“Feed the flock of God that is among you…” – 1 Peter 5:2 The Lord has designed godly elders, or shepherds, to lead in the local assembly because a leaderless people is destined for spiritual ruin. As illustrated in the book of the Judges, when Israel had no leader, “every man did what was right […]
Are we being upfront and honest about depression in Christian circles? Can the godly suffer from depression or is it only something that afflicts the weak in faith? For many believers the idea of Christian depression is an oxymoron that negates some of the foundational elements of the Christian faith, such as the call to […]
“And I sought for a man among them, that should make up the hedge, and stand in the gap before me for the land…” – Ezekiel 22:30 He intended to kill himself. As he walked towards the East River in lower Manhattan, he came upon something unexpected – a group of people standing on the […]
Sixteenth Avenue Gospel Chapel in Vancouver first opened its doors in 1947. It was located on the edge of a large development of new homes occupied mainly by families with young children. A large Sunday School was started and was blessed by the Lord with the conversion of many children. Over the years the demographics […]
In the fall of 1977, I attended a prayer meeting in an assembly in Barcelona, Spain. I would be teaching English as a Second Language in that city as a self-supporting missionary. My desire was to go into full-time work, but I did not want to be the pastor of a church and did not […]
Spiritually we are in a shocking condition. The status of many local fellowships is bad news, and deteriorating by the minute. It is fairly well known that there have been scandalous cases of immorality involving even elders and full-time workers. Of course this type of news never gets into the magazines; there everything is sweetness […]
I grew up in a Bible-believing church that celebrated the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ once each week in a meeting called “The Lord’s Supper.” The meeting is unlike communion services in mainline evangelical churches in that it is a service where men who have trusted in Jesus Christ can stand up to share […]