RBP Director David Gunn to Join BBS Faculty
The GARBC announces the resignation of David Gunn as director of Regular Baptist Press. David has accepted an invitation from Baptist Bible Seminary (Clarks Summit, Pa.) to serve as a professor of systematic theology.
Conference Preview: A Conversation with Nicolas and Venessa Ellen
David Strope interviews keynote speakers Nicolas and Venessa Ellen on their life and ministry, and the topics on which they will be speaking at this year’s GARBC conference.
An Easter Meditation
Let the love of Christ be fresh in your heart and mind. Allow Christ’s great redemptive work at Calvary to constrain you. Move to worship in heartful, affective adoration. Live for Him, Who loved you and gave Himself for you.
Leadership Vision
Sometimes leaders are so busy painting a beautiful picture of a better future that they can’t see the potholes right in front of them! Good leadership includes seeing those and taking preventive action.
Is Self-Care Selfish?
Is self-care a legitimate pursuit for a Christian in ministry? If we’re not talking about self-indulgence, but stewardship, then yes.
The Church and the Keys to the Kingdom
The church is not the kingdom, but we do have an important job to do in preparing for the kingdom’s arrival. We have been tasked with recruiting a kingdom constituency and preparing Christ’s mediatorial queen.
Is Biblical Counseling Anti-science?
Nothing could be more anti-scientific than denying the fact that humans are a sexually dimorphic and sexually reproducing species. Yet, the common mantra of many today would deny this reality.
You Cannot Help but Worship
You may be either an atheist, an agnostic, a Muslim, a Jew, a Christian, a Wiccan, a Buddhist, a Hindu, or simply an individual who does not identify with any label. But whatever you are, you are a worshipper.
David Strope Appointed Interim National Representative
The Council of Eighteen has appointed David Strope as the GARBC’s new interim national representative.
The High Price of Coarse Jesting
Let’s use another regrettable event in our world as an opportunity to marvel at what Jesus Christ made possible for us, and move in the direction of repentance, faith, and obedience so that our words—whether spoken in private or public—might honor Him.
Afghanistan’s Heartbreaking Story
For twenty years the Afghan people have been told that they now will be free. Schools built. Promises made. However, all of those things have changed over one long weekend.
On Worship
Worshiping God is what we’re designed to do. Worship points us to the truth of God’s greatness.
Wisdom for Words
When we recognize the power of the tongue, we will desire God’s wisdom for our words.
Questioning Faith
God loves when we ask questions with the right heart and a spirit of humble submission to him.
Bb Podcast: It’s Not About Size; It’s About Health
The Baptist Bulletin podcast is also available via iTunes, Stitcher, Google Podcasts, and iHeartRadio.
Bb Podcast: Called to Generate Disciples
Mike and Clare discuss the church’s disciple-making mandate and the vital need to reproduce Christian leaders in the days ahead.
Seven Virtues for Having Hard Conversations
By Bob Stevenson Last October I hosted a discussion group to help our church process through the upcoming election. We don’t often talk about politics …
Bb Podcast: Church Revitalization and Community Engagement
The Baptist Bulletin podcast is also available via iTunes, Stitcher, and Google Play.
Bb Podcast: Mentoring Pastors and Church Leaders
Mike and special guest Knute Larson discuss pastoral mentoring, church ministry, and the role of the Holy Spirit in the life of the believer.
Understanding the Call to Ministry
The call to ministry is a realization that God is directing you into vocational ministry. This realization is accompanied by your own desire. And it is confirmed by church leaders who observe your character and gifts for ministry.
When My Heart Is Overwhelmed
God uses the “wave” of an overwhelmed heart to lead us to the Rock of Ages, the Rock that is higher than us.
The Anatomy of a Failure
With the revelation of Ravi Zacharias’ secret lifestyle of sexual sins, Christians and even non-Christians publicly wonder what went wrong.
Jeremiah’s Journey to Hope
What Jeremiah came to understand is that it’s not the Lord’s gifts but the Lord Himself who constitutes hope.
The Offense of Grace
No one hates grace, do they? Who would ever be offended by a free gift?
Baptist Bulletin Podcast: Thinking Through Pastoral Transitions
In this episode, Mike discusses some of the right and wrong reasons for pastors to consider transitioning to another church or ministry.
Council of Eighteen Plans for Association’s Future
The Council of Eighteen—governing body of the General Association of Regular Baptist Churches—met virtually on Nov. 16 and 17 to make strategic plans for the …
Seven Reasons to Preach through Revelation
The message of Revelation needs to be shared, and as a pastor, you are in the prime position to teach it to your congregation.
You’re Invited to a 100-Day Prayer Challenge
In late July two retired pastors were talking about the problems COVID-19 has brought to the US and about the nation’s political upheaval. They wondered …
Murky Waters, Murky Minds
In order to have a Biblically clear mind, we need a Biblically developed worldview filter that can sort out the good from the bad, the Biblical from the secular.
Hindals Retire from Regular Baptist International
Chris and Deb Hindal have retired from Regular Baptist International as director and administrative assistant, respectively. When they first came to Gospel Literature Services, the ministry’s name at the time, they had already served as a pastor and wife for 35 years at churches in Pennsylvania, Iowa, and Florida.
Parents, Don’t Negotiate With Terrorists!
Indulging your children when they throw a temper tantrum is unhelpful and counter-productive.
No Fear This School Year
If you are fearful entering this school year, then turn to God’s Word for hope. Within the pages of the Bible, there are precious promises for scared, weak, and needy people to grab hold of.
Finding Joy instead of Jealousy in Your Work
Let’s put our hearts and minds into what the Lord has for us. Let’s do it wholeheartedly for the Lord.
Your Pastor’s Wife Is Human
Churches need to realize that although the role of a pastor’s wife can be rewarding and special, it can also be lonely.
Back to the Mission Field of School
As school starts this year, create a new tradition at supper for each person in your family to think about someone at their school or workplace they can pray for, then pray for them as a family during supper time.
Baptist Bulletin Podcast: Overcoming a Competitive Spirit
Mike and David discuss Mike’s new book, No Contest: Overcoming a Competitive Spirit.
A Perfect Time for Your Church to Grow
By Bob Cowman I tend to see opportunity at the strangest times and in the weirdest ways. If you read the news or follow the …
Baptist Bulletin Podcast: How to Leave a Church Well
Mike and Bob discuss the many issues surrounding the difficult decision to leave a church.
Baptist Bulletin Podcast: The Supremacy and Beauty of Christ
Mike interviews Steve DeWitt on the subject of Christ’s supremacy and beauty.
Biblical Principles for Social Media
The question isn’t so much whether or not to utilize social media, but what we are trying to say and why. Our communication is to be seasoned as with salt—that implies that we are putting in some thought beforehand.
COVID-19 & When Should We Reopen the Economy?
What should we be considering, as Christians, when we ponder and discuss the idea of reopening the country?
Why Humility and Submission Are Especially Important for Churches on Lockdown
By Steve Viars Indiana’s governor, Gov. Eric Holcomb, along with his assembled team of medical and business professionals, has the gigantic task of leading our …
On Uncertainty
This is a time of great uncertainty, but it is also a time for reflection on First Things, on Prime Principles. On what is certain. On Truth.
Crisis Catapults Courage
We’re all in over our heads right now. These are hard times. But the hard times are the best times to become who God made us to be.
Forgiveness
Just as biblical love is an action (not a feeling) so is biblical forgiveness. Stop looking at your emotions as a barometer and start looking unto Jesus.
Evangelism in the Time of COVID-19
Like the early church, we must boldly step into the challenge of caring for the vulnerable and sick. We must point them to the only One Who can deliver us.
Baptist Bulletin Podcast: The Church and COVID-19
Mike and David discuss Christian living and church ministry in an age of Coronavirus lockdown.
Why We Won’t Have Online Communion
Observing the Lord’s Table remotely might not be the best idea.
Church Polity and the Coronavirus
What does the Coronavirus lock-down mean for our Baptist understanding of church polity?
Memorize
“Your word I have hidden in my heart, that I might not sin against You” (Ps. 119:11).
What Is the Meaning of “Iron Sharpens Iron” in Proverbs 27:17?
The “iron sharpening iron” process that Proverbs 27:17 provides is a helpful and maybe even convicting part of a believer’s life.
How God’s Love Helps Us When We Are Afraid
We have good reason to take the virus seriously. But we also have good reason to trust God, live courageously, and love others.
COVID-19 and Anxiety
What are you worried about? Try this three-step approach from Philippians 4:6–7.
No Shame?
The idea that shame has no place at all in the life of the believer says too much.
Change: Adopting a Biblical Approach in the New Year
God calls us to live actively in confident faith and hope, not fear. Like our Biblical forerunners, He asks us to trust in the fact that He is already present in the places that are new and untested for us.
Baptist Bulletin Podcast: Who Were the Magi, Really?
In this episode, we consider the historical identity of the Magi and offer some reflections on the account of their visit to the Christ-child in Matthew 2.
Thanks & Giving
This Thanksgiving Day, as we sit down with our family and friends and stare at that turkey with the trimmings, perhaps we should remind ourselves to be better thankers and better givers.
Baptist Bulletin Podcast: Pastoral Recruitment and the Call to Ministry
This episode features a panel discussion on pastoral recruitment and the call to ministry.
Baptist Bulletin Podcast: Marriage in Ministry
Mike discusses marriage in ministry with John and Daria Greening.
I Am Called to Self-Sacrifice, Not Self-Care
Self-care in its proper place is good, but that road can be slippery. We are not our own; we are Christ’s.
Baptist Bulletin Podcast: What Is the Purpose of the GARBC?
David and Mike discuss the proposed updated purpose statement and how it better answers the question, “What is our purpose and our mission?”
Suffering and the Goodness of God
God is a good Father. He loves to give good gifts. At the cross, the most significant suffering in history collided with the greatest gift anyone could ever offer.
A Few Good Men
It is God’s business to turn people who are not good into people are who are. Justification declares us to be righteous based on the righteousness of another, so we are “good” in the estimation of God as He sees us in Christ.
If you commit suicide, can you go to Heaven?
By Kevin Carson Some questions that readers ask are harder to answer than others. This is a very hard question. Whenever someone asks this question, …
The War Within
Do you find yourself in a cyclical battle with sin? Next time you sin, stop yourself, and walk yourself through James 4:1–4.
Baptist Bulletin Podcast: Signs & Wonders and Biblical Sufficiency
Mike and David discuss signs and wonders, spiritual gifts, and Biblical sufficiency.
Why Go to Seminary When the Fields Are Already White for Harvest?
It is true that people are lost and dying, and that we should be urgent about pursuing the lost, but skipping seminary in order to rush into ministry would be like performing a surgery without any schooling.
Baptist Bulletin Podcast: Developing an Evangelistic Environment in the Local Church
Pat Nemmers and Chuck De Cleene discuss the importance of intentional evangelism.