…from Kristin Charles on the Ministry-To-Children.com site.
1) Keep Them Regular
2) Keep Them Easy
3) Keep Them Engaging
4) Keep Them Real
5) Keep Them Growing
6) Keep Them Flexible
7) Keep Them Imperfect
8) Keep Them Fun
by Phil Auxier
…from Kristin Charles on the Ministry-To-Children.com site.
1) Keep Them Regular
2) Keep Them Easy
3) Keep Them Engaging
4) Keep Them Real
5) Keep Them Growing
6) Keep Them Flexible
7) Keep Them Imperfect
8) Keep Them Fun
by Phil Auxier
a couple of great posts on the recent death of Osama Bin Laden and what this means for us as believers (i.e. how we should think about it).
D.A. Carson weighs in with these clarifications on Love in Hard Places from a section he entitled “Hard Case Two: Osama Bin Laden,” written after 9/11. Here’s an outline:
1) It may be helpful, first of all, to reflect on pacifism and “just war” theory in the light of the biblical commands to love and forgive.
2) On the other hand, all war, even just war, is never more than rough justice. Even the just war is prosecuted by sinners, and so injustices will occur.
3) Several other factors are often thrown into the debate about how we should respond to Osama bin Laden and other terrorists.
4) Historically, wars have changed their form from time to time, generating fresh discussion about just war theory. It is time to begin this process again.
5) As with racism, so here: Christians need to reflect on how some of the fundamentals of the faith bear on just war.
6) One more theological reflection is relevant to the concerns of these lectures. Complex discussions about justice, forgiveness, enemies, and just war theory may entice us to forget that they were all precipitated by the effort to think exegetically and theologically about love.
The conclusion:
Therefore, in the present struggle, even while we must try to prevent the terrorists from doing more violence, we must eschew a vendetta mentality. Love demands that we do not demonize Osama bin Laden. He is a human being made in the image of God. He is an evil man, and he must be stopped, but he is a man, and we should take no pleasure in destroying him. Vengeance is the Lord’s alone. Do not offer the alternative, “Should we weep for Osama bin Laden or hold him to account for his genocide and prevent him from carrying out his violent intentions?” The right answer is yes.
I was also helped by The Resurgence and their reflections on what it means to love our enemies. I hope these help you as you wade through these things.
by Phil Auxier
Sojourn Music‘s latest project The Water and The Blood (Hymns of Isaac Watts: Vol. II) is now available for purchase or download. Sojourn doesn’t really do a weak or undoctrinally robust project. This particular project has been long anticipated by me (since they released Volume 1 of Watts’ Hymns). Anyway, if you’re looking for some new tunes for the month of May, why not feed on these, with their deep and doctrinally relevant content. Here’s their promo video as well:
by Phil Auxier
Enjoyed a great Lord’s Day yesterday:
In the AM, my sermon was from Hebrews 2:5-9 and entitled Already, Not Yet. The sermon had to do with not being too preoccupied with the future, but being consumed what who we do see now: namely Jesus.
In the PM, my sermon was from Luke 18:9-14 and entitled Gospel Foundations for Families. Thinking about this parable of the Pharisee and Tax Collector helped us see how many of us tie our righteousness to the success of the parenting event. In the introduction, we met 2 ladies: Farah C and Fay Lure.
At any rate, hope you enjoyed a great Lord’s Day as well.
by Phil Auxier
As the weather is hot…we can all use the encouragement found in this article from Nancy Leigh DeMoss entitled Celebrating Biblical Womanhood: Philosophies of Beauty in Conflict. My wife found this article and emailed me with an encouraging side note: this helps give my heart something to remember as I dress. Hopefully we all can benefit from the truth found here as well.
by Phil Auxier
…might slow my blog this week. But, we’ll see what happens this morning. For now, necessary things (God’s Word/prep for Sunday, meeting with men, etc.) Draw me away from fixing my problems. Hope you have a good day.
by Phil Auxier
…a recent sermon by Matt Chandler from Habakkuk 2:18-20 was very helpful to me. It’s entitled American Monkeys (Audio, Manuscript, Small Group Study Guide). I thought some sections that were very helpful included helping believers see how prone they are to idolatry as well as answering some common objections unbelievers might have to Christianity. Enjoy.
by Phil Auxier
Today’s sermon, Gospel 101, from 1 Corinthians 15:1-11 is now online. The sermon sought to unfold the basics of the Gospel highlighting: The Gospel Message: Jesus (vv.3-8), The Gospel Effect: Change (9-10), and The Gospel Call: Repent and Believe (1-2, 11). We had a great morning and I hope you enjoyed basking in the glory of God through His Risen Son.
by Phil Auxier
Today, we wrap up our week long celebration by looking at:
Resurrection Sunday
(See Matthew 28:1-20, Mark 16:1-8, Luke 24:1-53, John 20:1-21:25.)Early on this Sunday morning, some of Jesus’ friends set out to His grave to anoint the body of their friend and teacher. But when they arrived, they were greeted by what one of the Gospel writers calls “a man dressed in lightning.” He tells them Jesus is not there, as He said. He is risen.
In the week leading up to His death, Jesus, the Good Shepherd, went out to meet the wolves of judgment, sin and death, and He did so with all authority. One might wonder, what good has it ever done anyone to die for some cause? This is the glorious beauty of the Gospel. Jesus didn’t die as a martyr for a cause. He was never in the wrong place at the wrong time. He was never at the mercy of anyone. He lived, died and was buried because He meant to be.
No one took His life from Him. He laid it down. For who? For His flock, His people. And He laid it down only to take it up again. The point of the cross was not to die, but to die and rise again, defeating the prowling wolves of sin and death themselves. He said, “I have authority to lay my life down, and I have authority to take it up again.” And this is just what he did. Easter says of Jesus, “He meant it! He meant to lay down His life for you! And as sure as He has taken it up again, He knows you!”
Praise God today for our Victorious Savior.
by Phil Auxier
Tomorrow at Crestview, Lord willing, we plan to work our way through 1 Corinthians 15:1-11, looking at the basics of the Gospel. Much like we all love Linus saying, “That’s what Christmas is all about Charlie Brown…” I’m hoping to help people understand exactly what Good Friday and Easter are all about. I hope you come ready to worship our Glorious Savior. If you get a chance, read 1 Corinthians 15 to prepare yourself for our an amazing day.