Tag Archives: deacon

Can You Love Jesus When He Purposefully Hurts You?

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Can you still love Jesus even if He purposefully causes you pain?

Check out our newest episode in the “This is Gonna Hurt” podcast. 

In this Free Friday episode, Gordon asks this question:  Can you love Jesus even if He purposefully causes you pain?  We examine that question by taking a brief look at the raising of Lazarus.

We examine how Jesus purposefully waited to go to Judea when Lazarus was dying.

We talk about how Jesus said He was glad that Lazarus died.

We talk about how hard times detach us from the things of this world.

We hope this episode is encouraging. You can find it at https://anchor.fm/thisisgonnahurt. 

Thanks for listening.

If you would like to become a podcast patron, you can do so by clicking anchor.fm/thisisgonnahurt and clicking the “support this podcast” button.

If you want to find out more about what Gordon is up to, check out his website at www.jgordonduncan.com.

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Solitude is the Fear of the Human Heart

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Solitude is the fear of the human heart.

In the midst of celebration, our hearts want someone to hug, sing with, drink with, or even high five.

In mourning, we need everything from the hand that hands us a cloth to wipe our tear to people willing to sit with us in silence.

But what we want is presence.  And in presence, we find love.

When Jesus enjoyed His last meal with His friends, He told them that He was headed off to die. 

He told them that people were going to hate them. 

He told them that people were going to want to kill them.

But…

He promised that they would not be alone. 

Jesus promised them that He would give them that Holy Spirit.  They would never be alone.

This is the story of many people who love God.  In fact, this is the story of all who love God. 

Moses walked with God.

Joshua walked with God just as Moses did.

The disciples walked with Jesus.

And you have the Holy Spirit.

So, today, you are free to love God.  You are free to love others as you love yourself. 

And through the wonderful presence of the Holy Spirit, you are free not to be alone.

Gordon

Gospel Rich Books

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Saul Tries to Kill David and How We Should Be Like Him

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In 1 Samuel 19, King Saul is trying to kill David. After David’s home is raided, he escapes to Naioth to spend time with Samuel.  Saul finds out that they are there, so Saul sends soldiers to kill David.  When the messengers of Saul show up to take David, God has other plans.

In fact, instead of capturing or killing David, they see Samuel and other prophets prophesying and proclaiming the glories of God, and at that point, they start to prophesy as well. Saul is so wicked, he doesn’t see God directly frustrating his plans.

He wants David dead.  He doesn’t want his men prophesying.  So, he sends a second set of messengers to capture David, and they start prophesying as well.  Then he sent a third set, and they start prophesying.

God will not be frustrated here.  Saul will be, but God won’t.

Saul is so resolute on capturing and killing David, he just takes things into his own hands.  He personally is planning on going to Naioth, capturing David and killing him himself.  It is like Saul is saying, “I know I won’t get distracted and prophesy.  I’ve got some killing to do.”

But sure enough, Saul shows up to Naioth, and he is completely undone.  Saul is so undone, he strips off his clothes, lies prostrate day and night in the nude, and declares the glories of God. This is so shocking and so out of place for Saul that folks begin to ask, “Is Saul a prophet now?”

David is so protected by the hand of God, that every time Saul tries to kill him, the accusers are turned away – not just turned away but speaking of the glory of God. Every sinful plan is turned and transformed to give God glory. Saul thought it couldn’t happen to him, but it did. 

Murderous letch to prophet of God.

One small note:  Wouldn’t it be great if the next time you planned on sinning, you did this?

You go online, and you are about to click on a link that you know you shouldn’t, and all of a sudden, you sing, “Praise Father, Son, and Holy Ghost…”

About to slander someone, and you break out into praises.

Tempted to be jealous?  Start singing your favorite hymn.

We might be transformed if we prayed that way.  “Dear God, next time I’m tempted, help me to sing your praises. Move me from my most selfish intent to glories in your name. Would I find that praising Jesus is all I can think of the next time I’m so tempted?”

And perhaps, you will be transformed in the process even more so than Saul was. 

Gospel Rich Books

If you would like to learn more about Gospel Rich books, we offer a host of challenging and encouraging resources.  You can find them below:

Gospel Rich Books Amazon Catalog

Gospel Rich Books Blog

 

Podcast Interview with Dr. Ligon Duncan about the Church & the #metoo Movement

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While at the Presbyterian Church of America’s (PCA) General Assembly, it was my privilege to interview Dr. Ligon Duncan.  If you don’t know who he is, Dr. Duncan is the Chancellor/CEO of Reformed Theological Seminary and the John E. Richards Professor of Systematic and Historical Theology.

During our conversation, we discussed the #metoo movement, focusing on two areas:  how the movement can inform the church and how the church can inform the movement.  His insight was helpful, as one might imagine, and his starting point of the conversation was poignant.

Dr. Duncan emphasized that the beginning place of any conversation must be the church’s admittance of failure in protecting those who have been abused and also the church’s failure of calling out our its who are guilty.

He also feels that once that conversation begins and honest admittance of wrong is made, the church would then have an opportunity to speak about moral absolutes – meaning, how does the declaration of the wrongs of abuse speak to a higher authority of holiness.

Additionaly, he goes on to give advice to those who are starting new churches, and he also speaks to what he would say if he got to interact with #metoo leaders like Rose McGowan. 

If you want to explore more of this conversation, you can find the podcast link at https://anchor.fm/thisisgonnahurt/episodes/Episode-15—Interview-w-Ligon-Duncan–the-church–metoo-e1lvot.

Thanks go out to Dr. Duncan for taking the time to speak about these important topics.  Hopefully, his honesty will create more conversations between both the leaders of the #metoo movement and the church. 

Gospel Rich Books

If you would like to learn more about Gospel Rich books, we offer a host of challenging and encouraging resources.  You can find them below:

Gospel Rich Books Amazon Catalog

Gospel Rich Books Blog

Should the Church Teach on Creating Revenue?

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Why doesn’t the church teach on earning more revenue?  Listen to these statistics:

Today, 1 in 4 children under the age of 18, a total of about 17.4 million, are being raised without a father and nearly half (45 percent) live below the poverty line, according to the Single Mother Guide. For those living with a father only, about 21 percent live in poverty.[i]

These realities surely represent many within the church.  Couple that truth with the fact that the average household carries nearly $16,000 in credit card debt[ii], and there is a crisis at hand in our country.

Yes, the church has made advances in offering financial advice and debt reduction programs, but the church rarely speaks about increasing revenue.  At some point, revenue can only be divided so many ways, and as families grow, cost grows.  The church needs to educate their people on how to grow their revenue if they want to help meet the needs of the people.

The challenge is who can teach it and what should they teach?  Additionally, many will argue that growing revenue is not the church’s business.

However, when 25% of households don’t have a father present, and nearly half of those families live below the poverty line, then helping households grow their revenue is an act of mercy.

Surely, most churches could task their deacons with designing a program or they could ask members in the church in the business realm to speak to the task.  Pastors could address dollars and cents in more areas than just tithing.

No matter the approach, churches must consider the issues and consider how they can best serve their congregations.  If not, specific needs of their people (mainly children) are going to go unmet.

Gospel Rich Books

Our Editor, Gordon Duncan, offers a mentoring program to people who want to improve their skills or gain greater employment.  You can find that information at https://gumroad.com/l/getthejobyouwant

If you would like to learn more about Gospel Rich books, we offer a host of challenging and encouraging resources.  You can find them below:

Gospel Rich Books Amazon Catalog

Gospel Rich Books Blog

[i] http://www.ibtimes.com/national-single-parent-day-2016-facts-quotes-about-14-million-moms-dads-without-2338631

[ii] https://www.statisticbrain.com/credit-card-debt-statistics/

Easter and Your Fragile Relationships

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Please enjoy this excerpt from the Gospel Rich Book’s release, “It is Finished”.

Relationships, even the strongest of them, are fragile things.  At work, you can be rocking and rolling along, hitting all of your goals, getting good reviews, and then one day your boss doesn’t interact with you like he or she normally does, and you think, “Uh oh, is my job in jeopardy?”

When parents correct their children, even when they do it biblically, a child can still think, “Mom and Dad are upset with me.  Do they still love me?”

But it is probably Mom and Dad, husband and wife, who have to work through these insecurities the most.  We ask questions like:

“Honey, do these jeans make me look fat?

“Do you still think I’m pretty?”

“Don’t you appreciate all the hard work I do for this family?”

Sometimes, there is great fear attached: “Are you cheating on me?”

I’m hesitant to give too specific examples because I fear it might dredge up fears that you have finally conquered.  But the reason I mention this is that so often, we structure our lives around the fears we have in relationships.  Our lives are governed by the “eithers”.

We either slavishly give ourselves over to try to win people’s approval or at times we stand as far back emotionally as we can from folks to say, “I don’t need you.”

Either direction you take there, you are living your life based upon your relationships with others.

Either slavishly going after approval or standing off from others – either one is still saying, “Hey I am directly based on you.

Either you are loving me or I’m proving to you I don’t need you, I’m still basing things off of you.”

These patterns cause so much damage:  alcoholism, porn addiction, co-dependency, slavish work habits to prove you can provide.  Entire personalities are built around these issues.  Whew, it sounds almost like there is no hope in these things.  And I will say, “There isn’t except for one thing, and that one thing is Jesus.”

As we approach Easter where we gather to celebrate Christ’s finished work for us on the cross, we need to recognize that Christ has made our relationship with the Father secure.  Every single thing necessary for you to be loved, accepted, and forgiven, Jesus has done.  You don’t need to, and cannot, add one thing to what Christ has done for you.

That truth, that realization, should give you rest, should enable you to find that peace that you have never had in any other relationship and it should also free you up to love and live in other relationships with vitality.  The question is, “Do you believe Jesus has accomplished everything for you?  Do you live out that belief?”

—

“It Is Finished”  is a sweet meditation of the scriptures surrounding the events from Good Friday all the way to resurrection morn.  You can find it here.

The second is “Easter – Simple Sermon Solution”.  This book follows the same themes, but its focus it to help any who might have the privilege of speaking or leading a Bible study around the Easter Season.  It offers a great methodology for organization and delivery.  You can find it here.

No matter what, please take this Easter season to rejoice yet again for the finished work of Christ.  It is our sole hope and joy for this world and the world to come.

Gospel Rich Books

If you would like to learn more about Gospel Rich books, we offer a host of challenging and encouraging resources.  You can find them below:

Gospel Rich Books Amazon Catalog

Gospel Rich Books Blog

And to enable more writers to publish their works, we offer the BestSeller Template which is a publisher ready resource that authors can cut and paste their works into to make them Amazon ready.

If you want to follow more of what’s going on with Gordon, check out the website www.jgordonduncan.com and his recently launched podcast at

https://itunes.apple.com/us/podcast/this-is-gonna-hurt-the-podcast-of-j-gordon-duncan/id1356352968

 

 

 

Gospel Rich Books to Release Spurgeon Classics in the “Pocket Spurgeon” Series

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Nearly every pastor references Charles Haddon Spurgeon.  In fact, Spurgeon is where many a pastor goes to find an answer to their Biblical and theological questions.  Surely, he has been quoted in sermons more than any other pastor.

But for too long, Spurgeon’s works have been regulated to academia and the pulpit.  The irony of that fact is that Spurgeon preached to an estimated 10 million people in his lifetime.

Gospel Rich Books hopes to put an end to that irony by releasing a series entitled, “Pocket Spurgeon”.  Pocket Spurgeon books hope to make the impactful words and sermons of C.H. Spurgeon more accessible, by creating editions that are easy to carry and even easier to read.

These books are intended to be bite-sized morsels of his works that can be digested in 90 minutes or less.  They are easy to carry and even easier to read.  No paraphrasing has occurred. What you will read are Spurgeon’s words.

Hopefully, this series will expand and many of his great works will become more accessible in the day to day lives of the laity…just as Spurgeon wanted it.

Our first release is entitled, “The Hold Fast”.  “The Hold Fast” is a sermon (No. 1418) delivered on Lord’s Day morning, June 9th, 1878, at the Metropolitan Tabernacle, Newington. It is based on Proverbs 4:13: “Take fast hold of instruction; let her not go: keep her; for she is thy life.”

You can find “The Hold Fast” at Amazon, and of course, you can find other Gospel Rich Books there as well.

Hopefully, the works of C.H. Spurgeon will make an impact on this generation as they did on his.

The Hold Fast

If you would like to learn more about Gospel Rich books, we offer a host of challenging and encouraging resources.  You can find them below:

Gospel Rich Books Amazon Catalog

Monthly Gospel Rich Journal

Gospel Rich Books Blog

And to enable more writers to publish their works, we offer the BestSeller Template which is a publisher ready resource that authors can cut and paste their works into to make them Amazon ready.

 

Wanting to Be Anonymous Even When You Are Hurting

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I had the enormous privilege of attending an overnight pastor’s retreat earlier this week.  Present were a group of men who I see only every twelve months, yet they remember my prayers year in and year out.

Each year, new church planters show up, we pray for them, and they are quickly enfolded.

Our music is a ragtag band of talented musicians who play without worry of appearance or fear. The worship is vibrant and soul-churning.

Yet, this year, I arrived and was surprised by how quickly my heart closed.  Recent challenges and disappointments tempted me to remain on the periphery.  As the old saying goes, “Man plans; God laughs”.  I soon discovered that every attendee was assigned to a prayer group of 8-10 men, and there were at least four hours set apart for prayer.

We were promised anonymity, yet I didn’t budge.  A pastor or two shared, and I sat quietly.  Finally, from the Spirit’s prompting, I said, “I don’t really want to share anything with you guys, so I guess that means I need to go next.”  What followed were attentive ears to my pains and sympathetic prayers of care.  The time spent with those men was sweet.

How about you?  Most of you will not have the opportunity to get away for an overnight retreat this week.  Many of you may not have a trusted friend who you feel will keep your concerns confidential.  However, we all are called to move towards intimacy in the church and to offer up our fears and worries with honesty before the Lord.  I Peter says,

1 Peter 5:5 Clothe yourselves, all of you, with humility toward one another, for “God opposes the proud but gives grace to the humble.” 6 Humble yourselves, therefore, under the mighty hand of God so that at the proper time he may exalt you, 7 casting all your anxieties on him, because he cares for you.

So, friends, if you are weary and burned out, cast your cares upon the Lord, and if you have been burned by the church, pray for great faith and press forward in humility.  Know that at the proper time, God will lift you up.

Gospel Rich Books

If you would like to move towards greater intimacy with God, Gospel Rich Books offer a host of challenging and encouraging resources.  You can find them below:

Gospel Rich Books Amazon Catalog

Monthly Gospel Rich Journal

Gospel Rich Books Blog

 

And to enable more writers to publish their works, we offer the BestSeller Template which is a publisher ready resource that authors can cut and paste their works into to make them Amazon ready.

 

 

 

A Monthly Resource for the Spiritually Thirsty

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I love coffee.  It is my favorite beverage.  I don’t use cream or sugar.  I just like good coffee.

But I know I can’t drink coffee all day.  If I do, I’ll be over-caffeinated and massively dehydrated.  You see, what my body really needs is water.  Lots and lots of water.  The body just functions better when hydrated, and the body fails when it doesn’t have enough.

The Bible describes our need for God in a similar way as our need for water.  Psalm 42 says,

“1 As a deer pants for flowing streams, so pants my soul for you, O God. 2 My soul thirsts for God, for the living God.”

Because of this, the Christian is in constant need of soul nourishment.  By God’s grace, we have corporate worship, the sacraments, the scriptures, and so many other means of God’s grace.  Additionally, there are a host wonderful resources (books, podcasts, etc.) which help explain and apply God’s word in our day to day lives.

In humility, this is what Gospel Rich Books hopes to provide:  resources that are rich with the Gospel that feed the soul.  This blog is one of the avenues by which we attempt to do this (as is our newsletter), both of which will always be free of charge.

However, we do have a brand-new monthly resource:  the Gospel Rich Journal.  This is a digital journal emailed directly to subscribers.

If you are a subscriber, at the beginning of the month, you will receive an email with your journal, each with articles focusing primarily on three areas:  your spiritual life, your physical health, and your professional life.  That covers a lot.  Examples articles might be:

“Creating a Pattern of Rest in Your Busy Day”

“Prioritizing Exercise Without It Consuming Your Life”

“Practical Applications of Growing in Your Identity in Christ”

“Fighting Loneliness at Work and at Home”

These will be exclusive articles as well as works curated from prior publications.  Every now and then, we might just through in a free digital copy from our Gospel Rich Books catalog.

And to say, “thanks” to our subscribers, we will include a copy of our international bestseller, “Joy in Trials”.  If you have read it before, enjoy it again or even share it with a friend.  All of these things cost only $2.99 a month. You can subscribe here.

If you have ideas or topics that you would like for the Gospel Rich Journal to pursue, just email our editor, Gordon Duncan, at gordon@jgordonduncan.com.

Thanks for walking with us on our journey to know Christ fully and to provide Gospel Rich publications to the world!

As always, you can find a wealth of resources online at:

The Gospel Rich Blog is www.gospelrichbooks.com

The Gospel Rich Amazon Catalog

Thanks again for taking the journey with us!

Gospel Rich Books

https://gum.co/thegospelrichjournal

 

A Practical Resource to Help Men, Women, and the Church Navigate Leadership Issues

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Art by Jah Holmes

There are several cultural fires in the church right now:

Politics

Gender Identity

Marital Definitions

The church’s willingness to be clear and truthful without vitriol is key to maintaining a voice in our culture.  Additionaly, another issue of importance is the qualification and structure of biblical leadership.  This issue asks questions like:

Is there a difference between an elder and a deacon?

Must a church have both?

What are the biblical qualifications of each?

Can men and women hold these offices?

Church leadership may very well be the prime one issue presently.  No church can decide its theology, its structure, or engage in the above cultural issues without settling on this one.  Thankfully, 1 Timothy 3 and Titus 1 are gifted to us in the scriptures.  Yet, questions still remain as we look at the book of Acts and the end of Romans. 

Studying these passages is key, even for the layman.  Resting in a biblical conviction enables the believer to rest comfortably in their church’s structure. 

Towards that end, Gospel Rich Books is the proud to present, “Is a Good Man Hard to Find?” by Gordon Duncan.  It is a verse by verse look at the key leadership passages in Paul’s letters.  It is concise, affordable, and a welcome addition to the field of church leadership studies. 

It makes a great gift and is available in both paperback and kindle.  Also, if you would like to explore the Gospel Rich Books catalog further, you can also find them at Amazon.   

Get yours today.