It is Saturday again.  It will be Sunday again tomorrow, and this means many will make their familiar way, to a familiar church building, to hear a familiar preacher preach the familiar Word of God.  This is a good thing, a great thing even.  However, we must be certain it does not become a too familiar thing so that we become “bored with good preaching“.  Here is an article from Pastor Paul Martin on the subject.   Let us head the warning and use it to help in preparation.

A family came to GFC a few months ago and could not stop talking about how glad they were to “hear the Word again.” I warned them, as I warn others in their situation, that they must guard their hearts from an over-zealous enthusiasm. Although it is great that they are being fed, even bland food feels like a feast to a malnutritioned man. What will they do when they have regained spiritual sustenance and find that the preaching is Biblical, yet quite average? If they train their senses to feel something is “good” only when they receive some kind of spiritual high, they could very well end up running from place to place looking for that high, not the Word.

There are still others that are so used to being well fed that when summer comes, or relatives visit or some other fancy strikes, they feel quite free to skip church to play.

Both these folks would do good to heed the careful wisdom of John Newton:

A Famine of the Word
Gladness was spread through Israel’s host
When first they Manna viewed;
They labored who should gather most,
And thought it pleasant food.
But when they had it long enjoyed
From day to day, the same;
Their hearts were by the plenty cloyed,
Although from heav’n it came.

Thus gospel bread at first is prized,
And makes a people glad;
But afterwards too much despised,
When easy to be had.
But should the Lord, displeased, withhold
The bread his mercy sends;
To have our houses filled with gold
Would make but poor amends.

How tedious would the week appear,
How dull the Sabbath prove?
Could we no longer meet to bear
The precious truths we love!
How would believing parents bear
To leave their heedless youth,
Exposed to every fatal snare,
Without the light of truth?

The gospel, and a praying few
Our bulwark long have proved;
But Olney sure the day will rue
When these shall be removed.
Then sin, in this once favored town,
Will triumph unrestrained;
And wrath and vengeance hasten down,
No more by prayer detained.

Preserve us from this judgment, Lord
For JESUS’ sake we plead;
A famine of the gospel word
Would be a stroke indeed!

Hymn 49 in Olney Hymns
John Newton

I received a free sample of the ESV study bible over the gospel of Luke today.  It looks to be a very helpful new study tool and has wonderful reviews from many evangelical leaders, including, Jerry Bridges, John Piper, Al Mohler, Mark Driscoll, and CJ Mahaney.   It appears to be an OT Surveay, NT Survey, and Study Bible all rolled up into one volume.  The intro, outline, and charting of key themes before each book are well done.  The color maps and diagrams are outstanding.  The study notes are helpful.  I need to study more, but I do not find them quite as helpful as the New Geneva Study Bible or even MacArthur’s, but they are on par with these study bibles.  If you are interested in purchasing one through Edgewood Bookshop please let me know, because it looks as if we will have to pre-order or wait.  It retails from $49.99 for hardback, to $239.99 for Calfskin.   Bonded leather retails for $74.99 and genuine for $94.99.   Early orders should receive discounts ranging between 30-40% off.

In our first ever guessing game here at Blasted Gourds we had some wonderful guesses.

Rob Moore figured out it was a Wordle, but that does not count for much.  Darrell Brandenburg got stuck on the shoe aspect, but gave some wonderful guesses.  Rachel Mahl figured out what portion of Scripture it was and Todd Fisher figured out that it was one of my sermons.  All in all, no one got it perfectly correct, but Todd and Rachel came the closest, so they win the big Gulps (Rob I will get an extra straw for you)!

This wordle is from the Sermon I preached on 2 Kings 6:8-23 entitled the Message of Elisha.  The footprint represents the beauty of the one who brings good news, and I love the way it emphasizes God and his goodness.  Psalm 62 and Hosea 13 were quoted so that is how they come in, as well as the bear cubs.  Thanks for playing!

Well, we have no winner in the what is it contest, but we have had some good guesses.  It is a Wordle, Rob Moore gets props for getting that right.  But the content of the wordle has yet to be guesses.  The answer will be revealed tomorrow, so you still have time to guess!  Maybe we should involve a prize?  Winner gets a Ricker’s Pop.

Here is a helpful post on Desiring God’s Blog dealing with common sins we like to blame others for rather than confessing them and turning from them. 

1) Anger:I wouldn’t lose my temper if my co-workers were easier to get along with, or if my kids behaved better, or if my spouse were more considerate.

2) Impatience: I would be a very patient person if it weren’t for traffic jams and long lines in the grocery store. If I didn’t have so many things to do, and if the people around me weren’t so slow, I would never become impatient!

3) Lust :  I would have a pure mind if there weren’t so many sensual images in our culture.

4) Anxiety :  I wouldn’t worry about the future if my life were just a little more secure—if I had more money, and no health problems.

5) Spiritual Apathy :  My spiritual life would be so much more vibrant and I would struggle with sin less if my small group were more encouraging, or if Sunday school were more engaging, or if the music in the worship service were more lively, or if the sermons were better.

6) Insubordination :  If my parents/bosses/elders were godly leaders, then I would joyfully follow them.

7) A Critical Spirit :  It’s not my fault that the people around me are ignorant and inexperienced.

8 ) Bitterness :  If you knew what that person did to me, you would understand my bitterness. How could I forgive something like that?

9) Gluttony :  My wife/husband/roommate/friend is a wonderful cook! The things they make are impossible to resist.

10) Gossip :  It’s the people around me who start the conversations. There’s no way to avoid hearing what others happen to say. And when others ask me questions, I can’t avoid sharing what I know.

11) Self-Pity :  I’ll never be happy, because my marriage/family/job/ministry is so difficult.

12) Selfishness :  I would be more generous if we had more money.

Pulpit Magazine has two (part 1) (part 2)wonderful response articles by John MacArthur on why he loves the church.  Here is a brief snippet from article 1.

Evangelicals are far too prone to indifference about the church. Some evangelicals live on the periphery of the church, attending and observing without ever really becoming an integral part of the body. Many who profess faith in Christ remain totally impassive about the church. As author Michael Griffiths noted,

A high proportion of people who “go to church” have forgotten what it is all for. Week by week they attend services in a special building and go through their particular, time-honored routine, but give little thought to the purpose of what they are doing. The Bible talks about the “the bride of Christ” but the church today seems like a ragged Cinderella. It needs to reaffirm the nonnegotiable, essential elements that God designed for it to be committed to. [God’s forgetful Pilgrims (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1978)]

He’s right. Worse yet, I know of people in full-time Christian service, employed by evangelical parachurch organizations, who have no involvement whatsoever with any local church. This is to the shame of the whole evangelical movement.

Is 2-3 hours long enough to call it a Lord’s Day?  Why would a Christian need to set aside a whole day?  Why would a Christian want to set aside a whole day?  Walt Chantry has a wonderful answer.

“If a Christian takes a bit of time on the Sabbath for private Bible reading and prayer, if he is faithful in public worship on God’s holy day, if time is spent teaching his children God’s Word, time preparing and teaching a Bible lesson, time visiting the sick and poor in Jesus’ name, time witnessing to a friend, time fellowshipping with the saints, time singing praises to God - soon the day seems all too short for the spiritually minded. There is so much to do for God in private, in the family, in the church. There is so much to do in worship and praise. It is a holy day, different from the other six. It is devoted to the Lord in his worship and service.”

- Walter Chantry

Lets see who can be the first one to get it right.  What is this?

Last night at Prayer Meeting we looked briefly at Psalm 62.  Stuart Townend and Aaron Keyes have teamed up to write a beautiful rendition of this Psalm and we hope to learn it as a congregation in the upcoming weeks.  Here is a sample so you can wrap your head around the melody.

[audio:http://www.aaronkeyes.com/mp3player/samples/Psalm62.mp3]

This song is available on Stuart Townend’s newest CD, There is a Hope, or you can buy the MP3 download on Aaron Keyes website for $1.   I love the new Townend CD, and would encourage anyone who likes the newer hymns to try and buy it (it is contemporary with guitars and drums and Irish whistles but wonderfully done).