“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.
What Lay Elders Need to Know
By Bradley Larson | 06.10.2019Lay eldership is a high calling. But elders must recall that while the office they hold is important, they’re merely there to do Christ’s bidding.
What I Told My Congregation After Our Founding Pastor Died
By Mark Redfern | 06.07.2019On that morning, I stood in front of our church on the first Sunday without our pastor of 46 years.
Episode 90: On Pastoral Visits (with Brian Davis)
By B. Davis, J. Leeman | 06.04.2019One way for pastors to pay attention to all the flock is to commit themselves to the practice of pastoral visits—that is, systematically ensuring that elders spend personal time with every member.
Mailbag #84: I Live too Far from A Healthy Church. What Should I Do? . . . Among Baptists, What’s the History of a Plurality of Elders?
By S. Emadi, S. DeMars | 05.31.2019— I live in an extremely rural area where we have many churches but none that are healthy. What should I do? — Many Baptist churches now have multiple elders. I understand the biblical case for this, but what’s the history of a plurality of elders among Baptists?
Raising Up Leaders in the Schemes of Scotland
By Andy Prime | 05.23.2019As guys come out of chaotic and addictive backgrounds, our investment in discipleship that moves toward leadership isn’t going to be a two-year process, but way longer than that.
