With John Piper retiring as a pastor, it is a reminder that many of our Evangelical leaders of today are, to say it delicately, of such an age that transition is inevitable over the next few years. It is easy to forget that these leaders themselves built on a foundation laid by others who went before them. That knowledge, and our faith in the sovereignty of God should make us full of faith for the future. One such great of the past is still very much with us, some 30 years after he himself … [Read more...]
Lex Loizides releases a new book for new Christians
March 25, 2013 By 1 Comment
Lex Loizides is a great friend of mine, and a very gifted church-based evangelist who has faithfully served God over several decades all over the world. His wisdom in helping new Christians in legendary. In this book Lex skillfully guides those beginning a lifetime of following Jesus. It makes the perfect gift for any one who just became a Christian. You can get his book on Kindle in the USA and UK stores: US amzn.to/XxjcBH UK amzn.to/11xtV24 … [Read more...]
How Progressive or Liberal Christianity destroys the Church
March 21, 2013 By 20 Comments
I rarely take a lunch break as I work from home. But I did yesterday. I attended a New Media Think Tank put on by people from Premier. The main theme was on how Christians should disagree agreeably online. I agreed with much of what was said, and there was some very interesting conversation. One thing that came up was how different it is to meet someone face to face and online. It is much easier to create a straw man of someone online. As an example I met Simon Jenkins, who is the editor of … [Read more...]
People who have a problem with mega churches would have had a problem in Jesusalem!
March 20, 2013 By 10 Comments
While I know that not everything done in every megachurch is helpful, Ed Stetzer has done us a great service in debunking many myths about megachurch. But I also know that too many seem to have a fundamental problem with large churches, as though God hated them all. It's really odd, because what such people conveniently forget is that the first church was a mega church on its first day: "So those who received his word were baptized, and there were added that day about three thousand souls." … [Read more...]
Prayer – the Pastor’s Priority? The People’s pleasure? Join us at 300 Leaders!
March 19, 2013 By Leave a Comment
I find the following quote on prayer from Spurgeon striking, much as the last one I shared. It depresses me therefore how hard I often find it to pray myself. I am grateful to God that I am slowly learning. I don't hesitate to admit that the person who has taught me most about this is my own pastor, Tope Koleoso. He touched on the importance of prayer in his well-received talk at this years Desiring God conference. I am therefore thrilled that the next 300 Leaders event will feature Tope and … [Read more...]
Spurgeon: Prayer is vital for the success of ministry
March 8, 2013 By 1 Comment
Regular readers will know only too well that I have been looking afresh recently at the life and writings of Spurgeon, in preparation for a planned documentary for which a team of my friends are currently seeking crowd-sourced funding. Reading Spurgeon afresh, it has struck me again just how much he has to teach us. God seems to have uniquely gifted him with great insight into a broad range of subjects, as I am sure you have already seen in the quotes I have shared over on Desiring God about … [Read more...]
One thing I like about the Pope
March 7, 2013 By 5 Comments
Hold the presses! For the first time since the Reformation a Protestant has something nice to say about the Pope. OK, that’s maybe an exaggeration! But seriously, I have been reflecting on the list of “Most influential Pastors on Twitter.” It struck me that Christians are very good at criticizing other Christians, and especially those who are in any way successful. There are times when it is right to point out another’s flaws. We may even hold doubts about the salvation of some, while … [Read more...]
Frank Viola interviews me about my book on the resurrection
March 6, 2013 By Leave a Comment
Frank Viola was kind enough to interview me about my book: As we consider Easter this year, I want to draw attention to my friend Adrian Warnock’s recent book Raised with Christ. The book is an excellent treatment on the resurrection of Jesus . . . why it’s important and how it applies to our lives today. Adrian Warnock blogs at Patheos, and serves on the leadership team of Jubilee Church, London. He is passionate about refocusing the church on the resurrection. He is also keen to … [Read more...]
A personal note on the planned Spurgeon Documentary
March 6, 2013 By 2 Comments
I wanted to share a bit more about the Spurgeon documentary we are currently seeking crowd-sourced funding for. Our goal is simple: we want to introduce Spurgeon to a new generation and encourage people to find out more about him. If we cover our costs, then the documentary will be made, and will at some stage be made available to stream free online. Making it will involve a group of us taking annual leave and filming at some of the key sites in Spurgeon's life what we hope will be a … [Read more...]
Don’t follow me, follow Jesus
March 5, 2013 By 4 Comments
Earlier this year I was speaking with my Grandfather who has just turned 90 years old. He has followed Jesus since being a boy. He is still as sharp as ever. I was showing him the new design for my blog here on Patheos.com. He was looking at it intently, and his eyes alighted on a single phrase in my sidebar. It said "Follow Adrian Warnock." In a flash, he said with some force "We should be following Jesus, not Adrian!" Of course I replied with some platitude about how Twitter has … [Read more...]
Prayer, the soul’s sincere desire
February 28, 2013 By Leave a Comment
PRAYER is the soul’s sincere desire, Utter’d or unexpress’d; The motion of a hidden fire, That trembles in the breast. 2 Prayer is the burden of a sigh, The falling of a tear; The upward glancing of an eye, When none but God is near. 3 Prayer is the simplest form of speech That infant lips can try; Prayer the sublimest strains that reach The Majesty on high. 4 Prayer is the Christian’s vital breath, The Christian’s … [Read more...]
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