The Confession of Saint Patrick (34).

Thus I give untiring thanks to God who kept me faithful in the day of my temptation, so that today I may confidently over my soul as a living sacrifice for Christ my Lord; who am I, Lord? or, rather, what is my calling? that you appeared to me in so great a divine quality, so that today among the barbarians I might constantly exalt and magnify your name in whatever place I should be, and not only in good fortune, but even in affliction? So that whatever befalls me, be it good or bad, I should accept it equally, and give thanks always to God who revealed to me that I might trust in him, implicitly and forever, and who will encourage me so that, ignorant, and in the last days, I may dare to undertake so devout and so wonderful a work; so that I might imitate one of those whom, once, long ago, the Lord already pre-ordained to be heralds of his Gospel to witness to all peoples to the ends of the earth. So are we seeing, and so it is fulfilled; behold, we are witnesses because the Gospel has been preached as far as the places beyond which no man lives. (Patrick, (c.389–461))

http://www.ancienttexts.org/library/celtic/ctexts/p01.html

First three weeks at Seminary!

It has been three weeks since I started classes at the Toronto Baptist Seminary and it has been a great blessing. The homework is rapidly progressing and every minute of the day is needed.

I am taking the following four courses:

Church History I: early church fathers
Hermeneutics
Greek grammar 1
Graduate Research and Writing

In November 4, Lord willing I start taking Theology of Missions as well.

I am truly and deeply blessed in having the great opportunity of pursuing full time studies.

Thanks for your prayers.

Pressing On

Next Friday September 3th will be my last day as a full-time Systems Developer working for a Pension company in downtown Toronto as I enter full-time Seminary studies at Toronto Baptist Seminary.

Lord willing, I will share some of my experiences in and through Seminary here for your edification and prayers.

Let the Word of God be our rule, guide, motivation and encouragement at all times.

"But one thing I do: forgetting what lies behind and straining forward to what lies ahead, I press on toward the goal for the prize of the upward call of God in Christ Jesus." (Phl 3:13b-14 ESV)

Soli Deo Gloria (To God Alone the Glory)

Luther on the Marks of a Good Preacher II - Reformation21 Blog

The sixth, seventh, eighth and ninth marks of a good preacher are, for Luther,

6) that he should know when to stop,
7) he should be certain and diligent in his subject,
8) and he should put his life, limb, possessions and honour into it,
9) the good preacher should be willing to accept ridicule from everyone.

keep reading at Reformation21 Blog:

Luther on the Marks of a Good Preacher II - Reformation21 Blog

Ames on Theology

"What chiefly and finally ought to be striven for is not happiness which has to do with our own pleasure, but goodness which looks to God’s glory. For this reason, theology is better defined as that good life whereby we live to God than as that happy life whereby we live to ourselves."
William Ames (1576-1633)

Luther on the Marks of a Good Preacher I - Reformation21 Blog

1) ability to teach
2) possession of a good head
3) eloquence
4) clarity of speech
5) and a good memory

Here is the original article:

Luther on the Marks of a Good Preacher I - Reformation21 Blog

Greg Bahnsen - The Myth of Neutrality (part 1)