RC Sproul, Jr. gives us a gem of an article on loving God and His Word,

"Even when we read the Bible, however, we often insulate ourselves from its message. Like dispensationalists on crack, any text that touches on our own sin gets relegated to some other dispensation. That was for then, we tell ourselves. We live in a different culture, we tell ourselves. When the Bible calls into question our own choices and lifestyles we simply wave this magic wand, 'The Bible couldn’t possibly mean that...' We come to His Word with an a priori commitment that it tells us nothing more challenging than 'Be nicer.'"

Read the full article here.

When the men of our church gathered together to give David their counsel on his upcoming marriage, I said this:

David we have been constant companions as we have walked together here at home, all over this country and the world. I want to bless you tonight before these men with two things, eight gifts from the Lord.

First, are these eight gifts from the Lord that God gives to all men who love Him and are called according to His purpose. The Lord has given these to me and now I give them to you.  These things have been mine and now they are yours. I pass them to you.

1. A Scepter – It is an emblem of authority for dominion. It is held in the hand with the mantle of leadership upon your head. “The husband is the head of the wife” - This makes you a governor, a prophet, a priest and a king, (Ephesians 5:22-33).

2. A Shepherds Staff –It is the staff of a guide. “Husbands love your wives as Christ also loved the church.” The good shepherd hands to you His staff knowing that, “Thy rod and thy staff they comfort me,” (Psalm 23).

We had Ken Ham speak at our Sufficiency of Scripture conference because he believes that the rejection of the literal, historical interpretation of Genesis 1 is the source of a thousand other points of apostasy in the church and collapse of the culture. The question is, "Is scripture sufficient?" A writer for Calvin College Newspaper took Ken Ham's Answers in Genesis to task making a number of accusations. However, the center of the conflict can be traced to the war over the sufficiency of Scripture. We believe that the rejection of the sufficiency of Scripture in all matters in the church life today is the center of the battle and the fulcrum (leverage point) of necessary reformation for the church and the family.

In his blog today, Ken Ham responds to Calvin College underlining some of the real issues at stake and the irresponsible manner in which some engage in the debate. The interchange puts on display just how deeply mainstream evangelicalism has abandoned the faith. Ken Ham is right. When you do not take Genesis 1 seriously, you cannot take anything else seriously. Our work at the NCFIC finds itself on the battle lines of church and family. Ken Ham's battle is fought on the battle lines of the origins of the world. We are very thankful for his boldness and leadership and pray for victory there.
 

Here is a short but "sweet" video clip of Phil Johnson on the feminization of church leaders.

"Welcome delightful morn, Thou day of sacred rest!
I hail thy kind return, Lord, make these moments blest;
From the low train of mortal toys,
I soar to reach immortal joys,
I soar to reach immortal joys"

You can sing this as a hymn on Cyber hymnal
In “Hayward” in John Dobell’s, A New Selection, 1806

 

Deborah and I are starting a blog about marriage. For the first post, click here

The Economist Magazine has released a stunning article on the war against girls entitled, The worldwide war on baby girls. This reality stands in sharp contrast with God's disposition toward girls. God has built so many protections around them through representative heads (fathers and husbands and church elders and civil magistrates) and commanded men to nourish and cherish their wives and give their lives for them. Here God shows Himself to be the Supreme Benefactor of girls.

Albert Mohler gives a powerful analysis of the article. One of the startling elements of this article in the Economist is the story of a Chinese writer who witnessed the killing of a baby girl, “‘But that’s...murder...and you’re the police!’ The little foot was still now. The policemen held on to me for a few more minutes. ‘Doing a baby girl is not a big thing around here,’ [an] older woman said comfortingly. ‘That’s a living child,’ I said in a shaking voice, pointing at the slops pail. ‘It’s not a child,’ she corrected me. ‘It’s a girl baby, and we can’t keep it. Around these parts, you can’t get by without a son. Girl babies don’t count.’”
 

Here is a podcast with Scott Brown, Jason Dohm and Dan Horn on hot issues church shepherds often need to help church members grapple with.

In times of economic downturn, these issues are more often more sensitive. 

Last Lord's Day, I preached on Galatians 5:1-13 where Paul begins to apply the doctrine of justification by faith. He has been saying that not one ounce of works can save you. As a result of this, many believe that the law has lost all its application in our era. In contrast, the Second London Baptist Confession of 1689 has clear answers for what Christian liberty means. We live in an era where people think Christian liberty means they can disregard what God has said in Scripture. Our Christian forefathers knew better.

CHAPTER 21: OF CHRISTIAN LIBERTY AND LIBERTY OF CONSCIENCE

Paragraph 1. The liberty which Christ has purchased for believers under the gospel, consists in their freedom from the guilt of sin, the condemning wrath of God, the severity and curse of the law,

Christ hath redeemed us from the curse...

74% of the people in the world believe a woman's place is definitely NOT in the home.

"The survey of over 24,000 adults in 23 countries, conducted by Reuters/Ipsos and released on the eve of International Women's Day, showed that people from India (54 percent), Turkey (52 percent), Japan (48 percent), China, Russia, Hungary (34 percent each) and South Korea (33 percent) were most likely to agree that women should not work."

Over the last century and a half, we have undergone vast changes in the way we understand the purpose and activities of the family. This is seen most markedly in the nature of family education, economics and co-existence. Homes are startlingly mother and child free. The children have been sent to a government institution. Mothers have escaped to the cubicle. Fathers are catapulted to the corporation.
 

Cornerstone Church, a multi-site church in Simi Valley Califorina headed by Francis Chan has a statement on the church web site that questions age and life stage segregation in the church. They say they no longer believe that the church should be segregated in this manner. They say,

"In looking for Adult Ministry, most people are looking to get connected to a men's ministry, women's ministry, young marrieds' ministry, divorced ministry or other type of life-stage/age-stage ministry.

This makes sense, and for years Cornerstone has been structured around reaching out to people based on their age, life-stage, and interestes. While we are excited...
 

"Most Merciful Father, we seek Thy presence at the close of the day. We might have that presence in fullness all day long; but we are so forgetful of Thee, and so carried away on the stream of passing things, or so drawn and hither and thither by the distractions of life, that we are glad when Thou dost spread the calm shadow of Thy presence, and invite us to come within its stillness and solemnity. Be a little sanctuary to us here to-night. May we hear the voice of the Lord God at the cool of the day. May our souls be satisfied as with marrow and fatness, and our mouths shall praise Thee when we remember Thee upon our beds.

We thank Thee for the many and rich mercies of this day, for the goodness of Thy house, even of Thy holy place. How precious have been Thy thoughts to us-ward, and how great has been the sum of them! May the good seed of divine truth find in our hearts “good ground” in which to grow, and in our lives a field in which to ripen. Preserve in us every holy impression and helpful memory...

One of the most exciting parts of our work at the NCFIC over the past year has been what God has done through our intern program. We have seen God work in a mighty way through daily discipleship, hard work, the camaraderie, opportunity, and sacrifice involved in being an NCFIC intern. We have seen men grow, stretched, convicted, and even transformed.

The NCFIC Internship is a men’s discipleship program consisting of personal study, local church involvement, and ministry to churches around the nation through conferences and internet communications. Interns will be involved in the daily work of the NCFIC offices, daily discipleship with Scott Brown and Peter Bradrick, weekly involvement in the activities and mentorship of Hope Baptist church as well as receive significant investment from the leaders of Hope Baptist Church.

We are excited to announce that there are still openings for the summer/fall 2010 internship which begins August 2nd and ends December 20th. The application deadline is March 31, 2010.

If you have any questions, contact Mr. Peter Bradrick | pbradrick@ncfic.org

To apply, click here.

Friday evening will be at the Brown's Barn for parents only (7-9:30pm); Saturday will be at the Tuxedo Junction (9am-4pm) for the whole family. This is sponsored by Hope Baptist church, but everyone is invited. Details coming soon.

Tuxedo Junction Inc.
405 South Brooks Street
Wake Forest, NC 27587

This month we are reading what is in my mind a very special and practical book – John MacArthur’s "Preaching: How to Preach Biblically." The introduction is worth the price of the book... It is a must read for anyone who desires to preach the Word in a local church. And, it demonstrates how important expository preaching is for the flock.

"As a shepherd of a local flock, it is evident that Calvin had observed many of the tumultuous results of mishandling the single years. He seemed to have great compassion for the single people in his church for he provided much counsel to assist them in governing the critical years preceding marriage. He preached directly to the issues which they faced and dealt forthrightly with the concerns they had regarding marriage and everything leading up to it. He did not provide them with shallow platitudes. Rather, he gave incisive direction for handling a diverse range of complex issues. Through his expositions, letters, commentaries, and the Institutes, he dissected the issues of the single life."

Text quoted from Preparing for Marriage: The Premarital Counsel of John Calvin edited by Scott T. Brown.  For more details about this book or to purchase click HERE.

Pressures against homeshoolers around the world have been in the news over the last couple of years. Here Albert Mohler reports on the recent flight of a German family to the United States for asylum after being fined $11,000 for their refusal to send their children to the government schools, while their children were taken from them and transported to school by the government.

We have just loaded a powerful resource on the article section of our web site. Charles Spurgeon had some very crisp and powerful things to say about "The Perpetuity of the Law of God." Below is his introduction. I highly recomend reading his whole article here.

"Very great mistakes have been made about the law. Not long ago there were those about us who affirmed that the law is utterly abrogated and abolished, and they openly taught that believers were not bound to make the moral law the rule of their lives. What would have been sin in other men they counted to be no sin in themselves. From such Antinomianism as that may God deliver us. We are not under the law as the method of salvation, but we delight to see the law in the hand of Christ, and desire to obey the Lord in all things. Others have been met with who have taught that Jesus mitigated and softened down the law...