What is pastoral authority and how can we steward it?
By Juan Sanchez | 09.04.2019Pastoral authority is derived from God, it’s rooted in his Word, and it should be shared among a plurality of elders.
8 Lessons about Church Budgets
By Jamie Dunlop | 08.28.2019The overarching goal of a church budget is faithfulness, not funds.
What Did the Cross Achieve?: The Logic of Penal Substitution
By J. I. Packer | 9Marks Journal: The Heart of the Gospel: Penal Substitutionary Atonement | 08.20.2019The task which I have set myself in this lecture is to focus and explicate a belief which, by and large, is a distinguishing mark of the word-wide evangelical fraternity: namely, the belief that the cross had the character of penal substitution, and that it was in virtue of this fact that it brought salvation to mankind.
Pastoring Abuse Sufferers with the Doctrine of Penal Substitutionary Atonement
By Mez McConnell | 9Marks Journal: The Heart of the Gospel: Penal Substitutionary Atonement | 08.20.2019As a former victim and as a pastor to the abused, I wish to look at some of the practical implications of holding to PSA.
How to Explain Covenantal Headship to Your Members
By Harry Fujiwara | 9Marks Journal: The Heart of the Gospel: Penal Substitutionary Atonement | 08.20.2019In explaining covenantal headship to your members, it will be helpful to walk them through three closely related biblical truths: total depravity, the virgin birth, and substitutionary atonement.
“Jesus Died for Sinners”: Do Your People Know What This Actually Means?
By Conrad Mbewe | 9Marks Journal: The Heart of the Gospel: Penal Substitutionary Atonement | 08.20.2019Some professing Christians don’t know what it means when we say “Jesus died for you.” Pulpits are to blame for this serious confusion.
Your Understanding of Salvation should Shape your Philosophy of Ministry
By Michael Lawrence | 08.14.2019If you believe God is totally sovereign in conversion, then that should affect your philosophy of ministry—how you preach, how you evangelize, and even how you structure your membership process.
Mailbag #88: Must Elders Agree on Tongues & Prophecy? . . . How Can We Wisely Hire a Pastor from Outside the Church?
By D. Russell, J. Rinne | 08.09.2019— How much agreement must elders have on the issue of tongues and prophecy? — In a congregational church, how should we hire a new pastor from the outside? How can we give enough time for the church to properly vet the candidate?
Church-planting is a church responsibility
By Mike McKinley | 07.31.2019The apostles responded to the Great Commission by planting churches. And so should we.
In Ministry, Joy and Sorrow Don’t Cancel Each Other Out
By Winston T. Smith | 07.15.2019The victory of sin and death and the presence of suffering are only temporary in light of Jesus’ resurrection.
Mailbag #86: Considering the Danger, Should Muslim-Background Believers Be Baptized . . . My Friends Who Want to Be Pastors Think Polity Is Boring. How Can I Help Them?
By A. Menikoff, A. Duty | 07.12.2019— Should we encourage Muslim-background believers to be baptized, even when it endangers their lives? — My friends want to be pastors. But they have no interest in polity. How can I help them see its importance?
Book Review: The Book Your Pastor Wishes You Would Read
By M. Redfern, T. Hoak | 06.27.2019Just as pastors will be held accountable for how faithfully they obeyed the command to oversee the flock, so church members will be held accountable for how faithfully they obeyed the command to make shepherding their church a groan-free experience for their pastor.
Episode 93: On 1 Timothy 2:12 and Recent Complementarian Kerfuffles
By J. Leeman, M. Dever | 06.25.2019What does 1 Timothy 2:12 specifically forbid? How can we have charitable conversations about our differences?
Episode 92: Are Healthy Churches Enough for Today’s Problems?
By J. Leeman, M. Dever | 06.17.2019Our world is full of problems. But what can healthy churches do about it?
Pastoring and the Art of Balance
By J. Beeke, P. Smalley | 06.17.2019God’s promise of a transformed community (Jer. 3:17) comes with a promise of competent pastoral care.
