Of the following series on evangelism and missions, Pastor Emilio simply said, “Horton on Evangelism, he does a great job.” To Download MP3 Right click and save to your hard drive… An Introduction to Evangelism and Mission – Class 1 (MP3) The Basis for the Great Commission – Class 2 (MP3) The Great Commission – Class 3 (MP3) The Great Commission – Class 4 (MP3) The Great Commission – Class...

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2011 has been a tremendous year for our church. We have seen several people added to our number, we have seen others move on. Through both trial and heartache I believe we have grown. There is something about the lessons of time and experience in life that cannot be produced or manufactured. Only through God’s refining process of sanctifying us as a church both as individuals and as a congregation have we come to grow in the grace and...

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Pastor Jay post: Typically Reformed Christians have always believed in the third use of the law. The third use of the law is that the moral laws of God or the Ten Commandments are morally binding on the Christian and a normative pattern for the Christian life. The third use of the law teaches that the moral law becomes a rule of life for the believer. In the Geneva Catechism Calvin asks, “What is the rule of life which God has given...

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One of the reasons that studying the Old Testament is so beneficial is because of its ability to introduce the reader to rich, vast, and intriguing history. Yet the Bible’s history is not ordinary history, to use the old corny yet true saying; it’s ‘His Story’. This is true. Scripture is one harmonious consistent representation of the history of God’s redemptive actions in the world. The book of Hosea, if it is to be understood and...

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I thank God that Scripture is so clear on certain issues. Certainly some issues are not as clear as others, but God is very clear about the issue of Christian character. One place where we can see God’s design for women is in Titus chapter 2:3-5. “the older women likewise, that they be reverent in behavior, not slanderers, not given to much wine, teachers of good things— that they admonish the young women to love their husbands, to...

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Coming from the mind and mouth of a seasoned and sagacious pastor/theologian, the words that John MacArthur shares with the Reformed church should be taken into considerable account. MacArthur hits on the issues which can easily undermine true Reformed thought, an abuse of Christian liberty, Arminian methods of evangelism and ecclesiology, worldliness, and carnal Christianity. As a pastor, I am truly grateful for MacArthur’s wisdom and insight...

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In conjunction with this week’s blogs on “The Indicative & Imperative In Preaching” and “Are You Performance Driven?“, here are two short audio clips from each of our pastors that relate to these issues. The first is from Pastor Emilio’s most recent sermon (2 minutes audio clip): Audio clip: Adobe Flash Player (version 9 or above) is required to play this audio clip. Download the latest version here....

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Concerning the relationship of the indicative and imperative in preaching. I thought that it would be a good time to give my perspective as to what I feel is the relationship of the indicative and imperative in preaching.  In case you may not be familiar with the terminology, the indicatives of scripture are based on the gospel and what Christ has already done. They are statements of facts about our standing in grace and the gospel.  If for...

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We are looking to start somewhere around the first week of August. The following books will be needed to start: Basics of Biblical Greek Grammar, Third Edition by William D. Mounce Zondervan / 2009 / Hardcover Basics of Biblical Greek Workbook, Third Edition by William D. Mounce Zondervan / 2009 / Trade Paperback   It would be helpful but not mandatory to get the latest edition of the book, so don’t worry if you have an older...

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This past Friday (April 15, 2011), Pastor Emilio finished up his four year exposition Through the Gospel of John. This was the first book of the Bible that we went through when Sovereign Joy started as a Bible study early in 2007 (read more history here). During Friday’s sermon Pastor Emilio recommended you listen to the following message that we previously posted on our blog which is below: – REPOST FROM Jan. 28, 2009: Pastor...

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