Category Archives: Christianity

SBFC-SW “Being a Calvinist in the SBC”

Summary of the Southern Baptist Founders Conference Southwest 2009

Here is a summary of the messages from the SBFC-SW 2009, as well as a collection of photos from the conference and a video I took of the attendees singing “Be Thou My Vision”.

Devotional Psalm (Psalm 130)” – Pastor Jeff Young

Preaching Christ from the Old Testament” – Pastor Fred Malone

Preaching Christ from the New Testament” – Pastor Tom Ascol

Redemptive-Historical Preaching: Pros and Cons” – Pastor Steve Garrick

Summary of Founders Ministries” – Pastor Tom Ascol

The Lost Element of Theology in Preaching” – Pastor Fred Malone

Q&A Session (Moderated by Larry Vincent)” – Pastor Earl Blackburn, Pastor Tom Ascol, Pastor Steve Garrick and Pastor Fred Malone

A Critique of Contemporary Models of Preaching” – Pastor Tom Ascol

Preaching Christ to the Christian” – Pastor Fred Malone

Preaching Christ to the Natural Man” – Pastor Tom Ascol

Unction in Preaching” – preached by Pastor Earl Blackburn

#SBFCSW “Unction in Preaching”, Pastor Earl Blackburn

#SBFCSW “Preaching Christ to the Natural Man”, Pastor Tom Ascol

Sermon Poetry – “Lord, Help Me”
Sermon Title – “Preaching Christ to the Natural Man”
Preacher – Dr. Tom Ascol

We live in a time where there’s gods all about
We’re proud of our pluralist ways
The people don’t know of the God of the Word
Ignoring the Ancient of Days

Lord help me when walking in markets and ways
When working among fellow men
Lord help me to preach Jesus Christ to the lost
To sinners, the lost and the damned

Lord help me be faithful to rightly engage
The culture in which I am pleased
To study and know it and judge it by truth
Lord help and show me Your Grace

Lord help me remember the sin of my heart
The sin that enslaves these around
Lord help me to love You and love neighbors too
A sinner was lost, now I’m found

In me light a fire that burns for Your Name
Your honor and glory proclaim
In culture around me, your honor to seek
Proclaiming Your glorious fame

Lord help me to study Your Scripture of Truth
And study the culture around
Respecting the sinner and loving the lost
In Christ, make the lost sinner found

And finally, Father, Your Truth will I tell
I haven’t the strength on my own
Please make me committed, Your glory to seek
Save sinners in Jesus the Son

#SBFCSW “Preaching Christ to the Christian”, Pastor Fred Malone

Sermon Poetry – “Complete what You’ve Begun”
Sermon Title – “Preaching Christ to the Christian”
Preacher – Pastor Fred Malone

Although I’m saved I need the message of my Gospel King
The Revelation Fair and Sweet that Christ has died for me
I need to hear of Law and Sin and how I’ve been redeemed
I need to hear of Jesus Christ, the one who made me free

A slave was I, a rebel dead, I hated Good and Light
I railed against the Holy Law, its message did I fight
I felt I was a moral one, I had no need of Christ
I fought against His Cross of Love, I fought with all my might

But thank the Lord that He is strong, He won against my sin
His Holy Word broke through the haze, my heart did Jesus win
‘Twas Grace that saved a wretch like me, a rebel I had been
That Father chose, my Savior died, the Spirit lives within

So as I live, I need to have the Gospel preached to me
For I forget the Grace of Christ, the blood that washed me clean
The Law is kept by Christ alone, Redemption making free
The sinner’s heart, I look to Christ who died upon the Tree

The things I long to do I don’t, I do the things I hate
I long for good (engaging sin), to stay the Way called Straight
Oh who can save this wretched man, I thank the Father Great
For sending Christ to live and die, in Christ my heart is stayed

This road of life is long and heard, alone we all would fail
We all would walk the crooked way, in journeying to Hell
But thanks to God, we’re kept in Christ, His mercy makes us well
He gives us faith to walk the way, to gates wherein we’ll dwell

Oh Savior Sweet, Kind Jesus Fair! I come a man undone!
I have no strength within my frame, my weakened soul you’ve won
Lord, give me strength to walk the way you’ve chosen for this son
To love my neighbor, loving God, complete what you’ve begun

#SBFCSW “A Critique of Contemporary Models of Preaching”, Pastor Tom Ascol



Sermon Poetry – “Lord Keep Me from Deficiency”
Preacher – Pastor Tom Ascol

Lord keep me from deficiency
Help me to preach theology
To tell of you, my Father Sweet
My kind and sovereign King

Lord keep me from deficiency
From apastoral mockery
In loving all your children sweet
And shepherding Your Flock

Lord keep me from deficiency
And help me in expositing
To preach Your Truth with clarity
A herald of Your Word

Lord keep me from deficiency
So sinners might your glory see
In Christ the Light our hearts are free
In Christ our souls are saved

Lord keep me from deficiency
With praying, reading, listening
To know Your Word, to know Your sheep
So I can preach the Word

#SBFCSW Q&A (Moderated by Larry Vincent), Earl Blackburn, Tom Ascol, Steve Garrick, and Fred Malone

#SBFCSW “The Lost Element of Theology in Preaching”, Dr. Fred Malone

Sermon Poetry – “We’re Preaching the Scriptures”
Preacher – Fred Malone

The preaching of God is stupidity to all the world and the people therein
A message proclaimed to a people in need, to a people all rotting in sin
It’s Grace of our God that He’s given to us all a message by which we are saved
We’re preaching our Savior, we’re preaching a Cross, we’re preaching the study of God

We’re preaching the whole of the Scriptures to sinners, the counsel of God as revealed
We’re teaching of Jesus, our Crucified Savior, the Son who the Father has sent
We’re preaching the Gospel, that Good Revelation, so sinners might glory in Christ
We’re preaching the Gospel, that Kind Revelation, so Christians might comfort in Christ

We’re sinners forgiven, our sins washed by Jesus, we’re living to glorify Him
We’re telling a message to worshipping sinners, that outside of Christ they are lost
But thanks to the Father, our Crucified Savior was sent to so that sinners might live
This news we are preaching, through all of the Scriptures, theology of God above

#SBFCSW Summary of Founders Ministries, Dr. Tom Ascol

#SBFCSW “Redemptive-Historical Preaching: Pros and Cons”, Pastor Steve Garrick

A Proposed Form of Preaching

1.)  Preach Meaning of the Text

2.)  Summarize Theological Core Idea

3.)  Expound and Prove this Idea

  1. Via analogy of Scripture
  2. Show how this idea fits with the character of God, salvation, redemption, etc.
  3. This allows our hearers to see how this passage and its applications stem from your salvation

4.)  Apply this idea considering your hearer’s spiritual state (among other criteria)

#SWBCSW Photographs

#SBFCSW “Preaching Christ from the New Testament”, Dr. Tom Ascol

Sermon Poetry – “Salvation’s Found Alone in Christ”
Preacher – Dr. Tom Ascol

Come look what God has done in Christ
He sent His Son to live and die
He died for us, so you and I,
Can praise His Holy Name

Salvation’s found alone in Christ
The Bleeding Savior from on High
Be covered by His sacrifice
And love the Son of God

Because of Christ I strive to be
A vessel so that men might see
How Jesus Christ has love for me
Sweet Jesus, give me strength!

The Doctrines that I hold as true
Are false without my Savior who
Came to this earth for me and you
I praise His Holy Name

#SBFCSW “Preaching Christ from the Old Testament”, Dr. Fred Malone

Sermon Poetry – “Give Me Eyes to See My Christ”

Oh that I was a man on the road to Emmaus
Hearing my Savior explaining the Word
How my heart would be burning, my ears would be tingling
Such beautiful grace of our glorious Lord
Lord, help me see Christ in the sacrifice
Of innocent sheep sweet and pure
Lord, help me see Christ in the prophecy
The Savior to come right and true

Oh to have understanding of all of the Scriptures
When Scriptures inform me of what Scripture says
My Savior’s the center of all Revelation
The center and purpose of life and God’s plans
Lord, make me submissive and worshipful
To sing praises of Your kind name
Your word tells of Christ and Your holy love
It tells me of Christ and the Cross

Oh that I would see Jesus in the Word God has given
In shadows and visions and prophecies true
To see Christ in Scripture, the whole of the Scriptures
The Covenant Old and the Covenant New
Lord humble this son as I say the words
I desperately need Jesus’ Love
Kind Father, I thank you for sending Christ
The Sacrificed Lamb that I love

#SBFCSW “Devotional Psalm” (Psalm 130), Pastor Jeff Young

Faithfulness …

It seems that true, persistent, plodding faithfulness is perhaps the hardest part of the Christian walk.

It is fairly easy to be flashy and it is easy to exert a great amount of energy for a small amount of time. But to be faithful and constant … that is hard. Patience and persistence is required for such faithfulness. To be faithful means constant warfare with the flesh. For the faithful man or woman there are no breaks, no rests, and no separation from the grind. The faithful Christian is a plodder. She is content in doing what she is called to do, even if she spends her whole life in relative obscurity. The faithful Christian does not mind doing the dirty work. In fact, he puts all of his effort into the task, knowing that there will be few who notice. The faithful Christian will be told at the end of things “Well done, good and faithful servant”. The faithful Christian is a slave and he rejoices in it. She is a servant and in her servitude she seeks the honor of God. He knows he might never be noticed, but he is ok with that possibility and general reality.

He is the pastor of a small congregation in the Texas Hill Country. The church he serves in has never had much numerical growth. He has never had many converts. He is not flashy and he is not real relevant. He is faithful in the little things and faithful in the big things he is given responsibility for.

She is the mother of ten believing children and currently the grandmother of fifteen. She was a beautiful woman in the flower of youth but now her body is wrinkled, bent and worn out. She is not flashy and she’s not real sexy. She is faithful in the little things and faithful in the big things she is given responsibility for.

This man might not be successful in the eyes of the world (or even the eyes of Evangelicals!), but in the Lord’s eyes this man is honored. This woman might not be beautiful in the eyes of the world, but in God’s eyes this woman exhibits true human beauty.

Are we content with faithfulness to God, or are we in such pursuit of fame, success, relevance and beauty that we lost sight of the one by whom and for whom all things exist?