Earlier in August, the ACLU sent a letter to the city of Lancaster demanding they stop praying in the name of Jesus before city meetings. The letter stated that these “sectarian prayers” violate the U.S. Constitution’s ban on establishment of religion. Lancaster Mayor, R. Rex Parris responded by opening the following city counsel meeting by praying in Jesus’ name.

At that meeting the city council agreed to evaluate their rules about prayer during their meetings. On Tuesday, August 25, they voted unanimously to adopted new rules for invocations. The policy allows the individual asked to pray authority to pray specifically to his God. (more…)

As a pastor, I desire to motivate my people to achieve spiritual goals. I desire to motivate my staff to strive fore continuous improvement. Yet motivation itself is not enough, for all methods of motivation are not equal. I’ve learned over the years that there are both biblical and unbiblical ways to motivate people.

How do we biblically motivate God’s people? How can we know that the service taking place in our church is truly the result of “growing in grace”? (more…)

The close friendships I have shared with men like Dr. David Gibbs, Dr. Don Sisk, Dr. R.B. Ouellette, and others have taught me what an incredible treasure godly friends are. The Lord has often used them to encourage, strengthen, inspire, challenge, and sometimes convict me. Their role in my life causes me to want, not only to have godly friends, but also to be a godly friend! Following are some observations of the role of a godly friend: (more…)

In the last two posts (1, 2) we’ve been examining that there are many experimenting with local church philosophy. I am burdened that our next generation of pastors and leaders excercise discernment and wisdom—choosing to apply biblical models over more carnal and attractive options. God still blesses His model of local church ministry. We are examining three areas of philosophy—local church polity (first post), local church passion (the last post), and now let’s move on to local church purity.

Purity of the Local Church

This the third area where I see young pastors wonder and question is regarding the purity or holiness of the church. In Galatians the Bible teaches us we are not to walk in the flesh, but in the Spirit. The church is the bride of Jesus Christ, and as we assemble together locally, we must be sensitive to the Spirit of God. This will be reflected in the selection of our songs, the kind of language we use from the pulpit, and in many other ways. It is not my responsibility to make a list for your church to follow. But it is my responsibility, as a local church pastor, to be sure Lancaster Baptist Church is not quenching the Holy Spirit with vulgar vocabulary, pulsating music, or a casual or carnal approach to the services. For instance, many contemporary churches more resemble a comedy club than an assembly of called out believers. (more…)

In my last post I shared my burden for young men in ministry who are tempted to look outside the Bible for answers regarding local church philosophy. While there are many voices and many attractive models—the fact is, God still blesses the biblical model. It is vital that we exercise great discernment and wisdom in an age where so many are shouting for our attention. May nothing move us from employing Biblical methods and models as we plant and establish local churches.

We are examining three areas—local church polity (last post), local church passion, and local church purity (next post.)

Passion of the Local Church

The passion of a local church is “what a church does and why it matters”—for instance when and how often it meets for preaching and teaching. All around us there are seeker sensitive, mega-churches, whose contemporary Christian music and laid back style promotes a loss of passion and a very self-centered, casual Christianity. The message seems to say, “you can exert less energy and still have a great product.” Those who are looking to please the seekers or to please themselves (rather than the Saviour) will often accommodate the church’s schedule to their own whims. (more…)