Quelle Surprise: Le Quiet Revival!

Steve McAlpine continue thinking about the so-called quiet revival. This time, he centres his thinking on France.

A Significant Action for a Ministry to Move From Addition to Multiplication

‘The early disciples made a significant and deliberate decision between the addition happening in Acts 2:47 and the multiplication happening in Acts 6:7; they empowered others for ministry. They handed over ministry and responsibility to others.’

Do We Remember the Poor?

‘It’s easy to forget the poor. We can get so focused on our activities of wealth-building, consumption, and self-protection that we lose sight of those in need. Sure, a natural disaster may jolt us awake to brothers and sisters who’ve lost everything, but we often overlook the ongoing struggle of people who live paycheck to paycheck, just hoping to make ends meet, or those who fall behind, whether because of societal injustice or family breakdown or the consequences of personal choices.’

Why Baptism Must Precede Membership and the Table

‘The Lord has established for salvation to precede identification through baptism into membership and then for those identifying markers to precede the ongoing celebratory act of the Lord’s Supper. So, yes, baptism comes before membership and the Lord’s Table. That statement may seem obvious to some and controversial to others. The Lord establishes this pattern throughout redemptive history.’

8 Questions About Predestination

‘The doctrine of predestination, including both election and reprobation, has long been controversial. The Bible clearly teaches that God is sovereign over all things. He saves sinners by his grace alone. God elects his people and rejects others. Yet the Bible also teaches that people bear personal responsibility for their actions. People have many questions about predestination. Here are some of the most common ones.’

Does God Accept the Worship of All Religions? 

‘In the contemporary world, it is common for people who believe in God to affirm that God accepts the worship of all religions as long as the worshiper is sincere. There is no evidence for such a view in Scripture, however. In fact, from Genesis to Revelation, Scripture reveals the exact opposite.’

From the archive: Are you not entertained? Reverence, fun & worship

‘We are to enjoy God through our worship. In a sense, our worship should be fun. It should be enjoyable. A believer – whose heart has been changed by God to love him and seek after him as it ought – will come to enjoy worship. It will, in a sense, be fun and enjoyable. That doesn’t mean that the primary basis for our worship is to entertain ourselves. We aren’t in church worshipping to that end – the end is God himself! But, if our hearts are right and we are enjoying God as we ought, a by-product of our praise and worship seems likely to be enjoyment. Though we aren’t there primarily as pleasure-seekers, we will take pleasure in worshipping God with his people.’