Stuart Sheehan

To study the nature of God on any subject is to learn of Him in every other, for the totality of all His character is found wherever He is.

@bartbarber It was a good post though... carpe dentum...

Always post something lengthy and at least somewhat controversial on the day before dental work. It helps you to look forward to the dental work.

@MusingsOnChrist yes… thank you for saying it out loud. We see this so much as we work to provide theological education in the global church… it is almost assured when heading into particularly spiritually difficult places.

A spiritual phenomenon I’ve seen recur in ministry: Whenever I am used by the Lord in an especially powerful way to speak truth and free people from the lies of the deceiver, his minions attack me or my family. The best response: Pray for God to be glorified and for their souls.

Yes, Denny. Surely a father would have a heart for a son at least as burdened as Spurgeon exhorted all believers to have for all the lost: “If sinners be damned, at least let them leap to hell over our dead bodies. And if they perish, let them perish with our arms wrapped about their knees, imploring them to stay. If hell must be filled, let it be filled in the teeth of our exertions, and let not one go unwarned and unprayed for. “

Why are you reading this so skeptically? Nobody is saying fudge the truth. The issue for a pastor is to shoot the arrow at the target, and there are many ways to miss the target. This illustration helps to humanize what's at stake. If you want your son converted, you need to preach in such a way that the truth reaches him. That's the point.

This sounds like good advice, but it’s how pastors go soft on the sins our culture celebrates. If your son on the back row is giving church one last try, faithfully preaching what the Bible says about sexuality might be the last straw. Pastors have to be okay with that.

In the Doctrine of God, we describe God as simple, meaning He is one nature—not divisible. This one nature manifests in all the divine attributes (love, mercy, justice, holiness, etc.). So to study the nature of God in any aspect is to consider Him in His fullness—His nature cannot be separated into component parts. The longer I live, the more I understand that Christian Theology is very similar in this aspect. To remove one fundamental truth is not possible, because it is coherent truth, which manifests in a variety of ways. This is also very important in the field of hermeneutics. To ignore or explain away one part of scripture undermines the meaning of all the others. The written Word is also coherent. Ignoring one part undermines the nature of the whole. Treating God, His Word, or core doctrine like a cafeteria (take what you like and ignore the rest) is increasingly common. And the church is not better for it.

I have watched this over the last 40 years… it seems more common now than it has been. I attribute it, at least partly, to the lack of actual teaching on the importance and meaning of baptism. And, I have never been a fan of the big group baptisms away from the fellowship, e.g., at camps, retreats, etc., something else I have seen more of over my lifetime.

I've lived long enough to go from people leaving because you would require them to be baptized as a part of joining to, now, people leaving because although they have already been scripturally baptized you refuse to redo their baptism on a whim.

I’ve lived long enough to see there are things I didn’t think precious soon enough but they were/are and things I thought were precious as a young man that never were. If you are young, I hope you will see this—the sooner the better.

@DrPaulChitwood @gordonfort GO!

140 adults & kids commissioned yesterday now launch to 38 countries to proclaim the gospel to the lost. Sent out by their churches, they will be sustained by millions of Southern Baptists who may never meet them but who love them, pray for them & give generously to support them

@jaredcwilson Great news!!

Dissertation is finished and approved. Defense is set for Oct. 28.

I am so thankful for folks like my friend, @LailaMickelwait. By God’s grace she and ofhers are pushing back against unspeakable darkness… and winning.

In a world filled with anxiety, you could do something to help: “Anxiety in a man’s heart weighs him down, but a good word makes him glad.” —Pr 12:25

Brothers, if we need to let folks know we are pastors so they will know we follow Jesus, we have a problem… And if folks know we are pastors and can’t see us follow Jesus—we have a BIG problem.

@dandarling 💯

If you didn’t grow up in the 80’s and 90’s, you wouldn’t understand the massive cultural impact of Dr Dobson’s radio show. Before podcasting. Before YouTube. Not only was he dispensing helpful, practical, and biblical marriage and family advice, he was convening the best theologians, pastors, and experts on a wide range of topics. He launched curriculum. He wrote bestselling books. He started advocacy organizations. He spearheaded creative programming like Adventures in Odyssey and Radio Theater. He was influential in Promise Keepers and served on Presidential task forces. What an incredible life serving the church!

An unspoken promise of Christian community is that we will bury one another, grieving but full of hope.1 In doing so, we remind ourselves to preach the gospel in word and dead while we are alive so our community has ease in declaring it when they lay us to rest.

A life lived in faith toward God is a powerful call for us to endure. Today I preached the funeral of a dear friend and valued team member at WHMI.org. Her life demonstrated what endurance and unwavering faith in Jesus look like. In truth, she had already preached her own funeral before she made it home. Any who serve as pastors know what a blessing that is…

This 🧵 is excellent (as are most musings from @MusingsOnChrist). It seems to me that Evangelicalism’s (and the SBC’s) unreasonable resistance to affirming historic creeds leaves them untethered from and unaccountable to the historic faith in dangerous ways. This produces all sorts of theological mess on a global scale.

@jt_english Wow! I love how God plays the long game.

I wasn’t a Christian in high school. Tonight I had the opportunity to attend our church plant’s 1st preview service in my high school auditorium. Tears filled my eyes as I thought about the Lord’s goodness. This gospel truth of old shall not kneel and it shall not faint.

Today, I was working from home. A technician (J_) came by to install a part (Amy was out). He was a nice guy, a veteran. I got to visit with him a bit, thanked him for serving, and I was able to share some snacks and a soda with him. I felt a strong urge to pray for J_ . I asked him when he came to mind how I could pray for him. He said he had never been asked that question. Then he proceeded to tell me that his mother died not long ago—I figured that is why the Lord had asked me to pray for him. Afterall, he said it had been difficult for him. I was glad to pray about that. THEN, he told me that he was shot last December—a criminal entered J_’s home, shot and killed his dog, then shot him. All this occurred in front of J_’s young son. The bullet hit five of J_’s organs—he coded but God raised him up. I prayed over him at some length before he left—lots to pray for, including for his son who had witnessed such horrific events. NOTE: We rarely have any idea what people are going through. If you are a believer, you can always offer to pray for folks. In the hundreds (1000’s?) of times I have asked that question (how can I pray for you?), I have rarely gotten push back. Christians, you can make a difference if you will 1) actually care about people and 2) be willing to go out on a limb and show your care in active, tangible ways. I will keep praying for J_ . Who might God lead you to pray for tomorrow?