This past Sunday, I preached on Psalm 133. It is one of the great psalms of the Psalter. And it is addresses one of the important subjects of the Christian life: spiritual unity. For the record, I love the psalms. Like many Christians, the psalms sustain my devotional life through its various seasons. I find preaching the psalms to be difficult, but rewarding. It forces me to plunge deeper into these great hymns of faith. Psalm 133 addresses the subject of spiritual unity in an interesting fashion. It is not a song, but a sermon. In it, David does not...

Happy Labor Day! Congratulations to L. Daniel Williams, President of the Baptist Ministers Conference of Los Angeles and Pastor of the Baptist Church of the New Covenant, and his new bride, Jacqueline Williams, who were married this pastor Saturday at the West Angeles COGIC. I was privileged to announce the closing benediction. Sunday was the culmination of a long, busy week. I was (am) totally wiped out. It was one of the weeks when I wished I had a few more days before Sunday. But I was able to complete my work for Sunday and was ready to preach. Praise...

When I bought, Marva J. Dawn's book on worship, Reaching Out without Dumbing down, I jumped to chapter 9 to read it first, because of its provocative title: "Worship Ought to Kill Us: The Word." When I finished that chapter, it took me some time to get back to the book. I needed to pull myself together. As startling as this statement sounds, it really is an understatement. (By the way, we live in a day when we need truth stated in startling ways to get us to pay attention to divine realities that we have become too familiar with.)...

During these final weeks of my pastoral ministry at Mt. Sinai, I am concerned to be as helpful as I can be. So I am not throwing any hooks. I am trying to roll the ball right now the middle of the lane for the head pin (Please forgive the bowling analogy. I have no excuse.). This week, it is on my heart and mind to preach on the importance spiritual unity, for obvious reasons. And I have been working on Psalm 133 to make this point.  Psalm 133 is a rich, brief, and vivid song. It is both simple...

Over the years of my ministry to MSMBC, I have taught that Christ is the head of the church. And he exercises his authority the a plurality of godly leaders. That is the clear teaching of the New Testament concerning spiritual leadership. No church is to be a "one-man show." While one man should definite take the lead in shepherding the church, there should be a team of godly men around him to hold him accountable and share the burden of pastoral leadership. Most churches that operate as I have described above call this group a board of elders. We...

I knew all week that I wanted to preach on prayer yesterday. And I spent the beginning part of the week working on a message from Acts 12. But by midweek, I was drawn to this passage in 2 Thessalonians. I have never preached from 2 Thessalonians before. So I had a little extra work to do. But the Lord helped me to get it all done and I was ready to preach. Paul wrote 2 Thessalonians from Corinth, where he was facing various challenges. And he wrote this letter to a young church that was also facing various challenges....

After church this morning, my little sister, Donetta, informed me that portions of the Kidsongs Videos we did as children are on YouTube. One of my father's pastoral assistants helped to open this door for us when we were kids. We were able to participate in "A Day at Old McDonald's Farm." My "feature" song is about 4:30 minutes into this clip. I "starred" in "Take Me Out to the Ballgame." And about 6:30 minutes into the clip, you can catch a brief glimpse of me "pop-locking." And with all due respect and humility, I am still waiting on my...

In the preface to The Roots of Endurance, a collection of biographical sketches on the invincible perseverance in the lives John Newton, Charles Simeon, and William Wilberforce, John Piper, Pastor of Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis and featured teacher of Desiring God Ministries, writes: As I write this Preface I have just preached to my people several messages in which I pleaded with them to be "coronary Christians," not "adrenal Christians." Not that adrenaline is bad, I said; it gets me through lots of Sundays. But it lets you down on Mondays. The heart is another kind of friend. It...

This afternoon, my friend Keelan Atkinson and I were talking about about spiritual leadership, church life, and pastoral ministry.  To both warn and encourage me to keep my priorities straight in the days to come, Keelan shared with me a story that the late Pastor D.J. Ward told him some years ago. After he told me the story and we discussed it some, I asked if I share it on my blog. Actually, I think I announced that I was going to post it, rather than just asking. But Keelan was gracious and encouraged me to do so. I promised...

Bible commentaries are an essential tool for personal Bible study and Bible exposition. There are those who would vehemently disagree with that previous sentence. But do not listen to them. Commentaries are important and helpful. I strive to live by the principle of the Proverbs that teach the importance of godly counsel (e.g., Proverbs 11:141; 15:22; 20:18). This is one of the reasons why I use Bible commentaries. There are men who have spent decades studying particular books of the Bible. And it is foolish and arrogant for us to think that we would not be aided by consulting those...

Over the past several weeks, I have been listening to this snippet of Blanche McAllister-Dykes singing "I Love You, Lord" when I need to refocus. She is a former member of the Tri-City Singers. And she led "These Nails" on the finale album. Beyond that, this sister can just flat out sing. And the good and sovereign God she is singing to is truly worthy of our love, praise, and devotion! "I love the Lord, because he has heard my voice and my pleas for mercy. Because he inclined his ear to me, therefore I will call on him as...

"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ, so that each one may receive what is due for what he has done in the body, whether good or evil." - 2 Corinthians 5:10 (ESV)   I was intimately introduced to this verse as I was reading church history some years ago. I do not remember the specific source, unfortunately. But I distinctively remember the reference to this passage and the story related to it. Jonathan Edwards was sharply criticized during the Great Awakening. But in spite of the unfair and unwarranted attacks, Edwards never responded. He never...