Faith and Love

When our faith in God is put to the test,

so is our love for Him.

Untested Faith

Faith untested is faith unproven;

and an unproven faith is no faith at all.

A Christian's Development

A Christian's real development in spiritual life

will always be revealed by how he or she

thinks about God--how much he thinks

about Him, and how highly he thinks about Him.

Sinclair Ferguson

A Heart for God

Page 111



Christ and the Curse of the Law

"Christ hath redeemed us from the curse of the law, being made a curse for us." (Gal 3:13)  The curse of the law is its penal sanction.  This is essentially the wrath of curse of God, the  displeasure which rests upon every infraction of the law's demand.  "Cursed is everyone that continueth not in all things written in the book of the law to do them."  (Gal 3:10)   Without deliverance from  this curse there could be no salvation.  It is from this curse that Christ has purchased His people and the price of the purchase was that He Himself became a curse.  He became so identified with the curse resting upon His peo9ple that the whole of it in all its unrelieved intensity became His.  That curse He bore and that curse He exhausted.  That was the price paid for this redemption and the liberty secured for the beneficiaries is that there is no more curse.

John Murray
Redemption Accomplished and Applied
Page 44

Preaching on Empty

In pointing out these things to the brethren,

you will be a good servant of Jesus Christ,

constantly nourished on the words of the faith

and of the sound doctrine which you have

been following.

I Timothy 4:6

NASB

One of the great dangers, great temptations for any preacher, is in studying for the sermon instead studying for himself.  It is convenient so many times to prepare for the sermon, instead of preparing one's self to preach; and if not watched this came become a fatal habit, and can blind the preacher to his own spiritual need, which, if not corrected, will lead to his own spiritual bankruptcy.

We are to be nourished ourselves, spiritually nourished on the words of faith and sound doctrine.  We must not neglect to see that we ourselves are spiritually well fed as this is keeping the command of Paul to see to ourselves and our doctrine. 

A pastor/preacher who is spiritually malnourished himself will have nothing to give his flock, and they will eventually starve.  Yes, he will have words, but those words will be all sound, bereft of spiritual force and effectiveness.  Words without spiritual power have empty spiritual calories that fill the ears without nourishing the soul.  They are all sound with no substance. 

Fellow pastors and preachers, let us take pains to be sure our own spiritual well is full, let us feed ourselves deeply, richly, and regularly; and let us not preach on empty, but give to our people out of the overflow of our own soul.    

Keys to an Effective Preaching Ministry

1. Be diligent in preparation and accuracy.

II Timothy 2:15 Be diligent to present yourself approved to God as a workman who does not need to be ashamed, accurately handling the word of truth.

I Timothy 4:14-15a Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you, which was bestowed on you through the prophetic utterance with the laying on of hands by the presbytery.  Take pains with these things; be absorbed in them....

2. Be godly and growing yourself.

I Timothy 4:15b-16...so that your progress will be evident to all.  Pay close attention to yourself and to your teaching; persevere in these things, for as you do this you will ensure salvation both for yourself and those who hear you.

II Timothy 2:16-26...vs 21 Therefore, if anyone cleanses himself from these things, he will be a vessel for honor, sanctified, useful to the Master, prepared for every good work.

3. Be dependent on the Holy Spirit.

Zechariah 4:6..."Not by might nor by power, but by My Spirit," says the Lord of hosts.

II Corinthians 2:16b-4:6 And who is adequate for these things? For we are not like many, peddling the word of God, but as from sincerity, but as from God, we speak in Christ in the sight of God.....Such confidence we have through Christ toward God.  Not that we are adequate in ourselves to consider anything as coming from ourselves, but our adequacy is from God, who also made us adequate as servants of a new covenant, not of the letter but of the Spirit; for the letter kills, but the Spirit gives life.

4. Be faithful to God by fulfilling your calling.

I Timothy 4:14-16 Do not neglect the spiritual gift within you....persevere in these things....

II Timothy 3:1-2 I solemnly charge you in the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who is to judge the living and the dead, and by His appearing and His kingdom:  preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with great patience and instruction.

I Corinthians 4:1-2 Let a man regard us in this manner, as servants of Christ and stewards of the mysteries of God.  In this case, moreover, it is required of stewards that one be found trustworthy.

I Timothy 1:12-14 I thank Christ Jesus our Lord, who has strengthened me, because He considered me faithful, putting me into service....and the grace of our Lord was more than abundant, with the faith and love which are in Christ Jesus.

II Timothy 4:7 I have fought the good fight, I have finished the course, I have kept the faith.

Brothers and fellow pastors, may this be our heart and our life; and may the benediction of our life be:
I Timothy 1:17 Now to the King eternal, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor and glory forever and ever. Amen.  And may our lives and ministries bring Him, our King, honor and glory forever and ever!

Preaching and Stewardship

As stewards of the living word of the living God,

we stand on His authority, and preach with His

authority, and preach under His authority. 

Therefore, we must preach as men who have

no confidence in themselves, and no reliance

 upon themselves and their own words; but

preach as those who totally rely upon the living

word itself to do that which God has intended

it to do, realizing the word is the medium through

which the Holy Spirit brings about conviction.

Christ and the Scriptures

The grand subject of all the Scriptures is Jesus Christ, Himself.

When you take Christ out of the Scriptures, they become a

rule book for good behavior, and a guide book for self-improvement.
Without Christ we have nothing to preach!

Preaching and Persuasion

In preaching we persuade with the truth, with facts,

and with the reality of the person and work of Christ;

not using persuasive techniques, but realizing that

God stands over His word to fulfill it and the Holy

Spirit convicts concerning sin, righteousness and judgment.

Preaching and the Message

For pastors, it is sometimes too easy to forget that,

ultimately, preaching is about the message,

not about the method of delivery.