Quote of the Week

I love the church. This is a good thing for many reasons, one of which is because I am a pastor! A church-hating pastor would be (or should be) quickly removed from the pulpit. Now, because I have this love for the church and because I read books about the church all the time, there is a small section in our bulletin each week called: "Quote of the Week". It includes something written or said by a theologian or pastor about the church. I thought I'd share a few of my favorites:

"If we are coming to church only as consumers, to get our needs met, then we have missed the point of the church." -Mark Dever, The Deliberate Church

"A local church will only be as great as its conception of God." -AW Tozer, The Attributes of God

"I believe every Christian ought to be joined to some visible church; that is his plain duty, according to the Scriptures. God's people are not dogs, else they might go about one by one; but they are sheep, and therefore they should be in flocks." -Charles Spurgeon

"So essential is the gospel to the Christian life that we need to be saturated in it in order to be healthy church members." -Thabiti Anyabwile, What is a Healthy Church Member?

"God Is... Able!"

It's obvious to my friends that I'm pretty incompetent in many areas. I can't work on my cars (to my mechanic's delight), and I'm not able to fix plumbing problems that require more than a plunger (thankfully, I know a plumber). Those are just two of the many things I can't do. You could correctly say, "Dan is unable to do many things." I wouldn't argue. Thankfully, God is not like me. This Sunday we will explore this glorious truth: God is able! You might be thinking, "able to do what?" Great question! The answer is found throughout the Bible. According to the Scriptures, He is able to:

1. save us to the uttermost - Hebrews 7:25
2. help us during temptation - Hebrews 2:18
3. strengthen us through the gospel - Romans 16:25
4. work in us by His Spirit - Ephesians 3:20
5. keep us from stumbling - Jude 24

Join us as we turn our eyes upon the One who is able and again marvel at His glory!

"God Is... Unchanging!"

During challenging times in my life my father occasionally says to me, "The only thing that's permanent is change." It is true that from our perspective "change" occurs all the time. Everything changes. Everyone changes. I have five children and sometimes I can't keep up with the changes that occur in my home. I change. You change. All we need is a mirror to point out this obvious truth to us. We, as finite and fragile people, have grown familiar with change.

This week we will examine an attribute of God that is totally foreign to us. You see, God does not change... ever. He never has and He never will. Theologians call it God's "immutability". Dr. Sam Storms puts it this way:

"When we talk about the immutability of God's life... we are saying that God never began to be nor will ever cease to be. His life simply is. He did not come into existence, nor will He go out of existence. God is not young or old: He is." And, Dr. Storms adds, "The Being, who eternally is, never changes."

Join us this Sunday as we gaze upon the unchanging One and may our hearts be freshly amazed at the surpassing greatness of our God!

"God Is... Great!"

Tony the Tiger is famous for making this announcement about Frosted Flakes: "Theeeey're GREAT!!" Well, Frosted Flakes are consumed regularly at my house, but I personally think that Tony might be exaggerating just a bit. When I think of greatness, small crunchy corn flakes with a sugary coating isn't the first thing that comes to my mind.

Psalm 145:3 says, "Great is the LORD, and greatly to be praised, and his greatness is unsearchable."

Not quite in the same category as breakfast food, is it? Join us this Sunday as we turn our eyes upon the greatness of our God. It will be far more satisfying than a bowl of cereal.