Because of his sinful disobedience, the Lord fired Saul as King of Israel. He then sent the prophet, Samuel, to the house of Jesse in Bethlehem, to anoint a new king.  Jesse presented to the prophet his sons he thought would make a good king. But when Samuel turned his horn over their heads, the oil of God did not fall on any of them.  When Samuel saw one particular son, Eliab, he was convinced he had found his man. Eliab was straight out of central casting. He walked and talked and looked like a king. “Surely, this must...

Steve Gaines is the Pastor of the historic Bellevue Baptist Church in Memphis, where he has served since 2005. He has led several congregations over more than thirty years of pastoral ministry. Gaines is also the immediate past President of the Southern Baptist Convention (2016-2018). Steve Gaines is soul-winning pastor, faithful preacher, and prayer-driven leader, whose leadership, counsel, and preaching a sought-after by many. He is also the author of numerous books, including... Pray Like It Matters by Steve Gaines  Share Jesus Like It Matters by Steve Gaines Pray Like This edited by Steve Gaines When God Comes to Church by...

A Guest Post by Dr. Eugene McCormick The goal of this Christian Education Track is to help the church to fulfill the Great Commission of making stronger disciples of Jesus Christ.  The track is designed to equip pastors, ministers of education, Sunday School directors and teachers, small group facilitators, or any leader tasked with the responsibility of discipleship development in the church. This year marks the first time that a specific track, dedicated to Christian Education, is being added to the Cutting It Straight Expository Preaching Conference menu.   Within this track, under the major theme of “Christian Education Matters,” four...

So What is your vision for this church?  I was not asked this question at my first church. I was the son of the former pastor. I had grown up in the church. I was only seventeen-years-old. They assumed I did not have a vision plan for the church. Or that I did not have vision worth sharing. So they never asked. When I met with the pulpit committee of my present church, however, pastoral vision was a big issue. The committee had no real interest in me becoming their pastor. Yet they still wanted to know, “So what is...

My secretary stopped me in the hallway. She was obviously upset. I asked what was wrong. She began to weep. This was one of the most godly women I knew. And I couldn’t handle it when she cried. She often wept for others, rarely for herself. I pressed her to talk, only to discover she was weeping for me. The rumor about me she shared was really bad, heartbreaking, and absolutely not true. Another church employee supposedly witnessed to my wrongdoings. He knew me since I was a boy! I couldn’t understand why he would make up such a story. But...

I have always wanted to preach a sermon or teach a lesson entitled, “Give Mark a Minute!” Do you know who John Mark is? John Mark assisted Paul and Barnabas on their first missionary journey (Acts 12:25; 13:5). At some point, however, John Mark left the team and returned to Jerusalem (13:13-14). The gospel work continued without him. As Paul and Barnabas prepared for their second missionary journey, Barnabas proposed they bring John Mark. Paul flatly refused. John Mark had gone AWOL the last time. Paul saw no benefit in bringing this ministerial deserter with them again. Disagreement over John...

The following is an exert from Rediscovering Expository Preaching by John MacArthur, Jr. Fling him into his office. Tear the “Office” sign from the door and nail on the sign, “Study.” Take him off the mailing list. Lock him up with his books and his typewriter and his Bible. Slam him down on his knees before texts and broken hearts and the flock of lives of a superficial flock and a holy God Force him to be the one man in our surfeited communities who knows about God. Throw him into the ring to box with God until he learns how...

The following is a guest post written by my fried Charlie Dates, who serves as pastor of the Progressive Baptist Church in Chicago. There is a reason reality TV works. Unlike sitcoms, reality TV is inexpensive to produce. Very few sets and props have to be made. No script-writers need to be hired. The typical union fees associated with high caliber actors do not apply. It is full of drama. And perhaps most importantly, televised depravity is in high demand. Like some of you, I remember when MTV first aired the ‘Real World’ series in 1992. It was our generation's...

What is a bishop? This is a often asked question I get. It’s a new question about an old term. The word “bishop” is biblical. Different churches and denominations have used it to refer to church leadership and government throughout church history. Yet I often get questions about this term, as it has invaded Baptist ranks. Local churches within self-governing Baptist congregations have become consecrated bishops. As far as I can tell, this trend began with the Full Gospel Baptist Church Fellowship – a loose denomination of Charismatic Baptists. At least, this is when I caught wind of it. It...

I am not a confrontational person. I loathe conflict. I prefer peace and quiet. Yet I accept the fact that some conflict is inevitable. Some conflict is necessary. A pastor should not look for fights. Men of God must not be quarrelsome (2 Tim. 2:24). At the same time, we must not run from the fights we must fight. We must show up for the battles that matter. We must not stoop at standing time. Tough decisions, difficult conversations, loving confrontations go along with the territory. It's called leadership. But a servant-leader must know when to push an issue and...

In the physical real, when a baby is born, he is at once endowed with all the faculties of the human race. He has eyes, hands, feet, and brains. He never gets these later. Although they grow and develop, the whole person is there at the first. So it is when a person is born again. He has at that moment all the faculties that he will ever have, although there will be endless possibilities for developing them. - William MacDonald, The Believer's Bible Commentary (NT), p. 1130