The Plurality of Eldership The ninth mark of Mark Dever’s book, Nine Marks of a Healthy Church, is “Biblical Church Leadership.” He writes the following concerning the matter: The Bible clearly models a plurality of elders in each local church.[1]…
The Qualifications for Eldership Not everyone in the church is gifted for the spiritual office of elder. This office has qualifications that restrict who can and who cannot serve the church in this role. Although not everyone is gifted and/or…
The New Testament uses multiple terms interchangeably to describe this office: elder, overseer (bishop in the King James Version), and shepherd. The Particular Baptist Nehemiah Coxe helps establish these interchangeable titles: The officers that we are now treating of, which…
My first sermon at the ripe age of 17 was horrible and less than five minutes long. I had no idea how to prepare a sermon. In reality, I shouldn't have been preaching a sermon. I wasn't ready spiritually or…
There is a statement made by those who would draft the 1689 London Baptist Confession of Faith that I find to be a great encouragement. It is a small comment made in the preface of this fine document, which states,…
Introduction In this series of articles, I am seeking to trace out how covenant theology is an integral part of Baptist theology and history. In Part 1 of this series, I set forth the premise of how early Baptists, through…
Introduction “The acceptable way of worshipping the true God, is instituted by Himself, and so limited by His own revealed will, that He may not be worshipped according to the imagination and devices of men, nor the suggestions of Satan,…
So far in this Andrew Fuller series, you have been given an overview of his life and a closer look at his contributions to the "modern missions movement." This final post of the series will seek to draw some applications…
Introduction “Real religion consists in a supreme love to God,” declared the eighteenth-century pastor Samuel Pearce, “and disinterested love to man” (140). The sentiment of this quotation isn’t original to Pearce. Jesus, summarizing the ten commandments, answered a scribe’s inquiry,…