The supremacy of the Gospel. On Monday night, Tom Messer, pastor of Trinity Baptist Church in Jacksonville, FL spoke on this topic. It was a great reminder that at the end of the day, the Gospel (the death, burial and resurrection of our Lord and Savior Jesus Christ) is sufficient to meet all of our needs.
- Ministry is tough. On Tuesday morning all three speakers (Jason Henderson, Matt Eachus, and John Houston) seemed to speak on this topic in one way or another. I heard many people say it was possibly the most honest and transparent messages on ministry struggles ever heard at a national fellowship meeting. If you are not struggling in ministry right now, you likely either just came through a struggle or you are heading toward one.
- Church growth can be boiled down to two things … draw a crowd and preach the Word. Yes, this is very simplistic statement, but it was explained well by Mark Hoover. It reminded me of a youth ministry strategy, do whatever you can do get students at an event and then share the Gospel with them. It is not bait and switch. It is looking at a crowd and having compassion like Jesus did.
- An outward focus will still bring unity. We need to focus our energy on missions and world evangelism. Few things will bring unity like focusing on something other than ourselves. The reality is the world needs Jesus more than we need to be right in our opinions.
- You can honor and learn from the past but God wants to use you to do big things in the future. It was encouraging to hear stories about Jerry Falwell and his lifelong ministry. God does not want us to be Jerry Falwell though. He has plans for us to do big things for Him too. I truly believe that the world has yet to see what God can do through one person that is fully committed to Him.
- Read biographies. I was able to sit down with three different pastors to record future podcasts. These three pastors lead churches that would combine to be around 15,000 attenders. One question I almost always ask is, “What books are you reading or have you read that has helped you the most in your personal leadership?” It seems that the sharpest leaders, these three men included, almost always say biographies. Yes, it is important to read contemporary leadership and Christian living books, but each of these three guys shared they like to read biographies of both Christian and secular leaders. They learn from pastors, business leaders, military leaders, and even political leaders.
For a more detailed summary of each service click here to visit Greg Burdine’s personal blog or click here to download the brand new BBFI mobile app.
Quotes from the week …
- Our past is a point of reference, not a place of residence. – Tom Messer
- The power of the Gospel rests in its exclusivity and sufficiency. – Tom Messer
- We easily mess up our methodology when we don’t have theological clarity. – Tom Messer
- Church leaders who don’t have Gospel clarity tend to manipulate others to agree with them. – Tom Messer
- We tend to idolize things we agree with and demonize things we disagree with. – Tom Messer
- When pastors fail morally, people don’t remember your last sermon, they remember your last sin. – Jason Henderson
- Watch out for women and money. If you are broke and still married to your wife then you are doing great. – Jason Henderson
- Pastoral ministry does not build character, it reveals character (or the lack of character). It also reveals all of our insecurities. – Matt Eachus
- When we feel like giving up, the calling of God is oftentimes the only thing that gets us through. – Matt Eachus
- Take a long walk in the woods and make sure the same guy doesn’t walk out. – Matt Eachus quoting Duke Hergatt
- If you are in ministry there will be hardships. – John Houston
- Satan will attack you, your wife, your family, your friends, and your ministry. – John Houston
- There are two reasons to go all in … you have an unbeatable hand or you are desperate. Both are true for pastors today. – Mark Hoover
- Our culture is no longer simply declining, it is in free fall. – Mark Hoover
- Today, we not only do not have the upper hand, we may not even have a seat at the table. – Mark Hoover
- If what we are doing isn’t working it is time to rethink what we are doing. – Mark Hoover
- I Kings 14:25-28 à King Rehoboam allowed the gold shields to be stolen and replace them with bronze shields and treated the bronze shields as if they were gold shields. We oftentimes replace what is valuable in ministry with what is cheap and treat the cheap as if it is valuable. – Mark Hoover (paraphrased)
- Two things pastors need to do … draw a crowd and preach the Word. – Mark Hoover
- We are so concerned about all hell breaking loose that we ignore the possibility of all heaven rejoicing. – Mark Hoover
- Noah trusted God even when it didn’t make sense. If we are going to do something big for God we must trust Him even when it doesn’t make sense. – Jonathan Falwell
- The greatness of tomorrow begins and depends on the quietness of today. – Jonathan Falwell
- You will never do big things for God if you question the Word of God. – Jonathan Falwell
- It is impossible to hear from God until you are near to God. – Jonathan Falwell
- Noah had to sit through the storm in order to see God’s deliverance. – Jonathan Falwell
- Being in God’s will is a direct result of being in God’s Word. – Jonathan Falwell
- God never called me to be popular. He called me to be faithful. – Jonathan Falwell quoting his dad Jerry Falwell
Randy Harp 