Disciplines of a Godly ManR. Kent HughesFor many people, the word discipline evokes a sense of resistance–but Kent Hughes points out that the heart of spiritual discipline is a relationship with God. This tract gives 10 practical areas for a man to grow in spiritual discipline.8. Discipline of PerseveranceHebrews 12:1–3 presents a picture of perseverance in four commands. Divest! “Lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely” (v. 1). That includes besetting sin, and anything else that hinders. Run! “. . . with endurance the race that is set before us” (v. 1). Each of us can finish our race (see also 2 Tim. 4:7). Focus! “Looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith” (v. 2). There never was a millisecond that he did not trust the Father. Consider! Our life is to be spent considering how Jesus lived (v. 3).9. Discipline of ChurchYou don’t have to go to church to be a Christian; you don’t have to go home to be married. But in both cases if you do not, you will have a very poor relationship! You will never attain your full spiritual manhood, nor will your family reach its spiritual maturity without commitment to the church. Find a good church, join it, and commit yourself to it wholeheartedly. Your participation should include financial support, but it should also include giving your time, talents, expertise, and creativity to the glory of God.10. Discipline of GivingHow can we escape the power of materialism? By giving from a heart overflowing with God’s grace, like the believers in Macedonia who “gave themselves first to the Lord” (2 Cor. 8:5): this is where grace giving must begin. Giving disarms the power of money. Though giving should be regular, it should also be spontaneous and responsive to needs. And it should be joyous—“God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Cor. 9:7). And Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).As we sweat out the disciplines of a godly man, remember, with Paul, what energizes us to live them out—“not I, but the grace of God that is with me” (1 Cor. 15:10).This article is adapted from the tract “10 Disciplines of a Godly Man” by R. Kent Hughes.

Disciplines of a Godly Man continues;

Disciplines of a Godly Man

October 06, 2016 by: R. Kent Hughes

Train in God's Gym

Men, we will never get anywhere in life without discipline, and doubly so in spiritual matters. None of us is inherently righteous, so Paul’s instructions regarding spiritual discipline in 1 Timothy 4:7–8 take on personal urgency: “Train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come." That word “train” comes from the Greek word from which we derive gymnasium. So, I invite you into God’s Gym—to some pain and great gain!

1. Discipline of Purity

Sensuality is the biggest obstacle to godliness among Christian men. The fall of King David should not only instruct us but scare the sensuality right out of us! Fill yourself with God’s Word—memorize passages like 1 Thessalonians 4:3–8, Job 31:1, Proverbs 6:27, Ephesians 5:3–7, and 2 Timothy 2:22. Find someone who will help you keep your soul faithful to God. A pure mind is impossible if you mindlessly watch TV and movies or visit pornographic websites (1 Thess. 4:3–7). Develop the divine awareness that sustained Joseph: “How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” (Gen. 39:9).

2. Discipline of Relationships

To be all God wants you to be, put some holy sweat into your relationships! If you’re married, you need to live out Ephesians 5:25–31: “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (v. 25). For those who are fathers, God provides a workout in one pungent sentence: “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Eph. 6:4). Relationships are not optional (Heb. 10:25); they enable us to develop into what God wants us to be and most effectively learn and live God’s truth.

3. Discipline of Mind

The potential of possessing the mind of Christ (1 Cor. 2:16) introduces the scandal of today’s church—Christians who do not think Christianly, leaving our minds undisciplined. The Apostle Paul understood this well: “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Phil. 4:8). Each ingredient is a matter of personal choice. You can never have a Christian mind without reading the Scriptures regularly because you cannot be influenced by that which you do not know.

You can never have a Christian mind without reading the Scriptures regularly because you cannot be influenced by that which you do not know.

4. Discipline of Devotion

Reading God’s Word is essential, but meditation internalizes the Word and responds, “I desire to do your will, O my God” (Ps. 40:8). Beyond instructions like Ephesians 6:18–20, there are two great reasons to pray. The more we expose our lives to the white-hot sun of Christ’s righteous life, the more his image will be burned into our character. The second reason is that prayer bends our wills to God’s will. Many men never have an effective devotional life because they never plan for it; they never expose their lives to his pure light.

5. Discipline of Integrity

We can hardly overstate the importance of integrity to a generation of believers so much like the world in ethical conduct. But integrity’s benefits—character, a clear conscience, deep intimacy with God—argue its importance. We must let God’s Word draw our lines of conduct. Our speech and actions must be intentionally true (Prov. 12:22; Eph. 4:15), backed by the courage to keep our word and stand up for our convictions (Ps. 15:4). An old saying sums it up: “Sow an act, reap a habit. Sow a habit, reap a character. Sow a character, reap a destiny.”

6. Discipline of Tongue

“If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless” (James 1:26). The true test of a man’s spirituality is not his ability to speak, but rather his ability to bridle his tongue! Offered to God on the altar, the tongue has awesome power for good. There must be an ongoing prayerfulness and resolve to discipline ourselves: “Who keeps the tongue doth keep his soul.”

7. Discipline of Work

We meet God, the Creator, as a worker in Gen. 1:1–2:2. Since “God created man in his own image” (1:27), the way we work will reveal how much we allow the image of God to develop in us. There is no secular/sacred distinction; all honest work ought to be done to the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31). We must recover the biblical truth that our vocation is a divine calling and thus be liberated to do it for the glory of God.

10 Disciplines of a Godly Man

October 06, 2016 by: R. Kent Hughes

Train in God's Gym

Men, we will never get anywhere in life without discipline, and doubly so in spiritual matters. None of us is inherently righteous, so Paul’s instructions regarding spiritual discipline in 1 Timothy 4:7–8 take on personal urgency: “Train yourself for godliness; for while bodily training is of some value, godliness is of value in every way, as it holds promise for the present life and also for the life to come." That word “train” comes from the Greek word from which we derive gymnasium. So, I invite you into God’s Gym—to some pain and great gain!

1. Discipline of Purity

Sensuality is the biggest obstacle to godliness among Christian men. The fall of King David should not only instruct us but scare the sensuality right out of us! Fill yourself with God’s Word—memorize passages like 1 Thessalonians 4:3–8, Job 31:1, Proverbs 6:27, Ephesians 5:3–7, and 2 Timothy 2:22. Find someone who will help you keep your soul faithful to God. A pure mind is impossible if you mindlessly watch TV and movies or visit pornographic websites (1 Thess. 4:3–7). Develop the divine awareness that sustained Joseph: “How then can I do this great wickedness and sin against God?” (Gen. 39:9).

2. Discipline of Relationships

To be all God wants you to be, put some holy sweat into your relationships! If you’re married, you need to live out Ephesians 5:25–31: “Husbands, love your wives, as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her” (v. 25). For those who are fathers, God provides a workout in one pungent sentence: “Fathers, do not provoke your children to anger, but bring them up in the discipline and instruction of the Lord” (Eph. 6:4). Relationships are not optional (Heb. 10:25); they enable us to develop into what God wants us to be and most effectively learn and live God’s truth.

3. Discipline of Mind

The potential of possessing the mind of Christ (1 Cor. 2:16) introduces the scandal of today’s church—Christians who do not think Christianly, leaving our minds undisciplined. The Apostle Paul understood this well: “Whatever is true, whatever is honorable, whatever is just, whatever is pure, whatever is lovely, whatever is commendable, if there is any excellence, if there is anything worthy of praise, think about these things” (Phil. 4:8). Each ingredient is a matter of personal choice. You can never have a Christian mind without reading the Scriptures regularly because you cannot be influenced by that which you do not know.

You can never have a Christian mind without reading the Scriptures regularly because you cannot be influenced by that which you do not know.

4. Discipline of Devotion

Reading God’s Word is essential, but meditation internalizes the Word and responds, “I desire to do your will, O my God” (Ps. 40:8). Beyond instructions like Ephesians 6:18–20, there are two great reasons to pray. The more we expose our lives to the white-hot sun of Christ’s righteous life, the more his image will be burned into our character. The second reason is that prayer bends our wills to God’s will. Many men never have an effective devotional life because they never plan for it; they never expose their lives to his pure light.

5. Discipline of Integrity

We can hardly overstate the importance of integrity to a generation of believers so much like the world in ethical conduct. But integrity’s benefits—character, a clear conscience, deep intimacy with God—argue its importance. We must let God’s Word draw our lines of conduct. Our speech and actions must be intentionally true (Prov. 12:22; Eph. 4:15), backed by the courage to keep our word and stand up for our convictions (Ps. 15:4). An old saying sums it up: “Sow an act, reap a habit. Sow a habit, reap a character. Sow a character, reap a destiny.”

6. Discipline of Tongue

“If anyone thinks he is religious and does not bridle his tongue but deceives his heart, this person’s religion is worthless” (James 1:26). The true test of a man’s spirituality is not his ability to speak, but rather his ability to bridle his tongue! Offered to God on the altar, the tongue has awesome power for good. There must be an ongoing prayerfulness and resolve to discipline ourselves: “Who keeps the tongue doth keep his soul.”

7. Discipline of Work

We meet God, the Creator, as a worker in Gen. 1:1–2:2. Since “God created man in his own image” (1:27), the way we work will reveal how much we allow the image of God to develop in us. There is no secular/sacred distinction; all honest work ought to be done to the glory of God (1 Cor. 10:31). We must recover the biblical truth that our vocation is a divine calling and thus be liberated to do it for the glory of God.

10 Disciplines of a Godly Man

10 Disciplines of a Godly Man

R. Kent Hughes

For many people, the word discipline evokes a sense of resistance–but Kent Hughes points out that the heart of spiritual discipline is a relationship with God. This tract gives 10 practical areas for a man to grow in spiritual discipline.

8. Discipline of Perseverance

Hebrews 12:1–3 presents a picture of perseverance in four commands. Divest! “Lay aside every weight, and sin which clings so closely” (v. 1). That includes besetting sin, and anything else that hinders. Run! “. . . with endurance the race that is set before us” (v. 1). Each of us can finish our race (see also 2 Tim. 4:7). Focus! “Looking to Jesus, the founder and perfecter of our faith” (v. 2). There never was a millisecond that he did not trust the Father. Consider! Our life is to be spent considering how Jesus lived (v. 3).

9. Discipline of Church

You don’t have to go to church to be a Christian; you don’t have to go home to be married. But in both cases if you do not, you will have a very poor relationship! You will never attain your full spiritual manhood, nor will your family reach its spiritual maturity without commitment to the church. Find a good church, join it, and commit yourself to it wholeheartedly. Your participation should include financial support, but it should also include giving your time, talents, expertise, and creativity to the glory of God.

10. Discipline of Giving

How can we escape the power of materialism? By giving from a heart overflowing with God’s grace, like the believers in Macedonia who “gave themselves first to the Lord” (2 Cor. 8:5): this is where grace giving must begin. Giving disarms the power of money. Though giving should be regular, it should also be spontaneous and responsive to needs. And it should be joyous—“God loves a cheerful giver” (2 Cor. 9:7). And Jesus said, “It is more blessed to give than to receive” (Acts 20:35).

As we sweat out the disciplines of a godly man, remember, with Paul, what energizes us to live them out—“not I, but the grace of God that is with me” (1 Cor. 15:10).

This article is adapted from the tract “10 Disciplines of a Godly Man” by R. Kent Hughes.

R. Kent Hughes

R. Kent Hughes (DMin, Trinity Evangelical Divinity School) is senior pastor emeritus of College Church in Wheaton, Illinois, and professor of practical theology at Westminster Theological Seminary in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Hughes is also a founder of the Charles Simeon Trust, which conducts expository preaching conferences throughout North America and worldwide. He serves as the series editor for the Preaching the Word commentary series and is the author or coauthor of many books. He and his wife, Barbara, live in Wyncote, Pennsylvania, and have four children and an ever-increasing number of grandchildren.

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JESUS-The Lamb of GOD

Behold, the Lamb of God

John 1:29-34

The very next day John saw Jesus coming toward him and yelled out,

“Here he is, God's Passover Lamb! “

He forgives the sins of the world! This is the man I've been talking about, 'the One who comes after me but is really ahead of me.'

I knew nothing about who he was—only this: that my task has been to get Israel ready to recognize him as the God-Revealer. That is why I came here baptizing with water, giving you a good bath and scrubbing sins from your life so you can get a fresh start with God."

John clinched his witness with this: "I watched the Spirit, like a dove flying down out of the sky, making himself at home in him.

I repeat, I know nothing about him except this: The One who authorized me to baptize with water told me, 'The One on whom you see the Spirit come down and stay, this One will baptize with the Holy Spirit.'

That's exactly what I saw happen, and I'm telling you, there's no question about it: This is the Son of God." MSG

Following Jesus as a Disciple

If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily, and follow Me . . . But God forbid that I should glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world. (Luk 9:23 and Gal 6:14)

Following Jesus as a disciple is one way to relate rightly to the Lord in humility and faith. The first aspect of following Jesus involves renouncing the self-life. "If anyone desires to come after Me, let him deny himself." It is certainly humbling to admit that any life we would develop by our own natural resources is unacceptable to the Lord and must be repudiated. The next aspect of being a disciple is also humbling.

This second issue in discipleship is the cross: "and take up his cross." When Jesus spoke of the cross, He was speaking of the ultimate instrument of execution in His day. Consequently, after renunciation of self, we are to confess death for self. The means of this death is the cross of Christ. Those who want to follow Jesus as disciples are to take the cross of Christ as their own personal cross. In doing so, they are admitting to God that they deserved to die upon that cross. "For the wages of sin is death" (Rom 6:23). Furthermore, they are agreeing with the word of God that Jesus died upon that cross on their behalf. "Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures . . . who Himself bore our sins in His own body on the tree" (1Co 15:3 and 1Pe 2:24). This gospel (which brings forgiveness of sins to all who believe) includes the essential truth of the resurrection. "Moreover, brethren, I declare to you the gospel which I preached to you . . . that Christ died for our sins according to the Scriptures, and that He was buried, and that He rose again the third day according to the Scriptures" (1Co 15:1, 1Co 15:3-4).

Another wondrous benefit of the cross is that we who believe in Jesus also died there with Him. "Knowing this, that our old man was crucified with Him" (Rom 6:6). The old self-life that we were developing while "in Adam" (1Co 15:22) was executed on the cross with Christ. Yes, the cross is the way out of this world of dead sinners, and we can rightly boast in that truth. "But God forbid that I should glory except in the cross of our Lord Jesus Christ, by whom the world has been crucified to me, and I to the world." Meanwhile, the attitudes and resources of the old man persist in our flesh (our natural humanity). Thus, we are to renounce self and confess death to self day by day: "let him deny himself, and take up his cross daily."

Lord Jesus, I confess Your cross as my cross. I deserved to die there, but You died in my place. I boast in that cross, where I also died with You. Now, through the cross, I have escaped this dead, condemned world. I praise You that these truths both humble my heart and stir my faith!

Never Hesitate to Say Yes to God’s Plan for Your Life

Lesson Three:

“Be it unto me according to Thy Word.” (Luke 1:38)

Os Guinness writes, ” Our passion is to know we are fulfilling the purpose for which we are on earth. All standards of success — wealth, power, knowledge, position, fame — grow tiny and hollow if we do not satisfy this deeper longing.”

Nothing short of God’s will obeyed can both ground and fulfill the truest human desire for significance. And we are never happier than when we are expressing the deepest gifts and callings that are truly us.

Abraham was called by God out of a dead religion practiced by pagans, and became the Father of Faith. He was without children until God spoke a promise. Abraham believed God and became the Father of Nations. He said yes to God.

Moses was a stuttering stammering sheep herding Bedouin in the high deserts of Midian, when a burning bush caught his eye. Approaching the Bush, he heard a voice. That Voice spoke of great and mighty things to come. Moses answered, “Who am I?” The Voice called him out of his own sense of inability and limitations, and ushered him forth into the great drama of human history as one of the greatest and most influential men who has ever lived. He said yes to God.

was the runt of the litter; the eighth born son in a family where seven was enough. Last on the food chain, there was usually nothing left when his turn came along. God spoke a promise to his young heart in the isolated fields of unseen worship. He believed God and rose to become the greatest King Israel has ever known. He said yes to God.

Mary said yes to God and rose from humble surroundings to be the mother of our Lord.

Now it’s your turn. Whatever the situation of your life, or the circumstances in which you presently find yourself — it is never too late to say yes to God’s will for your life. He can still do the impossible with the improbable.

He CAN do what He says He can do. And He WILL do what He says He will do!

NEVER overlook the extraordinary potential of the ordinary! NEVER under-estimate the power of a personal word from God! And, NEVER hesitate to say yes to God’s plan for your life! These are the three great lessons we learn from a peasant girl named Mary.

James Ryle

Luke 1:38

38 Then Mary said, Behold, I am the handmaiden of the Lord; let it be done to me according to what you have said. And the angel left her.

WHO IS JESUS?

What is The Alpha Course?

Alpha is for anyone interested in exploring questions of life and spirituality.

We spend 8 evenings considering some of the big questions in life including:
“What can I really believe?” ”Does prayer work?” “Who is Jesus?” and “Is there a God?”

THE TALISMAN OF VICTORY

THE TALISMAN OF VICTORY
"In all these things we are more than conquerors, through Him that loved us."-- Rom_8:37.

CAN ANYTHING separate me from the love of Christ? was the only question that St. Paul felt worth consideration. 
In this paragraph he takes the extreme conditions of being, and carefully investigates them, knowing that they include all between. 
First, he interrogates Existence--"death and life"; next, created Intelligences--"Angels, principalities, and powers"; 
next, the extremes of Time--"things present, things to come"; next, of Space---"height and depth"; 
lastly, the created Universe --"any other creature." Each of these extremes is passed in review. 
He is like a man proving every link of the chain in which he is going to swing out over the abyss. Carefully and fervently he has tested all, and is satisfied that none of them can cut him off from the love of God.

We strangely misjudge and mistrust the Love of God our Father, and think that our distresses and sufferings, our sins and failures, may make Him love us less. 
But in the home, it is not the troop of sturdy children that engross the mother's care so much as the puny feeble life, that lies in the cot, unable to help itself and reciprocate her love. And in the world, death and pain, disease and sorrow, sin and failure, so far from separating us from God's love, bind us closer.
Oh blessed Love! that comes down to us from the heart of Jesus, the essence of the eternal love of God--nothing can ever staunch, exhaust, intercept it. It is not our love to Him, but His to us, and since nothing can separate us from the love of God, He will go on loving us for ever, and pouring into us the entire fullness of His life and glory. 
Whatever our difficulties, whatever our weakness and infirmity, we shall be kept steadfast, unmovable, always abounding in the work of the Lord; gaining by our losses, succeeding by our failures, triumphing in our defeats, and ever more than conquerors through Him that loved us.

PRAYER
Yea thro' life, thro' sorrow and thro' sinning He shall suffice me, for He hath sufficed: Christ is the end, for Christ was the beginning, Christ is the beginning, for the end is Christ.