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Archive for 2009

Piper On Why Staying Married is not Just About Staying in Love

9781433507120“I’m not a dog in heat, I’m a covenant keeper! We are not blown around by the billboards, the internet, movies, the television. We’ve got roots in reality, in Genesis, in creation. We don’t blow. We stand. All hell breaks loose against this marriage. We stand. There are many wimps in the world. Men and women. I’m in the business of putting fiber in the backbones of wimps. God never leaves his wife. He never divorced her. He wooed her back every time. Marriage is on display here. God is on display in marriage.”

Hear John Piper on why staying married is not just about staying in love or learn more about This Momentary Marriage. Check out Take Your Vitamin Z for your chance to win a copy!

December 8, 2009 | Posted in: Author,Books,Marriage | Author: Crossway Staff @ 9:13 am | 1 Comment »

What Set Lloyd-Jones Apart from Other Preachers?

When J. I. Packer first heard Lloyd-Jones he said that he had “never heard such preaching.” It came to him “with the force of electric shock, bringing to at least one of his listeners more of a sense of God than any other man” he had known.

What set Dr. Lloyd-Jones’ apart from other preachers? J.I. Packer and Lady Elizabeth Catherwood (Dr. Lloyd-Jones’ daughter) answer similarly:

  1. The man deeply felt his conversion. Dr. Lloyd-Jones never got over the Lord’s mercy to him in saving him and this was clear in his preaching.
  2. The underlining issue behind his preaching was the glory of God.  Behind all of his preaching the main point and main issue was always that God be glorified and exalted.  He never treated the Lord casually.
  3. He had the presence of a man who dwelt with the Lord in prayer.  When he preached, he sincerely preached as a man that had consistently lingered truly humbly before the Lord and had dwelt on the Truth of God in Scripture.  He brought those meditations and that posture to the people.

(Adapted from 9marks. Read the full post).

It’s a privilege to make the works of Lloyd-Jones available as a resource to the church today. Check out his contributions to studies in Genesis, the Psalms, John, 1 John, and more:

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December 7, 2009 | Posted in: Author,Books,History and Biography,Preaching and Teaching | Author: Crossway Staff @ 10:06 am | 1 Comment »

Pastor Leads the Way in Delivering Christmas Gifts Bags in His Neighborhood

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A group of 75 adults and students at Village Bible Church in Sugar Grove, Illinois spent Wednesday evening putting together 5,000 Share the Good News of Christmas gift bags (check out how they did it here). The bags include an ESV New Testament Christmas Edition, a Christmas tract by Max Lucado, and an invitation to celebrate Christ’s birth with the family at Village Bible Church throughout the month of December. Church members will be meeting at the church at 9 a.m. this Saturday and will be given a map and a box of gift bags to deliver to the homes on their maps.

But Tim Badal, Teaching Pastor at the church, got an early start, spending this morning delivering Share the Good News of Christmas gift bags to 100 of his neighbors. “My wife and son came with me and we prayed for our neighbors as we walked through the neighborhood,” said Pastor Badal. “Our church has always been known for our missions emphasis, which is usually focused on the ‘uttermost part of the earth.’ But the last couple of years we’ve been looking for more ways to become witnesses to the gospel in our own community. We believe this effort is going to get our church members thinking about their neighbors in a whole new way, as they prayerfully deliver the Share the Good News of Christmas gift bags.

“We hope that even if those who receive these Bibles don’t read them immediately, that the Bibles will sit around on an end-table where someone will pick them up and begin reading at some point—perhaps for the first time,” said Keith Duff, Shepherding Pastor at Village Bible Church. “What if only 1% of these Bibles are actually read by someone who hasn’t read God’s Word before? That would be 50 new people reading God’s Word! 5% would be 250 people!”

December 3, 2009 | Posted in: Christmas,ESV,Evangelism,Event | Author: James Kinnard @ 2:47 pm | Comments Off »

It’s Christmas Time on Trackback Thursday!

good-news-girl-imageWe’re gearing up for Christmas on trackback Thursday! To change it up a bit, we’re seeking folks who want to help us  reach one million homes with the gospel this Christmas season. We’ll be giving away 2 cases of our Share the Good News of Christmas kits. Included in each case are 50 bags, 50 Outreach New Testaments, 50 customizable invitations to your church, 50 gospel tracts, and 50 free trial access cards to the ESV Study Bible Online.

The goal is to come alongside what your church is already doing to help reach neighborhoods like yours with the gospel, God’s Word, and an invitation to your church service. 685,000 bags have already been purchased this holiday season!

Here’s how the contest works: Simply share how you plan to use these to impact your community. Leave a comment on the blog, Crossway’s Facebook Page, or on Twitter @Crosswaybooks (please use hashtag #STGN09). Winners are picked on Friday morning.

More info about Share the Good News of Christmas is available here.

| Posted in: Christmas | Author: Crossway Staff @ 7:25 am | (12) Comments »

Together for Adoption Celebrates Christmas

cruver-christmas-adopted-for-lifeSince God sent his Son to be born of a woman so that we might receive adoption as sons (Galatians 4:4-6), Christmas provides a unique opportunity to celebrate our adoption by God.  Jesus was born in Bethlehem to redeem us to that we could be brought into the family of God for life (forever). Therefore, to celebrate Christmas is to celebrate our vertical adoption.

Check out how Together for Adoption is celebrating Christmas this year. More details available here. More information on Russell Moore’s Adopted for Life are also available here.

November 30, 2009 | Posted in: Adoption,Books,Christmas | Author: Crossway Staff @ 11:06 am | 0 Comments »