vassal of the King

PRACTICAL TIPS FOR FAMILY WORSHIP Geoffrey R. Kirkland Christ Fellowship Bible Church I love family worship. I readily and humbly admit that I have much learning still to do. But by God’s grace, I heard a sermon while sitting in a dorm room in Pennsylvania for my doctoral studies that the Lord used to expose my sin of neglecting my family in the regular shepherding of their souls in the Word of God. So I’m no professional. But I am a man who has seen, experienced, and savored the happy joys and spiritual benefits of family worship in my own home. In this brief write-up, I hope to provide some practical tips and helpful reminders for family worship. 1) Leadership. This simply serves as the clarion call for men to lead. God has declared in Ephesians 5 that the husbands are the heads over their wives. God doesn’t ask men to lead. He says you are a leader. So, then, by God’s grace and with God’s Word, and with Christ’s joy, lead your family and shepherd them diligently! The way Christ l

Young Men — Is This You? Geoffrey R. Kirkland Christ Fellowship Bible Church “ Need ” is a strong word. But I use it intentionally and I use it passionately. Yes, I use it urgently. Our culture desperately needs men. Not boys! We have plenty of boys. The church needs men, real men, godly men, holy men, biblical men. As a minister of the gospel, as a student of Scripture, as a biblical counselor, and as a man after God’s own heart, I will list 8 traits that should characterize men. So — young men: is this you? Young men -- you need… 1) Truth — Jesus described Himself as being “the Truth.” God is the God of truth and truthfulness. You are made by Him and designed to emulate Him. Speak truth in your heart and have no fear of what you’ll say. Fill your mind and heart with truthful things and flee from deceptive, hidden, devious, manipulative ways. Young men, at all costs, be men of truth! 2) Integrity — The biblical concept of integrity speaks of wholeness, blamelessness. That is, to

College students: what do you plan to do this summer? Geoffrey R. Kirkland Christ Fellowship Bible Church For you as Christian students, the summer brings many opportunities to rest, serve the Lord, and prepare for what’s to come. For many, endless opportunities exist for you to engage in trivial, worldly, unimportant, and time-consuming activities that do not progress your journey toward heaven. As a pastor, I have a heart for young men and women to maximize their time for the glory of Christ and for the good of their souls. Time passes too quickly to waste even a moment. So in this brief write-up, I as a shepherd-pastor with a great love and concern for college students encourage you to serve Christ and live for eternity during these summer months. I will provide you with 6 helpful and practical tips. 1. Read. I know. You’ve read too much already this school year. But let me encourage you to continue to ‘grow in the grace and knowledge of our Lord Jesus Christ’ (2 Pet 3.18) and you

Why Be Urgent with the Gospel? Geoffrey R. Kirkland Christ Fellowship Bible Church Job declared that my life is but breath (Job 7.7). David affirmed that God has made our days as handbreadths (Ps 39.5). James reminded us that we are just a vapor that appears for a little while and then vanishes away (James 4.14). Our lives are brief. We are here but for a few years and then we step into everlasting eternity without end. One might ask: why must we be so urgent with the gospel? We must be urgent with the gospel for the following 5 reasons: because of… 1. the nearness of death. Men fail to realize how final and certain death is. This life is not the end. Death is not the end. Five seconds after death is not the end. When God takes a person’s life and he steps into the everlasting abode of eternity he will then realize just how brief of a time he was on earth. But it will be too late then. Life is short. Heart attacks happen. Strokes can seize people and usher them immediately into etern

The Greatest Is a Servant (Matthew 23:11) Geoffrey R. Kirkland Christ Fellowship Bible Church In these words our Lord speaks concerning leadership. In this context He scathingly denounces the arrogant hypocrisy of the religious leaders of the day and He calls His own to be those who serve one another. Since, as Jesus said, the greatest is a servant, we must understand what spheres of life and ministry this can occur. In this brief essay, I want to speak of 10 spheres in which serving God can happen for the glory of God and for the joy of His people. 1. Praying. Believers must remember that one great way that they can care for one another comes through interceding on behalf of other believers. Strength of soul comes in praying for others. God hears and answers specific prayers! 2. Studying. One way to serve God also occurs when children of God quiet themselves with the Word with the specific intent of knowing God, loving Christ, understanding the gospel’s grandeur, and how it applies

Preaching With Fire Geoffrey R. Kirkland Christ Fellowship Bible Church Preaching denotes that God-ordained means of pressing divine truth upon the hearts of people by which a man of God heralds forth the Master’s message with faithful clarity, with biblical fidelity, with theological precision, and with earnest application. Preaching instructs the mind, directs the will, and woos the heart. Biblical preaching presents the depravity of man, the inability of self-deliverance, the sufficiency of Christ, the propitiation of the Lamb, and the necessity to repent and believe. Preaching is not dialoguing. Preaching heralds. Preaching thunders. Preaching declares. Preaching commands. Preaching summons. Preaching presents divine truth to human hearts with fiery urgency through a man white-hot with love for Christ. 1. Urgency. Everyone will die. The crackling flames of hell must be heard by every faithful minister so that he understands the weightiness and importance of every opportunity to h

The Kind of Men God Uses Geoffrey R. Kirkland Christ Fellowship Bible Church Every man longs for God to use him. But what kind of men does God use? What kind of man most manifests the power of God? How should men live in this world to make the most impact for the next? How must a minister live? How must a husband serve? How must a Christian occupy himself? To be used by God in a mighty way, let the reader understand that God uses particular kinds of men. 1 Corinthians 2:3 — “I was with you in weakness…” 1. Weak men The Apostle Paul boasted in few things but one such characteristic that he often boasted in was his weakness. He was a weak man in the eyes of the world. Indeed, the way of the Lord so often flips human things upside-down. God does not use the strongest of men to accomplish the greatest of tasks. He uses weak men, frail in the eyes of the world, empowered by God to do great things for His glory. 2. Broken men Godly men sorrow over sin. Men of God who accomplish much in the