Quote from Steve W. Brown

I am not sure how many of you know Steve Brown, but I think he is worth listening too and read. I have known about him for years, and it occurred to me that not too many folks outside the PCA have heard of Steve.

His conversion is interesting to say the least. A minister in a mainline church and was saved through the witness of several men. He is a very unconventional speaker, maybe too rough for some folks, but I have found him insightful.

Anyhow, from that time in his life, Steve began preaching from the Word of God. And on the back of his first ministry tapes was this quote. I have kept these tapes for years and I thought you might be interested to read it.

“A number of years ago I was a preacher without a message. I talked a lot, and had what I thought were some very good “ideas” But I was empty and shallow...ready to leave the ministry because I (and the people to whom I spoke) were tired of my ideas. My problem was that I had no authority except myself.

And then a sovereign, loving God through some obedient, loving brothers took the time to help me discover an absolute and reliable authority. That authority is the Bible. That discovery changed my life, and gave me a message. The message isn't mine, it is the message of God through His written Word. It is a high privilege to share that message with you in these tapes.

I would ask you to remember that the Father has only one perfect preacher. His name is Jesus. It is my prayer that you would meet Him in these tapes.”

Sunday Quote

A couple of people commented on this quote I had in the reflections page of the church bulletin. Our theme last Sunday was Thanksgiving.

Scottish minister Alexander Whyte was known for his uplifting prayers in the pulpit. He always found something for which to be grateful. One Sunday morning the weather was so gloomy that one church member thought to himself, "Certainly the preacher won't think of anything for which to thank the Lord on a wretched day like this." Much to his surprise, however, Whyte began by praying, "We thank Thee, O God, that it is not always like this."

Nashua Telegraph Article

A church member read this article in the local newspaper. I may give these guys a call, just to see what there results have been and where they got their research and ideas to do this project.

They are trying to reach young adults in the Nashua area by meeting in Mezzanine locations, Barnes & Noble, Unos, Panera Bread.

I have heard of groups trying this, I was surprised to find out that here in Nashua someone was trying it. Very interesting.

Sermon Text: Jonah 2:10-3:4

Jonah 2:10 Then the LORD commanded the fish, and it vomited Jonah up onto the dry land.
Jonah 3:1 Now the word of the LORD came to Jonah the second time, saying,
Jonah 3:2 “Arise, go to Nineveh the great city and proclaim to it the proclamation which I am going to tell you.”
Jonah 3:3 So Jonah arose and went to Nineveh according to the word of the LORD. Now Nineveh was an exceedingly great city, a three days’ walk.
Jonah 3:4 Then Jonah began to go through the city one day’s walk; and he cried out and said, “Yet forty days and Nineveh will be overthrown.”

Sacred Places - US News & World Report

This past Sunday I mentioned that Jonah was thinking of the Holy Temple in Jerusalem while in the belly of the great fish.

Jonah was probably wishing he was there, and as I have mentioned already, Jonah saw his homeland as a sacred place. Its one of the reasons he is trying to get so far away from Israel.

Anyhow, I talked about sacred places and I was surprised to see in my pile of unread mail this article by US News and World Report.

Very very interesting. Let me know what you think.

Sermon Text: Jonah 2:1-9

Jonah 2:1 Then Jonah prayed to the LORD his God from the stomach of the fish,
Jonah 2:2 and he said,
“I called out of my distress to the LORD,
And He answered me.
I cried for help from the depth of Sheol;
You heard my voice.
Jonah 2:3 “For You had cast me into the deep,
Into the heart of the seas,
And the current engulfed me.
All Your breakers and billows passed over me.
Jonah 2:4 “So I said, ‘I have been expelled from Your sight.
Nevertheless I will look again toward Your holy temple.’
Jonah 2:5 “Water encompassed me to the point of death.
The great deep engulfed me,
Weeds were wrapped around my head.
Jonah 2:6 “I descended to the roots of the mountains.
The earth with its bars was around me forever,
But You have brought up my life from the pit, O LORD my God.
Jonah 2:7 “While I was fainting away,
I remembered the LORD,
And my prayer came to You,
Into Your holy temple.
Jonah 2:8 “Those who regard vain idols
Forsake their faithfulness,
Jonah 2:9 But I will sacrifice to You
With the voice of thanksgiving.
That which I have vowed I will pay.
Salvation is from the LORD.”

Quotes

Given the nature of the text this Sunday, it seems appropriate to discuss the supernatural in the Bible. I found C.S. Lewis helpful as we look at the event of Jonah being swallowed by a fish.


Quotes from Miracles, C.S. Lewis

“A miracle is empathically not an event without cause or without results. Its cause is the activity of God”

“If the ultimate Fact is not an abstraction but the living God, opaque by the very fullness of His binding actuality, then He might do things. He might work miracles. But would He? Many people of sincere piety feel He would not.”

“To be sure, God might be expected to make a better story than my friend. But it is a very long story, with a complicated plot; and we are not, perhaps, very attentive readers.”

“The central miracle asserted by Christians is the Incarnation. They say that God became Man. Every other miracle prepares for this, or exhibits this, or results from this.”

Leopard is Here!

Upgraded the Church's Computer, to the new MAC OS X Operating system.

Very cool, and I am getting to know the new features, and so far I think it is great.

You think you had a bad weekend (part 2)

Strange.

I posted a few days ago about an Airbus 340-600 that over ran the runway. Today another new Airbus 340-600 had a terrible accident in France. Click on this link to read the story.

http://www.flightglobal.com/blogs/flightblogger/

The picture is incredible. A $210 million dollar plane ruined, not to mention the people who were hurt. This plane in France was 8 days from being delivered.

Strange

Sermon Text: Jonah 1:17-2:1

Jonah 1:17 And the LORD appointed a great fish to swallow Jonah, and Jonah was in the stomach of the fish three days and three nights.
Jonah 2:1 Then Jonah prayed to the LORD his God from the stomach of the fish,

The theme of this passage is very simple => redemption. Come Sunday to find out more!

You think you had a bad weekend

Here is the link to the original photo.

So over the weekend this Spanish plane was trying to land in Quito, Ecuador in heavy rains when it overshot the runway.

At least 3 engines were damaged, a wing was broke, landing gear collapsed, and the plane is stuck in the mud at the end of the runway. They have no idea yet how to get it out, it is still sitting there as of today.

What a mess, and a very new and expensive aircraft, only 20 months old. Too bad.

The Nashua Commission

Christ Presbyterian Church has a "borrowed session". Meaning we have elders from outside of Nashua that help give oversight to the work in Nashua with the PCA. These men are mostly from the PCA church in Concord, NH and one church planter in Manchester.

These guys already have other responsibilities in their own churches, so there work with Nashua is over and above normal duties of elders. I am very thankful for their help and oversight with CPC, and glad I do not make decision on my own.

Tuesday, Morning is our stated meeting and I just wanted folks to be aware of their presence. They may not attend CPC, but they certainly are concerned and prayerful about CPC future. Remember to pray for them, and for their ministries in Manchester and Concord.

Sacred Space?

I read this article on the CBC.ca website, the Canadian Network. Here is an excerpt.

A Winnipeg church prevented aboriginal dancers from performing at a Habitat for Humanity event this week, saying the performance was not an expression of Christian faith.

"Native spiritual dancing has its roots in a different spiritual belief system that is incongruent with traditional Christian worship," Hughes said in an e-mail.

"I don't think a Buddhist temple would allow a Christian pastor to speak about Jesus."

I would tend to agree with the church. When I lived in Vancouver, we had similar experiences of outside groups renting our facilities and setting up shrines to represent other spiritual entities.

It is sad today that folks do not realize there is something sacred about a church, a place of worship. I do think that comes about for several reasons.

Sometimes the church advertises it has a multi-purpose room, and folks do not think of it as a worship space. Others locations look no different than a high school auditorium or a local theatre. I also think that people have become more to the thinking that spirituality is anything and everything. Christianity, Buddhism, New Age Spirituality, it is all the same.

Our casual attitude towards God in this regard could get us into trouble. And I do think as Christians, we need to take a stand at time. I think this was the right choice. What do you think?

Sermon Text: Jonah 1:11-16

Jonah 1:11 So they said to him, “What should we do to you that the sea may become calm for us?”—for the sea was becoming increasingly stormy.
Jonah 1:12 He said to them, “Pick me up and throw me into the sea. Then the sea will become calm for you, for I know that on account of me this great storm has come upon you.”
Jonah 1:13 However, the men rowed desperately to return to land but they could not, for the sea was becoming even stormier against them.
Jonah 1:14 Then they called on the LORD and said, “We earnestly pray, O LORD, do not let us perish on account of this man’s life and do not put innocent blood on us; for You, O LORD, have done as You have pleased.”
Jonah 1:15 So they picked up Jonah, threw him into the sea, and the sea stopped its raging.
Jonah 1:16 Then the men feared the LORD greatly, and they offered a sacrifice to the LORD and made vows.

Last week, we discovered that Jonah was the reason for the storm, this week he comes up with a solution. The solution is tough to swallow, and the sailors are not certain it will work. But in the end they throw Jonah in. But it does raise questions.

Why did the sailors have to throw Jonah overboard? Why did he not just jump? What was Jonah hoping to accomplish by being thrown in the sea?

We will answer these questions, so join us this Lord's Day!

Televangelists in Trouble?

I saw this on our local news. U.S. Congress is looking into the ministries of Televangelists and questioning their management and ministry. Some of the names are very well know. Joyce Meyer, Benny Hinn, Kenneth Copeland, etc....

Anyone else hear about this? I am wondering what tipped them off?

Anyway, here is the article. Let me know what you think.

Crunch Time

I realized as I was heading to work today that the next 2 weeks will be extremely busy before Thanksgiving Break. We will be doing our traditional family trip for Thanksgiving and that means I need to work ahead. Instead of 2 sermons, 3 sermons. Instead of 2 Sunday School Lessons, 3 Sunday School Lessons. Busy, busy busy.

It is times like this when I am thankful for Scriptures such as these.....

Prov. 3:5 Trust in the LORD with all your heart
And do not lean on your own understanding.
Prov. 3:6 In all your ways acknowledge Him,
And He will make your paths straight.


AMEN!