HT: Z

One of the reasons that missions is happening at the Red Brick Church in the way that it is happening is because of Dick’s leadership.  But, Dick and Shirley also mean a great deal here.

When I read a one paragraph summary like this one, I am amazed at the beauty of the Body of Christ.

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Dick & Shirley have been my heroes for several years.  I first really got to know them when they had a Bible study in their home. Later, they came to the hospital and sat with me when my son was in intensive care.  They have prayed for me and my family during many difficult times.  They have been here for me in a caring and non-judgmental way: through my bouts of depression and job loss and my son’s bad life choices and during his recovery from drug addiction.  When my mom was sick and later died I was so comforted by their prayers and their love. And the food they brought too.  Their hugs and phone calls and love have made them heroes to me.

One of the first steps to a recovering of authentic Christian preaching is to stop saying, “I prefer expository preaching.” Rather, we should define exactly what we mean when we say “preach.” What we mean is, very simply, reading the text and explaining it—reproving, rebuking, exhorting, and patiently teaching directly from the text of Scripture. If you are not doing that, then you are not preaching. Mohler, 42.

One of my concerns for the church in North America today is that local churches are too disconnected from one another. While there are several highly visible churches, many of the people in our local churches have relatively little awareness of what is going on in modest congregations like the Red Brick Church in Stillman Valley, IL.

In the coming weeks, I have asked several pastors to introduce us to their churches.  One of the real highlights for me in ministry in recent years was the opportunity to speak for Manor Park Church in England.  What struck me most about this church is how close they are as church family.  (You can see a picture of Roy and I on the right at Malvern Hill).  Not only did I enjoy preaching on forgiveness – - I was also entertained by their talent show.

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Tell us where your church is at geographically and give us your web site.

Our church is in Worcester, England, which is in the Midlands of England, www.manorparkchurch.org

How long have you been the pastor there?

Three and a half years.

Tell us about your family.

One wonderful wife, Yvonne, four boys from 18 to 8.

Is there a blog or web site where we can read more about you?

There’s a little bit of stuff on our website.

What is the theological or denominational heritage of your church? Is that identity changed?

Evangelical-conservative-reformed.

Are there any other pastoral staff?

One assistant, Ryan Muliette.

Briefly, what is your approach to preaching? Do you topical series? Book by book?

Varied! Mainly exegetical, but can be topical.

What is currently being preached on at your church? Can we listen online?

“The Walk of Faith: lessons from the life of Abraham” Yes.

What style of music do you use as a part of your worship service?

Contemporary with traditional.

Why should someone who lives in your area and is looking for a church home think about visiting your church?

Because we are Gospel centred with a passion to reach out with the Good News.

Tell us about one memory or incident from your church in which you believe God was glorified and you and your flock experienced joy.

About a year ago a 27 year old member was instantly killed in a cycle accident. The way his parents and friends passed through the trial with faith, hope and even joy has been an amazing witness to those around.

I often tell our people that, “a local church is not a local church.”  While we certainly should be concerned across the street, we need also to think about around the world.

Stuart Briscoe writes that parochialism is a scourge:

The vision of John recorded in Revelation 5:9 tells of the throne of the Lamb of God being surrounded by people from ‘every tribe and language and people and nation.’  This is a fulfillment of the promise to Abraham in Genesis 12:3, “All peoples on earth will be blessed through you.”  In between these bookend statements, there is ample evidence that right from the beginning the church was both local and global – -some call it glocal!  Call it what you will, there is no doubt that the resource-laden church in the West and the comparatively impoverished church in the developing world are all part of one body, the church of Christ.  They belong to each other.  Parochialism is a scourge; a worldview is imperative.  Both must learn to share and encourage, to instruct and support – - the West from their abundant resources while carefully avoiding loading David with Saul’s armour; the developing world from their rich store of experience of fundamental spiritual dynamics and brave commitment, which the West all too often lacks.  This requires more than a casual interest in international affairs on the part of many believers.  International affairs are happening where our brothers and sisters live – -and many die.  It demands more than a ten-day mission trip . . .

So great is our commitment to the thought patters of the modern world that assume every effect has a traceable, measurable, and understandable cause, that we can assume that if we get the causes right or fix them when they are not right, we can guarantee the effects.  So we have seven steps to this an five principles of that.  We have five year plans full of goals and measurable goals and intermediate goals, all of which we believe can be reached if we take the right steps and organise sufficient resources.  Then if we can keep the program running smoothly – - presto! – - the kingdom will be built.  But what of the mysterious, unmanageable, uncontrollable, unpredictable, irresistible, indefinable, unmistakable work of the Spirit?  He is the dynamic fact without whom our latest state-of-the-art, cutting-edge technology and know-how and our most sophisticated management principles are useless to penetrate the closed minds, to open the blind eyes, to demolish the spiritual strongholds, and to work the miracle of regeneration  The Holy Spirit’s dynamic working in the hearts of  individual believers and the soul of the community of faith must not be lost in the gloss of our sophistication and the polish of our performance.  He works as he chooses, not as we plan.  If we overlook this, the more likely it is that we will finish with a manmade system of canals and locks rather than a free network of brooks, streams, and rivers flowing into the brimming river of the relentless life-transforming work of the Spirit of God.  True, we will be able to keep control, and undoubtedly we can regulate the depth of the water, organise the times when the locks are open and shut, and manage the order in which the boats pass through.  But canals don’t flow; they stagnate.

I often plead with people in our church to come pray with me before the morning services.  The reason is that in my own strength I might as well seek to part the Red Sea or raise the dead as preach successfully.  Unless the Holy Spirit illuminates the Word when I preach, then it is nothing more than a human production.

Arturo Azurdia summarizes:

People are brought to faith in Jesus Christ not because a preacher happens to be exceptionally dynamic one Sunday morning, or because he finishes his sermon with a spell-binding story.  Rather, in a mysterious work that is both sovereign in expression and divine in origin the power of God unites with the proclamation of the word of God and produces effects that are in keeping with the purposes of God.  It is the effectual teaching ministry of the Spirit of truth, without which the Bible will never be anything more than a book in a drawer in a room at a hotel.

Pray for me, whenever I open my mouth to preach, that words would be given to me that I might, “boldly proclaim they mystery of the gospel.”  Ephesians 6:19-20.

HT: Z

Early in Jesus’ ministry, he is experiencing great success. His fame is spreading through Galilee as he casts out demons and heals many sick people. After one particularly busy day of healing, Mark’s Gospel tells us this:

And rising very early in the morning, while it was still dark, he departed and went out to a desolate place, and there he prayed. And Simon and those who were with him searched for him, and they found him and said to him, "Everyone is looking for you." And he said to them, "Let us go on to the next towns, that I may preach there also, for that is why I came out." Mark 1 :35-38 (ESV)

Three observations from this account of Jesus’ ministry.

• Jesus prioritized prayer as the way to effectively minister to people. He didn’t use busyness or success with people as an excuse for neglecting prayer and solitude with God the Father. He realized that in order to meet people’s needs he needed time alone with God. If we neglect prayer for the sake of ministering to people a breakdown will eventually come. We will get burnt out, or become proud of our "successes," or lack the strength to continue on, or lack the true power of transformation that God provides. Somewhere a breakdown will happen when we neglect prayer and solitude.

More here.

Al Mohler warns that preaching which fails to remind people of the meta-narrative or overarching story is inadequate.  

Another problem that leads to the evacuation of biblical content is a loss of the ‘big picture’ of Scripture.  Far too many preachers given inadequate attention to the canonical context of the passage to be preached and of its place in the overarching story of God’s purpose to glorify Himself through the redemption  of sinners.  Taken out of context, and without clear attention to biblical theology, preaching becomes a series of disconnected talks on disconnected texts.  This falls far short of the glory of true biblical preaching.  Al Mohler

Reflect on this diagram and its major emphases of:

• Creation
• Fall
• Redemption
• Consummation

Relate all of your study of the Scripture and your experiences in life to this overarching story.  If you are a Christian, then your light and momentary troubles are achieving an eternal glory that far outweighs them all (2 Cor 4:16-18).