Joe Pursch

Here, then, is the preacher’s authority. It depends on the closeness of his adherence to the the text he is handling, that is on the accuracy with which he has understood it and on the forcefulness with which it has spoken to his own soul. In the ideal sermon it is the Word itself that speaks…the less the preacher comes between the Word and its hearers, the better. The Christian preacher is best satisfied when his person is eclipsed by the light which shines from the Scripture, and when his voice is drowned by the Voice of God.

Many believers categorize personal ambition as only fitting for secular pursuits, and never consider the possibility that God might call them to live ambitiously for His work in the world. Come and explore the unleashing possibilities that come into view when we consider the Biblical place for “ambition and reward” in the plan of God.

Valley 4th Church January 6, 2013 from Valley Fourth Church on Vimeo.

Committing to the Christ of Christmas always involves a mixture of experiences and outcomes, all entered into by faith. This is because the message of the Christ is both a precious one because it is news of the Son of God entering the world to reveal the Father, and a costly one because it involves suffering the hostility of a world that resents the exposure of its sin in the light of the Savior’s perfect life and death. Simeon, an aged believer in the Coming Messiah, captures this tension of joy and suffering in his song of the Savior, for all generations of believers.

Reading through the first two chapters of the Book of Joel this winter evening. Impressions:

1:4 When God wants to bring devastation to a people, He can bring it like no other can. In waves until ultimate completion. His wrath can be relentless.

1:7 The target of God’s wrath was often the engine of prosperity in a nation. That which powered a false and man-derived sense of abundance and safety.

1:8ff The disaster of material loss is personified in various human vignettes. God changes circumstances in order to personally judge individuals. It is never not personal with God.

1:13 ff A frequent aspect of God’s words to people under judgment is how pointedly they are relayed to the priests and elders of the people. He calls them to pay attention to the God they should have never abandoned, and to the values of goodness they should have never forgotten…even though now in Joel that turning of the hearts in desperation may be “a turning too late.” Leaders frequently seem to lead their people into judgment, and God always points to them as singularly responsible when they do, because as leaders they had more knowledge, authority and responsibility.

2:12 “Yet even now, return to Me with all your heart…rend your hearts and not your garments. For once again the Lord will do great things, and bless you abundantly (2:21). As severe as God’s chastisement can be, it is overmatched by the arrival of His mercy when His people respond and repent. The blessing will be greater than the burden ever was.

If one is languishing under the hand of God, hurry and return. Seek His blessing!

2:28 describes how God not only restores physical and material blessing to His repenting people, but also the personal blessing of His presence through His Spiriit. He is the best of His blessings… always.

Valley 4th Church December 23, 2012 from Valley Fourth Church on Vimeo.