Undeserved Beauty
Early June mornings on the farm were absolutely intoxicating. They were saturated with good things ...
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When Plans Fail
It was a great plan. As you know, I was scheduled to speak this past weekend, near Yosemite, for the Family Camp of the Presbytery of Northern California. I spoke there about 10 years ago and greatly enjoyed the people there and I was really looking forward to being with them again. The plan was to speak on the book of Job. It was hard work trying to capture the essence of the book in a weekend of lectures but I was pleased with what I had come up with....
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From Grumbling to Gratitude for the the Great Commission
It’s striking that one important preparation for being a compelling witness to the world is gratitude. In Philippians 2, Paul connects putting away our grumbling with becoming a compelling, shining light of the Gospel to the world. Christians are contented people who joyfully thank God in all circumstances and, because of this, present a striking contrast against the landscape of a grumbling world....
West Michigan Culture: A User’s Guide
A few weeks ago, in my sermon on Ephesians 5:1-2, I spent a little time talking about culture – specifically how Dutch West Michigan culture is defined by lots of good things – like family and apple pie, but also by some not-so-good-things, like a lack of humility and love. Cultures come with blind spots because we assume that “the-way-we-do-life” is normative and biblical. (The blinding power of culture is clearly seen historically, for instance, in the church’s complicity with slavery and, later, the Jim Crowe laws.) So my question is this: in what ways might our West Michigan, predominantly Dutch, middle-to-upper class, Reformed, married, white culture impact our ministry? In what ways might our “West Michigan culture” hinder a truly “gospel culture”? ...
From Community to Culture
In case you missed it, this previous Sunday we hosted four different outreach ministries during our Sunday School presentation. The vision driving this is simple -- a desire to connect Harvest members to outreach efforts that are already happening in our community and beyond. Paul explains to the Ephesians in chapter 4, verses 5-6, that there is only one Lord, and this one Lord has gifted and called Word ministers to equip saints for a variety of different forms of ministry. You can view the recording below to see the different ways you can support and get connected with Harvest brothers and sisters who are already engaged in different important areas of outreach....
Why We Make Disciples
The work of making disciples of Jesus is not easy. Sharing the good news of Jesus with those who are not Christian is hard for many reasons. We aren’t sure what to say, how to say it, or when to say it. We are afraid of what speaking up will do to relationships we care about. The world despises what we have to say and Satan will do all that he can to thwart and discourage speaking of Christ with others. Sometimes we’re lazy, often we’re distracted, and, at the end of the day, we must admit that at times our love for God and others is too weak. ...
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Proud People and Humble People
What kind of heart does God revive? “For thus says the One who is high and lifted up, who inhabits eternity, whose name is Holy: ‘I dwell in the high and holy place, and also with him who is of a contrite and lowly spirit, to revive the spirit of the lowly, and to revive the heart of the contrite’’” (Isaiah 57:15)....
Reflections on the Last T4G
After making a six-hour road trip down to Louisville, Kentucky, here is a sampling of the topics we heard: Kevin DeYoung urged and reminded us to cling to the reality that we are justified by faith, H.B. Charles called us to never forget to marvel at the beauty of our salvation, Greg Gilbert explained the reality that pride and division dies at the foot of the cross, ...
Why the Cross?
There will be messages preached all over the country this week using the death of Christ to affirm the value of the listener. Those messages will fundamentally misrepresent the Scripture and miss the point of the cross. Good Friday and Easter did not happen to magnify the worth of fallen man. ...
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Opening Day
The first pitch of the regular season tells me that spring, with sunshine and warmer weather, is on the way… yes, even for Michiganders! I look forward to the sounds of the game—the crack of the ball hitting the bat, the hecklers in the stands, the roar of the crowd, the sound of cleats in the dirt. ...
Finding Delight in Predestination?
How can I find comfort in the doctrine of predestination? By predestination we mean the teaching which says that before time began God chose some to be saved and he passed over others unto eternal condemnation. But here’s what we need to understand. The Bible tells us that we are sinners by birth and by choice. What all of us deserve as willful rebels against God is eternal condemnation... If we expect that God must save all, then salvation is not the outpouring of God’s mercy and grace, but the duty God was compelled to render. In other words, if we object to God predestining some but not all, we are ultimately resisting God’s merciful character. We can delight in predestination as it helps us to see salvation as being drenched in God’s mercy. ...
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Psalm 139
This summer the Walk Ministry Team and Sunday School Committee are inviting Harvest members to join us for another memorization challenge. This summer we will be memorizing Psalm 139. Whether you are young or old, please join us in committing this part of God’s Word to memory. ...
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Are you a Pentecostal?
This Sunday we will be celebrating Pentecost. It is a historic event we all too easily overlook – and yet it is the birthday of the New Testament church! Not only that, but the presence of the Holy Spirit is also the defining mark of a New Testament Christian. If you are a true Christian, then you are a “Pentecostal” in the truest sense of the word - the Spirit of th...
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Thanking Andrew Bekkering
This past week concluded Andrew Bekkering’s full-time internship at Harvest. On behalf of the session, the pastors wanted to thank Andrew for his service at Harvest and to share with you some of the ways he has been a blessing to the congregation as a part-time intern (2019-20) and then as a full-time intern (June 2020-May 2021). ...
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Prospect, Challenge, and a Personal Invitation
Pastors looking at their congregation through the lens of Scripture see both a wonderful prospect and a daunting challenge. The prospect? Scripture helps pastors see from a distance the glory of God’s people coming into their own: “speaking the truth in love, we are to grow up in every way into him who is the head, into Christ” (Ephesians 4:15)....
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Roses
I invested a lot in those roses. I built them a home. I watered and fed them. I pruned them. As they slowly grew, I would stop to actually smell the roses and examine their progress as I came home from work each day. To see them grow and blossom was a source of joy for this novice rosarian. As autumn wound to a close, I researched how to winterize my roses. ...
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Joyful Anticipation
Recently our family took a trip to Chicago to visit the Shedd Aquarium. As parents, we’ve come to learn that we need to be intentional about when we reveal surprises to our kids. If we do it too early, we’re going to get asked the same question endlessly for weeks on end. This time we didn’t tell the kids until we had them safely strapped in the van. Suzanne an...
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Facing Conflict
A few weeks ago, I had one of those “The Lord spoke to me” experiences. I know, it sounds charismatic, but the experience was thoroughly biblical. For the past several months I’ve had a growing sense of anxiety and, yes, even fear. There is no denying that our culture is becoming increasingly aggressive in its hatred of Christ. A new religion called social ju...
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My Song Is Love Unknown
On this Good Friday, I thought I’d share one of my favorite hymns. It was written in 1664 by Samuel Crossman, a Puritan minister who (along with 2000 clergy) was expelled from the Church of England for opposing its Act of Uniformity (1662). Many years later the hymn fell into obscurity, but in 1925 English composer John Ireland recast the hymn into a tune of his own. ...
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