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“Among whom also we all had our conversation in times past in the lusts of our flesh, fulfilling the desires of the flesh and of the mind; and were by nature the children of wrath, even as others.” If a man who is born again by Christ is ever tempted to look down his long nose at a sinful world, he ought to remember the theme of this verse. Many believers today are outraged by the sins of a generation without Christ. We should instead remember our own lives without Him! Christians should never be surprised that lost people engage in gross sin with no conscience or remorse. They are simply walking in slavery to “the desires of the flesh and of the mind”. This is not an excuse for secular society to do wrong, it is simply a fact of reality that should prompt us to do more witnessing than protesting. We were, and sometimes are (presently); “even as others”. Sinners saved by grace are not better than other sinners, we are simply capable of recognizing evil and avoiding it. Yet even these capabilities cannot be used to elevate our sense of self-righteousness, because they are provided exclusively by God’s Holy Spirit.

I recently discovered a couple of terrific articles from Dr. Kevin Bauder of Central Seminary. In the first he addresses the Biblical validity of missionary field councils. The second considers local church authority, and how it relates to the practical work of a missions agency. Two controversial topics Bauder handles with ease.

After some significant planning, reworking, updating and picture-taking, I have finally posted an updated photo gallery. There are only fifteen photos available today (from my recent trip to England), but plans are in the works to have a lot more online soon. Keep in mind it took me almost a full two hours to resize, label and post this group, so I can imagine it will be a few weeks before other albums appear. (Dial-up internet is often frustrating.)

A few notes about the England 2007 album:

1. This is a very limited sample of the over 300 photos I kept.
2. Generally speaking it was too dark in the Churchill Museum for anything other than night-shot; hence the black and white, grainy look.
3. I will be adding fifteen or twenty more pictures in the next few days, and will hopefully also write a separate entry with trip details.

Access the Gallery any time by clicking the link at the top of the page. Select an album, then a photo. Navigate to the next or previous shot by moving the cursor to the left or right and clicking on the ‘Next’ or ‘Prev’ label. Sorry for the lengthy explanation; enjoy!

“And hath put all things under his feet, and gave him to be the head over all things to the church, Which is his body, the fulness of him that filleth all in all.” I was once asked the identity of “the church, which is his body”. The question came from a group of Christians I highly respect. They put a great emphasis on the importance of the local church, but believe all those who have placed their faith in Christ make up the the church described here; I heartily agree. The question comes as a result of error on two fronts. Some would almost disregard the place of the local church, in an effort to unite the entire body of Christ for practical service. Others live by a “local church only” philosophy that argues the true church is only seen in material form via local assemblies. The reality is that all believers in Christ are part of His body. Each New Testament congregation is the visible, organized agency through which God has chosen to carry out His plan. The entire church, which is His body, will only function together as a unit when God unites us in heaven. Until then, let’s focus on serving Him with full commitment in our local body every day.

“Having predestinated us unto the adoption of children by Jesus Christ to himself, according to the good pleasure of his will, To the praise of the glory of his grace, wherein he hath made us accepted in the beloved.” The word predestinate means to “decide beforehand”; what an amazing thought! God himself, realizing who we would be, and what we would do, decided beforehand to adopt us into his family. He didn’t make the decision grudgingly, but rather according to His own “good pleasure”. The thought of it is simultaneously wonderful and ridiculous. How is it that a holy God could choose to redeem humanity, by the sacrifice of His only son? The second verse gives us a hint; it was in accordance with His glorious grace. God, taking action in perfect harmony with His magnificent character, “made us” accepted. It is by God’s choice and direct action that we are saved. Take a moment to thank Him for choosing to do what He did not have to do.