Reading The Apostolic Fathers

I have enjoyed reading the Church Fathers in recent days. Here is a prayer by St. Augustine of Hippo when he was contemplating the love of God.

"You only I love; you only I follow; you only I seek; you only am I ready to serve. Because you alone are justly Lord, I desire to be under your rule. Command, I ask you, as you will, but heal and open my ears that I may hear your voice. Heal and open my eyes that I may see your beckoning. Tell me where I must go that I may see you; and I hope to do all that you command. Receive, I pray you, your fugitive, most clement Father and Lord. Enough have I served your enemies whom you have put under your feet. Enough have I been the plaything of deceits. Receive me, your servant, now fleeing from these things." Augustine

Here is another prayer by Cyprian, the martyred bishop of Carthage.

"Almighty God, who resists the proud and gives Grace to the humble: send thy Holy Spirit and let that mind be in us, which was also in Christ Jesus, that we may be meek and lowly of heart and never by our foolish pride provoke thine indignation, but, receiving into humble and thankful hearts the gift of thy providence and of thy grace, may thereby be continually refreshed. Teach us not to think of ourselves more highly than we ought to think; to be modest in speech, just and merciful in action and benevolent to all. Let us prefer nothing to him, who preferred nothing to our salvation; but grant us that adhering inseparably to his kingdom and standing bravely by his cross, we may be found faithful to death, and at the end may be admitted into the joy of his most blessed presence. Amen." Cyprian

The preciousness of these men and their writings fills us with great reverence to their amazing devotion to Christ. Many of the Church Fathers died as martyrs. The pride, arrogance and worldliness of many modern day professing Christians stands in stark contrast to these great men.

I am humbled and convicted of sin when I read their Christ exalting words and hear of their undying devotion to the Lord. May the Lord of glory fill us all with the gentle and meek spirit of these men and use us to walk with God in lowliness and holiness.

Pastor Dickie

Dear Berean Family, I have been working on a series of messages on Wednesday night on Spiritual Leadership. I have been blessed in the preparation of those messages. One subject that burned in my heart this week in preparation was the need for spiritual passion in our love and devotion to Christ. I am going to share a few quotes that I came across that I trust will be a blessing to you all on being passionate in our devotion to the Lord Jesus.


The apostle Paul writes to the church at Philippi and says, “Not as though I had already attained, either were already perfect: but I follow after, if that I may apprehend that for which also I am apprehended of Christ Jesus. Brethren, I count not myself to have apprehended: but this one thing I do, forgetting those things which are behind, and reaching forth unto those things which are before, I press toward the mark for the prized of the high calling of God in Christ Jesus.” Philippians 3:12-14.


In his booklet on True Discipleship, William MacDonald described the zeal and passion that is necessary for the minister of God who would be a spiritual leader,

“A disciple can be forgiven if he does not have great mental ability. He can be forgiven also if he does not display outstanding physical prowess. But no disciple can be excused if he does not have zeal. If his heart is not aflame with a red-hot passion for the Savior, he stands condemned.
After all, Christians are followers of the One Who said, ‘The zeal of thine house hath eaten me up.’ (John 2:17). Their Savior was consumed with a passion for God and for His interests. There was no room in His train for half-hearted followers.
The Lord Jesus lived in a state of spiritual tension. This is indicated by His words, ‘I have a baptism to be baptized with, and how am I straitened till it be accomplished.’ (Luke 12:50). And again by His memorable utterance, ‘I must work the works of Him that sent me while it is day: the night cometh, when no man can work.” (John 9:4).
The zeal of John the Baptist was attested by the Lord when He said, ‘He was a burning and a shining light.’ (John 5:35).”

Jim Elliot the martyr who died in Ecuador was a burning and shining light like John the Baptist. When Jim Elliot was meditating on Hebrews 1:7, “He maketh his ministers a flame of fire,” he wrote in his journal: “Am I ignitable? God deliver me from the dread asbestos of ‘other things’ Saturate me with the oil of the Spirit that I may be a flame. But flame is transient, often short lived. Canst thou bear this my soul—short life? In me there dwells the Spirit of the Great Short-Lived, Whose zeal for God’s house consumed Him. ‘Make me thy fuel, Flame of God.’”

Here's my prayer tonight, "O Dear God, where are those spiritual leaders whose love and devotion to the Savior burns like a torch in the night? Where are those men whose brokenness, tenderness, humility, and godliness set them apart from the carnal, fleshly, and worldly hirelings that fleece Thy sheep? Give us, O Lord, such pastors and leaders whose only desire in life is to be faithful to Thy Son and His gospel of sovereign grace. We ask this in Jesus name, and for His glory alone, Amen."

Coming Events!

We are praying that Pastor Vernon Higham from Cardiff, Wales may be able to be with us at Thanksgiving. We are waiting word from the Higham's. We have been so fortunate to have this special man of God with us over the last twenty years. Whenever we have the privilege of having Vernon and Morwren it is always a blessing. In the new year we also may have John Blanchard with us for our Easter weekend. Please keep these two dates on your calendars and plan to attend the services at Berean at that time.

My Sunday morning series on Isaiah is coming to an end. I have been overwhelmed by the positive emphasis that this book has given us. There can be no doubt that the Lord has a wonderful plan for His people in the coming years. Oh that the Lord would fill the earth with His glory and gospel and saturate it as the waters cover the seas.

This coming month of October we will be having our missions emphasis month. Let's pray and expect the Lord do great things for us as we support and pray for missions. In January I will be returning to South Africa to preach at the Black African Pastor's conference. Your prayers are very much appreciated.

God bless all of you,

In Christ, Pastor Dickie

The Judgment Seat Of Christ

We all have a date with destiny and the Lord when we die. Every child of God will stand before the eternal King to give an account of their life. This is an awesome thought. I find it hard to believe that so many Christians live as if that day will never come. Many professing Christians persue things that will matter little in that great day.

Momento Mori- "Remember that you must die." This Latin phrase should be our constant thought. If we have been justified by grace and have disciplined our lives we need not fear death or that meeting when we shall stand before the Lord face to face.

Do not waste your life. "Only one life to live, twill soon be past. Only what's done for Christ will last."

"And as it is appointed unto men once to die, but after this the judgement." Hebrews 9:27

"For we must all appear before the judgment seat of Christ; that every one may receive the things done in his body, according to that he hath done, whether it be good or bad." II Corinthians 5:10

What will be revealed about you on that great and fearful day? The Spirit of God is calling all of us to surrender our lives in holy devotion to the Lord of the universe who died on Calvary for our sins. This is the only noble life. This is the only true goal. May our passion be to live for the glory of God with our eyes on eternity.

May God's richest blessings be upon you all,

Love in Christ,

Pastor Dickie

Dear Berean Family,

In these days we need to be vigilant as there are heresies sweeping the Christian church that are dangerous and destructive. One heresy is The Word of Faith Movement. I have an excellent article by Gary Gilley on This Movement. Gary Gilley is an author that we use at Evangelical Press in England. His writings are always concise, penetrating, and helpful. If any of you would like to see some information on this please let me know and I will send Gary Gilley's article to you. A good book to read on this subject is Man As God by Curtis I. Crenshaw. Crenshaw is a Reformed theologian. This is a Reformed analysis of this movement.

I have been alarmed recently at the serious departures that many Christian pastors and theologians are making in the areas of worship, doctrine, and even Christian practice. This is a time for the Lord's people to stand tall for truth. My prayer is that the Reformed faith will be defended and proclaimed far and wide.

I love the Five Solas of the Christian Faith:

1. Sola Fide- by faith alone

2. Sola Scriptura- by the Scriptures alone

3. Sola Christus- by Christ alone

4. Sola Gratia-by grace alone

5. Soli Deo Gloria- to the glory of God alone

We should defend these historic positions of the Christian faith. Having these solas as a compass or guide serves to protect us from falling for the fads, heresies, and new and dangerous trends that pop up on the scene from time to time. This is why having a firm faith in the historic creeds and doctrines of grace such as Calvinism will protect the church from making mistakes in these crucial areas.

Dear Bereans, stand resolute against all heresy. God be with you.

In Christ, Pastor Dickie

"Search me, O God, and know my heart: try me, and know my thoughts: And see if there be any wicked way in me, and lead me in the way everlasting." Psalm 139:23-24.

A favorite quote of mine is, "You can fool some of the people all the time, and all of the people some of the time, but you cannot fool all the people all the time." However true this may be we need to remember that we can never, ever, fool God. The wise man in proverbs tells us that, "The eyes of the Lord are in every place, beholding the evil and the good." Proverbs 15:3

May our daily prayer be that the Sovereign God of the universe would search our hearts and and show us our sins that we might humbly confess and forsake them. Only in this is there peace and confidence in the future.

Live my dear Berean friends with the understanding that the Lord sees and knows who you are and what you do.

Love in Christ,

Pastor Dickie

We are moving rapidly through the summer. It is hard to realize how fast the summer is passing by. All of this reminds me of how quickly time is rushing by bringing us closer every day to eternity. I am awed by the responsibility I have to preach the whole counsel of God to those who sit under my ministry. The great day of judgment will cause all of us who are pastors to tremble. In the near future I plan to bring a series of messages to our church on spiritual leadership. After nearly 45 years of ministry I have witnessed the rise and fall of many Christian leaders within the church. I hope I can share some of my observations with my Berean family so that we can all watch over our personal relationship with Christ and not make the same mistakes that so many others have made. Let us remember that to whom much is given much is required. May we all pray for wisdom and grace to live lives that are pleasing to the Lord that we have vowed to serve. Holiness, obedience, humility, and Christ likeness are the hall marks of those who would lead others in the Christian church. God bless all of you and may the Lord shine upon us at Berean! Our best days are just ahead.

Love in Christ,

Pastor Robert L. Dickie