The Christian and Fox News

I preached Sunday on a biblical response to prophecy and current events—a message Joe assigned the more provocative title “How Should the Christian Respond to Fox News.” I’m hopeful that it will provide encouragement and perspective to Christians whose awareness of current events can easily morph into obsession and distraction, myself included. “But in your [...]

Important: Jesus is NOT Nicer than the Father

There’s a common misunderstanding that is really nothing short of heresy: the idea that Jesus is somehow nicer than “the God of the Old Testament.” I’m not sure where the idea comes from—perhaps a misunderstanding of passages like John 1:17. But I’ve heard it from church members, and I recently read hints of it from [...]

2009 MACP Sessions Available Online

Detroit Baptist Theological Seminary (one of my favorite institutions) hosts the Mid-America Conference on Preaching (one of my favorite conferences) each fall. It’s only 3 hours away from my home. It’s not expensive. I have a ton of friends up there. The content is always top shelf. Yet, I rarely am able to attend, for [...]

Borrowing Brains: What Current Events Have Christians Nervous?

At the request of our elders, I’m preaching tomorrow on a godly response to prophecy and current events. It’s not mystery that “the daily news” is the source of angst to multitudes of professing Christians right now. With that in mind, I’m excited about the message, and I’m hopeful it will be both sanctifying and [...]

Joel Owen Preaches on the Road to Catastrophic Failure

Joel Owen of Cambridge Bible Church in Cambridge, Ohio is one of the most faithful pastors of my acquaintance. He’s a humble, loving, biblically-saturated man. I’m blessed to have him as a friend. Joel recently preached at the Men’s Retreat at Peniel Bible Camp, the theme for which was cultivating moral purity. I wasn’t able [...]

Sound Words: The Church’s Corporate Self-Identity

The Scripture speaks of the church as a temple in which God dwells. It uses the analogy to communicate several vital truths. Christ is our Builder and Owner (Matt 16:18). He is our Cornerstone, and the apostolic and prophetic revelation about Him is our Foundation (Eph 2:20). We are being built by a team of [...]

New at ChurchWorksMedia.com: Psalm 8

Joe Tyrpak provides another psalm that is ideally suited for corporate worship. Joe faithfully represents each line of the text metrically, then concludes with two stirring verses recording Jesus Christ’s fulfillment of the Psalm. I love it, and singing the psalms has added much to our corporate worship at TCBC. Thanks, Joe, for your good [...]

New at ChurchWorksMedia.com: Psalm 51

Joe Tyrpak continues ministering to the church by providing another fresh and stirring psalm setting for congregational use. As usual, Joe works through Psalm 51 phrase by phrase, then climaxes with a stanza pointing to Jesus Christ as the perfect fulfillment of the psalm. The tune is intentionally familiar (Morecambe, or Spirit of God, Descend [...]

Beautiful Recording of His Robes for Mine

I stumbled upon this beautiful recording of His Robes for Mine Monday night, I’ve been enjoying it ever since, and I’ve received permission to post it here. The quintet is comprised of 5 sisters, pictured below: Top-left (Alexis Huron, 20) Top-right (Olivia Huron, 18) Center (Heather Huron, 22, daughter-in-law) Bottom-left (Cilicia Huron, 20, twin to [...]

True Beauty Vs. Fake

This video should be liberating for women and instructive for men, as should 1 Peter 3:3-4: “Do not let your adorning be external—the braiding of hair and the putting on of gold jewelry, or the clothing you wear—but let your adorning be the hidden person of the heart with the imperishable beauty of a gentle [...]