“From another side, we can speak to God’s design for marriage. A husband’s model for how to treat his wife is Jesus, who laid down his life for his bride, the church. Thus, abusing his wife should never even enter the mind of a husband, for he is supposed to be prepared, at all times and in every situation, to sacrifice himself for the well-being of his wife.”

So few point to what the Bible tells husbands to do. To “hear” it on another site is refreshing indeed. If Christian husbands actually lived this, they would revolutionize marriage and women would be flocking to churches to be blessed with a love like that.

You are welcome to visit my blog at http://submissiontyranny.blogspot.com

God bless!
Waneta Dawn

You are correct in your point about ministries of mercy having a tendency to downplay speaking the truth of the gospel. I have found it helpful to think of both evangelism and ministries of mercy under the heading of “love your neighbor.” For example, if my unbelieving neighbor has lost his job and needs groceries, then my love for God and for my neighbor ought to compel me to help him with groceries, but I should also realize, again, in my love for God and for my neighbor, that he has a greater need than physical bread. I should be equally eager to show my love for him in sharing with him the truth about the bread of life. If I truly love my neighbor, then I will want to help him with physical, felt needs but, if I truly understand the gospel, then I will realize that his greatest need is to be forgiven of his sins and reconciled to God. Neighbor love is unfinished if both are not pursued.

God bless you.

Lon

All too often today evangelism starts with man and his felt needs and how Jesus can meet them, which he can and may but there is a far bigger need that Jesus was sent to meet…our separation and condemnation before God…we are lost!

This man centered approach is often seen in ministries of mercy where the emphasis is on meeting felt needs of a person…food, clothes etc with the hope that in some way the love of Christ will be known to them without any words. Christ was mighty in word and deed and thus we need to be as well, so we need to do both, reach out in love but speak about the hope that is in us. Tim Keller who you mentioned in your sermon has probably one of the best books on this issue of being balanced in word and deed in outreach to the poor…it’s called “Ministries of Mercy”. I have a copy if you’d like to borrow rather than buy one (I live in Lynden).

A lawful use of the Law (1Tim 1:8) is to bring people to Christ with it (Gal 3:24) so in the speaking of God’s holiness and man’s unholiness asking if one is familiar with the 10 commandments is a good way to bring them face to face with God’s measuring stick and how short they fall…as you have preached, we need a righteousness that we can not generate ourselves – it needs to come from Christ, by faith alone. Ray Comfort’s ministry has some practical info on using the law in evangelism http://www.wayofthemaster.com/

Thanks so much for your effort in this series…I need to listen to a few more but the flock @ CCC is truly blessed to have a Pastor that fears God more than men and will faithfully preach what God has given you from His Word!

Soli Deo gloria,
Dennis

http://www.shepherdsfellowship.org/pulpit/posts.aspx?ID=4225

Sorry about that!
Dennis

Grace Community Church Elders have a post on Evangelizing Children which gives same good counsel.

Coram Deo!
Dennis

For us it is quite understandable why is good for a child to die before the so-called age of accountability. The eternal wrath of God is a fearful thing. Despite it being a sin, it is surely true that infanticide is like abortion in its effect on the immediate victim (though this is not true of the mere “abusing” of the fetus/infant). And we should not be surprised that God’s truth guarantees protection to the very young against the cruelest sins of this world.