Prayer of the Month: Ephesians 6:14-20

May the Lord bless you this month in praying this for yourself and others:

ESV Ephesians 6:14-20 “Stand therefore, having fastened on the belt of truth, and having put on the breastplate of righteousness, 15 and, as shoes for your feet, having put on the readiness given by the gospel of peace. 16 In all circumstances take up the shield of faith, with which you can extinguish all the flaming darts of the evil one; 17 and take the helmet of salvation, and the sword of the Spirit, which is the word of God, 18 praying at all times in the Spirit, with all prayer and supplication. To that end keep alert with all perseverance, making supplication for all the saints, 19 and also for me, that words may be given to me in opening my mouth boldly to proclaim the mystery of the gospel, 20 for which I am an ambassador in chains, that I may declare it boldly, as I ought to speak.”

God’s Indwelling Presence: Chapter 3 Online

What does the Old Testament have to say about the dwelling of God? Does it indicate that God indwelt members of the old covenant remnant? What about those figures in the OT that we read about having the Spirit? What about passages like Jeremiah 31 (law on the hearts) and Ezekiel 36 (“I will put my Spirit within you”)?

B&H has made the Table of Contents and chapter 3 of God’s Indwelling Presence available on this website. The chapter is titled “Not in but with in the Old Testament.” You can check it out by going to this page, scrolling to the bottom of the page, and clicking “Read a Sample Chapter” (don’t right click and open in a new window or tab, just click it).

Enjoy!

Romania, Paris, Copper Mountain

If you check this blog regularly, you’ll have noticed that there were no posts through the middle of March. That’s because I was in Romania, then Paris, then Colorado.

My friend Gabriel Ianculovici has posted a video of me preaching at a church plant in Romania with his brother, Chris, translating my English into Romanian. This encouraging church plant has seen 120 people come to faith since the church was planted in the early 1990’s. I also taught at the Baptist Theological Seminary in Bucharest and was heartily encouraged by the brothers there.

Romania is a country that was long abused by communism, but the Lord preserved his people there. We should pray for the Word of God to continue to prosper in Romania.

After Romania, I visited some folks in Paris who are seeking to reach North Africans in that post-Christian place. On the subway in Paris, I listened to this interview with Thabiti Anyabwile on Islam and Muslims. If you know as little about Islam and Muslims as I do, you should avail yourself of this great conversation.

Upon my return to the States, I was blessed by some people obeying 1 Timothy 6:17-19. I won’t steal their reward by revealing their identity, but they blessed my sweet wife and me with an all expense paid ski vacation in Copper Mountain, Colorado. The Lord’s mercy and love through these folks is indescribable.

Calvin to a Fellow Pastor, and some good sermons on 1 Timothy

When John Calvin was exiled from Geneva in 1538, he wrote back to another Pastor still preaching in Geneva:

Above all, do you seriously consider that you are engaged in the discharge of an office, which, as it excels every other, so it is the most dangerous of all, if you do apply yourself with the utmost diligence and intensity to the duties belonging to it. If you care for my approval, I would forewarn you of this one thing, that I require no more of you than that you devote yourself sincerely and faithfully to the Lord.

From Lester De Koster’s Light for the City: Calvin’s Preaching, Source of Life and Liberty, 14.

1 Timothy has much to say about the church and its pastors, and I commend to you the sermons that Travis Cardwell has preached on Paul’s first letter to Timothy. You can find them here.

Prayer of the Month: 2 Corinthians 13:7-9

2 Corinthians 13:7-9 (NAU) Now we pray to God that you do no wrong; not that we ourselves may appear approved, but that you may do what is right, even though we may appear unapproved. 8 For we can do nothing against the truth, but only for the truth. 9 For we rejoice when we ourselves are weak but you are strong; this we also pray for, that you be made complete.

Why Preach?

Here’s a great question that beatifully describes the Word given us to proclaim:

What if you were led to believe, as profoundly as you believe yourself to exist, that God has spoken . . . that within the covers of the Bible there on your table, incarnate in the syllables of our own language, throbs the living Word of God?

From Lester De Koster’s Light for the City: Calvin’s Preaching, Source of Life and Liberty, 11.