Enjoying God Ministries exists "to proclaim the power of truth and the truth about power"
Whereas the NT is quite clear that the office of Elder is restricted to qualified men, there is considerable and on-going dispute among evangelicals on the ques...Read More
By: Sam Storms
By: Sam Storms
Whereas the NT is quite clear that the office of Elder is restricted to qualified men, there is considerable and on-going dispute among evangelicals on the question of whether women can serve in the office of Deacon. Here are my reasons for saying Yes to this question. (1) Although the word for “deacon” can describe a non-technical ministry of serving to which all Christians are called, I believe Romans 16:1 is speaking of the office of deacon to which one m...Read More ➔
By: Sam Storms
By: Sam Storms
Nowhere outside of the book of Acts are the duties and responsibilities of a deacon mentioned. Twice Paul describes them as “serving”, but never provides content or structure to what this means. Most believe this is because the early church looked to the portrayal of deacons in Acts 6 as providing the nature of this office and the sort of “service” or “ministry” they would provide. The most that we might say with confidence is that &ld...Read More ➔
By: Sam Storms
By: Sam Storms
Here at Bridgeway we are working on building out the role of what it means to be a Deacon in the local church. In this brief, three-part series, I want to address the primary questions that arise when dealing with this issue. The English word deacon is the translation of the Greek word diakonos which appears 29x in the NT. However, only four of those twenty-nine occurrences refer to a person who holds the office of deacon (Rom. 16:1; Phil. 1:1; 1 Tim. 3:8, 12). The othe...Read More ➔
By: Sam Storms
By: Sam Storms
One of the more challenging texts in the NT is found in Matthew 27:51-54. It concerns a rather bizarre event in the wake of our Lord’s death on the cross. And behold, the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. And the earth shook, and the rocks were split. The tombs also were opened. And many bodies of the saints who had fallen asleep were raised, and coming out of the tombs after his resurrection they went into the holy city and appeared to ...Read More ➔
By: Sam Storms
By: Sam Storms
No, this isn’t an article on work per se. My focus here is the way in which the OT Sabbath ordinance has been fulfilled in Jesus Christ. Let me explain. Observe how Jesus responded to the accusation of the Pharisees that he and his disciples had profaned the Sabbath when they plucked heads of grain to satisfy their hunger (Mark 2:23-28). Matthew’s version of the story includes this remarkable declaration by our Lord: “Or have you not read in the Law...Read More ➔
By: Sam Storms
By: Sam Storms
Everyone is familiar with the encounter between Jesus and the Samaritan woman in John 4. But not everyone can explain what Jesus meant when he said that the Father is seeking men and women who will worship him “in spirit and truth” (v. 23)? To say that we must worship God “in spirit” means, among other things, that it must originate from within, from the heart; it must be sincere, motivated by our love for God and gratitude for all he is and has ...Read More ➔
By: Sam Storms
By: Sam Storms
Last November, while in Denver for the annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society, I recorded an interview with Andrew Gabriel, author of Simply Spirit Filled. You can watch the 8 minute interview by going to this address. https://www.andrewkgabriel.com/2019/08/18/encouraging-spiritual-gifts/...Read More ➔
By: Sam Storms
By: Sam Storms
Last week I posted an article in which I argued that if God is going to love us in the fullest and highest manner, he must seek from us the praise and adoration of all that he is. It is a portrayal of God in Scripture (see John 4:23) that almost destroyed C. S. Lewis’s faith. Today I want to continue thinking on this theme. So let me begin with an illustration. If God is to love my wife, Ann, optimally, in the most superlative way possible, he must bestow or...Read More ➔
