The Sword Room

Now that we have a catalog of videos on basic doctrine, get ready for some videos on the church. Topics will include: (1) What is the church? (2) Why does the church exist? (3) The life of the church, (4) The leadership of the church, and (5) The ordinances of the church.

After that a hard-hitting series is coming dealing with men’s issues. The series will be applicible to all men, with special emphasis given to the younger guys, who are the future of the church. This series will serve as a corrective against the unscriptural feminist influence in the church which seeks to feminize, wimp-ify, and chick-ify men. The series is titled: Kick  Butt, Young Man, KICK BUTT!!! All you God-loving guys out there who are sick of being told it is naughty-naughty and un-Christlike to eat red meat, hunt, fish, shoot guns, drink a beer, pass gas, pee outside, cut down trees, play rugby, ride Harleys, attend monster truck races, lift weights, and watch cage fights–hang tight. God created you for dominion, not loser-dom. It’s coming soon!

I am thinking about that old Bob Seger song as I anticipate my final Sunday morning in the pulpit for the foreseeable future. After having ministered the Word between 1,600-1,700 times over 32 years, not to mention Sunday and Wednesday evenings, it is bound to feel a bit strange. But it was time to move on. Thankfully this site continues to reach across the globe, and we have not yet really even started promoting it vigorously. Yesterday we had 71 hits, which is one shy of our all-time high so far. We have been contacted recently by a young male university student on the east coast who loves the videos and is sharing them with all the college guys in his church. From the correspondence we are receiving it seems that young twenty and thirty something males are a prime demographic for us. There is a world-wide movement of the Holy Spirit happening these days in which God is calling many from that age and gender group. So here at the Spiritual Fight Club we will continue to hold forth the truth to them and all others hungry for sound doctrine. As for a new church, Connie and I have arrived at a choice we are both happy with. After all these years we have no illusions of a perfect church. We are aware that in all churches you will  have a mixture of sheep and goats, of wheat and tares. As Paul says in Romans Nine, “They are not all Israel who are from Israel.” That being said, we anticipate some great times of fellowship ahead. Well, in closing, thank you all for your support of this site, and be sure to check out the new videos put up this week on regeneration and sanctification.

Our first video went up thirty days ago, and as of this moment there are forty-six total. By the end of the week the series on regeneration will be complete, rounding it out at fifty. We have had a total of 1,018 visits, or thirty-four hits a day average, with a peak of seventy-two and a low of nine. Many of the referrals are word of mouth, and a few are from youtube viewers (all Sword Room videos also appear on youtube with a link back to this site).  Google picked us up immediately, and we are just now starting to show up on Alta Vista and Lycos. If anyone reading this knows the names of other search engines, please click the comment link below and inform this computer illiterate preacher. I want to check them all. Finally, give us your feedback. Keep coming back and be sure to tell your friends about the site, because word of mouth is still the best form of advertising.

When I was twelve years old my dad’s mother, Helga Holdaas, passed away. My dad took it hard. I had never seen him cry before, and that really shook me up. He was the baby of the family and had a real tight bond with her. I remember shortly after her funeral he said something to the effect that he wished he had appreciated her more and done more nice things to show her how much he loved her. Why is it that we always learn this lesson too late? This will be my last week of pastoral ministry for the foreseeable  future. I started preaching in February of 1977 and have preached an average of fifty Sundays a year for over thirty-two years. Many of those years I preached on Sunday nights, and I have done mid-week bible studies consistently throughout the duration of my ministry. I will miss it, but at least this site will keep me busy ministering the Word until the Lord opens a new avenue of service. More than the teaching and preaching I will miss some of the very special people who have shared their lives with me over the past few years. As I finish up at the church I am beginning to see, as my dad did when he lost his mother, that we take people for granted too often, only to realize once they are gone that our opportunity to bless them and appreciate them is gone. So to all the good folks of Grace Community Church who have stood by me these years, I thank you. From the bottom of my heart I pray God’s best for you. And for all who read these words: take time to appreciate the special people in your life. You never know how much longer you will have them.

FYI, over the weekend I added a bunch of new videos. Check them out and let me know how you like them. A series of videos on election and predestination is coming soon. God bless you all and have a good week.

In the list of the fruit of the Spirit (Gal. 5:22-23) joy is second to love. Of course the idea of a loveless Christian is an oxymoron; but what about joyless Christianity–that dour, sour, long-faced version so common in the Prozac age? Where does joy come from anyway? From the Holy Spirit to be sure, but not through some mysterious mystical kind of hocus-pocus. Paul in his letter to the Philippians repeatedly expressed his extreme gladness, despite the fact that he was sitting in a Roman prison; and in so doing teaches us that the joy of the Lord does not come to us in an unmediated way. What then were the occasions of his joy? (1) 1:4-5: participation in the gospel with other believers. (2) 1:18: knowing the gospel was being proclaimed. (3) 1:25: knowing his fellow believers would continue to make spiritual progress. (4) 2:2: seeing other believers living in harmony with oneness of mind and purpose. (5) 2:17-18: reciprocal sharing of joy with others. (6) 2:28-29: being reunited with a beloved brother in the Lord. (7) 3:1: rejoicing simply in the Lord–in His person and work. (8) 4:1: other believers in and of themselves were Paul’s pride and joy. (9) 4:10: the care and concern of fellow Christians. As is true with any fruit of the Spirit you can’t produce it yourself and you can’t produce it alone. Fellowship with other believers is a key (but neglected) element. It was for Paul and it is for us. The joy of the Lord is contagious: when you are around truly joyful contented believers it cannot help but rub off.

What a blessing to wake up with the birds, enjoy that first fresh cup of coffee over an open Bible, and look out at the morning sun shining on the moist grass. Today I reviewed my material on election and predestination, and I can’t wait to begin taping. Aren’t you glad we serve a magnificent sovereign God, and not one of the creaturely deities of the pagan religions? The buck stops with our God: He calls the shots from eternity, and he does not need help or advice from us. Rejoice in the God of the Bible, and be glad he is not the god of Arminianism!

We hear so much bad news on the street, in the blogs, and on the cable networks, that we tend to forget that God is sovereign over all things (Eph. 1:11). God is using even the undesirable elements in life for good in his overall purpose for His elect children (Romans 8:28-30, 33)! As you might have guessed I am thinking these days on the subject of God’s sovereignty and the biblical concepts of election and predestination. As difficult as these doctrines might be for some to wrap their minds around, nevertheless they are clearly taught in scripture. Rather than being dry abstract ideas they are of tremendous encouragement to the believer. After all, what comfort is there in a God who is not in absolute control of all things? Look for the next video series to be on election and predestination–coming soon. I am re-writing my ancient study outline and sprucing it up a bit, and after a morning immersed in study I am really stoked about this subject! What a joy it is to know the God of the Bible? How exciting to see his plan unfolding before us daily!

This week I am working hard adding new video content to this site. Next up will be a series on revelation. No, we will not be trying to pin the tail on the antichrist. Rather we will cover the two types of God’s self disclosure to us, general and special revelation. General revelation is the present focus for me so I will say a few words about it here. General revelation is God’s self-disclosure through (1) the created order and (2) the conscience. You will find both of these kinds of revelation discussed in the first two chapters of Romans. General revelation is available to all people in all places at all times, as opposed to special revelation which is available to specific people in specific places and at specific times. Everyone has a creation in which  to behold the glory and majesty of the creator, and all humans have a conscience bearing witness to the moral dimension hardwired in as an aspect of the divine image. General revelation is sufficient to render us without excuse for unbelief, but it is insufficient to lead us to a saving knowledge. As believers we have a renewed ability to appreciate the greatness of God in creation. So take some time to reflect during the nice weather on God’s power and providence. And if you can, please pray for us here at the Swordroom as we prepare to launch this site and “spider” it out across the search engines of the world sometime around August 1.

In the seventh chapter of Isaiah we read that Ahaz, king of Judah, was under the threat of attack by the kings of Aram and Israel. Although previous campaigns against God’s people had failed, the mere presence of these enemies camped nearby struck fear into the hearts of Ahaz and the inhabitants of Judah: “His heart and the hearts of the people shook as trees of the forest shake with the wind” (v. 2). But the Lord commanded Isaiah the prophet to go and speak words of comfort to Ahaz: “Take care and be calm, have no fear because of these two stubs of smoldering firebrands” (v. 4). Often our spiritual adversaries appear to be ablaze with zeal and power. The enemy postures like a roaring lion, but our union with Christ renders him toothless and claw-less. “If God is for us who is against us?” (Rom. 8:31). The enemies of Ahaz and Judah were like sticks of wood that had burned down to stubs and were smoldering–ready to burn out at any moment. The same is true of our spiritual foes. Therefore take courage. Stand firm against the world and the devil in the power of Christ and the Sword of the Spirit. Take courage and have no fear of the smoldering stubs in your life.