Spreading God's Word from Cary NC

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This is the Truth Network. I'm sitting in a chair on what used to be a cow field in a remote area of North Carolina. That was a bunch of farming in who knows what agricultural, industrial and sitting with a man of God except were in office and there's a bunch much of Bible books and some books you've written and there is a Christian school is seminary a church going on here.

Dr. Stephen Davey, what is happened, what will you take us back to decades ago when it with Phyllis about the tells the story of Shepard's church supper seminary share.

Thank you a listen. Great to be with you and those of you listening well. Still it is you know it is in the arm of flesh is the spirit of God, he chooses to do what he does in the world like Abraham right were just in the way.

Being in the way the Lord led him. I like that passage because I can get in the way. So being in the way the Lord S what happened to us. We finish seminary pray to God would lead us to an area that was needy and we came to this little bedroom community of Kerry North Carolina. Nobody works or they just lived here and a lot of farmland were right now and try on the road which I used to dead-end down the road a bit until their farm roadstead edited into a dairy farm in and 30,000 people lived here in this set community. And so we started the church of 36 years ago, but an ad in the newspaper and and 28 people read it and came Sunday morning everyone couple calling me on Saturday night visit hello Pastor we just read this article in the paper and were going to come and I said that's wonderful and so Sunday morning the next morning we set up a few chairs of East Kerry middle school, which we had rented and I went out on the sidewalk to wait for that one couple and here comes a couple walking up and I said all you must be the couple. I talked to and they said no we haven't spoke with you, and I thought we just doubled our time consistent matter of moments. Another couple came walking up and I said oh you're the ones I talked to last night.

No, I thought, wow. We had 28 total strangers there that for Sunday morning and nine weeks later, we were self-supporting and double life in our rate were able to drop our support that we raise from friends and family course do that this was only $600 a month so wasn't a lot but the law of the Lord provided and and now 36 years later yes always given us a seminary. We started 20 years ago coming up on her 20th anniversary. We have a 267 students this fall.

So the Lord continues to grow. It we have Masters degree students Masters of arts master divinity THM students at demon students.

We have sites in Wyoming. We have cited in Bryan Texas and our main site here at the Shepard's church.

So this is so where we spend our time so I teach a couple of classes, pastoral theology, and creative Bible teaching, which is sort of homiletics one and the so I am on the radio with you.

So hey I am a busy guy and I'm grateful and kiss me off the street, will funny story. I was we had a meeting at 2 o'clock and I was see my car in your program came on and I'm like that poem in the past year.

I got Dr. Daly wait on me, but I listen to Dr. Davey on the radio and you are you are right in the middle of a great point.

A great story is a marriage illustration which I love illustrations to teach and when I share an eye.

I struggle that Dr. Dave forcefully got work it out because you are a little behind do so but but just but but people hear you on the radio they read your books they they come to a church in Ennis like wow were this church come from where all these people come from people that attend your church, you should Shepard's church in Cary, North Carolina, by the way, don't move to carry because where you move from the Kerry people never hear from you again is this place is exploding. He came to Houston on the market as it is to crave the growth in God's use this church but they see this they see this international radio program and always languages your on federal radio Iran all over the place. Dr. Davey, and yet you often have told me the secret to all of this, like, just just it's it's that book that you teach from talk about what inspired you to take up God's book you talk about me how you came to Christ real quick and then you what what train you in the word to rightly divide the word. It's it's that's what that's what your body, people are coming to see you juggle things in vengeance but spitfire and told to local jokes I guess are they not me. Tell us what is the driving force and tells little bit about your Duy that in your testimony you would was raised by missionary parents in the stateside and my dad would disciple sailors.

He reached the serviceman there, Norfolk, Virginia. He started missions to military 65 years ago and that today's 92 and retired somewhat still calls me every Sunday morning to pray with me and I joke with him that he's calling me to see them out of bed.

As I remember as a kid listening them. ZZ Top verse by verse eight he was self-taught and had a library that would around this room and love the word of God.

I've carved into my pulpit today.

The words Sola script Torah and that means the Scriptures alone. That's what it's all about.

That's the commission.

Paul told Timothy to teach faithful men who will then teach others also making disciples means we get people into the discipleship manual, which is God's word so this isn't me this isn't the Met office's like Truth Network dear your your communicating the truth of God's word that's that's the life that's the power, the powers not in us were were simply heralds of the gospel and and and the Lord opens the curtain puts us on stage and we deliver his word and then when he chooses easily close the curtain take his homies and bring somebody else that that's it.

So in semiconductors is all man you know you that you make the Bible come alive. No no no no no. The Bible is alive already or simply teaching it and as long as we stay within the covers of that book that's where the power of God resides to produce what only God can produce. And that's spiritual fruit, and Dr. Davey, that's really spilled over not just in your public ministry, which people can hear through radio and other things that spilled over into the seminarian you talk about the passion and also talk about in terms of relaying important information to people about being equipped pastors get equipped to teach the word you maybe even passion 50 years ago get sharpened to better feed the flock when when someone comes a shepherd seminary and speak them out of all the good seminaries are teaching expository preaching, but when it went, someone comes to train a shepherd seminary are they getting a lot of pop psychology classes a lot how you how to entertain youth group and in in all you know that the 25 steps of administration. You know what is it about the importance of the word focused Christo centric bill egocentric Miss Eurocentric teaching. Can you talk really quickly boards of that and exhort our listeners for that pursuit. Well, I think at first because my mind is what David said when he when he said I have. I found your word and are now able to walk about in liberty because of God's word workpiece we we we find the promises of God to be true.

There a lot of ministries today a lot of guys going in the ministry today that are the way I like to say it is they are there being trained on how to expound on life and illustrate with Scripture, we need to do is train them to be able to expound on Scripture and illustrate with life.

That's the difference. There a lot of guys at there that are very clever and there there there bright they can they can explain the human condition and human relationships, and I'm amazed but and it isn't un-biblical.

But it isn't the Bible there's there's a difference between relating biblical concepts and actually expounding the Bible and so were were training men to expound on on Scripture and illustrate with life must not be boring. Let my in my favor. Prof. Della seminaries Howard Hendricks, he said, is a sin to be boring. I mean he was passionate about that. Let's let's let's do it rather lively. It is an exciting book is the greatest book on the planet.

It's it's the only book you'll ever have in your library that's able to transform your life is just information. It's transformation that's at stake here and so were training individuals to think Scriptures first and expound that and then do it with excitement and joy illustrate with life as most pastors and essay will I agree the Bible. It's all authoritative. It's you know Sola script or a it's infallible it's it's the word of God. They say that but then they teach about the Bible or the teach they read a verse and they go on with some great stories and 12 steps, but what you're saying is, is actually the difference between teaching about the word and teaching the word or preaching the word like college sources said to be for the right is exactly right. So my question would be okay. Tell me what passage or preaching through what verse did you deal with last Lord's day, what word in that verse did you deal with last Lord's day, so I'm working right now in the gospel of Luke would be in it, probably for four years and that's kinda fast for me. We took about seven to get through Romans and word Luke and so I get to vote. The Lord's prayer, which is in reality the disciples prayer for wouldn't pray that prayer all of it because he did not confess any sin please teaching his disciples how to print so you begin to explore our father but your buddy said you today with her so much there.

As we look at the Scriptures. What is it mean to say father and how unique was that in in that world. Here's the privilege here's how everything in the prayer relates to the fact that this is family talk talking my father will I have to spend the sermon just explaining the richness of our father and on the unit by the stove fact, I purchased this summer while I was off about five or six books just on the Lord's prayer by JI Packer and Ward.

Where's Bea and Philip Keller in the entire chapters on each word or phrase so pastors it's there.

I encourage deacons and church leaders will kind of library allowance are you giving your pastor. Is he able to buy books. Don't expect demand to get out and and even communicate what is never learned, he can only teach what he has himself learned. So I encourage churches think about how to help their pastor.

Get educated and you might be taking the course here shepherd seminary do it online and do you do it anytime during the day and we have pastors all around the country zooming in the classes and taking classes online and enriching their own personal lives.

Dr. Stephen Davey, he's the founder, president of the shepherd church shepherd so theological seminary. Also, the well-known pastor of teacher on the radio program was and from the heart and the wisdom journey, a new daily verse by verse journey through the whole Bible, Dr. Davey, just as we wrap up someone's going to say well this just sounds like a bunch of academics. While this you know it was someone trying to sound so smart about one you know going in it, but but the fact were talking about a sacred book that is the very word of God. He was for 12 comes to mind quick and sharp, powerful, sharp and two-edged sword. Jesus words in Luke four for Matthew four for men shall live by bread alone, so there's something hatless when you open the text.

There's something supernatural because of the author that happens when you when you expositors God's word. Can you closes out with just what is it about the word of God that changes are I think of Psalm 19.

Well here's the role of of the pastor teacher. It isn't did to become an academic chorus scholar which I am not personally. I just love studying the word of God in finding out what's in there and then delivering it to the congregation.

Exegesis is is an illustrated this week is like diving into the ocean and finding pearls and you bring that handful of pearls that's that's exegesis exposition is taking those pearls and fashioning it into a necklace application of that exposition is helping people know how to put the necklace on. So the role is. Let's dive for the pearls are not necessarily on the surface. Lotta good helps out their Lotta good sources and by the way, the English Bible is the best source of all because there's so much there. This immediately apparent to us as readers diving at the pearls spend time in the study, fashioning the necklace and then get up and help people understand how to put it on and some people might say Stu will Yogi Stevens got a big church is easy for them to do that. We started this back in the band room with 28 people. Verse by verse through books of the Bible and I encourage pastors to take books of the Bible, and teach through those that's the best men, yet it. Each unit is its own unit even that's part of one unit, but to teach teach a book teach a chapter teach a passage like you're doing with your men's Bible study and the richness just comes to the it comes to the service, because God's word is alive and you communicated and then guess what happens. It's it's not just only got smarter out there and your audience is that they were transformed. There was something they could believe something they could start something they could stop something that gave them hope that's the word of God is that Stephen assents to. That's God's word and I have – you on a more personal note here as a teacher of God's word all these years Dr. Davey Everett said that the Bible is the only book that you read, but it read you that you study, but actually studies you we talk about the personal impact God's words had on you over the years and in your field of vision.

Your growth that it that its veto with the teacher learns twice they say to be going at zero. Well is as a pastor and if I'm speaking to pastors.

The most encouraging thing to be is up as an expositor because it forces you into the Bible. I I am so grateful that the Lord has has put my nose in that book because I I have to have it in there and I had to study it, but it it if you're teaching the word of God.

It saves you from a number of things as a church leader. It saves you from distraction. It's easy for us as pastors to get distracted with all the things that are going on around us. Why do you not get up in the pulpit and go from one thing to the next well because you gonna do with the next verse that's what you can deal with it keeps you from distraction.

I think it keeps you from discouragement. There's something about being in the word that buoys your own spirit that encourages your own spirit, no matter what you going through and I got a lot of things have gone through over 36 years. I like to say there are holes or people shot in the another just old holes things slip through easier, but what what keeps me going is is, the word encourages me as I'm preparing it. It also.

It also protects you from pride because it isn't our message. The one thing about a pastor is that he's never original I'm never original if I am probably heretical.

I didn't come up with anything, it's God's word so that saves me so and so many comes up and says will that was a good message will all respond with that was a wonderful text because it wasn't anything with me. It was God's words and it saves you from from that pride and arrogance, which is a prelude to a fall and it's a dangerous thing to have people sitting out there looking up at you, listening, learning, so II just I just say let let's go back to what Paul told Timothy he said to Timothy look God is watching and to stand accountable one day before God. So preach the word and when you preach the word you're actually preaching the words of God, which is preaching the word of God to preaching the words of God we believe in inspiration. These are the very words of God. Every word is freighted with meaning. We just have to take the time to plumb the depths of good diving for pearls, while from from the account field to a church seminary school is using every ounce in inch of this property and you're growing your Triad will more more people want to hear and learn how to teach God's word and plant churches in the cities you guys. I've always church plants coming out a shepherd seminary in a series right in the middle of a church so it's in hands-on you got a godly staff, godly faculty from all over there equipping and training it's it's I can think of Matthew 13 direct all fields that you know the sower went to so a seat your equipping sowers to go out and so the word of God into the hearts of men to build up discipleship factories all over until the king returns your final challenge of another Dr. Davey and will rapid about taking way too much of your time auto suicide. This is been encouraging just to talk about the word the Lord of the ministry and I would encourage those especially who are church leaders that we don't determine the breath of our ministry. We are responsible for the depth of ministry and so focus on what God has told pastors all the time.

Focus on the chair that's full in your auditorium that the chair the tempting because God is in this early called us to trying to fill a receipt. A lot of error has occurred because we tried to fill seats and frankly the unit of the effectiveness of a church is not how many seats, but how many it sends right so but focus on the chair or somebody sitting there. I remember when we first started our church 20 people showed up that night. 12 people came back and and I remember deciding to do a series from Ephesians on the home as I felt like that would probably be just a really practical series on the home. From what Paul delivered to the church in Ephesus. Well, of the 12, six of them were elderly widows and I remember thinking this was my idea that God's eye. I went back to the drawing board on the ceiling always get a bite, but God brings those people and I'm amazed at the miracle of anyone showing up today. The church it's harder than ever for someone to decide to go to church, especially the church that holds the Scripture were more fossils in this community.

I told our new members class this past Sunday night if they join this church.

They need to understand they are joining a church that is more and more at odds with culture of the further we go down the road. The more than we will be but that that's okay as long as we stand on of the word of God treat to visit with my friend Dr. Stephen Davey just died. I'm sold it all in about need to take copious notes offer… Podcast many times myself share this with your pastor share this with your friends go to a church that teaches God's word go to seminary that equips men of God to preach and teach the word of God. No, I want to go to a liberal seminary that I want to get sharper. Look what look at go spend the whole life reaching people that don't believe the Bible don't go get trained by them come somewhere like shepherds were there to feed you and equip you to teach the word like they're doing their capacity within got room for you and are trying to grow. So learn more at shepherds just Google Severson rewrite of his online best way or shepherds.edu. This is the Truth Network