Everything else can wait!!

This past week I was away with a College group from our church to a conference called "NEXT". NEXT was in Baltimore, Maryland over Memorial Day Weekend.

While we enjoyed our time of fellowship with one another, the most important part was worshiping our Great God through music and the preaching and teaching of God's Word!

The conference had a very unusual theme - Beholding Jesus Christ! You would think that "beholding Christ" would not be an unusual theme for christian conferences...but in a day and age where most conferences are about self-help, healing, finances, relationships, successful Christian living, and (the one I despise the most) church growth...this conference really is a rarity!

We spent 4 days beholding Jesus Christ and it was awesome! We heard messages on Christ and His incarnation, life, death, resurrection and His return. The speakers were Josh Harris, D.A Carson, Kevin DeYoung, C.J. Mahaney and Sinclair Ferguson. I personally got to meet C.J (he actually pushed Jaxson around in his stroller - I have a picture to prove it!) and Sinclair Ferguson. Which leads me to a funny moment. As many of you know, every year I attend the Basics pastor's conference at Parkside Church with Alistair Begg. Each year they have different speakers in...so when we were there just a couple of weeks ago, Alistair said they do not have the lineup yet for next year but they are looking at Tim Keller, possibly Mahaney, and possibly Ferguson. So, when I met them, I mentioned that we hope they will both come next year to the conference. Each of them gave me a blank stare and then said "this is news to me!" (Alistair, if your reading...which I'm sure your not!!...I'm sorry! I hope I didnt get you in trouble! But if you would like...I am willing to travel the country to invite each speaker on your behalf...if Tim Challies can travel to conferences as a blogger, why cant I travel to conferences as your representative? Just let me know...I'll be waiting!)

Ok...back to the point of the blog. Each message was excellent but one quote really stood out, so I thought I would share it with you. C.J Mahaney quoted Charles Spurgeon as he began his message on the death of Christ. Here it is:

“Dear friends I am going to preach to you again upon the cornerstone of the gospel. How many times will this make, I wonder? The doctrine of Christ crucified is always with me. As the Romans sentinel in Pompeii stood to his post even when the city was destroyed, so do I…every thing else can wait, but this one truth must be proclaimed with a voice of thunder. Others may preach as they will but as for this pulpit it shall always resound with the substitutions of the Christ…Our blessed Savior would have us hold his death in great reverence; it is to be our chief memory we cannot think of that death too often.” – Charles Spurgeon

So, when C.J. Mahaney concluded his message, he finished with these words:

"Are you indifferent to the cross or are you repentant? Do you see the sacrifice of the Savior as your only hope? Do you see the cross as the ultimate demonstration and expression of God’s love for you?

For the Christian I pray that this proclamation of his death leaves you amazed by the grace of God. We cannot think of his death too often.

May his death be our chief memory from this conference. Everything else can wait."

Amen!

If you would like to hear this message or any of the others from the Next conference, they are now available as free downloads on the Next website.

Click here