Cheers Dan

Nay, after conversion we need bruising, that reeds may know themselves to be reeds, and not oaks; even we need bruising by reason of the remainder of pride in our nature, and to bt us see that we live by mercy; and that weaker Christians may not be too much discouraged, when they see stronger ones shaken and bruised. Thus Peter was bruised when he wept bitterly. This reed, till he met with this bruise, had more wind in him than pith. ” Though all forsake thee, I will not,” &c. Matt. xxvi. 35. The people of God cannot be without these examples. The heroical deeds of those great worthies do not comfort the Church so much as their falls and bruises do.

But whatever you do, go and watch the video he recorded before surgery… Christ is All.

Piper, Driscoll, Chandler, Stetzer, Chapell and a few others…

I’m guessing that full audio/video will be available at a later date, but the audio is being made available straight away on Desiring God… listening to Chandler ranting, his intro makes me laugh becuase he has “a picture of Dr. Piper on his fridge”.

“I’ve got no problem with thematic preaching, as long as it’s done exegetically!”

I’m always intrigued by what makes people like Matt Chandler tick, below I copy Matt’s FAQ page from the Village Church…

Also, check out his blog…

What books have been most influential in your life and thoughts?

1. The Bible
2. Desiring God and Pleasures of God by John Piper
3. Chosen by God by R.C. Sproul
4. Institutes of the Christian Religion by John Calvin
5. Anything by C.S. Lewis but especially The Weight of Glory
6. Anything by Jonathan Edwards but specifically Religious Affections
7. Anything by John Owen but especially The Mortification of Sin

What ideas have strongly influenced you?

1. Christian Hedonism - The idea that God is most glorified in us when we are most satisfied in Him has absolutely ruined me. It shook me out of trying to be good and created in me the questions: “Does this stir up my affections for Christ?” and “Does this rob me of my affection for Christ?”
2. Missional living - The idea of intentional living and contextualizing the Gospel for this generation and culture as well as engaging the world instead of isolating ourselves from it have shaped my preaching and living.

What books do you recommend for Pastors?

1. The Bible - I understand the need for books on leadership, theology and history. My hope is that you would feast on the scriptures, feel the angst and awe and be overwhelmed by the Gospel of our great God and King. This book is life changing and sufficient.

What books are you currently reading?

1. The Divine Commodity by Skye Jethani
2. God, Marriage, and Family by Andreas Kostenberger
3. Total Church by Tim Chester
4. The Study of Evangelism by Paul Wesley Chilcote
5. The Gospel and Personal Evangelism by Mark Dever
6. Hearts and Minds by Kenneth Boa and John Alan Turner

What books have you read recently?

1. The Historical Reliability of the Gospels By Craig Blomberg
2. In My Place Condemned He Stood by J.I. Packer
3. Turning Points: Decisive Moments in the History of Christianity by Mark Noll
4. Culture-Making: Recovering our Creative Calling by Andy Crouch
5. Till We Have Built Jerusalem by Philip Bess
6. Surprised by Hope by N.T. Wright
7. The Big Sort: Why the Clustering of Like Minded America is Tearing us Apart By Bill Bishop
8. Who’s Your City? by Richard Florida
9. Approaching the Heart of Prophecy by Graham Cooke

At the last Resurgence conference there was the joke question from Driscoll… “Would you let an Arminian cut your grass?” and just after the infamous Driscoll-Chandler punch.

Then there’s his 4 reasons why I love John Piper…

and reason number 5, “He’s a good sport”… see below:  John’s Piper’s New Coat!

Hope to see him preaching in it soon! Best line in the video… “I love John Piper… but not in an Episcopalian way!”

Should you support Christian bookshops rather than Amazon??

I have mixed feelings which I’ve been discussing on Phil Whittall’s blog here and here.

Preaching Notes

I’m trying to work out the best way to do this… I like note form rather than script… Josh Harris has been publishing some well known preachers notes… my favourites are; CJ Mahaney, Tim Keller, Mark Driscoll.

Matt Chandler starts blogging

Love this guy. Loving him preaching on Luke, and pleased to hear he’s now got a blog called Dwell Deep.

Desiring God conference – The Power of Words and the Wonder of God

Piper, Driscoll, Ferguson, Kauflin, Tripp etc. check out the audio and video

Driscoll in Syndey and Jensen’s response

18 point critique of Sydney Anglicans (given that British Evangelical Anglicans steal all their ideas from Sydney, they pretty much all apply here too!)… 18 Obstacles to Effective Evangelism

Jensen gives his thoughts in response

….still coming soon will be some book reviews and the finishing off of some old posts