Quotes from Richard D. Phillips

Arthur W. Pink rightly warns: "The fact that a preacher has graduated with honors from some theological center is no proof that he is a man taught of the Holy Spirit. No dependence can be placed on human learning."' The

So man is to work and, generally speaking, he is to marry.

Only God can enlighten the mind and open the heart to His gospel. So

Anger is a serious issue for many fathers because a child's disobedience is seen as an affront to the father's authority and honor. But sinful displays of anger only undermine a father's authority, tempting a child to hold the father in disdain and contempt.

Sometimes, when doctrinal explanations have failed to move a sinner's heart, a biblical portrait of Jesus' beautiful love will bring him or her to salvation.

John MacArthur writes: "[Andrew] did not seek to be the center of attention. He did not seem to resent those who labored in the limelight. He was evidently pleased to do what he could with the gifts and calling God had bestowed on him, and he allowed the others to do likewise."2

Why would God do this?" you may ask. If God loved Adam and Eve, why didn't he just forgive them and restore them to blessing? Because God's gifts cannot be enjoyed without obedience to him as the Giver. In sin, Adam and Eve would seek to find love with each other in the absence of love for God, and in God's creation this simply cannot work.

Love between a man and a woman simply cannot work without love for God at the center of the relationship; by means of his curses, God mercifully brings

It is God's purpose in our salvation that we should be holy, and therefore those who are predestined to salvation are predestined to holiness.

For one who believes in Christ, death is a gateway into a new life that will never end.

Likewise, if we care for others' salvation, we will expend ourselves in ministry to them-in prayer, in service, and in witness. If we are not willing to be wearied-if we do not find ourselves sometimes needing a rest from our labors-then we are not likely to accomplish much in Christian ministry.

Of this blest man, let this just praise be given, Heaven was in him, before he was in heaven."9

our basic mandate as Christian men is to cultivate, build, and grow (both things and people), but also to stand guard so that people and things are kept safe-so that the fruit of past cultivating and nurturing is preserved.

This is the highest freedom: to have our souls brought to life so as to desire for ourselves that which is our greatest blessing and which brings the greatest glory to God through faith in Christ.

You may think that you are just one "voice" and that your witness doesn't matter. But if Jesus is the Word your voice brings - and if He is living in you and you know Him - then your witness is mighty to cast down strongholds and lead dying sinners to salvation.

Just as Jesus is our primary model for faith, obedience, prayer, and good works, Jesus the Evangelist should be our model for the sharing of His gospel.

God's love never says, "I don't want to change you." Because God's love is holy, He intends to change us by loving means, so that we will become the holy people we were always meant to be.

Alexander Maclaren writes: "This man, before he was four-and-twenty hours a disciple, had made another. Some of you have been disciples for as many years, and have never even tried to make one."3

He is still calling on men to cause good things to grow and to keep precious things safe.

It is the male arm around the shoulder or pat on the back that God allows to have the quickest access to the heart of a child or employee. Men who are seeking to live out the Masculine Mandate will be nurturers.

We are not responsible for the outcome, but only for our faithful, loving witness.

This biblical mandate to work—here with the emphasis on cultivating and tending—explodes a great misconception regarding gender roles. We have been taught that women are the main nurturers, while men are to be "strong and silent." But the Bible calls men to be cultivators, and that includes a significant emphasis on tending the hearts of those given into our charge.

The truth of God's sovereignty . . . removes every ground for human boasting and instills the spirit of humility in its stead. It declares that salvation is of the Lord-of the Lord in its origination, in its operation, and in its consummation. . . . And all this is most humbling to the heart of man, who wants to contribute something to the price of his redemption and do that which will afford ground for boasting and self-satisfaction.'2

It is true that cults can help a person get off drugs, but that does not make their beliefs true. So it is with faith in Christ; its usefulness does not prove that it is true. Moreover, it is easy for people to brush testimonies aside, saying, "I'm glad it worked for him, but that has no relevance to me." Our witness must center not on our experience but on the facts of Christ's coming to this world.