All Posts (Page 31)
Strategically Distributing God’s Word: Stories & Strategies
My wife makes tasty candy every year at Christmas. For the past several years, we’ve shared some of these delectable treasures with our neighbors. This past Christmas, we decided to distribute to our non-Christian neighbors not only chocolate-covered peanut clusters, but also a copy of the gospel of John. We’re praying for God to use His word to save our neighbors. Whenever God’s Spirit grants understanding (see Matthew 13:11), it’s always in partnership with the message of Christ. I want…
The Muller Center for Biblical Studies
Frequently asked questions: What is the Muller Center? Why did we name the Center after George Muller? Where is the Muller Center located? Who are the tutors for the Muller Center? What is required of Muller Center students? What is the cost for becoming a Muller Center student (for our main 2 semester courses)? May I study in the Muller Center’s two semester forums if I live outside the Kansas City area? What is the typical weekly schedule for two…
What Was Reformed in the Reformation
If one wants to know what the Protestant Reformation was all about without reading huge volumes of historical literature, it is perhaps most clarifying to look at the theological results. One should specifically note the rediscovery of five critical biblical doctrines that had been obscured from public view by the medieval version of what we now know as the Roman Catholic Church. And just so you know, Rome still either openly opposes or seriously distorts these doctrines. Using the Latin…
What You Need to Know About The Da Vinci Code
Do you know someone who has read The Da Vinci Code? If you don’t by now, you probably will. Dan Brown’s suspense novel has been on the NY Times best-sellers list for over 3 years, and, according to Brown’s website, "has become one of the most widely read books of all time."1 A quick search of a national bookseller’s website yielded no less than 15 books written about this novel, and a major motion picture based on the book is…
A Journey in Search of Comfort as a Christian Parent of Unconverted Children
There are few events in the Christian life that can be more disturbing and cause more anguish of heart than to see your children become young adults while continuing to evidence a spiritual disposition that seems to betray that these most precious gifts from God remain strangers to His grace. Yes, they may think that they are believers, but there is no love for His Word, no desire to be with His people, and no desire to live for the…
James in the Light of Job and Abraham: An Informal Attempt to Discover A Unifying Concept
Editor’s Note: The words below this introduction came from Benjamin Elliff in two private email conversations about the book of James. They follow a fairly lame attempt on my part to put the book together on James 2:12. Neither one of us knows for sure if the idea expressed below is exactly what James had in mind when he wrote his letter, but the attempt opens the door for more discussion. The style of Benjamin’s writing is just what it…
Let Us Pray Without Delay!
They didn’t complain. They didn’t doubt. They didn’t even strategize. Once Peter and John reported their imprisonment and the threats they had received for preaching the gospel, they immediately prayed with a gathering of believers in Jerusalem (see Acts 4:23-31). As I once heard, “Prayer was their first choice, not their last chance.” Here’s what they asked from God: “And now, Lord, look upon their threats and grant to your servants to continue to speak your word with all boldness,…
Nine Characteristics of Biblical Prayer
True prayer is not merely a matter of saying the right words. Biblical prayer is characterized and motivated by the right attitude-right thinking about the greatness of God, the beauty of Christ, and our own unworthiness and weakness. Ask yourself if your prayers are characterized by: An Understanding of Your Own Insignificance and Sinfulness When I consider Your heavens, the work of Your fingers, the moon and the stars, which You have ordained; what is man that You take thought…
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…
Reflections on the Ministry Trip to Ethiopia & Uganda, Fall of 2012
On September 4, 2012, CCW staff member Selamab Assefa and I left America for a few weeks of ministry in Africa. This was my third trip to Ethiopia with Selamab, and our first trip to Uganda. What follows is a brief report, arranged by topics. Old Friends Our first weekend in Ethiopia involved ministry to church leaders in a town called Dangla, about a 10 hour drive northwest of Addis Ababa (the capital city of Ethiopia). We had served in…
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…
Beware of Study Bibles
I like resources that help me understand the Bible. My collection of commentaries grows yearly. The amount of books I own addressing various areas of theology numbers in the hundreds. There are a couple of websites that I visit regularly where numerous Bible study tools are offered. I also own four “Study Bibles,” which include not only the biblical text, but introductions and outlines for each book of the Bible, notes that explain verses, maps, articles about major concepts, and…
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.…
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…
The Threefold Newness of Marriage
Weddings are celebrations of love, of commitment, and of hope for the future. But they are also a time to recognize and celebrate newness, even the newness of creation. When you attend a wedding you are witnessing three brand new things: First, you are witnessing the establishment of an entirely new family. Much is often said at weddings about parents not losing a son, but gaining a daughter, or not losing a daughter, but gaining a son. These are true…