“We all know churches (maybe our own church!) where the gap between membership and attendance is vast: a membership of 600 with an attendance of 150, or an impressive membership of 5,000 with 1,800 on most Sundays. This should not be.”   There are two numbers in the life of the church that are too... Continue Reading

Have you ever considered why Paul wrote 2 Corinthians 7:10? He wanted the Corinthians to repent and experience salvation “without regret.” Titus reported that they had repented of their sinful animosity and now desired to reunite with Paul (vv. 6–9). It’s a beautiful picture of the Spirit of Christ blessing Christians together in love.   Have... Continue Reading

When we see new people come to Christ, grow in their faith, form committed relationships with others, and develop into new leaders for the church, change and institutional growth will happen. In the meantime, however, progress and change can seem to be moving so slow. But it’s worth the wait.   What do you want... Continue Reading

Don’t waste your preaching time trying to impress your old college and seminary professors who aren’t even there. Don’t use your sermon as a vehicle for picking fights with those who oppose you. Preach it to sinners who need salvation. And preach it to the saints who need reminding of who they are in Christ.  ... Continue Reading

Preaching has fallen on hard times—even among those who claim to be Reformed expositors. There seems to be a wide and shallow definition of exposition within even the most healthy pockets of evangelicalism. The typical pulpit method today is fad-driven and man-centered. This pragmatic approach to the pulpit ministry results in informal and often immature talks that are shallow,... Continue Reading

The mainline churches gave up their adherence to the Scriptures as God’s infallible Word. They gave up the historic creeds and confessions as part of their “broadening” (L. Loescher). They gave up everything and anything that they thought might prevent them from remaining “relevant” or culturally significant or influential. It did not work. Today, the... Continue Reading

The statement was written to address a variety of issues (e.g. race, homosexuality, complementarianism) that are being defined and discussed not solely by the clear and simple teaching of Scripture, but by the inclusion of worldly concepts of social justice. The same social justice language and concepts are driving the conversation about the role of... Continue Reading

The question is a bit more angular than one might initially perceive. It is a question that has struck me in recent months, as I have heard multiple preachers describe their preaching style as expository. Never mind that they give little attention to interpreting the text, applying the text, or actually preaching the text.  ... Continue Reading

To this end, one of the board members of A1B gave the audience a piece of advice: Do not use Scripture to convince your fellow CRC members of the beauty of full inclusion. Instead, rely on personal stories. “Everyone has a story,” she said. “We can argue back and forth all day about Scripture, but... Continue Reading

In Strasbourg, Wibrandis became an active participant of the community of pastors and their wives, which worked together to promote the Reformation in the city. As it was typical at that time, Capito and Wibrandis opened their home to a constant stream of visitors and refugees.   Wibrandis Rosenblatt (1504-1564) is often nicknamed “the Bride... Continue Reading