YOUR SATURDAY SEVEN

This will give you some interesting reads from seven recent articles that came out this week! Each of them is fairly brief but they all provide unique content from excellent resources! Enjoy your Saturday Seven!

1. WAS THE TRINITY TORN APART AT THE CROSS?

By: Jonty Rhodes

This a very interesting read. For one, I am in love with studying the cross currently! Secondly, I can recall the first time over 20 years ago realizing as best as a new believer could what Christ did in his atoning cry on the cross for me personally! Rhodes writes, “The cry doesn’t tell us everything about the atonement or what Jesus suffered, but it does reassure us that he has gone into a darkness we will never face.” Read this one for sure!

2. PREACHERS GOTTA PREACH.

By: Kevin DeYoung

This is one article you will want to read. Kevin DeYoung is on point in my opinion! “Brother pastors, we are preachers first, not podcasters. We must be preachers before we are political pundits, bloggers, tweeters, book reviewers, controversialists, or social commentators. Preaching is not all we can do but let us be careful: in our age of instant digital access and immediate digital output, a great many pastors are being pulled away from the center out to the periphery.” An excellent article that is really needed in this hour for preachers!

3. THE BENEFITS OF PREACHING THROUGH BOOKS OF THE BIBLE.

By: Paul Alexander

This is an area that I am absolutely loving right now and it is challenging me like never before! I have preached through only one book of the Bible (Galatians) all the way through, and I am currently leading our congregation to and through the book of Ephesians. Alexander states, “Preaching through books of the Bible inevitably makes us preach and hear things we wouldn’t choose to preach or hear if it were up to us. There’s no skipping anything when you preach through books consecutively. You simply cannot avoid getting to passages that make everyone feel uncomfortable, passages that confront us in our favorite sins and correct our most stubbornly held errors.” 

4. SPRING 2021: THE ATONEMENT.

By: Everett Berry

The Criswell Theological Review is about to publish a series of articles related to the doctrine of atonement! Berry states, “Readers are invited to engage the following articles from several scholars who address an assortment of issues related to this crucial doctrine.” Several of those scholars contributing are Carl Mosser, Matthew Pinson, David L. Allen, Adam Johnson, and finally Mac Brunson! “Following these articles are seventeen book reviews that inform readers about works which can improve their theological libraries.” Keep your eyes open, I will likely try and post the actual articles on this very website as they are given!

5. THE RISE AND ROLE OF THE MISSIONS PASTOR, PART 1.

By: Ed Stetzer

I in particular appreciate Ed Stetzer’s contribution to the shift that is taking place in modern missions. This is a three-part series that I would encourage you to read perhaps in one sitting or overtime. However you read it, this is an excellent read on the real change from mission agencies to local church sending. “The practice of global missions continues to change as the world has changed. The shifts that we see from agencies and the primary vehicle for missions to churches, from small church involvement to large church leadership, and from long-term sending of field workers to short-term sending of teams brings both positive and negative impact to global missions. We must continue to examine these shifts and practices so that the North American church can participate with the global church in the Great Commission in both healthy and strategic ways.”

6. WHO KILLED MARS HILL?

By: Mike Cosper

This is a podcast episode worth listening to. I do no often post anything with people’s names attached. However, what can be learned from the “Who killed Mars Hill?” is something that I believe all need to listen to and learn from, especially young pastors like myself. One quote from Ed Stetzer on this will hopefully provide insight into the episode. Stetzer states, “There’s a body count of young pastors whose ability rose them to prominence before their character was ready for it.” Give it a listen.

7. YOUR FRIDAY FIVE.

By: Dr. David L. Allen

As I mentioned in the first week, the seventh article will be Dr. David Allen’s “Your Friday Five” that he posts each Friday. There is one in particular that he recommended that I want to point out and that is Dr. John Piper’s article entitled, “30 Reasons why it is a great thing to be a pastor.” He of course has five articles from various resources, but be sure you read Dr. Pipers!