Home Alone: Do We Still

Need the Local Church?

Jim Elliff
The down-the-street local church is not the only show in town anymore. We are able to enjoy faith-building messages, listen to the latest Christian music, and explore the rich diversity and variety found in the most noted Christian gatherings, all with the click of the mouse or the touch of a button.

Many local church pastors now say, "The world is my parish," just as did the horseback-riding evangelist, John Wesley. But they mean this without ever going out of their own studio or auditorium! Some are communicating to millions.

It is not unusual for savvy web users to feed from many sources during a given week. Avid cable television viewers can watch the world's premium communicators any on almost any day! Some listen to Christian radio all day long. In fact, you can hear and see Christian leaders on your handheld media device while eating a hamburger in the local fast food restaurant.

For some time we have been losing the aura of significance once automatically assigned to the local church...


http://www.bulletininserts.org/homealone.html

As a general rule, you want to be very careful abou thte way you speak about other men's ministry. Though I obviously have grave reservations about some of the things that are done in these churches, I am deeply grateful to God that he has used these men to spread his gospel. We should also be deeply grateful to these men for sacrificing and striving to see the gospel go forward. I don't know all of them personally, but I would verture that many of them may be better husbands, fathers, leaders, and disciples of the Lord than I will ever be.
Does that mean I approve of their methods? Not at all. Does that mean that I think their methods aren't at times wrong and unhelpful? Not at all. But I am thankful that God uses crooked sticks(like me) to strike straight blows.

Michael McKinley

http://blog.9marks.org/2008/01/speaking-of-coo.html#comments

BTM- "I have noticed that I like sparse, down-tempo, somewhat depressing music.* The closer the recording gets to a person and their guitar (and for some reason, I like hearing the guitar), the more likely I am to enjoy it.* think: mark kozelek, chris miner, jon black’s acoustic demos (you have got to hear them), brad lyons, a.a. bondy, jeff tweedy solo concerts, the new unknown from lasers edge that I have playing in the car."

http://briantmurphy.blogspot.com/2008/01/some-thoughts-on-what-i-like-about.html



i thot of that quote while listening to James Taylor....true.

http://thebluefish.blogspot.com/2008/02/mike-reeves-psalm-42.html

"True faith is not an opinion nor is it mere assent that the gospel is true, nor is it belief in a God in general.
True faith is specifically a faith in Christ.
True faith is a firm and certain knowledge of God's benevolence (goodwill)towards us founded on the truth of the freely given promise in Christ both revealed to our
minds and sealed upon our hearts through the Holy Spirit
True faith is unwavering.(at heart believer's are on the side of faith against and opposition against doubts and temptations...)

In faith we prick up our ears and listen to God's word and close our eyes to the doubt and lies of the world.

Mike Reeves teaching on Calvin.

at www.theologynetwork.org

http://theologynetwork.org/historical-theology/getting-stuck-in/introducing----john-calvin.htm

‘I simply taught, preached, and wrote God’s Word; otherwise I did nothing. And while I slept, or drank Wittenberg beer with my friends Philip and Amsdorf... the Word did everything.’
Martin Luther

from www.theologynetwork.com

"The main benefit that is obtained by preaching is by impression made upon the mind in the time of it, and not by the effect that arises afterwards by a remembrance of what was delivered." (quoted in Richard A. Bailey and Gregory A. Wills, The Salvation of Souls, Wheaton, IL: Crossway, p. 11).


http://blog.9marks.org/2008/02/jonathan-edward.html

(by Thabiti A.)


You reminded me of a similar sntiment I read from Jonathan Edwards.