Is Submitting to Authority Inherently Wrong? (Guest Post by Tsouloufis) Someone recently asked me: “Do you think that hierarchy, which was the dominant form of society until more recently, is inherently wrong?” This is a fair question in 21st century America, which continues to drift further into libertarianism and secularism. However, not only is the […]
Author: Tom Schmidt
Christian, husband of Rach, Church Planter,musician,
Newest Members of Cross of Christ Fellowship: Gregor Family I’d like to introduce you to the newest addition to the Cross of Christ Fellowship family: John and Aynsley Gregor! This is a wonderful couple and we are so thankful and blessed to have them on our core team as we seek to plant Cross of […]
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Love Kills My Insecurity
Love Kills My Insecurity Unsure of myself. Wondering if I can connect with others. Insecure and uneasy in my own skin. These are often the emotions and descriptions of my heart. Depending on the situation, these descriptors may be strong or weak. If I’m around friends whom I know love and accept me, the temptation […]
3 Aims of a Preacher: INSTRUCT, DELIGHT, MOVE (Augustine) Why do we preach? What does a preacher hope to accomplish? Augustine, one of the greatest theologians the Christian church has ever known, informs us that the three aims of a preacher are to “instruct, delight, and move.”[1] These aims work together to persuade a person […]
Are We Free to Choose God? (Tsouloufis) [this is a guest post by my friend Dan Tsouloufis] Biblically, it is correct to assert that man is free, albeit in a limited sense. Regarding man’s will, the Westminster Confession of Faith reminds us that “liberty does not imply ability”. This is because liberty is not identical with […]
11 Motives for Obeying God as a Christian (Grudem) This week I brushed up on the topic of sanctification. Theologian Wayne Grudem defines sanctification as “the progressive work of God and man that makes us more and more free from sin and like Christ in our actual lives” [‘Systematic Theology’ p 746]. What I found […]
John Piper’s Definition of Biblical Counseling Much of pastoral ministry involves biblical counseling. To aid in my pursuit of learning how to do this, I’ve begun reading a book called “Christ-Centered Biblical Counseling.” The book is written by respected evangelical authors who contribute to various topics, which all help a person understand and approach biblical […]
How Do I Know If I Am Predestined? Since the Scriptures teach that God chooses (predestines) some to be his sons and daughters (Eph 1:4-5, Rom 9; John 15:16), how do we personally know if we ourselves are predestined? Did God choose me? How do I know if I am predestined? Where I look for […]
2 Errors to Avoid When Talking About Predestination (Calvin’s “Institutes”) Perhaps predestination is the doctrine that John Calvin is most remembered for. Predestination is a biblical word referring to “God’s eternal decree, by which he compacted with himself what he willed to become of each man” (Calvin’s definition 3.21.5). While theologians debate exactly what God’s […]
Cross of Christ Fellowship: 6 Core Values When planting a church, it is vital to consider your core values (ideas and motivations which shape and define the way your church operates). Aubrey Malphurs helped me to consider this in his book “Nuts and Bolts of Church Planting” (a vital read for all church planters). Every […]
