Top Ten Book List of 2014

My top ten favorite reads from 2014 (outside the Bible). They are in the order I read them, not in order of favor per se. I obviously enjoy history and biographies…
1. Adrift from the Gospel, by Raymond Teachout (236 pages).
2. Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass, by Frederick Douglass (116 pages).
3. South: The Story of Shackleton's 1914-1917 Expedition, by Sir. Ernest Shackleton (264 pages).
4. Seven Men Who Rule the World From the Grave, by Dave Breese (240 pages).
5. Why Jesus? Rediscovering His Truth in an Age of Mass Marketed Spirituality, by Ravi Zacharias (276 pages).
6. The Fundamentals, edited by R.A. Torrey and A.C. Dixon (4,000 + pages in 12 volumes).
7. Romans and Galatians, by H.A. Ironside (240 pages).
8. George Washington, by William Roscoe Thayer (178 pages).
9. The Life of Abraham Lincoln, by Henry Ketcham (246 pages).
10. C. T. Studd: Cricketer and Pioneer, by Norman P. Grubb (241 pages).

The Gospel is Powerful!

Rejoicing in the privilege of being able to preach the Gospel on a regular basis all over the United States. This morning I preached the Gospel at my parents' church here in Indiana. Two first time visitors immediately came forward at the invitation to trust Christ. Pastor Holmes spent much of the afternoon with these men, and they both returned this evening to be baptized at the conclusion of this evening's service. Praise the Lord for these two new brothers in Christ - Tristan (15) and Donny (40 something?). "For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in him should not perish, but have everlasting life." (John 3:16)

Joy Is A Gift

“Joy is not to be found when other people love us; joy is to be found when we love other people. It is love, then joy. Joy is a fruit of the Spirit that is produced as you and I engage in love…The source of joy is God. It is important for us to notice that joy is a fruit of the Spirit. Therefore, joy is not something that we manufacture in our lives. Joy is not something that you work up. Joy is something that is given to us as a gift from God. Anytime that you and I try to manufacture joy in our own lives by our own effort, we get nothing more than wax fruit. Wax fruit is not very satisfying.” (Are You So Foolish: A Commentary on Galatians, by Jeff Amsbaugh, pages 399-400)

Only cared about one thing...

The Father of C. T. Studd was saved in a Moody Crusade in England. Mr. Studd was immediately convicted by his conscience about "horse racing," "shooting," "hunting," "playing cards," and going to "theaters" and "balls." Mr. Studd went to Mr. Moody and asked him if he should give these things up, now that he was a Christian. Moody answered, "Mr. Studd, you have children and people you love; you are now a saved man yourself, and you want to get them saved. God will give you some souls, and as soon as ever you have won a soul, you won't care about any of the other things." "Sure enough," Mr. Grubb wrote, "to the astonishment of his children and many others, he didn't care for any of the these things any longer; but only cared about one thing, and that was saving souls."

See As God Sees

"See their hopeless ignorance; they have never heard of a God who loves and cares, they have no conception of holiness or heaven, they have never seen a book. And see yet one step further. See as God sees: see hearts that can be washed that can receive eternal life: see bodies that can be possessed by the Spirit of Christ and all their powers used to show Him forth." From the biography of English missionary, C.T. Studd (C.T. Studd: Cricketer and Pioneer), who faithfully served his master for many years in China, India, and Africa.

Suffering is Temporary for the Believer

The only heaven the godless will know is the enjoyment they have on earth in this life (Matt 6:2, 5, 16), and God is willing for them to have it. The only suffering the godly will experience is in this life, for in heaven there will be no pain or tears. Furthermore, the suffering that God's people experience now is working for the them and will one day lead to glory (1 Peter 1:6-8; 5:10; 2 Cor. 4:16-18; Rom. 8:18). ~Warren Wiersbe, Be Patient (Job), p. 75

The Problem of...Pleasure

“Although I agree that the problem of pain may be one of the greatest challenges to faith in God, I dare suggest that it is the problem of pleasure that more often drives us to think of spiritual things…when pleasure has run its course, a sense of despondency can creep into one’s soul that may often lead to self-destruction. Pain can often be temporary; but disappointment in pleasure gives rise to emptiness… not just for a moment, but for life… People in pain may look for comfort and explanations. People disappointed in pleasure look for purpose.” ~Ravi Zacharias (Why Jesus? p. 153) And may I add that true peace, fulfillment, joy, satisfaction and purpose can only be found in Jesus Christ (Col 2:10a; John 14:27; Gal 5:22)!

Fanatic or Frightened Sheep?

"God's real people have always been called fanatics. Jesus was called mad; so was Paul; so was Whitfield, Wesley, Moody, Spurgeon. No one has graduated far in God's School who has not been paid the compliment of being called a fanatic. We Christians today are indeed a tipid crew. Had we but half the fire and enthusiasm of the Suffragettes in the past, we would have the world evangelized and Christ back among us in no time. Had we the pluck and heroism of the Flyers, or the men who volunteered for North or South Polar Expeditions, or for the Great War, or for any dare-devil enterprise, we could have every soul on earth knowing the name and salvation of Jesus Christ in less than ten years. Alas! What stirs ordinary men's blood and turns them into heroes. makes most Christians run like a flock of frightened sheep. Militants daily risk their lives in furtherance of their cause, and subscribed of their means in a way that cried "Shame" on us Christians, who generally brand the braving risks and fighting against odds as a "tempting of God." - From "The Chocolate Soldier" by C.T. Studd

The Deity of Christ

"If Yahweh is our sanctifier (Ex. 31:13), is omnipresent (Ps. 139:7-10), is our peace (Jud. 6:24), is our righteousness (Jer. 23:6), is our victory (Ex. 17:8-16), and is our healer (Ex. 15:26), then so is Christ all of these things too (I Cor. 1:30; Col. 1:27; Eph. 2:14). If the gospel is God's (I Thess. 2:2, 6-9; Gal. 3:8), then that same gospel is also Christ's (I Thess. 3:2; Gal. 1:7). If the Church is God's (Gal. 1:13; I Cor. 15:9), then that same church is also Christ's (Rom. 16:16). God's kingdom (1Thess. 2:12) is Christ's (Eph. 5:5); God's love (Eph. 1:3-5) is Christ's (Rom. 8:35); God's Word (Col. 1:25; I Thess 2:13) is Christ's (I Thess. 1:8; 4:15); God's Spirit (I Thess. 4:8) is Christ's (Phil. 1:19); God's peace (Gal. 5:22; Phil. 4:9) is Christ's (Col. 3:15; cf. Col. 1:2); God's "Day" of judgement (Is. 13:6) is Christ's "Day" of judgment (Phil. 1:6, 10; 2:16; I Cor. 1:8); God's grace (Eph. 2:8-9; Col 1:6; Gal. 1:15) is Christ's grace (I Thess. 5:28; Gal. 1:6; 6:18); God's salvation (Col. 1:13) is Christ's salvation (I Thess. 1:10); and God's will (Eph. 1:11; I Thess 4:3; Gal. 1:4) is Christ's will (Eph. 5:17; cf. I Thess. 5:18). Because of this kind of identification, Paul could say that he was both God's slave (Rom. 1:9) and Christ's (Rom. 1:1; Gal. 1:10), that he lived for both the glory of God (Rom. 5:2; Gal. 1:24) and for the glory of Christ (II Cor. 8:19, 23; cf. II Cor. 4:6)." ~Walter Elwell, (Originally published in "The Deity of Christ in the Writings of Paul")

Souls Souls Souls

“I care not where I go, or how I live, or what I endure so that I may save souls. When I sleep I dream of them; when I awake they are first in my thoughts…no amount of scholastic attainment, of able and profound exposition of brilliant and stirring eloquence can atone for the absence of a deep impassioned sympathetic love for human souls.” -David Brainerd

...and it was worth it all.

A supporting church pastor asked one of his missionaries, David Hosaflook, to counsel him about how he could challenge his American church to be more serious and active in the Great Commission cause. Hosalflook responded with this reply…

1) Let them know the incredible difficulty of "leaving houses and lands ..." for the Gospel. It's easy to feel the tingly sensations of missionary surrender by listening to a well-crafted, musically-powerful missionary DVD in a climate controlled auditorium and then hearing an impassioned sermon. But turn off the A/C when you preach the sermon. Pump in the smells of body odor and strange food and cigarette smoke. Blast some insipid Balkan or tribal music in the background. Talk about depression and loneliness and pain and smog and threats and fears and danger and discomfort and frustration about the illogical grammar. Talk about there being 10 Demas-es that rip your heart out for every Timothy that is faithful. Talk about pouring out blood, sweat and tears and seeing the harvest come in slower than you thought it would. Talk about missionary kids struggling to adjust and forever becoming "third-culture" people -- neither being culturally American nor Timbuktuan. Missionary sacrifice is overwhelming. This isn't in the fine print -- it's plastered all over the New Testament -- but we fail to present this side because we don't want to sound like we're bellyaching. War is Hell.

2) Let them know the incredible reward of doing all this for Christ's sake. Talk up the "joy" that was set before Christ at the cross. Talk up eternal treasure. Mention the party thrown over the 1-in-100 rescued from destruction. Overshadow the immense difficulties of missionary sacrifice by the overwhelming rewards in eternity. Make them jealous for God's glory and tell them how incredibly amazing it is to see God turn on the spiritual light in a pagan's heart. Let them imagine how tear-jerkingly awesome it is to hear a sinner calling upon the name of the Lord, after being convicted by the Holy Spirit through someone as unworthy as them. And even in the absence of such conversions on a large scale, let them know that there is great fulfillment in knowing that, amidst the pagan sounds and oppressive darkness, you have been sent as a light, lit by the Light. And though no one come, though no one heed, you are there, and they know you are there, and HE knows you are there -- and HE is there with you. Always. Until it's all over and you go to your final sleep saying, "I left it all on out there on the field -- and it was worth it all."

The Most Pleasant Life

"You have been asked to take notice of the sayings of dying men - this is mine: that a life spent in the service of God and communion with Him is the most pleasant life that anyone can live in this world." ~ Matthew Henry

Not your body

If abortion is really about a woman's right to do what she wants with “her own body,” why is the baby in her womb a different blood type than her body and why does the baby scream when being chopped to bits while the mother feels nothing of the blade or vacuum?