Holding Fast The Faithful Word

We had a great time teaching this week in our Seminaire Baptiste Evangelique d’Haite.  I was joined by Pastor George Warren of New Hope Baptist in Pascoag, RI  andRick Paquette, from Pennsylvania.  Both of them were a wonderful asset to the module.  George taught Bibliology all week, teaching all the importance of the Word of God.  Rick Paquette did a great job teaching a wonderful session on Christ in the Psalms.  I taught all week from 1 Timothy 3:1-7 and Titus chapter 1 on the qualifications of a pastor.  I taught on the personal, public, paternal and pastoral qualifications necessary for pastors.  Our students were faithful, prompt, attentive and very responsive.  Many had interesting questions and all seemed to soak up the teaching like sponges.  We praise the Lord for the opportunity to teach 30 plus pastoral students that will have an impact on many churches and the work of the Lord in Haiti and beyond. 

Please pray for us as we train leaders for the churches in the Caribbean basin and beyond.   More than 60 students are enrolled and attending training in Florida, Cuba, Guatemala and Haiti.  This coming month we will be working with our churches in Cuba.  For the next couple of months we have camps planned for several locations as well as our training.  We appreciate your prayers as we serve the Lord to reach souls, plant churches and train their leaders.

To The Heart – Great Words For Great Works

EVANGELISM is just one beggar telling another beggar where to find bread. –D. T. Niles

If your Gospel isn’t touching others, it hasn’t touched you! –Curry R. Blake

We must be global Christians with a global vision because our God is a global God. — John Stott

The greatest hindrances to the evangelization of the world are those within the church. –John R. Mott 

The Great Commission is not an option to be considered; it is a command to be obeyed. –Hudson Taylor

He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose. –Jim Elliot

People who don’t believe in missions have not read the New Testament. Right from the beginning Jesus said the field is the world. The early church took Him at His word and went East, West, North and South. – J. Howard Edington

The Holy Spirit can’t save saints or seats. If we don’t know any non-Christians, how can we introduce them to the Savior? –Paul Little 

Missions is not the ultimate goal of the church. Worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t. — John Piper

Evangelization is a process of bringing the gospel to people where they are, not where you would like them to be. When the gospel reaches a people where they are, their response to the gospel is the church in a new place… –Vincent Donovan

The spirit of Christ is the spirit of missions. The nearer we get to Him, the more intensely missionary we become. – Henry Martyn

How you believe God perceives people will determine how you respond to them. –Jacquelyn K. Heasley

Life is too short and hell is too hot to just play church. –Larry Osborne

Some wish to live within the sound of a chapel bell; I wish to run a rescue mission within a yard of hell. — C.T. Studd

It is possible to do evangelism without planting churches, but it is not possible to plant churches without doing evangelism. –unknown

God’s plan in these last days is revival in His worldwide church and through the revived church the reaping of a final great harvest of souls. –N. Grubb

The Church exists for nothing else but to draw men into Christ, to make them little Christs. If they are not doing that, all the cathedrals, clergy, missions, sermons, even the Bible itself, are simply a waste of time. God became Man for no other purpose. –C. S. Lewis

We talk of the Second Coming; half the world has never heard of the first. – Oswald J. Smith

We Christians are debtors to all men at all times in all places, but we are so smug to the lostness of men. We’ve been “living in Laodicea “, lax, loose, lustful, and lazy. Why is there this criminal indifference to the lostness of men? Our condemnation is that we know how to live better than we are living. –Leonard Ravenhill

Being an extrovert isn’t essential to EVANGELISM–obedience and love are. –Rebecca M. Pippert

It is now possible to live a “christian life” without doing the things that Jesus commanded us to do. We have hired people to go into all the world, to visit those in prison, to feed the hungry, to clothe the naked, to care for widows and orphans. The average Christian doesn’t have to do it. –Cal Thomas

Missionary zeal does not grow out of intellectual beliefs, nor out of theological arguments, but out of love. – Roland Allen

Give me one hundred preachers who fear nothing but sin, and desire nothing but God, and I care not a straw whether they be clergymen or laymen; such alone will shake the gates of hell and set up the kingdom of heaven on earth. –John Wesley

“If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to Hell over our bodies. If they will perish, let them perish with our arms about their knees. Let no one go there unwarned and unprayed for.” Spurgeon

Some that concern the life we need to live for the world that needs a witness:

“Live simply so that others can simply live.” unknown

“He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain what he cannot lose.” Jim Elliot

Trust and obey not think and decide.

Never doubt in the dark what God has revealed in the light.

Thanks to Guy Muse Missionary to Ecuador for the compilation of the above quotes on his blog.

Preacher In Jail

Funny how those words can capture our interest and imagination.  But it is, I hope, a good way to increase readership.  The truth is several years ago I spent a short time in a Cuban jail.  Short as it was, I have had some jail time experience.  The short story on my experience is this:  I had run afoul of the Cuban authorities while planting churches in that communist island nation.  In all, I have been arrested and deported from there three times, twice restricted from re-entry for as long as two years.  However, by God’s grace we continue to do what we can in Cuba.

The purpose however, of this post is not to talk about my jail time, but another, much more interesting preacher: the Apostle Paul.  From the time of his arrest, transport and prison times Paul probably spent as much as seven (7) years incarcerated.  However, we do not find him bitter and frustrated as a prisoner, instead we find a man impassioned and extraordinarily useful during his imprisonment.  In fact, we find this preacher in jail to be quite prolific as he pens letters to the churches of the Ephesians, the Colossians, the Laodaceons, the Philippians and also to Philemon.  How insightful and pregnant with prayers, doctrine, and powerful instruction are these epistles.  Every reader of these epistles are blessed and helped.  Even though he was in bondage the Word of God was not bound!  “Wherein I suffer trouble, as an evildoer, even unto bonds; but the word of God is not bound.  Therefore I endure all thisgs … “  Yes, even imprisonment! 

Letter writing was not Paul’s only ministry.  Several other tremendous benefits come to us because of this preacher in jail.  He didn’t allow his imprisonment to hinder his missionary activity.  God allowed his cell time to be tremendously useful, in fact Paul writes to the Philippian church; “But I would ye should understand, brethren, that the things which happened unto me have fallen out rather unto the furtherance of the gospel; So that my bonds in Christ are manifest in all the palace, and in all other places; And many of the brethern in the Lord, waxing confident by my bonds, are much more bold to speak the word without fear.”  (Philippians 1:12-14)  From his notoriety as a prisoner, his public defenses before officials and leaders, his prison letters sent to churches, his witness to his guards, and his special liberties to welcome and minister to all visiting guests Paul utilized his prison time to maximize the effectiveness of his continuing missionary impact.  He was continually asking others to pray for him so that he could have the divine help to make use of all of the above opportunities always asking for prayers of open doors (Colossians 4:2-4) and emboldened possibilities for witness (Ephesians 6:19-20)!  He seemed unembarrassed to proclaim himself as an ambassador in chains.  Instead of whining or becoming depressed in the face of this adversity and persecution, he in fact, seemed to rise to the discovery of every benifit to the furtherance of the Gospel as a prisoner.  “What then?  notwithstanding, everyway, whether in pretence, or in truth, Christ is preached; and I therefore rejoice, yea and will rejoice.”  (Philippians 1:18)  What awesome testimonies by a preacher in jail. 

I would like to end this post by mentioning that I believe there are many, many preachers and yes many Christians in jail.  Not literally behind bars, but they have been imprisoned, fettered, and hindered in the ministry by many things.  The excuses for the limitations in our ministries are legion.  I believe the lessons we can learn from Paul’s incarceration can help us to overcome anything that might be hindering the furtherance of the Gospel of Jesus Christ to reach our world in this generation.  There is a world waiting to hear of Him.  There is much ministry to be done.  Letters written, witness given, disciples trained, Christ exalted.  What are you waiting for?  Let us do all we can to take the Gospel into the next towns.  www.baptistevangelism.org

Job, Jude and Jesus

During this past week I preached from the book of Job, the book of Jude and did all I could to exalt Jesus!  It was fun!  I love preaching!  I am just finishing up a great week in New England preaching in Rhode Island and Massachusetts.  A week ago on Monday I flew in from Guatemala, stopped one night at home and then flew to Providence, RI.  Pastor Mike Sokoll and his wife Patti were my super hosts as I enjoyed helping them celebrate the 20th anniversary of Providence Baptist Church.  Frances, Victoria and I moved to Rhode Island to plant this church in 1989.  Ransom came along the next year.  Our years in Providence were wonderful!  With the good help of Mike and Patti (who were with us from the beginning) we not only planted PBC in the inner city but we led a church planting movement in the northeast.  Over our seven plus years in Providence we worked through our Baptist Evangelism ministry to plant many other churches throughout New England, the northeast and even as far away as Arizona and Utah.  Had it not been for the faithfulness of the Sokolls we could not have carried this work on.  I like to think that I taught Brother Mike a few things while we worked together.  He was always my faithful right hand.  Now, even after 20 years he and his wife are still there.  The work is still going, growing and being used of God to win souls.  Several were saved during this anniversary meeting under the big tent on the church property. 

During my time in New England I was also invited to preach for New Hope Baptist in Pascoag, RI and Hillside Baptist in Spencer, MA.  Both of these churches are pastored by good friends of mine.  The pastor of NHBC is Pastor George Warren.  Recently he helped us with a seminary module in Haiti.  This pastor and his church are a real blessing.  Hillside’s pastor is Ralph DiChiara.  They are nearing 20 years in Spencer.  I had the opportunity to help him when he was first starting Hillside.  We recalled going door to door to find some of the first contacts for the church.  They now have an absolutely awesome building and I believe God will bless them as they continue to serve him.  What a joy it is to serve the Lord.