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"Our greatest confirmation of the gospel is the community of the local church. Therefore, our best strategy for reaching the world is to fan that community into a raging inferno of supernatural witness that will be far more attractive than any adjustment to our music, small groups, or sermons could ever be." (194) The Compelling Community: Where God's Power Makes a Church...

Thom Rainer has written an excellent article about how we could more effectively interact with guests that visit Bethel each week! Here's a summary, but be sure to check out the entire article HERE. He recommends seven things we should say to guests. "Thank you for being here.""Let me help you with that.""Please take my seat.""Here is my email address. Please let me kno...

"Sometimes when my church is celebrating the Lord's Supper, I let my gaze drift from person to person, imagining what they will be like in heaven. There's Margaret over there who sends me all those discouraging e-mailsyet who loves her Lord and our church. Squinting into the future, I can almost see her now, shining with the wise love and compassion of her Lord. Joe, who's...

With great jobs, a beautiful daughter and a dream house, the Jordans seem to have it all. Appearances can be deceiving, however, as husband Tony flirts with temptation and wife Elizabeth becomes increasingly bitter, crumbling under the strain of a failing marriage. Their lives take an unexpected turn for the better when Elizabeth meets her newest client, Miss Clara, who en...

"To follow Christ is to love other Christians. . . . Love between believers isn't a sign of maturity; it's a sign of saving faith." (52) The Compelling Community: Where God's Power Makes a Church Attractive (Crossway, 2015)...

Bruce Ware's article, Advice for Another Year of Bible Reading,over at Desiring God is a wonderful, balanced approach to Bible reading in 2016. He has provided us with five guidelines that have helped him over many years of reading Scripture. 1. Commit yourself to consistent Bible reading. 2. Engage in both fast-paced and slow-paced reading. 3. Notice the who as much, ...

"If your church culture lauds those who singlehandedly "win" non-Christians to faith, set a better example. Pray that when God brings a friend of yours to Christ, your church community will have so embraced him that he wouldn't actually know who "won" him to faith." (192) The Compelling Community: Where God's Power Makes a Church Attractive (Crossway, 2015)...

Many Christians take the beginning of a new year to evaluate their Bible reading habits, and then change or begin a Bible reading plan. For our convenience, Ligonier has compiled a list of Bible reading plans for us to choose from! Check them out HERE!...

"With few exceptions, conversation about another's sin should either be confession (e.g., confessing my poor response when I was wronged) or collaboration (e.g., talking together about how we can encourage that person toward godliness). . . . With our own sin, we should be open and transparent; with the sin of others, we should be discrete." (17475) The Compelling Communi...

"The reasons we value unity often diverge from the reason God values unity. When you teach about church unity, denominate it in terms of its value to God. Yes, unity is pleasant. Yes, it makes for a happy church. Yes, it keeps meetings shorter. But ultimately unity is valuable because it reflects God's character and being. . . . God cares about our unity because it shows o...