Today, the Gospel will be proclaimed...

Let us be faithful to ask the Lord to bless the work of Camp Del Haven, which begins the camp season today. May God's sovereign grace be displayed and may the Gospel be effectual to save for the glory of the Lord Jesus.

Proclaiming the Doctrine of Sin

Mark Dever writes the following on page 148 of the book "Telling the Truth" edited by D.A. Carson...

"Sometimes we share the Gospel with people while secretly only half-believing it's true, wondering what they will concede to us, and not wanting to say much more than that lest we look ridiculous...Don't be put off by the current fad of the times. People need to grasp not only the theoretical concept of evil and wrong, but also the fact that they are evil and wrong. They need to experience their own consciences. This is difficult in postmodernism, because the self tends to dissolve away, to disappear. in many ways, that may be the biggest problem we have when we try to communicate the idea of sin today. Postmodernism encourages the evacuation of the responsible self.

But the real reason people don't acknowledge the legitimate moral claims of God is not because of any philosophy; it is simply because it is not in their self-interest to do so."

Sin and evil are two of the most difficult topics to discuss, especially when sin and evil become personal. But if there are certain things that we as Christians are absolutely convinced of, it is that sin is real and that the heart of sin is unrighteousness and ungodliness. Sin is opposition to God. This leads us to the reason for our evangelism; namely that as certain as we are that sin is real, we are certain that there is Good News and redemption from the power of the slavemaster of sin and reconciliation with God through Jesus, the Messiah.

So far in our study in Acts, we have seen Peter bring the charge of sin against Israel for crucifying the Prince of Life. Let us prayerfully consider how we may effectively communicate the depths of sin to those whom are around us today.

Acts 2: The Spirit and Salvation

"It will so happen that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved."

This past Sunday, we began looking at Acts 2. My plan is to continue in Acts 2 over the next several weeks and see the different themes that shine forth throughout this wonderful chapter. This week, we spent time looking at the salvation revealed as promised by the prophets.

The prophet Joel warned his people that though it seemed like things could not get any worse, they should take heed. God's judgment was near, "Who can endure it?" (Joel 2.11). Yet in the midst of God's judgment on the Old Covenant people, the prophet calls the people to repentance again and then states a glorious hope. One day, God has promised to pour out His Spirit (Joel 2.28) and it will come about that everyone who calls on the name of the Lord will be saved (Joel 2.32).

In Acts 2, we see the undeniable proof of the outpouring of the Spirit and Peter declares that Joel's words were now fulfilled. May God be praised! Selah.

Then the text shows us the power of the Spirit - the power of the Gospel - and 3,000 people called upon the name of the Lord Jesus by the mercy of God and were saved!

Truly our God is merciful and faithful! Truly the Spirit's power is real and effectual! Consider these disciples and the apostles. They had walked with the Lord for many years, experiencing his wisdom in teaching and seeing his glory. But now He has been put to death by those in political and religious power. The followers of our Lord had no power to respond. The risen Lord then appears to them and Jesus teaches them of the Kingdom and commands them to wait in Jerusalem until power comes upon them - the power of the promised Spirit.

Until this point, the followers of Jesus had no power, no ability, no wisdom to take the message of the crucified Lord, the atoning work of Jesus, nor even the news that He is risen and hold that message as a light in the midst of a crooked and perverse generation. But now, the moment the Spirit came in power, as Jesus promised, Peter stands and declares to those who opposed Jesus that they are guilty of His blood. They crucified the promised Messiah.

Now these believers have boldness. They have no fear of the religious and political leaders who just crucified Jesus and would want to do the same to them. Christ has now given power and authority to those in His kingdom. They will now go forth from here in Jerusalem to Judea, to Samaria, and then onward to the remote parts of the world. The Gospel will not be stopped. And all of this is due to the power of the Holy Spirit, promised to be poured out on God's people.

The text also shows us that God had gathered a remnant of Israel that had been dispersed. During Pentecost, many Jews had returned to Jerusalem from the list of many far away places as found in Acts 2:5-11. As God had promised, he would gather a remnant and bring them redemption through the Gospel.

We often look upon Calvary and see the atoning work of Christ...and we should often do this! Though we have been redeemed and we are forever secured by His grace as believers, in our weakness and in our sins, we continue to ever look to the blood of Christ and seek its cleansing power by faith. So too, though the promised Spirit has been poured out upon the Church (to the Jews in Acts 2, later to be given to the Gentiles) and the Gospel will go forth by its power, let us look back to Pentecost and be reminded that without the Spirit, we would not see the Gospel go forth. Without the Spirit, we would not have the boldness or wisdom to proclaim the Gospel to our friends, or family, our neighbors. And therefore, if we find that we are not as bold and faithful to share the Gospel as we should, let us beseech the Lord to empower us with His promised Spirit and send us forth as His servants to proclaim the Good News and see His kingdom expand!

Camp Del Haven

As spring has arrived, we at Heritage are reminded that Camp Del Haven's camping season will be here before we know it! I thought I would post a few things about this wonderful ministry so that we will each be able to pray more earnestly for the Lord to shower His blessings of mercy upon those in attendance.

Del Haven Memorial Chapel

For those of you who may not know, Camp Del Haven provides an opportunity for children to experience a week of camp for free. Currently, most of the children who are invited to the camp come from homes where one or both parents are incarcerated.

During a week of camp each child can expect to experience a memorable experience through various typical summer camp activities such as: swimming, campfires, and other outdoor games and sports. The children take part nature study, crafts, singing, Bible Studies, and opportunities for memorizing Scriptures.

While Camp Del Haven gives these children a week of fun and escape from the pressures and struggles of their life, the main focus is, and always has been, to proclaim the Gospel of Christ. It is an incredible opportunity!

As partners in ministry with Del Haven, let us be ambassadors for Christ by doing the following:

• Let us pray earnestly even now for those children who will attend the camp this summer by God's providential hand. May God prepare their hearts and protect them from all things that would harden them from faith. May God's mercy begin directing them to understand the weight of sin, the need of redemption, and the perfect atoning work of Jesus the Lord!
  
• Let us pray for the camp staff who have diligently worked for many years so that this ministry would continue the work of the Gospel. May God grant them peace and strength. May God provide all of their needs, personally and for the camp as well.
• Let us pray for the counselors who will volunteer. As the Lord to provide many who love Him, who are obedient to the faith, and who are willing to show forth Christ-like love.

For our men's fellowship in April, we are planning to go out and do some work at Del Haven to help prepare for the coming camp season. Please contact me if you would like me information.

For more information on Camp Del Haven, and to find out ways you can volunteer to help, please visit their website.

Resurrection and Missions

It was our joy and privilege on Sunday to have Dr. Ron and Faye Rogers join us for worship. The Rogers are missionaries to Brazil and we have known them since Stan and I met Dr. Rogers at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary.

Dr. Rogers' sermon provided a glorious look at the relationship of the resurrection of Christ to the missionary work of the Gospel. The providence of God was clearly demonstrated as we have been studying in-depth on the subject of the resurrection and also through Isaiah, and in March, I started preaching through the first chapter of Acts. All of these studies came together in Dr. Rogers' sermon.

After our worship service, Ron and Faye shared with us of the specifics regarding their work in Brazil. We heard many encouraging testimonies of the work as a whole, and specific men who have given their lives to starting Bible studies, planting churches, and taking the Gospel throughout their region.

The passion of Ron and Faye for the Gospel's advancement is a testimony of the power of the Spirit of God. Ron's personality is not charismatic. His preaching is not loud nor excitable. Instead, he demonstrated yesterday that in the simple preaching of the simple Gospel there is power as the Spirit attends it. His passion shows the transforming power of union with Christ and love for the people whom Christ has redeemed throughout the world.

These thoughts led us in delightful conversation in our Men's fellowship in the evening. We all recognized that this day was special. The Lord had answered our prayers and been merciful to us. Our great and mighty God displayed for us true power as the Arm of the Lord continues to go forth, displaying the power of the Gospel for the salvation of all who believe. We were able to share the opportunities that God had presented to us over the past few weeks to share the Gospel. Then, we joined together in prayer, petitioning God to strengthen us for His service, to use us as leaders in our families, and to continue to provide for our needs by His great grace.

All of this is humbling and encouraging. We must not let this moment depart without changing us. Our prayers ought to be changed. Our desires ought to be changed. May God forgive us of our failures to pray for this work of the Gospel as we should have prayed. May God grant to us a renewed heart for missions and evangelism as we serve the risen and living Lord!