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Having Trouble with the Old Testament?

Posted on June 13th, 2013 by David Burnette
Is it a struggle for you to read and understand the Old Testament? You can be honest. Many of us say that the Old Testament is important because it’s in God’s Word, which is obviously true, but in reality we’re not very motivated to read it.

If that’s you, then consider going through the Survey of the Old Testament from Secret Church 1. Pastor David Platt gives an overview of every book in the Old Testament, as well as principles for how to interpret this sometimes intimidating portion of Scripture. Below you’ll find a excerpt taken from the opening section of this study.

Have you bought into one of these myths about the Old Testament?

Common Myths

The Old Testament is insignificant. Many times we think this is just background material for the New Testament. Why would we want to pay attention to the first half of the game if we already know the result of the second half of the game? Why would we want to sit in the stands with a blocked view when you can already see on the field what unfolds in the New Testament? It is really not that significant for us in the 21st Century.

The Old Testament is irrelevant. It contains a lot of things we don’t observe, things which don’t seem to relate to our lives anymore. There are a lot of people, even in Christianity, who say that the Old Testament is more for Israel and not for us. Let’s be honest, what relevance does an ancient animal-slaughtering religion that talks about God in a portable tent have for Christianity in the 21st Century? What does that really have to do with us? Have you ever read a passage in the Old Testament and just thought, “Why, Lord, did you decide to include that?”

The Old Testament is inconsistent. It doesn’t make sense in light of the New Testament. This is where a lot of people disconnect the Old Testament from Christianity as a whole. They look at the Old Testament as a Jewish book. There are cults that use the Old Testament as well, such as Mormons. Even Muslims use parts of the Old Testament as part of their Scripture. The most commonly asked question is, “Why would the God of grace, love, mercy and compassion we see unfold in the New Testament, pour out judgment, wrath and punishment of sin in the Old Testament?” How do they go together? How do you explain the judgment that we see in the Old Testament, where entire nations are wiped out? How do you justify that with the God of love and grace and mercy? It seems inconsistent.

The Old Testament is incomprehensible. What we basically think is that it is too cumbersome, or it is confusing and doesn’t make sense. It often leads us to boredom, apathy and neglect. It is just plain hard to understand. The books are large. They are filled with all kinds of history that many of us don’t know, as well as unpronounceable names that we never could begin to talk about. How do you really begin to understand this? It is overwhelming. It is long. It is tedious. We are a lot more familiar with the Gospels where we see Jesus. As a result, we use the Old Testament every once in a while in our quiet times, but the bulk of our faith is dependent on the New Testament. The Old Testament just doesn’t make sense.
The Central Message

Well, these are myths I hope will be dispelled by one central message: The Old Testament is invaluable. If we abandon the books of the Old Testament, then we abandon the revelation of God. More than that, we hinder our ability to understand the New Testament’s revelation of God. If we abandon the Old Testament, we will never get the picture that the New Testament is trying to teach us. The key to the New Testament is the Old Testament. There are at least 1600 direct quotations of the Old Testament in the New Testament, in addition to all kinds of allusions and references to it. If we don’t get what the Old Testament teaches, we will never get Christ. It is important for us to remember that the Lord of the universe who gave us this book does not waste words. He gave us this entire book for a reason. It doesn’t mean that it is not confusing or tedious or doesn’t make sense. I will go ahead and be honest; I am not going to be able to answer all the questions that come up in the Old Testament. My desire is for us to see an overall picture of what God is doing and why the Old Testament is so important.

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Visit our Resource Library where you can find this and other Secret Church material. The audio and video downloads are free, as is the Study Guide that accompanies the teaching. You also have the option of purchasing DVD’s and hard copies of Study Guides through our online store.
Free Download of Secret Church 13 Now Available

Posted on May 14th, 2013 by David Burnette

The audio and video of Pastor David Platt’s teaching sessions at Secret Church 13, “Heaven, Hell, and the End of the World,” are now available for a free download under our ‘Resources’ tab. Simply click here.

You can choose between two different options for the Study Guide, which is also free. You can download a Study Guide with open blanks, or with answers filled in.

In order to purchase a DVD, a hard copy of the Study Guide, or bundle packaging, go here.

If you haven’t already, get a small group together and work through these crucial topics.
Are Miraculous Gifts for Today?

Posted on April 25th, 2013 by Eric Parker

There is a lot of confusion when it comes to the gifts of the Holy Spirit in the church today. We see amazing signs and wonders being done in the New Testament, and we may even hear stories from overseas about people being healed, or demons being cast out, all the while wondering about the validity of these stories.

In this clip Pastor David explores the question of whether the miraculous gifts recorded in the New Testament are still continuing today.

To view the entire teaching session, “Exploring the Holy Spirit,” go here.
Who is Jesus?

Posted on April 11th, 2013 by Eric Parker

Our Christian culture is often times marked by a small view of God. In this clip, David Platt reminds us of the wonder and majesty of Jesus that we all too often forget.

Excerpted from the “Who is God?” Secret Church. To view the entire teaching session, go here.
Emmanuel’s Land: New Secret Church EP

Posted on March 27th, 2013 by Jonathan Lenning

The Brook Hills worship team has just released a new five track EP for Secret Church this Friday called Emmanuel’s Land. This collection is based on themes that stem from this year’s topic – Heaven, Hell, and the End of the World. With songs about God’s glory, the return of Christ, and one track titled “Prayer for the Hui” (our prayer focus this Secret Church is on the Hui people), this EP is aimed at leading us to worship God in light of the truths we’ll see in Scripture on Friday. Enjoy!

If you still want to register for the simulcast, it’s not too late… check out www.LifeWay.com/SecretChurch for details about registering.
“Is the credit card system the mark of the beast?”

Posted on February 27th, 2013 by Jonathan Lenning

Maybe that’s not your question. Yours could be, “Can a loving God really condemn people to eternal hell?” Or maybe you’re wondering what the rapture is and if people will simply disappear. Are there really gold streets in heaven? Will there be golf? If so, will you finally be able to shoot par? You could be trying to figure out whether hell is a literal lake of fire or if its fiery description is symbolic. Are there different levels for worse people? Does any of it ever end?

You could have a thousand questions about the end times, heaven, and hell. But are your questions the right ones?

Secret Church 13 – Promo Video: Heaven, Hell, and the End of the World from David Platt on Vimeo.

Secret Church – March 29, 2013
“Heaven, Hell, and the End of the World”
Secret Church, Pray for the Hui

Posted on February 13th, 2013 by Jonathan Lenning

We hope you’ve made plans to simulcast the upcoming Secret Church study on “Heaven, Hell, and the End of the World.” We are now just over 6 weeks away! You still have time to register at LifeWay.com/SecretChurch. For more information, check out the Secret Church website.

At each Secret Church, we focus our prayer time for the persecuted church on a particular country or people group. This spring, our focus will be on Chinese Muslims, who are also known as the Hui (pronounced “way”). In addition to praying for the Hui during Secret Church, we are also inviting churches and small groups to join us in a month-long prayer emphasis for Chinese Muslims in April.

Who are the Hui and how can you begin specifically praying for them? Find out more by visiting www.pray4hui.com and www.radical.net/scblog (where much of this post is from). You can also learn more about the Hui on Twitter by following @Pray4Hui.
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Heaven, Hell, and the End of the World

Posted on January 8th, 2013 by David Burnette
For information about Secret Church 13, including tickets and discounted simulcast registration, see below. If you don’t know what Secret Church is, you can find out more here. To view past Secret Church gatherings, go here.

The following was posted over at the Secret Church blog:

The next Secret Church Gathering is quickly approaching! We will be gathering together on Good Friday, March 29 at The Church at Brook Hills in Birmingham, AL from 6:00pm until midnight (central). Pastor David Platt will be teaching on “Heaven, Hell, and the End of the World.”

There are two ways you can join us—either by traveling to Birmingham and joining us in person or by hosting a group in your home or church to join us via simulcast.

Early Bird Registration for the Simulcast

Register by Friday, January 18 to take advantage of discounted Early Bird registration rates.
- The simulcast is easy to host from your home or church. All you need is a computer and an internet connection.
- Pricing is determined by the number of expected participants and is divided into four pricing tiers.
- The cost includes your simulcast license, 150+ page study guides, promotional materials, and technical support.
Visit the Secret Church simulcast site for more information or to register.

Secret Church Tickets (for the Live Gathering at The Church at Brook Hills)

Tickets for the next Secret Church will go on sale Monday, January 14 at 9:00am (central).
- A ticket is required to reserve your seat for the live gathering at The Church at Brook Hills.
- Tickets are $5 each and include your study guide for the evening.
- Tickets are non-refundable.
- Tickets typically sell out within a few minutes, so be sure to get online at 9:00am sharp.
- Also, seating is limited. Please only purchase the number of tickets you know you will need.
- Tickets will be available on the Secret Church website. The link to purchase tickets on this page will be active at 9:00am on January 14.
Video and Pre-Orders Now Available

Posted on April 24th, 2012 by David Burnette

Good news – all the resources for Secret Church 2012 are now available online, including the video. PDF’s of the study guides are also available for download. You can get all that by going to Radical’s Resource tab, or by clicking right here.

If you want to pre-order DVD’s, CD’s, or a spiral-bound study guide, you can do that now by going to the online store.
Satan is Never in Control

Posted on April 17th, 2012 by David Burnette

From Secret Church 2012 – “The Cross and Suffering”:

“God and Satan are not two equal forces warring against one another. Satan is a creature who is accountable to God, under the sovereign control of God. Do not forget this…on every page of Scripture…Satan is never in control.

When we get to Job, Satan is not in control. When Joseph is sold into slavery, Satan is not in control. When we get to the evil kings in Israel’s history, Satan is not in control. When evil religious leaders and Roman officials sentence Jesus to death and crucify Him on a cross, Satan is not in control. When Christians are advancing to the nations and being killed in the process, Satan is not in control.

And when we get to the end of the Bible, and we see the cosmic battle for the souls of men and women throughout history, Satan will not be in control then.”

For more on this and other Secret Church resources, go here.