2 Thessalonians 2.13-15

But we should always give thanks to God for you, brethren beloved by the Lord, because God has chosen you from the beginning for salvation through sanctification by the Spirit and faith in the truth. And it was for this He called you through our gospel, that you may gain the glory of our Lord Jesus Christ. So then, brethren, stand firm and hold to the traditions which you were taught, whether by word or of mouth or by letter from us."

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@KeithBlessing

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Ask Of God

(HT: Desiring God)

O Holy Night!

This is slowly becoming my favorite "Christmas" hymn of all time....and David Phelps lights into it like nobody else. Enjoy!

For Those Of You Who Love Jesus & Like Facebook!

Psalm 5.3

"In the morning, O LORD, Thou wilt hear my voice; In the morning I will order my prayer to Thee and eagerly watch."

The Mission Of The Church

So what is the mission of the church?

"The mission of the church is to go into the world and make disciples by declaring the gospel of Jesus Christ in the power of the Spirit and gathering these disciples into churches, that they might worship and obey Jesus Christ now and in eternity to the glory of God the Father."

~ Kevin DeYoung

(HT: C.J. Mahaney)

Romans 11.36

"For from Him and through Him and to Him are all things. To Him be the glory forever. Amen"

Colossians 1.5-6

"because of the hope laid up for you in heaven, of which you previously heard in the word of truth, the gospel, which has come to you, just as in all the world also it is constantly bearing fruit and increasing, even as it has been doing in you also since the day you heard of it and understood the grace of God in truth"

Ephesians 6.18-19

"With all prayer and petition pray at all times in the Spirit, and with this in view, be on the alert with all perseverance and petition for all the saints, and pray on my behalf, that utterance may be given to me in the opening of my mouth, to make known with boldness the mystery of the gospel..."

1 Timothy 2.1-6

"Firs of all, I urge that entreaties and prayers, petitions and thanksgivings, be made on behalf of all men, for kings and all who are in authority, in order that we may lead a tranquil and quiet life in all godliness and dignity. This is good and acceptable in the sight of God our Savior, who desires all men to be saved and to come to the knowledge of the truth. For there is one God, and one mediator also between God and men, the man Christ Jesus, who gave Himself as a ransom for all, the testimony borne at the proper time."

Evangelical Hypocrite

Of all hypocrites, grant that I may not be
an evangelical hypocrite,
who sins more safely because grace abounds,
who tells his lusts that Christ's blood
cleanseth them,
who reasons that God cannot cast him into hell,
for he is saved,
who loves evangelical preaching, churches,
Christians, but lives unholily.

A Puritan prayer from the book Valley of Vision.

(HT: Josh Harris)

Acts 16.14

"And a certain woman named Lydia, from the city of Thyatira, a seller of purple fabrics, a worshipper of God, was listening; and the Lord opened her heart to respond to the things spoken by Paul."

Romans 12.1-2

"I urge you therefore, brethren, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies a living and holy sacrifice, acceptable to God, which is your spiritual service of worship. And do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewing of your mind that you may prove what the will of God is, that which is good and acceptable and perfect."

Psalm 37.4

"Delight yourself in the LORD; And He will give you the desires of your heart."

"In the persons in God, Father, Son, and Spirit; in the perfections of God, his power, goodness, faithfulness, wisdom, love, grace, and mercy; in his works of creation, providence, and redemption; in his word, his Gospel, the truths and ordinances of it; in his house, and the worship of it; and in his people, the excellent in the earth, in whom was all the delight of the psalmist; and each of these afford a field of delight and pleasure, to attend unto, contemplate, and meditate upon..."

~ John Gill

Psalm 42.1-2

"As the deer pants for the water brooks, So my soul pants for Thee, O God. My soul thirsts for God, for the living God..."

5,000 Hits!

Wow!

I can't believe I've gotten 5,000 hits on my blog. I just think its cool!

But let me be honest...some of my kindred-spirit bloggers...probably get 5,000 hits a day, so nothing to brag about, but it is cool that we can use this as a means to aim people's minds and hearts Godward! I hope that when you do read this blog this is what is coming of it.

May God keep us all faithful in our pursuit of the gospel advance and living the gospel and seeing it bear fruit and multiply in our lives!

Thanks to all of you who hit this blog regularly.

God bless!

Your Tutor

"The law can guide, but it cannot save. The law can expose, but it cannot transform. The law can restrain, but it cannot deliver. "

~ Paul Tripp

Why Do You Think?

“The main reason God has given us minds is that we might seek out and find all the reasons that exist for treasuring him in all things and above all things. He created the world so that through it and above it we might treasure him.”

- John Piper, Think: The life of the Mind and the Love of God (Wheaton, Ill.; Crossway, 2010), 15.

(HT: Of First Importance)

First Dallas Implodes!

I had the opportunity to serve a year as an intern in the Pastoral Ministries Department of First Baptist Church Dallas back in 1999-2000. I had previously served at another church in Dallas for 5 years as a student pastor and even though it was only for a year at First Dallas, it really was a sweet time in my life. It was while serving at First Dallas that my wife and I bowed our lives to the absolute Sovereignty of God over and in all things.

Stephanie and I had only been married for about 10 months when we received the invitation to minister at First Dallas. We enjoyed our time with the ministry staff and serving under then pastor, Mac Brunson, who arrived at First Dallas at the same time we did.

Recently First Dallas decided to enter into a new season of the church's history by tearing down and rebuilding its very old facilities in place of building new structures. Below is a short video of the demolition...it is a little weird to see something that has been around for many decades demolished in a moments time. It's weird b/c those were the very places that I taught Scripture, ministered to people, parked our vehicles, played basketball, etc.

At the end of the video you will be able to see the old historical sanctuary where the term 'expository preaching' was revived through the pulpit ministry of Dr. W.A. Criswell. I was a student at Criswell College and interned while Dr. Criswell was Pastor Emeritus at First Dallas shortly before his passing in 2002.