Consider How Jesus Fulfilled These Old Testament Prophecies... (From A.W. Pink)

Had prophecy declared that he should be the “woman’s seed” ( Genesis 3:15): then he was “born of a woman” ( Galatians 4:4). Had prophecy announced that his mother should be a “virgin” ( Isaiah 7:14): then was it literally fulfilled ( Matthew 1:18). Had prophecy revealed that he should be of the seed of Abraham ( Genesis 22:18): then mark its fulfillment ( Matthew 1:1). Had prophecy made it known that he should be a lineal descendant of David ( 2 Samuel 7:12,13): then such he actually was ( Romans 1:3). Had prophecy said that he should be named before he was born ( Isaiah 49:1): then so it came to pass ( Luke 1:30,31). Had prophecy foretold that he should be born in Bethlehem of Judea (Micah 5:2): then mark how this very village was actually his birthplace. Had prophecy forewarned that his birth should entail sorrowing for others ( Jeremiah 31:15): then behold its tragic fulfillment ( Matthew 2:16-18). Had prophecy foreshown that the Messiah should appear before the sceptre of tribal ascendancy had departed from Judah ( Genesis 49:10): then so he did, for though the ten tribes were in captivity. Judah was still in the land at the time of his advent. Had prophecy referred to the flight into Egypt and the subsequent return into Palestine ( Hosea 11:1 and cf. Isaiah 49:3,6): then so it came to pass ( Matthew 2:14,15).
Had prophecy made mention of one going before Christ to make ready his way ( Malachi 3:1): then see its fulfillment in the person of John the Baptist. Had prophecy made it known that at the Messiah’s appearing that “then the eyes of the blind shall be opened, and the ears of the deaf shall be unstopped. Then shall the lame man leap as an hart, and the tongue of the dumb sing” ( Isaiah 35:5,6) then read through the four gospels and see how blessedly this proved to be true. Had prophecy spoken of him as “poor and needy” ( Psalm 40:17 - see beginning of psalm): then behold him not having where to lay his head.
Had prophecy intimated that he should speak in “parables” ( Psalm 78:2): then such was frequently his method of teaching. Had prophecy depicted him stilling the tempest ( <19A729> Psalm 107:29): then this is exactly what he did. Had prophecy heralded his “triumphal entry” into Jerusalem ( Zechariah 9:9): then so it came to pass.
Had prophecy announced that his person should be despised ( Isaiah 53:3); that he should be rejected by the Jews ( Isaiah 8:14); that he should be “hated without a cause” ( Psalm 69:4): then sad to say, such was precisely the case. Had prophecy painted the whole picture of his degradation and crucifixion - then was it vividly reproduced. There had been the betrayal by a familiar friend, the forsaking by his cherished disciples, the being led to the slaughter, the being taken to judgment, the appearing of false witnesses against him, the refusal on his part to make defence, the establishing of his innocency, the unjust condemnation, the sentence of capital punishment passed upon him, the literal piercing of his hands and feet, the being numbered with transgressors, the mockery of the crowd, the casting lots for his garments - all predicted centuries beforehand, and all fulfilled to the very letter. The last prophecy of all which remained ere he committed his spirit into the hands of his Father had now been fulfilled. He cried “I thirst” and after the tendering of the vinegar and gall all was now “accomplished”; and as the Lord Jesus reviewed the entire scope of the prophetic word and saw its full realization, he cried, “It is finished”!

Have You Prayed About the Money You Are Spending This "Holiday Season?"

Every Christmas I watch lots of people dive into the retail riptide and spend more money than they have. Reasons for being silly like this abound, not the least of which is a creatively nurtured guilt by advertisers that erodes our common sense into thinking that the people around us will not feel valued unless we buy them something. If we lived like this all year we would be bankrupt and hungry.
My friend Walter has lived a long time and written a few words on money and how it should be used. I was privileged to read his letter to the folks at Carey Conference this year and I recently noticed that the audio of that has been posted. So, why not download Ol’ Walt and give him a listen while you drive in circles trying to find a parking spot at the mall?

Can you believe in God without believing in Jesus?

The Most Brilliant Hymn Ever Written (so far)

This could likely be the most brilliant English hymn ever written.

That is what I think, anyway.

God moves in a mysterious way
His wonders to perform;
He plants His footsteps in the sea
And rides upon the storm.

Deep in unfathomable mines
Of never failing skill
He treasures up His bright designs
And works His sovereign will.

Ye fearful saints, fresh courage take;
The clouds ye so much dread
Are big with mercy and shall break
In blessings on your head.

Judge not the Lord by feeble sense,
But trust Him for His grace;
Behind a frowning providence
He hides a smiling face.

His purposes will ripen fast,
Unfolding every hour;
The bud may have a bitter taste,
But sweet will be the flower.

Blind unbelief is sure to err
And scan His work in vain;
God is His own interpreter,
And He will make it plain.

- William Cowper, 1774.

John Knight on a good way to pray for a better theology of disability

Pray that our leaders would know AND love the truth « The Works of God:

"What is particularly frustrating about Dr. Otieno’s article is that it is very well written and she has clearly given this a great deal of thought. This article is full of scriptural references, and she has looked directly at some of the most difficult passages on disability in the Bible.

But it is not written from the perspective that this is God’s story, that he is a holy God, that he has sovereign authority over his creation, that he is entirely good, that he is completely merciful, and that anything that draws us closer to him and into treasuring Jesus above all things is better than anything in this life. Even a life full of suffering and exclusion because of disability – which he has ordained – does not compare to an eternity of increasing joy spent with Jesus.

And that is why we should pray for the gathering of the Evangelical Theological Society this week. Disciplined, smart people write articles about the Bible all the time – and get it wrong. It is God alone who gives new life, eyes to see, and a desire to make much of him."

Not Many Christians Really Believe in the Resurrection

“There are very few Christians who believe the resurrection of the dead. You may be surprised to hear that, but I should not wonder if I discovered that you yourself have doubts on the subject.
By the resurrection of the dead is meant something very different from the immortality of the soul: that, every Christian believes, and therein is only on a level with the heathen, who believes it too. The light of nature is sufficient to tell us that the soul is immortal, so that the infidel who doubts it is a worse fool even than a heathen, for he, before Revelation was given, had discovered it—there are some faint glimmerings in men of reason which teach that the soul is something so wonderful that it must endure forever. But the resurrection of the dead is quite another doctrine, dealing not with the soul, but with the body. The doctrine is that this actual body in which I now exist is to live with my soul…
The spirit, every one confesses, is eternal; but how many there are who deny that the bodies of men will actually start up from their graves at the great day! Many of you believe you will have a body in heaven, but you think it will be an airy fantastic body, instead of believing that it will be a body like to this—flesh and blood (although not the same kind of flesh, for all flesh is not the same flesh), a solid, substantial body, even such as we have here.
And there are yet fewer of you who believe that the wicked will have bodies in hell; for it is gaining ground everywhere that there are to be no positive torments for the damned in hell to affect their bodies, but that it is to be metaphorical fire, metaphorical brimstone, metaphorical chains, metaphorical torture. But if ye were Christians as ye profess to be, ye would believe that every mortal man who ever existed shall not only live by the immortality of his soul, but his body shall live again, that the very flesh in which he now walks the earth is as eternal as the soul, and shall exist for ever.
That is the peculiar doctrine of Christianity. The heathens never guessed or imagined such a thing; and consequently when Paul spoke of the resurrection of the dead, "Some mocked," which proves that they understood him to speak of the resurrection of the body, for they would not have mocked had he only spoken of the immortality of the soul, that having been already proclaimed by Plato and Socrates, and received with reverence.” – C.H. Spurgeon

Did I Really Think That?

I faced a rather awful thought in my mind this morning. I won’t tell you what it was, but I after it reared its ugly head I wondered aloud, “Where did that come from?”

This reminded me of a passage that has intrigued me for years in The Pilgrim’s Progress. It comes from section IV, where Christian is making his difficult way through the Valley of the Shadow of Death:

One thing I would not let slip; I took notice that now poor CHRISTIAN was so confounded, that he did not know his own voice. And thus I perceived it: just when he was come over against the mouth of the burning pit, one of the wicked ones got behind him, and stept up softly to him; and whisperingly suggested many grievous blasphemies to him--which he verily thought had proceeded from his own mind. This put CHRISTIAN more to it than anything that he met with before, even to think that he should now blaspheme him that he loved so much before! Yet could he have helped it, he would not have done it; but he had not the discretion neither to stop his ears, nor to know from whence those blasphemies came.

Sometimes I wonder if the awful thoughts come from a source other than that cesspool of remaining sin in our hearts. Bunyan captures the idea well here. I suppose we will never know exactly the source of these things, but in our self-examination, we do well to remember that there is an Enemy and that he does attack.

How Members Can Serve the Church on Sunday Morning | 9Marks

Here is a great little post on how you can serve your church tomorrow

At the Trellis and Vine Workshop in DC today, Colin Marshall shared ways that ordinary church members can serve the church on Sunday mornings.

Before the Service

* Read the passage in advance
* Pray for the gathering
* Greet newcomers (act like you are the host)
* Think strategically about who you should sit with
* Arrive Early

During the Service

* Sing with gusto (even if you can’t sing)
* Help with logistics (if there’s a problem, help fix it)
* Don’t be distracted
* Listen carefully
* Be aware of your facial expressions (you may affect others and discourage preachers)

After the Service

* Connect newcomers with others
* Get newcomers information
* Start a conversation about the sermon
* Ask someone how they became a Christian
* Stay late

AlbertMohler.com – Evolution: When Atheists and Baptists Agree?

AlbertMohler.com – Evolution: When Atheists and Baptists Agree?:

"There are few figures so influential in my own thinking as Augustine, and his wise counsel about allowing the plain texts of Scripture to interpret the more obscure is inherently healthy. But it is Rachel Held Evans who must bear the responsibility to explain how any acceptance of evolution can avoid “prejudice to the faith we have received.”

Her glib and superficial endorsement of evolution and its reconciliation with Christianity is all too common and all too irresponsible. If she is going to quote Augustine, she should deal with the consequences. How are we to reconcile the absence of an historical Adam, for example, with Paul’s very clear and unambiguous affirmation of Adam’s headship and its centrality to the gospel? The age of the earth is not the central question, though it is an unavoidable and important question.

Most of those who urge a reconciliation of evolution and the Christian faith do so at the most superficial level, without ever acknowledging the near-total transformation of Christian theology that must result if serious minds ask the serious questions and do the serious work of actually thinking seriously."

Church Plant Update: Meetings Begin!

Church Plant Update: Meetings Begin! « Julian Freeman:

Here is some great news from Julian....

We are very excited to announce that our church plant core group will begin meeting on the evening of Sunday, October 3, at 5pm!

Here are the details in a summary:

• Where is it? The first two weeks (October 3 and October 10) we will meet at Julian & Stacey’s house. Subsequent weeks will be held at Nabil & Tania’s house. Contact us for addresses & directions.
• When is it? We will meet at 5pm and hope to be done our official meeting at about 6:10. There will, of course, be time for fellowship after for as long as you can stay.
• What’s the purpose? Three things. (1) We want to dive in to the Word of God together and ask, ‘What does God call his church to? What kind of church does he bless?’ We’ll be studying the book of Acts together. (2) We want to pray together. We want to make prayer instrumental, not supplemental to all we do as a church. (3) To get to know each other even better.
• Can visitors come? Absolutely! This meeting is for everyone who is committed, but also for those who are just hoping to find out about us and to figure out if they want to join us.
• What else is in the works? Lots of things! They will be announced as plans develop… but the best way to find out is just to come join with us!

Please contact me for more information.

See you Sunday night at 5pm, God willing!