Must listen sermons #3

Here is our next installment of Must Listen Sermons. You can find the others, which I affectionately call Must listen #1 and Must listen #2, by clicking the pretty purple words.

I was exposed to the preaching of Arturo Azurdia III almost two years ago, and God has used him immensely in my life. In a world so immersed in itself, a preacher who's goal is to "preach an irresistible Christ", who adheres ruggedly to the text, and would fit right into the Core of Old Testament Prophets is a very refreshing thing.

I've already included his website in a list of good resources, but let me give you a few suggestions from the list.

A Clarion Call to a Worldly Christianity- Three parts on being in the world but not of it. Oh so good..

The Transformation of a Working Girl- I'm not going to give you anything on this one, just listen to it.

There are many more from Dr. A, but this should be enough to wet your whistle.

Must listen sermons #2

Meet Dr. Don Carson. I truly think he may be the smartest Christian on earth. I listened to a two part lecture by him on how the New Testament writers quoted the Old Testament, and it gave me a headache. Shoot, I didn't even know what he was talking about for ten minutes. But don't let that scare you, he's normally very understandable, clear and practical. Carson also has to be the most gracious and fair speaker I have ever heard. He did about 7 hours of lecture on Open Theism and not once resorted to name calling or character defamation. He was very respectful the entire time, if you can imagine that.

If ever I am asked a theological question I don't know, I am sure I will say "Whatever Don Carson says...".

On a lighter note: I once heard him speak at a conference, and my friend and I bumped into him before a session began. There we were, I could have asked him anything, said anything, maybe had that nagging question answered that has been haunting my mind for years. So what did I say?

"Can we bring coffee in here?"

His answer? A truly humble giant, he responded- "I don't know. They say speak, and I speak."

And then we moved on, the life-goal of chatting with Carson realized. Now for the sermons. I'll focus on End Times, because the subject is so blown up and theoretical for most that Carson is a clear and needed voice on the topic.

Apocalypse Now- He brings it all back down to earth.

How to Wait for Jesus- Again, the beauty of Carson is that he so wisely keeps it to the main point and very practical.

The Doctrine of Last Things- A five part series, immensely encouraging, and gets my biggest vote.

Enjoy.

Must listen sermons #1

Let's begin with Dr. Tim Keller. Why? Because he is a rarety to my mind. He seems to see what the culture needs now, rather than being oblivious to the now while fighting culture from twenty years ago. Oh, and he is helping to reclaim the authentic Gospel... a very good thing. On a personal note, God has used Tim Keller to change fundamentally the way I look at Christianity, both personal and corporate. So yeah, I like him. Plus, he's pals with D.A. Carson, just icing on the cake. Here are the must listens:


Smashing False Idols- A three part series on Evangelism. He talks about how to impress sinfulness on modern folks, since many don't believe in the same set of norms as older generations. It'll kick your own pious butt, too, so don't say I didn't warn ya.

Prodigal Son series- Keller in a nutshell. You can get a better idea of what he's about here quicker than any other earcandy. And to those who have ears to hear, let them hear.

Take up thy phones and follow me...

I've been told for years that you cannot be a successful Christian without a regular personal study time in God's Word, and I believe it's true. But I don't think it necessary be in written form any more. With the world domination of the mp3 player, the listening limits of folks like me have been reduced big-time.

I work by myself most of the time, so I get to listen to stuff all day long. Last year, I listened to the whole Bible in two weeks. I highly recommend it for everybody at some point.

So, to the point. I just want to begin to share some of the best stuff I've listened to over the past two years since I got an Ipod. Let's start today with some good sites where some good stuff resides.

The ESV Study Bible- The one with David Cochran Heath is my favorite. He actually sounds like a normal person.

Don Carson lectures and sermons- Probably the smartest Christian on earth. Seriously. If ever I get a question to which I do not know the answer, I'll just respond, "I agree with Carson.".

Desiring God- The most comprehensive source on the internet, or so I say... God used John Piper to get me out the funk I caught while in Bible College.

Spirit Empowered Preaching- Arturo Azurdia III. The dude's a powerhouse, he kinda reminds me of an Old Testament Prophet, in pants. Try the stuff from Isaiah first.

Monergism.com- If you don't know what Monergism means, you probably wouldn't like it anyway... But there's a mountain of stuff to listen to there.

Tim Keller- You can find his stuff at Monergism, but this is his site. The Prodigal God stuff is mind-altering, and he's got his head on straight when it comes to the Gospel and culture.

That's enough for now, I don't want to hurt anybody.