Thank God For These Glorious Doctrines!

 Thank God For These Glorious Doctrines!
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Christ Fellowship Bible Church

Scripture calls us to “give thanks” (1 Thess 5:18). We are to praise and worship the Lord with thankful hearts (Ps 92.1). This Thanksgiving season, let us thank our God for some glorious theological doctrines. Of course there are so many majestic truths in Scripture that we can speak of, but I will limit this to only 6 glorious doctrines.

1. Predestination
Thank your God for predestining you. Consider that long before you were born and before He founded the world, God had predestined you for salvation (Rom 8.29). Amazingly, this selection of God, or this choosing of God, for particular people to be saved with a particular calling was all borne out of passionate love. We know this because God predestined His people in love to adoption as sons to Himself (Eph 1.5). Thank God that He knew you, predestined you, particularly chose you with a calling to be conformed to the image of the Son (Rom 8.29). In amazement and humility, give thanks to God for His most gracious act in predestining you to glory.

2. Justification
Thank your God for justifying you. All who are justified will “glory” in God (Isa 45.25). Consider that this exclusive and sovereign work of God alone was done “as a gift” for you (Rom 3.25). You did not deserve it, nor do you now deserve it because of your actions. You are simply justified by faith apart from any works of the Law (Rom 3.28). Give thanks that God is the sole accomplisher of your justification and that this divine and forensic act of God in heaven’s courtroom can never be overturned or abolished! You are justified all of grace and thus God has made you an heir of eternal life (Titus 3.7). Rejoice in this God-accomplished reality for you!

3. Expiation
Thank your God for the blessed doctrine of expiation. In this grand and soul-comforting truth of expiation, God blotted out and cancels out the certificate of debt that is charged against you (Col 2.14). In fact, this expiation is the truth that God took it out of the way, nailed it to the cross, and cleared away all the debt and consequences from you. Consider the blessed truth that you are cleansed from sin itself and the guilt and consequences of sin. The blood of Jesus Christ “cleanses us from all sin” (1 John 1.7). Ponder this. Meditate on this. Rejoice in this supernatural act of God, through Christ, by the Spirit that you are clear, freed, and that God has removed your transgressions far from you (Ps 103.12).

4. Propitiation
Thank your God for propitiation. In this majestically divine and mysteriously biblical doctrine, God’s wrath is completely removed because of the work of Jesus Christ. It is not that God ignored your sin. The reality of Scripture teaches that God justly punished your sin and poured out His wrath on your Substitute, Jesus Christ. This is the turning away of God’s wrath and the joyful state of God’s favor. God loved you and sent His Son, Jesus Christ the Lord, to “be the propitiation for our sins” (1 John 4.10). This all happened through Christ’s blood when He died on the cross, drank the bitter cup of infinite wrath for your sin (Rom 3.25). And He is your merciful and faithful High Priest (Heb 2.17). Take a moment and thank God for this wonder!

5. Preservation
Thank God for the wondrous hope of preservation. All whom God saves will persevere till glory. But all God’s elect persevere because God preserves them. Let your heart take rich comfort in the tight grip that He has on you. Nothing can snatch you out of His hand (John 10.28, 30). He will perfect the good work that He began in you (Phil 1.6). He will make you stand blameless before Him on that Day (Jude 24-25). The Lord will keep your soul (Ps 121.7). Consider this objective hope, outside of you, not determined by your level of obedience or your performance in religion. God preserves all His elect. Rest in His grace. Thank Him for His tight hold of your soul.

6. Glorification
Thank God for glorification. It is true: all those whom God has foreknown, and predestined, and called, and justified have been glorified! Oh the wonder and security! God has chosen His people to obtain salvation and with it eternal glory (2 Tim 2.10). And even though your particular season may be one of suffering, remember that after you suffer for a little while, your God of all grace, who called you to His eternal glory in Christ will most certainly “perfect, confirm, strengthen and establish you” (1 Pet 5.10). Think of that future day when you live in that eternal city that “has the glory of God” (Rev 21.11). Your God is bringing many sons to glory (Heb 2.10). Give thanks for the sure hope, the unchanging glory that awaits you! Give thanks!

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Picking Songs to Sing in Corporate Worship: An Explanation

Picking Songs To Sing In Corporate Worship
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Pastor, Christ Fellowship Bible Church (St Louis, MO)


Not all that long ago, a church member approached me and asked how we go about selecting the songs that we sing on Sundays for the worship service. After giving thanks for such a wonderful question, I went on to recount about 6 or 8 things that we try to bear in mind when selecting the songs and hymns to sing.  I decided to jot them down and I will elaborate briefly on each point.

First and foremost, the theology is always most Important  — Whatever song we sing in corporate worship, the ultimate question is: ‘what does the song teach in these lyricsI’?  It must be biblical, accurate, true. We refuse to sing shallow, inaccurate, or even songs that are unclear about the message it conveys. We understand that music teaches in the worship service far more than we may realize. It must be, then, that the song lyrics teach a thoroughly biblical message.
 

Choose a song as a “call to worship” — Often one of our first songs (or two songs) may come under the theme of “Call to worship.” This means that the song is sung either first in the service or near the beginning of the service (for instance, after the announcements or a Scripture reading & prayer). A song that leads us in a “call to worship” is a song that we sing to God and others. In singing the words, we are calling or summoning or inviting or reminding one another in the assembly to praise & worship God! For example: “Come Christians join to sing” is a class call to worship! These are wonderful ways that we can teach the congregation about coming into God’s presence and even together, corporately, and vocally invite one another to worship the King!
 

Sing about God (describing God, Jesus) — Many hymns describe God in his character, in His nature, in his gospel. These hymns are usually marked by singing about God in the third person — “Holy, Holy Holy, Lord God Almighty” and countless others. These are wonderful songs to insert early on in the song set. These songs teach truth, they remind us of God, they bring Scriptures to mind as we sing songs that allude to and echo Scripture texts.
 

Sing to God (obedience to Him, personal reflections)  — Then there are songs and hymns that speak to God. These come in the second person descriptions: “Take my life and let it be consecrated Lord to Thee” or “Jesus I my cross have taken all to leave and follow Thee.”  Songs such as this do not so much speak about God (though they certainly can!) but they are much more personal and individual as we speak from our own hearts to God as our God, our Savior, My King, My Lord.
 

We often start with quicker tempo and work toward slower and more contemplative   — Of course there are songs with all kinds of tempos and variation of rhythms. We try to be mindful, generally speaking, in picking a song or two that begins with a thunderous call to worship, and then a song that brings us to the biblical description of God, Christ, His gospel or His Word. Then we may transition into a slower song that is more thoughtful, meditative, prayerful, and even slower in pace and tempo so that the singers can pause, consider, think, and worship with the mind while singing with the heart.
 

Select a song that prays/prepares for the sermon (or responds to the sermon just heard)  — There can be a wonderful blessing in picking a song that deliberately prepares the congregation for the preached Word. This can also take place when the Word has just been preached. A song can be selected to respond to the preached Word and call the people to action. Show us Christ, Speak O Lord, Brethren we have met to worship and lots of others can fit this category of deliberately preparing the assembled people to hear from God’s Word.
 

The focus must always be on the Truth conveyed not the popularity or style.  — I give no thought to how popular a song is or how often it comes up on popular “Christian” radio. I could care less. What we do give our attention to is the truth conveyed by the lyrics.  What is the progression of the verses?  What is the doctrine being stated? How deep is it?  How accurate is it?  Does it fit well with the theme of the worship service and with the theme of the sermon to be preached?  So we pick songs not because they’re popular or cool or trendy or relevant or well-liked. We pick songs that are packed with glorious truth that will aid the mind in focusing on the biblical truth to be preached.
 

Select songs that are singable corporately, tempo, rhythm.  — Some songs, and many contemporary songs, can be difficult to sing in a corporate setting. Maybe the rhythm or tempo or timing of a song just may not lend itself to corporate worship. That’s why the song meter of hymns is so helpful. It keeps the singer going in a simple, clear, understandable, and repeatable manner.  For us in our particular local church, we do not encourage nor practical “special music” where someone sings a solo. We want the church to sing together with and lift our voices and hearts together with each other in songs and praises to God.
 

Pick songs that draw us into Church history —  Countless hymns have been sung through the history of the Church.  We could sing the Doxology and go back to the 17th century. We could sing A Mighty Fortress and almost hear Martin Luther thundering this forth with the German saints in the 16th century. We can sing Now thank we all our God with Martin Rinkart in the dark days of suffering and death in 17th century Germany.  We could join our voices with Charles Wesley in the 18th century when he wrote And can it be that I should gain? So many hymns were sung in joyful times, in times of plague and death, in times of fear and uncertainty and times of corruption. Yet, God remains the same. Hymns have held the people of God high in lofty praise through some of the darkest seasons of the church.  Singing hymns brings us into this wonderful history of hymnology and psalmsinging in the church.
 

Select Songs that enhance the preaching text/theme (or, the gospel, or an attribute of God)   — Of course, one of the great reasons we pick the songs we sing is to serve and aid the theme or text that will be preached.  If there are songs that go well with the text or attributes of God that will be heralded from the Word, we want to sing about them as well. So this takes deliberate prayer, thoughtful planning, purposeful intentionality but we trust that it blesses the people of God when they come to gather with the saints to worship Christ the living and risen King!

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Doctrine of Sin Observations (from Romans 5:12): Briefing on Hamartiology.

Doctrine of Sin Observations from Romans 5.12: Briefing on Hamartiology
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Christ Fellowship Bible Church

God unequivocally announces that all humankind has plunged into a hopeless state of sin and depravity. So bad is this condition that no mere man, in his own strength or by his own cooperation, can ever bring himself to God. The sinful condition of man is such that man is a vile rebel, a corrupt blasphemer, and a hellbound Lawbreaker.  

In this brief writeup, I must give some declarations from a key text on the doctrine of sin: Romans 5:12.

1. Sin came through one man, Adam. — God declares, through the pen of the Apostle Paul as he wrote under the guidance and careful direction of the Holy Spirit, that through one man sin entered into the world. Where did death, dying, decay, evil, pain, suffering and all the results of the curse come from? Simple answer: Adam’s sin.  All sin in human history had its beginning point with Adam in the Garden of Eden. Genesis 3 recounts this story in great (and, very clear) detail. Sin entered the world because Adam sinned before God. He disobeyed God and thus sin entered the world when it was not previously known at all. God had declared: in the day that Adam eats of the fruit, he would surely die (Genesis 2.17). This happened, and so sin entered through Adam.

2. Sin brought death. — When sin broke into human history, sin brought forth death. The Bible says in Romans 5:12 that death came through sin. Literally: through the sin death came. What did Adam’s sin produce? What was the result? Death. Yes physical death would one day come to Adam but at the very instant that Adam disobeyed God and ate, spiritual death invaded and pervaded the world. Death came through one man’s sin. The wages of sin is death (Rom 6.23). The soul that sins will die (Ezek 18.4). Sin produces death.

3. Death spread to all men. — Adam’s sin was very personal but it did not remain individualistic. His sin spread to all men. Literally the texts says that death passed through to all men. From Adam, our leader and head, all his posterity and children for endless generations to come would thus be contaminated with the depraved nature, the corrupt nature and the sinful nature of evil. In Adam, sin spread to all mankind. No one, naturally born of a woman, has ever nor could ever escape this sinful nature.

4. In Adam, all mankind sinned. — The text concludes in Romans 5:12 by affirming that all mankind sinned in Adam. In an amazingly mystical yet undeniably real way, all humankind has sinned in Adam’s sin. Adam thus is our corporate representative. He is our federal head. When he sinned, we actively sinned in Him. Later in Romans 5:19 we see a parallel with the glorious ray of hope: Through the one man’s disobedience, the many were made sinners (in Adam), even so through the obedience of the One, the many will be made righteous (in Christ).  Just as in Adam, our federal head, we all were imputed with the sin and guilt of Adam, so also in Christ, our federal head for all the elect, we all are imputed with the righteousness of Christ. In Adam all sinned, in Christ all are made alive.  

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Street Preaching & Gospel Conversations.

STREET PREACHING & GOSPEL CONVERSATIONS.
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Pastor, Christ Fellowship Bible Church


God has called me to pastor a precious group of saints whom He has saved for His glory. I love the blessed & God-given duty of ministry. I understand the priorities that Scripture presents for all who are to serve as leaders in the church: they must devote themselves to prayer and the ministry of the Word, as the Apostles demonstrated (Acts 6.4). At the same time, I also understand one of the clear directives that God gives to me from Paul’s pen in 2 Timothy 4.5 to “do the work of an evangelist.”  This can and should happen from the pulpit. I also see it as an important mark of my ministry to set an example for the church family in zealously pursuing lost souls with the clear communicating of the gospel message. Our hopes rest fully and confidently in the sovereign decrees of God to save all whom He wills. And we know that all of God’s elect shall come!

While on the streets this week, I found myself reflecting on this little statement:  Street proclamation produces gospel conversations resulting in God’s glorification!

Street Proclamation
    produces Gospel Conversations
        resulting in God’s Glorification

1. Street Proclamation.
It is my prayer that God would raise up thousands of faithful and fervent open air preachers across our land. We need men of God, walking in holiness, who understand the glorious gospel of God in its blazing glory and God-saturated fullness to stand and speak, to herald, to announce, to lift up the voice like a trumpet! Street proclamation is a method of evangelism that simply takes the gospel to the streets to the unsaved who may never enter into a faithful bible-teaching church. One way that God has ordained His Word to go forth for the saving of lost souls is through the preaching of the Word — in the open air. Faithful street preachers preach so that Jesus will be glorified and so that His gospel would be thundered forth! Gospel heralds go with confidence to simply declare God’s message from His Word and confidently believe that the Spirit of God will draw God’s elect to the Son so that the sinner will respond in true repentance, faith, and surrender. May God raise up many armies of such heralds in our cities!

2)  Gospel Conversations.
One blessing to street preaching is having other faithful laborers out on the streets to engage passers by in gospel conversations. Often, a Christian can ask someone who is walking by: “What do you think about what that man is preaching?” Or, “I saw you stop and listen for a few minutes, what did you think about what you heard?”  And then while the man is preaching the Word, there can be other Christians engaging in one-to-one conversations.  It is a beautiful picture of how God’s Word goes forth to reach many and how prayerful and observant fishers-of-men can approach people and seek to engage them in private conversations!  Street preaching often produces wonderful gospel opportunities on the streets with unbelievers.

3)  God’s Glorification.
In the faithful preaching of the gospel and in the calling of sinners to turn from sin and flee to Jesus Christ, God receives glory! We preach the Word to glorify God!  We engage in gospel conversations to glorify God! He alone must receive all praise and honor! We present and proclaim the gospel and plead with sinners to hear, heed and obey the gospel summons. Those who engage in conversations also do the same through one-to-one interactions. Why? The goal and end result is so that God may be glorified to use His Word, by His Spirit’s sovereign power, to save sinners.

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The Love of God the Spirit

The Love of God the Spirit
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Pastor, Christ Fellowship Bible Church (St Louis, MO)


The Apostle Paul speaks in Romans 15:30 about the Love of the Spirit. Consider this amazing reality. The Spirit of the living God has great love for His people. Paul’s language is in the context of him urging the Roman Christians to strive together in prayer to God on his behalf. But he begs them by the Lord Jesus Christ and by the love of the Spirit. It could be rendered: “the love that comes from the Spirit [διὰ τῆς ἀγάπης τοῦ πνεύματος—through the love of/from/comes out of the Spirit]. As I read this and pondered it in the early morning hours, I wondered: what kind of love is this from God the Spirit?  After some reflection, here are a few thoughts.

It is a SOVEREIGN Love.  — This love from the Spirit of God has come to us first. This love of God is a royal love. It is a Kingly love. It is a supreme love. There is no love like it. This love that the Spirit bestows upon His people is a supernatural love because the Spirit of God, who is Himself fully and truly God, is love. Consider the astonishing initiative that God the Spirit took in setting His glorious and splendid love upon you. What sovereign love we have from the Father, from the Son, and indeed from God the Holy Spirit!

It is a SAVING Love.   — God the Spirit has a saving love for His people. Those whom He loves are His chosen ones. Those whom He loves He regenerates, He calls, He seals, He preserves, and He glorifies! This love of God the Spirit is not a general love trickled to all but a particular love that permeates the elect. Let your heart find joy in this saving love of the Spirit as you realize there was nothing in you that prompted or invited or deserved this love. Rather, by His saving grace and perfect choice, He lavishes love, saving love upon His chosen ones.

It is a SPECIFIC Love.   — The love of God chose His own from before the foundation of the world. It was the love of Jesus Christ that He poured out and demonstrated when he loved them to the max — to the uttermost. It is the love of God the Spirit who savingly and specifically loves those whom the Father has given to the Son. All the elect are specially loved. Let this ravish your heart afresh as you consider the astonishing fact that your name is written in heaven, unable to be erased, penned with precious blood, and loved by God the holy Spirit. He loves you specifically. He knows you individually. He stands with you and dwells in you particularly. Rejoice and be glad in the Spirit’s affection for you, His chosen one.

It is a SECURE Love.   —  Nothing in the universe is stronger than the secure love of God. The Spirit of God is the One who dwells in you, sealing you and preserving you until your final redemption! Oh to think of the strong security, the mighty power, the supernatural preservation, the unalterable hope you have in this great love of the Spirit. Consider how the happy and holy Spirit of God has chosen to take up residence within you and He has promised you that He will be with you forever! He is your pledge. He is your guarantee. He is your deposit. He will be in you and with you forever!

It is a SUPERABOUNDING Love.   —  Many people assert that they love others. Husbands and wives affirm this to one another. Parents say this to their children. Consider, however, the superabounding love of God the Spirit for you! Think of the endless oceans of love that the Spirit pours out and has stored up for each of His beloved ones. Think of the bottomless wells of satisfying joys that we now have and we shall forever enjoy. The Spirit’s love is closer than any other kind of love. It is more faithful than any other kind of love. It includes endless promises and rewards toward you! What tremendous love the Spirit bestows upon us!

It is a STRENGTHENING Love.    — In his epistle, James writes that believers are not to pursue friendship with the world (4.4). Indeed, the next statement shows that it is the Spirit Himself who dwells within us who jealously desires us to walk in holiness (4.5). And, yes, even James continues that He gives a greater grace (4.6). This Spirit so loves His people that He strengthens them by endowing them with grace to live for Him, with power to walk in Him, with joy while hoping in Him. This love that the Spirit presently, at this very moment, has toward each of us is a strong love that equip us, empowers us, and enables us to walk in obedience to the commands of Scripture. This reaches our heart so that our obedience flows out of our affection for Him.  May the love of the Spirit so captivate our hearts afresh that He strengthens us with His power, in His Truth, by His Word, and for His glory!

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Non-Negotiable Features of Faithful Preaching.

 Non-Negotiable Features of Faithful Preaching.
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Pastor, Christ Fellowship Bible Church


1. Faithful
Faithful preaching must be faithful. By this, I simply mean that true preaching must derive from the text of Scripture. The man of God must rightly divide the Word through proper hermeneutics so that the message he speaks is the message out of the text. When this happens, the man of God preaching then Word can say: “Thus says the Lord!” The barometer for all true preaching must be how faithful it is to the text of Scripture that He expounds. True preaching is faithful preaching to God’s Word.

2. Theological
When faithful preaching occurs, and when biblical preaching goes forth, it will necessarily be theological preaching. It will touch upon and expound theology as it arises in the Word of God. Every text will teach something about God (theology proper) or man (anthropology) or sin (hamartiology) or salvation (soteriology) or Christ (Christology) or future things (eschatology). Of course, there are other categories and many sub-categories of theology that Scripture teaches. But all true preaching must present clear, crisp, and cohesive doctrine. That’s why Paul exhorts Pastor Timothy to give himself to the reading of Scripture, to exhortation and to doctrine.

3. Central  
Biblical preaching of the Word of God must take central place in the life of the local church. Every local church can have many ministries and areas of service and parts of the corporate worship service, but the central, non-negotiable, preeminent distinctive of every faithful church is the preaching of the Word of God. It should, thus, take up the majority of the time when the church is gathered to worship God. The preaching of the Word is the occasion when God speaks to His people. Thus, it should take up a majority of the time when the church assembles. It should be a momentous event, a lofty and majestic event when there is utmost reverence for God and for His revealed Word. Thus, faithful preaching must be central in the biblical church.

4. Joyful
Biblical preaching must flow out of a heart that bubbles forth with true, Spirit-given joy as the minister opens His mouth to speak God’s Word to the people. This is far from a show, it is a man on fire with affectionate love for Christ who joyfully preaches God’s Word. This is the heart of a man who does not need to be forced into a pulpit. He does not need to be pressed and obliged and remunerated in order to preach. Rather, his heart is so full of God, so full of Truth, so full of Christ, and so hungry to pour this out to serve God and His blood-bought people, that He preaches with a steadfast confidence in God and in His Word. This kind of preaching becomes obvious to the hearers that the man preaches out of love for God and His people rather than out of obligation of simply fulfilling of “job”. Biblical preaching oozes out of a joy-filled heart!

5. Emotional
Biblical preaching must be emotional. By this, I do not refer to a man who seeks to manipulate people by tugging at their emotions only. No! Rather, this kind of biblical preaching must come forth from the man’s inner being. That is to say, true preaching comes from the heart of the man rather than just out of the mind of a lecturer. Anyone can stand and speak behind a lectern. A preacher of the gospel preaches with his whole heart, from his whole being, with all his emotions because he has been overwhelmed at the glory of God, the grace of the gospel, and the goodness of Christ. He has compassion for lost sinners, just like Christ does. He invites lost sinners, unconverted children, wayward church members, and unknown visitors to come and behold Christ. He trembles and shudders when he preaches on the realities of everlasting punishment that will come upon all rebels. He preaches to woo, to win, to persuade, to invite, to summon people to behold Christ, bow the knee to Christ, and bless Him for all His many benefits. True preaching involves the whole man pouring himself out as he heralds forth God’s Word.

6. Purposeful
Biblical preaching always aims at a goal. It has an intention. Biblical preaching has a singular purpose: the ultimate glory of God. And faithful ministers long for the Word to comfort and edify the saved, convert and warn the lost, strengthen and fortify the weak, build and mature the church, and magnify and extol Jesus Christ. Every faithful preacher knows that he preaches with an end goal, and this purpose is to faithfully expound the Word so that the church is built up in Christlikeness by the Spirit sovereign enablement. The man preaches to save. He preaches to mature. He preaches to help. He preaches to counsel. He preaches to warn. He preaches so that God may be glorified through the primary means that He has appointed to save and sanctify men and women — the heralding of the gospel of Jesus Christ.

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Pastoral Ministry: Some Reflections.

Pastoral Ministry: Some Reflections.
Geoffrey R. Kirkland

Pastor, Christ Fellowship Bible Church (St Louis, MO)


I have served as a pastor for about seventeen years total. I have learned much and I still have boatloads still to learn. But one thing I can say with great confidence is that I love pastoral ministry. Recently I was on vacation with my family and I found myself repeatedly considering pastoral ministry. As I reflected on pastoral ministry, my mind returned to a few important elements that I do well to rehearse in my own mind.

1.  Ministry is a CALLING.
To truly serve in pastoral ministry means that God has called that man into the ministry. Far from being a self-propagated call, the true call into ministry must consist of a supernatural call. God calls the man. God summons the man.  God makes the man. God humbles the man. God, by His own prerogative, raises the man and replaces the man according to His sovereign will. As I reflected on pastoral ministry, I found my heart repeatedly giving thanks to God that He has called me into ministry. He has summoned me. He has arrested my soul and drawn me to serve in His ministry. It is a calling from God. I did not choose this on my own. No man, no committee, no seminary, no self-generated intuition or feeling or vote or coercion directed me into ministry. By God’s grace, He has called me into His service. Thus, I’m owned and His for He called me into His ministry and service.

2.  Ministry is HUMBLING.
My mind reflected on the humbling nature of pastoral ministry. It is quite frequent that I go for prayer walks and find myself utterly begging God for wisdom and insight as I feel like I’m in way over my head. As a young man serving Christ and His people, I often find myself humbled and inadequate for the work that lies before me. And strangely enough, I am humbled but I am still being humbled. I feel like I live in a state of a progressive humbling humility. God is humbling me. Often this comes in the form of dependence upon God, the precious saints of God, expectations that go unmet, and a plurality of leaders and godly men that surround me and help me in my progressive growth in Christ. Christ has enrolled me and continues to test me in the school of humility.  And for that blessed pain, I rejoice. May He humble me deeply to use me greatly.

3.  Ministry is ALL-CONSUMING.
There is simply no way around this. True ministry, true pastoral ministry, the life of a shepherd, is all-consuming. It never ends. A shepherd may sleep but in a sense he can’t sleep. He must always be watching and stand on alert. By God’s grace, I serve and shepherd the most precious flock of God in the whole world as they are near and dear to my soul. I love them. I pray for them. I long for their maturation in Christ and I grieve when sin invades. My consumed heart often can say with Paul: Who is weak without my being weak? Who is led into sin without my intense concern? (2 Cor 11.29). Indeed, I joyfully praise God for the all-consuming nature of pastoral ministry. With this, I thank God for a special help-mate that He has given to me to support and encourage me in the ministry. The consuming ministry is not only for the man but also his family.  This reflection is not negative, but a positive affirmation that the life of an under-shepherd must emulate that of the Chief Shepherd — who knows His sheep, calls them by name, and cares for them.

4.  Ministry is a DELIGHT.
Most frequently, I thank God for the ministry of being a pastor. I absolutely love it. Amazingly and stunningly, I get paid to do this. But I would indeed work and pay money to do what I get to do. What an honor to serve the Lord by praying for the saints, by studying His Word, by preparing sermons, by counseling the flock with the all-sufficient Word, by discipling and mentoring men, by visiting and encouraging the saints on this journey to heaven. No greater joy in the world exists for me than to rest my soul in the hands of a Sovereign God and know that even amidst my weakness, God’s purposes will stand. And, in fact, God will use me for His glory in His ministry. What a delight to be caught up in God magnifying Himself in this little church where I serve. God passionately pursuing His own glory and I am swept in to point eternal souls to this glorious Christ, to this delightful God, to this precious Word, and to the joy of holiness. May this delight in God sustain me in the ministry of the Lord. Like John, I have no greater joy than to hear of my children walking in the Truth (3 John 4). May this delight in God propel me to even greater service, in greater faithfulness, for God’s greater glory!

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A Benefit of Open Air Preaching

A Benefit of Open-Air Preaching
By Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Christ Fellowship Bible Church

When the Word of God goes forth, the believers are built up, the saints are strengthened, the elect are edified. 

When I arrived on site today for a lunch-hour evangelism outing, a brother from our local church was already open air preaching.  I grabbed two gospel signs and faced them back-to-back and then held them up high so all who walked and drove by could quickly see that we were all about Jesus Christ!  Not that long after, my brother who was heralding mentioned the security and preserving power of Jesus Christ toward His people.  Ah! What food for my soul! What balm for my spirit! O how I needed in that moment to be reminded of the glorious theology of the preservation of the saints and the keeping power of our Sovereign!  Then, he went on to talk about coming to Jesus and being made righteous In Him. Oh to fill my heart with such truths every hour! God blessed my soul through the heralding of His Word in such timely, providential and public ways! The open air preaching of the gospel serves to glorify God, preach the gospel by sowing the seed, and save the lost. But one huge benefit of open air preaching consists in the edification that it brings to the believers who are there and who hear the Word preached! What a blessing to be under the Word! How riveting to hear the Bible preached and to hear Christ extolled. I thank the Lord that we gathered today to preach the gospel on the streets of our city. We prayed for God to save souls. We prayed for eternal destinies to be altered today as hellbound sinners would hear the gospel, respond, and trust Christ alone by submitting to Him. But also, I’m thankful that I was there next to the preacher, holding up gospel signs, and warmly edified through the open air preaching of the gospel of Christ.  Praise the LORD. 

 

Christian, when you walk by and hear a faithful open air preacher extolling Christ and summoning passers-by to trust Him alone for salvation, pause for a moment and thank the Lord for the public proclamation of the saving gospel.

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Creative Evangelism Suggestions [Coronavirus-Evangelism-Opportunities]

Creative Evangelism Suggestions
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Christ Fellowship Bible Church (CFBCSTL.org)

In these strange times in which we live, here are some creative evangelism suggestions for you. Take one, or two, or more, or create other ways to proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ to the lost!

1. Rock Evangelism
Consider finding a rock with a smooth surface where you could use a permanent marker or paint-pen and proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ is simple form. Then, you could place it on a public sidewalk, near the corner of a driveway of a neighbor’s home, by the base of a tree in a public area, on a park bench, or at a bus stop. Consider how simple this is.  Find a smooth stone, find a short Bible verse or gospel-laden phrase and write it clearly on the stone and then prayerfully place it in a strategic area! O to think of how the Lord may use this “proclamation of the gospel” for His glory. One dear lady in our local church has latched on to this and brought this creative form of evangelism to my attention! What a profitable way to spend the time, to proclaim the gospel, and pray for a rich harvest over the seeds sown. Families and children can do this too!

2. Door to Door
Now that many people seem to be home from work, home from school, and spending much time indoors, consider going through your local neighborhood and knocking on doors. You could tell them that you are going to neighbors offering to pray for them (and then do it then and there!), offer to give them a gospel tract that clearly explains the gospel, and proclaim the hope of the sure cure of the greatest disease known to man (not the Coronavirus, but sin!). Then, offer to provide any help or assistance if they need any. May the Lord allow many doors to be opened and many opportunities for the seeds of the gospel to go deeply into the soil of men’s hearts!

3. Go to a local park and hand out tracts to folks & offer to pray for them.
Just this morning I was out for my normal prayer walk at a local park and it was packed! P.A.C.K.E.D! The weather is a bit warmer and with no rain, the people are out! Consider stuffing your pockets with a handful of tracts and as people walk by you or are sitting near you on a bench, offer to give them the best news that they could ever read today! Indeed, you may even consider asking folks if you could pray for them in any way. Find the playground and perhaps there will be a mother or father there watching the kids. Perhaps you can offer a tract to the parent. May the Lord work mightily through you as you sow the seeds of the gospel even at a local park.

4. Tract parking lots
Do I need to even mention how busy the grocery store parking lots are? How about Wal-Mart or Costco? What if you take a few hundred tracts and go through the aisles and put a gospel tract on the driver’s side window right above the door handle.  (Don’t put it on the windshield under a wiper.)  Think of how many cars you could reach and how many people will find the tract when they go to open their car door and sit inside and read the tract.  May God advance His gospel!

5. Write a gospel letter
Is there someone you’ve been praying for?  Perhaps this is a providential occasion for you to write or type a letter to a loved one, or a relative, or a co-worker.  You could email it, or text it, or snail-mail it to them.  Write a letter that clearly explains the hope of the gospel and how you have no fear of the future (or the present!) because of the great power, care, and sovereignty of Jesus Christ the King! Explain what the King did for unworthy sinners! Adore the Savior! Call them to come and trust the Savior to receive eternal life — as a free gift! Invite them to contact you for follow up, or with any questions, or to study the Bible together. Consider the power of letters: many of the New Testament books were letters. Never underestimate how God could use His Word in written form as you prayerfully send a letter to a friend. Pray over it. Send it. Trust God!

6. Write a handwritten note to a neighbor and offer to serve them tangibly, practically & include the gospel.
Maybe you have some elderly folks in your neighborhood. Maybe you have a widow or a single person who lives next door, or on your street?  Consider writing them a brief hand-written letter offering to serve them. Do they need a meal? Do they need groceries? Is there something around the house that they need help with? Do they need help taking the trash cans out to the street? Or retrieving their mail?  Offer to help them in any way and when you knock on the door to deliver the letter, see how the Lord may allow you to present the gospel to them (verbally) or you could offer to leave a gospel tract with them that clearly communicates the gospel.

7. Go to a planned parenthood and pray, hold up a sign (they’re still open & murdering children)
Lots of places have shut down temporarily or haulted business for a brief season — schools, restaurants, bars, businesses. But, unfortunately and tragically, abortion mills still remain open. The murder of children still continues. Planned Parenthood still is engaging in the murder of the unborn children.  Consider taking an hour or two this week (or each day/morning) and going to your local women’s clinic/Planned Parenthood and standing in front and praying. Consider holding up a sign that says: “BABIES ARE MURDERED HERE!”  Consider writing a sign that says: “WE WILL ADOPT YOUR BABY.” Consider calling out to men and women as they get out of their vehicle and pleading with them to not murder their children but to turn from their sin to Christ for salvation and to save their baby! How can you use this time to redeem it for the glory of God and for the deliverance of the unborn children? May God help us.


Even as a family — as a couple, with children (or grand-children), you could do these! Prayerfully think through being creative in proclaiming the gospel of Jesus Christ during this season in which we live! 

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Lessons Learned From a Hospital Visit.

LESSONS LEARNED FROM A HOSPITAL VISIT. 
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Christ Fellowship Bible Church  |  St. Louis, MO

Recently, I visited a church member who has lost eyesight in one eye. I went to encourage her but I think I was the one who left being most encouraged. Here are a few take-aways.

Joy In Affliction 

When I visited my sister, I walked into a room dim in light but bright with joy. I sat on a little window sill and asked how my beloved sister was doing, and she proceeded to proclaim with great happiness and eloquence, the marvelous sovereignty of God. This woman bubbled forth with joy. Like a fountain shooting up water high into the sky, Scriptures and rock-solid theology of God’s character and attributes soared high above the clouds of doctors, nurses, tests, eye drops, anesthesiologists, and surgeons. In the affliction, Christ was her adoration. Like Paul who wrote to the Corinthians, while himself battling great suffering, sorrowful, yet always rejoicing! That was evidently true of my dear sister in that hospital room. It didn’t just happen because the pastor came for a hospital visit. It was clear that she had been musing on Truth, meditating on Scripture, chewing it over in her heart, and pondering every single word of many Scriptures that came to her mind! She couldn’t speak enough of God’s sovereignty, providence, kingship, power, wisdom, and glory! In this moment, my sister had only one beat to her drum and that was rejoicing in her affliction because God is sovereign & good.

Happiness All Alone

This heart-filled Truth drove her to one inevitable disposition — happiness. When I walked into the hospital room, I had to go to bed #2, so i had to walk past her roommate who also had a visitor sitting in a chair. So I tried to politely walk past them to where I went past the curtain to find my sister sitting upright in a chair tucked away in the corner of the room.  It was dim. Just a little bit of sunlight was peeking through the shades. The TV and radio were off. And when I called her name, she immediately smiled and greeted me with “hello pastor!” Within the first few minutes, my shepherd’s heart was overwhelmed with humility, gratitude, and joy because my suffering sister sat in a God-given happiness that can only come deep into the souls of those resting on the bedrock of God’s kingship. She has many family members who genuinely love and care for her and visit her often, but at this moment, she sat quiet and alone in the corner.  And, though she was physically alone when I visited, she couldn’t have been more happy because she was communing with her Savior.

Pillow of Sovereignty

I don’t think I tried to count but the number of times my sister mentioned the attributes of God proved to be too many to tally. She couldn’t stop speaking of the character of God! She wouldn’t stop recounting the attributes of God’s power, wisdom, grace, love, provision and care. She remembered the great providence of God and how He worked all things according to His wise decrees in bringing everything about at just the right time. She had a comfortable pillow in her affliction. And that pillow she laid her head upon was the sovereign character of her God.

Instruction of Believers

I’m the pastor but I was preached to. I sat on that window sill and listened to her expound with great affection and confidence the attributes of her God. My heart was instructed. That hospital room proved to be a university classroom for me. I was taught. I was educated. I learned.  It wasn’t some deep profound lesson about Greek grammar or an exegetical nugget. I learned something that can’t be learned in a Master’s Program. I learned what it is to suffer well with a heart welling up with contentment because of an unshakeable confidence in who God is! This is something a classroom couldn’t teach me. But the hospital room did! And my sister in the Lord did! I told her that I may be her pastor, but I was sitting under her ministry in that hospital room! Praise the Lord that the Spirit of God instructed my soul through the example of my sister who loved her Savior and rested upon His wise providence.

Evangelism to Roommate 

Interestingly, when we were finished praying and reading the Scriptures, she told me to pray for her roommate. Her roommate was a bit vulgar, rude, and unpleasant. She was afraid of dying, which she verbalized to the nurses.  So, after I hugged my sister Carol, I began to walk out and waited for the nurse to leave before I stopped near the roommate’s bed and said that I was a local pastor. I asked if I could pray for her in any way. She immediately smiled and said yes.  She told me she had tumors on her trachea and they didn’t know if they were cancerous — and how severe it would be. She was nervous, sad, fearful, and very anxious. I took my Bible and grabbed a gospel tract that I have with me (in the inside flap of my Bible) which was titled: “Are You Right With God?”  I grabbed her hand, held it gently, prayed for her specifically, and prayed through the gospel briefly. Then I gave her the gospel tract and told her to read it because it had changed my life and it is the Truth.  

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Encouraging Kids for the "Sunday-Sermon-Feast!"

Encouraging Kids for the “Sunday-Sermon-Feast”
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Christ Fellowship Bible Church

I love being a dad. Being a dad is at the same time gloriously rewarding and wonderfully difficult. Thanks be to God for His Word and for His Truth and for His Church. As a dad, I want to shepherd my children by prioritizing the local church. So I want them to know just how important it is to worship God corporately, to gather with His people, to hear the Word preached, to glory in our Risen redeemer! Here are a few ways that I’ve thought about encouraging children for the “Sunday-Sermon-Feast.” How do you help your kids prepare? What are some short, simple ways to help them prepare for it?

Here are 4 simple, memorable headings:

1.  GET READY!  (prepare)
Encourage your children to get ready for worship ahead of time. Put the children to bed on Saturday night and cheerfully remind them that the best day of the week is coming when we gather with God’s people to worship our sweet Savior! Then, when the Lord’s Day morning arrives, remind them of the high privilege to enter into the King’s presence to worship Him! So help your children prepare! Give them a view of God’s bigness. Show them His glory. Gather the kids and pray for the preacher, intercede for the Spirit’s power, ask for the lost to be converted, petition God for the believers to be fed and equipped. Help your kids Get Ready! Just as a parent would get ready and prepare for a sports tournament how much more must we prepare to meet the Lord and worship the King of the universe!

2.  GET IN!  (sit and focus; listen)
Remind the children that when we gather to worship God, it is an awesome privilege to be in God’s holy and wonderful presence. It is wonderful but it’s also fearful. Encourage the kids that God is high and exalted while at the same time He is near and intimate. Tell the kids that the preaching is for them -- not just for the older folks. Exhort the kids to sit still, to listen well, to listen for a key word(s), to try to get the main points in the sermon outline. Just as the kids sit still and focus during their favorite movie, so remind them that the worship of God far exceeds a movie and that we can -- and must -- get in the Word, internalize it, focus upon it, fight distractions, and listen to God speak to our souls through the preaching of His Word.

3.  GO OVER!  (review, pray thru it)
After a child receives a Christmas gift, what does he do the next morning? He plays with that toy again, and then the next day. And the next! How much more must we go back to God’s Word and reflect on the greatness of His Truth -- again and again. You took your children to corporate worship, Excellent! Now, shepherd your children by going over the message with them (on the drive home). Then, if they are of age, encourage them to gather their sermon notes (or a few words they scribbled down) and review and reflect and go over the message again. Teach your children to pray through the sermon and re-preach it to their souls! Let not a sermon be lost by failing to go over the truth that was heralded. Let us hear and heed and receive and feed upon it all week long!

4.  GAZE UP!  (look to Christ)
In all your hearing and in all your applying and in all your doings, remember to gaze up to Jesus Christ! Remind yourself as you teach your children that Jesus is the sum of all things and He is the great Savior to all who come to Him in repentance and faith! In affliction, in hardship, in conviction of sin, in the discipline room, in the call for repentance and trust in Christ, in Christ’s demand for holiness among His people, remind the kids to look upward to Jesus Christ!  This is necessary not only initially in conversion but every single day of the Christian’s life! Gaze upward to Jesus Christ!

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Practical Ways to Evangelize & Proclaim the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Practical ways to evangelize:
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Christ Fellowship Bible Church


Here are some very pastoral and practical tips for you to consider as you proclaim the gospel of Jesus Christ. These are just some suggestions and practical ways that you can begin and engage in conversations with the lost. Some are common, some are specific, some are creative, some may need to be adapted to your particular context. But whatever the case may be, speak of His excellencies and go "fishing for men"!

1. Open your mouth to someone tell them what God has done for your soul (Ps 66.16)
2. Give someone a gospel tract and say: this changed my life, may I share this with you?
3. Have family worship every day in your home. Open your Bible, read a portion (a chapter, section) and then discuss it. Sing a hymn that extols God and His gospel. Then pray together and reflect on the gospel as a family. In doing this, the powerful Word and the glorious gospel will be regularly brought before each person in the household (parents, spouses, kids). Engage in family worship even when visitors are over, when extended family is in town, when unsaved neighbors drop by, when church members visit. Continue the routine as a family every day and you’ll be blessed by how much gospel proclamation goes on by the reading, discussing, praying and singing of God’s Truth!
4. Approach your neighbors that just moved into the neighborhood with a plate of cookies and a gospel tract and welcome them to the neighborhood, offer to serve them in any way, and encourage them to read the tract.
5. Parents must faithfully teach and discipline the children when they disobey. When a child disobeys, the parent must lovingly take the child to the room in private to discipline the child. The parent must probe the heart with questions that search/reveal the motive as to why the child did what he/she did. Then the parent must open the Bible and show the child how the action was sin (against God; not just against dad/mom). Then the parent must discipline with the rod (for small, young children). Then, the parent must swoop the child in his arms and affirm his great love for the child, God’s great holiness, and Christ’s provision at Calvary so that the child doesn’t need to perish forevermore. Every discipline with a child is a gospel-proclaiming opportunity! Be faithful! Use it! Speak truth! Proclaim Christ daily to your children!
6. Write a personal letter to a friend, co-worker, or family member and present the gospel simply, clearly and with specific application and exhortation to repent/turn from sin and believe in the Gospel. Invite their response for further discussion and follow up.
7. Write a general gospel letter and share the good news of Jesus Christ with friends because you care about them and their soul, indeed, their eternal well-being.  Then, go door to door in your neighborhood and put the letter on their front door or knock and hand it to them personally.
8. Go to a local Jr high, High school or college and hand out gospel tracts to students on the public sidewalk as they are going to/from class.
9. Drive to a busy parking lot (Wal-mart, mall, grocery store, fitness center, strip-mall, downtown area) and put gospel tracts on car windows just above the driver’s car-door handle.  Don’t put the tract under the windshield wiper but rather put it by the door handle so people are sure to see it and can easily grab it and read it.
10. When you purchase something (anything!) and people give you a receipt (at McDonalds, Starbucks, a grocery store, etc.), say “Thank you very much” and offer to give them a “thank you tract” — as a way of saying thank you to them.
11. When you go to a restaurant and eat out, when the server comes to take your drink orders, ask the server for his/her name and then offer to pray for them and ask for one specific way that you can pray for them (you’ll be amazed and surprised at how friendly and amazed people are by this simple request). Then, when you pray for your meal, of course, pray for your server as they requested and for the person to have an open heart when they receive a gospel tract at the end. Then, when you pay your bill, tip them generously and leave a gospel tract there with a hand-written “thank you” on the receipt as a personalized way of showing gratitude to your server.
12. At the local gas station, while you are filling up your car, put a gospel tract in the credit card slot at the pump for the next person to come and find the good news of Jesus Christ waiting for them. And, if there is someone on the other side of the pump, you could say: “Did you receive one of these yet today?”  (They’ll almost always say “no” — and then you can give them the best news they could ever hear!). 
13. Get a piece of thick chalk and go to a few public sidewalks near your house, near a local school and clearly write out in big letters a verse of the Bible that is gospel-laden (e.g., John 3.16; 2 Cor 5.21; John 3.3; Luke 19:10; John 3.36; Isa 45.22; Rom 3.18, et al). 
14. A man of God can grab His Bible, open it, read it, and preach in the open air the saving message of Jesus Christ so that all who pass by hear the gospel loudly heralded. 
15. Go to a local abortion clinic and open your mouth for those who have no voice. Speak forth the gospel of Jesus Christ by pleading with the dads and moms to not murder their children because God hates the hands that shed innocent blood. Warn of coming judgment & call out for life, proclaim Jesus Christ, the Prince of Life, and admonish them to forsake their selfish, murderous ways and fly to Jesus Christ for eternal life & peace! You can do this almost any day of the week!

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Dimensions of the Gospel As It Pertains To Me.

DIMENSIONS OF THE GOSPEL AS IT PERTAINS TO ME.
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Christ Fellowship Bible Church

The gospel consists of the good news that God has accomplished the work of saving sinners. This message is the good news of God and the great message about God! Many dimensions of this gospel can be studied, but in this brief write-up, I will list four dimensions of the gospel.

1. I’m saved BY GOD  (justification)
Those in heaven cry out “salvation to our God who sits on the throne, and to the Lamb” (Rev 7.10). Quite simply, Paul states that God saved us (Titus 3.5). When I consider the good news of the gospel, I must remember that I am saved by God. The source of my salvation is God. He is the originator, the genesis, the accomplisher, the beginner and the One who thought and wrought my salvation. As the psalmist said: salvation is of the Lord (Ps 3.8). I am saved by the effectual, initiating, perfect, supernatural, miraculous work of God Almighty as He came to me and did all that was needed to rescue my perishing soul!

2. I’m saved FROM GOD   (judgment)
One of the most remarkable aspects of the gospel is to remember that not only am I saved by God but I am also saved from God. The ultimate nature of hell is being forsaken of God and subject to His ceaseless and infinite wrath forevermore. The beauty of the gospel consists in the reality that God has saved me by His power and from His just punishment. God has saved me by Himself and He has saved me from Himself, that is, His holy wrath, His hot hatred, His just punishment, and His righteous anger. This is what Christ bore on the cross. He was not saved from God’s wrath but was crushed by God so you may be delivered from His infinite crushing for your sin.

3. I’m saved TO GOD     (service)
The Lord Jesus proclaimed in the open air in Jerusalem that whoever believes is free. And if the Son makes you free, you are free indeed (John 8.36). This freedom, however, is an interesting freedom. It is freedom from sin and a gloriously joyful bondage to Christ. To be saved by God means that a person is no longer under the domain of sin with sin as his cruel-master but now he is brought into a blessed bondage to Christ with a most marvelous Savior as His master. Believers are called “slaves” and even in glory God’s bond-servants will serve him (Rev 22.3). God saved me by Himself, from Himself, to himself for obedience!

4. I’m saved FOR GOD     (God’s glory)
To God alone belongs the glory forever and ever (Rev 5.13). In this plan of God in rescuing sinners, He has saved us by Himself, from Himself, to Himself, and now For Himself. That means that this enterprise of salvation must result in God’s glory and His utmost praise. It must redound to His perpetual praise and His magnificent worship! It ignites our hearts to praise Him in this life as we’ll praise Him in this way in the next also! God has saved you not to make much of you but for you to make much of Him. Boast in the Lord! Let your soul magnify the Lord, make its boast in the Lord and say how great your God is! He saved you!

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The Needed Area of Ministry In the Home

 The Needed Area of Ministry In the Home
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Christ Fellowship Bible Church

We often talk about serving in the ministry of the Lord! And rightly so. We must stress that the ministry of the Lord does not always equate with busyness outside the home. What about the young mom with a toddler or the mother who home-schools her three elementary-school aged kids. How do they practically serve in ministry? In this write-up, I’d like to suggest a needed area of ministry in the home.

1. Minister in the Home as you LEAD IN WORSHIP
How can a young dad minister to the Lord? How can a mom actively engage in ministry? Here’s one way: lead your children in worship by showing them how great God is, how glorious His Word is, and how desirous He is to save sinners! Never underestimate the power of leading at home in worship. Men must take the lead in overseeing the home and ensuring that Christ is worshiped in the home. Moms also can lead the children in worship as they teach the children throughout the day. Remember, serving in ministry does not only demand busyness outside the home!

2. Minister in the Home as you ENJOY FAMILY LIFE
Another way that you can minister to the Lord is by enjoying family life. Just enjoy each other! Have fun! Engage in activities and go places together and enjoy the community of family life. It is no wonder that Christ calls His church a family of believers, a community, an assembly, a gathering of brothers and sisters. So it should be in the home. Enjoy family life together as you savor the common graces and blessings God has given.

3. Minister in the Home as you LOVE YOUR CHURCH
Young families need to remember that much is taught, but more is probably caught. The children watch and observe how we speak about the church and how we use the time that God gives us. Minister in the home as you love your church. You can actively serve your church by praying for your church. Consider the powerful ministry of gathering the kids and praying for the sick, the unemployed, the struggling, those going through trials. Consider the great opportunity of praying and thanking God for the church family in family devotions each night! Be creative!

4. Minister in the Home as you VISIBLY LIVE GODLINESS
God told Israel to impress His Words upon their hearts and then to teach them diligently to their children (Deut 6.4-9). One necessary and crucial area of ministry consists of the pursuit of holiness. And think of the benefit to the active longing for Christ, the intentional reading and prioritizing of His Word, the living out of holiness, the repentance and mortification of sin that is visibly seen in the home before watching children! They know you believe! They go with you to church. But for the children to see you live out your godliness is paramount and powerful!

5. Minister in the Home as you DISCIPLINE YOUR CHILDREN
God calls all parents to train up their children in the ways of the Lord. This must be done in the discipline and instruction of the Lord. Ministering to the Lord occurs even while at home and serving your children. If a man neglects his family to be frequently gone doing bigger ministry events, he has an unbalanced and unbiblical view of ministry. He needs to reprioritize his life and focus on his home first. In the shepherding of your children’s souls, you actively and regularly engage in ministry. We often tell our young children that mommy is a missionary because she is just that -- living on mission in the home as she proclaims Christ relentlessly (and, oftentimes, hourly!) to them -- even in the discipline room. Shepherd their souls, expose their sin, point them to Christ, call them to God’s grace, and remember that this vital ministry cannot be ignored. Serve God by serving at home. Serve in the needed area in your very own home.

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The Preacher's Monday & A Rock-Like Pillow

The Preacher’s Monday & A Rock-Like Pillow
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Christ Fellowship Bible Church

Spurgeon said it well: “The sovereignty of God is the pillow upon which the child of God rests his head at night, giving perfect peace.” I agree with this statement with all my heart. I preach this truth and I heartily embrace this doctrine. I love it. No doctrine captivates my heart more and occupies my mind more than God’s sovereignty. Nevertheless, for me as a preacher of the gospel, Sunday nights and Mondays are by far the hardest times of the week.

Every preacher, myself included, finishes preaching and at the end of the day (or the night, or the following morning) reflects on the exposition and wishes that he could have done better, or said something clearer, or exalted Christ higher, or made application more piercing. But I want to reflect on something that God has taught me, and is still teaching me, that the sovereignty of God is the pillow upon which the preacher of the gospel rests his head at night, giving perfect peace knowing that the exposition he preached is done and God will most certainty and effectually use His Word according to His sovereign purposes for His glory. God does this not because of me or because of my eloquent exposition. It’s not about how many commentaries I perused or how many verses I diagrammed in the languages. It’s not about my memorable homiletical outline or my nicely-packaged opening and closing illustrations. God uses His Word in spite of me, for His glory, by His powerful Spirit, through His Word.

Satan knows when to attack faithful preachers of the gospel. I would assume that many faithful expositors have those sermons when they felt dry in the pulpit, there was a sort of coldness in heart, a lack of connecting with the people, and a certain impotency in the proclamation. Satan loves to whisper this into the preacher’s ear and tell him he’s not doing any good.

Praise be to the Lord that I can -- and must intentionally -- remember these truths:

1. God sovereignly rules over all things in creation -- including every sermon I give.
2. God promises to use His Word because the power is in the living and powerful Word of God as it goes forth, not in the brilliant exposition that I may preach.
3. God decreed from eternity past -- in His glorious and everlasting counsils -- not only every exposition that I will ever preach but also every hearer that will ever listen to every sermon I preach and furthermore, every effect that will ever come from the sermon I herald.
4. God sanctifies me as His child as I continually grow in childlike faith in my Father who comforts His people with radiant beams of divine excellencies in Christ from His Word.
5. God humbles me to continually reinforce in my heart the reality that I am weak and impotent in myself and that I must daily and deliberately cast myself fully upon the mercy of God, the power of Scripture, the glory of the gospel, and the comfort of the Spirit.
6. God will receive all glory through the reading of His Word and the faithful expounding of His Truth. Sermons are not about me. And that’s one of the subtle temptations the Evil One darts at the preacher’s heart, that every sermon is about him. Sermons are about God, pointing to Christ, expounding His Word, energized by the Spirit, and delivered with passion. God will receive glory regardless how the preacher may feel or how I perceive the message may have been received.

So, again, I conclude where I began that, for the preacher, the sovereignty of God truly is the pillow upon which the preacher really can lay his head at the end of each Sunday, knowing that God gives perfect peace!  And for that, I rejoice and rest! It is the Rock-like pillow upon which every minister lays his head.

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Re-Gaining the Profound Privilege of the Preacher!

RE-GAINING THE PROFOUND PRIVILEGE OF THE PREACHER!
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Christ Fellowship Bible Church

The preacher! The minister of the gospel! A shepherd of the church. Perhaps in times past these were elevated positions held in high esteem by the common man, but today we must regain the profound privilege of the preacher. Amazingly, my target audience is not those in the world but those in the church. Indeed, those who occupy the position of pastor or minister of the gospel: WE ourselves need to re-gain the profound privilege of the preacher. In this essay, I believe we need to elevate our estimation of and the privilege of the office of the minister of the gospel in at least five ways.

1.  The PULPIT — preach God’s Word, God’s Truth
The pulpit is a throne, it is the throne for the Word of God. The pulpit is the place where God stands and speaks to His people. God has designed the proclamation of His Word to be the primary means by which He both saves and sanctifies His people. The pulpit must allow God to speak forth to His people through His Word and it must not be a place where men speak human, trivial ideas. The pulpit must house and herald God’s profound wisdom from the Scripture, through the man, to the people, by God’s Spirit.

2.  The POSITION - as preacher, minister, servant, herald, shepherd
O the high honor of being a spokesman for God! What an honorable and holy calling to be summoned by God most High and commissioned to speak forth His Word, from His Book, to His people, by His power. A shepherd, a pastor, a minister, a preacher, a soul-winner! These are all high callings that God has put upon His man who heralds the Word! Never underestimate the high calling of this position! Tremble & rejoice!

3.  The PRAYER - a man of desperate and fervent prayer
All of a minister’s work is spiritual work and is powerless and fruitless unless it is bathed with and energized by prayer. Amazingly: the work of the minister of the gospel just may be the only calling where all the duties are absolutely impossible unless it is undergirded by desperate and fervent prayer. Men of God who preach the Word must be men who say no to many things in order to say yes to God in prayer.

4.  The PURITY - holiness of life
People are watching! What a travesty that many look at ministers or celebrity preachers and mock them (or Christianity, or God Himself!) because of an unholy life, a sinful habit that has become public and the work of the preacher has become a laughingstock of the masses! O let us regain the absolute necessity of being holy men. Why? As priests of old were consecrated, so let ministers be holy men in conduct & life.

5.  The PURSUIT - of God — not being so familiar with the the LORD that we forget to be in awe of Him
To minister as a leader of the flock is first of all to remember that one is a follower of the Chief Shepherd. Before you lead others, you must follow the Lamb! It’s easy to do sermon preparation and lose the awe. Seek to maintain a holy wonder & a heartfelt awe of God in everything you do as you pursue God Himself!

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Describe the Ideal, Biblical Church! How Would You Respond?

Describe The Ideal, Biblical Church! How Would You Respond?
Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Christ Fellowship Bible Church

This morning in my weekly men’s Bible study, I started our discussion by asking this question to all the men present: If you were to plant a new church, what would you have and what would you need in your Church for it to be faithful? In other words, describe the ideal, biblical church for me. But I told the men that with every answer they gave, they must prove it with chapter and verse! In our 30-minute discussion, the men responded with these Scriptures and marks of the ideal, biblical church.

1. Ephesians 4:12 - Equip the Saints
The first answer immediately came as a brother shouted out Ephesians 4:12! The ministry must be all about equipping the saints to do the work of service! The primary duty of the leaders that God gives to the church is to equip God’s people to do the work of ministry for God’s glory.

2. 2 Timothy 4:2 - Preach the Word
Another brother then immediately turned to 2 Timothy 4 and read verse 2: to preach the Word of God. This is the preeminent call and duty of every faithful minister, to teach and preach the Bible with clarity, with accuracy, with fidelity, and with power. A faithful church must preach the Word.

3. Mark 11:17 - House of Prayer
One brother turned to the gospels and mentioned how Christ described the Temple as a House of Prayer. The church must be a place where prayer -- fervent prayer -- is prioritized!

4. Colossians 3:15-16 - Instructing one another with psalms, hymns & spiritual songs and giving thanks to God
Then, one brother turned to Colossians 3 and read about the need to instruct and teach one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs as we make melody to God and give thanks to Him! He pointed out the need to sing, to give thanks, to teach, to instruct -- and all this happens as the Word of God is richly dwelling with us.

5. Titus 1:5 - Appoint Godly Elders
Next, a man took us to Titus 1 where Paul exhorts Titus to appoint elders in every city. But not just any kind of ‘leader’ will do; Titus must appoint the right kind of elders. They must be men who are above reproach. So we discussed the need to have godly, above reproach shepherds.

6. Ephesians 4:1-3 - Maintain Christian Unity
One brother stated that Ephesians 4 must be a central text so that we would remember to walk in a manner worthy of the calling (v.1) and that believers would walk in all humility, with gentleness, with patience, and show great tolerance for one another in love, all the while striving to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace. This is the church protecting its unity!

7. Matthew 28:18-20 - Make Disciples, Baptize and Teach Them
We then turned to Matthew 28 where we were reminded of the mission of the church: to GO and SPEAK! To go out and speak forth the gospel and make disciples. And then to baptize them (practice the ordinances of baptism and, also, the Lord’s supper), and then to engage in the ongoing responsibility of teaching them to obey all that Christ commanded. This is life-on-life discipleship as believers grow in grace and follow Christ together.

8. Acts 2:42 - Devote themselves to teaching, prayer, breaking of bread & fellowship
One brother directed us to Acts 2:42 where we observed the example of the early church where they regularly devoted themselves to four primary essentials. They intentionally gathered for the Apostolic teaching, for prayer, for the breaking of bread (communion or hospitality/meals) and regular fellowship.

9. Acts 2:44-45 - Serving One Another
Then, another brother encouraged us to look at that same context and observe how the early church provided for others in need and ministered to one another in tangible, particular ways as was profitable to serve and love and care for one another. A faithful church serves one another.

10. 3 John 6-8 - Equip and send off faithful missionaries and be fellow workers with the Truth
Finally, one brother reminded us of the paramount and joyful privilege of giving financially in the context of the church so that we can equip and send and support missionaries to go out “for the sake of the Name!” Indeed, the church sends out missionaries who are faithful so that they may do gospel work near and far and in so doing, the church engages in a glorious ministry where they are “fellow workers with the Truth” (3 John 6-8).

What an excellent list!  Not too bad for a group of guys putting our minds together at 6AM on a Friday morning before they head off to work (with no knowledge ahead of time that they would be asked this question)! May the Lord keep us faithful to His work, His Way, and according to His Word -- because Christ Alone, the Head over His Church -- is altogether lovely & worthy!

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