A Little Rant

While I'm in the writing mood, let me vent something else from the fellowship of young Pastors on last night. There is a serious problem, an infectous disease that has infiltrated our churches and stifled the development of many of our ministries. There is a serious lack of gospel preaching that comes from our pulpits today, so much so that even the people who sit in the congregations are so numb to Gospel preaching that when it is presented to them, they don't know how to respond because it is not apart of their steady, consistent diet at their local church.

In this day and age, people want to be pacified, coddled and made to feel good, so much so that it seems that the only churches that are filled these days are filled with people who come to hear a word of prosperity and acceptance of sin, only to leave that service the same way that they came in. The Gospel of Jesus Christ is not designed to make us feel better, but it was given to us as a free gift from the Lord to make us live better.

True biblical preaching needs to be viewed as vital to the growth of the church, but more preachers are concerned with having people in their pews instead of developing disciples in their ministries. As long as they have a packed house, then they feel that their ministry is successful, but I want to suggest that what's the point of having a swollen church and not a saved church.

I have decided that if my attempts at biblical exposition is not enough to grow my church to thousands of people, then I will keep what I have, because I will never compromise the principles of preaching the good news of the Lord Jesus Christ. I thank God that he has blessed me with the ability to preach the Gospel both in season and out of season, when the people wants to hear it or not...when it is popular or not.

If enough of young Pastors and preachers forge through the hard work of exposition, we can preserve what we all know to be true, that exposition of the Gospel of Christ is paramount to the salvation of sinners, for it is only through the Word of God whereby men shall be saved.

Supporting A Friend

I am still in Indiana until my flight leaves later tonight and I am ready to get home to my family and my church. Last night, Rev. Witherspoon and myself traveled to Maywood, Illinois to support one of my real good friends, Rev. Romell Williams who is the Pastor of the Lilydale Progressive Baptist Church in Chicago, as he preached at the Rock of Ages Baptist Church, for an ordination service. Rev. Williams and I first met last year, but recently we have began what I feel will be a great and productive friendship in that we talk about preaching and pastoring with every conversation, which is welcomed by me, because I need my steel to be sharpened by the steel of another pastor who understands the plight of the journey.

Rev. Williams preached an awesome exposition from 2 Timothy 4:16-18 which he called "When God Stands Up For You", it was timely and relevant for the occasion, and most of all he hit a home run on last night. I love preaching and I love someone who shows that he has put his time into the preparation of his attempt at biblical exposition. Hearing him "say it" and the fellowship afterwards, made me want to get right back to work for this week for Sunday morning at First Mount Zion.

I believe, in this day and age when preachers are more concerned with talking to each other about their tailors, how many members they lie about having, how much money they raise and are paid from their churches, how much their shoes cost...etc, it is refreshing for young Pastors to just get together and talk about the preaching of the Gospel. I was helped and encouraged by our conversation and the future of our friendships. I can't wait to see what God has in store for all of us that were present together on last night. TO GOD BE THE GLORY!!!

Speaking @ Bethlehem Baptist Church

I had the privilege of preaching the First Anniversary Celebration of my best friend, Rev. Keith D. Witherspoon, Pastor of the Bethelehem Missionary Baptist Church, South Bend, Indiana, and the Lord showed up in a magnanimous way in that place. The people of Bethlehem have a wonderful spirit about them, in which they love the Lord, His Word, their Pastor, singing and the preaching of the Gospel. It is a testament of the teaching that they received from their former Pastor that has continued during the administration of Pastor Witherspoon. Pastor Witherspoon is one of the young giants in preaching across this country. For he has a deep seeded commitment to biblical exposition that has afforded him the opportunities to preach in varous venues across this country, including preaching at this year's National Baptist Convention in Philadephia for the Moderator's Division. He is my brother and my friend and I was honored that he asked me to stand in his pulpit once again to share the unsearchable riches of the Holy Writ. God bless you Spoon and your entire family as the Lord continues to open great doors for you in this life, awaiting the eternal blessing of everlasting joy in the next life.

Speaking @ Metropolitan Baptist Church

Last night I began a three night revival at the Metropolitan Baptist Church, Scotch Plains, NJ where Rev. Clement F. Griffin is the Pastor. I have been blessed to preach this fall revival at Metropolitan since 2003. They took a year off from the revival in 2006 because they were doing some extensive renovations in the fellowship hall and offices, which by the way makes the church look wonderful. I am excited about this revival because this was one of the first revivals that I got in our state that was on an annual basis, and because of that, I will always make myself available to this church and this Pastor. Rev. Griffin has always been very kind to me and the church has been very receptive of my attempts at biblical exposition. Last night the Lord showed up in a great way, and I am anticipating him doing the same the rest of the week. Please pray for the meeting and pray for the revivalist.

75th Church Anniversary

Today, I had the immense pleasure of preaching the opening services for Community Baptist Church of Englewood, NJ, 75th Church Anniversary Celebration during their 11:30 AM service, where Rev. Dr. Lester W. Taylor is the pastor. This church is without a doubt a model ministry in our state, as their commitment to Christ and the greatness of their ministries have made them the premier ministry in North Jersey. They are in the process of building a $13 Million edifice that will be a sight to behold. I am honored that Dr. Taylor would ask me to be a part of this celebration, as he has access to a plethora of pastors all over this country to invite, but I am grateful for the invitation. Because of the greatness of this ministry, the Lord gave me a wonderful message born out of the book of Revelation 3:7-13, as the Lord instructed the Apostle John to write a letter to the church of Philadelphia entitled "The Church That God Brags On". Here is the sermon skeleton...I hope that you are as blessed as the people of God were today.

Thesis: any church that is faithful to the Lord no matter the consequences, will be a church that God will brag on.

I. Condition of the Church - v. 8

A. Privilege They Enjoyed
1. Open door by the Lord
2. No man can close

B. Power They Exhibited
1. small in strength
2. large in trust

II. Challenges of the Church - v. 9-11

A. Challenge of Persecution - v. 9
B. Challenge of Perseverance - v. 10-11a
C. Challenge of Protection - v. 11

III. Comfort of the Church - v. 12-13

A. Comfort of His Stability - v. 12
B. Comfort of His Safety - V. 12
C. Comfort of His Security - V. 12

Farewell Willie Lee Jordan

Tonight the Pastor Community will join Pastor M.J. Jordan at the Mount Olive Baptist Church, as he has to say so long to his wonderful mother, Sis. Willie Lee Jordan. He is her youngest son, who has, ever since his father passed, taken real good care of his mother. I am understanding of what he is dealing with, as it was only 1 year ago last march that the Lord took my own mother, Hattie Louise Mann home to be with him. I had a rough year dealing with the emotions of not having my mother with me. All of my life, whenever something good happened to me, I would call mommy and tell her about it. Now I can't and it hurts badly, but I am comforted by the fact that I love her but God loves her best.

This is what I will try to tell MJ on tonight...He may love his momma, but she is in a better place than any of us are.

Facing Your Giants

Today the Lord allowed me to do a biblical exposition of a wonderful Old Testament story that is very familiar, but one that I have never looked at to preach, however one that is greatly needed in the fabric of our church right now. For we are in a "crossroads" situation where we are in dire need of moving to a new location that is better suited for us to reach the community for Jesus Christ, and in doing this, we have acquired some "old guard" members, who because of their large personalities within the church, have become giant-like fixtures of what used to be. So the Lord placed on my heart to preach a message about how to face the giants in your life. I believe that it was a great blessing to the people of God at First Mount Zion Baptist Church.

Thesis: you are able to face your giants when you know that you are not facing your giants alone

I. Don't Be Afraid - v. 32

a. stand up to your detractors - v.33-36
b. stand up for your deliverer - v. 37
c. sway your detractor's demeanor - v. 37

II. Deny the World's Armor - v. 38-19

a. consider the giant's mockery - v. 41-44
b. confidence in God's mastery - v. 45-47

III. Deploy the Lord's Artillery - v. 48

a. complete your assignment - v. 49
b. conquer your adversary - v. 50
c. cast them away - v. 51