"I have nothing else to rely upon but the fact that Jesus Christ, the Son of God, lived, died, was buried, rose again, went to heaven, and still lives and pleads for sinners at the right hand of God." 
-- C. H. Spurgeon

This year we'll focus our hearts on our living, risen Savior, Jesus Christ. Join us as John MacArthur, Rick Holland, C.J. Mahaney, Al Mohler, and Steve Lawson open God's Word.

Sounds like just the right focus. To learn more, especially the opportunity for day passes if you can't attend the whole thing, go here. And please see below the promotional video for Resolved 2010.

I've long been struck by the vision of pastoral ministry that comes through in the Apostle Paul's letters. He's consistently to grow both the size of the church and the depth or maturity of the church. He has a broad kingdom-sized concern for the entire church wherever she gathers, and a laser-like, motherly/fatherly concern for every individual believer in his care. Here's just a few statements in from his letters:

Eph. 4:11-13 --"And he gave the apostles, the prophets, the evangelists, the shepherds and teachers, to equip the saints for the work of the ministry, for building up the body of Christ, until we all attain to the unity of the faith and of the knowledge of the Son of God, to mature manhood, to the measure of the stature of the fullness of Christ...."

Col. 1:28-29--"We proclaim Him, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ. For this I toil, struggling with all His energy that He powerfully works within me."

1 Thes. 2:9-12--"For you remember, brothers, our labor and toil: we worked night and day, that we might not be a burden to any of you, while we proclaimed to you the gospel of God. You are witnesses, and God also, how holy and righteous and blameless was our conduct toward you believers. For you know how, like a father with his children, we exhorted each one of you and encouraged you and charged you to walk in a manner worthy of God, who calls you into his own kingdom and glory."

Acts 20:18-21--"You yourselves know how I lived among you the whole time from the first day that I set foot in Asia, serving the Lord with all humility and with tears and with trials that happened to me through the plots of the Jews; how I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in pubic and from house to house...."

It's challenging. But pastoral ministry ought to maintain a focus on the entire body and a keen interest in the development and growth of each saint.

Read the whole thing. (And note the excellent quote by Ajith Fernando!)

Like a bad cowboy movie from the 1950s, many Christians today employ an evangelistic technique from the same decade. Ride into town, find as many "prospects" as possible as quickly as possible, unload your gospel ammo, and move on to the next quiet burg.

The problem isn't door-to-door evangelism. While its heyday has passed in most communities, it can still be effective in some cases. The issue is the gunslinger mentality that many bring to the task, the idea that the lost are targets to be acquired, the gospel a weapon to be used, and the number of converts to be notched in one's spiritual gun belt.

The results from such evangelistic shootouts are invariably bad. The lost feel victimized. The gospel is minimized. The evangelist is maximized, walking away to celebrate another personal victory.

The gun belt gospel misses the mark in so many ways:

The lost are not targets of opportunity. They are not prospects. An encounter with them is not an argument to be won. The lost are among the highest in God's creation. They bear God's image. They face God's wrath. Our concern must not be our evangelistic legacy but their eternal souls. If you go into an evangelistic encounter with anything but a sense of grief for their condition and a sense of gratitude for God's kindness for yours, you're coming in spiritually unarmed.

Converts are not the goal. Disciples are. We want to see the lost come to Christ in a saving relationship but the coming is only half the battle. Jesus tells us that we are to make disciples, teaching them, arming them for the Christian life so that they may one day join the fray and make disciples as well. Any method of evangelism that ends with the "Believer's Prayer" or a quick dunk in the baptismal pool but fails to produce disciples fails to be evangelism.

Evangelism is not about the evangelist. Evangelism isn't about the potential convert. Evangelism is about the glory of God, spreading his renown, and adding to the chorus of those who will praise him forever. Spiritual pride drawn from the number of evangelistic encounters we've had or the number of converts God has blessed us with seeing is the worst kind of spiritual pride. If you're sharing your faith as a way to earn God's favor or man's recognition, hang up your gun belt. Get on your knees and ask God to forgive you. It's time you die to self and live to Christ.

Evangelism is one of the great blessings of the Christian faith. We get to share in God's work, to see it up close and personal, to be a choice instrument in the hands of the Almighty. God doesn't have to work this way but he has chosen to do so.

Let us also remember, however, that evangelism is expected of Christ's followers. After all, Matthew 28:19-20 is not the Great Suggestion but the Great Commission.

Therefore, let's holster our pride. Let us rejoice in his goodness and participate in his kindness. Let's go out and reclaim in the name of the Lord the territory held captive by the enemy. Let's do it for God's glory not another notch in our belts.