Session 3 – John MacArthur

Note: All these notes are rough and are not exact transcriptions. There will be errors (typos) and things that are missed from the messages. Does a pastor have a life of integrity? If he does, how should he respond when that integrity is unjustly attacked and criticized? Why should he defend himself? The example of […]

Session 2 – Tom Pennington

Note: All these notes are rough and are not exact transcriptions. There will be errors (typos) and things that are missed from the messages. How will a preacher preach? What methods will he use to craft his sermons? Tom Pennington provides insights from Paul and 1 Cor. 2. Session 2 – Pennington.pdf

Wragg – Preaching from a pure heart

Note: All these notes are rough and are not exact transcriptions. There will be errors (typos) and things that are missed from the messages. The most important priority of the preacher is not to prepare sermons, but to prepare his heart for ministry. Jerry Wragg offered seven principles to prepare our hearts. An excellent, well-needed […]

Session 1 – John MacArthur

Great session as John began with a call to separation — not the separation of the old fundamentalism, but a separation that distinguishes the church from the world. The message was reminiscent of Phil Johnson’s message last year. These sessions are also being live streamed. Session 1 – MacArthur.pdf

Shepherds’ Conference about to start

We’re here. Fifteen minutes before the conference is about to begin. The Seminary men’s chorus is getting seated and anticipation is building. The sanctuary is already almost filled. We are excited to see what the Lord will do in the ministry of his word this week!

A Shepherds’ Conference test blog

This week I will be at the Shepherds’ Conference and will be attempting to publish my notes from the sessions as quickly as possible. This is a test to see if the “short cut” I thought of will actually work. Attached are some notes from one of the sessions from last year that I publish […]

Going to the Shepherds’ Conference…

This morning I leave for the Shepherds’ Conference. There are a variety of resources that will be available on the Shepherds’ Conference website throughout the week, including Twitter, Flickr, Facebook and pictures. Audio of the conference will also be posted on the website following the conference. I have been to the Shepherds’ Conference numerous times. […]

Two free audio books

Every month Christian Audio offers a free book download. And this month they have two — the classic The Cost of Discipleship by Dietrich Bonhoeffer and a more recent book by John Piper: Fifty Reasons Why Jesus Came to Die. Just go to the website and follow the directions provided. These books really are free!

Reading Psalms

Today we resumed our reading of the book of Psalms. This is the longest book in the Scripture (at least by chapters — 150) and one of the most popular books in Scripture. But the Psalms are written by a variety of authors over hundreds of years, so how are they to be interpreted and […]

Study the Bible

Just as we are sometimes reticent to read the Bible, so we are at times also slow to spend labor in the hard discipline of Bible study. To that end, the encouragement of the riches that are derived from that study are worth remembering: There is divinity in Scripture. It contains the marrow and quintessence […]

Unclean! Unclean!

A whole generation (or more) of people has grown up hearing the adage, “cleanliness is next to godliness.” And I — like many others — heard many encouragements in my early years to make things “spic and span.” Importing those notions into the text of Leviticus is not helpful to understanding what God is saying […]

Sola Gratia conference audio available

The audio from the messages of the Sola Gratia conference hosted by Countryside Bible Church last weekend is now available. The three speakers for this event were Richard Phillips, Russell Moore, and John Hannah. I missed hearing John Hannah, who spoke only on Sunday, but was introduced to Phillips and Moore, hearing them both for […]

Read the Bible

Many years ago, one pastor ventured into a land of discovery — his quest was to find how much his people read their Bibles each day. He pastored a godly and effective church, so his expectation was that they read their copies of Scripture more than most believers in most churches. It was a reasonable […]

Book Review: Spiritual Disciplines

Title: Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life Author: Donald S. Whitney Publisher: NavPress, 1991; 254 pp. $15.99 Recommendation (4-star scale): “The Christian ideal has not been tried and found wanting,” wrote G. K. Chesterton. Rather, “It has been found difficult and left untried.” This could not only be said of the Christian life in […]

Giving counsel and receiving correction

Meditating on the story of Moses and Jethro (Exodus 18), Jon Bloom meditates on how a godly man receives counsel and correction. “Moses: When God’s Direction Comes Through Correction” provides more insight than just how to receive correction, however. The article also serves to encourage those who give counsel about how to offer it in […]