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Grace to You - Resources from John MacArthur - www.gty.org

Do you know who John MacArthur is? Have you ever checked out the resources availble online through his ministry? If you answered NO to either of the above questions, you really should check out the richness and depths of his biblical teaching and resources online at http://www.gty.org/ Here are some of the most helpful links:

Check it out...you won't be disappointed!!

Quote - William Tyndale

"There is no work better than to please God; to pour water, to wash dishes, to be a cobbler, or an apostle, all are one; to wash dishes and to preach are all one, as touching the deed, to please God." William Tyndale

FamilyLife.com - Great Articles

Do you want to see growth in your marriage and family? If so, check out FamilyLife.com online. Brittney and I thoroughly enjoyed their Weekend to Remember Conference a few years ago and recommend it to every married couple.
They also have a monthly e-newsletter with some great articles and resources....here are some recent articles linked to their website...
When you ignore God’s command to cultivate intimacy and romance with your wife, she is left with a void in her soul.
The Legacy of a Love Letter Mary May Larmoyeux
High touch in a time of high tech.
With a little creativity, you can plan some innovative romantic excursions at home.
My husband and I love to tell about the truths we’ve learned from 12 years of Weekend to Remember marriage conferences.
Three suggestions for modeling conflict resolution to your kids.
If the gospel is central to your life, it also must be central in your family.
Moments With You: Shared Sacrifice Dennis Rainey These suggestions will help break down the fortresses of me-centered, arrogant selfishness in your home.

Quote - Hudson Taylor

"There are three indispensable requirements for a missionary: 1. Patience 2. Patience 3.Patience." Hudson Taylor

Facebooking: Social Networking at its finest

Did you know that Facebook hit its 5th Anniversary this year? Have you given any though to the changes in communication through social networking online? Dr. Mohler shares some interesting insights into this growing phenomenon HERE. Here are some excerpts from his blog post...
  • "Together, MySpace and Facebook report over 280,000,000 registered users"
  • "Social networking differs from other Internet services by creating a virtual community of linked users, whose updates, photographs, and postings allow for communication anytime and anywhere"

"Here are a few suggestions for safeguarding the social networking experience:" (abbreviated here...full version on his blog)

  1. " Never allow social networking to replace or rival personal contact and communication."
  2. "Set clear parameters for the time devoted to social networking. "
  3. "Never write or post anything on a social networking site that you would not want the world to see, or anything that would compromise your Christian witness." (AMEN!!)
  4. " Parents should monitor, manage, supervise, and control the Internet access of their children and teens. Watch what your child posts and what their friends post."
  5. "Do not allow children and teens to accept any "friend" unknown to you."
  6. "Encourage older friends and relatives to sign up and use the technology. "
  7. "Use the social networking technology to bear witness to the Gospel"
  8. "do not allow social networking to become an idol or a display of narcissism" (self-centeredness)

I've personally really enjoyed getting on Facebook this past year. It has allowed me to better communicate, make contact with, and keep up with friends from high school and college that I wouldn't have otherwise been in touch with as often or to such a depth. It has been fun to share parts of my own life through photos, posts, and updates with others. I have also enjoyed finding a new way to communicate throughout the week with the adults and students of our church.

You can find me or the Severns Valley Student Ministry on Facebook by clicking the two linked photos above.

Quote - William Booth

"I have found my destiny. I must take the gospel to the people of the East End." William Booth

Quote - Count Zinzindorf

"I have but one passion - it is He, it is He alone. The world is the field and the field is the world; and henceforth that country shall be my home where I can be most used in winning souls for Christ." Count Zinzindorf

Quote - Martin Luther

"What you do in your house is worth as much as if you did it up in heaven for our Lord God. We should accustom ourselves to think of our position and work as sacred and well-pleasing to God, not on account of the position and work, but on account of the word and faith from which the obedience and the work flow." Martin Luther

Quote - William Carey

"I will go down, if you will hold the ropes." [his missions philosophy] William Carey

Quote - C.S. Lewis

"God whispers to us in our pleasures, speaks in our conscience, but shouts in our pains: it is His megaphone to rouse a deaf world". C.S. Lewis

Jesus Christ IS God...not merely a good person or a prophet

Have you ever encountered someone who remarks that Jesus Christ is merely a man? Or someone states that Jesus was just a good person or a prophet? Do you find yourself off guard at such comments?

Who did Jesus say that He was? Who does the Bible (the most accurate and well-attested to literary work in history)say Jesus is?

Here are some helpful references to Jesus Christ's and the Bible's claims to the diety of Jesus Christ:

Mark 9:37 - "Whoever receives one such child in my name receives me, and whoever receives me, receives not me but him who sent me."

John 5:23 "that all may honor the Son, just as they honor the Father. Whoever does not honor the Son does not honor the Father who sent him."

John 8:19 "They said to him therefore, 'Where is your Father?' Jesus answered, 'You know neither me nor my Father. If you knew me, you would know my Father also.'"

John 12:44-45 "44And Jesus cried out and said, 'Whoever believes in me, believes not in me but in him who sent me. 45And whoever sees me sees him who sent me.'"

John 14:1 ""Let not your hearts be troubled. Believe in God; believe also in me."

John 14:7 "If you had known me, you would have known my Father also. From now on you do know him and have seen him."

John 14:9 "Jesus said to him, 'Have I been with you so long, and you still do not know me, Philip? Whoever has seen me has seen the Father. How can you say, 'Show us the Father'?'"

John 15:23 "Whoever hates me hates my Father also."

Matthew 11:27 "All things have been handed over to me by my Father, and no one knows the Son except the Father, and no one knows the Father except the Son and anyone to whom the Son chooses to reveal him."

John 5:17 "But Jesus answered them, 'My Father is working until now, and I am working.'"

John 10:30 "I and the Father are one."

John 14:10-11 "10Do you not believe that I am in the Father and the Father is in me? The words that I say to you I do not speak on my own authority, but the Father who dwells in me does his works. 11Believe me that I am in the Father and the Father is in me, or else believe on account of the works themselves."

John 19:7 "The Jews answered him, 'We have a law, and according to that law he ought to die because he has made himself the Son of God.'"

From the ESV Study Bible:

Jesus Is God: Specific Examples Where Greek Theos (“God”) Is Applied to Jesus

John 1:1

In the beginning was the Word, and the Word was with God, and the Word was God.

John 1:18No one has ever seen God; the only God, who is at the Father's side, he has made him known.
John 20:28Thomas answered him, “My Lord and my God!”
Rom. 9:5To them belong the patriarchs, and from their race, according to the flesh, is the Christ who is God over all, blessed forever. Amen.
Titus 2:13. . . waiting for our blessed hope, the appearing of the glory of our great God and Savior Jesus Christ . . .
Heb. 1:8But of the Son he says, “Your throne, O God, is forever and ever, the scepter of uprightness is the scepter of your kingdom.”
2 Pet. 1:1To those who have obtained a faith of equal standing with ours by the righteousness of our God and Savior Jesus Christ . . .

Jesus cannot merely be reduced to being a good man or a prophet...because of the nature of both His and the Bible's claims, He is either God in flesh, a lunatic or a liar. Who do you say that He is?

Mark 8:29 "'But what about you?' he asked. 'Who do you say I am?' Peter answered, 'You are the Christ.'"

Quote - William Carey

"All my friends are but one, but He is all sufficient." William Carey

Twilight - A Christian Parent's Perspective

What are Christian parents to think of the Twilight series of vampire novels?
Taking on Twilight Bold by Wendy Nentwig is a helpful Christian article on the phenomena of Twilight. Her main points are outlined below:
  • "When it comes to the vampire storyline, which has a starring role in the books, it’s less offensive than any of the scary movies currently aimed at teens—and a lot more chaste. "
  • "Further complicating things is the Cullen family’s desire to be 'good' vampires."
  • "For me, the biggest issue I’d have letting a teen I know read this series is the one that seems the most innocuous on the surface: the love story"
  • "As Christians, we should give much more thought to everything we allow to entertain us. It isn’t just the wizards and the vampires that pose a threat. In fact, they may be more harmless than the stuff we allow to chip away at our morals everyday. Pop culture is a powerful thing. If you don’t think so, ask your family and friends how many Bible verses they can quote and then ask them how many TV theme songs they can sing. "
Chuck Colson's The Point blog makes these points (two blogs The Wrong Message & Conversations with Your Daughter):
  • an "old, dangerous idea that a 'bad boy' can easily be won and tamed by a 'good girl'—an idea that has brought heartache to untold millions of good girls"
  • "the vampire Edward has disturbing habits like sneaking into Bella’s room and watching her sleep, eavesdropping on her and her friends, encouraging her to deceive her father, and even disabling her truck and kidnapping her to keep her from seeing other friends."
  • "Bella is completely without self-confidence. She’s constantly putting herself down and treating her boyfriend as some superior being, using terms like “god” and “angel” to describe him"
  • "So the bottom line is, be sure you are reading what your kids are reading. That’s a message that my family—and families everywhere—ought to take to heart."

My biggest concern?? That teenagers can and will read 500 page fiction novels, but spend little to no time reading God's Word. It is concerning how teenagers, often learning from the model of their parents, can spend significant hours a week immersed in media & culture but only a few minutes per week with their Lord and Creator.

My challenge to parents?? Take your child to your local Christian book store and encourage them to read Christian books...even if that means starting them out in the fiction section. Help them to prioritize their devotional life and Christian walk over their entertainment life.
1 Corinthians 10:23 "'All things are lawful,' but not all things are helpful. 'All things are lawful,' but not all things build up."
1 Corinthians 10:31 "So, whether you eat or drink, or whatever you do, do all to the glory of God."
"The children will follow the example, instead of following the advice." -Lord Palmerston
ADDITIONAL THOUGHTS FROM SVBC'S VERY OWN BECCA OWSLEY...
I was reading the Christian perspective on Twilight blog the other day and I don’t think one of the people cited read the books because his evaluation of the characters was wrong and I was surprised to see that it came from Colson b/c I would have thought he would have put more research into it. The below statements are actually not accurate to the book. The vampire in the book is not the “bad guy”. He’s actually more of a gentleman than any character I’ve ever seen in a book since Mr. Darcy. He’s very protective of her, encourages abstinence and pretty much puts her needs above his own. Bella is also not what you would call the “good girl” vs the “bad boy”. Actually she pushes the limits more than he does and he has to remind her to behave. I’m thinking Colson just assumed that b/c he is a vampire his statements below would be true but they are not. I also don’t remember him encouraging her to deceive anyone except to keep them from being eaten by another vampire. :-) They are relatively clean and being a sci-fi nut, didn’t have a big problem with the vampires. I’m not defending the books …I’m just big on making sure the facts are straight on things. I saw a lot of this in the Harry Potter series that I bought into but after reading the books for myself realized most of the criticism came from people who had obviously not read the books and were completely off base. They were noting like what the buzz against them were about. Jonathan’s right though…and I stressed this to my Sunday school class. If we can read those books and spend time taking about it, we should be spending more of that time talking about and reading the Bible. And if you think the Bible is boring than you obviously haven’t read Judges. :-) By all means read, read, read (my vocation depends on it J). But remember to read the most important thing you will every read (the Bible) first and filter all other things you read through it. Colson’s statements that aren’t exactly accurate:
  • "old, dangerous idea that a 'bad boy' can easily be won and tamed by a 'good girl'—an idea that has brought heartache to untold millions of good girls"
  • "the vampire Edward has disturbing habits like sneaking into Bella’s room and watching her sleep, eavesdropping on her and her friends, encouraging her to deceive her father, and even disabling her truck and kidnapping her to keep her from seeing other friends."

Quote - David Brainerd

"As long as I see any thing to be done for God, life is worth having; but O how vain and unworthy it is to live for any lower end!" David Brainerd

Gambling

Have you ever given thought to whether gambling is right or wrong? Do you know where the Bible provides helpful principles to guide a Christian in make decisions about this area? The Ethics & Religious Liberty Commission of the Southern Baptist Convention has published a helpful resource on gambling. Some interesting statistics & quotes:
  • 85% of Americans have gambled
  • 60% of Americans have gambled in the past year
  • "Although Scripture does not say “Do not gamble,” gambling clearly violates biblical principles. In addition to doing personal damage to the gambler, it encourages a love of money, legalizes taking from your neighbor, victimizes the poor, corrupts government, produces the wrong attitude toward work, hurts legitimate business, increases violence and crime, and jeopardizes the well-being of families."
  • "Scripture gives Christians principles for living in a proper relationship with God and with each other. Gambling and its promotion violate these principles. It is my prayer that Christians will run from gambling in every form, for there is scarcely no greater act of disobedience and faithlessness than to cast your lot at the feet of a false idol, in this case, the gambling industry." Dr. Richard Land, President of ERLC

They also helpfully include 10 questions to consider concerning one's gambling behavior: 1. You have often gambled longer than you had planned. 2. You have often gambled until your last dollar was gone. 3. Thoughts of gambling have caused you to lose sleep. 4. You have used your income or savings to gamble while letting bills go unpaid. 5. You have made repeated, unsuccessful attempts to stop gambling. 6. You have broken the law or considered breaking the law to finance your gambling. 7. You have borrowed money to finance your gambling. 8. You have felt depressed or suicidal because of your gambling losses. 9. You have been remorseful after gambling. 10. You have gambled to get money to meet your financial obligations.

National Problem Gambling HelpLine Network (800-522-4700).

The Family Foundation (http://www.kentuckyfamily.org ) highlights the top reasons to be opposed to gambling in your area:

  1. The Family is targeted
  2. Businesses will lose
  3. Government will be corrupted
  4. The Vulnerable will be destroyed

Proverbs 15:27a(ESV) "Whoever is greedy for unjust gain troubles his own household" Jeremiah 17:11 (NIV) "Like a partridge that hatches eggs it did not lay is the man who gains riches by unjust means. When his life is half gone, they will desert him, and in the end he will prove to be a fool." Proverbs 1:19 (ESV) "Such are the ways of everyone who is greedy for unjust gain; it takes away the life of its possessors."

Quotes - C.T. Studd

"If Jesus Christ be God and died for me, then no sacrifice can be too great for me to make for Him." C.T. Studd

Christian Cartoons

Did you read the funny pages growing up? Still do? Here are some links to a variety of Christian cartoons! Here is a link to 7 different cartoons through Baptist Press: http://www.bpnews.net/BPCartoons.asp

http://www.christiancartoons.com/ - this is another good one that points to several different sites

Here are some of the better sites it points to:

Proverbs 17:22a "A joyful heart is good medicine"

Ecclesiastes 3:1 &4b "1There is a time for everything, and a season for every activity under heaven...4b a time to laugh"

Quotes - Gordon Olson

"If every Christian is already considered a missionary, then all can stay put where they are, and nobody needs to get up and go anywhere to preach the gospel. But if our only concern is to witness where we are, how will people in unevangelized areas ever hear the gospel? The present uneven distribution of Christians and opportunities to hear the gospel of Christ will continue on unchanged." Gordon Olson

Salvation of Babies & Infants??

What happens to babies who die in the womb? What about infants and young children who die; do they go to Heaven? What is the age of accountability?

These are important questions that many people have asked themselves as they or others they know have struggled with the loss of a child.

I have not found a pastor or teacher who has addressed the issue with such biblical depth and breadth as John MacArthur. His book, Safe in the Arms of God, answers the below questions:

  1. Where is my child?
  2. What can we say with certainty to those with empty arms?
  3. How does God regard children?
  4. What if my child is not among the elect?
  5. Will I see my child again?
  6. What is my child’s life like in heaven?
  7. Why did my child have to die?
  8. How shall we minister to those who are grieving?

Here are two sermons in which John MacArthur exposits the relevant biblical passages and also addresses many of the same questions as in his book.

Also, an article by John MacArthur:

2 Samuel 12:21-23 "21 His servants asked him, "Why are you acting this way? While the child was alive, you fasted and wept, but now that the child is dead, you get up and eat!" 22 He answered, "While the child was still alive, I fasted and wept. I thought, 'Who knows? The LORD may be gracious to me and let the child live.' 23 But now that he is dead, why should I fast? Can I bring him back again? I will go to him, but he will not return to me."

Quote - C.S. Lewis

"When you are arguing against Him, you are arguing against the very power that makes you able to argue at all." C.S. Lewis
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