Are We Commanded to Pray for the Salvation of the Lost?
Are we commanded to pray for the salvation of the lost? Mathew 9:37, 38 – Pray for laborers Acts 4:29–31 – Pray for boldness Colossians 4:2–4 – Pray for opportunity to speak and that your message will be clear Ephesians 6:19, 20 – Pray for boldness and the right words to speak 2 Thessalonians 3:1 – [...]
How Many Really Want to Be with Jesus?
John 17:20 is a prayer for all future believers: “I pray also for those who will believe in Me through their message”; in other words, the message I have shared with my disciples, who are now sharing with others who become disciples, who now share it with you! My prayer is that all of them may be [...]
Some Things to Remember
Here’s a great quote from the book Extreme Righteousness: Perhaps an even more telling gauge of our self-righteousness is the stance from which we offer our forgiveness to those who have wronged us. Is our forgiveness offered from a pedestal? When sinned against, it is easy to occupy a superior position, extending forgiveness like a [...]
Cultivating Thankfulness in Ministry
As Thanksgiving approaches, I’m thinking of how a pastor might cultivate thankfulness in his own heart for God’s goodness, and how he might teach his congregation thankfulness as they grow together in Christ. I recently picked the brain of my pastoral mentor, Rich Van Heukelum, on this subject. I trust that his responses will better equip us all.
Giving Thanks for Special Blessings from God
An Introductory Meditation on Ephesians 1:3–14 by Myron J. Houghton Introduction Actually I am attempting to put down on paper some seed thoughts that various readers of this forum would need to expand. As you read this meditation, hopefully ideas come to mind that will cause you to develop the specific points I have raised [...]
Philosophy of Worship: Handling Controversial Issues
Pastor Ken Pyne of Evangel Baptist Church, Taylor, Mich., contributed the following post. We face many issues—often controversial—when developing a philosophy of church music and worship. How should we deal with these? Ken lists several of these issues, but then gives principles we need to establish even before considering these details. He offers good advice on how to tie things together Biblically.
Scholarship vs. Godliness
In some arenas, scholarship has grown into idolatry. Technical scholarly pursuits have become a substitute for the pursuit of God Himself. There is a fine line between academic/technical excellence and obsession. You can lose sight of God behind the infinite literary, language, and technical details of the text.
A Pastor’s True Spirituality
Assigned topics are tough for me to develop in preaching. I would rather be given the freedom to select my own subject and to develop it without any preconditions attached to it. My aversion may be simply a clue to my own stubbornness, but I have a feeling that many folks struggle with assigned topics for them to develop into a sermon.
Pastoral Mentoring Group
This week we are looking at the topic of the pastor’s spiritual life. The pastor is the spiritual leader for the church, but where does he turn? Every pastor at some point in ministry needs encouragement, someone with whom to talk through ministry trends and the issues they present, someone to discuss struggles with, and someone to [...]
The Pastor’s Spiritual Life
In being asked to write a small piece for “The Pastor’s Spiritual Life,” my first thought was to outline the necessary disciplines that every pastor needs to do—read the Bible, meditate, pray, serve, and even fast. But most of this is self-evident, and books and even sermon series cover these topics. I had one idea of having another pastor preach to me through recorded sermons. But the more I thought about it, I felt lead to share about an experience this past year.
Growing What Didn’t Get Zapped
By Donald A. Shirk Perhaps you are different than me, but when I became a believer I did not get zapped with a spiritual gift I never had before. I realize good and godly people hold different views on the acquisition of spiritual gifts. In this area I identify more with what Paul said about [...]
Members Who Are Not There
Many times people join a church, attend for a while, and then fall off the face of the earth. How do churches handle lack of attendance from their members? Do those people remain members and get counted among the membership? (For instance, a church has a regular attendance of 50, but has 250 members on paper.) Many churches [...]
Describing Church Membership Differently
It seems today that people are questioning the idea of church membership. People used to join without asking too many questions or wondering why they were doing it. Instead of just blindly accepting the practice of church membership, people are increasingly asking for a Biblical defense of the practice. This is more than just hesitancy to join. It [...]
Using Greek in Ministry
Did you study Greek in your theological or ministry training? Do you still use Greek in your ministry? If so, in what way? selected classic essays on using Greek in ministry.
Announcing: A New Look!
The Quest website is getting a face-lift! We are in the process of updating the theme. We appreciate your patience as we make the transition to the new design.
Contest Winner
The winner of our Quest blog post submission contest is Jamie Hart. Congratulations, Jamie! Thanks to those of you who participated. And keep those submissions coming—we want this blog to be a collaborative effort among all Regular Baptist leaders!
Why the GARBC Needs Old People, Part 4
One of the gifts of age is the ability to gain perspective. ”Perspective” is defined as “the faculty of seeing all the relevant data in a meaningful relationship.” In other words, it is the ability to put together the big picture from the relevant details of a situation or relationship. With age comes experience, and with experience [...]
Learning from History Comes through Age and Experience
Why does the GARBC need an intergenerational emphasis? Some reasons have already been articulated in recent Quest posts. (See “Why the GARBC Needs Old People,” Parts 1, 2, and 3.) This topic actually seems opposite of what most associations and churches discuss. Most churches and denominations discuss the need for, and plan to recruit, younger members. However, unless we [...]
Why the GARBC Needs Old People, Part 3
On Monday Nat Kealen reminded us that older people often possess wisdom that comes from having “been there, done that.” You might say that they bring a sense of perspective that is much needed in any organization, including the GARBC. Yesterday Will Hatfield explained that older people can challenge us to watch our pace. By [...]
Why the GARBC Needs Old People
Two weeks ago, we explored on The Quest why the GARBC needs young people. It seems only natural that we look at the topic in the other direction. When seeking counsel and wisdom, many young pastors in the GARBC look up to godly men who have been there before. These “older” men have experience and [...]
Contribute a Post, Win Logos!
We want to see more and more GARBC leaders contribute posts to the Quest blog that will help accomplish the purpose of the blog:
Why the GARBC Needs Young People, Part 3
David King’s article is a great summary of reasons why the GARBC needs young leaders. Here’s another reason. During the GARBC Annual Conference, we hear a list of leaders in GARBC ministries who have died this year. As the names were read, I realized how many men and women from the “greatest generation” have passed away. As these faithful men and women no longer lead, [...]
Why the GARBC Needs Young People, Part 2
On Monday Pastor David King gave three excellent reasons why the GARBC needs young people. Another obvious reason the GARBC (or any institution or movement, for that matter) needs young people is to replace those older servants whose work on earth is coming to an end. Charles Spurgeon notes,
Why the GARBC Needs Young People
“The glory of young men is their strength, and the splendor of old men is their gray head” (Prov. 20:29). About four years ago
