church leadership

Historic testimony to Luther is grand. Not only have many of his letters, books, tracts, and sermons survived, but so have his table talks. Table Talk is a collection of Luther’s sayings amongst his friends. Thankfully, they have been preserved for our benefit. There we see glimpses of the real...

Editor's Note : Rob Ventura has provided us with a chapter from his forthcoming Mentor Commentary on the Book of Romans. We are thankful for the opportunity to share it with you. Our plan is to run segments of chapter 12 throughout the coming months. Enjoy! Text: Rom. 12:9-21 General theme:...

Adriaan Reland – A Scholar for God’s Glory In academic circles, Adriaan Reland is hailed as a remarkable Orientalist and linguist whose studies and writings have contributed to dispel many prejudiced views of his time. What most sources ignore, however, is his motivation. Born in 1676 in the small...

Is there any use in studying a summary of Scripture that is pushing 400 years of age? Before answering that question let’s think about what the question supposes and what it says about our thinking today. We are suspicious of old things. Of course, not everything older is better. But truth doesn’t...

Would You Like to Sign Up for Membership?: A few days ago, I was shopping at a local grocery store with my family. After we picked up the groceries we needed for the week and were checking them out at the cash register, a cashier kindly asked me, “Are you a member at our grocery store? If not,...

Caesarius of Arles and His Sermons on Christ’s Atonement “Why did our Lord Jesus Christ, the power and wisdom of the Father, effect the salvation of man, not by His divine power and sole might, but by physical humiliation and human struggle? ... What need was there for Christ our Lord to accept his...

Minucius Felix and His Answers to Unbelievers The leisurely walk on the beach Marcus Minucius Felix took with his friends Octavius and Cecilius sometimes between the second and third century is reminiscent of the walk J. R. R. Tolkien, C. S. Lewis, and Hugo Dyson took on the grounds of Oxford...

Augustine of Canterbury – A Reluctant Missionary Augustine of Canterbury, often known as “the apostle of the English,” would have never made it across the Channel if it hadn’t been for the insistent prompting of Pope Gregory I. The eighth century historian Bede tells us in fact that Augustine and...

Ambrose of Milan – The Reluctant Bishop Who Called Emperors to Task If you visit downtown Milan, Italy, besides viewing the most popular monuments, such as the Duomo and the Sforza Castle, you may want to walk a mile out of the way to explore an older church named after a fourth-century bishop,...

Many define “worship” as the music Christians employ in Sunday services. Others hold to a certain “style” of worship. What kind of worship does God demand? In his new book, Trembling Joy: A Biblical Defense of Traditional Worship, Pastor Ryan Speck defines terms and points his readers to what...