fisher of men

  Tatian’s Blend: The Diatessaron Tatian, a Syrian pupil of Justin the Martyr, led a religious group called the Ecratites known for a life of severe self-denial. Tatian had learned Christian theology while the four gospels were still “circulated independently,” according to the New World Encyclopedia, not as chapters of the New Testament. After Justin was martyred for his faith in Rome, Tatian “severed his ties with the church” and blended his ascetic leanings with Justin’s teachings to produce a version of the gospels known as the “Diatessaron.” Diatessaron, derived from Greek and Old French, means “interval of a fourth” a.k.a. harmony. Tatian’s work does not represent every event told in the Gospels; he left out certain narratives such as the story of the adulteress whom Jesus saved...

A glance at Genesis reveals the paradise of peace that God intended from the beginning. Genesis 3 depicts God walking in the garden in the cool of the day. In the beginning Adam and Eve had easy access to their Creator. Because of their relationship with him, they enjoyed perfect peace—​a sense of wholeness, well-being, completeness, safety, and health. Words for sickness, confusion, pain, and death hadn’t even been invented because no one had ever experienced these things. But then something tragic happened—or failed to happen. They failed to listen, failed to trust, failed to follow. Instead they went their own way. And their choice to head in another direction led them in the worst direction of all—straight into exile. Being cast out of paradise, they ended up living in a land of thistl...

God Values Children It is clear from Scripture that God holds enormous love for children and values them with a father’s fervent passion. He loves them. He protects them. He values them. And He is more than willing to equip and empower them to minister to the world and believers in the church.  In the Psalms, David wrote that children are cherished in God’s eyes even before they are born. “For You formed my inward parts;you wove me in my mother’s womb. Iwill give thanks to You, for I am fearfully and wonderfully made; wonderful are Your works, and my soul knows it very well. My frame was not hidden from You, when I was made in secret, and skillfully wrought in the depths of the earth; your eyes have seen my unformed substance; and in Your book were all wr...

For more than 50 years, Michael Haynes served as pastor of the historic Twelfth Street Baptist Church in the Roxbury district of downtown Boston. Twelfth Baptist Church is a direct descendant of the First African Baptist Meeting House on Beacon Hill, founded in 1805. In 1840, a band of dissenters from the church felt led of the Holy Spirit to become involved in the Underground Railroad, an organized means of smuggling slaves from bondage in the South to freedom in the North. They became known as the Twelfth Baptist Church of Boston. When I first met Michael, I asked him what he did. He said he was a pastor of a church. “Just a little church, in Roxbury. That’s my ministry. Just three or four city blocks.” One of the first persons on those blocks that he had a chance to serve was a young ma...

Take Goliath Down by Max Lucado Goliaths still roam our world. Debt. Disaster. Dialysis. Danger. Deceit. Disease. Depression. Super-size challenges still swagger and strut, still pilfer sleep and embezzle peace and liposuction joy. But they can’t dominate you. You know how to deal with them. You face giants by facing God first. Focus on giants—you stumble. Focus on God—your giants tumble. You know what David knew, and you do what David did. You pick up five stones, and you make five decisions. Ever wonder why David took five stones into battle? Why not two or twenty? Rereading his story reveals five answers. Use your five fingers to remind you of the five stones you need to face down your Goliath. Let your thumb remind you of … 1. THE STONE OF THE PAST Goliath jogged David’...

Mercy and grace are the utmost attributes of love. The essence of the Bible is loving God and loving people through the lens of Jesus Christ. Two grand works of God have displayed His all-powerful, gracious, and merciful nature: creation and redemption. While God’s work of creation demonstrated His mighty power, God’s work of redemption revealed His marvelous love, shown through His mercy and grace. This very love of God is indispensable for the existence of life and the salvation of humanity. “The Lord is gracious, and full of compassion; slow to anger, and of great mercy. The Lord is good to all: and his tender mercies are over all his works.” (Psalm 145:8-9) Grace and Mercy: Definitions and Differences The Greek word used for mercy is most often eleos (pity, compassion) and for grace is...

“You keep him in perfect peace whose mind is stayed on you, because he trusts in you.” Isaiah 26:3 (ESV) The papers fell off the kitchen table and onto the floor. My children were running and playing as they usually do, completely unaware of anything besides the fun they were having. But in that moment, as I watched whatever little work I had accomplished journey to the floor from the breeze my children created, defeat overtook me. I’d been trying to get sensible words on those pages for hours, and nothing seemed to make sense. I thought the papers’ descent was my sign to just let it all go. Maybe try again another day, or at another time. Sinking further into the chair and wondering what to do next, I watched my children play. They were in the moment, having the best time, laughing, chasi...

The Dove in the Old Testament Prior to Jesus’s baptism, the dove was seen sporadically throughout the Old Testament. Each reference to the dove in Scripture had symbolic meaning even then and would be eventually fulfilled in the greater context of Jesus’s life and ministry, beginning with His baptism and continuing through the movement of the Holy Spirit, which lives on today. The Dove During the Flood During the last days of the great flood, which had covered the surface of the earth, it is written that Noah sent a dove to search for dry land (Genesis 8:8-9). On several occasions, the dove returned to the ark, signifying that the waters had not yet receded. Finally, on a separate flight, the dove returned to the ark with a “freshly picked olive leaf” (Genesis 8:11) and then, after seven d...

Saturday, September 14, 2019 Let’s Talk about Jesus. “Whoever calls on the name of the Lord shall be saved” (Romans 10:13 NKJV). Like some of us, Johnny was a natural backslider who kept God’s number on speed-dial for emergencies but otherwise sought direction and fulfillment through earthly channels. The most miserable place for a person to live is in a compromised life. Johnny had been in that ditch far too long. There comes a moment when you must surrender yourself to the Lord and confess Him as Master of your life. That moment had come for Johnny. One Sunday at church, an altar call was given, inviting people to repent of their sins and turn to Jesus. As others got up and moved down to the altar, Cash recalled the time he made his first altar call at the Baptist church in Dyess when he...

Gracious Definition: God’s Attribute We experience God’s grace because God is gracious. In Exodus 34:6, when God is showing himself to Moses, we read “The Lord, the Lord, the compassionate and gracious God, slow to anger, abounding in love and faithfulness.” Gracious is used here as an adjective describing God. It is one of his attributes. Gracious, the Hebrew word channun, in its verb form means to be considerate, to show favor. That God is gracious would mean that he is favorably inclined toward us. That he wants to show favor to us. To do what is best for us. God is gracious. Graciousness is not something that he puts on and takes off depending on the situation. He is always gracious. He does not decide to show us grace. Rather it is just who he is. Because he is graci...

This week I received the news that Jarrid Wilson, a beloved and talented young pastor, had died by suicide. In his ministry, Jarrid was deeply committed to the cause of suicide prevention and to ministering to those suffering from depression. Upon learning of his death, I was deeply grieved, and my heart continues to ache for Jarrid’s family. Friends have set up an account to help support Juli, Jarrid’s wife, and their two young children, which you can find at this link. It’s a growing crisis that needs attention. In thinking about Jarrid’s death, I’m also reminded of a growing crisis of suicide and self-harm among pastors and those serving in ministry. The Gospel Coalition has published a very helpful article on this subject that I recommend.  Finally, if you are personally strugglin...

That Verse before ‘All Things’ by John UpChurch “I know what it is to be in need, and I know what it is to have plenty. I have learned the secret of being content in any and every situation, whether well fed or hungry, whether living in plenty or in want.” Philippians 4:12  I’d rather live a Philippians 4:13 type life. But that verse before it always gets me. I’d rather jump right into the “doing all things through him who gives me strength” without slogging through the “content in any and every situation” part. The second verse makes for such great posters, but now, when I read it, all I can think is “whether living in plenty or in want.” Talk about a buzzkill. But God’s plans come in a larger size than my earthly satisfaction. He wants my sanctification, m...