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Happy Thanksgiving Week

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I hope you’re having a great Thanksgiving Week.  We are enjoying some reconnection with family this week.  I wanted to make sure you had a chance to see what I’ve been working on these past few days.  It will culminate on Thanksgiving Day.  Beginning last year, I encouraged our church to use a Gratitude Guide.  This showcased some reasons to be thankful to God, especially for the good news about Him.  So, I’m uploading it here.  It’s not too late to engage this content.  Take some time tonight or this week to think of ways you can express gratitude to God for how His kindness is seen in the Gospel.  I hope this encourages and blesses you.  And, special thanks to Elizabeth Wood for the design.

Gratitude Guide 2017

Weekend Preview – 11/19

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Yes, I’m a little late in previewing tomorrow (at Crestview), but there is plenty happening…

I’m preaching on A Psalm for Thanksgiving – Psalm 100.  This is the only Psalm in the Bible with this title and it’s glorious in showing a pathway to being grateful to God.

Our children will keep practicing for their Christmas program on 12/10 (practices are at 9 AM).

At 6 PM, we’ll gather back together for our Annual Church Wide Thanksgiving Dinner.  This meal is always a highlight and joy.  Plus, we’ll be collecting a Thanksgiving Offering (Goal of $2500) to help a need Vivek has, get some resources sent with Luke, and help Open Door with their mobile unit.  Here’s a video helping you understand Open Door’s “going mobile” vision:

I hope you’re able to join us for this amazing day.

Weekend Recap – Glory of God Alone

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My 11/12/17AM sermon, Glory of God Alone, is now online.  This wrapped up Crestview Bible Church’s series on the Solas of the Reformation.  The gist of Sunday’s sermon was that God is glorious, but we are sinners, but God saves sinners for His glory.  I hope it encourages you to think and practice this reality.  And, I hope you had a good weekend.

Gospel Friday – Saved for the Glory of God’s Name

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There’s an amazing truth in John 12.  Jesus is preparing to go to the cross and asking the Father to glorify His name.  The Father replies, “I have glorified and I will glorify it again.”  Today, be humbled by this reality from John 12:28, that Jesus going to the cross was for the Father’s glory.  We’re roped into this through our salvation.  Glorify Him today for this amazing news.

Weekend Recap – Scripture Alone

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My 11/5/17AM sermon, Scripture Alone, is now online.  This sermon navigated some of the passages of the Bible which deal with the origin, the purpose, and descriptions the Bible gives itself.  I really hope that people were given a bigger picture of God’s Word and are drawn to worship Him.  I hope it encourages you.

Weekend Preview – Sola Scriptura

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This coming Sunday, Lord willing, we will continue our series looking at the Solas.  Specifically, on Sunday, we’ll dig into Scripture alone.  So, to whet your appetite, I’ll lean on Jared Wilson and how he defined it in his book The Pastor’s Justification:

Sola scriptura does not mean that the Bible is the only authority over a Christian. In a variety of ways the Christian must be submissive to civil governments, to church leadership, and even to fellow Christians. In addition, a Christian can look to church traditions and creeds and overseers as authorities over his life and doctrine. But sola scriptura means that all these other authorities are subject to the supreme authority of God’s Word. The Bible may not be the only authority in our lives, but it is the only infallible authority, and therefore it is the supreme authority, over any pope or pastor. Because the Bible is the only infallible authority over our lives, it is pastoral malpractice to treat it as a supporting document for our own good ideas. Our words ought to stand under Scripture, not vice versa. When we come to the biblical text, it is meant to shape us; we are not to shape it. We are the ones to be malleable, not the Bible.

Wilson, Jared C.. The Pastor’s Justification: Applying the Work of Christ in Your Life and Ministry (p. 120). Crossway. Kindle Edition.

I really appreciate these words of explanation.  And, I hope you are helped this coming Sunday and we dig in to see how Scripture alone points to true salvation.

Weekend Recap – Christ Alone

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My 10/29/17AM sermon, Christ Alone, is now online.  What I tried to do is overview the book of Colossians.  This book, in particular, helps showcase what it means to live in Christ alone.  Let’s be honest, though, we easily drift to living for other realities.  So, my hope through this sermon is that Christ would be the aim and point of your life.  I hope you enjoy it.

Weekend Review – Grace Alone

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Yesterday, I was freed up from a Sunday of preaching.  I’m grateful for Luke stepping in.  He preached Ephesians 2:1-10 in our Solas series on the notion of Grace Alone.  I love the way this sermon got after some ways we might not readily think we’re denying grace alone but actually, we’re drifting into our own self-sufficiency.  Engage with these truths.

I also enjoyed unhurried fellowship in Small Groups last night.  What a full weekend!  I hope yours went well, too.

Solas Series

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This past Sunday, we started a series on the Solas (a Latin word meaning alone) of the Reformation.  Why?  Well, October 31 marks the 500th Anniversary of Martin Luther’s opening a debate about the nature of salvation by posting 95 Theses on the door of the Castle Church in Wittenberg, Germany.  Solas speak to the protest that was being mustered toward the establishment.

Things like:

Faith alone – we’re not made right with God by works but a righteousness we receive through faith

Grace alone – God’s grace is the decisive factor, not our merit

Christ alone – He’s the one Mediator between God and man

Scripture alone – God’s Word, not tradition, holds the message the makes us right with God

to the Glory of God alone – the all emcompassing focus of our lives

At Crestview, our aim isn’t to venerate church history or the figures found therein, as helpful as they were.  We’re attempting in this series to test these truths in the Bible.  Does this way of relating to God prove true?  I hope this series helps you.