Spurgeon quote for the day! 2-25-12

"For as the earth brings forth its bud, As the garden causes the things that are sown in it to spring forth, So the Lord GOD will cause righteousness and praise to spring forth before all the nations." - Isaiah 61:11

DURING the past week the air has been balmy with the breath of spring and all Nature has felt the influence of the “ethereal mildness.” The earth, of which, through the long winter, we might have said, “she is not dead, but sleeps,” has now awakened and she begins already to put on her garments of glory and beauty. Wild flowers are springing up in the hedgerows, buds upon the trees are hastening to burst, the time of the singing of birds is come and if the voice of the turtle is not heard in our land, yet we trust the winter is past—the rain is over and gone.

Now, Nature is not at work to amuse and please us merely—its mission is instruction. Spring, Summer, Autumn, and Winter are God’s four Evangelists, bringing each one a different version of the self-same Gospel of Divine love. Spring has its own peculiar testimony and it is for us to read it, and to interpret it, by the light of God’s Spirit. A close analogy is often hinted at in the Old and New Testaments between the springtime and the work of God in the hearts of men. As God has promised in the outward world, that there shall be seed time and then a harvest-winter and a following summer, so He declares, over and over again, that His Word, which, when it goes forth, is like unto the sowing, shall not return unto Him void, but shall prosper in the thing for which He has sent it.

As surely as in due season the earth brings forth her buds and the garden causes the things that are sown in it to spring forth, so shall God’s great purposes be accomplished and righteousness and praise shall spring forth before all the nations. The teaching of this morning is that there is a spiritual springtime appointed of God and it will surely come! As certainly as spring comes to the earth physically, so surely will it come to the Church spiritually! As certainly as God keeps His Covenant with the elements, so will He keep His Covenant with His Church and with His Son.

C.H. Spurgeon- "Spring"

Spurgeon quote for the day! 2-23-12

“And was clad with zeal as a cloak.” Isaiah 59:17.

THE solitary champion who is here spoken of, who looked and, “saw that there was no man, and wondered that there was no intercessor”—and therefore His own arm brought salvation unto Him, and His righteousness it sustained Him—this conquering hero we cannot fail to recognize as the Lion of the tribe of Judah, the Prince of the House of David, our Lord Jesus Christ. Whatever may have been the first and primary meaning of the text, we are persuaded that the ultimate reference of it is to that destroyer of death, the Captain of our salvation, by whose struggles the whole host of the elect have obtained the victory!

Of Him we may say beyond and above all others, that He “was clad with zeal as a cloak.” When a man has all other excellencies, when the Grace of God has worked in him all other virtues, then zeal is still needed to elevate and perfect his entire manhood. Behold the altar, built of unhewn stones, and after God’s own Law. Behold the wood laid on it. See the victim slain and the blood flowing. But you cannot make a sacrifice without fire—unless the fire from Heaven shall perfect the sacrificial preparations, all will be useless. Behold in the altar the figure of the man—he has faith, courage, love, consecration—but if he lacks the fire of fervent zeal, his life will be a failure. He will remain an offering unconsumed, and consequently worthless and unaccepted.

By this, indeed, may you know the genuine from the false when other things might raise a question—the false is like the altar of Baal whereon there is much wood and a well-fed bullock. And around it are active genuflections and vigorous rituals, but there is no true fire from Heaven. While the genuine is like the altar of Elijah, upon which, in answer to fervent prayers, the hallowed flames descend! One of the first requisites of an earnest, successful, soul-winning man must be zeal. As well a chariot without its steeds, a sun without its beams, a Heaven without its joy—as a man of God without zeal.

C.H. Spurgeon-" The Best Cloak"

Burbank Media Center Follow-up 2-18-12

Steve has been having a great turn out of evangelists from our church. It seems that Burbank has had a good turn out of people as well.

Forest enjoying handing out tracts... and a latte.

Lots of teens come out to Burbank and just mill around.

I showed up about 8:00 and started to preach about a half hour later...

... the Lord drew many hecklers and when I got off the box it was about 10 o'clock. This kid was interacting with me earlier, got mad at me and stormed off. He then came back listened to the gospel asked some more questions and then shook my hand. You never know what the Lord is doing.

"He is not seeking a powerful people to represent HIM. Rather, He looks for all those who are weak, foolish, despised, and written off: and He inhabits them with His own strength." -- Graham Cooke

Bauer Evangelism

Ahh... How I wish it were that easy. Thanks Forest for sending this.

Burbank Media Center Follow-up 2-4-12

Steve lead the team at Burbank Media Center last night. I was blessed to join them for about an hour. When I showed up there were TONS if people and the Lord raised up laborers to meet the demand!

The team was Elder Mike, Andrew, Elder Bob, Nathan, Clint, Forest, Dean, Sai, Sharon, Debbie, Dave and Steve. Rocco even stopped in toward the end.

Sharon has been reaching out to the Downtown Ambassadors showing true love and concern for them.

Dean and Sai just got back from two weeks in Tailand and they were missed.

I got there in time to hear Elder Bob preach the gospel. Our leadership has been very supportive of this ministry in both prayer and participation. We are very blessed to have a healthy church that loves evangelism and has continued to support this minitry.

A great night in Burbank. Praise the Lord for Steve being raised up to lead with me. God is good!

"The spirit of Christ is the spirit of missions. The nearer we get to Him, the more intensely missionary we become." -- Henry Martyn,