2004 Issue 1
There is no more responsible situation in the whole world than that in which a faithful minister stands.
A) Before God. This is true in two ways. First, as a sinner saved by grace. He was once far off, but is now brought nigh by the blood of Jesus. Having "boldness to enter into the holiest by the blood of Jesus, by a new and living way which He hath consecrated for us through the veil, that is to say, His flesh," he draws near. He stands within the veil, in the holiest of all, in the love of God. He is justified before God. A faithful minister is an example to his flock of a sinner saved. God says to him as He did to Abraham, "Walk before Me, and be thou perfect." He can say with Paul, "I was a blasphemer, and a persecutor, and injurious, but I obtained mercy." A faithful minister is like Aaron's rod that was laid up beside the ark of God and budded there.
It is an honor to be in the same room with Judge Roy Moore and several other great warhorses in the battle for America, who have been on the battlefield for many years. My prayer for you is that years from now, you will be saying what Caleb said, recorded in Joshua 14:11f - am still as strong today as I was in the day Moses sent me, as my strength was then, so my strength is now, for war and for going out and coming in. Now then, give me this hill country...for you heard on that day that Anakim [giants] were there, with great fortified cities; perhaps the LORD will be with me, and I shall drive them out as the LORD has spoken. Caleb was 85 when he spoke these words!
1. Attend worship regularly, and sing, pray, and read Scripture at home, while they are still in the womb and can hear what is in their immediate environment just outside the womb.
2. Pray for your children from their earliest days.
3. Keep them in worship (near the door) as much as possible, especially during the music. Most babies are much quieter when music is playing.
4. Read regularly to them from their earliest elms.
The third installment of the unpublished book (Restoring Christian Finances: Biblical Principles if Building Godly Wealth" by Brian Abshire. A new chapter appears in each issue. This book, the first in the "Restoring Biblical Principles" series will soon be available from Providence Press at www.providencepress.com.
One definition of a fool in Proverbs is someone who refuses to seek wisdom (Prov. 1:22). Their lack of wisdom isn't the reason they are considered a fool, but their lack of seeking. Proverbs repeatedly urges young men to acquire wisdom, and seek for it like buried treasure (Prov. 2:1-7). Wisdom is not something they have yet, for they are supposed to go out and find it. So simply to say someone lacks wisdom is not to say they are a fool.
The Christian family has been, since the beginning of time, the basic institution of human society. Genesis 1:27 gives us the account of the creation of man and woman and immediately follows with the next verse saying, "Then God blessed them and God said to them, Be fruitful and multiply,..." The first recorded command that man receives from God is the institution of the family. This should indicate the importance that God has placed on the family.
The use of the word "Christian" to describe the family is significant and should be well understood. Throughout the Bible, God pronounces the blessings and curses that will befall the family - but He makes a precise distinction between those who are His and those who are not His. First, and foremost, the individual must be dedicated to God and His commands; but following a close second is the entire family which should be an example and a light to those who are lost.
Two Interviews on the "Monroe" Doctrines espoused at Auburn Ave. Presbyterian Church Pastor's Conferences.
The Christian Renewal magazine last year published two interviews conducted by Gerry Wisz on the Auburn Avenue Controversy. The first interview featured "The Monroe Four." A follow-up response was given by Robert Godfrey, president of Westminster Seminary in California and a minister in the URC; Cornel Venema, president at Mid-America Reformed Seminary and a minister in the CRC; and two of the RPCUS presbyters who offered the resolutions against the Monroe teachings to their presbytery, Paul McDade, evangelist and pastor of West Tennessee Reformed Mission and Henry Johnson, pastor of Trinity Presbyterian Church, Tazewell, Virginia. (Dr. Godfrey's and Dr. Venema's consent to this interview should not be understood to mean they necessarily concur with the resolutions of the RPCUS presbytery.) They are reprinted here as submitted to us by Mr. Wisz with their permission.
