Posts Tagged ‘Discipleship’
Cultivating Secure Personal Intimate Relationships with God
What kind of relationship to you have with God? Would you describe it as “personal and involved”? Would you describe it as “intellectual but distant”? How about “casual acquaintance”? There could be many other descriptors. Everyone has some kind of relationship with God; but not everyone has a good relationship with God. In a recent…
Read MoreAdvancing God’s Work through Training Nationals
Some 30 years ago, a missionary friend of mine was talking to another missionary. The other missionary believed that the only valid missionaries were church planters. So my friend asked him who pastors the national churches that are planted. He answered, “Nationals.” Then my friend asked where these nationals are trained. He answered, “Bible institutes.”…
Read MoreFollowing Jesus, No Reservations
Football season is in full swing. Players and fans of all ages are counting on exciting plays and victories. I am not much of a football fan, but I am a fan of both history and good stories. When these coalesce against the backdrop of football, I can be a fan. Take, for example, the…
Read MoreThe Baton of Faith
Becoming a common heartbreak for youth pastors are young people who, though having been reared in a Christian home, come up through years of Sunday school and church but fail to really embrace the Faith. They squander their teenage years, coming to church out of obligation and staying on the periphery, absorbed in self or…
Read MoreGod’s Work, God’s Way
Take ye heed, watch and pray: for ye know not when the time is (Mark 13:33). For we are HIS WORKMANSHIP, created in Christ Jesus unto good works, which God hath before ordained that we should walk in them (Ephesians 2:10). God trained Joseph over a 13 year period to prepare him for preserving the…
Read MoreIt Takes a Disciple to Make a Disciple
Discipleship is an essential feature of God’s plan to build His church; it is not an optional add-on to evangelism. Jesus spent many hours teaching both “the multitudes” and His disciples. The command of the Great Commission is to “make disciples” by baptizing new converts and then teaching them. This teaching is to be comprehensive—in…
Read MoreMy Son, Hear the Instruction of Thy Father
The Long War On July 10, 2007, the Commandant of the Marine Corps, General James T. Conway, gave a speech at the Marines’ Memorial Association and World Affairs Council in San Francisco, California. In General Conway’s opening remarks, he made the following statement: “Many in our country routinely characterize what is taking place in the…
Read MoreIf Jesus Was Perfect, Can He Really Be Our Example?
One of my favorite passages of Scripture is Hebrews 4:15, “For we do not have a high priest who is unable to sympathize with our weaknesses, but one who in every respect has been tempted as we are, yet without sin.” It reminds me that Jesus Christ, the very Son of God, understands my struggle.…
Read MoreGrowing in Grace – Resources for Christian Living
This article is excerpted from a blog where a member of the FBFI Emeritus Board shares his thoughts and musings. Frankly, I’ve read only one book on the subject of grace that was signally helpful to me, but in the context of my grace journey that book was a capstone to several other influences in…
Read MoreThe Full Scope of Your Calling as a Disciple
In a long, extended sentence, Paul demonstrated how to pray for other believers (Eph 1:15-21). First, he thanked God for those believers who came to mind. He did this “continually,” which means that whenever they came to mind, he prayed for them; and whenever he prayed for them, he did so with an underlying gratefulness…
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