GuineaField

The word Gospel refers to sharing good news with someone. In Greek, it is composed of two seperate buildingblocks: The prefix eu (good) + the word angelo (angel or messenger). Consider a N.T. illustration. Paul was only with the Thessalonian believers for a few weeks before he was persecuted and thrown out of the city. Because of his quick departure he feared that those who professed Christ during his short ministry there would be scattered. So, he sent Timothy to Thessalonica to see if they continued in the faith. Timothy visited and discovered good news regarding their faith. In turn, Timothy came back and “brought the good news” about them (1 Thessalonians 3:6). This is the only time this word is used in the N.T. where it does not refer to the good news about Jesus (although in one sense this is related). Timothy was the bearer of good news to Paul about the Thessalonian believers. As Gospel proclaimers we have good news handed to us from God – that His Son died for all. It is our j

I came across this quote when finishing up reading “The Shack” by Young ( Here's a quick review of the book). It is from Elizabeth Browning’s Aurora Leigh: “And truly, I reiterate, . . nothing’s small! No lily-muffled hum of a summer-bee, But finds a coupling with the spinning stars; No pebble at your foot, but proves a sphere; No chaffinch, but implies the cherubim: And,-glancing on my own thin, veined wrist,- In such a little tremour of the blood The whole strong glamour of a vehement soul Doth utter itself distinct. Earth’s crammed with heaven, And every common bush afire with God: But only he who sees, takes off his shoes, The rest sit round and pick blackberries, And daub their natural faces unaware More and more from the first similitude.”

Dear Asher, For a very long time people have named their children with some meanin g behind the names they pick. We named you Asher Dell for a reason: Asher is your first name. This is the name of one of Jacob’s sons; so it is one of the tribes of Israel. We named you Asher for the same reason that Jacob did – it means blessed, fortunate, or happy. It is our prayer that you will be truly fortunate and blessed in your life. Someone who is blessed is blessed by someone else. We want you to be blessed by the God of your mom and dad, Jesus Christ our Savior. We want you to be blessed in life in every way – physically, emotionally, mentally, but most of all spiritually. Our greatest desire is that you will walk with God. And so we have named you Asher while thinking of Psalm 1: How blessed (Asher pl.) is the man who does not walk in with the wicked but delights in God’s Law: Psalm 1:1 “Blessed is the man who walks not in the counsel of the wicked, nor stands in the way of sinners, nor sits

I have been reading through Exodus/Leviticus devotionally and have been struck again with the demand for blood. When sins were transferred from the person to the lamb the lamb had to die. His blood had to be spilt. Also, if the priests were not ordained properly they too would have to die. Either they were set apart correctly through the death of a ram (among other things) or the priest would have to die. The specific verse that hit me this morning was Leviticus 8:35: ESV "At the entrance of the tent of meeting you shall remain day and night for seven days, performing what the LORD has charged, so that you do not die, for so I have been commanded." My Priest was perfect yet He had to die for my sin. He was ordained perfectly; He was always doing what pleased the Father yet He chose to be the Lamb of God that takes away my sin. What a glorious Gospel this! I’m also reading through Charles Simeon’s biography. He came to faith in Jesus through examining the picture of the Old Te

Ephesians 3:20 Now to Him who is able to do far more abundantly beyond all that we ask or think, according to the power that works within us, 21 to Him be the glory in the church and in Christ Jesus to all generations forever and ever. Amen. What a challenge to live out each day! This is truly a passage that helps us gain the big picture of life. All must be to the glory of God. Bach wrote 'SDG' at the bottom of each cantata 'Soli Deo Gloria' - 'Only to God be the glory.' Oh that I would live each day this way. Each hour one bar in a cantata of praise lived out to the glory of God. Living each moment to make Him bigger in others eyes. That is life. And life lived that way is true contentment. This Sunday's Sermon: http://www.nycgrace.org/pages/sermons.aspx?fsId=10&itemId=44

Sarah wrote this out to have years down the road. Once I read it I begged her to let me put it on GuineaField. She acquiesced. I feel this is how the Lord finds me much of the time in life and ministry - "tim's working his plan again . . . time to clean up." ------ "So this is what happened today. . .Around 5am I hear a quiet 'dwink! Dwink!' next to my bed. I rise and sleepily stumble into the kitchen after our 2 year old Charlotte. 'Chocolate!?', she whispers, hopefully. I pour her a cup of white milk. She settles for it and her little face is quickly buried behind the glass. 'You are going to bed!' I whisper sternly. All is well, I think, after she and I are both tucked back into bed. A short time later I hear a faint clinking and thumping outside our room. Wincing, I hope it’s just Buddy, the guinea pig, exercising in the middle of the night. However, since I’ve never seen Buddy exercise, I get up, knowing there was another source to this n

Book Overviews A. Lincoln This was my first book on Lincoln; I knew very little of him previously. It was good to make his acquaintance. I am also glad I had Ronald White introduce me to him (although I didn ’t like his writing style nearly as much as someone like McCullough). White is something of a Presbyterian minister somewhere in his past and although I have no idea if he has the new birth he does try to share more about Lincoln’s beliefs than others might. He also gives a bit of info on Lincoln’s pastor (while in IL), Gurley which is interesting . . . revealing things like Gurley studied under Charles Hodge at Princeton. He had influence on Lincoln. I am not going to attempt a painful survey the whole book but just give a few thoughts on what I liked, disliked or thought interesting about Lincoln: 1. Liked – His down to earth demeanor and humble leadership. Lincoln was not a bull-in-the-china-shop or a knock-you-dead-if-you-stand-in-my-way kind of leader (which is interesting s

Recently, in my time with the Lord, I read from from I Chronicles 10. The Lord instructed me about the comparison of the lives of Saul and David and also Peter and Judas with reference to their repentance . . . I don’t have time to develop this but here are a few thoughts: 1. Fear a repentance composed of seeking man’s forgiveness and not God’s. Saul’s repentance sounds good in word. But there are no tears or remorse and there are several egregious sins over an extended period of time only once do we read of repentance. In that time of repentance (I Samuel 15) the words sound good but they are really superficial. There is a lack of acknowledging the sin to God. Saul speaks to Samuel and seems to be afraid to speak with His God (He says to Samuel “Pardon my sin”). David has no go between. He says, “against you and you only have I sinned and done this evil.” Saul’s seems tied to his position before the elders of Israel (I Samuel 15:30) 2. Fear a tearless repentance. In both David (Psa

My good friend and co-pastor, John, did a great job presenting the Gospel in an article on the resurrection: www.nycgrace.org/resurrection

Would he have heard the Gospel if he had not moved to the NYC? I spent 45 minutes one morning sharing the gospel with Felipe, a man who was born in Venezuela and had only in the US for a period of 10 years or so. Although originally a violent man, an alcoholic, he has been attending services and many outward changes show that he has had an inward change. I believe Felipe’s changes have come from the inside out; his new birth through faith in Jesus has changed him eternally. There are millions of others like Felipe in NYC that must be reached. They are the mission field among us. God is glorified when we reach the mission fields of NYC. My first experiences in NYC as a sophomore in College were life-changing. I was so moved by the multitudes of people that teamed in this melting pot of the world - so many people, so diverse! How can I reach them? In the years since that time, as I have ministered in the city I have observed this same reaction in nearly everyone that I chauffeur around

We appended this to the end of our church doctrinal statement and constitution: Why Join a Church? Why would you want to join a church? Our culture is afraid of commitment. It is sad that people let this mindset deter them from joining a church. It is true that you can continue to attend Grace as you are now and enjoy the building up that comes from the fellowship of believers, the worship of God, and the teaching/preaching of His Word. But we would encourage you to think through the following reasons to join Grace Baptist Church. 1. Follow a Biblical Model: Church membership is not commanded in the New Testament. But the organization involved in a local body was similar to our practice of church membership. Consider the following examples: First, in the early church those who became believers were added to the group of Christians (Acts 2:41-42, 5:14, 11:24). This is mentioned three times in Acts but this first time is very instructive because it is at the beginning of the chu

You are hanging outside the window of the sixth floor of a burning building. The rusty shutter you are clinging to is slowly swinging in the breeze and your hands are burning with the intense heat of the wall and the flames leaping out of the gaping window. The NY Times archives recounts a three alarm fire in a six story livery and boarding stables at Madison and E 66th street in the early 1900’s. The firefighters had secured the safety of hundreds of horses from the buildings when the fire chief looked up and saw a man in the sixth floor window. They beckoned the man out of the window and pleaded with him not to jump so they could do their best to reach him. As Tony Shultz waited for rescue he had to climb out the window and hold on to the shutter. The witnesses said that the shutter swayed in the breeze as Tony’s life hung in the balance between being burnt by the flames or succumbing to the six story drop. Fire Lieutenant Jacob Levy and Fireman Frank Winterick charged up the ta