Sam's Blog

Jan 21, 2008

Sheep, Shepherds, and Charlatans

I believe that Scripture possesses clarity and meaning, it speaks with authority on spiritual and non-spiritual things in a way that can be understood by the masses.  All who claim the name of Jesus Christ posses the Holy Spirit and, therefore, are capable of knowing that which God wants us to know.  Nevertheless, there are some very difficult things to understand in Scripture and, even when they are understood, those things are even harder to accept.  These passages ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



Dec 17, 2007

Jesus the Stoner

The last sermon we preached at Damascus Road Church focused on the woman caught in adultery.  This story in John 7.53-8.11 projects one of the most vivid pictures of the gospel in all of the New Testament.  In it, Jesus shows mercy and grace to a woman who, according to the law, deserves to die. In a way that only Jesus can seem to do, he offers forgiveness without approving of her sin.  He gives grace accompanied with a command for genuine repentance. When Jesus ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



Nov 26, 2007

Plant a seed...oh puke

The other night I was watching Christian Comedy Central (TBN/DAYSTAR).  Occasionally I take a look at these channels to see exactly what the average joe flipping through channels sees as "Christian."  I usually have two different reactions to what I see--laughter or anger. Either reaction is usually partnered with a deep rooted disgust that these pink-haired, money-hungry, prom-song for Jesus singing freaks have hijacked what the Bible says is Christianity.  Of ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



Nov 16, 2007

Why do I need Jesus?

I guess I always thought this would be an easy question to answer.  Theologically, I can explain our guilt before God, our depravity as a result of the fall, and our justification through the atoning blood of Jesus Christ as my penal substitute. But, that doesn't really answer the question.  How do you reveal someone's need for Jesus?  Perhaps this is just another way to say, "convince" without saying it.  Convincing someone of their need for ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



Oct 29, 2007

Guilty

As I am watching a video on "Calvinism", one man goes around asking people how you can be saved. They give various answers, all echoing the truth of the gospel in some way. One individual, however, when asked how you can be saved, or how salvation works, says, "I like the way my pastor says it..." and proceeds to give a short illustration. It's a common image of a court room where, he describes, God is the judge, Satan is the prosecuting attorney, and Jesus is the ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



Oct 29, 2007

GOD and SPECIFICITY

  Any time I preach a sermon, I usually spend the afternoon rehashing everything that I said, didn't say, shouldn't have said, or said differently.  Today is no different.  It is been said by men smarter than myself that some of the best preaching are those willing to simply let the scriptures speak for themselves.  This might lead us to believe that the best preaching then is opening the Bible just reading the Scripture publicly.  When all is said ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



Oct 25, 2007

A few "good" thoughts on a few "bad" words

Ephesians 4.29 Let no corrupting talk come out of your mouths, but only such as is good for building up, as fits the occasion, that it may give grace to those who hear. Although I'm far from the a "cussing pastor", admittedly, my sermons are laced with an occassinoal "crap" or some other euphemism for poop that some people may be offended by. Quite simply people want pastors to talk a certain way to the extent that there are certain words you just ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



Oct 17, 2007

Sin vs. Sin(s)

15 men gathered together last night to study God's Word.  I always find it a bit surprising, but deeply rewarding, to sit around and discuss theology.  Last night we spoke about Sin.  It's one of the those conversations that you'll late describe as "great", meaning, it was really convicting because you realize that your perspective on God's truth is a bit off.  In this third chapter of his study, Gospel Christianity, Tim Keller asks you to ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



Oct 15, 2007

The State of the Pulpit

Whether or not Driscoll should be critiquing Joel Osteen in a sermon is not the point. Pastor Osteen has been plastered over every Christian, and recently, NON Christian media outlet for the last few weeks. He is, for many people, the poster child for Christianity. We do have a responsibility to defend THE FAITH (Jude 3) and to make sure that we don't have a false gospel (Gal 6) being perpetuated among the masses. Listen to Mark D's critique. The most poignant warning he gives ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



Jun 15, 2007

Descriptive vs. Prescriptive

I wonder sometimes if consumerism is unavoidable.  People walk into your church, "check out the show", and walk out without ever asking a question or shaking a hand.  Usually, their 50 minute-or-less evaluation includes an assessment of the people (are they fat, ugly, nicely dressed, rough, clean, uptight, etc.), the music (can I sing to it, is there a pipe organ, is that a secular song?, that music guy is not my style, etc), the preaching (where is the Christian ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



Apr 29, 2007

God wants to do more than just save me...

As I drove home from Sunday service, Matt and I had a conversation centered around sex.  Now, before you think we spent our 15 minutes together talking about how to "get it on," know that we were talking about sex and how our approach to it might reflect His relationship with us.  Clearly, if sex is more than just a physical exchange of body fluids--which it is--then there must be something we can learn about God through this wonderfully beautiful thing He created and we ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



Mar 27, 2007

Beer and Bible

Recently, Acts 29, Mars Hill, and some other Acts 29 churches (even our own) came under scrutiny for the use of alcohol.  The Southern Baptist Convention, an organization with a complete abstinence policy, charged Acts 29 and its churches with selling out to culture in hopes of reaching culture.  The article is full of mischaracterizations and flat out lies.  From our own web site, the writer of the article takes a statement from one context and puts it into another context ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



Mar 09, 2007

Sex with God

Recently, Comedy Central "consummated" its season of "the Sarah Silverman Program" last night by featuring the title character having sex with God, and then trying to brush him off after a night of lovemaking. Silverman was shown in bed with an African American Almighty, whom she referred to as "Black God,".  Here is a partial transcript: God: I had a really good time last night. A really, really good time. Silverman: Thaaaanks (in a ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



Mar 02, 2007

The bones of Jesus

In the same spirit of The Davinic Code, James Cameron, director of arguably the most irritating moving of all time (TITANIC), is taking on Christianity.  His new film is called The Lost Tomb of Christ and airs on Discovery on Sunday and on Canada's Vision TV on March 6.  In this new documentary, Cameron claims to have found the tomb of Jesus.  Today, there are many different arguments for where exactly the tomb of Jesus is located.  More ... More »

Posted by Sam Ford



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