Category: encouragement

Posted in a matter of faith, discernment, encouragement, movie review

Movie Review: "A Matter of Faith"; plus, ‘PureFlix’

Posted on by elizabethprata

A friend recommended the movie A Matter of Faith and I watched the movie. Released in 2014, the film is directed by Rich Christiano and stars Harry Anderson, Jordan Trovillion, Jay Pickett, and Clarence Gilyard. Christiano is an American filmmaker, who has directed, produced and written many Christian films, such as The Secrets of Jonathan Sperry and Time Changer. I’ve watched the former two and they are good.

Harry Anderson (Cheers, Night Court) was the standout actor amid some good-ish but slightly amateur actors, which is usually the case with under-budgeted Christian films. However that was not a deterrent since the film’s premise was so well unfolded.

A Matter of Faith

The movie begins with a family delivering a young college girl to her dorm and encouraging her as they leave her to begin her first year of college. She was raised a Christian and claims to be a Christian, but the girl finds her faith challenged by her biology professor (Anderson) who is an atheist and totally committed to evolution.

A Christian friend supports her but other friends she meets in the dorm and around campus draw her away from her Christian stance, and soon she does not know what to believe. She is freewheeling in limbo, a position that becomes more untenable as the dad’s concern over his daughter increases and he travels to the college to meet with the biology professor. The dad is trapped into agreeing to debate the Prof in public over evolution v creation, which embarrasses his daughter to no end and causes a split between them.

A sub-story that emerges is that years ago, the Biology professor had gotten his creationist colleague fired. Bitter and unhelpful, the ex-professor refuses to help the dad when the dad appeals to him for help in researching material for the debate with the atheist evolutionist.

The dad fears he is not up to the task of debating a superlative speaker such as the biology professor and wonders how to mend the rift with his daughter, and the plot builds to the climactic moment when the debate opens.

I thought the writer did a god job of presenting the myriad issues in a subtle but realistic manner. Any young girl or guy attending college away from home for the first time will be tested, and the world is experienced at drawing away the unwary.

One of my favorite lines is when the girl’s Christian friend at college explains to her that the reason the biology professor is so popular is that he gives a grade of C just for showing up. The girl agrees. Yet the boy says that underlying this unusual grading scheme is a satanic ploy to get as many people as possible into his classes, for the express purpose of delivering atheistic philosophy so as to confuse the weak in faith. “The world is not our friend. The professor has an agenda.” Connecting the grading scheme to the Professor’s intent to delude seemed to surprise the girl. “But he’s so nice! And popular!”

Though we who are more mature readily see these things, youth who are out from under a parent’s wing for the first time may not immediately see the connection.

The girl’s spiritual disciplines waned as other, worldly temptations came her way. She delays finding a church, she has drifted away from reading her Bible, she has not made any Christian friends, nor has she sought out any Christian activities or clubs. And this leaves a vacuum for the ideas of the plausible biology professor to enter in.

The film was clean, with no modesty issues or profanity. It showed the issues facing youth when they leave home for the first time, whether it is to a job, college, or military. The dad was shown as grounded in his church, submitted to his pastor, and leading his family as a shepherd. The usual worldly temptations were shown yet without the usual explicitness. Recommended.

The film brought to mind the testimony of Michael Kruger. Below at the link to The Gospel Coalition, Kruger describes his first year at college in a 6-minute video. Kruger gives students, parents and guardians some solid advice. The essay with accompanying video is titled How to Survive World Religions 101 but could just as easily be titled How to Survive Biology 101.

How to Survive World Religions 101

Michael Kruger on Facing the Challenges of a Secular University Environment
August 27, 2015 

Michael Kruger entered his freshman year at the University of North Carolina as a committed Christian. He thought he was ready for the intellectual challenges college would mount against his faith—that is, until he found himself sitting in a New Testament introduction class with Bart Ehrman as his professor. It left him shell-shocked.

Many students can relate. Churches often have a hard time preparing their youth for a secular university environment. They equip them on a moral level, which is good and important, yet fail to prepare them intellectually and doctrinally. So how can churches better brace young people for the day their faith will be challenged, attacked, and deemed intellectually indefensible by professors and peers? 

In this new video, Kruger, president and professor of New Testament and early Christianity at Reformed Theological Seminary in Charlotte, shares some of the lessons he learned in college. He encourages students to check their expectations, prepare for opposition, dig for answers, and more. Above all, he urges them to anchor themselves in the local church.

I know that many of you are looking for good, clean movies for yourselves or for your children or family. They are hard to come by, we all know this. A friend sent me a link to a movie streaming site called PureFlix. It is based on Netflix, the original streaming movie site, and claims to show only pure films, good for the family of faith. However as the friend says also, one would suppose one would need as much discernment on PureFlix as would be needed at any “Christian bookstore” since so much heresy and doctrines from other faiths is mixed in with the gold. Here is the synopsis of PureFlix,

Pure Flix Entertainment is a Christian film production company, headquartered in Scottsdale, Arizona. The company produces, distributes, acquires and markets Christian and family-friendly films

Just an FYI for you guys. I do not subscribe to PureFlix so I can’t review it. However I see on the home page I see that at least, blessedly, one can scroll through the offerings safely without having to shield young eyes as you have to do on Hulu or even Netflix. The movie covers shown are clean.

Posted in encouragement, love, transfiguration

"…With all your strength,…all your soul…"

Posted on by elizabethprata

And behold, a lawyer stood up to put him to the test, saying, “Teacher, what shall I do to inherit eternal life?” He said to him, “What is written in the Law? How do you read it?” And he answered, “You shall love the Lord your God with all your heart and with all your soul and with all your strength and with all your mind, and your neighbor as yourself.” And he said to him, “You have answered correctly; do this, and you will live.” (Luke 10:25-28)

Do not think that I have come to abolish the Law or the Prophets; I have not come to abolish them but to fulfill them. (Matthew 5:17)

When Jesus had received the sour wine, he said, “It is finished,” and he bowed his head and gave up his spirit. (John 19:30)

Jesus lived a perfect life and He fulfilled the Law. We know this. But what this means, what it really means … is that Jesus loved the Father with all His heart, all His mind, all His strength, and all His heart, every second of every day. All His life.

No human on earth has been able to fulfill the Law to that degree … except Jesus. No one else except Jesus has ever been able to be an ambassador for God. No one else has ever been His covenant Keeper, except Jesus. What a unique and incredible Person He is.

In the beauty of the lilies Christ was born across the sea,
With a glory in his bosom that transfigures you and me:
As he died to make men holy, let us die to make men free,
While God is marching on.
~Battle Hymn of the Republic

Posted in encouragement, rejoice, salvation

Relief in Christ, a soul rejoices

Posted on by elizabethprata

Psalm 107:4-9

Some wandered in desert wastes,
finding no way to a city to dwell in;
hungry and thirsty,
their soul fainted within them.
Then they cried to the LORD in their trouble,
and he delivered them from their distress.
He led them by a straight way
till they reached a city to dwell in.
Let them thank the LORD for his steadfast love,
for his wondrous works to the children of man!
For he satisfies the longing soul,
and the hungry soul he fills with good things.

This was me! Was this scripture written with my name in mind? Certainly it must be so? A poor wanderer, a Pilgrim without a destination, a sinner without repentance, yet longing for something, something. For what did I long? For what drink was I thirsty? Why was I feeling a deep, gnawing distress? Why was the way crooked? From whence did this trouble come?

Praise our glorious Lord for loving me before I knew Him. Praise Him, for though He was offended by my sin, He set the straight Way through Jesus for me, a sinner, to enter. Praise Him for satisfying my soul, completely. Praise Him for His wondrous works to the children of man.

No longer a wanderer, I am atop the rock, and the rock is Christ.

Posted in church, encouragement, sermons

Shepherd’s Conference 2016 begins tomorrow

Posted on by elizabethprata

My friend Craig wrote the following and I agree. I am SO looking forward to the Shepherd’s Conference! It’s live streamed, then archived. It’s especially poignant to see 4,500 pastors gather to be ministered TO. The impact of such numbers of mature, loving, leading shepherds makes one realize that churches across America and other nations are blessed with God-raised men who labor for His name. It’s very encouraging simply to see so many of them. Also please be sure to listen to the 4,000 gathered men sing hymns, it will stir your soul and overwhelm your emotions. Now to Craig’s comment-

“If I was forced to choose only one event each year which I could attend or watch, John MacArthur’s Shepherd’s Conference would win hands down. It is specifically geared to minister to the pastors, elders and leaders of the local church. 

“And as such it is very meaty due to the spiritual maturity of those in attendance. I say this not to discourage those who might not consider themselves to be theological scholars but simply for them to know in advance that many things might be discussed without the benefit of filling in some of the gaps you might usually expect to hear with a less Biblically educated audience. Not a less Christian gathering, just one that might need to hear some of the gaps filled in so as not to be confused or worse feel misinformed.”

“This particular gathering of attendees do not require that level of detail so expect that to be the case as you listen. It might even be a catalyst for many of you to do some research on your own since “spoon feeding” will not be the order of the day as we have become so accustomed to hearing and expecting.”

All times (GMT-08:00) Pacific Time.
Shepherds’ Conference 2016 – March 9 – 13
https://www.shepherdsconference.org/

To give you a foretaste, here are thousands of shepherds whose voices are lifted up in praise of the Lamb. Pray for them! Each one of the heads you see and each of the voices you hear are from men God has enabled to shepherd people like you. For many of them, this is the only R&R these warriors receive all year. Grizzled solders persevering during the long war, new and naive soldiers fresh to the battlefield, overwhelmed by the heated warfare, stagger or sprint to this lone battlefield station where they are refreshed and nurtured for a few short days before leaving to take up arms once again.

Posted in encouragement, glory, joy, suffering, the masters seminary

Reblog from The Master’s Seminary: "Teach Your People to Suffer"

Posted on by elizabethprata

I work with people who have lost children to accident, or miscarriage. I work with people who lost spouses, who have been through trauma or war. Below is a wonderful essay in which the author recounts the agony and the blessing of his and his wife’s trial, and the suffering they endured to the glory of God. The author’s point is:

Friend, if you’re a Bible-study leader, Sunday school teacher, and especially if you’re a pastor, I beg you: prepare your people for suffering!

Originally published at The Master’s Seminary

Teach Your People to Suffer
Eric Dodson February 29, 2016

My lovely wife and I were sitting in a parenting class at church, when the chairman of the elder board came and asked for us. Actually he asked for “the parents of Calvin Dodson.” Slightly embarrassed, thinking our little one must have thrown a fit, or done something else to show we really needed the parenting class, we got up and went with him. 

As we left the room and headed down the stairs, he let us know that our 8-month-old son had experienced a seizure and that the nursery staff had called 911. Stunned, we came in his nursery room to find our son—our youngest at the time—being tended to by a nurse. He had blue lips and barely moved. It was terrifying. 

That scene began what has turned into a nearly three-year trial that’s included many trips to Children’s Hospital LA, two of our sons experiencing multiple seizures, sleepless nights, many tears, and the dreaded news that their condition could end their life before adulthood.
It’s been a terrible trial, and it’s been an incredible blessing. 

That may seem impossible to say, and three years ago, I might not have believed it myself. But the truth is that this trial—the most suffering we’ve ever faced—has been an immeasurable blessing. It has been such a blessing because of the amazing church we attend, a church with leaders who prepare their people to suffer. 

Friend, if you’re a Bible-study leader, Sunday school teacher, and especially if you’re a pastor, I beg you: prepare your people for suffering! 

Suffering is a present reality. 

Just turn on the news, and it’s obvious that today’s culture is a living testimony to the truths of Romans 1. As society continues to rebel against God, reject his teaching, and increase in unrighteousness, suffering is the inevitable result. We live in a fallen world filled with disease, political strife, wars, racial tension—evil! As those who shepherd God’s flock, we must prepare them to live in such a world. We must prepare them for suffering. 

Christians should expect suffering. 

Not only should we prepare our people for the suffering that results from living in a fallen world; we must also prepare them for the unique suffering that is guaranteed for those who follow Christ. Suffering is part of the Christian life. Scripture speaks repeatedly of the suffering Christians are bound to face (Romans 8; 2 Corinthians 1; Philippians 1:29, 3:8-10; Colossians 1:24; 2 Thessalonians 1:5; James 1). Nearly the entire books of 2 Timothy and 1 Peter are devoted to helping Christians deal with suffering. Christ warned the church of Smyrna that they would face great suffering (Revelation 2:9–11). Scripture makes it abundantly clear; Christians will suffer. If we are to teach the whole counsel of God, we must teach our people about suffering.
Suffering produces sanctification. 

Scripture not only promises that Christians will suffer; it also tells us that suffering is not without cause. In fact, we are to rejoice in our trials knowing that they are one of the tools God uses to make us “perfect and complete, lacking in nothing” (James 1:2–4). What an incredible encouragement that is! We must not help our people avoid suffering or be chiefly concerned with helping them escape trials as soon as possible. We must encourage them to learn from their trials, to rejoice in the sanctifying work God is doing through their suffering. 

Suffering increases fellowship. 

One of the oft-overlooked benefits of the church as the body of Christ paradigm is found in 1 Corinthians 12:26: 

And if one member suffers, all the members suffer with it… 

It’s difficult to overstate the impact suffering can have on the depth of fellowship within the body of Christ. Suffering provides the church a unique opportunity to grow in compassion, understanding, and love for one another. Trials provide a chance for the church to truly, practically bear one another’s burdens, and to model the love of Christ for the world. 

Suffering produces hope.

One of the greatest gifts of suffering is the contrast it provides with the glory that is to come. Paul celebrates this truth beautifully in Romans 8:18: 

For I consider that the sufferings of this present time are not worthy to be compared with the glory that is to be revealed to us. 

Friend, that is far more than a religious platitude. That is glorious truth! The great hope for Christians—suffering any type of trial—is the unfathomable glory that awaits. Our suffering ought to point us to that. Our trials ought to increase our anticipation, increase our longing for future glory. 

There is coming a day, when the curse that weighs heavy on this world will be lifted, when the redeemed of the nations will worship together free from persecution, when there will be no more conflict, political strife, or war. There’s a glorious day yet future when no one is scraping pennies just to get by, no wife loses her husband to cancer, no more little boys with seizures. The trials of this day point us forward with ever-growing expectation of that glorious day.

* * * *

Eric is a graduate of The Master’s Seminary, and shepherds a Bible study through the Cornerstone Fellowship Group at Grace Community Church. He works as a Broadcast Copywriter at Grace To You. He and his wife, Tara, have three sons.


Posted in doctrines of grace, encouragement, irresistible grace, salvation

Of Tractor Beams and Irresistible Grace

Posted on by elizabethprata

My walk toward the cross was more like trench warfare. I fought it. During the time of the most pitched spiritual warfare, I created a lot of art in attempts to understand what was going on with me as my spirit fought the Savior but I couldn’t express it in words.

In this piece below I felt intuitively that my spirit was trying to transform but something was holding me down while at the same time something was pulling me up. In the piece below, the butterfly is broken and unable to transform because it is caught in a net as it attempts to fight off whatever has captured it. The poem, which I re-typed in larger font, mentions Strigoi. This is a folk personage who, in Romanian legend, is a kind of vampire. I intuitively felt that a dark force of evil had caught me, so I used the reference to Strigoi.

Strangely (though not so strangely if you understand the Bible) I was trying to get “upward” toward something better, BUT NOT JESUS! Horrors, anything except Jesus! I bought Buddhist books, pagan books, New Age gooks, psychology books, all in vain attempts to stave off the one last resort to try- Jesus. I was vigorous about it.

During that time I felt that the world had two elements to it, good, or love, and evil. I represented that fight in this piece, called ‘Intelligent Design.’

You might notice that same cupola in Intelligent Design that is in the Suspended Transformation piece. It has a sort of evil eye as a wind vane and to me, seemed very demonic. It represented a strong tower or fortress of evil. My mistake then was thinking that good, or love, and evil were equal combatants in this world. Of course I know now that Jesus has overcome everything and evil bows to His will. The battle is not equal. It is not even.

I remember shortly after I was saved, this battle and its exigencies were still fresh in my mind and very palpable. I said to a church friend of the Arminian type, “I was brought to the cross kicking and screaming.” She looked at me and dismissively said, “You were not!” My friend and her circle in which I was involved strongly believed that the believer decides for him or herself to go forward down an aisle and the walk down the aisle is littered with rose petals, dancing unicorns and rainbows. While that may be some people’s experience, my own experience at salvation was one of agony, blood, tears, and resistance. I did not want to go. But I could not resist.

Source The Graphics Fairy

On Star Trek, tractor beams were a beam that emanated from a spaceship and when aimed at a lesser vessel, inexorably drew the then-helpless vessel toward the greater vessel. No matter if the lesser vessel had its shields up, or if its thrusters were in full reverse, or if they attempted to bug out at warp speed, once caught in the Tractor Beam, they could not escape and were pulled to the Vessel. The name ‘tractor beam’ was coined from food chemist and science fiction writer E.E. Smith’s original “Attractor Beam.” I was a Trekkie (original series) and I always liked the tractor beam. I did not know, but God knew, that decades later I would be caught in His tractor beam of grace.

Today I understand that God wrote our names down in His Lamb’s Book of Life before the foundation of the world. (Ephesians 1:4). The default condition of every person on earth is that we are all sinners all the time and we do not seek God. (Romans 3:10-11).

However, His grace is such that, at the appointed time, God uses His irresistible grace as a tractor beam to draw people to His Son. (John 6:44). Without it, we would never willingly “choose Jesus.” We can’t and if we are drawn, initially we resist. However God is so mighty and His will be done on earth as it is in heaven, so no one can resist it forever. Otherwise it would mean that satan and man can frustrate God.

John Murray said of irresistible grace:

The enmity of the human heart is most virulent at the point of the supreme revelation of God’s glory. So deep-seated and persistent is the contradiction that the Saviour as the embodiment of grace is rejected. It is when we recognize this that the need for irresistible grace is perceived.

No one cay say to Him, “Nah, I’m good.” Could Lazarus reply to Jesus in the tomb, “I want to lay here a little longer.” No. The Doctrine of Irresistible grace is the “I” in the TULIP acronym for the Doctrines of Grace. Though personal experience is not the final analysis of anything, I know my salvation walk was fraught with resistance. I dug in my heels.

It is a moral and spiritual impossibility for a person to come to Christ apart from the Father’s drawing. What we find now is that it is a moral and spiritual impossibility for the person given by the Father to the Son not to come. There is by Jesus’ verdict the invariable conjunction of these two diverse kinds of action—“all that the Father giveth me will come to me.” There is invincible efficacy in the Father’s action and this means grace irresistible. (John Murray)

At the time I was revolted by the notion of anything about Jesus, that the something better my heart was wanting was indeed Him. I  now am grateful every day that I know Him and that I can ponder His beauty and wondrous glory at any moment of the day. I can read His word at any time and earn more about Him. I can pray and enter into the throne room. I can see Him in other people of the faith. He is endlessly fascinating to me, to a degree that is as far as the east is from the west as I had found Him revolting before salvation. Only Jesus could turn such a drenched heart of sin and His very name on my tongue made it bitter, to one of cleansed wonder for His glory. Only him. Thank God we cannot resist Him.

For more on Irresistible Grace,

CARM definition and supporting verses

Irresistible Grace is the Power of God

The Doctrine of God’s Effectual Call

Note:
John Murray on Irresistible Grace, From Ligonier Ministries, the teaching fellowship of R.C. Sproul. All rights reserved. Website: http://www.ligonier.org | Phone: 1-800-435-4343”

Posted in encouragement, false prophets, millennium, prophecy, temple

False prophets will be stabbed

Posted on by elizabethprata

False teachers and false prophets are a scourge. They always have been. Ever since the beginning, satan has been lying to humans, and as prince of the power of the air he has sent his demon horde to influence false teachers and make them prophesy falsely. (Deuteronomy 13:6–10; 18:20; Matthew 24:11). Gullible Christians and the lost have believed these false prophecies and untrue teachings ever since.

Probably today’s false teachers are aren’t more numerous than they were in the first century, though it feels like they are. Apologist James R. White said today

there are not more heretics today, there is just more availability of making your heresy known. 

However any Christian with a modicum of faith or any grain of loyalty to Jesus will be aggrieved when coming up against a false prophet or hearing about a heretical teaching. I am. I am a lot.

Like ants at a picnic, these false teachers are everywhere, and more are popping up every day. Jesus is in control and has ordained each and every one. As He does with everything, He has a purpose for false teaching.

What Is God’s Purpose With False Teaching? asks and answers John Piper.

Or this, from Dr. Paul M. Elliott, “Why Does God Permit False Teachers in the Church?“

God uses the response to false teaching on the part of the members of the visible church, individually and corporately, to demonstrate who is true to Him and to His Word, and who is not. To put it another way, God is building a record that Christ will use at the Last Judgment, when many will come before Him and claim to have done many wonders in His name, but Jesus will say, “I never knew you; depart from Me, you who practice lawlessness!” (Matthew 7:23).

The main reasons God permits false teachers is that first, sin exists in the world. False teaching is sin. Secondly, it’s used to test His people. So though it’s a grief, a burden, and a scourge, God has His purposes for allowing it.

And then sweet relief will come! There will come a day when false prophets will not be allowed!

After the rapture, and after the conclusion of the Tribulation, in that order, a Kingdom on earth will be established. It will last for 1000 years. It is colloquially called the Millennium Kingdom. It will be an actual kingdom whereupon incarnated Jesus walks among His people, rules from Jerusalem, (Revelation 2:27) administers affairs of the nations, and receives worship (including sacrifices) in the Temple. (Isaiah 56:6-8; Zechariah 14:16; Jeremiah 33:15-18, Ezekiel 43:18-46:24)

Satan will be bound in the pit along with his demon horde. (Revelation 20:1-3). The people occupying the Kingdom will have relief from satan, finally! However, sin will still be present. Some of the people who survived the Tribulation will be mortal, and thy will enter the Kingdom along with us (glorified at the rapture) and the Old Testament saints (resurrected at the end of the Tribulation) and Tribulation martyrs (resurrected at the end of the Tribulation). These mortals will repopulate the earth through procreation, and their children will do the same and so on, for 1000 years. These mortals will still have a sin nature, which will express itself at the end of the 1000 year kingdom when satan is released from the pit and gathers the secretly sinful like sands upon the sea to rebel against Jesus. (Revelation 20:7-8).

But meanwhile during the blissful 1000 year Kingdom, there will be no false teaching, no false teachers, no false prophecies!

“And if anyone again prophesies, his father and mother who bore him will say to him, ‘You shall not live, for you speak lies in the name of the LORD.’ And his father and mother who bore him shall pierce him through when he prophesies.” (Zechariah 13:3)

False prophets will be immediately stabbed. Even by his parents.

The form of phraseology here is drawn from De 13:6–10; 18:20. The substantial truth expressed is that false prophecy shall be utterly abolished. If it were possible for it again to start up, the very parents of the false prophet would not let parental affection interfere, but would be the first to thrust him through. Love to Christ must be paramount to the tenderest of natural ties (Mt 10:37). Much as the godly love their children, they love God and His honor more. (Jamieson, R., Fausset, A. R., & Brown, D. Commentary Critical and Explanatory on the Whole Bible) 

The dance between false prophets and demons will end. Matthew Henry:

False prophecy shall also be brought to an end: I will cause the prophets and the unclean spirit, the prophets that are under the influence of the unclean spirit, to pass out of the land. The devil is an unclean spirit; sin and uncleanness are from him; he has his prophets, that serve his interests and receive their instructions from him. Take away the unclean spirit, and the prophets would not deceive as they do; take away the false prophets that produce sham commissions, and the unclean spirit could not do the mischief he does. When God designs the silencing of the false prophets he banishes the unclean spirit out of the land, that wrought in them, and was a rival with him for the throne in the heart. Henry, M. (1994). Matthew Henry’s commentary on the whole Bible

Of the Zechariah 13:3 verse, John MacArthur comments:

Because of the salvation of God that has cleansed God’s people and made them love Him and His truth, hatred of false prophecy will overrule normal human feelings, causing even a mother or father to put their apostate child to death. This is a stern reminder of hos God feels about and will eventually treat those preaches who misrepresent the truth.

Contrast the Zechariah verse of Millennium parents killing their own child because he speaks false prophecy, to the verse in Matthew 10:21 when in the last days parents will kill their offspring for speaking the Truth.

What a time that will be! When love for Jesus and His truth is the worldwide global attitude! For all my brethren who read this, it’s an essay about prophecy, obviously. It is also encouragement. Jesus IS in control. He has a plan, and that plan includes the [hopefully soon] day when He will rule and reign personally and false prophets will not be tolerated. What a day that will be.

Posted in adam, beauty, curse, encouragement, jesus

If earth is this beautiful…

Posted on by elizabethprata

When Adam sinned, the Lord our God, creator of all, cursed the ground.

“Because you have listened to the voice of your wife
and have eaten of the tree
of which I commanded you,
‘You shall not eat of it,’
cursed is the ground because of you;
(Genesis 3:17)

I live in a rural area. Not every place on earth looks like this, I know. But I’m astounded that ANY place looks like this, after the curse.

If God’s earth is THIS beautiful after the ground has been cursed, then imagine the beauty of heaven! Look toward the reward- being in God’s family, perfected in glory, and seeing the face of Jesus, amid inexpressible sounds and sights of beauty of such scope that we cannot even imagine! (2 Corinthians 12:4)

But, as it is written, “What no eye has seen, nor ear heard, nor the heart of man imagined, what God has prepared for those who love him”— (1 Corinthians 12:9)

Posted in bible study, concordia, discernment, encouragement, jesus, small group

How do I lead a home bible study?

Posted on by elizabethprata

Some readers have asked how to start or lead a home group Bible study. This is a great question. There are many reasons why you might want to start a small group study in your home or at work. In these days of rising apostasy, some people are finding they are not receiving good instruction at their church from the pulpit or their Sunday School class. Others have left their church and have not found another one yet, but do not want to leave off fellowship with like-minded believers. Some are in a megachurch and this is the best way to connect with fellow believers for study and prayer. (Acts 2:42). Still others are born leaders with the gift and heart for teaching.

First before starting a group at your home, if you are members of a church, be sure to discuss this with your pastor. You don’t need his permission to start one, but if you want the credibility of your church and his endorsement, you will need to submit to him for pastoral oversight- especially if you’re a woman intending to minister to other women this way. More on that from 9Marks of a Healthy Church folks.

Another note I’d like to stress is that if you’re a woman wanting to start a home group study, you do NOT need to remain in the women’s aisle at the book store when perusing curricula. There is no biblical command to study only from guides written by women, and there are many good reasons not to. Here is one prime example of how or why it might be better to study from a curriculum written by a man.

The IF:gathering is the biggest phenomenon you may never have heard of. That is because it is an organization founded by women who do their work mainly online. Though there are small group gatherings in real life, of course, called IF:table, these come about because of their organizational and promotional work in the largely hidden realm of social media. In other words, if you’re not clued in, you would never know that this is going on:

Every pin on that map, screen shot from last week, is a gathering under the auspices and curriculum of the IF:gathering, called IF:table. IF:table is women meeting up in homes and back yards to discuss the Bible in a fellowship atmosphere with an outlined curriculum. When I first looked at the IF:ladies and their local gatherings a few years ago, there were white spaces on the map where there were still no gatherings being held. You can see how they have gathered steam over the last two years. Now there are no white spaces east of the Mississippi.

The problem is, the IF:curriculum is less than solid. After all, the name IF comes from the women’s foundational premise; “IF God is real, then what?” These women promote a social gospel in lieu of the true Gospel among other issues with their hermeneutic. I’ll link to the biblical reasons why I’ve come to this conclusion below. IF is a liberal, questioning, soft ‘Bible’ study designed exactly for women who are always striving to learn but never able to come to knowledge of the truth. It’s a curriculum designed to feed into women’s vulnerabilities and capture them in a snare. We are the weaker vessel, and sadly, the success of IF:table proves it. (1 Peter 3:7).

For among them are those who enter into households and captivate weak women weighed down with sins, led on by various impulses, 7always learning and never able to come to the knowledge of the truth. (2 Timothy 3:6-7).

So aside from the biblical vulnerability we have to following the false, how do the IF: ladies successfully get so many women to gather in back yards? By making it easy. Here is their curriculum explanation outline-

IF:table- A place to gather women and share a simple meal and dive deep with people over real stories and Christ centered conversations. A time for a whole lot of laughter – and maybe a few tears – but time spent that leaves us with glad hearts. Full hearts. Grateful hearts. 

We’re inviting you to join us by hosting a dinner with us. Once a month in your local communities 

The vision is-
     6 women
     4 questions
     2 hours
     (Acts 2:46) 

Invite your people, prepare a simple meal, and we will provide the conversation cards 2 weeks before each IF:Table.

Source

Therefore the question I was asked, what solid alternatives are there? becomes important. Where can women and/or their husbands turn to find materials that will aid the leader in setting up a consistent, biblical fellowship study in your home?

First let’s look at the reasons to have a small gathering in the first place, and what they are and what they are not.

From the 9Marks men, Using Small Study Groups to Cultivate Fellowship defined,

They are not support or counseling groups, and they are not pure study groups. Rather, they are used to cultivate spiritual fellowship together, a fellowship informed by Scripture and pursued through prayer, study, and interpersonal reflection.

I would go to that link above and read that essay from 9Marks and read any others they have at the site. 9Marks is a website dedicated to helping Christians find resources and answers in today’s practical church life.

From Grace To You here are some short essays on the mechanics of the small group study fellowship:

Elements of Productive Bible Study: Believe
Elements of Productive Bible Study: Meditate
Elements of Productive Bible Study: Teach

LifeWay has a series of free articles that outline the elements of leading a good Bible discussion at home,

How to Lead a Successful Discussion-Driven Bible Study (Introduction)

  1. Prepare Yourself Mentally and Spiritually to Lead
  2. Develop a Discussion Plan that Works
  3. Handle Conversation Hogs and Rabbit Chasers
  4. Connect Between Group Sessions
  5. Start a Group Strong by Answering Why? Who? and What? First

This is a leader recommended book though Westminster Bookstore:
Iron Sharpens Iron! Leading Bible-Oriented Small Groups that Thrive

Small Bible-study groups are great places for Christians both to interact with God’s Word and to share their lives with others. They provide relaxed and informal settings which facilitate growth in grace and understanding. Orlando Saer provides a realistic and practical guide for anyone leading or wanting to lead such a group. This book will give you the tools you need as a leader to see your group thrive.

Now that I have done my duty grounding you and offering resources as to the reasons for and how-tos of leading a small group study in your home, here are a few curricula you may find useful.

The first thing to do is browse for materials at a trusted store. If you’ve decided to go under the auspices of your pastor/church, he/they can direct you. If you are on your own, then you find that the materials offered at various brick and mortar bookstores or online can be wild and woolly. LifeWay offers much, but much of what they offer is heretical. Picking through their offerings would be fraught with time-consuming danger, even for the most discerning. I like Westminster Bookstore which has a Reformed bent to it. Shopping at their online store one would be less likely to come across heretical materials.

Concordia University is a Lutheran University in Portland OR and branches elsewhere which has a pretty good online bookstore attached to it. You can try for materials there. I have not done a ton of business through Concordia so as always, think, pray, and discern for yourselves.

Also, Amazon is helpful for their reviews as well as their recommendations. One thing that is sometimes useful is that as you browse and buy books at Amazon, the logarithm behind the search function begins to “know” what you like and pairs your search with like-books from your browsing history, your purchases, and others’ as well. ‘It’ makes recommendations for you. If all you do is buy Beth Moore and Lisa TerKeurst books then that is the kind of book that will be recommended to you. After a while of browsing and buying solid books you can then begin to trust the recommendations a bit more and explore them. This is a screen shot from my recommended section:

Here are a few leader friendly, seemingly doctrinally solid, and engaging to the participant materials that yielded up when I searched for “small group Bible study curricula” at Westminster Books and elsewhere. I say seemingly not to cast aspersion but to let you know I have not read these books nor done any studies through them. As always, choose wisely.

The Practice of Godliness Small-Group Curriculum: Godliness Has Value for All Things 1 Timothy 4:8. Jerry Bridges

I have read the Jerry Bridges book The Joy of the Fear of God and it’s good.

TULIP: The Pursuit of God’s Glory in Salvation (John Piper Small Group, 2009)

For women, by women, there are Bible Studies with Lydia Brownback, a recommended writer from both Challies and Leslie Wiggins at Discerning Reader. This synopsis of Brownback was written in 2008

Lydia Brownback is the author of several books. She served as writer-in-residence for Rev. Alistair Begg and as the broadcast media manager for the Alliance of Confessing Evangelicals. A regular speaker at women’s conferences, Brownback also blogs at The Purple Cellar. She holds degrees from Syracuse University and Westminster Theological Seminary.

There is Todd Friel’s Drive By series. The Drive By Theology series has a study guide to accompany it. The Drive By title indicates that the theme is developed in numerous short audio lessons one can listen to on a short drive to work, say, no longer than 10-20 minutes. In the case of DB Theology, Steven J. Lawson is the main lecturer. The study guide accompanies the audio series. It is good for small groups because each lecture is short, leaving time for group discussion, and the .pdf curriculum helps the leader facilitate. There are various uses for the curriculum, as mentioned here in the introduction

How much you learn from this curriculum will depend on how much you put into it. You can go all out and turn this into a year-long project or simply use it as a way to look into a few of the things that catch your interest. If you want to understand more about how different denominations within the Church view the ordo salutis, spend some time looking at their teachings. Whether you are using this as a family study at the dinner table, a self-improvement project, a summer project for your kids to study, or a Bible curriculum for your homeschooler, you will find exciting things as you learn about how God has revealed Himself to us in the pages of Scripture

I also recommend Chris Powers, an artist who makes animations and creates doctrinally solid study guides to go with them. His materials are free. You can download The Word of the Cross study guide here. It is also available in Spanish. The Supremacy of Christ is available too, and it also has a Spanish translation.

John MacArthur’s new book Parables is a wonderful read, and a new study guide/workbook will be available on March 1, 2016. The Publisher’s synopsis says,

This workbook has been designed to enhance readers’ experience of reading the book and is intended both for individual use and for study in a small-group setting.

So now that you know of some of the organizations, people and teachers that come recommended with study guides for small groups, and can continue to search on your own, I hope the Lord leads you to a good one and that your small groups thrive. Fellowship is important and I admire anyone with the gift of hospitality and teaching who bring people together under their roof to exalt Jesus and learn more about Him.

Though the IF:ladies make hosting a groups study look inviting and easy, with their softly photographed flower-laden tables and their 4 easy question cards, but hosting a group is not easy nor should it be taken casually. Also, the ladies make hosting a Bible study look at once inviting and impossible-to-achieve.

Sure. My backyard looks like that.

It’s the Lord’s own word you’re gathering to learn more of, after all. So it shouldn’t be casual or easy. But the Holy Spirit gives aid and comfort, leads and directs. HE is in charge of our souls pointing us to Christ, and anyone who wants to lead people to that end will find help from Him. That is a guarantee, because He promised to do so, and His promises never fail.

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The End Time: IF:gathering review part 1

TruthKeepers: IF:gathering…is it a movement of God?

Sola Sisters: Strong warning about the IF:gathering