Pastoral

We are not just called to a glorious task but to a glorious Person. … What is beholding the glory of the Lord but believing the gospel? What is gazing on the face of Christ but receiving his benevolent smile and his gracious kindness?

Children and young people need adults who can model a deep love and joy in God, who can ooze a life full of Jesus, and who can show them what it means to keep in step with the Spirit.

Only after seeing the glory of God in Christ, his own unworthiness, and the stunning beauty of salvation will he find a message to preach that is as “a fire shut in his bones” and cause him to delight in preaching. Only from this place can he genuinely be in a position to minister to anyone.

Crowds lined the streets, hoping to catch a glimpse of the olivewood casket as it made its way through the streets of south London. On top was a large pulpit Bible opened at Isaiah 45:22: “Look unto Me, and be ye saved, all the ends of the earth.” It was Thursday, February 11, 1892, and the body of Charles Haddon Spurgeon was being taken for burial.

Believers have failed to remember that the tie that binds them together is the same cord that was used to pull them up out of the horrible pit: the gospel.

Armed with his irresistible kindnesses, the Gentle and Humble One has been leading me toward establishing and growing pastoral relationships with like-hearted men in my area. Why? Because I need it.

Matt Jenson looks at the ways we get into trouble when we think too much about faith rather than faith's proper object – Jesus Christ. 

In this excerpt from 'Suffering and Singing', John Hindley introduces us to the story and songs of the sons of Korah. 

Pause, pray, reflect, repent. When I am old I want that twinkle in my eye and tenderness toward my wife that charactises the best of marriages. I want the same in my relationship with Christ. Don’t you?

Phil Hill helps us to think through the crucial elements of Christian ministry: leadership, pastoral care, and public worship.