GCV Blog

There are certain activities within the life of the church that God uses to bring blessing to us. These activities are called “means of grace.” Briefly defined, the means of grace are public and private activities (such as hearing the Word of God and praying) that are gifts or graces (and not law) from God. Before we consider the activities, let us consider the blessing.

From Pastor Adam: Below is an extended portion of a pastoral letter sent from my historical hero, Robert M’Cheyne, to his church family in Scotland on February 13, 1839. In this letter he gave encouragement from Job 23:10 to those within his flock who were suffering. And so, in my absence, I encourage you with his words from the Word.

The third piece of armor Paul outlines in his letter to the church at Ephesus is shoes. Really, shoes! What does Paul have in mind here, or better yet, what is the Spirit’s intent in communicating the importance of shoes in one’s spiritual armor? I’m sure it’s not the newest Nike, Vans, Reebok, or Adidas that he has in mind. We, for the most part, in everyday use, buy shoes that look good. For anyone who has played sports, you know that wearing the correct shoes is really the first consideration

If you are like me, we need constant reminders of biblical truths. We often say “preach the gospel to yourself everyday.” The gospel is not just for unbelievers but for believers on a daily basis. You and I need a reminder to apply the gospel to our everyday circumstances. Other biblical truths we need reminding of are the attributes of God. There are many we can glean from scripture. In fact, A.W. Pink (1886-1952) wrote a short book which lists seventeen.

Prayer. It’s one of our ten ministry commitments. It’s the expression of our dependence on God, the privilege of our adoption as sons and daughters, the bold access we have to God’s throne, the power ordinary people have to move God’s mighty hand, the worry killer, and the unceasing activity of the obedient Christian. Yet for something so essential, it’s also something we struggle to do meaningfully and consistently. I know that in part because I know me. It seems like my prayer life flounders when I don’t consider why I should pray and how.

Note from Pastor Adam: With the birth of another year to serve Christ within the GCV family, it seems wise to use my opportunities with the pastoral word to provide some articles that I have found helpful in the pursuit of gospel relationships here in the church, especially in the Grace Group setting. This first one is a practical encouragement to be listeners and thoughtful questioners in a gospel group setting. Remember that Philippians 2:3-4 instructs you, “Do nothing from rivalry or conceit, but

After reading my previous pastoral word, I realized that I woefully underdeveloped a crucial element in our understanding of the means of grace. Let me first give a brief review. The means of grace are simply public and private activities (such as praying and hearing the Word of God) that are gifts or graces (and not law) from God. When performed in faith, they conform us more into the image of Christ. We stand in grace (Rom. 5:1), not works, and grace flows only through the channels of faith.

The second piece of armor described in Ephesians 6:10-20 is the breastplate of righteousness. The breastplate was made of leather or heavy linen with slices of animal hooves or horns, or large pieces of metal hammered to conform to the body. No soldier would go into battle without his breastplate, for it protected his heart and other vital organs. So I think we all have an accu- rate picture of the breastplate, but where does the righteousness part of it come in?

Repentance—a word we use quite often in our Christian conversations—is as central to our salvation as faith and yet it can often be an afterthought or an assumption. Repentance is an outworking of the Holy Spirit and has multiple aspects. It is defined as sorrow for sin, renouncing of sin, sincere forsaking of sin and obedience to Christ. It is not mere sorrow, grief or remorse because it includes a turning away from sin and turning toward Christ.

How we look at the Word determines how we look at preaching. Christ designed a way for His inspired, authoritative, sufficient Word to be presented. Verbal, declarative, instruc- tional, applicable, demanding, clear preaching is that way. This passage is not just the property of pastors, however, with application only for how they communicate. These words ground our corporate commitment to preaching that is from the Word.