The Heidelberg Catechism - The Foundations Of Our Faith

Phil 3  Finally! Rejoice in the Lord "Finally" but then goes on for 2 more chapters.  "Daddy, what does the pastor mean when he says, "Finally"; to which his father responded, "Absolutely nothing, son." "Now then".  The Big protection is to Rejoice in the Lord! It's a command. joy is not an emotion. Joy isn't a temperamental characteristic. Joy isn't related to circumstances or health or bank accounts.  To rejoice in the Lord means that you find in the Lord your source of joy; He is the highest object of your joy; He is the treasure and fellowship of joy.  It is also a safeguard. A protection. Like a protective barrier. Matthew Henry,  "The joy of the Lord is a divine armor against the assaults of our spiritual enemies and puts our mouths out of taste for those pleasures with which the tempter baits his hooks . . . the taste of joy in our mouths makes the tempter's offerings seem bland by comparison." Psalm 34:5...

Ecclesiastes 3:16 – 4:12    What To Do When Corrupt People Oppress You Ecclesiastes 3:1-15 And God’s Sovereignty All Is Appointed in God’s Time        All Is Appropriate in God’s Time  All Is Adjudicated in God’s Time The issue of Power, Oppression, Bullying and Corruption are not new issues that suddenly raised their heads in the last few years. They are a reflection of the sinfulness of man and the horrendous and unloving way we treat other people. Corruption. You don’t have to look far to see it. The problem is that people so blur the lines that they just can’t see it. Hatton used parliamentary privilege to expose organised crime in the Griffith mafia, police corruption and malfeasance within government departments and agencies. [7]  In 1994, by 46 votes to 45, he forced the minority Fahey Government to establish the Wood Royal Commission  into Police Corruption. During the period of the Wood Royal Comm...

https://sbcoutback.wordpress.com/resources/

https://sbcoutback.wordpress.com/helps-for-leadership/

"Soon the battle will be over. It will not be long now before the day will come when Satan will no longer trouble us. There will be no more domination, temptation, accusation, or confrontation. Our warfare will be over and our commander, Jesus Christ, will call us away from the battlefield to receive the victor's crown." ~ Thomas Watson 1620-1686

The Power Of The Cross   HOW TO LEAVE A LASTING IMPRESSION  Philippians 2:12-26 Some bring joy wherever they go, others whenever they go. Dave Kraft Biggest Mistakes  Here is a complete list of all  the mistakes: Allowing ministry to replace Jesus            Allowing comparing to replace contentment Allowing pride to replace humility Allowing pleasing people to replace pleasing God Allowing busyness to replace visioning Allowing financial frugality to replace fearless faith Allowing artificial harmony to replace difficult conflict Allowing perennially hurting people to replace potential hungry leaders Allowing information to replace transformation Allowing control to replace trust Allowing selfish ambition to replace godly ambition Allowing reactive to replace proactive Allowing discouragement to replace dreaming Allowing teaching to replace training Allowing tactical to replac...

The pastoral virtue of avoidance By  Daniel Bouchoc ,  Zach Hollifield , posted  May 7, 2026         At least seven times in the pastoral epistles, Paul directly charges Timothy and Titus to “avoid” and to “have nothing to do with” ideas and people who pose a threat to their flock. This is jarring since one of the main purposes for these letters is to encourage Timothy and Titus to engage false teaching and teachers. Yet here is where the paradox emerges: Paul teaches a pastoral virtue of avoidance—showing that sometimes the wisest form of engagement is careful restraint. So, what  is  going on here? Given that Paul clearly wants false teaching and teachers dealt with  and  also wants these pastors to avoid certain discourse and people, the question arises: What is Paul prohibiting here and what does it mean for pastors today? Why Paul Comma...

Atheist or Agnostic? Occasionally someone tells me that he is an atheist (doesn’t believe in God) or an agnostic (not sure there is a God).  Such skepticism is rooted in one of three things: 1. Intellect. Most skeptics would like for you to think their problems are intellectual. However, few people have ever given God that much thought. They don’t care that much about him. Honest intellectual skepticism is almost nonexistent. 2. Emotions. Much skepticism is roofed in emotional experiences. The person had a bad experience with some person (a parent, preacher, friend) or group who was closely associated or identified with religion. Their disappointment and rejection of the person/group led to their disappointment in and rejection of God and Christianity. They never separated their feelings from the facts. So they threw the baby out with the bath water. 3. Morals. Most skepticism is rooted in immorality. The person wants to run their own life, and the most comfortable way to...

Life’s Greatest Choice The Bible presents life's greatest choice to us when it says, “Choose you this day whom ye will serve” (Joshua 24:15). We are all either the servants of God or the servants of sin. We are mastered either by God’s will or our own appetites and desires. We make life’s greatest choice when we decide which master we will serve. It is a choice that affects our life and happiness, now and also in eternity. There are four significant things to know about this choice. 1. It is a necessary choice.  Every person must choose for or against God. To refuse or neglect to make a choice is to make one. You may not make up your mind, but you do have to make your life. You can’t escape deciding something—even if it is the decision not to decide. 2. It is a personal choice.  No one else can make it for you. We are individually responsible to God and must in...

Every political ideology: 1. Idolizes something that’s good-but-fallen: for Nationalists it’s the people; for Conservatives it’s the market; for Liberals it’s individual freedom and reason; for Progressives (also referred to as Socialists) it’s racial/gender/sexual identity and the State. 2. Demonizes something that’s good-but-fallen: for Nationalists it’s the other races/cultures; for Conservatives it’s the State and big organizations; for Liberals it’s moral authorities like religion and family; for Progressives it’s the free market of money and ideas. 3. Each of them tends to exclude and marginalize classes of people they see as enemies. 4. Each of them tends to idolize people they see as saviors. 5. Each of them fails to see the complexity of evil. The Bible sees the world, the flesh and the devil. Progressives see only the world, systemic evil; Liberals see only the flesh, individual moral evil. Nationalists have some sense of both but only as seen in other cult...

These days, many of us are feeling scared. Turmoil at home and abroad has left our economy reeling. Chaos seems to reign in the markets. Prices remain high and household budgets are tight.   The economy isn’t in crisis, but it feels unstable, leaving us uncertain and stressed about our financial futures.     Yet we must look to the things that have eternal value: faith, hope, and the treasure that awaits us in heaven.   When times are uncertain, what does God have to say that will give us comfort?   Psalm 37 speaks to our hearts when fear is stalking us. David wrote this psalm when he was older, reflecting on the great questions of his life.   I have been young and now am old; Yet I have not seen the righteous forsaken, Nor his descendants beggi...