This particular season of ministry has been at times very difficult for me, and I’ve found that this is typically a result of not being focused on my prayer life. For me, praying in general has always seemed like a chore. I know that you do not want to hear that from a pastor or […]
Pastoral ministry is unrelenting spiritual warfare. There was a time in Protestant history when an emphasis on spiritual warfare in the Christian life and in pastoral ministry was standard fare. Such works as Richard Gilpin’s Daemonolgia Sacra, Thomas Brooks’ Precious Remedies Against Satan’s Devices, William Gurnall’s The Christian in Complete Armor, and John Bunyan’s The Pilgrim’s Progress reveal
Pastoral Ministry and Four Strategies for Spiritual Warfare Read More »
In Matthew 4, Jesus is confronted by Satan in the desert. In this story, we learn how Jesus used Scripture in spiritual warfare against Satan. Today, I want us to look at Matthew 4:1-11. This temptation is an attempt by Satan to subvert God’s plan for human redemption by causing Jesus to fall into sin
Over the years, a dozen or so individuals have entered my pastoral study for counsel due to struggling with assurance of their salvation—they are not quite sure whether they are saved. Week in and week out they attend Sunday services. They read the Scriptures, they pray with their spouse, they seek to avoid sin, they
Prayer is an important part of the Christian’s life. 1st Thessalonians 5:17 encourages Christians to pray without ceasing. How can we know what words to pray? Scripture gives us seven examples: Adoration Psalm 18:2 – The LORD is my rock and my fortress and my deliverer, my God, my rock, in whom I take refuge, my shield, and
The Prayer of Adoration Jeremiah 10:6-7, “There is none like you, O LORD; you are great, and your name is great in might. Who would not fear you, O King of the nations? For this is your due; for among all the wise ones of the nations and in all their kingdoms there is none
It is extremely easy to make the discipline of doing theology all about us. We can rob God of His glory in theological study by doing it in such a way that it ignores actual interaction with Him. Kelly Kapic reminds us that God is not merely an object of study, but the Lord that
Matthew 12:22-32, “Then a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the man spoke and saw. And all the people were amazed, and said, “Can this be the Son of David?” But when the Pharisees heard it, they said, “It is only by Beelzebul, the