Supporting the mission of "the Way" (Acts 9:2) and the Christian call to maturity (Eph. 4:12-13).
Prayerfully Support The Mission
Friday, September 29, 2017
Spirit Baptism
https://www.thegospelcoalition.org/article/is-spirit-baptism-the-privilege-of-every-christian
Sunday, September 24, 2017
The Plan Of Salvation
GOD’S PLAN OF SALVATION
Many people believe in God. Some believe there are many
gods. Christians believe there is only One God and He commands men and woman
from all nations to worship Him only. The Biblical text of Luke, chapter 4 and
verse 8 (Luke 4:8) states “It is written, you shall worship the Lord your God
and serve Him only”. Christians also believe that the Bible is the normative
source for Theology – The God of heaven is the ultimate source of His own
theology, even though others have suggested many possible sources of revelation
about God. God reveals Himself to us through the works of His hands (Psalm
19:1; Romans 1:18-20), through the “built in knowledge of His moral laws”
(Romans 2:15), through general and special revelation, and through tradition.
We cannot rely on “subjective general revelation” as this can lead to error – “We
exchange God’s truth for lies in order to justify our unbelief and to excuse
our sinful ways” (Romans 1:25) [1].
The Bible affirms that God is its author (Matthew 15:6) and
urges us to live by “every word that proceeds from the mouth of God (Matthew
4:4). Jesus when He was on the earth calls the word of God “His words” (John 5:
38-39) and the Apostle Paul calls the writings of the Bible “The very words of
God” (Romans 3:2). The Bible therefore, is “inspired by God and is profitable
for teaching, for reproof, for correction, for training in righteousness (the
ways of God) and for training in righteousness” (2 Timothy 3:16). The Bible
then is the divine authority of the God of heaven (2 Peter 1:20-21) and gives
instructions to man as to the need for salvation.
Friday, September 22, 2017
Wednesday, September 20, 2017
Youth Ministry Can Be Challenging
Navigating The Rough
Rivers of Youth Ministry
(Written by
Kevin Hall 09.18.17)
We are encouraged not to think inside a closet. “The Bible
is not an exhaustive revelation about everything we might need to consider” (246),
as it is silent on many issues. Often times, Christian leadership calls for
separation from the world, including its philosophies and practices of culture.
But Robbins encourages otherwise. There are lessons on the impact of culture
that can better shape of ministry effectiveness. These include:
(1)
Look
beyond the surface movement of the river – We need to be sensitive about
the culture around us. When we investigate and reflect we will find clues that
influence our young people outside of the doctrine we feed them weekly:
“Notions about God and spirituality, tribal affiliations (wear black), escape
patterns (cutting themselves after a break-up), assumptions (this is what is
fun these days)
Tuesday, September 19, 2017
Should We Consider Culture In Ministry?
Random Thoughts of
The Impact of Culture On Ministry
(Written by
Kevin Hall 09.16.17)
Consider the impact of the culture on the way we conduct
Youth Ministry and for that matter, overall edification. In his book “This Way
To Youth Ministry”, Robbins states that as a person experiences individuation
they come to terms with three main questions: (1) Who am I? (2) Where am I
going? and (3) How do I relate to other people?” (227). I believe, the answers
to these questions are shaped in part by “culture”. This is why ministry
workers should invest time, effort and resources into understanding the
culture.
I like the way Robbins use the analogy of “fishing”: Jesus called us
to be fishers of men “But if we are to be successful at fishing, we must give
careful thought to the way we fish, the fish’ habits and where they swim”
(247). In other words, if youth ministry is like fishing, then we must invest
in learning “fishery”. Jesus was just as concerned for His people and the world
– this is why he was incarnated. He was made a little lower, came to earth,
took on flesh, lived among His people, experienced the culture, gave up His
life for the people and the world, made provision for their redemption. “God
became flesh” (John 1:14). This is getting to know one’s world as best as
anyone could, and this is the ministry to which we are called.
The Challenges of The Ministry
The Challenges of The Ministry
(Written
by Kevin Hall 09.01.17)
Burnout related to the work of ministry is a reality one can
avoid. The stats related to the issue say that over 57% of respondents would
leave the ministry if they could; 71% struggle with depression; 80% leave
within 5 years; 70% feel they have no close friends and 75% feel unqualified
(lecture. Pape). These numbers do not bode very well for those considering
entering the ministry, not to mention the fact that compensation may not be at
the top of Glassdoor’s salary rank. Therefore, the work of ministry must be a
calling.
One must be sure of divine guidance to work the field. The good news is that there are numerous steps
one can take to reduce or prevent burnout – these include taking care of my
health; having a hobby; making time for family and friends; keep the learning
wheels turning (a leader must constantly learn new things) and having adult
friends.
Now, one thing we should not do both personally and
professionally is to “neglect the inner man” (96).
Monday, September 18, 2017
Free Will - Why It Matters
The Issue of Free Will
(Written by Kevin Hall 09.11.17)
If you peel away the layers of
these worldviews outside of Christianity, one will find evidence of one main
strategy – Explain away Creator God. They wish to “deny the Creator and to
expropriate His divine power’ (174), many making this their life’s goal. Men
like Francis Crick stated forcefully that “his goal was to explain away the
origin of life and consciousness by reducing them into physical -chemical
causes” (174).
You see, if God is discredited as “first cause” or a “personal God”,
then free will becomes a false idea
which is denied, discredited, suppressed
and is incoherent.
With the Creator God and His truth denied, then mankind is
free to live according to his own truth. Truth becomes relative – men become
reduced to states lower than the creator intended. They become labeled as
robots and machines who cannot be held accountable for their actions. The
Apostle Paul said, “For even though they knew God, they did not honor Him as
God or give thanks; but they became futile in their speculations, and their
foolish heart was darkened” (Romans 1:21).
Notice there is a definite strategy
to deny God and to do so for selfish reasons.
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