All of these five gifts are given to equip the saints in the local church. The gifts are given to equip and because of that, members should be able to do the work of any of the five without necessarily standing in gift of the five-fold. The equipping is done not by what they do but simply by who they are. … More Foundational Gifts in the Church – Apostles and Prophets
Give God thanks for delivering you from the power of sin. … More What is Sin?
A Christian viewpoint must be reasoned from the Bible. The Word of God is alive and powerful and is able to judge the thoughts and attitudes of the heart. That is why you must guard your heart. The world entices the mind and heart. The more your heart is given to God, the less you will be attracted to the world. … More Overcoming the World
A Christian response is to peach the gospel, pray for our national leaders, support a national defense against evil, and build friendships with Muslims here in the United States and abroad for personal influence and conversions. The later is an active role for a long-term problem, but for now we need biblical defense addressing evil with the force necessary to abolish the threat. The last thing we need is another awful Christian response. … More An Awful Christian Response to ISIS
To experience community one must be open to sharing life with others. Community is the fundamental aspect of the kingdom. The kingdom is relational and relationships are enhanced and strengthened through transparency. Transparency builds trust and trust builds community. Take a moment and take this survey and see where you are in experiencing community in your life. … More Experiencing Community
One of the first signs of an immature person is that they are unable to accept criticism. Though no one likes to be criticized, the mature person understands the value of it and how to handle criticism. There are three aspects one must determine in order to handle criticism appropriately. … More How to Handle Criticism
There is no greater fulfillment in life than serving in the Master’s kingdom. Each person has a part to play. For centuries the church has been divided into two groups, clergy and layman. Now God has begun to take down that wall of separation. The healthiest churches around the world are those in which all members are encouraged to become active in their gifts. … More Every Member A Minister
It has been my experience that when an elder is ordained and the congregation declares, “We could have done this some time ago, because he has already been serving as an elder,” then the timing is probably correct. However, if one is ordained too early the people may enquire, “What makes him an elder?” Great confidence is lost if an elder does not stand in respect before the people himself. He must be a teacher and minister with spiritual authority in his own right. … More Six ‘Yeses’ to Selecting Leaders in the Local Church
To maintain integrity in interpreting the scriptures, certain principles should be adhered. This avoids personal application of meaning and presuppositions. It takes discipline to hold to these principles when they fly in the face of our preconceptions. … More Five Principles of Interpretation
Prayer is communicating with God. Pray brings one into relationship with God and comes out of that relationship; therefore, certain elements in the life of a Christian that can hinder prayers. For our prayers to be productive, we should consider these five areas. … More Can prayers be hindered?
GLENN SHAFFER 