Grace Abounding

On April 22, 2012, Grace Church of Alexandria elected new officers for 2012. The photo gallery below pictures our current pastors, deacons, secretary, and treasurer. Ephesians 4 says that Christ came “giving good gifts to his people,” including gifting church with leaders and servants to strengthen the body of Christ. We are thankful for the faithful servants that Christ has given to Grace Church of Alexandria as we enter our fifth year of ministry in Alexandria, Virginia.

Sermon Title: A Biblical Theology of Work & Rest, Part 2
Speaker: Jonathan Matías, Pastor
Text: Genesis 2:1-2 & Matthew 11:28-30

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Does the Bible contain errors, or is it accurate and reliable? Is it just helpful advice from people of old, or is it God’s very Words? How did we get the 66 books of the Bible? Were they chosen by a council of church leaders in the 300′s A.D., or is there evidence that the books in the Bible today were generally accepted as Scripture soon after they were written? How can we in modern society read these very old writings of the Bible in such a way that we find truth for living?

Overview

These questions are addressed by a new book from Crossway entitled Understanding Scripture: An Overview of the Bible’s Origin, Reliability, and Meaning. Nineteen evangelical scholars write in a style accessible to long-time believers and new believers alike, addressing pressing questions Christians are asked and often wonder themselves.  Understanding Scripture is written on a popular level to the average Christian, bringing down to earth technical questions discussed in seminary and scholarly circles. This book is a timely resource in this age of skepticism regarding the canon, inspiration, inerrancy, and historicity.

Book Details

Title: Understanding Scripture: An Overview of the Bible’s Origin, Reliability, and Meaning
Edited By: Wayne Grudem, C. John Collins, and Thomas Schreiner
Pages: 197
Publish Date: 2012
ISBN # 978-1-4335-2999-3
Sample: Download a sample chapter here.

What’s Inside

A breakdown of the contents shows that this book is written to help a believer’s questions about the Bible and their devotional life too.

Part 1 – Interpreting the Bible
Part 2 – Reading the Bible
Part 3 –  The Canon of Scripture
Part 4 – The Reliability of Bible Manuscripts
Part 5 – Archaeology and the Bible
Part 6 – The Original Languages of the Bible
Part 7 – Old Testament and New

The chapters are short, to the point, and written in a way that makes complex doctrines about Scripture plain and understandable enough to bolster one’s faith. This volume features articles by Christian leaders from a variety of backgrounds and areas of service, including J.I. Packer (theologian), John Piper (pastor), David Powlison (counselor), Daniel B. Wallace (scholar) and others.

Worth Reading

Understanding Scripture is worth reading to help you get the most out of your Bible reading and get you started in understanding why you can trust the Bible as we have it today. Questions about the Scripture’s authority and reliability are asked increasingly, so this book will equip you to maintain your faith in an age of skepticism and also help friends to know that they can trust the Bible too.

p.s. Thanks to Crossway for sending a review copy when I requested one.

Sermon Title: Jesus Messiah: The Gospel of Matthew
Speaker: Garrett Lee, Pastor
Text: Matthew 1:1-17

Watch the video “True and Better” that Garrett showed at the end of the sermon to summarize the message of Matthew

Audio of the sermon:

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A Dreadful Effect of the Fall
My grandparents who are in their 90′s have been dealt a bitter blow. For several years Grandma has suffered from the ravages of Alzheimer’s disease, one of the most hideous effects of the Fall and the curse. Usually she cannot remember what decade it is, who Grandpa is, that she’s married, or that she has kids. This deterioration of her mind means her days are a cacophony of confusion and fear.

Love Standing Strong
In the midst of this hurt-filled chaos stands my grandfather, who unrelentingly and gently serves as her caregiver. More than anyone else I’ve ever known or seen, Grandpa is modeling what it means to love your spouse “for better, for worse, in sickness, and in health.” He is a living demonstration of how husbands ought to “love your wives, just as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (Ephesians 5:25).

God-Fueled, Christ-Glorifying Love
Few things anger me more than pastors I know of who advise Christians to divorce their Alzheimer’s-plagued spouses who no longer remember them and to find someone else who will make them happy. Rather, God lays out a vision for believers to display what God’s love is like through sacrificial, love-fueled service for your spouse, keeping your wedding vows “to love and to cherish” your beloved “till death do us part.” This may require you to put your plans and ambitions on hold, to care for your aging parents, or a spouse who has fallen prey to this dreaded disease.

The Example of a Seminary President
College and seminary president Robertson McQuilkin faced this choice, and serves as an exemplary model of never-ending Christ-like love. The following articles in Christianity Today recount how he chose to step down from his role as a successful and respected Christian leader in order to tenderly care for his wife until her passing years down the road. Robertson McQuilkin writes with transparency and forthrightness while he was on the long journey of caring for his dear wife until her departure to be with Christ. His testimony is stirring, and hard to read.

Journaling One Couple’s Battle

I commend these testimonies to you to kindle your commitment to love your spouse whatever may come…because that’s the kind of God we serve and get to put on display.

“Muriel’s Blessing”
Written 17 years into their journey of battling Alzheimer’s together

“The Gradual Grief of Alzheimers”
Reflections upon Muriel’s passing, 25 years after starting to fight the disease.

Sermon Title: A Biblical Theology of Work & Rest, Part 1
Speaker: Jonathan Matías, Pastor
Text: Genesis 1-3 & Ecclesiastes 2:24-26

Since vocation, labor, and career have such an impact on our daily lives, this sermon combs through Scripture to see what God says about work. I recommend the following two books as helpful resources to see what else the Bible says about work and working. The audio for this sermon is at the end of this post.

The Proverbs-Driven Life by Anthony Selvaggio

Work: A Kingdom Perspective on Labor by Ben Witherington III

Sermon Audio

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One of my greatest areas of struggle (with sin) is overworking. You know the symptoms of a workaholic. I battled this in my work in various businesses and still battle it today as a local church pastor.

Lately, though, I’m coming to the realization that the gospel has an answer for workaholics and perfectionists like me. I’ve been thinking all wrong! Essentially, my sinful mind is telling me that I have value and worth, or that I’m accepted before God, if I carry out the level of work that I think I’m expected to do (by others like a boss, or the congregation I serve, or God). And so I worry about what people (or God) might think about the amount of work and effort I’m putting into things. Excellence has become an idol of my heart.

In words better than I could say, Don Carson identifies the antidote for perfectionists and workaholics like me. He describes the answer for Christians who serve in their local church and Christian ministries, but his principle is applicable for whatever your work is–from stay-at-home wives who work at keeping the house clean to CEO’s of large businesses who manage a business’s future. The following comes from an engaging book about Don Carson’s dad, who pastored a small church in Canada:

“So many aspects of ministry demand excellence, and there are not enough hours in the day to be excellent in all of them. . .

It is rare for me to finish a sermon without feeling somewhere in between slightly discouraged and moderately depressed that I have not preached with more unction, that I have not articulated these glorious truths more powerfully and with greater insight, and so forth. But I cannot allow that to drive me to despair; rather, it must drive me to a greater grasp of the simple and profound truth that we preach and visit and serve under the gospel of grace, and God accepts us because of his Son. . .

The ministry is so open-ended that one never feels that all possible work has been done, or done as well as one might like. There are always more people to visit, more studying to be done, more preparation to do. What Christians must do, what Christian leaders must do, is constantly remember that we serve our God and Maker and Redeemer under the gospel of grace.”

Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor, Kindle edition (2011), Locations 1211-34.

So, next time you find yourself working furiously at a task more vigorously than you probably need to, ask yourself, “Does my sense of value and worth come from what I do for God, or from what God has done for me in Christ?” “Am I trying to accomplish tasks in a way that is actually doable, or am I seeking for a level of excellence that God is not really expecting from me, because it’s out of balance and unwise to strive for?” “Does my effectiveness for serving come from the effort I put into a task, or from God’s mighty grace that raised Jesus from the dead (Ephesians 1:18-20) and is powerfully at work in me?”

Fellow perfectionist: Remember a) that your standing before God is from Christ, and b) that it’s God’s grace, and not your strength, that makes all the difference. Whew! These two gospel truths just take the pressure off!

p.s. If you find any typos in this blog post, it’s because I stopped trying to be a perfectionist, and logged out to go be with my family!

Title: Memoirs of an Ordinary Pastor
Author: D.A. Carson
Pages: 160
ISBN-13: 9781433501999
List price: $15.99 (normally 10.79 – 33% off here)

Sermon Title: A Culture of Discipleship
Speaker: Jonathan Matías, Pastor
Text: 2 Timothy 2:1-2

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Sermon Title: The Greatest Need In the World
Speaker: Jonathan Matías, Pastor
Text: Psalm 96:1-3

Following this challenge from Psalm 96, the film “Father, Give Me Bread” was shown at Grace Church of Alexandria:

Trailer – Episode 5: Father, Give Me Bread from Frontline Missions International on Vimeo.

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Sermon Title: Underestimating Jesus, Part 2
Speaker: Jonathan Matías, Pastor
Text: John 19:1-28
Date: Preached on GCA’s Joint Good Friday Service, April 6, 2012

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