#Christianity

Jul 29, 2013
4 min

Remember Your Leaders: Jesus

Remember your leaders, those who spoke to you the word of God. Consider the outcome of their way of life, and imitate their faith. Hebrews 13:7 This imperatival statement from Hebrews is the endeavor to which we will pursue in the coming weeks. There are many whom the author of Hebrews is commending to us Christians as examples of faith to imitate. Yet we often spend little time thinking about those who have prepared the way for our faith today, they are distant memories and

Jul 22, 2013
3 min

Remember Your Leaders

Who you are today is a reflection in some part of who has been a leader to you. Fundamental to the building block of life is learning from leaders in our lives. When we were children we learned what it mean to be human by copying the ways of our parents (i.e. walking, eating with utensils, learning how to speak, etc.). As adults we learn how to be successful in a new job by watching those who are successful in our field. We are who we are in many respects due to those whom we

Jul 15, 2013
3 min

Careful Who Leads You

No person is free from following another’s leading. Humanity consists of followers and leaders and we all hold both offices at the same time. We follow someone and at the same time may be a leader to another. Who leads us will directly impact how we will lead others. Therefore to know who to follow is a serious reality with implications beyond ourselves. Careful who it is you follow. Careful who leads you. Augustine on Who Not To Follow The world beckons us to follow these “l

Jul 6, 2013
3 min

Thoughts From the First Month as “Pastor JT”

In the midst of trying to keep my head on straight I have reflected on four things that the Lord has sought fit to impress upon me as a fresh out of seminary pastor: Prioritization Is Essential If I have learned one thing above them all this last month it is the essential task of being able to prioritize your schedule. If you don’t decide what you are going to spend your time on then other people and distractions will decide that task for you. An open door policy is great, b

May 9, 2013
1 min

Our Only Hope: Funeral Sermon

I had the wonderful privilege of taking Jim Singleton’s Pastoral Ministry course this semester at Gordon-Conwell. As a Th.M. student in Homiletics I wasn’t supposed to take anything outside my field, but I convinced my advisor that this class was a good idea for me in preparation for pastoral ministry. It was a true gem of a course. As a Th.M. student I had some extra requirements to fulfill to elevate the M.Div. level course to Th.M. caliber. One of these requirements was to

May 8, 2013
1 min

Grace and Sin: Caught in Adultery

It was a wonderful privilege this Winter and Spring to share the Word of God with the people at Londonderry Presbyterian Church in New Hampshire. God called me during my time here at Gordon-Conwell to preach among two different New Hampshire congregations. It was a blessing to get to know them and I thank them for giving me the opportunity to share what God had for them in His Word. This sermon is the last at Londonderry for the forseeable future. The text for the sermon is J

Apr 18, 2013
1 min

Born Again?! Jesus and Nicodemus

This past weekend I had the opportunity and privilege to preach at Londonderry Presbyterian Church in Londonderry, New Hampshire. The church is the oldest continually worshipping Presbyterian congregation In New England. A few of us students and professors are helping the church during a transitional phase this Winter/Spring. We are walking through the Gospel of John and I had the true blessing to preach on John 3:1-15, Jesus’ heart to heart with the lost Pharisee Nicodemus.

Nov 3, 2012
2 min

John Calvin: Conversion

The account of Calvin’s conversion is brief and many scholars have sought to pin down exactly how it happened. We know very little. But most scholars agree that Calvin converted to faith somewhere between 1529 and 1530 while studying law at the University of Bourges. T.H.L Parker captures the conversion well: At some time in 1529 or early 1530 Calvin was converted. We do not know the circumstances…Calvin’s life had similarly been changed and ordered by God’s secret providence

Oct 31, 2012
1 min

Reformation Day: A Necessary Schism

John Piper has a free resource on Martin Luther: Lessons from His Life and Labor, over at Desiring God if you would like to read more about his life and ministry. Happy Reformation day to you all! #Schism #ReformationDay #Church #Catholic #Christianity #Gutenberg #Faith #Scripture #PrintingPress #Grace #Protestant #MartinLuther #Bible #Jesus

Oct 29, 2012
1 min

What is the Atonement?

The doctrine of the atonement is the means by which God redeems His people from sin. The purpose of the sermon is to draw our hearts to praise and glorify God because of the kind of God we find Him to be through this beautiful doctrine.https://jtholderman.files.wordpress.com/2012/10/memo_3-mp3cut-net.mp3 #Preacher #Doctrine #Christianity #Atonement #Manchester #GuestPreacher #Sermon #Bible #God #Theology #Jesus

Feb 19, 2010
1 min

Timeless Quotes: Calvin

“…Not only does he sustain the universe (as he once founded it) by his boundless might, regulate it by his wisdom, preserve it by his goodness, and especially rule mankind by his righteousness and judgment, bear with it in his mercy, watch over it by his protection; but also that no drop will be found either of wisdom and light, or of righteousness or power or rectitude, or of genuine truth, which does not flow from him, and of which he is not the cause.” (Italics Added

Feb 12, 2010
2 min

Tim Keller on Issues Facing the Western Church

Timothy Keller has raised quite a few profound points regarding issues that are currently facing the “western church.” Check out the article here: The Big Issues Facing the Western Church. Rarely do I link in my posts to other blogs or articles, however the issues Keller raises here are worthy to be considered and engaged thoughtfully in our lives as the “Western Church.” Below is an excerpt from issue four in Keller’s above mentioned article: The growing cultural remotene

Feb 10, 2010
2 min

Calvin’s View of Canonicity

In Systematic Theology with Bruce McCormack, we spent a few days discussing the foundation of Scripture. When historical criticism is taken into account regarding the formation of the canon, it can persuade the thinker to account for the reason James is in the canon, and the Gospel of Thomas is not, based upon the grounds of human interpretation at the Council of Nicaea. The fact that somewhere between 250 and 300 bishops attended the council and definitively “chose” the bo

Jan 20, 2010
1 min

Timeless Quotes: Karl Barth

“In the beginning, before time and space as we know them, before creation, before there was any reality distinct from God which could be the object of the love of God or the setting for His acts of freedom, God anticipated and determined within himself (in the power of His love and freedom, of His knowing and willing) that the goal and meaning of all His dealings with the as yet non-existent universe should be the fact that in His son He would be gracious towards man, uniting

Jun 23, 2009
1 min

The Marrow of Psalm 119

“How can a young man keep his way pure? By guarding it according to your word. With my whole heart I seek you; let me not wander from your commandments! I have stored up your word in my heart, that i might not sin against you. Blessed are you, O Lord; teach me your statutes! With my lips I declare all the rules of your mouth. In the way of your testimonies I delight as much as in all riches. I will meditate on your precepts and fix my eyes on your ways. I will delight

Jun 23, 2009
2 min

St. Augustine on Original Sin

Perhaps we should view Original Sin from the perspective of that great theologian, Augustine of Hippo, who has given us a minefield of theological truths that theologians are still unpacking today,including the doctrine of Original Sin (Since no one systematized any doctrine on Original Sin before him). Augustine writes his biography in the form of a prayer to God that others were invited to read in his autobiography The Confessions. My urge to anyone reading this who hasn’t

Jun 23, 2009
2 min

Disobedience: The Beginning of All Ruin

“…but of the tree of the knowledge of good and evil you shall not eat, for in the day that you eat of it you shall surely die…Have you eaten of the tree of which i commanded you not to eat?…The man said, ‘The woman you gave to be with me, she gave me fruit of the tree, and I ate.” (Genesis 2:17 and 3:11-12) Biblically the ruin of mankind stems from one man’s disobedience. For God created Man and Woman and called them “good.” He gave them but one command of what not to partake

Jun 23, 2009
4 min

The Fitting Start for Original Sin

Theologically, Original Sin is the taint that all humans have from the sin Adam and Eve committed in the garden by disobeying God’s command not to eat from the tree of knowledge. Augustine states frequently that it is somehow passed on hereditarily whereas Calvin states it is simply a “fall from our original condition.” The doctrine of Original Sin can seem disgusting and hopeless for many. However most people who find it to be a major turnoff from organized religion see it a

Jun 23, 2009
3 min

Habakkuk’s Perception of God’s Sovereignty

We have walked through chapter 2 verse 1, regarding the ‘watchpost’ and ‘tower’ in which Habakkuk metaphorically describes himself ascending to heights of wisdom and recess found only in the Lord and his word, ascending far from earthly reason and wisdom. Habakkuk then, from his watchtower, said he was to ‘look out to see what [God] will say to me…concerning [his] complaint.’ It is thus no coincidence that the Lord answers Habakkuk with truth and power since he had recessed h

Jun 23, 2009
3 min

Habakkuk’s Patience

We can find wisdom through Habakkuk’s posture and words to his Lord most high: “I will take my stand at my watch post and station myself on the tower, and look out to see what he will say to me, and what I will answer concerning my complaint” (Habakuk 2:1) We came to the conclusion that Habakkuk was referring to stepping out of worldly wisdom and worldly reason when he refers to the watch tower. For God calls us to look at our life with truth and wisdom, not with our reason a

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JT Holderman

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