The similar phrase 'Worldly Christianity' is one used by Bonhoeffer. It's J Gresham Machen that I want to line up most closely with. See his Christianity and culture here. Having done commentaries on Proverbs (Heavenly Wisdom) and Song of Songs (Heavenly Love), a matching title for Ecclesiastes would be Heavenly Worldliness. For my stance on worldliness, see 3 posts here.

Carey 03


After supper our second American spoke - Jerry Marcellino, a pastor in Laurel, Mississippi. John Benton chaired. In a very interesting paper he sought to encourage us from 1 Corinthians 4 by asserting that the doctrine of providence will fuel your perseverance in the ministry if you do four things.
1. Rightly assess your call - Who are you? (1 Cor 4:1-6)
Speaking up very much for the traditional understanding of the call he spoke of the call to shepherd the sheep, to reach the perishing and to proclaim Jesus as Lord and ourselves as his servants.
2. Know you are in the place of ministry where you should be - Where are you? (1 Cor 4:7-12)
Hopefully you know you are in just the place you know you should be. Think of Bunyan's faithfulness to his 120 in Bedford when he could gathers hundreds in London.
The need is a voice for the hour and an hour for the voice. He also spoke of the importance of suffering.
He asked are you remembering where the power comes from? (But we have this treasure in jars of clay to show that this all-surpassing power is from God and not from us.)
We should expect opposition.
We need to keep the focus on the person of Jesus and be sure that we are in the place of his providential ordering.
3. Rightly assess the length of your ministry - Why are you there? To make known the Living God (1 Cor 4:13-15)
He quoted some helpful things from my father-in-law (Geoff Thomas) on finding a place and settling there – including the helpfulness of attending ministers conferences. He advocated not planning to go but being willing to stay but planning to stay but being willing to go. He referred to Gilbert Tennant's response to Whitefield – wanting not to die but to live as long as I can and to do my people as much good as I can.
4. Get your aim in ministry right - What are you doing? Living in the light of eternity (1 Cor 4:16-18)
He spoke alliteratively of
Persevering (Therefore we do not lose heart.)
Plodding - a long obedience in the same direction. (Though outwardly we are wasting away, yet inwardly we are being renewed day by day)
Preparation (For our light and momentary troubles are achieving for us an eternal glory that far outweighs them all.)
Perception (So we fix our eyes not on what is seen, but on what is unseen. For what is seen is temporary, but what is unseen is eternal.)
He concluded with these words:
Aim to remain
Aim to sustain – word centred, warm hearted
Aim to proclaim – Jesus
Aim to obtain – crown of life, righteousness.
This was warm hearted and useful stuff worth hearing. A good discussion followed.

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