The Gospel in Action in India!

The following is a recent update I received from my friends at Global Ark Ministries in South India.

Dearest friends and family,

I greet you in the name of our Lord and Jesus Christ. God is being glorified in my life and in my ministry. Isaiah 61v1 “The Spirit of the Sovereign Lord is on me, because the Lord has anointed me to preach good news to the poor. He has sent me to bind up the brokenhearted, to proclaim freedom for the captives and release from darkness for the prisoners” God is doing great things here in my mission field. First of all I want to thank you all for being a blessing in my ministry. The fruit of my ministry is the seed that you had sowed.

The Church that we started among untouchables were growing faster. We started with a couple and now 15 people were gathering. We are very happy to share the love of God and by meeting their physical needs. This people are super poor and just live by cutting the woods. And only the middle men will sell the woods to the timbers but never receive the accurate pay for their labor. And cannot feed their kids, mostly the people were illiterates, and being treated by the peoples like untouchables. And low cast. The kids of these families were suffering with fever, pneumonia and HIV positive. We are educating this families and helping them to meet their physical needs.

*GAM has requested $1000 to purchase 500 Bibles for distribution. If you would like to donate toward this project, click here and then click the "donation" button at the top of the page.

Baptisms in Myanmar

I couldn’t help but share these pictures with you! Look at what God is doing in Myanmar! The Gospel is progressing, and the Church is growing.

The young man performing the baptisms is one of Pastor J’s students. He is now the pastor of that village.

Pastor J. requested that we pray for the Lord to send forth more laborers into his harvest!

Glory be to God!

*We are trying to raise $1,800 to provide food for the Bible students for one year. If you would like to help us, please click here and then click the "donation" button at the top of the page.

Testimonies from Myanmar

Much has transpired in the ministry in Myanmar in recent days.

(1) Pastor J. and his students set up a preaching post at a Buddhist village (picture). After some time of discussion, several Buddhists were saved. This upset the others and opposition arose. However, the students were not harmed and left rejoicing that the Gospel was spreading among the Buddhists!
(2) Just a few days later, one of the students surrendered to a call from God to back to the village and become the pastor for these followers. He testified with Esther that if he perished, he perished! Also, a separate group of students carried the Gospel to another region of Myanmar and suffered much hunger and thirst.
(3) Remember our offering for the cyclone victims in Myanmar? After follow-up with this village, several have come to Christ. Look at the pictures and see the smiles on their faces! Pastor J. requests that we pray for this village because their well is damaged from the cyclone and they have no clean water.

Pray for Pastor J. and his students as they minister under difficult circumstances and in hard, unreached places. Pray for the new believers to grow in the faith. Pray for the Gospel to saturate Myanmar!

To God be the Glory—Great things He has done!

Quotable Spurgeon

Here are some refreshing quotes from Spurgeon's Sermons, vol 6. The sermon titles are in quotations marks, followed by the quotes.

Enjoy!

“The Conversion of Saul of Tarsus” – If the Lord means to make a Christian out of you, you may kick against Christianity, but he will have you at last.

“An Earnest Invitation” – (1) Now, salvation cannot be cut in twain. If you would have justification you must have sanctification too. If your sins are pardoned they must be abhorred; if you are washed in the blood to take away the guilt of sin, you must be washed in the water to take away the power of sin over your affections and life. (2) if thou art now willing to be reconciled, God has made thee willing, and he would not have put the will if he did not intend to gratify it. (3) “But suppose that I am not one of God’s elect,” says one. But if you trust in Christ you are; and there is no supposing about it. “But suppose Christ did not die for me.” But, if you trust him, he did die for you. The fact is proved, and you are saved.

“The Believer’s Challenge” – Oh, it is no hard task to plead, when you are pleading with a Father for a brother.

“Covenant Blessings” – One way or other God will have his children fed.

“Hypocrisy” – (1) He who is true will sometimes suspect himself of falsehood, while he who is false will wrap himself up in a constant confidence of his own sincerity. (2) We must have grace within to make our life holy; but lip-piety needs no grace. (3) The thought of a present Deity, if it were fully realized, would preserve us from sin; always looking on me, ever regarding me.

“Christ Precious to Believers” Quoting Rutherford – “Lord, I would sooner be in hell with thee than in heaven without thee; for if I were in heaven without thee it would be a hell to me, and if I were in hell with thee it would be a heaven to me.”

“Weak Hands and Feeble Knees” – Strong feet make a man mighty, but a strong knee makes him mightier still. Christ’s soldiers always win their battles on their knees. On their feet they may be conquered, but on their knees they are invincible.

“The Blind Beggar” – No prayer ever reaches God’s heart which does not come from our hearts.
“The Sight of Iniquity” – (1) This, I think, is one reason why the Lord gives his people discoveries of their iniquity and grievance, that they may be sound in the faith, and that they may hold nothing but the doctrines of grace. (2) The old Puritans used to say, that God had given the peacock black feet, that he might not be proud of his bright feathers.

Book Review: Spurgeon's Sermons, vol 5-6

Spurgeon’s Sermons, vol 5-6. By Charles Haddon Spurgeon. Grand Rapids: Baker. 4th Printing, 2004.

Years ago – I don’t even remember how long ago it was now – I heard John Piper say that every one should choose a giant figure from church history and spend the rest of their lives getting to know that person. For Piper, it is Jonathan Edwards.

That thought struck me as worthy of one’s time, and the next thought that struck me was—Charles Spurgeon. So soon after hearing Piper’s challenge, I began to purchase books either written by Spurgeon or about Spurgeon. Every day, I spend time with the greatest evangelical Baptist pastor in history! Spurgeon lived from 1834-1892. He pastured London’s Metropolitan Tabernacle. During his 37 year ministry, the church added over 15,000 members. He is still training pastors like me today as he once did at his “Pastor’s College.” As a result, I have collected and read scores of sermons, biographies, Spurgeon’s autobiography, Spurgeon’s books, and collections of sermons. It has been a wealth of encouragement and joy for me. I consider Spurgeon to be my spiritual hero, my pastoral mentor, my theological guide, my voice of biblical balance, and most of all—my friend! (I can’t wait to meet one of my best friends!!)

I am not going to review these two volumes of sermons. I am simply going to provide a list of the more profound quotes that I discovered. So you can follow along, this list is from vol 5, I’ll do vol 6 next. The sermon titles are in quotes followed by Spurgeon’s words contained within that sermon. Some of these quotes are listed simply to correct some errors that have circulated concerning Spurgeon. I hope that you will be blessed by reading these great statements of one of the greatest Christian ministers of all time. (BTW – why not consider selecting your own mentor from church history and get to know them. You will not regret it!) Enjoy quotable Spurgeon!

“The New Heart” - …it is a divine work from first to last…Nothing will do here but that old fashioned truth men call Calvinism.

“Everybody’s Sermon” – Providence is God’s sermon.

“God’s Barriers Against Man’s Sin” – (1) The best of men are but men at best. (2) Thou mayest varnish and gild thyself, but thou canst never change thyself. Thou mayest moralize, but thou canst never spiritualize thy heart…thou canst do nothing whatever to save thyself.

“Comfort Proclaimed” – He would not only have us his living people, his preserved people, but he would have us be his happy people too.

“The Christian’s Heaviness and Rejoicing” – Men will never become great in divinity until they become great in suffering. Quoting Luther, “affliction is the best book in my library.”

“Samson Conquered” – I have heard some men talk as if the strength of free will, of human nature, was sufficient to carry men to heaven. Free will has carried many souls to hell, but never a soul to heaven yet…No man can say that Jesus is the Christ but by the Holy Ghost. No man can come to Christ except the Father that hath sent Christ doth draw him.

“Satan’s Banquet” – sin carries an infant misery in its bowels, and sooner or later it must be delivered of its terrible child.

“The Feast of the Lord” – When I have seen my Savior crucified, then I have seen him glorified; when I have read my name written in his blood, then I have seen afterward my mansion which he has prepared for me. When I have seen my sins washed away, then I have seen the white robe that I am to wear for ever. Live near to the Savior, man, and you shall not be very far off heaven.

“The Blood” – God must un-God himself before he can reject thee, or reject that blood.

“Providence” – So that even the will of man; the tyranny, the despotism of the tyrant, is in the hand of God, and he turneth it whithersoever he pleaseth, to work his own will.

Book Review: The Mystery of Providence

The Mystery of Providence. By John Flavel. Carlisle: Banner of Truth. Reprint, 2006.

First published in 1678 and written by Puritan John Flavel, The Mystery of Providence is an excellent tool to train the spiritual eye to view God’s hands in all the events of our lives. It was a refreshing and insightful read. It proved to be a wonderful blessing for me personally as it helped me to properly view the past year of struggle that I experienced.

In Providence Flavel teaches us how to recognize how God has orchestrated every detail and event in our lives, how to understand God is at work in both the good and “bad” providences over us, and how and why to be thankful for those “bad” events in our lives. God is over all things and working all things for our good!

Until reading Providence I believed that Romans 8:28 was true, but after reading it, I can now see HOW it is true! In puritan fashion, Flavel digs deep! For example, Flavel makes long discussions on how God’s providence aids the church, how providence was at work in the timing, place, and situation of our birth, and how God moved in so many ways in our conversion, our sanctification, and our preservation. He provides scores of biblical examples and verses to support his theology and provides numerous daily illustrations as well. He leaves no stone unturned when it comes to relating God’s sovereign control of all things to the life, faith, and joy of the believer. I was nourished, encouraged, and taught by reading this great book. In writing the “Publisher’s Introduction” Michael Boland states, “His treatise is calculated to abase man and exalt God, and yet to kindle faith and adoration in the heart of every child of God” (p.14). Flavel accomplished exactly that!

Here are some of the more forceful words that I encountered.

(18) Grace makes the promise and providence the payment.
(60) In nothing does Providence shine forth more gloriously in this world than in ordering the occasions, instruments and means of conversion of the people of God.
(88) Surely that is best for you which Providence has appointed, and one day you yourselves will judge it so to be.
(90) … sanctification gives sin a miscarrying womb after it has conceived in the soul.
(127) One word of God can do more than ten thousand words of men to relieve a distressed soul.
(131) I see my God will not lose my heart, if a rod can prevent it…He consults my good rather than my ease.
(146) Every man loves the mercies of God, but a saint loves the God of his mercies.
(149) O what a difference we have seen between our afflictions at our first meeting with them, and our parting from them! We have entertained them with sighs and tears but parted from them with joy, blessing God for them, as the happy instruments of our good.
(150) Other men pursue good, and it flies from them, they can never overtake it; but goodness and mercy follow the people of God, and they cannot avoid or escape it. It gives them chase day by day, and finds them out even when they sometimes put themselves by sin out of the way of it.
(172) A cross without a Christ never did any man good.

I end with one bit of application that Flavel gives and is worth repeating here. “…so would I persuade you, reader, to record the ways of Providence, from first to last, throughout your whole course to this day, that you may see what a God He has been to you” (p. 85). That’s excellent advice that will increase your joy in the Lord and your awareness of His hands at work around you and for you!

Blessings in the Trial, Part 2

The following is the rest of my “Blessings in the Trial” list. To be sure, there were hundreds of more blessings and many more lessons that could have been listed and that I will discover in days to come. However, I am thankful to have realized these and had the opportunity to pass them along. I pray you may be encouraged and strengthened in the Lord to know that “His goodness and mercy shall follow you all the days of your life! (even the difficult ones)” (Psalm 23:6)

4. The Lessons are Blessings. One of the more insightful things I learned and experienced blessing through was to realize that the “tough” lessons I was learning were actually blessings! The lessons were serving to increase my faith in Christ and weaken my self-dependency. The lessons were serving to cause my growth in the Lord. The lessons were blessings!
5. God kept the best for us. During the year, a few doors appeared to be opening for us, and we grew excited quickly! Two examples really stand out to me. In one instance, the door looked great. We visited the church facility and committee. There were several things that seemed to be such a good fit for us. When the weekend was over, we were ready to move! As it turned out, the committee was not; the door closed. We were devastated! In another instance, the church was not such a great opportunity, but the committee was in full agreement and we needed a job! We were not excited as we were before. We just viewed it as our only open door, so we were going to walk through it. The Lord said, “Not so fast!” And the door quickly closed. Again, we were devastated, just from a different perspective. It seemed we could not be placed in a “good” church or a “challenge” church. We questioned, “Will we ever get in any church?” Well…as you know, God did place us in a church—and it is the absolute best situation we have ever experienced! It is truly abundantly more than we could ever ask or imagine (Eph 3:20). God closed those other doors, but what we did not realize at the time (even though it hurt) was that He was keeping the best for us! This was a joyous blessing!
6. A Time of Affirmation. The year long struggle of closed doors and days of questions provided me the opportunity to dig down into my heart and search my calling before God. I really sought the Lord as to whether or not I was really called to pastor a church. During these days of soul searching, the Lord gave me a verse. Psalm 37:4-5 says, “Delight yourself in the Lord, and he will give you the desires of your heart. Commit your way to the Lord; trust in him and he will act.” I knew God brought this to my attention, so I began to carefully search my heart. What was my desire? Upon hearing a sermon by John MacArthur on being a shepherd, my heart bled, and I wept on the inside. Clearly, my desire was to pastor, and it was clear that it was a God-given desire. So on that day, the Lord affirmed my calling, and I clung to His Word until He gave me the desire of my heart!
7. Living the Promises of Scripture. The above verses were given to me. When I resolved my calling, I then began to focus on delighting in the Lord. Then I begged God for faith to believe that He would stand by His Word. He did! It was a blessing to live that promise! God gave another verse to my wife. Get ready for this one! Psalm 66:10-12 says, “For you, O God, have tested us; you have tried us as silver is tried. You brought us into the net; you laid a crushing burden on our backs; you let men ride over our heads; we went through fire and through water; yet you have brought us out to a place of abundance.” God gave this verse to my wife on the worse day of our struggle, and we CLUNG to His promise to bring us to a place of abundance in His time for we were under the “crushing burden.” And He did! And it has been thrilling to live through the promises of Scripture. I would not trade that blessing for anything in this world!

God is good to His people, even when it does not “feel” good!

“O what a difference we have seen between our afflictions at our first meeting with them, and our parting from them! We have entertained them with sighs and tears but parted from them with joy, blessing God for them as the happy instruments of our good.” The Mystery of Providence, John Flavel

Blessings in the Trial, Part 1

In God’s gracious order of Providence over our lives, He does not lead us into times of trial and learning without providing mercies along the way to help us bear up under the load! This truth came home to me one day as I was listing lessons learned in the trial. It was clear that God was not only teaching us some invaluable lessons, but He was also walking us through this every step of the way. His blessings were evident all around us in some of the dreariest days we experienced! For this reason, I began to make a second list, “Blessings in the Trial.” As you read through these and as you move through your own trials, be reminded that “His mercies are new every morning!” (Lam 3:23)

1. A Church Family. As soon as we moved back home to SC, we began looking for a church home. We were looking for a specific kind of church. The first and only priority was the preaching of the Word in a bold, doctrinal, exegetical delivery. We knew we needed to hear from God. After a few Sundays, we visited New Prospect Baptist Church in Laurens, SC. What we found was amazing and refreshing. Not only was the preaching sound and biblical, but the congregation was warm and friendly. One of the greatest blessings in this trial is that we found a new family! Our new church prayed for us, encouraged us, supported us, kept up to date with our struggles, and rejoiced with us when God answered our prayer! It really was a marvelous display of what a church family should be. It was a God-sent blessing for us!
2. A Word-Centered Pastor. I have already stated this in the above point, but it is worth repeating because it literally brought us through some major questions and difficult days! Our pastor, Josh Culbertson, preached the Word with authority and respect for the text. Whether Sunday morning, Sunday evening, or Wednesday evening, we never sat under his preaching without being refreshed! We needed that—it was a blessing! Countless times Pastor Josh reminded us in his preaching that when things look bad, seem bad, or feel bad, God is working it somehow for your good! There is not a single time he said those words that we did not need to hear them! He was a God-sent blessing!
3. Friends. During our year long experience, I was able to reunite with old friends, keep in touch with present friends, and also make some new friends. And God used all these friends to bless us. Through emails, phone calls, visits, or just brief “catch-up” conversations at church, these dear people stood with us, and it was a God-sent blessing! Just knowing that our friends were really praying for us (and not just saying they were) helped us stand firm. Some of them gave in big ways to help us pay the bills, and those acts of love kept me humble, thankful, grateful and eager for the day when I could help those who struggle as well.

To be continued.