God’s Word | Craig T. Owens

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Passion Week Infographic

April 13, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

Josh Byers produced a great resource for the Passion Week. It lists chronologically all of the events recorded in the Gospels for the week from Palm Sunday to Resurrection Day, along with each of the Scripture references for those events. This would be meaningful way to read your Bible this week.

You can click the image to the left to view it magnified on your screen, or you can download a PDF version by clicking here → Passion week infographic.

If you really love Josh’s work, click here to go to his site to purchase a physical print.

But whatever you do, let’s observe this Passion Week with Bible reading and prayer.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Bible, Bible study, Calvary, Easter, God's Word, infographic, Jesus Christ, Palm Sunday, Passion Week, prayer, Resurrection Sunday, Scripture. Leave a Comment »

Links & Quotes

April 8, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

Some great reading from today.

“Why do we take a railway guide and arrange for a particular journey? … Well, one has confidence in the reliability of these official publications. As a rule we are not put to shame! Now, just as we use a railway guide we must use our Bible. We must depend on God’s Word just as we depend on man’s word, only remembering that though man may not be able to carry out his promise, God will always fulfill what He has said.” —Hudson Taylor

More archeological finds in Israel confirm the historicity of the Bible: Canaanite Fortress Discovered.

Explain to me again how this is legal (or humane!): Nurse tells grisly tale of partial-birth abortions.

The New York Post finds that tanning salons are inspected more than abortion clinics.

Medical science shows stress in the home adversely effects chromosomes in kids.

“Distractions must be conquered or they will conquer us. So let us cultivate simplicity; let us want fewer things; let us walk in the Spirit; let us fill our minds with the Word of God and our hearts with praise. In that way we can live in peace even in such a distraught world as this.” —A.W. Tozer

“If indeed the name of the eternal God is named upon us, we are secure; for, as of old, a Roman had but to say Romanus sum, I am a Roman, and he could claim the protection of all the legions of the vast empire; so everyone who is a man of God has omnipotence as his guardian, and God will sooner empty heaven of angels then leave a saint without defense. Be braver than lions for the right, for God is with you.” —Charles Spurgeon

“How one learns to be thankful for each day on which one can still do something.” —Karl Barth

The Ministry Of God’s Word (book review)

March 21, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

The Ministry Of God's Word

As a pastor I am frequently in awe that God would use me to share His Word with His people. At times it can feel almost overwhelming. Reading Watchman Nee’s teaching to pastors in The Ministry Of God’s Word I feel equal parts heaviness and encouragement.

The heaviness comes from the even deeper realization that Nee brings to pastors of their awesome responsibility before God to be the messengers of His Word. Nee makes it clear that if a pastor’s heart or mind is not as tuned in as possible, the message will be diminished in its delivery.

The encouragement comes from the realization of how much the Holy Spirit wants to help a preacher get his heart, mind, spirit, memory, and even vocabulary in a place that can be used greatly by God.

Pastors, this is not an easy-to-read book. Not because of the vocabulary, but because of the deepness of the subject matter. You will find yourself confronted at every page. But as you persevere through Nee’s challenging message, you will feel God’s Spirit moving to equip you for even great ministry of God’s Word.

And I would be remiss if I didn’t say thank you to my son Harrison for giving this book to me as a gift. Thank you, son!

Posted in Pastoring. Tags: book review, education, God's Word, Holy Spirit, lifelong learner, pastors, preaching, training, Watchman Nee. 2 Comments »

Thursdays With Oswald—Knowing God’s Thoughts

March 20, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

This is a weekly series with things I’m reading and pondering from Oswald Chambers. You can read the original seed thought here, or type “Thursdays With Oswald” in the search box to read more entries.

Knowing God’s Thoughts

As soon as we begin to examine the foundations of our salvation we are up against the thoughts of God, and as Christians we ought to be busy thinking God’s thoughts after Him. That is where we fall short…. It is because of the refusal to think on Christian lines that satan has come in as an angel of light and switched off numbers of God’s children in their head, with the result that there is a divorce between heart and head.

From Conformed To His Image

I read a report recently that said in the United Kingdom, Facebook is read more each day than the Bible. My guess is that the same thing could be said for the United States of America. So if we’re not reading God’s Word, how in the world can we think God’s thoughts? If we don’t know what God is saying, we can’t know what He is thinking?!

So what are we left with? “I feel that God would want…” or “I don’t think God would…” and the like. WE, the biblically-illiterate, have become the final authority on what God thinks. No wonder satan has switched off so many people’s heads!

Don’t simply repeat what someone else says that God says. Read it for yourself! Now the Berean Jews were of more noble character than those in Thessalonica, for they received the message with great eagerness and examined the Scriptures every day to see if what Paul said was true (Acts 17:11).

If you want help getting started reading the Bible, check out some reading plans from BibleGateway.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Bible, Bible study, BibleGateway, Christian, Facebook, God's thoughts, God's Word, Oswald Chambers, salvation, satan, Scripture, social media, thought life, United Kingdom, United States of America. Leave a Comment »

Links & Quotes

March 19, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

These are links to articles and quotes I found interesting today.

[VIDEO] Disgusting!! Planned Parenthood Manager Advises A Pimp How To Make His ‘Business’ Legit.

[INFOGRAPHIC] Everything The Bible Says God Loves.

[PHOTOS] Too cute: A boy and his dog napping.

“The fact is, feeling conviction is not an end in itself. When we are humbled by guilt and sorrow over our sin, we are not supposed to rest in those feelings. They are meant to drive us to the end of ourselves—and to the victory of the Cross.” —David Wilkerson. Read more in Wilkerson’s post The Lord Is Good And Ready To Forgive.

“The Lord may not give gold, but He will give grace: He may not give gain, but He will give grace. He will certainly send us trial, but He will give grace in proportion thereto. We may be called to labor and to suffer, but with the call there will come all the grace required.” —Charles Spurgeon

Rush Limbaugh had a retired 777 pilot call into his show to talk about the missing Malaysian aircraft. Very interesting.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Bible, Charles Spurgeon, children, conviction, David Wilkerson, forgiveness, God's love, God's Word, grace, guilt, photography, Planned Parenthood, pro-life, prostitution, quotes, repentance, Rush Limbaugh, Scripture, sin, video. Leave a Comment »

Gems

March 19, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

Do you ever get lost in the “begats” of the Bible? You know those long, tedious lists of who was born to whom? In 1 Chronicles there’s an equally long list of names that goes on for five chapters(!) of who’s in charge of what. But be careful not to skip over these lists. The Holy Spirit included them in the inspired Word of God for a reason, and sometimes you find some real gems buried in these lists.

Here are a few that I recently unearthed…

For David had said… (1 Chronicles 23:25)—David’s heart was so closely knit with God’s heart that the words he spoke were God’s words coming through David’s mouth, as he gave instructions about how worship in the tabernacle should be conducted.

David, together with the commanders of the army, set apart some of the sons of Asaph… (25:1, 3, 7)—Asaph, Hemen and Jeduthun prophesied through their singing in the tabernacle. They didn’t compose music and sing to entertain, but to call people to God. Notice, too, that all of the worship leaders in the tabernacle were “trained and skilled in music for the Lord.” Those God calls, He equips.

For God had blessed Obed-Edom… (26:5-8)—The Ark of the Covenant—the symbol of God’s presence—had been housed in Obed-Edom’s home. God’s presence produces blessing! Listen to how Obed-Edom’s descendants are described:

Leaders
Capable men
Able men
Capable men with the strength to do the work

Elihu… (27:18)—Even David’s older brother chose to serve him.

Hushai the Arkite was the king’s friend… (27:33)—In the listing of all the court officials, here is a man with no other title than David’s friend.

God’s Word is alive! Ask the Holy Spirit, Who inspired the men who penned these words, to give you fresh revelation as you read the Bible. Then prepare to be amazed at the gems He will reveal to you!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: ark of the covenant, Bible study, blessing, father, friendship, God's Word, Holy Spirit, King David, music, prayer, prophesy, Scripture, worship. 1 Comment »

Hyper-Mega Dynamite

March 10, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

One of my favorite scenes in the movie Elf is when Buddy is discovering all the amazing human things in New York City. In a public restroom he stands up on the toilet in his stall to shout to the person occupying the stall next to him, “Have you seen these toilets? They’re ginormous!” It was so amazing to him that gigantic wouldn’t cut it, and neither would enormous, so he combined them together … it’s ginormous!!

When I read Paul’s prayer for the Christians in Ephesus (see Ephesians 1:17-23), I get the sense that even the well-educated apostle was having difficulty finding enough adjectives to describe the amazing inheritance we have in Christ. He mentions things like…

Out-of-this-world wisdom,
divine revelation,
deep and intimate knowledge of God,
a flooding of heavenly light,
supernatural hope, and
an overflowing, incalculable, inestimable, eternally-compounding inheritance!

But then he comes to God’s power and his vocabulary almost fails him. Like Buddy the elf, he starts putting words together to try to convey the vast majesty of this power.

Most Bible translations say something like incomparably great power. But when you look at the Greek you see prefixes like hyper! and mega! and you realize that Paul is saying it’s so beyond gigantic or enormous … it’s ginormous!!

The word for power is “dynamis,” and many people have said that God’s power is like dynamite. But they have it exactly backwards! Dynamite has only been around for 200 years. When dynamite was created it was named after Christians who were living in the hyper-mega, ginormous, dynamic power of Jesus Christ. Christians’ power wasn’t named after dynamite; dynamite was named after empowered Christians!

This is the power in which Christians can live everyday in every way! This is the power God has for you! If you’re living in anything less than hyper-mega dynamite power, perhaps you should pray for yourself the prayer that Paul prayed for us!

We’ll be continuing our series in Ephesians this coming Sunday, and I’d love for you to join us.

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: apostle Paul, Bible, Calvary Assembly of God, Christian, dynamite, empowerment, Ephesians, Ephesus, God's power, God's Word, Holy Spirit, hope, inheritance, Jesus Christ, prayer, Revelation, Scripture, sermon, vocabulary, wisdom. 1 Comment »

Thursdays With Oswald—Right Thinking

March 6, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

Right Thinking

We have to be so faithful to God that through us may come the awakening of those who have not yet realized that they are redeemed.

We must distinguish between the revelation of Redemption and the experience of regeneration. We don’t experience life; we are alive. We don’t experience Redemption; we experience regeneration, that is, we experience the life of God coming into our human nature, and immediately the life of God comes in it produces a surface of consciousness, but Redemption means a great deal more than a man is conscious of.

From Conformed To His Image

These comments come from a class Oswald Chambers taught called “Christian Thinking.” His contention was that (1) Christians are the living, breathing testimony of what God does for man; (2) Christians need to think right in order to live right; (3) the way Christians live will either attract or repel others to Jesus Christ.

This right thinking is formed in Christians as the Holy Spirit reveals Christ to us through the Word. Often times we will find that we have been thinking all wrong about something, and we need to “be so faithful to God” that we are willing to give up these wrong lines of thinking.

Are you? Am I? Are we willing to admit, “I was wrong on this point” in order that others may see Christ in us and accept Him as their Savior? I sure hope so!

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: Bible, Christian, confession, God's Word, Holy Spirit, Jesus Christ, Oswald Chambers, redemption, repentance, thinking. Leave a Comment »

Links & Quotes

February 25, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

These are links to articles and quotes I found interesting today.

“Be sure you put your feet in the right place, then stand firm.” —Abraham Lincoln

The “settled science” of the origin of the universe is far from settled: Einstein’s Lost Theory Uncovered

“Pastors must be students of God’s Word, continually reviewing and digging deeper into the Scriptures in order to discern what is right and true and essential for the equipping of the saints. The pastor’s study of the Word must be, first, for his own edification and enrichment. From there, he must consider the application of Scripture to the needs of his congregation and the temper of the times. The more we are furnished with the sure Word of God, the more we will grow to be like Jesus, and be equipped to help others in this same calling.” —T.M. Moore

“Jesus observed the law and fulfilled the law. He did not throw the law away, for the sake of love. For the sake of love, He threw Himself away. That’s another counterintuitive lesson He gave to us, as we all proceed together, slouching toward ‘tolerance’ and carrying our consciences along the way ” —Elizabeth Scalia. Read more of her post Jesus Might Bake The Cake, But Would He Perform The Nuptials?

Disgusting! Michigan’s ‘House Of Horrors’

“God wants worshipers before workers; indeed the only acceptable workers are those who have learned the lost art of worship.” —A.W. Tozer

Posted in Uncategorized. Tags: A.W. Tozer, abortion, Abraham Lincoln, Albert Einstein, Bible, Bible study, Big Bang, Christian, church, counter-cultural, Creation, Creator, God's love, God's Word, homosexuality, Jesus Christ, love, medical science, Michigan, pastors, pro-life, quotes, science, Scripture, T.M. Moore, wedding, worship. Leave a Comment »

What God Will You Choose?

February 24, 2014 — Craig T. Owens

My friend Chuck and I have a sort of shorthand when we talk. We’ve been through so many experiences together, that now just a single word can bring to our minds the fullness of that time, with all of its tears and laughter. Someone listening to one of our conversations might not get the full impact, but we sure do!

It’s the same way when we read one of the Apostle Paul’s letters. He is writing to a church or an individual with whom he had a rich, personal experience. So when he alludes to something, those friends who went through that experience with him recall all of the fullness. When reading the letter to the church at Ephesus, you can experience some of that fullness by reading about Paul’s experience in that city in Acts 19.

In Acts 19 you will meet the followers of Jesus who were already there and see them get baptized in the Holy Spirit … watch Paul teach for three months in the synagogue before the Jewish troublemakers run him out … see Paul lecture for the next three years in the Hall of Tyrannus, so that everyone in that province heard the Word of God … see how God authenticated Paul’s ministry with miracles … experience those who tried to counterfeit what Paul was doing … see many in that city turn from their witchcraft and idol worship … and finally experience the tumult of a near-riot started by the merchants who were losing their income on sales of mythological trinkets because so many were turning to Christ.

With this backdrop, you can then understand why Paul uses such specific language in the opening greeting of his letter to Ephesus (see Ephesians 1:1-3). By doing so he is contrasting the followers of Jesus with the followers of Artemis—

Christians for whom God has a specific plan (“by the will of God” [1:1a]; see also 1:4 and 2:10) versus Artemis’ followers who felt like they had no choice (Acts 19:26).
Christians who are called saints (set apart for God’s special use) and faithful (trusting Jesus implicitly [1:1b]) versus those followers of Artemis who are self-serving (Acts 19:24, 25).
Christians who experience God’s grace and peace (1:2) versus those followers of Artemis who did not even know why they were there (Acts 19:32).

But the most specific language is in Ephesians 1:3—Praise be to THE God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ (emphasis added)….

Not “a” god, but “THE” God.
Not a god that needs to be appeased, but THE loving Father.
Not a god that may or may not be able to respond, but OUR Lord Jesus Christ Who overcame death, hell and the grave so that our sins can be forgiven!

The question Paul invites the Ephesians to consider is the same question we must consider: