Jehovah-Is Her Glory

Sermon Outline - May 13, 2007 - Pastor Scott Stout

Jehovah-Is Her Glory

Hebrews 11:23

I. The Character of Jochebed

Exodus 2:1

Exodus 3:6a "Moreover He said, I am the God of thy father..."

Proverbs 31:28-30

II. The Confidence of Jochebed

Exodus 1:7-11, 15-17

Exodus 2:1-4

Exodus 2:2 "...when she saw him that he was a goodly child..."

Exodus 2:5-10

Proverbs 22:6

III. The Contribution of Jochebed

Exodus 2:10

Acts 7:20-23

Hebrews 11:24-27

Acts 3:19-23

Habit #5: Spiritually Happy Men Tithe

I'm not sure if we will be going on to Habit #5, "Spiritually Happy Men Tithe" this coming Sunday, May 13th or not. I thought though I'd go ahead and get the links up on the blog so they are available should you have time to review the material ahead of time. There are video and audio (both streaming and downloadable) versions of the official "Man In The Mirror" presentations available for Habit #5 here. If you have about 35 minutes or so head on over and check them out. A downloadable "listeners outline" can be found here.

The Role of the Lay Person in the Church

I recently read an article on a blog I monitor that ties in nicely with the 4th Habit of Spiritually Men, namely, Spiritually Happy men are involved in a church. The blog is Pulpit Magazine. This particular post was made from material written by John MacArthur of Grace Community Church in souther California. In the April 23rd article he writes:

...Something is seriously wrong in a church where the staff does all the “ministry” and people are made to feel comfortable as mere observers. One of the pastor’s main duties is to equip the saints to do the work of the ministry (Eph. 4:12). Every believer is called to be a minister of some sort, with each of us using the unique gifts given us by God for the edification of the whole church (Rom. 12:6-8)...

If you have the time read through the whole article and bring your comments to church with you on Sunday.

Learning to Lean

Sermon Outline - April 29, 2007 - Pastor Scott Stout

Learning to Lean

Hebrews 11:21

Learning to Lean

Matthew 5:23-24

I. The Woe

Genesis 31:3

Genesis 32:3-8

Genesis 32:13-20

II. The Wrestling

Genesis 32:24-31

Genesis 32:25

Genesis 32:26

Genesis 32:27

Psalms 51:17

III. The Worship

Genesis 32:28-29, Genesis 33:1-4

Hebrews 11:21

I Corinthians 11:31

Habit #4: Spiritually Happy Men Are Active in a Church

The Bible Study class was to begin Habit #4 in our series, the "Six Habits of Spiritually Happy Men." However, the attendance was down and so consequently, we spent the hour discussing a topic that came up briefly in the April 22th class, namely, where was Adam when Eve was being tempted. Both Dan and I had done some research during the past week to see if the answer to that question could be determined from scripture. It was an interesting discussion and I, for one, am not done studying it out.

God willing, we will get into Habit #4 this coming week, May 6. There are video and audio (both streaming and downloadable) versions of the official "Man In The Mirror" presentations available for Habit #4 here. If you have about 35 minutes or so head on over and check them out. A downloadable "listeners outline" can be found here.

Alienation to Adoption

Sermon Outline from April 22, 2007 - Pastor Scott Stout

Alienation to Adoption

Hebrews 11:21

Galatians 6:10 NIV

Genesis 17:8

Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali,

Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph, Benjamin

I. Alienated

Genesis 48:1-5a (5a being,"And now thy two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, which were born unto thee in the land of Egypt.)

Ephesians 2:2-3

Psalms 51:5 HCSB

II. Adoption

Genesis 48:5

Genesis 48:5 AMP

John 1:12 NASB

Ephesians 1:5

Romans 8:14-17

III. Assurance

Genesis 48:21

I Peter 1:3-5

Small Groups - Part 3

-Remember The Big Idea of this habit- The Holy Spirit has more options to help you when you are part of a small group.

Pat Morley's final point in his presentation for Habit #3, "Spiritually happy men are in a small group," in his series the "Six Habits of Spiritually Happy Men" asks the question-What are some ways to make the most of your small group?

The notes that I took while I listened to the presentation follow:
3. Make the most of your small group.
What would you do in a small group?
1. Outreach
2. Pray
3. Accountability - man in the mirror weekly check up card. (apparently this is a free resource that is available by calling the offices of Man In The Mirror.)
4. Encourage one another.
5. Counseling one another.
6. Fellowship.
7. Mentor one another.
8. Participate in a common challenge like "praying with your wife."
9. Bible Study.
10. Book Study
11. Group discussions.
12 Some combination of the above.

There is not one best way to do a small group. The best way to do a small group is to do a small group. (This reminds me of a great quote I once heard "The best way to make sure you finish something is to begin.)
The real benefit of the small group is really the by-product of being together. That is you become brothers. There are many resources available at Man in the Mirror->Search term "Small group"-> Search Results.

What about you as a participant? What can you do to make the most of your small group?
1. Show up, participate, not to be on the fringe.
2. A willingness to be personally vulnerable.
3. Be forthcoming. This comes with a covenant of confidentiality, and there must be trust...this comes over time.

Small Groups - Part 2

Continuing on where we left off in Pat Morley's presentation of the third "Habit of Spiritually Happy Men", we find ourselves searching for things that a small group can do. Here Pat Morley references three passages of the Bible to bring out six things that small groups can do for you.

2. What a small group can do:
-Hebrews 10:24 - and following...
a. It can give you someone to spur you on. It can inspire you.
b. It can give you someone to encourage you.
Galatians 6:1 - and following...
c. Carry each other's burdens.
d. Restore one another.
Ecclesiastes 4:9 - and following...
e.Give you someone to pick you up when you fall down.
f. Give you someone to give you strength for the battle.

Pat Morley points out that these things are part of the work of the Holy Spirit in the life of a believer. He ties this work in to the big idea of this presentation which is the Holy Spirit has more options in the life of a believer when they are in a small group. When you are on your own you are a little more vulnerable then when you are part of a small group. You've got some guys watching your back.

To illustrate this point in the presentation, Morley called four guys up to the front of the room. He had them standing next to each other in a line. Then he pushed on the first one of them. Instinctively, the others supported the first, but not before he moved a bit. Next he had the four men lock arms in a circle facing each other. He then pushed on the first again. Automatically, the others helped the first and there was little movement of the first person. Finally, Morley had the men lock arms in a circle, facing out. Again he pushed on the first and there was little movement because there was lots of support from the rest of the group--and because they were facing out, they could prepare for what was coming.

Morley suggested reading "A Look in the Mirror" issue number 94 for ideas on how to lead a weekly small group study. Jesus used a small group to generate momentum. Jesus knew that most meaningful change takes place in the context of small group relationships. men sharpening men with truth, encouraging each other for the daily battle and sticking with each other over the long haul. Even secularists understand the value of small group. "never doubt the power of a small group to change the world," one commentator said, "That's about the only way it has ever happened." But the main method of Jesus has fallen into disuse. The next post will be about the third item in Morley's presentation--How to make the most of your small group.

Small Groups - Part 1

I had the opportunity to watch the video presentation of the Habit #3 in our series the Six Habits of Spiritually Happy Men, namely "Spiritually Happy Men are in Small Groups", last night. The following is a brief outline of the presentation with notes on the first point. Notes on the other points will come in subsequent posts.

Spiritually Happy Men are in Small Groups

1. Why men need small groups.
2. What a small group can do.
3. Make the most of your small group.

Regarding point number one above: Why men need small groups. Pat Morley answers the question with a short and to-the-point answer-"Because you need a small group." He goes on for much of the rest of the presentation to support that short statement. Also, the Big Idea of this habit is presented with respect to why men need small groups. The Big Idea is:

"The Holy Spirit has more options to help you when you are part of a small group."

Regarding this point about the work of the Holy Spirit, Morley asks for patience on the part of the listener as he defends this supposition for the rest of his presentation. The next post on this topic will highlight ways that the Holy Spirit can use small groups in the life of the believer.

Why is reading the Bible So Valuable? - Part 5

One more article on this subject. I recently read and listened to the following article by John Piper. It is relevant to this topic. I would be very interested to read your comments after you read or listen to this article excerpted below:

"The Morning I Heard the Voice of God" by John Piper

Let me tell you about a most wonderful experience I had early Monday morning, March 19, 2007, a little after six o’clock. God actually spoke to me. There is no doubt that it was God. I heard the words in my head just as clearly as when a memory of a conversation passes across your consciousness. The words were in English, but they had about them an absolutely self-authenticating ring of truth. I know beyond the shadow of a doubt that God still speaks today...

Why is reading the Bible So Valuable? - Part 4

This past Sunday, during the men's first hour study, I turned the discussion back a couple of weeks to cover a little more about the first of the "Six Habits of spiritually happy men", namely spiritually happy men read their Bible regularly. I read a bit from a rather long sermon given by a 19th century preacher on this subject, J.C. Ryle. I mentioned that I would put a link on the blog to the full text of the sermon:
Bible-Reading by J.C. Ryle
The link above points to the great website: The Bible Bulletin Board. I have written about this site in a previous post and there is a link provided for you over on the sidebar on the right.

Habit #3: Spiritually Happy Men Are In A Small Group - Part 2

The following material was prepared by Allan Trigg for distribution last Sunday morning, April 14, 2007. Allan wanted everyone to read over the material and come ready to discuss it next Sunday.

HABIT 3: MEN ARE IN A SMALL GROUP

Bible Verses: Hebrews 10: 24-25, Galatians 6:1-10, Ecclesiastes 4:9-12

Focus Questions: Why small groups? What can a small group do? How do you make the most of your small group?

Why meet in a small group? What are some advantages? What can small groups accomplish that large groups cannot?

-Jesus used small group dynamics and one-on-one methods to change lives.

-Hebrews 10: 24-25: What do these verses tell us about meeting together and what can result as we meet? Meet to encourage, meet to exhort, meet to fellowship, and meet to encourage outreach.

Read Galatians 6:1-10: How can a small group work in these verses? What do we see happening in verse 1, and how can a small group work in this scenario? What do we see happening in verse 2 and how a small group can work well here? Verse 10 talks about another opportunity that we have working together as men. What is that opportunity?

Read Ecclesiastes 4:9-12: What do these verses tell us about what a small group can do vs. and individual? What can a small group do when a fellow brother fails?

Accountability, Trust, Responsibility, Confidentiality: These 4 attributes are very important in the success or failure of a small group. Discuss how these attributes can be developed and used positively in a small group setting.

FOR DISCUSSION NEXT WEEK: We will discuss an make a working model of a dynamic, positive, active, Biblically based, spiritually grounded small group. We will use your small group experiences as to what has worked, what hasn’t and other scriptural directives there are.

Albert Barnes (1798-1870)

Having previously introduced Albert Barnes in a prior article, I figured it would be nice to add some biographical information to this blog. As noted at Wikipedia,

Barnes was an American theologian, born at Rome, New York, on the December 1, 1798. He graduated at Hamilton College, Clinton, New York, in 1820, and at the Princeton Theological Seminary in 1823. Barnes was ordained as a Presbyterian minister by the presbytery of Elizabethtown, New Jersey, in 1825, and was the pastor successively of the Presbyterian Church in Morristown, New Jersey (1825–1830), and of the First Presbyterian Church of Philadelphia (1830–1867).

Other Barnes resources that I found after a quick search on Google follow:

• Brief biography at SwordSearcher.com
• Brief biography at FamousAmericans.com
• Works by Albert Barnes at the Christian Classics Ethereal Library

Habit #3: Spiritually Happy Men Are In A Small Group

Last Sunday, April 15, 2007, the men's group finished up Habit #2 and covered some additional topics regarding Habit #1 in the series which we are now working through, the "Six Habits of Spiritually Happy Men." Consequently, we will begin to look at the next "Habit" in the series, Number 3, "Spiritually Happy Men Are In A Small Group." There are video and audio (both streaming and downloadable) versions of the official "Man In The Mirror" presentations available for Habit #3 here. If you have about 35 minutes or so head on over and check them out. A downloadable "listeners outline" can be found here.

I don't have it with me right now, otherwise I would post it with this article, but Allan Trigg has put together a study sheet that corresponds to this habit. I will post that in a new article later on tonight.

Two Manner of People

Sermon Outline from April 15, 2007 - Pastor Scott Stout

Two Manner of People

Hebrews 11:20

The Description

Genesis 25:19-27

Genesis 25:23

The Despising

Genesis 25:29-34

The Disqualification

Genesis 27:30-36

Romans 1:24,26,28

Hebrews 12:16-17

Hebrews 12:16-17 AMP

Habit # 2: Spiritually Happy Men Pray With Their Wives

Last Sunday, April 8, 2007, the men's group broke into the next topic, Habit #2, in the series which we are now contemplating, the "Six Habits of Spiritually Happy Men." During the presentation that covers Habit #2 three main topics are discussed.

1. Is this hard and if so, why?
   
2. What make this important?
   
3. How to make it happen.
   

There are video and audio (both streaming and downloadable) versions of the official "Man In The Mirror" presentations available for Habit #2 here. If you have about 35 minutes or so head on over and check them out. A downloadable "listeners outline" can be found here.

I understand that the men's group will be looking at this topic again this coming Sunday, the 15th as we did not really finish up last week.

Why is reading the Bible is so valuable? - Part 3

Reason number 2 for the statement that we are exploring "Why reading the Bible is so valuable" from our series "Six Habits of Spiritually Happy Men" by Patrick Morley of Man In the Mirror is that "It is true." Jesus said if you continue in His word, then you will know the truth. (See John 8:32 -KJV):

Jhn 8:31	Then said Jesus to those Jews which believed on him, If ye continue in my word, [then] are ye my disciples indeed;
Jhn 8:32	And ye shall know the truth, and the truth shall make you free.

John 17:17b declares: "Thy Word is truth."

While thinking on this topic I was reminded of a book I have been reading recently, Truth Matters, which was written by John MacArthur of Grace Community Church in Southern California. The book itself is a compilation of various chapters from several of MacArthur's books. In the first chapter, Truth in a world of theory, MacArthur quoted American theologian Albert Barnes in reference to his explanation of the word translated "perfect" in Psalm 19:7 (KJV). The quote comes from page 171 of Barnes' work entitled Notes on the Old Testament: Psalms, vol. 1, the text of which is reproduced below:

The meaning [of "perfect"] is that it [Scripture] lacks nothing in order to its completeness; nothing in order that it might be what it should be. It is complete as a revelation of Divine truth; it is complete as a rule of conduct. As explained above, this refers not only to the law of God, as the word is commonly employed now, but to the whole of Divine truth as revealed. It is absolutely true; it is adapted with consummate wisdom to the wants of man; it is an unerring guide of conduct. There is nothing there which would lead men into error or sin; there is nothing essential for man to know which may not be found there.

A more complete and succinct definition of that word I have not read. Barnes' complete commentary can be read over at the Christian Classics Ethereal Library at their "Works by Albert Barnes" section.

Robert Moffat

I thought I'd continue today by adding some biographical information on Robert Moffat, a missionary to South Africa that I mentioned in a previous post. One of the lengthier on-line articles that I found on him is on a website called Wholesome Words, specifically in their missionary biography section here. Their introduction to Moffat is quoted below:

"Scottish pioneer missionary to South Africa for over 50 years. He opened mission stations in the interior, translated the Bible into the language of the Bechuanas, and wrote two missionary books on South Africa: Labors and Scenes in South Africa and Rivers of Water in a Dry Place. His oldest daughter Mary, married David Livingstone."

Other on-line Moffat resources are listed below:

• Encyclopedic Entry at Wikipedia.
• Biographical Sketch from East Hull Presbyterian Church.
• Short Biography (with Bibliography) at the Dictionary of African Christian Biography.
• eBook at Project Gutenberg.

Feel free to post other links to Moffat sites that you might find online in the comments area for this post

Isaac: A Symbolic Picture

Sermon Outline from April 8, 2007 - Pastor Scott Stout

Isaac: A Symbolic Picture

Hebrews 11:17-19

Romans 5:9

I Thessalonians 1:10

I Timothy 2:5

Hebrews 4:14

I. The Sacrifice

Genesis 22:1-5

Leviticus 1:1-4

II. The Submission

Genesis 22:6-9

III. The Substitute

Genesis 22:10

Genesis 22:13

Genesis 17:19

Hebrews 11:17-19 (again)

Genesis 22:14 NIV

IV. The Symbolic Picture

Acts 2:23 HCSB

Revelation 13:8 "...the Lamb slain from the foundation of the world."

I Peter 3:18

John 15:13

Luke 22:42

John 1:29 "...Behold the Lamb of God, which taketh away the sin of the world."

Galatians 1:3-4

Romans 4:25 NIV

Why is reading the Bible so valuable? - Part 2

I was reading another blog that I monitor this week called Challies Dot Com when I stumbled across this quote from a famous old missionary to South America, Robert Moffat, regarding his relationship with the Word of God. I thought it was particularly applicable to this part of our study on the "Six Habits." (The following text is the entire post from Challies Dot Com, the part in italics is the quote from Robert Moffat).

Robert Moffat was a Scottish missionary to South Africa and this quote is drawn from a letter he wrote to his wife Mary. In the mid 1850's he completed the great work of translating the entire Bible into Sechuana and subsequently revised the translation several times. Despite this work he provides an assessment of the limitations imposed by his humanity.

It was only yesterday, after laying down the Bible, that I wondered what kind of mind I would have had if I had not the Book of God, the Book containing the astounding idea of 'from everlasting to everlasting,' the development of all that is worth knowing ... One would think, that as I have critically and, I think, devoutly read and examined every verse, every word in the Bible, some a score of times over, I should not require to open the pages of that unspeakable blessed Book. Alas, for the human memory! I read the Bible today with the same feeling I ever did, like the hungry when seeking food, the thirsty when seeking drink, the bewildered when seeking counsel and the mourner when seeking comfort. Don't you believe all this? For alas, I read it sometimes as a formal thing, though my heart condemns me afterwards ... I am yet astonished at my own ignorance of the Bible!

Why is reading the Bible so valuable?

During his presentation on Habit 1 of his series "Six Habits of Spiritually Happy People", Patrick Morley offers three points that surround the topic of Habit 1 - "Spiritually happy men read the Bible regularly", as I wrote in a previous post, they are:

1. Why reading the Bible is so valuable.
2. What is our goal?
3. What are some Bible reading strategies?

In this post we will look a bit closer at the first topic, namely, Why reading the Bible is so valuable. Patrick Morley offers three reasons as to why Bible reading is particularly valuable:

1. It works.
2. It is true.
3. It is how God speaks to us.

Let's take a closer look at the first reason: "It Works." What does Morley mean by this? Well, he turns to a few key passages in the Bible to explain his point. Isaiah 55:11 says in the KJV:

So shall my word be that goeth forth out of my mouth: it shall not return unto me void, but it shall accomplish that which I please, and it shall prosper [in the thing] whereto I sent it.

Here Morley points out that God is speaking of his Word, that it is efficacious, it works, it is powerful, it shall accomplish what God wants it to and it will prosper in doing so. He goes on further to read from Hebrews 4:12 (again the the KJV):

For the word of God [is] quick, and powerful, and sharper than any two edged sword, piercing even to the dividing asunder of soul and spirit, and of the joints and marrow, and [is] a discerner of the thoughts and intents of the heart.

Here he notes that the Word of God is full of living power and it exposes us for what we really are. Ponder these points for a bit. In what way has the Bible been "Working" in your life? What has it accomplished in your life? What has it discerned about the thoughts and intents of your heart?

Video Article for Habit #1

If you have about 35 minutes or so to watch a video presentation of "Habit #1: Spiritually Happy Men Read the Bible Regularly", head on over to the Man in the Mirror website. There is an archive there of video presentations for each of the Habits. You can download the whole video free of charge and watch it offline (beware, the file size is about 123MB) or you can stream it directly into a video player depending on which link you select. I believe the file type is Windows Media Player.

Habit #1: Spiritually happy men read the Bible regularly.

During the presentation that covers Habit #1 in the series "Six Habits of Spiritually Happy Men", three topics are discussed.

1. Why reading the Bible is so valuable.
2. What is our goal in reading the Bible?
3. What are some Bible reading strategies?

Over the next couple posts, I will add information that covers each of these questions. Please feel free to add comments that help explain these topics as you study them out individually.

Six Habits

This past Sunday morning, April 1, 2007 Allan Trigg introduced the new series of lessons that the Men's first hour class will be working our way through for the next few weeks. The series is called "The Six Habits of Spiritually Happy Men." The series is presented at the Man in the Mirror website under the "A Look in the Mirror" section, Item 122-Six Habits of Spiritually Happy Men. Each week--or so--we will be looking at another of the "Habits" and discussing the impact that they have on our relationship with God, our spouses, our children, the people at church and our acquaintances outside of church.

I suspect that each week a lot of additional material will be made available through this blog prior to the discussion on Sunday mornings.

The Voice of God

One of the topics in this week's lesson is the question "Why is Bible reading so valuable?" The third answer to that question is that "God uses the reading of His word to speak to us". While studying this point I was reminded of a recent post by John Piper, the Pastor for Teaching at Bethlehem Baptist Church in Minneapolis, Minnesota. In it Piper describes his experience this past March 19th at 6:00 in the morning. He titled his article "The Morning I Heard The Voice Of God."

Baptist Concern Center

I received the email below from Joe Gearo a couple days ago regarding the Baptist Concern Center in Salt Lake City. Please consider what part you and your family may be able to take in meeting this need.

Dear Brothers and Sisters:

1. Jonathan Jones at the SLC Baptist Concern Center (BCC) is very appreciative of the way Stansbury Park Baptist Church (SPBC) members/attenders have supported his ministry over many months. The BCC continue to request food/supply donations to help meet needs of others, which serves as an outreach for the Gospel of Christ. That said, the SPBC leadership team encourages you all to pray and support these needs as the Lord moves your heart and provides opportunity for you to give to the BCC's ministry.

2. During the months of April and May 2007, SPBC will be collecting items to take to the BCC. If you desire to give to this need, please bring your donations to SPBC (Rose Springs Elementary School) on Sundays and place them in the maroon Rubbermaid container for the BCC. For the next two months, the BCC has requested:

• Shampoo
• Canned Meats
• Canned Tomatoes
• Canned Tomato Sauce

3. Any items donated that do not exactly fit in one these four categories will be donated by SPBC to the Tooele Food Bank to help meet local community needs.

4. Please prayerfully consider if and how you can participate in this demonstration of love as SPBC partners with the BCC and the Tooele Food Bank. If you have any questions or need additional information, please call me on 843-4343,

Rejoicing in Jesus,

Brother Joe Gearo

Palm Sunday

Sermon Outline from April 1,2007 - Pastor Scott Stout

Palm Sunday

Hebrews 11:13

Hebrews 11:13 (again)

I. Promise Fulfilled

Luke 19:28-35

James 4:15

Acts 18:21

Zechariah 9:9 NIV

Luke 18:31-33

II. People's Foolishness

Luke 19:36-40 and Luke 23:18-24

Luke 20:1

Proverbs 1:7

Ephesians 5:17 NIV

III. Peace Forfeited

Luke 19:41-44

Sarah, is anything too hard for the Lord?

Sermon Outline from March 25, 2007 - Pastor Scott Stout

Sarah, is any thing too hard for the Lord?

Hebrews 11:11 & Genesis 18:14

I. Sarah's Concept
Hebrews 11:11 "...and was delivered of a child when she was past age..."
Genesis 11:29-30
Genesis 12:7
Genesis 15:3-5
Genesis 16:1-2
Psalms 27:14
Genesis 18:9-13

II. Sarah Considered
Genesis 11:11 (NASB) "By faith even Sarah herself received ability to conceive, even beyond the proper time of life, since she considered Him faithful who had promised."
Genesis 18:10
Romans 4:19-21

III. Sarah Conceives
Hebrews 11:11 "Through faith also Sarah herself received strength to conceive seed..."
Isaiah 26:3-4
Isaiah 41:10

IV. Sarah Contributes
Genesis 17:15-16

________, is any thing too hard for the Lord?

The Names of God - Completed

This past Sunday, March 25, the Men's first hour Bible Study class finished its series entitled "The Names of God". I have consolidated all of the articles related to this study under the label "The Names of God." Previously, the individual names such as Jehovah Tsidkenu, had their own sub-label. In an effort to keep the number of active labels to a minimum, I have taken all of those sub-labels off. If you still want to find a particular name, you can always use the search field at the top of this page.

The Great Awakening

A couple weeks ago I posted an article on the early Methodist preacher George Whitefield. That article mentioned Whitefield's role in the First Great Awakening. This period (1730s-1740s) was a time of spiritual revitalization that made its way around the colonies. Preachers like Jonathan Edwards and George Whitefield were referred to as "new lights." because they preached in a radically different manner than did other more traditional preachers of the day. One of the fall-outs of this was that people began to study the Bible at home...imagine that! More information on the First Great Awakening including the source text for this article can be found here.

JEHOVAH-JESUS: The Lord Our Savior

The men's first hour Bible study class will be moving on to the final lesson in our ongoing series "The Names of God", next Sunday, March 25, 2007. Lesson 9--"Jehovah-Jesus: The Lord Our Savior" is the last lesson in the series that is based on a online book written by Don Fortner. The text of the lesson can be found here. Please read over the lesson and the associated references in the Bible and come prepared to share what you have learned this week on Sunday morning. Please remember, on way to stay in touch with each other this week on this subject is to use the comment link below.

Abraham: Father of True Believers

Sermon Outline from March 18, 2007 - Pastor Scott Stout

Abraham: Father of True Believers

Hebrews 11:8-10
Romans 4:11 "...the father of all them that believe..."

I. Abraham Sets Out
Hebrews 11:8
Genesis 12:1-3
Joshua 24:1-2
Ephesians 2:10
II Corinthians 6:16-18
Genesis 12:1
Genesis 11:27-32
Genesis 12:4-5
Colossians 3:6-10

II Abraham Sojourned
Hebrews 11:9
Genesis 12:6-9
Proverbs 3:5-6
Genesis 12:9-10

III. Abraham Seeking
Hebrews 11:10
Hebrews 11:13-16

JEHOVAH-SHAMMAH

The Men's first hour Bible study class will be moving on to lesson 8 in our ongoing series on The Names of God next Sunday, March 18, 2007. We have been using as our guide lessons written by Don Fortner and published on his website: www.freegrace.net. Lesson , Jehovah-Shammah - The Lord is There can be found here. Please read over the lesson and the associated references in the Bible and come prepared to share what you have learned this week on Sunday morning. Also, please feel free to use the comment link at the bottom of this post or any other post on this site to begin a conversation about any point relevant to the particular post.

Biblical Leadership

The below bulleted statements are from John MacArthur's book "The Book on Leadership"

• The truest kind of leadership demands service, sacrifice and selflessness.
• Leadership is influence - The ideal is someone whose life and character motivate people to follow.
• Real leadership seeks to motivate people from the inside, by appealing to the heart, not through external pressure.
• Leadership is not about style or technique, it is about character.
• The real leader is an example to follow.
• Character is the true biblical test of great leadership.
• Every christian is called to be a leader at some level. We are all mandated to teach and influence others. Matt 28:19-20
• Great adversity can be turned to great advantage by the power of a influential leader.
• A leader is trustworthy.
• A leader earns a reputation of trust.

Travel Break

I will probably not be able to post anything new over the next couple days as I will be travelling to the Washington DC area to visit my brother who is in the hospital. I should be back home on Tuesday, March 13th. Regular posting should resume then.

Thanks very much to all of you who have been faithfully praying for the recovery of my brother. I appreciate it very much.

George Whitefield

After posting the previous article on George Whitefield's sermon on Jeremiah 23:6, I thought it might be prudent to post some information on Whitefield so we might all get to know him a bit better. I found this brief biography on him on a site I frequent, www.monergism.com.

"George Whitefield, used greatly of God in the first great awakening (1730s - 1740s), was a minister in the Church of England and one of the leaders of the Methodist movement. He was born on December 16, 1714 at the Bell Inn, Gloucester, and died in Newburyport, Massachusetts on September 30, 1770. In contemporary accounts, he, not John Wesley, is spoken of as the supreme figure and even as the founder of Methodism. He parted company with Wesley over the doctrine of predestination. He was famous for his preaching in America which was a significant part of the Great Awakening movement of Christian revival."

Other Whitefield resources are listed below:

• Transcriptions of sermons at Bible Bulletin Board
• Encyclopedic entry at Wikipedia
• Biography and Sermons at The Anglican Library

Feel free to post other links to Whitefield sites that you might find online in the comments area for this post

The Lord our Righteousness-Whitefield

Another sermon on Jeremiah 23:6 and specifically the phrase "JEHOVAH TSIDKENU" that is worthy of scrutiny was preached by George Whitefield. The text of the sermon can be found here at The Bible Bulletin Board. In this sermon Whitefield "proposes, through divine grace,

• I. To consider who we are to understand by the word Lord.
• II. How the Lord is man's righteousness.
• III. I will consider some of the chief objections that are generally urged against this doctrine.
• IV. I shall show some very ill consequences that flow naturally from denying this doctrine.
• V. Shall conclude with an exhortation to all to come to Christ by faith, that they may be enabled to say with the prophet in the text, "The Lord our righteousness."

The sermon is a bit lengthy, but certainly worth the investment of your time.

JEHOVAH TSIDKENU - Week 2

The Sunday morning Bible Study will again focus on Lesson 7 in our series on The Names of God this coming Sunday, March 11, 2007. At this point four articles on this topic have already been posted on this blog. The original source material for the lesson is a web book written by Don Fortner and can be found here. Please read over the material and come next Sunday morning ready to discuss it with the other men.

Enoch Walked With God

Sermon Outline from March 4, 2007 by Scott Stout

Enoch Walked With God

Hebrews 11:5-6

I. Enoch Pleased God
Hebrews 11:5 "...he had this testimony, that he pleased God."
1. Faith-Hebrews 11:6a "But without faith it is impossible to please Him: for he that cometh to God must believe that He is..."

Ephesians 4:6 " One God and Father of all,..."
Isaiah 43:10-11
Matthew 17:1-2,5
John 14:1
Acts 16:31 "Believe on the Lord Jesus Christ and thou shalt be saved..."
2. Fellowship
I John 1:5-7
Matthew 7:13-14
Joshua 1:7
Galatians 5:16
Romans 8:8-9
Psalms 128:1

II. Enoch Preached God
Jude 14-15
Genesis 5:18, 21-24
II Peter 3:6-7, 9-10

III. Enoch Passed Over Death
Hebrews 11:5

Genesis 5:21-22

A concise article on JEHOVAH-TSIDKENU at Blue Letter Bible can be found here. This article summarized the basics of this name of God and provides links to other resources for extend understanding including the Strong's concordance entry and other uses of JEHOVAH-TSIDKENU.

Tsidkenu Pronunciation

So how is 'Tsidkenu' pronounced anyway? I found this page in the Wikimedia Commons that is helpful. I did have to download and install the 'Ogg Codecs for Windows' from this page for the downloaded file to play in my Windows Media Player.

Annie Armstrong Offering

We have heard the past two weeks of an upcoming special offering known as "The Annie Armstrong Easter Offering for North American Missions." Personally, I had never before heard of this special offering. A quick search on Google, returned a link to the following informative website. The following is a quote from the main page that summarized the purpose of this special offering:

Through gifts to the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering®, these missions personnel [5,300 North American Mission Board missionaries throughout the United States and Canada.] are enabled to share the good news of Jesus Christ. Because every dollar given to the Annie Armstrong Easter Offering® goes to direct support of
missionaries and their ministries, Southern Baptists are confident
offering gifts are an investment in eternity.

Historical background information, including a short video, on Annie Armstrong can be found on the "Who is Annie" tab.

Jeremiah 23:6 - Spurgeon

Jeremiah 23:6 is the text from which we get the name of God Jehovah Tsidkenu, the name we are studying for this week's lesson. I did a search over at the Bible Bulletin Board (see link on the sidebar on the right) for that verse. One of the results was a sermon that was preached by C.H. Spurgeon titled "The Lord Our Righteousness." It was originally preached on June 2nd, 1861 when he was about 27 years old. The text of the sermon can be found here. If you have some time this week, read over the sermon (it is 12 printed pages). It will, no doubt, increase your understanding of this important topic.

Jehovah-Tsidkenu

The Men's first hour Bible study class will be moving on to lesson 7 in our ongoing series on The Names of God next Sunday, March 4, 2007. We have been using as our guide lessons written by Don Fortner and published on his website: www.freegrace.net. Lesson 7, Jehovah Tsidkenu-The Lord our Righteousness, can be found here. Please read over the lesson and the associated references in the Bible and come prepared to share what you have learned this week on Sunday morning. Also, please feel free to use the comment link at the bottom of this post or any other post on this site to begin a conversation about any point relevant to the particular post.

Abel was Able

Sermon outline from Feb. 25, 2007 by Pastor Scott Stout

Abel was Able

Hebrews 11:4
Hebrews 12:1-2a (2a is "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith...")
Genesis 4:1-12

I. Abel Offered
Hebrews 11:4a "By faith Abel offered unto God a more excellent sacrifice than Cain..."
Romans 10:17
Isaiah 53:7
I Peter 1:18-19
John 1:29 "...Behold the Lamb of God which taketh away the sin of the world."

II. Abel Obtained
Hebrews 11:4b "...by which he obtained witness that he was righteous..."
Ephesians 2:8-9
Titus 3:5
Romans 3:9-12
John 14:15

III. Abel's Outcry
Hebrews 11:4c "...and by it he being dead yet speaketh."
Hebrews 12:24 AMP
Luke 23:33-34

Heroes of the Faith

Sermon outline from Feb. 18, 2007 by Pastor Scott Stout

Heroes of the Faith

Hebrews 12:1-2

A. Let Us Lay Aside
Hebrews 12:1 "...let us lay aside every weight, and the sin which so easily beset us..."
James 1:14-15
Colossians 3:5-9

B. Let Us Run
Hebrews 12:1 "...and let us run with patience the race that is set before us,..."

C. Let Us Look Unto Jesus
Hebrews 12:2 "Looking unto Jesus the author and finisher of our faith..."
Matthew 14:28-30
II Timothy 4:7

The Lord Is My Shepherd: An Anthology

I found this interesting web page today as I looked at some of the Google search results on the phrase "The Lord Is My Shepherd." This page is a compilation of 29 different Bible versions' rendering of the 23rd Psalm. It is interesting to see how similar many of them are AND how different they are.

Scripture Memorization (TMS)

Many of you know that I am a big proponent of memorizing verses in the Bible. I have been amazed at the number of times in my life when I am involved in a conversation with someone, or in some sort of situation and a memorized verse comes to mind that informs my understanding. Many times it has happened when someone asks me a question, expecting a certain result, and the answer that comes back surprises them because it is quoted scripture and not just an opinion. The staff of the Navigators have developed a set of Bible verses that are organized into topics that when memorized can provide a scriptural knowledge base on a broad range of applications. They call their system the "Topical Memory System." It is available for purchase as a book along with companion flash cards, but they also list the verses and the topics on their website. Perhaps people don't memorize Bible verses because they don't know where to start, or what verses to memorize. If that is the case, I would encourage you to choose one verse from the list, let us know about your choice by leaving a comment on this article, and then work at committing that one verse to memory, and then let us know you have made that verse, that part of God's word, part of your being by reciting it to one or all of us sometime in the next few weeks. It will help you grow in your relationship with Jesus and will honor and glorify Him.

JEHOVAH RA-AH Continued

The continuing subject for this week's men's Bible study class on Sunday morning is Lesson 6 in the series by Don Fortner, The Names of God. There is a lot of material already on this blog regarding Lesson 6, and I will continue this week to post more as I find it. We got through about verse 3 in the lesson, which is about halfway. Please come to class ready to discuss the material.

Welcome Joe Gearo

I see that Joe Gearo has gone through all the steps to become an author on this blog. Welcome Joe! We all look forward to the articles you might initiate as well as your insights on the things that others have written.

Psalm 23 - The LORD is My Shepherd

Tom Steller, the Pastor for Leadership Development and Dean of TBI (The Bethlehem Institute for Bible, Theology and Missions), has written a sermon titled "The Lord is My Shepherd". The transcript of the sermon can be found here. Pastor Steller breaks the Psalm down into into three main points: 1. The Disposition of the Shepherd; 2. The Provision of the Shepherd; and 3. the Motive of the Shepherd. One of the things I liked about this particular sermon was that it did not strictly adhere to the order of the verses--rather it jumped around a bit within the Psalm. I also found that many of the points that Mr. Fortner makes (in our lesson for this week) are re-enforced by Mr. Steller in this sermon.

What area of this sermon did you particularly enjoy?

The Navigators

From time to time we have heard Pastor Stout mention his involvement with The Navigators during his enlistment in the US Air Force. Have heard of the strong discipling influence that organization, and in particular his personal mentor, had on his life. Therefore, today, I thought I'd post a link to The Navigators website and add it to the side bar on the right. Furthermore, in the coming days, I'll probably highlight some areas of their website that could be of particular use to our church body as we endeavor to "become disciples of Christ and to help others to become disciples of Christ."

JEHOVAH-RAAH III

A concise article on JEHOVAH-RAAH at Blue Letter Bible (see previous article) can be found here. Although the article is short, it can be useful in forming our understanding of this Name of God. There are also links within the article that lead to other references of the name JEHOVAH-RAAH in the Old Testament.

JEHOVAH-RA-AH Additional Material

The folks over at Preceptaustin.org have a great collection of articles, including a set on the Names of God (the set includes 2 articles on this week's topic JEHOVAH-RA-AH). I previously highlighted their site when we were studying the lesson on JEHOVAH-NISSI. There is generally a large amount of background on each topic. Usually it is presented using a sort of question and answer approach. This approach works good for me because it helps me to develop the skill of asking questions around the topic and then letting the answers inform my understanding of the subject matter.

Note: I have put a link to Preceptaustin.org in the links sidebar on the right.

Welcome Andy Roberson

We just set up Andy Roberson as an additional author for this blog. We are looking forward to his contributions from time to time.

JEHOVAH-RA-AH

Next Sunday, February 18, the we will be moving on to Lesson 6, JEHOVAH-RA-AH, The Lord our Shepherd, in our study on the Names of God as outlined by Don Fornter, the pastor of Grace Baptist Church in Danville, Kentucky. The text for the lesson can be found here. Please read over the lesson this week, become familiar with the material and come ready to contribute during the first hour next Sunday. Also, feel free to leave comments here during the week so we can begin to have a dialog about this lesson prior to meeting together on Sunday.

9 Marks

While on my afternoon Internet break today at work I came across an interesting website called 9marks.org. According to the website, their mission is as follows:

We believe the local church is the focal point of God's plan for displaying his glory to the nations. Our vision is simple: Churches that reflect the character of God. Our mission is to cultivate and encourage churches characterized by these nine marks: Expositional Preaching, Biblical Theology, Biblical Understanding of the Good News, Biblical Understanding of Conversion, Biblical Understanding of Evangelism, Biblical Understanding of Membership, Biblical Church Discipline, Promotion of Christian Discipleship and Growth, Biblical Understanding of Leadership.

I took a couple minutes to look over the first Mark, Expositional Preaching, and found it very interesting. I have added this site to the links area over on the right sidebar. I look forward to looking over each of the lessons contained under each of the 9 Marks.

Do any of the 9 Marks stand out as particularly interesting to you?

JEHOVAH SHALOM II

As I was reading the lesson for this week, I came across the following statement by Mr. Fortner:

This quarrel between God and man is a mutual quarrel. God is angry with man; and man is angry with God (Zech. 11:8; Rom. 8:7). It is a universal quarrel. All the sons and daughters of Adam, without exception, are born as children of wrath by nature (Eph. 2:3). God is angry with men. Those who tell unregenerate, unbelieving men and women, or even children, that God loves them, make a terrible presumption that is without warrant in Holy Scripture. God is angry with the wicked everyday. God loves righteousness and hates iniquity; and all men, by nature, are iniquity. God only loves sinners in Christ and for Christ’s sake. In Christ, God is love. Out of Christ, God is a consuming fire. No one has any basis for thinking that God might love him until he believes on Christ. Our faith in Christ does not cause God to love us. It is the result and evidence of God’s love (I John 4:19; Heb. 11:1).

I stopped and thought for quite some time on this statement (I added the emphasis in bold above). I know I have certainly been guilty of telling an unregenerate person that "God Loves Them." According to Mr. Fortner, I have no business doing that because I am presuming something that is not mine to know. I looked up the references that Mr. Fortner sprinkled throughout his text. Consequently I feel that this subject could stand quite a bit of scrutiny and could possibly necessitate a pretty big shift in the approach that one might take toward evangelizing the 'lost.'

What are your thoughts on this portion of this week's topic?

Are there any other statements in this week's lesson that jump out at you as this one did to me?

Shalom (שָׁלוֹם)

Curious what a secular resource might include regarding the word Shalom, I looked up the Wikipedia.com article on the word Shalom. The etymology (word origin) section was of particular interest to me. It says the following:

The word shalom derives from the root shin-lamedh-mem (ש.ל.ם), which has cognates in many Semitic languages, and means completeness, fulfillment, wellbeing, harmony, a concept usually encapsulated by translation in the word peace.

Hence usage of shalom in the Hebrew Bible often refers to conditions related to peace: safety, health and prosperity of individuals and nations.

This understanding of the origin of the word ties in nicely to some of the points that Don Fortner makes in this week's lesson regarding JEHOVAH-SHALOM and the completeness, fulfillment, wellbeing, and harmony that one can have with God only in Christ our Peace.

JEHOVAH-SHALOM

The continuing subject of the Sunday Morning Men's Bible Study class is the Names of God. The jumping off point for the lessons is the study of the same name authored by Don Fortner. This week's lesson (Lesson 5), JEHOVAH-SHALOM can be found here. Please read over the lesson prior to attending on Sunday Morning and come ready to contribute with your insights. Also, any discussion of the topic ahead of time is welcome and can be done by commenting on this article using the comment link below.

Conflicts

Sermon outline from February 4, 2007 by Pastor Scott Stout

The Conflicts

II Corinthians 5:18-19

A. The Conflict That Was

• Genesis 1:1
• Job 38:1-7 (NIV)
• Ezekiel 28:13
• Psalms 103:20-21
• Ezekiel 28:14-18
• Isaiah 14:12-15

B. The Conflict Within

• Genesis 3:21

C. The Conflict Without

• Luke 23:20-21; 24; 32-33
• Hebrews 13:11-12
• Leviticus 16:27
• II Corinthians 5:20-21

Bible Bulletin Board

Another great resource for extended Bible study is the Bible Bulletin Board (I have added it to the links on the sidebar as well). It contains broad array of searchable topic areas including, Gospel GEMs (Great Evangelical Messages), Sermons and Articles, Charles Spurgeon Collection, George Whitefield Collection, John MacArthur Collection, Recommended Books for Christians and numerous others all of which are searchable using the 'Google Powered' search field on the site. A search using the key-term 'Nissi' yielded this result. I haven't had the opportunity to read the articles in the returned search items yet, but I will endeavor to get the through the most relevant ones prior to this Sunday's class.

Jehovah Nissi - Additional Resource

I found this extensive article this morning on the subject of understanding Jehovah Nissi - The LORD is our banner. One of the things I like in particular about this article is the format. The author takes you through a series of questions that lead you to the understanding of the topic that they are advocating. Asking questions about a topic and then seeking out the Biblical answer is a discipline that we could all stand to practice more.

Have you found any additional resources regarding Jehovah Nissi in your own study this week?

Blue Letter Bible

One of the tools that I use frequently when studying a passage in the Bible is the Blue Letter Bible. The website includes resources such as many different translations of the Bible, reference material for Greek, Hebrew and Aramaic as well as numerous commentaries and even a look-up to see if there is a Hymn that is associated with a particular verse. I have added a links pane along the right side of the page. Blue Letter Bible is the first link there. We can add more as we discover and use them.

What are some of your favorite resources that you use in your Bible study?

JEHOVAH-NISSI

The men's class, during the Sunday School hour is currently undertaking a study of the Names of God. The study was written by a man by the name of Don Fortner and can be found here. According to Alan Trigg, our teacher, we will be discussing Lesson 4, JEHOVAH-NISSI, The Lord is our Banner this coming Sunday, Feb 4. Please read over and study the lesson ahead of class and come ready to discuss and contribute to the class. Also, if you would like to discuss the lesson prior to Sunday morning, just leave a comment here and we can all discuss it a bit ahead of time. I look forward to seeing you there.

Welcome

Welcome to this new blog for the Men of Stansbury Park Baptist Church. The idea here is to update content frequently to inform our members about the happenings with the men of our church. If you would like to be a contributor, please let me know so I can add your information to the settings of the blog.