Tuesday, March 29, 2011

The thoughts of Dr. D. James Kennedy before he died...

My friend Peter Hammond asked Dr. D. James Kennedy a couple questions before he passed away in Sept of 2007. Mr. Kennedy was the founder of the Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale, Florida, where he was senior pastor from 1960 until his death in 2007.


Here's the insightful dialogue with Peter Hammond and James Kennedy: -- One of the questions I wanted to ask him, to see his reaction was “Dr. Kennedy, I hear that you are still involved, every week, in door-to-door evangelism. I am surprised that you have the time, considering your radio, TV, writing and preaching ministry.” Dr. Kennedy responded to me with intensity: “Peter, that’s the most important thing I do! All these ministries around me… I doubt that many of them will endure long after I am gone, but Evangelism Explosion – this ministry of multiplication, reaching the lost, bringing them to Christ and training them to reach others also – this is far more important than all my radio, TV and writing ministries.” On one occasion as I was admiring the magnificent architecture of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church, Dr. Kennedy chided me: “Don’t be too impressed by externals, Peter,” he said. “I wish I could tell you that all the members of my congregation were saved, but I cannot. I cannot even tell you that all of my staff are saved. I cannot even tell you that all of my pastors and elders are saved. In fact just recently one of our ministers was converted! I will not tell you how many Presbyterian, congregations he had already served before being brought to Christ.”


--


One of the most important tasks we can do is reaching the lost. I pray that God will encourage you in to continue to keep pressing on in the race. Don't give up and don't loose heart. Keep reaching out to the lost, keep passing out tracts, keep going door to door, keep witnessing to your family members, keep knocking on your neighborhood doors, keep making disciples. It is my prayer that you will be strengthened with all power according to His glorious might to fulfill and continue to carry out these tasks and that in doing so I pray you will be refreshed by the Lord. I find that each time I pour out my heart in evangelism I'm filled up. It's a strange concept but it happens. Each time I give of myself to reach a sinner I NEVER regret it! Our race in this life will be over in a blink of an eye. Remember what we do for Christ will last. Put off sin. Make war with besetting sins that can so easily entangle us. Don't forget that we will soon be with the Lord where we will have pleasures forevermore. Keep pressing on, the finish line will be here before you know it.


"Always keep a short account with God. Never let unconfessed sin sit as stagnant water in your soul. Talk often with God about those sins that “so easily beset”--wandering eyes, secret envy, hidden conceit, unbridled appetite, etc. - Ray Comfort


"Thus shall I praise You while I've breath, To sing Your love to me, And welcome even the night of death, To wake and be with Thee." - Taken from "The Lights and Shadows of Spiritual Life" by Octavius Winslow

Friday, March 25, 2011

1 Timothy 4:2 ... "Whose consciences are seared."

"Get and keep a tender conscience. Be sensible of the least sin. Some men's consciences are like the stomach of the ostrich that can digest iron: they can swallow the most notorious sins without regret. A good conscience is very delicate. It feels the least touch of known sin, and is grieved at the thought of grieving God's Spirit. It will choose the greatest of suffering before the least of sinning. However, the jeering Ishmaels of the world are ready to reproach and laugh it to scorn for its precise scruples. Daily train all your graces for battle. Live in a military posture, both defensive and offensive. Stand constantly by your weapons. Admit no peace with sin. The soldier of Christ must never lay down his arms. Satan never ceases his wiles and stratagems. He will tell you that sin is pleasant. Ask yourself if the gripping of conscience is also pleasant? Ask yourself if it is pleasant to be in hell, and be under the wrath of God? Ask yourself if the pleasures of sin for a season compare with the rivers of God's pleasures? How do they compare to a weight of glory, an incorruptible crown, and a heavenly kingdom? God alone is enough, but without him, nothing is enough for your happiness. His love, grace, and the comforts of his Spirit will certainly sweeten your way to heaven. Sometimes you will experience joy unutterable and full of glory. God is a good master and in his service is a perfect freedom. Your work is its own reward. With these thoughts, put to flight the armies of the enemy. Shield yourself with these against the fiery darts the tempter shall pour upon you. Do not even take a moment to parley with the tempter. As soon as your lusts begin to grow inordinate, do not stay a moment; delay is unutterably dangerous. A house on fire needs immediate attention."

-John Gibbon,
Puritan Sermons 1659-1689, 1:96-100

Taken from:
Voices from the Past:
Puritan Devotional Readings
Edited by Richard Rushing
Published by
Banner of Truth

Thursday, March 24, 2011

Wednesday, March 23, 2011

Watch the NASCAR race this Sat. Look for "Living Waters" and NeedGod.com on this car.

Living Waters Will be the Primary Sponsor of a Car in the NASCAR Nationwide Series Race Saturday March 26 at Auto Club Speedway in Fontana California. Click HERE to read more.

Friday, March 18, 2011

Is Martin Bashir more biblical than "Pastor" Rob Bell? Answer: Yes.



"There are some people, I might be one of them, that would say that our theology actually shapes our understanding of truth telling because of all people that should be bothered by the truth the Church and Christians should be at the very center of that discussion and that's why this book is so deeply disappointing...because it is disingenuous." - Martin Bashir on Rob Bell's new book

Martin Bashir Professes Faith in Christ and Attends Tim Keller's Church
You can listen to the 30-minute interview, here: http://networkedblogs.com/fxXwm

Tuesday, March 8, 2011

Church in Danger of Becoming Irrelevant, says Author

Contact: Trisha Ramos, Living Waters Publications, 800-437-1893, email@livingwaters.com


MEDIA ADVISORY, March 8, 2011 /Christian Newswire/ -- A Southern California-based ministry has given away almost 100,000 copies of a book God Has a Wonderful Plan for Your Life, with a cover graphic of Stephen being stoned to death and the provocative subtitle "The Myth of the Modern Message." According to the book's author, Ray Comfort, most of the books are being distributed free in an effort to turn the modern Church back to biblical evangelism. "If we don't stop telling this world that Christianity is a bed of roses without thorns," Comfort said, "we will become irrelevant in today's culture. We are getting close to being discarded salt, but it's not too late to turn this nation around."

Bible teacher and author William Fay (Share Jesus Without Fear), said of Comfort's message, "While reading this book my heart went into atrial fibrillation; it's that good! After I finished it, I couldn't sleep. There's nothing like it. It is truly from God." With the book going into a second printing, Comfort said he's encouraged that a major respected missionary organization will be sending free copies to all their missionaries.

To help spread this message, commuters in Los Angeles this month are seeing a unique billboard among the hundreds that encourage drivers to visit casinos, "gentlemen's" clubs, etc. "Hell's Best Kept Secret" is the message that actor Kirk Cameron heard in 2001 that "rocked his world." When Cameron preached that same message on a major TV network, it was so intriguing that Comfort's ministry received over one million hits on their website.

Comfort added, "We hope more Christians will take the time to listen and have a life-changing experience, and then influence their local church. With an estimated 4.5 million cars passing the billboard each month, the odds of that happening are pretty good."