04.24.07
Posted in All, Teaching, Theology, In The News... at 3:25 pm by Pastor Bill
There often seems to be a resistance to biblical instruction in the current Christian community. It’s almost as if all we need is salvation and we’ll take it ourselves from here. Hopefully you are persuaded that all believers in Christ need ongoing training, mentoring and spiritual nourishment.
We can be spiritually trained from many sources…preaching, Bible studies, Christian and theological books, great disciplers and mentors in the faith. Christian radio can be used to increase our knowledge and usefulness for God and His kingdom. Christian schools, institutes and seminaries are great tools to train us for the work of living out our Christian life in our world.
One question that frequently arises is, ‘How do I know if this is a good source of information that will not lead me astray?”. And this is an important question, that if ignored can lead to learning false doctrine or being confused about what the Bible really teaches.
That is why I am glad to have come across an extremely reliable, valuable resource that I’d like to point you to. It is a free program on the internet, called “Biblical Training”. I can’t express how impressed I am with the quality and value of this ministry. It’s free…did I mention that?… and it is top notch in it’s content. There are lessons for introducing someone to Christianity all the way up to seminary level classes, all taught by Biblical experts, who submit to the word of God, value and know it thoroughly, and have a heart and capacity to communicate it excellently.
I encourage you to check out www.biblicaltraining.org by clicking on the link, and give yourself the gift of increasing your knowledge of God’s word and it’s application to your life! We will also add a link to their site on our sidebar, I encourage you to bookmark it for your own use.
Their lessons are downloadable in mp3 format and will play on your computers music program or you can put them into your mp3 player to listen whenever you are on the go. I thank God for these Christians and their desire to educate all believers without cost or obligation. May God bless them for their sacrificial service to the body of Christ, and bless you as you spend time in the Word of God, to know, love and serve Him with everything that you have!
Blessings, Pastor Rillo
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04.17.07
Posted in All, Controversy, In The News... at 4:15 pm by Pastor Bill
By now surely you’ve heard the news or seen the footage of the mass murder by a student at Virginia Tech University. So many people are stunned and shocked, wondering how this could happen, and why someone would do this. As believers, what should be the Christian response to a tragedy like this? I would like to offer a few suggestions.
One…Grieve with those who are grieving…we are told to ‘weep with them that are weeping’ in Romans 12:15…and this is the Christian response. Most of us cannot imagine the pain and sorrow that the families of those that were killed are experiencing, but we are to share with them as best we can. This is a time to come to the side of those who are hurting, and to share with them in their loss.
Two…We must offer comfort, assistance and support over the coming days and weeks. To share one’s pain is only partial help, we must be available to assist physically and emotionally whenever they need our support and love.
Three…We must understand this event and others like it in harmony with God’s revealed truth. We must face the fact that this violent rampage is normal human behavior. Although the world may view this as unnatural or aberrant behavior, we understand that all of us would behave this way were it not for the prevailing grace of God, exerting restraint against natural human behavior in our world. These acts are a result of sin, pure and simple. We live in a sin-cursed world, and should not be shocked when horrible events occur.
Four…We must not look to place blame on everyone and everything beyond the individual which committed this horrible travesty. Guns are not responsible for this murderous rampage…the police used the same weapons to guard the safety of hundreds of additional students and residents. The school is not the cause. The police are not the cause. This young man’s parents are not the cause. His relationships and friends are not the cause. His religion and economic status are not the cause. Only one person is responsible for this horror, and that is the young man who systematically pulled the trigger and purposefully took the lives of 33 human beings. Our society is too quick to look past the guilty party and assign blame to ‘extenuating circumstances’. This is to minimize guilt and personal responsibility. Whatever problems this young man was facing, others have endured much more than him and did not resort to mass murder of innocent bystanders. As Christians we must develop and share the Biblical worldview in explaining actions such as this one.
Five…We must pray for healing and comfort for everyone involved. We must offer the support and salvation that comes only through Jesus Christ, the Son of God. True peace is found only in Jesus, and His life and work for us. I encourage you to read Billy Graham’s book…’Peace with God’ if you do not have this abiding peace which carries us through life’s disappointments.
Six…We must daily ‘live out’ God’s message of Peace through Jesus! Only in Christ is there victory in death, and stability in life’s storms. Be His hands and feet and voice, as you carry the message of God’s love and forgiveness into a dark and dangerous world.
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