers. With all of our achievements and technology, we still can’t change the human heart. Only God has the power to do that.
May 13th, 2016 Posted in sermons | 8 Comments »I heard a story about a man who went out hunting and found a big brown bear. He had always wanted to shoot a bear, and he had just the right gun to do the job. So he got that bear in his sights and was beginning to squeeze the trigger. But just then, the bear turned around and said, “Excuse me. Isn’t it better to talk than to shoot? Why don’t we try to negotiate the matter?”
The hunter said, “Well, OK. I am open to that.”
The bear said, “What is it that you want exactly?”
The hunter said, “Well, what I want more than anything else is a fur coat. I am really cold.”
The bear said, “OK. That’s good. Now we are getting somewhere. How about if we reach some kind of a compromise? Let me tell you what I am looking for: I want a full stomach.”
So the hunter put down his gun, and he and the bear disappeared into the forest.
The bear emerged alone a little while later, and apparently the negotiations had been successful.
The hunter got his fur coat, and the bear got a full stomach.
That is how compromise works.
In the New Testament book of Revelation, Jesus had specific words for a church that was engaged in compromise. This church was located in the city of Pergamum, the capital of Asia. Pergamum was built on a rocky hill where the Mediterranean could be seen on a clear day. It was the cultural center of Asia at this time, renowned for its magnificent library that housed 200,000 rolls of parchment.
Another feature of Pergamum was the altar of Zeus, the largest and most famous altar of all – one of the seven wonders of the ancient world. There were other gods in Pergamum that were worshiped, including Dionysius and Asclepius, called the savior god.
Asclepius was known as the god of healing and was actually symbolized by a snake. People came to this shrine from around the world to be healed. In the temple, there were nonpoisonous snakes slithering around, and those who hoped to be healed believed that if they were touched by a snake, they would be cured of whatever it was that was afflicting them. Imagine the scene: people lying around on the floor of this temple, with snakes crawling around on top of them. It sounds like a scene from an Indiana Jones movie.
What a creepy place that must have been.
Also in Pergamum was the great temple erected to Caesar Augustus. Augustus means “of the gods.” This is where the Caesars not only were accepting worship, but were demanding it. Pergamum was a very spiritually dark place.
So here was Jesus’ assessment of the church in Pergamum:
“I know that you live in the city where Satan has his throne, yet you have remained loyal to me. You refused to deny me even when Antipas, my faithful witness, was martyred among you there in Satan’s city.
“But I have a few complaints against you. You tolerate some among you whose teaching is like that of Balaam, who showed Balak how to trip up the people of Israel. He taught them to sin by eating food offered to idols and by committing sexual sin. In a similar way, you have some Nicolaitans among you who follow the same teaching.” (Revelation 2:13–15 NLT)
There were great Christians in Pergamum who were serving God, and Jesus actually commended them for it. But there also were a few problems developing. This church was in danger of compromising their faith.
Jesus referred to the Old Testament story of Balaam, a prophet who was hired by Balak to curse the Israelites. But as he was riding his donkey on the way to curse Israel, the donkey veered off the road, ramming Balaam’s leg against a wall. The donkey had seen an angel with sword drawn, standing in the road. Amazingly, the donkey actually began to speak to Balaam. In the end, Balaam did not curse the Israelites, but offered Balak an alternate plan to undermine them: have the Moabite women seduce the young men and draw them into idol worship. That plan worked.
The sin of Pergamum was the toleration of evil.
It is the mindset of, “Hey, I’m a Christian, but I can still do these things.” People want to go to heaven, but they still want to live like hell. Enter the teaching of Balaam. When you start to compromise, your spiritual life will begin to weaken.
Jesus also referred to the Nicolaitans. The philosophy of the Nicolaitans was one of liberty gone amok. It is the thinking that says, “Don’t be so uptight. Don’t be so legalistic. Could you just relax a little bit? God will understand. God will forgive you. God knows your heart.”
The problem is, that is how compromise works. Little things always turn into big things. And when compromise gets into your life, you will start going downhill.
Some people look at what the Bible says and think, Oh, I don’t like all of these rules. I don’t like all of these standards. I don’t like these thou-shalt-nots. I want to live the way I want to live. Yet they never stop and think that God gave us those rules, those standards and those truths to protect us from evil.
Sometimes we think that because we have confessed a sin, we will not have to face the repercussions of it. Yes, God will forgive us. But we still will have to face the aftermath of our own choices.
So remember the lesson from the church in ancient Pergamum. Don’t give in to comprimise.
April 25th, 2016 Posted in Pastor’s corner | 48 Comments »Here are some thoughts on the death of Prince I recorded Sunday.
Below is the article I wrote for WorldNetDaily.com
Prince has died.
He was found unconscious in the elevator of his Paisley Park Estate. This after reports of an emergency landing after a performance, due to “flu-symptoms,” according to his publicist. Reports are coming in that this may be a drug related death.
I don’t know. All I know is a musical virtuoso who mastered almost every instrument at an early age and was an amazing talent, has died.
Prince was a mix of James Brown, Jimi Hendrix and a host of other influences with his own unique sound. As a guitar player alone he was beyond amazing, not to mention his body of work as a singer/songwriter. I remember seeing his performance during a tribute to George Harrison at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, joining in on the Beatles classic, “While My Guitar Gently Weeps.” Showing the link to friends I said, “This is the greatest lead guitar solo of all time!”
So much talent, now gone. I was sad to hear it.
Prince sold 100 million records. One of his most well-known songs, “Let’s Go Crazy,” by Prince and the Revolution, almost seems prophetic now.
Cause in this life
Things are much harder than in the after world
In this life
You’re on your own
And if the elevator tries to bring you down
Go crazy, punch a higher floor.
Ironic that on an elevator Prince Rogers Nelson, age 57, left this world for the next one.
Prince seemed to believe in an afterlife. In his song, “Let’s Go Crazy,” he also sings,
But I’m here to tell you
There’s something else
The after world
A world of never ending happiness
You can always see the sun, day or night.
Prince was right in this regard. There is an afterlife. And if your destination in the afterlife is Heaven, you can know that it is so much better than this life. The Bible describes it as a place of happiness, singing, feasting and being reunited with loved ones who died in faith and preceded us.
People often ask, “What is Heaven like?”
A better question might be, “What is earth like?” Take the greatest moments you have ever experienced on earth and multiply them times a thousand, and you will have a glimpse of Heaven.
Heaven is not a weak imitation of earth. Earth at its best is a pale imitation of this place called Heaven. In the Bible, Heaven is described as a place, a country, a city and much more. Heaven is a real place for real people to do real things.
Best of all, in Heaven we will see Jesus Christ. This promise, however, is only for the person who has put their faith in Him as their Lord and Savior.
Coming back to the elevator for a moment. There are two ways to go, up or down. If you are a believer in Jesus you will go up for sure. But what if you are not a believer in Jesus? Then, according to the Bible, you will go down. Just as surely as there is a Heaven, there is also a hell.
You might ask, “How could a God of love send anyone to a place as horrible as hell?”
The fact is, God’s does not send people to hell. If we end up there, we will have only ourselves to blame.
God doesn’t send people to hell, He saves people from hell. That is why Jesus Christ died on a cross 2,000 years ago. He paid the price for every sin you have ever committed. If you will turn from your sin and believe and trust in Him, you can be forgiven, and yes, you can go to Heaven when you die.
It was only two months ago that musical icon David Bowie died. He too sang of the afterlife.
Death is the great leveler, and no respecter of persons. Elvis, the King of Rock, has died. So has James Brown, the King of Soul. Michael Jackson, the King of Pop has died as well. And now Prince. But the King of Kings,Jesus Christ has died and has risen and is alive forevermore!
He holds the keys to the afterlife. Jesus said,
“I am the living one. I died, but look–I am alive forever and ever! And I hold the keys of death and the grave.” (Revelation 1:18)
One day you and I will also die. But death is not the end. There is an afterlife, as Prince reminded us.
There is an inscription on a tombstone in England that reads:
Pause now stranger, when you pass by.
As you are now, so once was I.
As I am now, so you will be.
So, prepare for death and follow me.
Someone reading this epitaph is reported to have replied out loud, “To follow you is not my intent…until I know which way you went!”
I don’t know where Prince or Bowie went. Only God does. But I do know where I am going when I die.
I’m going up. Which way are you going?
To find out how to be sure you will go to Heaven when you die, visit my website: KnowGod.org
This article was written exclusively for WorldNetDaily.com. It is used by permission.
April 23rd, 2016 Posted in sermons | 1 Comment »Happiness is so much a part of the American mindset that it’s actually included in our Declaration of Independence: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights, that among these are Life, Liberty and the pursuit of Happiness.”
But what is this happiness that so many Americans are pursuing? I think there’s a lot of truth in Eric Hoffer’s statement that “the search for happiness is one of the chief sources of unhappiness.”
You actually can become a very unhappy person as you’re trying to become a happy one. A Psychology Today article entitled “The Road to Happiness” pointed out, “Compared to 1960, the America of today has doubled spending power. … But what has this economic growth meant for morale? Over the same period, depression rates have soared. Teen suicide has tripled. Divorce rates have doubled.”
The Bible gives a completely different view of happiness than our culture does. According to the Scriptures, happiness isn’t something that should be sought directly; it is always something that results in seeking something else.
Jesus said, “Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they will be filled” (Matthew 5:6 NIV). Being blessed, or happy (these words are used interchangeably in the Bible), is not based on circumstances. Rather, it is a deep, supernatural experience of contentedness, based on the fact that a person’s life is right with God. As our will is aligned with God’s, the rest of life will find its proper balance.
This flies in the face of popular wisdom that would essentially say that to be happy, you have to be successful, have the perfect physique, or be incredibly wealthy.
Psalm 1 gives us God’s definition of a happy person: “Blessed is the one who does not walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers, but whose delight is in the law of the LORD, and who meditates on his law day and night” (verses 1–2 NIV).
Notice that God begins with the negative rather than the positive. He tells us what we must not do before he tells us what we must do. He warns us of certain things that can be perilous to us spiritually, certain things that we must avoid. If we want to be truly happy, if we want to flourish, first we have to guard ourselves against the things that harm us.
We are living in a time when it seems like everyone is watching their weight. And as the years go by, it seems like we have more weight to watch. Of course, when we’re watching our weight, we become aware of things like calories and fat grams.
The same is true of our spiritual lives. We want to avoid the things that would hinder our spiritual growth. There are things we may engage in, things we may do, that could be detrimental to us spiritually. They may hold us back from the life God wants us to live.
Here are three questions you can ask about certain things and whether they will help you or hurt you spiritually:
1) Does it build you up spiritually? In other words, does it promote growth in Christian character? The question isn’t whether it’s allowable or you can get away with it. Rather, is it spiritually constructive?
2) Does it bring you under its power? Something may not be bad in and of itself, but too much of that thing could begin to control your life. It has an allure, and you can’t stop once you start. It’s an obsession in your life.
3) Do you have an uneasy conscience about it? There are certain areas that might be a greater problem for some than they would be for others. You need to ask yourself if that thing is hurting you spiritually.
The blessed, or happy man of Psalm 1 doesn’t “walk in step with the wicked or stand in the way that sinners take or sit in the company of mockers.”
In other words, he avoids certain things that can hurt him in his spiritual life.
Also notice the progression – or maybe I should say the regression – in that statement. First he is walking, then he is standing, and then he is sitting.
If you stop and think about it, that is how temptation works. You’re walking along, saying, “I’m not going to do that. I can control myself. I will know when to say no.” But then you slow down a little. Before you know it, you’re standing. Then you’re looking. And then you’re doing just what you said you wouldn’t do.
How did you get there? It all started with going near that thing. That is why the Bible tells us to avoid even the appearance of evil. Keep as much distance from it as possible.
Don’t get me wrong. To follow this principle is not to be overly restricted but to live in true freedom.
If you want to be a happy person, the Bible tells you how. If you want to be happy in the way the Bible defines happiness, if you want contentedness that comes from a relationship that is right with God, if you want your life to be in proper balance and harmony, then here is what God tells you that you must do. Don’t walk in step with the wicked. Don’t stand in the way that sinners take. Don’t sit in the company of mockers. Let your delight be in God’s Word. Meditate in it day and night.
It’s simple, but it takes commitment. Be consistent and regular, and there will be fruit in your life. And you will find happiness in the truest sense of the word.
April 15th, 2016 Posted in sermons | 7 Comments »Here in the United States we are obsessed with youth. We want to stay forever young, so we get nipped and tucked and suctioned and stretched and do whatever it takes to remain eternally youthful. But time marches on. And the body, which is compared in the Bible to a tent, simply wears out. However, the real you – your soul – lives on.
Ancient Greco-Roman mythology tells the story of Aurora, the goddess of the dawn, who fell in love with a young mortal named Tithonis. Aurora asked Zeus to give Tithonis eternal life, but she made a tragic oversight in her request. She forgot to ask that Tithonis remain forever young. Even though he lived on and on, Tithonis grew older and older, experiencing all the problems that go along with aging. The gift of living forever became a curse for Tithonis.
But is living forever actually a curse? That all depends. In a very real sense, you and I will live forever, because the real you isn’t the body you’re living in right now, and the real me is not the body I’m living in at the moment. Yes, certain physical features identify us. (In my case, a lack of hair probably is at the top the list.) But the real you, the real me, is the soul that lives inside each of us, the soul that one day will leave the body, go into eternity and live on in one of two destinations.
The Bible provides us with a glimpse into the afterlife in Luke 16, given by Jesus himself. It’s an eyewitness account of life beyond the grave. Although Jesus told many parables, this wasn’t one of them. It’s a real story about a real situation in which two people die. One was a believer and one was not. One owned everything yet possessed nothing. The other owned nothing yet inherited everything.
Prior to this story, Jesus had been addressing people who were obsessed with greed and materialism, people who were possessed by their possessions. This wasn’t a condemnation of all people who are wealthy, because being rich is neither a sin nor a virtue.
This story is about is a man who was possessed by possessions and had no time for God. He had too many other pursuits, and he just didn’t care about God. He lived in luxury. He lived flamboyantly. The Bible tells us that he “fared sumptuously” (Luke 16:19 NKJV). This means he held banquets every day. This guy was a party animal. He lived for parties. He lived for fun. He was a glutton. All he cared about was finding pleasure in life. And he not only had wealth, but he flaunted it. He wanted everyone to see how much he really had.
Meanwhile, outside of his gate was an impoverished man named Lazarus. He actually ate the crumbs that fell from the rich man’s table. In this culture, affluent people would wipe their hands on pieces of bread. Then they would take the bread and throw it on the ground. That bread is what Lazarus lived on.
Then Jesus’ story took a new twist as these two men passed from this life.
One was buried and the other was carried. Suddenly they would face the penalty for their sins or come to find what happens because of the forgiveness of sin.
The angels carried Lazarus to heaven, and it would appear that one of the purposes of angels is to usher believers into God’s presence when they die. The moment believers take their last breath on earth, they’ll take their first breath in heaven. That is the great hope and comfort for all Christians.
The other man, however, went into a place of judgment. He faced the consequences of his sin in a place called Hades. The Bible says he was in torment there, and the fact that the man spoke of torment seems to indicate that suffering is a very real thing in the hereafter.
The impossibility of crossing from one side to another, from a place of comfort “to Abraham’s side” (verse 22 NIV), where Lazarus was, to the place of torment, where this other man was, suggests that a person’s eternal destiny is settled here and now and not in some future world. Some people think they’ll work it out later. But they had better work it out now.
It would be like saying, “I’m going to board that plane, and once I’m in flight, I’ll determine where I’m going to go.”
No, you’re going where that plane goes. You work it out ahead of time when you buy your ticket. Once you have boarded the plane and it takes off, you are going to the predetermined destination.
The fact of the matter is that you determine now where you will spend eternity. There are no changes later. Do you know where you’re going when you die? According to the Bible, there are only two options: heaven or hell.
Often the question is asked, “How could a God of love permit such a place as hell to exist, let alone send people there?”
Asking a question like this reveals a lack of understanding of the love of God or the wickedness of sin. God’s love is a holy love, not a shallow sentiment.
The Scriptures tell us that “God is light and in Him is no darkness at all” (1 John 1:5 NKJV). Sin is rebellion against God, and the Bible says we have all sinned and fallen short of God’s glory (see Romans 3:23). God does not send people to hell; people send themselves there by refusing to heed God’s call and believe in his son. These are people who have made a deliberate choice to not believe.
C.S. Lewis wrote that “indeed the safest road to Hell is the gradual one – the gentle slope, soft underfoot, without sudden turnings, without milestones, without signposts.”
You are headed for one of two destinations in eternity, and you determine where you will go. The last thing God wants is to see you go to that place called hell. He loves you. That is why he took drastic measures by sending his own son to die on the cross in your place. He offers you pardon and forgiveness if you will turn from your sin and turn to him by faith.
But if you reject his pardon, if you slap away his loving and gracious offer of forgiveness, then you will have no one to blame in that final day but yourself.
April 8th, 2016 Posted in sermons | 3 Comments »I heard about a large redwood tree that had actually stood for some 400 years and had survived lightning strikes on 14 separate occasions, not to mention storms and numerous earthquakes. But one day, without any warning, this majestic tree came crashing to the ground. As investigators looked into what brought it down, they discovered that little beetles had slowly eaten their way through the fiber of this impressive tree until it suddenly and tragically fell.
We have our guard up when it comes to the big things in life. We are ready and braced for the earthquakes, the lightning and the so-called big sins of life. Meanwhile, the little bugs of compromise eat their way through the fiber of our lives. We lower our guard here. We bring our standards down there. And then, day by day, it catches up with us, and we start crashing to the ground.
The Bible clearly warns that in the last days, people will fall away from the faith. In fact, it is a sign of the last days (see 1 Timothy 4:1).
The question is this: Could you or I ever become one of these casualties? Yes, we could. We have the potential, and sadly, even the propensity to sin. It’s there inside all of us. We are born with it, and that combustible nature of sin lies within us. We must always be aware of that. That is why we must always keep our guard up.
I had the opportunity to observe lions up close some years ago when I was in Africa. We watched them from the truck we were in, but our guide warned us that if we stepped foot outside the vehicle, we wouldn’t live to tell about it. Those lions looked so innocent and lovable. But they also were very powerful, and they would pounce on us if we put ourselves in a place of vulnerability.
That is how sin is sometimes. It can look as though it won’t really harm us. We think we can handle it. And that makes us even more vulnerable. When you know your vulnerabilities, you take extra measures to protect yourself from what is harmful.
But when you take an attitude that says, “I would never fall to that,” be careful. When you feel the most secure in yourself, when you think your spiritual life is the strongest, your doctrine is the soundest, and your morals are the purest, then you should be the most on your guard and the most dependent on God. Your greatest virtues also can become your greatest vulnerabilities.
The Bible says, “If you think you are standing strong, be careful not to fall” (1 Corinthians 10:12 NLT). You always must keep your guard up until the very end.
Consider some familiar people of the Bible who fell in the very areas in which they allegedly were the strongest. When we think of Abraham, for example, we immediately think of faith. Yet we know that Abraham had lapses in his faith on a number of occasions.
Moses was identified in the Scriptures as the meekest man on earth, yet ironically, it was pride and presumption that dealt him a fateful blow.
We know the incredible, supernatural exploits of the mighty Samson, yet it was natural desires that brought him down.
The very area in which Simon Peter thought he was the strongest was actually where his weakness turned out to be. Peter had been so sure of himself. But then he fell, just as Jesus predicted he would.
That is why we need to keep our guard up. These examples should stand as warnings for us that we must never rest on our laurels. The apostle Paul said, “Not that I have already obtained all this, or have already arrived at my goal, but I press on to take hold of that for which Christ Jesus took hold of me. … Forgetting what is behind and straining toward what is ahead, I press on toward the goal to win the prize for which God has called me heavenward in Christ Jesus” (Philippians 3:12–14 NLT).
We need to not only forget the mistakes we’ve made, but in some ways, we also need to forget some of our great victories. Let me explain. It doesn’t mean that we forget what God has done for us. It doesn’t mean that we forget the great things that have happened. But we can’t live in the past. Yes, it’s great what God did yesterday. But what about today? And what about tomorrow?
During a military campaign, a young captain was recommended to Napoleon for promotion to a higher rank because of his great courage on the battlefield. When Napoleon asked why they suggested the captain, one of his commanders explained the unusual courage he had displayed on the battlefield a few days earlier. Because of what the young captain had done, a great victory was won.
“That’s good,” the general said. “But what did he do the next day?”
We have to keep moving forward spiritually, because the minute we stop moving forward will be the minute we start moving backward. And we will begin to backslide. Backsliding is the opposite of spiritual progression. If you are not moving forward, then you are going backward – not all at once, and not overnight.
When you start relaxing your grip, you will start to slip. So keep moving forward, lest you lower your guard and cave in to compromise.
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Pastor’s Conference of the Southern Baptist Convention in St. Louis
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Johnny Hunt served at Woodstock, Georgia for thirty years.
Johnny’s theme is enthusiastically finishing the journey for God. 2 Timothy 2:6-7 6 The husbandman that laboureth must be first partaker of the fruits. 7 Consider what I say; and the Lord give thee understanding in all things.
Johnny Hunt was touched by Adrian Rogers and Jerry Falwell. Paul pressed towards Christlikeness. Paul poured into Timothy. May our lives inspire others to obey. Martin Luther: “There are two days on my calendar: This day and that day.”
Johnny Hunt’s two life verses:
James 1:25 But whoso looketh into the perfect law of liberty, and continueth therein, he being not a forgetful hearer, but a doer of the work, this man shall be blessed in his deed.
Romans 12:1 I beseech you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, that ye present your bodies a living sacrifice, holy, acceptable unto God, which is your reasonable service.
Johnny Hunt was saved forty three years ago. Paul never got over his Damascus Road experience. Live not for ourselves but for others. Johnny teaches Timothy Barnabas ministries. God is the great promise keeper (not us). Our giants make us grow. Caleb – “Give me this mountain.” May God help us want what we wanted when we finished, as we wanted when we started.
Pastor’s Conference of the Southern Baptist Convention in St. Louis
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Jimmy Scroggins ~ West Palm Beach, Florida
2 Timothy 2:4-5 4 “No soldier when in service gets entangled in the enterprises of [civilian] life; his aim is to satisfy and please the one who enlisted him.5 And if anyone enters competitive games, he is not crowned unless he competes lawfully (fairly, according to the rules laid down).”
Paul is exhausted at the end of his race. He teaches Timothy evangelism. Pour yourself into evangelism by:
1)Pour ourselves into “Far From God” people. 2 Corinthians 11:24-28 overviews some of the Perils Of Paul:
2 Corinthians 11:24-28 King James Version (KJV)
24 Of the Jews five times received I forty stripes save one.
25 Thrice was I beaten with rods, once was I stoned, thrice I suffered shipwreck, a night and a day I have been in the deep;
26 In journeyings often, in perils of waters, in perils of robbers, in perils by mine own countrymen, in perils by the heathen, in perils in the city, in perils in the wilderness, in perils in the sea, in perils among false brethren;
27 In weariness and painfulness, in watchings often, in hunger and thirst, in fastings often, in cold and nakedness.
28 Beside those things that are without, that which cometh upon me daily, the care of all the churches.
Pastor’s Conference of the Southern Baptist Convention in St. Louis
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Breakout Session For Churches Up To 200 People ~ Bryan McWilliams Hosts A Panel Of Three Pastors Including Johnny Hunt
Evangelism in churches two hundred or less. Smaller churches are encouraged to plant churches, and many of them do. Johnny Hunt said: “The pastor must articulate a vision to the congregation. The pastor should take people witnessing with him.”
Titus 2:6 King James Version (KJV)
“Young men likewise exhort to be sober minded.”
Emulation exceeds exhortation. Share the Gospel. The older the church, the more willing they are to isolate themselves.
Johnny Hunt challenged us: “What do I do to enhance evangelism intentionally in our area? Visit businesses. Pray for the businesses. Bring them coffee and donuts. If our church closed and the community did not miss us, we have not done our job. Church growth starts with a prayer strategy.”
* Evangelism Strategy: 1)Relationships and 2)Prayer.
Ministry is messy. We need not fear. Our greatest impact is with the forgotten people. Get your hands dirty. Fear God, and you will not fear man.
Johnny Hunt: “Door to door evangelism still works. Listen to God’s call in your quiet time. Go out and evangelize. ** 85% of people who become saved were invited by someone. Be highly relational with people, be committed. The SBC defines the Gospel well, but we declare it poorly. The four C’s of evangelism that relate well to millenials are: 1)Coffee, 2)Conversation, 3)Connection, and 4)Conversion.
***********
There was a brief conversation related to the pastor’s retirement, and the possibility of systematic withdrawal from Guidestone.
The most exciting time of ministry is rounding third and heading home. Do the work of an evangelist. We are witnesses. Southern Baptists are aging and declining. Our membership and baptisms are down, but we are planting more churches than ever before.
Ten Principles Of Creating An Atmosphere Of Evangelism:
1)It begins with the pastor. The fires of evangelism must burn in the pastor. Fulfill your ministry. Be Spirit filled. Christ in you, the hope of glory. Galatians 2:20 “I am crucified with Christ: nevertheless I live; yet not I, but Christ liveth in me: and the life which I now live in the flesh I live by the faith of the Son of God, who loved me, and gave himself for me.” King James Version (KJV) Never ever quit. Seek “trumpets in the morning.” Feel the freshness of the call. Keep showing up and be fruitful. Evangelize and burn with fervor.
2)Encourage and develop an invitational culture with your people.
3)Authenticity is critical, especially in this generation. People want to see that it is real and genuine. The pastor must “be” the culture of evangelism. Do the work of an evangelist.
4)Trust in the power of the Gospel. Romans 1:16 “For I am not ashamed of the gospel of Christ: for it is the power of God unto salvation to every one that believeth; to the Jew first, and also to the Greek.” Always share the saving Gospel. I Corinthians 9:16 “For though I preach the gospel, I have nothing to glory of: for necessity is laid upon me; yea, woe is unto me, if I preach not the gospel!”
5)Do whatever it takes to reach people for Christ. Example- The four men who took their paralyzed friend to Jesus. Stop making excuses. The world is our mission field. We need revival.
6)Train believers to share their faith.
7)Give an invitation. This models evangelism.
8)Baptize new believers as often as you can. Inside, outside, anywhere.
9)Event Evangelism. The programs are designed to win people to Christ.
10)Mission Trips and Church Plants are great catalysts and activities for evangelism.
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2016-2017 Candidates for next years’ pastor’s conference:
President- John Avant and Dave Miller. Dave Miller won the nomination.
Vice President- Greg Davidson.
Treasurer- Toby Frost.
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We attended the NAMB Chaplain Luncheon. Our son Matthew is an SBC ordained chaplain in the Federal Penitentiary, as well as in the Air Force Reserve. These men and women met together to hear a couple of talks and the sharing of information. I greatly enjoyed the fellowship. Matthew feels led to plant a church one day, as well as performing his calling in the chaplaincy. Perhaps the ole’ man can be his “right hand man” one day and assist him in this endeavor.
Pastor’s Conference of the Southern Baptist Convention in St. Louis
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David Platt International Mission Board (IMB) President Theme Of Conference II Timothy 4:5
David’s Text Ephesians 2:1-10
Ephesians 2:1-10 King James Version (KJV)
1 And you hath he quickened, who were dead in trespasses and sins;
2 Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience:
3 Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.
4 But God, who is rich in mercy, for his great love wherewith he loved us,
5 Even when we were dead in sins, hath quickened us together with Christ, (by grace ye are saved;)
6 And hath raised us up together, and made us sit together in heavenly places in Christ Jesus:
7 That in the ages to come he might shew the exceeding riches of his grace in his kindness toward us through Christ Jesus.
8 For by grace are ye saved through faith; and that not of yourselves: it is the gift of God:
9 Not of works, lest any man should boast.
10 For we are his workmanship, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them.
David Platt goes straight to the message and ignores small talk, jokes, etc.
GOSPEL
God’s character Ephesians 2:4 Never preach Gos as a means to an end. (Name it, claim it. Blab it, grab it).
Offense of sin Ephesians 2:5 We are dead in our sins. Everything obeys God except for man. We must emphasize the severity of sin. Ex. Lot’s wife, the man picking up sticks in the Old Testament on the Sabbath, Ananias and Saphira.
Sufficiency of Christ Ephesians 2:5-6 How can God justify us without condemning us? Through the cross!
Personal response Faith Ephesians 2:8-9 Salvation is a gift we receive. It cannot be earned.
Eternal urgency We do not emphasize hell. Ephesians 2:7 Hell is a burning fire and smoking sulfur. “Forever and ever.” There is a real wrath for those outside of Christ.
Life transformation Ephesians 2:10 New life!
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This aforementioned outline used by David Platt is used to share the Gospel one on one with people. It was developed by a pastor in Texas and is taught by a ministry called “One Conversation.” They commence by using the phrase “Can we talk?” Their history and ministry is as follows:
“Can We Talk?” is a six-week emphasis to equip church members to share the Gospel conversationally. Pastor John Meador of FBC Euless, Texas, began this program in 2013, and since then we’ve seen hundreds of members become equipped and confident in sharing their faith. It equips church members through 20-minute pastor-led teaching sessions, and provides hands on experience by going on visits to share the Gospel in the community.
In response to increasing interest from other churches, Pastor Meador launched a non-profit organization called “One Conversation” to host conferences for pastors and other church leaders to learn how “Can We Talk?” can work in their church. In this short amount of time thousands have heard the Gospel and hundreds have come to faith in Christ. The renewed emphasis on sharing the Gospel is transforming communities and church cultures. “Can We Talk?” is easy to learn, easy to teach, sustainable, and it’s working.
James MacDonald “Endurance In Ministry” II Timothy 4:5
2 Timothy 4:5 King James Version (KJV)
5 “But watch thou in all things, endure afflictions, do the work of an evangelist, make full proof of thy ministry.”
God allows bad stuff and difficult circumstances to happen to us in order to teach us faith and perseverance. “Remain under,” is the key. Remain under pressure. We dream of getting out from under the pressure – God does not want us to do this. “Endurance is the funnel through which all Christian characterr flows.” This is a message about not giving up. “Don’t quit.”
Five Obstacles To Perseverance (Endurance):
1)You must overcome loneliness. Demas left Paul. Get Mark. Only Luke is with me. There is no prescription for loneliness. We must live with it.
2 Timothy 4:9-12 New American Standard Bible (NASB)
Personal Concerns
9 “Make every effort to come to me soon;10 for Demas, having loved this present [a]world, has deserted me and gone to Thessalonica; Crescenshas gone to [b]Galatia, Titus to Dalmatia.11 Only Luke is with me. Pick up Mark and bring him with you, for he is useful to me for service.12 But Tychicus I have sent to Ephesus.”
2)There is discomfort. Bring the cloak, books and parchments. Literally, bring a blanket and a piece of paper. Many people in the ministry are dropping out.
2 Timothy 4:13 King James Version (KJV)
13 “The cloke that I left at Troas with Carpus, when thou comest, bring with thee, and the books, but especially the parchments.”
3)Overcoming conflict. Lean on the Lord as never before. Learn what you need to learn about others. Shout out what you know to be true. Rest on the Lord about the consequences. Great men have been hurt in order for God to use them.
2 Timothy 4:14 King James Version (KJV)
14 “Alexander the coppersmith did me much evil: the Lord reward him according to his works…”
4)Rejection. There are times here we feel God’s presence, but no one else. “The Lord stood by me.” (vs. 17)
2 Timothy 4:17 King James Version (KJV)
17 “Notwithstanding the Lord stood with me, and strengthened me; that by me the preaching might be fully known, and that all the Gentiles might hear: and I was delivered out of the mouth of the lion.”
5)Exhaustion. People writing nasty letters to him. Every pastor in the conference laughed and/or applauded because we could all identify with Paul’s hardships, and we too have received such communications.
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Sideshows at the conference:
1)A street preacher with a powerful microphone challenged the pastors as they entered the conference. He exhorted us to be soul winners and teach our congregations the same. I appreciated his words and thought he was right on target.
2)The massacre at the Orlando night club (49 killed) occurred just before the conference started, and set the tone for a lot of the preaching and concern for our nation.
3)Entire families come to the pastor’s conference. In yesteryear, just the pastors came. The dress is casual with a handful of exceptions.
4)One of the great fringe benefits of the Pastor’s Conference and Southern Baptist Convention, is the great music offered throughout. In recent years I have heard Matt Redman and Casting Crowns. The contemporary music group who played for this conference was Passion. They were a real blessing. Below is the last song they played, and my personal favorite:
Even Steven 