Ligonier Ministries National Conference

Hi Tim, Well, we are here!

We are about to go into the Ministry Partner’s meeting with R.C. I will try to post some comments a little later after this initial meeting.

We are sitting here inside the auditorium at First Baptist Orlando.Wow, this place is huge. This initial meeting is just about getting ready to start. Dr. Sproul and Mel Duncan (Ligon’s brother) are standing up at the front talking as R.C. get s ready to take the stage. He looks really good, by the way.

Just an FYI about this first session…it is a time for the Ministry Partners of Ligonier to listen to R.C. talk about some things and then answer some questions posed by those here.

It has a little more close, personal feel to it because not all of the attendees come to this first meeting, and it allows those here to go to the mike and ask Dr. Sproul anything.

More later…

Someone from Texas did mention that he would pray for R.C. since he was a Steeler’s fan.

It is about 11:30am and we just came out of the Ministry Partner’s session. It was a great time of Q&A. Dr. Sproul was able to address about 12-14 questions, which is good for a 45 minute session. I will list a few of them here.

Mel (John) Duncan introduced R.C., and R.C. said that he and John both have perfect faces for radio.

Here were some of the questions:

Q - What is the status of R.C.’s commentary on the Wesminster Confession? A - RC has completed a/b 1600 pages of the manuscript, and it now needs editing, etc., and should hopefully be out in a/b a year.

Q - What factors should be considered when determing whether or not to stay a a seeker-friendly church? A - We have a short time in this world for sanctification for us and for our families. If we are staying in a place where the gospel is not center, however noble our efforts to change things, then a hard decision probably needs to be made to make the most of our time here on earth.

Q - Why does the church exert so little influence in the culture today (where is the power in the church)? A - RC acknowledged the overall impotency of the church today, and stated that the power for the church lies in the GOSPEL…go R.C.! We don’t need revival, we need life! The problem today is that the church is content to remain babes, when we should feeding now on meat and solid food instead of milk. We are biblically illiterate (the church is in a state of infancy). Sproul used the analogy of how much cultural influence could 50 million infants and toddlers have on society.

Q - Can church success be measured? A - This is difficult to try to do. There’s nothing wrong with growth…BUT…if we begin to measure success by the world’s standards and making decisions based on what people want, it is the same as ASKING SHEEP WHERE THEY WANT TO GO. The Pastor is the feed the sheepfirst and foremost, not cater to unbelievers.

Dr. Sproul also covered topics such as: -Sabbatarianism -Social Gospel -Time period of creation -Homosexuality -Christian Education

We just finished the first two sessions of what is called the Pre-Conference Seminar, which is on Marriage. The first to speak was R.C., Jr., and then Ken Jones from the Whitehorse Inn. I will not do much here in the way of speculating on the current situation with R.C. Jr and the recent news about him. What I can tell you is that he did an excellent job of discussing the biblical foundations of an intimate marriage. Ken Jones then spoke on the nature and function of an intimate marriage (more on these later tonight - the next session is about to begin, so I don’t have the time to type in much more than this…I can’t type like Challies can, so I have to take notes and then transcribe it into the computer).

The next speaker will be R.C. Sr in place of Joni who was not able to come due to physical problems. He will speak on the challenges to an intimate marriage.

Regarding Sproul Sr’s response to the creation question, he said he is always watching science and its discoveries, but whenever science contradicts Scripture, Scripture ALWAYS trumps science. He believes in 6 24-hour days in creation.

It is about 8:15pm, and John MacArthur just finished his message on Christ as the head of the church. As usual, it was really good and very powerful. I don’t have time to get into too much detail right now, as the conference is about to start up again with R.C. Sr talking on One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic Church.

I will leave you with some of MacArthur’s quotes from his message concerning those who would supplant Christ as head of the church:

“What kinid of idiot comes up with his own ideas about the church?”

“Current evangelicalism attacks the headship of Christ”

Regarding the importance of the stand on the truth that Christ is the head of the church… “This is NO benign truth.”

More to come later tonight when I get back into the hotel room.

ps. Regarding RC Jr…he did mention that he was going through some things, but nothing specific was mentioned. His bio in the literature no longer describes him as Associate Pastor of St. Peter Church. I would encourage restraint for those who are ready to pounce on him…I’m not saying he is in the right or in the clear…I just want to exhort all to be careful with their words.

It is about 10:30pm, and Pam and I have just returned to our hotel room. It was a good day. The music was incredible (hymns that focused on the church led by the Westminster Brass and one monstrosity of a pipe organ), the fellowship refreshing (we hooked up with some friends from our former church, Chuck and Julie Gilliam along with Chuck’s brother and his wife, Joe and Sabrina), and wonderful preaching focusing on the church as the bride of Christ.

Since I cannot type like Tim did at the Shepherd’s Conference, I will just give some brief overviews of the different speakers’ messages.

R.C. Jr. - Biblical Foundations of an Intimate Marriage -The serpent’s goal is to pervert marriage -Redefining the family will likely be the defining characteristic of our age. This is how we will be remembered in history. -Inside the church: Our problem isn’t the baptizing of evil, but taking the good and perverting it. -We have taken the same fundamental premise as the world…”It’s all about US.”

3 Principles for you and your wife’s sanctification: -The sanctification of your wife is your life, your calling -Your sanctification and hers are ONE in the same -You need to pray for her…ask God for help

Ken Jones - Nature & Foundation of an Intimate Marriage -When we talk about an intimate marriage, it is a redundancy…a marriage by its very defination IS intimate -We either properly or improperly reflect Christ in our marriage -We are empowered in our marriage relationship to perform our duties & roles by the Holy Spirit who is at work in us conforming us to the image of Christ. —We can’t do it ourselves, we must embrace the grace of God to accomplish this(intimate marriage) —Need to pray to be empowered by the Holy Spirit —He empowers us through His word, can’t do it with a closed Bible -A proper sense of marriage is Christo-centric

Sproul Sr. - Challenges to an Intimate Marriage -Ever since the fall there is a certain shame to nakedness -As soon as they sinned, Adam & Eve knew they were naked and hid…instant link between sin and shame -God could have made them continue living in shame for the rest of their lives, but instead had mercy & covered them

We long for a place where we can once again be naked & NOTashamed…God has provided that in MARRIAGE.

God loves you, NOT because He knows you, but in spite of knowing you…He knows you INTIMATELY. That is how our marriage should be.

The chief business of marriage is knowing each other & being naked before each other & unashamed without fear.

More to follow on MacArthur & Sproul, Sr.’s messages at the evening session…

Q&A with Sproul’s Sr. and Jr., and Ken Jones took place at the end of the Pre-Conference Seminar on the Intimate Marriage. Here are some of the questions that were read and answered (everyone is encouraged to write out questions and drop them in the question boxes to be used during the Q&A sessions):

Q - Should a believer continue to date a non-believer with the hope of converting him/her? A - This is always a bad idea. Dating is always moving you ultimately toward marriage, and should not be used as an evangelism technique.

Q - Who is a wife to follow when her husband’s counsel differs from that of the elders/Pastor? A - Should always submit to the husband unless what is being asked violates Scripture. Should always obey God over man.

Sr. gave the example that if the husband says the wife is not to go to church on Wednesday nights, the wife should submit to that and obey that request. BUT, if the husband says the wife is NEVER to go to church, then the wife should and is commanded by Scripture to disobey that because the Bible says we are not to forsake the assembling of ourselves.

Q - What is the proper interpretation of ‘husband of one wife’ in relation to deacons and overseers (this was mine, by the way. I submitted this question into the questions box)? A - Sr. said it was relating to polygamy…Jr. said it was relating to character, that the husband needed to be a one woman man.

7PM Okay, here we go…the main event, the formal kickoff of the Ligonier Conference on the church as the Bride of Christ.

The first thing we saw was a video montage of pictures of Joni as we listened to her talk about how much she missed being at the conference. She is truly an incredible testimony to the goodness and grace of God in the midst of a debilitating physical limitation. I really wanted to hear her this year, as she was unable to come last year due to pneumonia. On the audio Joni said she wanted to try again next year if it was alright with Sproul.

MacArthur was up first with the task of discussing the topic of Jesus Christ, the Head of the Church. It was amazing! If you get no other audios from this conference, I urge you to order this one (you can get the individual audios from specific messages).

Some highlights: Dr. MacArthur took us on a journey through the history of some of the reformers and pre-reformers (specifically John Hus) to show how serious the issue of declaring that Christ is the head of the church can be and is even today. -the truth of Christ as head is NOT a benign issue -to uphold the headship of the church was a battle -when a truth becomes embattled, the richness of that truth so often comes out that would otherwise have not become known -MacArthur is convinced there are people who Christ is Lord of them personally…but where He is NOT Lord of the church in which they sit.

He then made harsh distinctions about some of the movements that subvert the headship of Christ. They included: -seeker churches: Piper calls it evangelical slapstick -Emergent church - Quoted Brian MacLaren as saying that clarity is overrated

-You can strip the role of the Lord as head of the church in a number of ways. -Current evangelicalism attacks the headship of Christ. -Christ rules through His revealed truth -There is growing disdain for faithful mediators of Christ’s headship. Who are the mediators? Expositors of Scripture.

BEST QUOTE: “I can understand this movement better if it is not called the church.”

SECOND BEST QUOTE: “What kind of idiot comes up with his own ideas about the church?”

R.C. Sproul Sr. came on after Dr. MacArthur to talk about the church as One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic. Of MacArthur, Sproul said, “Now there’s a protester who knows what he’s protesting!”

He did an incredible job of tying into MacArthur’s example of what John Hus went through in his execution (mainly for proclaiming that Christ is the head of the church) by talking about how Hus proclaimed during his execution that a man would rise up whom the bishop killing Hus would not be able to silence.

Luther then came along a little later, and during his ‘ordination’, Luther layed prostrate at the foot of the alter, directly above the place where the bishop who killed Hus was buried.

Sproul said he could just picture the response of the bishop killing Hus to Hus’ proclamation that someone would rise up who the bishop would not be able to silence by saying, “Yeah…OVER MY DEAD BODY”!!! It was very powerful.

Sproul went on to do a great job of expounding on each of the points of the church being One, Holy, Catholic, and Apostolic.

One=Unity Holy=Otherness/Purity Catholic=Crosses all borders/Universality Apostolic=Biblical

I believe Ligon Duncan kicks everything off Friday morning with discussing the nature of the invisible church…it ought to be good.

It is about 10:40am on Friday morning, and the first session with Ligon Duncan and Ken Jones has just ended. Everything kicked off this morning with Sproul Sr., referring to the Duncan brothers as the “rap” brothers, and he asked them to both come up and do some rapping…which they did!!!

IT WAS HILARIOUS! And not only that, but they were actually quite good.

Ligon did an incredible job of discussing the subject of the invisible church…more on this later today when I have the time.

Ken Jones, likewise, did a great job of addressing the truth of the body being One, but with many Parts. More on this one later as well.

I think Ligon and John should consider some sort of rap album to show the diversity of gifts within the body of Christ.

I apologize for not giving much of an update during the afternoon. The day is pretty packed with speakers, and once again I will confess that if I could learn to type as fast as Tim, I could enter this stuff on the fly. But fo rnow, it will have to come once I have time to put it into the computer.

Regarding the rap by John and Ligon Duncan (by the way, I mistakenly said Mel in an early post, and he is actually another of Ligon’s brothers who works for Ligonier), I hope they recorded it and put it on the CD with Ligon’s session on the invisible church, but I don’t know if they will do that or not. In any case, I am going to do everything I can to get a copy of that.

This evening’s activities consist of a concert by the Atlanta Boy’s Choir, and then a Q&A with Ligon Duncan, John MacArthur and R.C. Sproul Sr. I think there are some that have come to this conference just to hear this particular Q&A session with these three.

I wish I had time now to outline Ligon’s message on the invisible church, but it will have to wait until tonight. I promise to get those entered before tomorrow morning.

ps…when Sinclair got up to speak after being introduced, he said he was tempted to call the newfound rappers the “Duncan Donuts”!

Also, Max McLean did a dramatic reading of a George Whitefield sermon titled “The Method of Grace”. If you have never heard McLean in person, it is always a very powerful presentation, as was this one.

More to come later tonight.

After ULTRA finished their performance, Ligon took the podium to discuss the invisible church (Ultra is what John and Ligon called their little rap group).

An amateur recap of Ligon’s message: -The doctrine of the church is often neglected in the evangelical church today. -It is important to understand the different aspects between the visible and invisible church. -This doctrine protects the sovereignty of the work of the Spirit.

Visible Church - All those throughout the world who profess faith in the Lord Jesus Christ Invisible Church - All God’s chosen people in ALL ages across the world…past, present, and future.

-Luther & Calvin set out this doctrine. -The Roman Catholic church denied this doctrine -Today, even some reformed theologians take issue with this doctrine.

-1 John 2:18-19…John says those who went out from the church were never really a part of the church, even though they were members of the church. They were of the visible, but NOT the invisible church. -John reminds us here that mere association & profession is NOT a guarantee of the work of the Holy Spirit. —Example: Ishmael, the first child circumcised under the OT covenant, but he was NOT part of the promise. —-There are those who affiliate themselves w/church but who do not have a work of the Holy Spirit within them. This is NOT to denigrate the visible church

-The invisible church consists of those who are before the throne right now…and we are the church along with them. -We have union with those who have already died in Christ (The Church’s One Foundation).

Examples of the invisible church: -Triumphant church -Eschatological church -Present scattered church -Persecuted church (China)

-Our being finite: we cannot see the work of the Spirit with human eyes -Our falleness: the visible church today is compromised because of our sin

-The church can never do its work apart from the Spirit. -It is the sovereign Holy Spirit that unites sinners through faith.

Ken Jones - The Church, One Body, Many Parts

Need to consider why the Bible uses the analogy of the human body to describe the church. -Consider the oneness of the human body -Consider the diversity of the human body

Three reasons the metaphor of the body is used: 1 - So that the church is depicted as a vital, living organism…not just an organization - Eph. 4:16 -the church should view istelf as living -this is intimate; the body is joined & held together by what every other joint supplies

2 - To demonstrate the interconnectedness of those who are in Christ -Each part is supplying strength to every other part -Each point of contact with another part causes growth. —-You owe the church the benefit of your presence. If you are not there, you are denying the church access to certain gifts, & you are denying yourself access to the gifts of others

3 - To display the dynamic union between Christ & the church. —-When Paul persecuted the church, Jesus confronted him and asked, “Why are you persecuting ME?”

The church’s oneness is seen: 1. In doctrinal oneness…one Lord, one faith, one baptism…we are ONE if our confession 2. In the equality we have in Christ…all converted sinners are equally condemned & reconciled 3. In the message we proclaim

“A good shepherd is not known by how well he pets the sheep” - MacArthur quote of the day

John MacArthur - The Pastor and His Flock

12 step programs abound for just about everything…1 Tim. 4:6-16 is a 12-step program for recovering Pastors

A Noble Minister of Jesus Christ - 1. Warns his people of error v.6 2. Is a serious student of Scripture 3. Avoids the influence of unholy teachings 4. Is disciplined in personal godliness 5. Is comitted to hard work 6. Teaches with authority 7. Is a model of spiritual virtue 8. Maintains a thoroughly biblical ministry 9. Uses his spiritual gift 10. Is zealous regarding his work 11. Is manifestly growing (teachable) 12. Perseveres in his ministry

Success? Yes! v. 16, “you will ensure salvation for yourself and those who hear you.”

Sinclair Ferguson - The Message of the Church -2 Cor. 5:9-6:2

-The greatest need is to hear the gospel -Then the greatest need is to understand it so we may proclaim it to others

In a nutshell: We are alienated from God We must be reconciled to God

Ligon Duncan - The Church’s Mission

DO WE OBEY AND UNDERSTAND THE GREAT COMMISSION?

There is a DIRECT connection between the worship of Christ and the mission of the church

Three things within the Great Commission 1. Claim of Christ - ALL authority has been given to Me - His worthiness of worship Piper - “Missions is NOT the ultimate goal of the church…worship is. Missions exists because worship doesn’t.” -Worship impells us to missions

1. To Make Disciples -It is NOT “go build up the membership rolls” -It is NOT “go get the people to pray a prayer” -It is NOT “get the people to assent to the gospel” -IT IS “Go make disciples”

2. Comfort of the Promise -“I am with you always, even until the the end of the age” -All day, every day, every step of the way -“you cannot do what I am asking you to do, But I can through you” —-“I will build My church”

The last event of the day was a Q&A with Sproul Sr., MacArthur, Ligon Duncan, and Ken Jones

Q-What are you currently reading in your devotions A- Ligon: Ephesians, Psalm 89, Numbers, Packer’s Quest for Godliness

Sproul: The Bible…Romans, whatever he is preaching on

MacArthur: Whatever he is preaching on, biographies of Whitefield and Edwards, Scottish history, Isaac Watts hymns

Ken Jones: Eccl., Romans, Revelation, Packer’s Knowing God, Dennis Johnson’s Triumph of the Lamb (on Revelation)

Q - What about a sincere Christian who never attends church? A - Sproul: They are not sincere & don’t know what being a Christian means A - Ligon commented on Barna’s recent book which advocates functioning outside the church as a Christian A - Jones: sometimes the result of weak churches & those in a quandry of where to be A - MacArthur: Find the best option available to you and be faithful in that church.

Q - Church Discipline A- A lot was said regarding this subject, especially with respect to how one who has been excommunicated should be treated. All were in agreement that the person who has been removed from a church should be treated as an unbeliever, which does NOT mean they should be shunned. They should be regarded as IF the person is not a Christian…because they may in fact be a believer who needs to repent and turn back to God.

Q - How long should I attend a church before becoming a member (this was actually a question submitted by my wife, Pam.Way to go, Babe!) A - MacArthur: As SOON as possible. Go and get involved quick A - Jones: Some use this transitional period as an excuse to get lazy. DON’T let that happen.

Well, It is over for my wife and I. We have to leave a little early, so we will not hear the last message by Sproul Sr. of the destiny of the church. We did get to hear Sinclair Ferguson on the worship of the church, and also the Q&A with Ligon, Sproul Sr. and Sinclair…more on that when we get home later this evening.

I had the wonderful blessing of meeting Mel Duncan this morning. Mel, thank you for your kind comments, and for speaking with me today. You are a great addition to the Ligonier staff, and I look forward to getting to know you.

I am just sorry that the recording of ULTRA (the rappin’ Duncan brothers) will not be sold in stores. If you slip me a copy…I bet I could make us both a bundle by selling it on Ebay!

I am looking at the information for next year’s conference, and here it is: Defending The Faith with - -Ravi Zacharias -R.C. Sproul Sr. -Albert Mohler -John MacArthur

Sign me up right now!

More on my final thoughts and reflections tonight from home.

Thanks to all of you who have encouraged me with your kind comments. Keep them coming (the comments…they don’t necessarily have to be kind).

I want to apologize to Sinclair Ferguson for not entering very much information in my previous post on his fist sermon on the message of the church. It wasn’t that I didn’t have any notes…I had three pages…it was just that, quite honestly, I couldn’t figure out what to include and what not to because there was so much information. I will enter more on that message a little later.

Here are some of my notes from his message this morning on the subject of the church’s worship:

Revelation 4 - gives a pictoral representation of believers of each Lord’s Day when we are in the presence of our God.

-Few things are more important for the church than worship —By the Spirit of God we participate in the same thing as those do who are before the throne.

Two things… 1. The focus of the church’s worship is a. the triune God. He is the epicenter of worship WHY? Because HE IS v.8 “who was and is and is to come” BY WHOM? -The whole family of God, His people.

b. The focus is also on the Son, Rev. 5:1-6 -He is the One who makes our worship possible

-The Father is seated —The Son gives us access —-The Spirit brings us into the presence We have access to the Father, by Christ, through the Spirit - Eph. 2:18

NOTE: the work of the Trinity -In every activity the Father, Son and Spirit are fully active THE… -Father planned our salvation -Son died for our salvation -Spirit brings our salvation to us

1. Character(goal) of our worship -to admire —When we who are spiritually deaf have our ears unplugged —When we who are spiritually blind have our eyes opened —-we will cast our crowns before Him and worship and adore Him

NOTE: ALL worship flows from Christ’s leadership & through Christ’s example…His mediation. Christ is the worship leader in heaven…the four living creature in Revelation are deputy worship leaders

NOTE: the dichotomy between worship & preaching is so unbiblical. The ministry of the word IS worship.

NOTE: one of the mistakes that keeps us in the ghetto is when we turn worship services into evangelism services

Final Q&A Session, Saturday morning with Sproul Sr., Sinclair Ferguson, & Ligon Duncan

Q - Define ‘evangelical’ A - Ligon: It’s the oldest name the Protestant Reformers used of themselves. Today, the term has become amorphous…it is tacked onto just about everything. A - Sproul Sr: I don’t think we can define it today. Historically, it defined those who held to Sola Scriptura and Sola Fide. BOTH affirmations have become unglued. A - Ferguson: It used to mean “a WHOLE Bible person”. It was characteristic of a lifestyle.

Q - Why is there such hostility within the church toward Reformed doctrine? A - Sproul Sr: Because of the perception that this doctrine teaches an unfair God…that He is not an equal opportunity Redeemer. Many see it as casting a shadow over the integrity of God. IT IS OFFENSIVE TO A PAGAN HUMANISTIC VIEW TO INDIVIDUAL FREEDOM. A - Ligon: Some think it will destroy evangleism & missions. It has cast fear through the Southern Baptist denomination because many think that if Reformed Theology prevails it will kill evangelism…when history has shown many of the greatest evangelists were so BECAUSE of their Calvinism…not in spite of it. (To the audience) - PROVE THESE SKEPTICS WRONG WITH YOUR ACTIONS.

Q - What about the Home Church Movement (there was a lot of discussion on this topic, I think in light of Barna’s latest book where he says the local church is no longer needed)? A - Sproul Sr: It’s the way the church started…but it was out of sheer necessity. This is NOT the reason for this movement today. Today there is a radical individualism and anti-corporate mentality (as in corporate worship, not corporations). A - Ferguson: Many think the gospel started a few years before they were converted! They have NO historical understanding. A little knowledge of church history preserves us. A - Ligon: Mark Dever at 9marks.org has some excellent reviews of house-church advocates on his web site.

Q - Does God love me less than a He does a John Calvin or Cori Ten Boom or John Hus? A - Sproul Sr: He may be more pleased with these than you, but He does NOT love them more than you. A - Ligon: GOD DOESN’T LOVE US ANY LESS THAN HE LOVES HIS OWN SON.

NOTE: A lengthy discussion ensued from a question regarding the importance of church membership and the importance of staying involved in the church even though most churches are in such a pitiful state. Here are some of the comments.

Sproul Sr: A low view of the church = A low view of Christ. I am a part of the bride…IF I despise the Bride, then I despise the Groom (Christ).

Ligon: Love for the church needs to be cultivated

Ferguson: There is a logical fallacy in saying, “I don’t like the organized church”. EVERYTHING is organized in some form or fashion.

Ligon: Pray for the church where you are a member

Sproul Sr: God usually gives the peope what they want. THIS WASTELAND IS A JUDGMENT UPON AMERICAN CHURCHES.

-There was additional discussion on the seeker and emergent movements.

Mel, I stand corrected. Now that you mentioned it, I do remember the story about the tennis racket band being called Ultra. Please accept my apologies for getting your band of “stringed” instruments confused with the rapping duo.

I don’t know if you noticed my comments earlier about the recording of that rap exhibition from yesterday’s session, but if you get me a copy of that thing, I just know I can make us a hefty sum on Ebay!!!

As to a name for John and Lig…I am coming up blank…but if you remember Sinclair’s comments Friday, he suggested the name the “Duncan Donuts”.

Maybe Dever or C.J. can throw out some suggestions.

Have a great Lord’s Day, Mel, and I look forward to talking with you soon.

FINAL THOUGHTS ON THE ‘06 LINGONIER NATIONAL CONFERENCE:

In the last Q&A session Saturday morning, Sproul Sr. made this comment, “I love being here with all of you…but I can’t wait for Sunday to get here!”

He was expressing his unequivocal love for the Lord’s Day, and I was sitting close enough to see in his face that he truly was excited that the following day (Sunday) he would be doing what he loves so much…explaining God’s truth to God’s people in the context of the local church. I mention this statement by R.C. because I am dealing with the same sort of thing as I try to reflect back on the conference. My day spent yesterday with my family in worship has somewhat overshadowed what I experienced at the Ligonier Conference…PRAISE BE TO GOD!

I am so thankful for this because at this same time last year, the “worship” I and my family was involved in would NOT have eclipsed the time I spent at last year’s conference. This time last year we were still members of and very much involved in a church that not only was NOT Reformed in its theology, but was (and is) actually anti-Reformation in its practices and teaching. The formal gospel program used there in evangelism starts by asking a person, “In your personal opinion, what does it take for a person to get to heaven?”..and the consistent message from the pulpit to the unbeliever is, “God loves you and has a plan for your life.” Thanks to Mark Dever who last year convicted me in a conversation I had with him to find a church where I could truly make the most of my time for me and my family.

As much as I enjoyed the time spent at the Ligonier Conference in fellowship and worship, and in listening to and learning from some of my contemporary heroes of the faith…all of that just didn’t compare to the day I spent Sunday with my local church family in worship & fellowship, and in communion with my Redemer, Jesus Christ. So, while I do have some final thoughts on the conference, please understand that they are a little overshadowed by the day I spent yesterday with my local church in the presence of my sovereign, glorious Lord.

Okay, here are some final thoughts on the conference:

STRANGEST THING - Seeing a guy using the urinal in the bathroom while talking on his cell phone! FUNNIEST THING - Definitely the rap exhibition by the Duncan Duo. MOST MEMORABLE SESSION - MacArthur’s message on Christ as the head of the church. FAVORITE THING - the Q&A sessions. MOST BENEFICIAL THING - Doing this blog and taking the notes that I did.

-I was surpirsed to see and talk to some of those who had come to this conference all alone, by themselves.

-We talked to one older gentleman from North Carolina who has been coming to these for 11 or 12 years. I wish Pam and I has started doing this sooner (this was our 2nd year).

-I took notice of the large number of people who were taking notes during each of the sessions. This was not just some break from their normal schedule for them…this was serious time spent being taught.

-I was able to meet Ligon Duncan and thank him for the work he did in editing and revising Matthew Henry’s book, “A Method for Prayer”. We talked very briefly about the importance of more believers reading such a work that is so rich in Scripture usage.

-Although it was a very short conversation, I really enjoyed meeting Mel Duncan (the new Director of Church Relations for Ligonier), and getting to know him a little. Mel, I look forward to our future conversations and fellowship.

-The concert Friday night was excellent! It featured the Atlanta Boy Choir. Those boys can sing!

-Max McLean’s recitation of the George Whitefield sermon was so powerful. I don’t see how any unbelievers there could have remained that way after he was finished. I was excited to hear that Max will be recording additional sermons from past preachers. I look forward to those.

-Pam and I were reunited (in a sense) with a couple that is still going to the church we left last eyar. They are truly a minority there…a beacon of reformed light in a Arminian, purpose-driven church. We met up with them and with the husband’s brother and his wife, and had such a good time with these two couples. Renewed friendships can be so sweet.

Finally, I want to thank Tim Challies for allowing me to do this on his web site. I am usually a notetaker, but knowing that I would be recapping all the sessions on this blog caused me to be even more detailed in what I wrote down. because of that, I am sure I retained a lot more than I would have otherwise. I hope this pseudo-live blog of the Ligonier Conference was as beneficial to you as it was to me, and I look forward to maybe being able to do it again sometime.

Over at Way of the Master Radio, Todd Friel interviews Ligon Duncan and gets him to do some of the rap that he and brother John did at the Ligonier Conference. If interested, you can find it at this link: http://www.wotmradio.com/audio/podcasts/0306/WOTMR-032106-1.mp3