Posts by Jim Elliff (Page 23)
SO THEY PERSECUTED THE PROPHETS BEFORE YOU
Speak to them, whether they listen or not, “Thus says the Lord God”(Ez 3). We shouldn’t be so arrogant as to think we’re prophets like Ezekiel, hearing direct words from God. Rather, we humbly speak what the prophets spoke. We sometimes succeed, yet they preached with the knowledge that almost all would not obey. So, don’t despair when you meet up with insults and resistance to words God first gave through His writing prophets.” In the same way they persecuted…
MOTIVE FOR EVANGELISM?
I was asked, “What should be the primary motivation for evangelism and missions: Love for Christ or love for the lost? The question is an impossible one to answer because it offers a false dichotomy. In the NT, love for others is the way we love God. “How can you say you love God if you do not love others?” James and John and Paul said. Both are always at play. For instance, Paul was so passionate about the lostness of his…
FORGETTING LABELS
I hope it’s a sign of becoming more heavenly-minded to find myself uninterested in labels among true believers any more. When we’re the next world, what possible difference could they make? What good are they now, except to create division, end conversation, and promote loyalties that may diffuse our true loyalty to Christ alone? I don’t mean Bible TRUTHS are unimportant, or that they shouldn’t be talked out passionately—just that it seems more consistent to be Bible Christians than system…
RIGHTEOUSNESS ON THE BROAD WAY?
In the Sermon on the Mount, the broad way that leads to destruction is the external religious way. The narrow way is the way Jesus taught. This is seen particularly in the “antitheses” section in Mt. 5. For instance, the broad way is by fulfilling the command, “You shall not murder,” but the narrow way is found in Jesus’ statement: “but I say to you, whoever is angry with his brother is guilty…” Or again, “You shall not commit adultery” is…
BABY SPRINKLING
Went to a friendly mainline church this morning (ours meets in the afternoon), where I witnessed a baby sprinkling. The minister announced that in this experience the baby received the Spirit and was reborn. The child was then displayed as the newest member of the church. Whatever the rationale for this practice, we must all agree that such an experience did not take place in the New Testament.
Are You Poor in Spirit?
Are you poor in spirit, mourning over sin everywhere you find it, gentle and approachable in your relationships, hungering and thirsting for righteousness, merciful to others, pure and unmixed in your devotion to Christ? Are you a peacemaker? Are you sometimes persecuted in subtle or even striking ways for your distinctiveness as you live out life from a changed heart? If not, you should have no assurance that the kingdom of heaven is yours, that you will receive comfort from God…
The Garage Method
A former professor of mine, now a successful author of Christian fiction, used to dismiss his anxieties by repeating this mantra: “Oh well. It doesn’t eternally matter.” For him six words conquered all ills. He slew his worries with a phrase, with a mere wag of his tongue. I’m not sure he was right about things not eternally mattering, but his blood pressure remained low and in many ways, he turned his worries into trust. It is sort of an…
Evangelistic Bible Reading Concept
What? A way to bring our friends and family directly to the New Testament in order to introduce them to Christ. The plan is to read the Bible aloud with those who don’t know Christ on a regular basis. Why? The Bible tells us the story of Christ’s death and resurrection, resulting in forgiveness and the life which is essential for our salvation. In fact, we only know about that through the Bible. Also, to believe includes hearing and conforming…
Faith-Sized Requests
Few things are as fixed as mountains. But, on the day after Jesus cursed the fig tree, He declared that they can be moved. "Have faith in God. Truly I say to you, whoever says to this mountain, ‘Be taken up and cast into the sea,’ and does not doubt in his heart, but believes that what he says is going to happen, it will be granted him." (Mark 11:23) Did Jesus mean this? The writer of Hebrews thought so.…
Nine Men at Panera
A group of nine men and I just finished a year and half discussion about John. I’m not going to let you in on the beauties of the book at this point, but rather I want to comment on the idea of men reading and studying the Scripture together. My comments apply to women and youth also, but my experience is with men, so I will lay this out in that context. These men, members of my congregation, met at…
Providence in Romania
After ministering just a few days in Romania in 1985 when the Iron Curtain was still up, I received a call that my mother was dying in a hospital room in Oklahoma City. “We think she is holding on until you get here,” my brother said. It took two days to leave. It was hard enough to get into Romania at Oradea a few days earlier. At the checkpoint, the border guards asked if we had “any guns, drugs, pornography…
Hearing Aids for Believers
Let’s face it-sometimes it is hard to get much out of the sermon or teaching you receive in your church. While some of the blame often lies at the feet of the presenter, it is still the obligation of the listener to scratch for something nourishing for the soul. Here are some hearing aids: 1. Sleep more. Not during the meeting, of course, but the night before. This takes some planning. It is especially difficult with youth, who use Saturday…
How You Might Use The Soils Booklet
It takes the Spirit of God to open up the heart of any man or woman to the good news of life in Christ. In our world many believe that they have some relationship with Christ. Over 80% of Americans, for instance, say that they are Christians, very broadly defined [Barna]. The statistics are alarming since we know that almost all who profess faith in Christ really do not actually understand the gospel or give evidence that they know Him.…
The Last Forty-five Minutes
He was lying down, gasping. It was his own bed and it was his time. Forty-five minutes from this moment he would die. Beside him sat his wife in the overstuffed leather chair that had been pulled close for the final event. She had been there all night. She sat on the edge as she patted his hand and tried to soothe him—disheveled, wide-eyed with simmering panic, twitching, pleading. It had been the hardest night of her life. The hospice…
The Man of Faith, George Muller (audio Links)
Jim and Bill Elliff, John Piper and Jim Cymbala on the man of Faith, George Muller. In this well-produced audio presentation, you will hear many of the stories of Muller and his orphanage, his disciplines and his experiences with trusting God, as well as how Muller impacted those involved on the audio itself. This was produced by Revive Our Hearts, the radio ministry of Nancy Lee DeMoss. We encourage you to listen in order to learn more about trusting God.…
The Muller Center Goes to Israel
CCW began “The Muller Center for Biblical Studies” in the fall of 2010 with its first six students. The goal was to read the Bible seriously and let the Spirit work to teach and train in Bible literacy. The students and tutors (Jim Elliff and Steve Burchett) read the first five books of the Bible every two weeks and Matthew every week (132 chapters/week). This meant approximately 20 hours a week for reading, marking, and discovery of biblical insights. The…