A Prayer for the Ministry
April 5th, 2007 by 
dowboy
Adapted from a sermon of the Puritan John Flavel “The Character of an Evangelical Pastor as Drawn by Christ.” O Lord of the Church, make me busy in the cleansing of your church, and in the repairing of her walls; so that she may become gardens of delight and beds of spices for Christ to walk and take pleasure in. Read the rest of this entry »
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James (5): The Wisdom of Words (James 1:19-27) April 5th, 2007 by dowboy
There is an expression – “Talk is cheap, but actions count”. In a sense this is true, but in another sense it is not – because according to James, talk can cost us our very souls. During the Second World War, in an attempt to keep national security, the government started a “Careless talk costs lives” poster campaign. In this passage, James uses the idea of words - the way we speak and the way God speaks - to show us the true path to blessing in the Christian life and to keep us from careless talk. In vs. 19-25 he lays down the principles and then in vs. 26-27 he gives us two examples of what he is teaching - in vs. 26 an example of how not to use our words; and in vs. 27 an example of how to use God’s Word. Remember, James was a Jewish Christian steeped in the Old Testament Scriptures and so what he is teaching here reminds us a great deal of the Book of Proverbs - the book which is often called Wisdom for Living. Here, then, in James 1:19-27 we have God’s Wisdom for our use of both our words, and our use of His Word. Read the rest of this entry »
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James (6): The Ugly Face of Favouritism (James 2:1-13) April 5th, 2007 by dowboy
How can I live out my faith in Jesus Christ in my daily life? That is the question James has been answering for us as we have gone through Chapter 1 of his book. He has reminded us that we must not be double-minded in our approach to Christianity – with one eye on the world and one eye on heaven – we must be all out for Christ. But what is that kind of pure faith going to look like in daily living. James now gives us a solid example – lived out, pure faith, does not show favouritism. Read the rest of this entry »
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James (7): Faith that Flies (James 2:14-26) April 24th, 2007 by dowboy
If there is one phrase I want you all to take away from tonight’s study in James 2:14-26 it is this – True Faith Flies. A couple of weeks ago I took 5 flights within the space of 7 days. On each occasion, I looked carefully at the plane before I got onto it. Each plane looked good – looked clean and had all the bits which should have been there looking great. The engines started up and they sounded good – the plane looked great and made all the right noises. But you know, it could all have been a sham – those planes could have been cardboard cut-outs with carefully manicured passenger compartments replete with speakers blasting out the sound of roaring aircraft engines. I don’t know why anyone would have pulled off a hoax like that, but they could have. The only way you know that an airplane is a true airplane is that when it gets to the end of the runway it takes off and flies. Only in the flying is the airplane proved genuine. Faith can look good on the outside, and it can make all the right noises – but how do you know it is real, true, saving faith in Jesus Christ? It is because true faith flies – true faith shows itself genuine by the works it does. Read the rest of this entry »
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