For all of his evangelistic preaching, Spurgeon refused to separate the call to the gospel with the call to be accountable to a local church. Spurgeon once stated, “I would rather give up my pastorate than admit any man to the Church who was not obedient to his Lord’s command; and such a course would... Continue Reading

My church has around 120 members currently, which technically puts it in the midsize category. It still feels like a small church to me, though, as I have attended much larger churches in the past. Here are twelve reasons I love my “smaller” church.   While it may seem as if large churches with lots... Continue Reading

With our mindset of big crowds = success, and many converts = the Holy Spirit doing work, it is easy to look at these two Bill’s as one being a failure and the other being successful. Most of the Evangelical Church wrongly believes that you are not being blessed in ministry unless you have a... Continue Reading

Before going into what the Bible says about these categories, I want to acknowledge that there are a number of “common grace” preferences that we may come to appreciate about various pastors. Some men may have an extra dose of a particular category. Certainly, you can think of one who exudes more warmth. Perhaps you... Continue Reading

The church has had to face controversies over doctrines as central and essential as the full deity and humanity of Christ, the nature of the Trinity, justification by faith alone, and the truthfulness of Scripture. Had those controversies been avoided, the gospel and the authority of Scripture would have been forfeited. These controversies were over... Continue Reading

The “exegetical sermon” totally misses the congregation. Some preaching that claims to be expositional is rejected as boring and irrelevant . . . and rightly so! One could just as well be reading from an exegetical commentary. Everything that is said is true to the passage, but it’s not really preaching; it is merely a... Continue Reading

I need God’s Word to challenge all aspects of my life, including my generosity and my relationship with money. You think preaching on money will drive me away. It’s not true. I understand the difference between manipulation and Christ-centered preaching on stewardship. Don’t preach on money because you need more money in the offering plate.... Continue Reading

People often over-celebrate the early church in a veiled attack on the present church. “The church today is lame, too organized, not free-wheeling enough.” They look back on the early church and crave those early days. But Solomon tells us not to do such a thing. “Don’t say, ‘Why were the former days better than... Continue Reading

The gospel is about how God objectively saves us through the coming, continuing, and consummation of His kingdom AND the gospel is about how God subjectively justifies, sanctifies, and glorifies His people. Each one of these is a part of the good news, and all are presented and taught in the Scriptures. In fact –... Continue Reading

What I’ve come to believe, and what I’m passionate to commend to you, is that the equation of “bigger” with “better” is out of step with the very gospel we set ourselves to ponder and proclaim. In fact, the message and values of the gospel itself will send some (not all) of us to small... Continue Reading