Archives for October 2021

My apologies for not posting updates for the last week. Leading the PRTS tour in Greece and Turkey trip has kept us very busy.Last Friday, October 8, we viewed the Panathenaic Stadium, built in 1896 entirely of marble, in Athens, Greece. It was the site of the first Olympic Games of the modern era. Here we took our first group picture (#1 above).

Next we headed to the nearby port city of Piraeus, where Paul landed when he came to Athens on his second missionary journey. We boarded the beautiful sailing yacht, the MS Panorama, our home for the next week (picture #2 above). We were introduced to the captain and the crew and given safety instructions, including how to properly wear the life jackets (David Woollin snuck a quick picture of us, #3 below).

Seas were calm as we headed out to the Aegean Sea, but by dinner time, the waves were quite tumultuous. We had to grab the railings wherever we walked, and our plates and cups slid on our tables. Then our stomachs started to roll with the waves. One by one, people left the dining room to lie down in their rooms. We were reaching for our Dramamine. More than half the people felt sick or were sick; even some of the crew were affected. A number of us thought, “What did I get myself into? A week of this will be unbearable!” Thankfully, it calmed down a bit around midnight. Most of us slept well. Devotions in the morning included Psalm 30:5, “Weeping may endure for a night, but joy cometh in the morning.”

Happily, this was our only time of encountering rough sea water on the trip—the rest of the trip was absolutely wonderful!

This morning our PRTS tour group flew from Thessaloniki to Athens. Athens is the capital and largest city of Greece with a population of 4+ million souls.

We first went up to the Acropolis which towers over the city (photo #1) and contains the famous Parthenon, the Erechtheion with its Porch of Maidens (photo #2) and the Temple of Athena Nike, all from the fifth century B.C. We then went to the Areopagus (Mars Hill) where Paul gave his famous Christ-centered address to Athenian city leaders (photo #3 of Mars Hill in the foreground, with the people listening to him in the Agora off to the right).

It was a moving and humbling experience to stand at this very impressive place with the idol-worshipping Acropolis in the background. You can almost feel Paul’s urgency in preaching the gospel to these needy people who were so accustomed to serving their unknown gods. From the top of this hill, we looked down on the Agora, where the people listened to Paul and which was also the political and economic center of the ancient city.

Rev. Casey Freswick and I had the privilege of giving short addresses at these places to buttress our guide’s informative comments. May God help us to assert and defend gospel truth in our needy day as Paul did in his own day.

At the moment, our tour group in Greece is in the airport in Thessaloniki heading for Athens, Greece. I would like to request your earnest prayer for Rev. Kenneth Hutton, a Graduate from Puritan Reformed seminary and a young Free Reformed pastor in Mitchell, Ontario, and Douglas Bond, a well-known author for young people with whom I am presently coauthoring a title, “Modern Heroes.” Both brothers are seriously ill in the hospital with COVID.

Today was incredibly full and rich for us in touring Greece. This morning we drove three hours by bus with our tour group of 39 from Thessalonika to Philippi, named for its founder Philip II, the father of Alexander the Great.

Highlights of the day included:

(1) seeing the place where Lydia was baptized by Paul as Europe’s first convert as the fruit of Paul’s first sermon in Europe (picture #1 of me preaching to our tour group on the history of Lydia’s conversion);

(2) visiting the vast amphitheater in Philippi where various forms of cultural entertainment occurred, probably including the throwing of Christians to lions, which moved us to sing “Great Is Thy Faithfulness” (picture #2, where Jim Beeke spoke on Philippi and the epistle to the Philippians);

(3) seeing the vast archeological remains at Philippi, including the prison where Paul and Silas sang in the inner prison and the Philippian jailor was saved (picture #3, with my brother Jim at the prison entrance, after which I preached on the jailor’s conversion); and

(4) visiting Kavala (ancient Neapolis), the port through which Paul passed with Silas on his way from Asia into Europe (picture #4).

We also sang “Amazing Grace” on the bus and enjoyed wonderful fellowship throughout the day. What a glorious God we serve!

Mary and I and the group that we are leading for the next two weeks through Greece and Turkey as we follow the footsteps of Paul and John, had an excellent journey (despite my catching a nasty cold), such that all 39 of us arrived in Thessalonika, Greece on time with all our luggage intact.

This morning we visited two historic places: the Roman Agora (picture #1) where, according to tradition, Paul almost certainly preached nearly 2000 years ago to a mixed crowd of Hellenists and Jews, and the White Tower (picture #2). The walls of this tower were said to have been blood red from killing convicts and Christians centuries ago, but were then whitewashed to hide the crimes—hence it became named the White Tower. At both sites I was challenged in my own mind: (1) Would I have dared to put myself forth at the Roman Agora to preach with the boldness that Paul did? (2) Would I have stood firm for Christ even if it meant the shedding of my blood in the White Tower?

After visiting these moving sites, I walked along the coast of the Aegean Sea with Mary (picture #3), and visited with some of our touring friends. After eating lunch in one of the many bakeries that are on nearly every street corner of Thessaloniki (a city of one million souls—second only to Athens), we settled into our hotel on the outskirts of the city, rested up a bit from the long journey, and had a delicious dinner in the hotel with the full group. Afterward, I gave a devotional from Hebrews 12:1-2 about running the race set before us, and David Woollin gave a short address on Paul’s epistles to the Thessalonians. The 39 of us then spent more than an hour introducing ourselves to each other.

We certainly are blessed on this tour with a God-fearing and interesting group of fellow-travelers; please pray for God’s continued benediction for the weeks to come.

From October 18 to 23, 2021, I will be joining Steve Lawson, John MacArthur, Burk Parsons, Sugel Michelén, Steven Nichols, Thomas Ascol, David Garner, Sam Waldron, Conrad Mbewe, and Noé Acosta, among others at the largest ever virtual international conference, the 2021 SRL Latin American Reformed Conference. The theme this year is “The Person & Ministry of the Holy Spirit.”

For more information, watch this video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lk8dPRym2-U

Register now for free at the following link: https://srlseminary.org/2021-convention%20/

Yesterday and this morning there was an ongoing feast of messages about the person and work of Jesus Christ at the G3 Conference in Atlanta delivered to a crowd of several thousand responsive worshipers. Yesterday’s speakers were David Miller, Phil Johnson, and James White during the day; and Voddie Baucham (photo #1 above) and Paul Washer in the evening. This morning the conference concluded with sermons by Mike Riccardi, Hensworth Jonas, and Steve Lawson. So, in all there were 13 sermons that focused on and exalted our Immanuel.

Book-buying continued to be brisk. Until the end of the conference, thousands of the attendees filled the large book vendor hall that hosted scores of book publishers. Several titles that we brought hundreds of copies of, sold out in the first half of the conference, so we took hundreds of back orders. I spent as many hours as I could at the book table when there were no preaching sessions, speaking to several hundred people throughout these days and selling books, as did David Woollin, Ian Thompson, and a new employee for RHB, John St. Martin. Our table was a beehive of activity from the beginning to the end of the conference. What an opportunity to minister these three days were! SDG!

In the midst of the busyness of these days, we managed to find time to spend with some friends. Late last night we had a delightful outdoor dinner with Dr. Marty and Roelie Faasse, members of our church and longtime friends, at a French restaurant. (We didn’t even know they were at the conference until they texted us!) We also spent some time talking with several brothers in the second photo below (from left to right): Pastor James Coates (who recently spent 35 days in jail in Alberta for holding worship services—what a story that was/is), our good friend Paul Washer whose stories of his work were as moving as ever, and then on my right, another good friend Pastor Mike Riccardi and his assistant, Pastor Sheldon Ko—both of whom are on Dr. John MacArthur’s ministerial team.

Now we have arrived safely back in Michigan, and I am looking forward to preaching tomorrow for our beloved flock in Grand Rapids on the Holy Spirit and His saving work. Then, early on Monday morning, Mary and I look forward to begin leading a tour group of 40 friends, together with David Woollin, to Greece and Turkey for twelve days to follow in the footsteps of the apostles Paul and John. At the end of this tour, the Lord willing, Mary and I will fly on to Italy by ourselves for five days to speak at a conference there on how the Puritans lived to the glory of God.

Will you be so kind as to pray for us for the outpouring of God’s Spirit for the dozens of occasions to speak in the next few weeks, as well as for our health and strength and safety? We truly covet your prayers.

Enjoying selling hundreds of books at the Reformation Heritage Books booth at the G3 conference today in Atlanta. Also enjoyed speaking about things spiritual and practical over lunch with these young adults from several localities (picture #1), followed by quality time with our friends, Dr. Conrad and Felistas Mbewe from Zambia and Dr. Hensworth Jonas from Antiqua (both brothers are plenary speakers; picture #2).