On January 8, 2023, as lots of children were making their way to the front of the auditorium during the Evening Gathering, Pastor Conley said this:

“You know, it does my heart (and actually it does the heart of the other people here) a lot of good to see all of you coming up here… And, in fact, if the truth were known, probably the favorite part of morning and evening service might be just now, and it’s in part because of you. And the reason it’s important is [because] sometimes we think that to serve God we have to be a grown-up. And the fact is, to serve God, you can be a kid. It’s all about whether you know Jesus or not and the light that he has given to you.”

This kind of heart reflects the heart of Jesus for children. Jesus said it this way:

“Let the children come to me, and do not hinder them, for to such belongs the kingdom of God. Truly I say to you, whoever does not receive the kingdom of God like a child shall not enter it.” Luke 18:16-17

Since it became a regular part of our Evening Gathering in 2018, Not Just for Kids has been a highlight for…well…not just for kids! And we don’t just do this so that kids have some wiggle time during our Evening Gathering (though that’s a side benefit, for sure!). We believe that it is a valuable thing to talk directly to the children of the church. And we see great value in the children of our church getting to know the teaching pastor of the church. We want to communicate to our children that corporate worship is for them, too. They do not have to wait to be an adult in order to be a meaningful participant in our services.

Since 2018, we have recorded over 120 episodes of Not Just for Kids. And now, all of these episodes (generally around 5 minutes in length) are available on our website for you to watch with your children. You can find them on the homepage of our website by hovering over the Members tab. Our hope is that these will be useful to you, parents, as you disciple your children, and that they will be useful to you, grandparents, as you spend meaningful time with your grandchildren. We’ve recorded over 10 hours of Not Just for Kids, and we’ll continue to add episodes weekly.

Some in our church might find these useful for family worship. You could watch an episode, discuss it briefly, sing a song, and pray in about 10-15 minutes. Certain episodes will address topics that you want to discuss with your child. For example, if you want to talk to your child about authority, you might want to go back to September 2, 2018, and watch “Awards and Authority” together. Or if your child is struggling with thinking that the world would be much better if he could just do whatever he wanted, you could watch “Traffic Lights and Humanism” from January 26, 2020. Or if you want to just stand in awe of how awesome God is, you could watch “Turkish Fabric and the Manifold Wisdom of God” from February 27, 2022. Of course, there will be all-time favorites, like when the life-size Roman solider showed up on February 5, 2023!

However you choose to use these, our hope and prayer is that they will serve you as you continue to pursue your God-given role of bringing your children up in the nurture and admonition of the Lord. In a modern culture that cares little for children, Christian families have a great opportunity to raise a generation of children who understand the truth, love the gospel, and serve the church and the world. May God do this in our church family.

…and that’s not just for kids!

Not Just for Kids

“Dad, there’s no hope!” I’ve heard those words come from the backseat a few times this school year as I drive my 8-year-old to school. We’ve been listening to the Green Ember Series by S.D Smith on Hoopla for the last several months on our daily trips to and from school. The Green Ember is an adventure series for kids that focuses on the epic adventures of two young rabbits, Heather, and her brother, Picket. It’s full of ups and downs and great life lessons from a Christian worldview, but at times it’s left my son wondering if there is any hope. 

These moments have provided opportunities to talk about hope and courage with him. I encourage him to be brave and trust that I wouldn’t pick a hopeless story. I love him too much to leave him without hope. I also remind him that I know the end of the story, and it is good. Evil loses, good wins, and the world is mended!

Teaching my son to trust me is important, but I am ultimately incapable of guarding my son’s heart against hopelessness. Our world is full of seemingly hopeless situations. Danger and troubles surround us every day, just like the enemies surrounding King David in the Psalms. While our troubles are not in the form of a jealous king trying to kill us, they are still real troubles. That’s the nature of the fallen world in which we live. 

As parents, we do our best to shield our children from danger and troubles as much as possible, but we cannot win that battle forever. Your child will face danger and trouble and feel hopeless at some point. We will not always be with our children; they cannot find life-giving hope in us. 

What do we do then? How can we teach our children to have hope? Point them to a hope that never dies, a hope that will be with them at all times and in all places. Point them to hope in the one who defeated our ultimate enemies, sin and death. Point them to Christ! 

The Apostle Paul does precisely that in his letter to followers of Christ in Ephesus. Paul prays that believers will grow in understanding “the hope to which he has called you.” He reminds them that, at one time, they had no hope because they were “without God in the world.” Paul then explodes into a Christ-exalting refrain “But now in Christ Jesus you who once were far off have been brought near by the blood of Christ.” That is life-giving hope! That is a hope worth teaching to your children. 

“I know how the story ends. We will be with you again!” 
                           – “You’ve Already Won” by Shane & Shane

Psalm 16:7-8 – “I will praise the LORD who guides me; yes, during the night I reflect and learn. I constantly trust in the LORD; because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken.” (NET)_¹
Psalm 16:7-8 – “I bless the LORD who gives me counsel; in the night also my heart instructs me. I have set the LORD always before me; because he is at my right hand, I shall not be shaken.” (ESV)
Psalm 16:7-8 – “I will bless the LORD, who hath given me counsel: my reins also instruct me in the night seasons. I have set the LORD always before me: because he is at my right hand, I shall not be moved.” (KJV)

The first words of Psalm 16 (after the title) are: “Protect me, O God….” But after that appeal, the rest of the Psalm is absent of any more requests for help. Rather, the rest of the Psalm emphasizes that God has been and is the help of his people. Here’s a brief outline of the Psalm:

• Request: Help (1-2)
• Reality: Trouble and Security (3-6)
  • Trouble for Others: Idolatry (3-4)
  • Security for Me: Trust (5-6)
• Response: Worship (7-10)
• Recap: Joy (11)

Aside from the lament about some of God’s people (including leaders!) pursuing idolatry (vv.3-4), the Psalm is filled with affirmations of God’s help for his people.

• “You are the LORD, my only source of well-being” (v.2)
• “LORD, you give me stability and prosperity” (v.5)
• “You make my future secure” (v.5)
• “I will praise the Lord who guides me” (v.7)
• “Because he is at my right hand, I will not be shaken” (v.8)
• “You will not abandon me to Sheol” (v.10)
• “You will not allow your faithful follower to see the Pit” (v.10)
• “You lead me in the path of life” (v.11)
• “You always give me sheer delight” (v.11)

In the middle of the Psalm, while responding with worship to God’s help, David uses quite a unique phrase: “yes, during the night I reflect and learn” (v.7b). Now, this phrase might not seem unique at first, but that is because it is a translation that has been smoothed out a bit. Literally this phrase reads: “yes, [during] nights my kidneys instruct me.” Yes, you read that right. What is fueling David’s worship is the instruction of his…kidneys. What a thought picture!

While this kind of language is foreign to us, it was not when this was written. Take Psalm 26:2 as another example, which reads literally, “Examine me, O LORD, and test me! Evaluate my kidneys and my heart!” (See also Psalm 7:9, 73:21, and Proverbs 23:16.) The kidneys pictured something for the followers of Yahweh. It pictured the place of their deepest emotions and affections. The talk of kidneys acknowledged that the truest part of them, their deepest reality, their motivator, was inside of them (not external to them). It doesn’t get much deeper than the kidneys.

So, what was David saying when he wrote/sung (remember, this is a Psalm!) this phrase: “yes, [during] nights my kidneys instruct me”? I believe the talk of kidneys is an acknowledgment that trust in God is not driven by things external to us. I ought not choose to trust in God based on my external circumstances: however the day went today, whether my interactions were difficult or not, whether my plans went the way I hoped that they would. I ought not sit at the foot of my circumstances to learn whether or not God is trustworthy. “How comfortable I am” ought not be my teacher on whether or not God is worthy of being my refuge.

So, what then should instruct me? David’s answer is this: look to the kidneys. I look inside of me for instruction. I look inside of me for guidance. I look deep inside of me to remember what I know to be true. I remember the truth that I’ve learned over and over again: God is faithful. When people around me are rejecting God or falling into idolatry (vv.3-4), I don’t assume this means God is not real or that I’m backwards/unintelligent for continuing to believe. Rather, I look to my kidneys (v.7). I sit at night in the presence of my God and rehearse the truths that I know, the truths that rise from within me, the truths I have affirmed over and over again. I remind myself of the faithfulness of God that I’ve experienced all through my life.

And what’s the result of all of this? Verse 8 – “I constantly trust in the Lord; because he is at my right hand [a good kidney truth], I will not be shaken.”

 

^{[1] Scripture references in this article, unless marked otherwise are coming from the NET Bible Translation.}

Terry Worley has been a member of Hampton Park for over 10 years. Throughout the last decade he has served as a Sunday School teacher and LifeGroup leader. In recent years, he participated in HP’s pastoral training, and this year was elected to his first term as a non-staff pastor. As Terry begins his time as a non-staff pastor, we wanted to ask him a few questions so you could get to know him a bit better.

Terry, could you first briefly share how and when God brought you to faith in Jesus? This seems like the best place to start.

I was born into a non-Christian home and grew up with a very worldly view. I put myself first even before family. After high school I joined the Navy and met a few Christians that were bold enough to tell me about the gospel. Even though I did not take them seriously the seed was planted and watered. While stationed in Gaum, my wife Cheryl and I decided to look for better people to hang around so we thought a church might be a good place to start. We heard the gospel, and both responded two weeks apart.

Praise God for orchestrating your path like that! So, after you were saved, what led you to Greenville, SC? And how did you end up at Hampton Park specifically?

There were many Christians that taught in the school associated with Harvest Baptist Church where we were saved. A lot of them were educated at BJU and this influenced our decision to come to Greenville. Cheryl wanted to go back to school so we came for her. I planned to work to put her through her education. On arrival in Greenville, God started working in my heart to attend BJU also. We both attended for a while, but once children started to arrive, it seemed that the smart thing to do for our family was to put schooling aside and pour our lives into our family. Although new creations in Christ, we both still had a lot of worldly mindsets that needed reshaping. We praise the Lord for the churches and ministries he had us involved in before we came to Hampton Park. They shaped us but also brought to light in us the ministry we desired to be in. Part of what led us to Hampton Park was a BJU chapel message by JD Crowley. When I walked out of the FMA, I knew we needed to move on from the church we were in, and that is when we found our home at HPBC.

When you first joined HPBC, did you ever imagine that you would be a pastor here? 🙂

No, and it humbles me that I am even considered.

1 Timothy 3:1 says, “This saying is trustworthy: if anyone aspires to the office of overseer, he desires a noble task.” When did you first begin to desire to be a pastor?

Well, to be honest, the desire might have been there sometime ago, but before being a member at HPBC, it was never a possibility due to how our prior churches handled me being a divorced individual.

Once taking over the teaching responsibilities of the Christian Living class and co-leading LifeGroup, the way Cheryl and I took on the opportunities to serve became more like shepherding than just one another ministering. I grew in my desire to see others live according to the Scriptures; so, teaching took on another level.

You’ve attended pastoral training here at HPBC for the past couple of years. What is something that you have learned or gained during that time that has been helpful for you?

To begin with I am very grateful for the time the pastors have shared with those of us who attend. The extra reading materials have been very much a blessing.

The openness from you all about how much is involved in being a shepherd for the flock has been helpful. I have been meditating on those nuggets of knowledge during this process of becoming a non-staff pastor. I am really enjoying the sessions lately on how multi-faceted it is to bring out what Scripture is actually saying and to guard myself from adding or taking away from what Scripture is saying.

The comradery with other men who aspire to proclaim the truth and have hearts for the body has also been encouraging.

How many years have you taught a Sunday School class? What is your favorite topic/book of the Bible that you have taught during this time?

Not long after being saved, God orchestrated that Cheryl and I would end up leading the cubbies class in Awanas. The valuable lesson that we gained and still hold onto is that no matter the audience you have when teaching or leading, you are the one learning the most. At our first church in Greenville, we led the 7 to 9-year-old Sunday school class. At the church that we came from before joining HPBC, we taught the 3-year-old Sunday school class (which was a prep class for the children to join their parents in the main service when they turned 4). We also served on a rotating basis in children’s church during the Sunday evening service time, co-led neighborhood Bible clubs, and taught in Front Line. After having been at HPBC for two years, we were asked to take over the Christian Living class which we have served in for the past 11 years.

I really enjoy the General Epistles with 1 Peter leading the way.

You and your wife often use your home for ministering to others. When did that start and why?

It started not long after being saved. The church in Guam has a school associated with it, and when we found out how much Christian school teachers made, we opened our house often to treat them to meals and other things that would be out of their budget (we were making a lot of money and had much to share). Now, we have a house with a pool in the backyard which we open up to a lot of people. In our last church there were a lot of home school families, and we gave them all keys to the gate so they could use the pool for recreation and physical education. Currently, we have a group of young adult women who use it when my wife is available to be there with them. Families come and enjoy it also. We have a fire pit in the backyard that we have had lots of fun and fellowship around. My wife has had wonderful conversations with those same young women who come for the pool and a nice evening fire. We try to host as often as we can, and we particularly like to have groups of people over who do not know each other yet. We love to mix in our neighbors with our brothers and sisters from HPBC. One of my favorite groups that we often try to have over for various occasions (e.g. Christmas) is a group of more mature single ladies in our church. To answer the why, we just have to say that we love our church family.

We also have had lost people live with us in the past. These are very interesting stories we could share sometime.

What do you most appreciate about Hampton Park?

How do I pick the thing I most appreciate when there is very little that I do not appreciate?

I truly do appreciate the focus on “Life by the Book” which we see being taught and lived out before us from our leadership.

What most excites you about being a pastor? What makes you most nervous?

Excites: I look forward to further reaching into our local body apart from Sunday School, LifeGroup, and those whom we sit near during a service time. I also look forward to working alongside the pastoral body with the opportunity to grow in my faith.

Nervous: The increased responsibility to shepherd those who fall under an appointed pastor.

How specifically can we pray for you as you begin?

Without the formal biblical education background, I find myself understanding that this is an area in which I really need to grow. Cheryl and I, although we have ministered and tried to serve whenever we could, are both a little nervous to say the least moving forward in a more formal way (with a title). With the increase of opportunities and responsibilities, we do not want to fail by trying to do it without God being in it. We ultimately want to be ever-faithful to God and His Word.

Terry, thanks for taking the time to answer these so that we could get to know you a little better. HPBC, let’s be faithful to pray for Terry and Cheryl as Terry starts his term as a non-staff pastor. And when you see him, be sure to encourage him and thank him for being willing to serve us in this way!

James Harris is finishing his second 3-year term as a non-staff pastor on December 31, 2022. When he does, he’ll be the first non-staff pastor in HPBC’s history to finish two full terms back-to-back. This means that he’s been serving as one of our pastors since January 1, 2017. And per our Bylaws, it means that he’ll be on his required Sabbatical during 2023, but we look forward to having him back, Lord-willing, in 2024. Since James will be taking some time off next year, I wanted to take some time to ask him some questions about his time on the pastoral body.

James, you’ve served as a pastor at HPBC since 2017, but your desires for pastoral ministry started long before that. When did you first start desiring to serve in pastoral ministry?

I have always had a deep love and heart for people. It was during my senior year of high school that the desire to serve God in pastoral ministry started to grow. Throughout my college years God confirmed this desire in my heart and through those around me that pastoral ministry was where He was guiding me.

How did God use your time here at Hampton Park (during your college years and after) to increase those desires and equip you for serving as a pastor?

After Angie and I joined in 2007, we were a part of the Singles Bible Study which I had the opportunity to help lead and teach for a couple years. It later morphed into what we know as LifeGroups today. Since that change, I have had the joy of leading a couple LifeGroups. Over the years, before becoming a pastor, I participated in Training in Ministry and other similar leadership training, spent time with a couple of the pastors who helped mentor me, and was active in teaching various SS classes and Bible studies. In 2015, I took on the role of lead teacher in the College SS and have been leading in that capacity since.

Six years is a long time! Do you remember that you had your second daughter the day before you began as a non-staff pastor? What was that like?!?

Those first couple months were hectic and joyful. There were a couple complications after Skylar’s birth that added to the stress and busyness of life coupled with the new ministry needs and taking on responsibilities with that. It was a time where we saw the love of God through His people, and that made the yoke of everything lighter. Being a part of a pastoral body who prayed and cared for us made the transition into being a pastor joyful and easier.

As you look back at the last six years, what do you most thank God for regarding your time as a pastor here?

I am thankful for the ways we have seen God work in our church family through the faithful preaching of His Word, the church becoming a community of believers that consistently show the love of Christ to one another, and for the opportunity to serve alongside a group of pastors called by God to pray and minister to our church family! I have also loved getting to know more of our church family, praying for them, and seeing God work in their lives, even as they walk through some dark valleys. 

What have been some of the challenges with serving in pastoral ministry with a young family?

Time is one of the biggest challenges. The meetings throughout the year that often take 3+ hours, the various discipleship opportunities both one-on-one or small group, and the late-night trips to the hospital or to a home to spend time with hurting or grieving members. That time can take away from family time. Another challenge that comes with what I just mentioned is the added burden and weight of ministry as you walk through some of those difficulties with members. You, as a pastor, naturally take those burdens on to a degree, and you shoulder that weight, grief, and heartache. It can be easy to bring that home with you, and it can overwhelm you if you are not resting and relying on God to lead or if you do not have a wife and family who are supportive. Praise God that Angie and the girls have been such a blessing in this and God has been so gracious!

We often get the question, “What do non-staff pastors do? How is it different from staff pastors?” How would you answer that?

I often answer that by saying we do a lot of the same work as a staff pastor, just without the pay. 🙂 Non-staff pastors have their own pastoral groups and work throughout the week to connect with our people, care for their needs, be there for them in trials and tribulations, and pray for them. We will also serve on any given pastoral sub-committee(s) throughout the year to work through various topics or ideas. This is on top of the regular (or unplanned!) meetings that take place throughout the year. The difference between the staff and non-staff is that the staff have specific areas of oversight that they have been called to by the church for daily attention (i.e. Youth Ministry, Missions, and Administration). The non-staff still will help out with that oversight alongside the staff pastors, but we do not necessarily have a specified area we oversee and lead.

What are some specific ways that Angie has been helpful to you in your ministry? Go ahead, brag on her!

Angie has been such a help to me over the past six years of ministry. She has cared for our family and been a rock on the home front. When I have had pastoral meetings, counseling, or late night hospital visits, she has been understanding and helpful to take care of things at home while I am away. She has helped out in different ways with ministry over the years, though because of our stage of life, her main ministry has been to our girls. She enjoys connecting with others in the church and has been a gracious hostess when showing hospitality to others. She has always been supportive of my ministry within the church and has been a great source of wisdom and advice when I needed her perspective on things. She is a great wife and a loving mother and I cannot imagine doing life, much less pastoral ministry, without her love and support!

If someone in our church reads this who is feeling a desire towards pastoral ministry, what wisdom would you share with him? 

First, pray for God’s clear leading. Purposefully seek out the pastors and “sit at their feet” to learn how to properly handle God’s Word as a pastor, glean wisdom from them on what ministry looks like day in and day out in the weeds, and learn what it means to bear the burdens of the people God has called them to. Pastoral ministry is not about having a position, but rather shepherding and caring for the people of God. It’s not glamorous but it is rewarding.

How do you hope to continue serving at Hampton Park during your Sabbatical year?

I will continue leading and teaching the college Sunday school class as well as leading the MacMillan LifeGroup. I will also continue to disciple, counsel, and care for those within our church over the coming year. I will continue to pray for our church family that God would lead us as we seek to live Life by the Book.

What most excites you when you look at how God is at work at Hampton Park right now?

I love the life-on-life that is happening within the community of our church family. All throughout the New Testament we see commands for believers to “one another” each other and to use their gifts for the sake of the church to the glory of God. I see that happening in so many ways here and pray that it continues. I pray that we would continue to be sensitive to the needs around us and not just wait for others to care for needs, but jump in and use the gifts that God has given us for the sake of others. I am also excited for the continued commitment to the faithfulness in the preaching and teaching of God’s Word and our commitment to keep the gospel pure.

Thanks so much for taking the time to answer these questions, James! When you see James in the coming weeks and months, be sure to thank him for his faithful service over the past six years. We’ll miss him on the pastoral body this next year!

Bruce Mizell has been a fixture of leadership at Hampton Park for the vast majority of the last half-century. Yes, you read that correctly! For most of that time, his leadership was over Hampton Park Christian School. But for the last decade, the church in particular has benefited from his service as both a staff and non-staff pastor. Since he is finishing a term and stepping down as a non-staff pastor at the end of this year, we wanted to take a minute to talk to him about his time on the pastoral body.

Alright, Bruce, I’m expecting this to be one of the shortest “interviews” I’ve ever done. You are not generally known for being long-winded. Why is that? Have you always been that way?

I think my mom was pretty direct in her speech, and I guess I tend to get to the point without a lot of beating around the bush. I’m not known for a lot of chit chat.

You certainly don’t beat around the bush! So, let’s jump in. What year did you first start working at Hampton Park? And how did you end up here? 

I attended some in the spring of 1972 because I was dating a cute little girl that was a member. I applied for a teaching position in the HPCS elementary school for the 72-73 school year and was hired. I taught sixth grade that year and married my wife Lisë on the last day of school in May of 1973.

For those who didn’t know you during your school administrator days, what was a favorite moment from your time as the administrator of HPCS?

I’m not sure about a favorite moment but I always received much satisfaction when one of my students finally understood a concept I was explaining. I also enjoyed coaching and seeing a team come together over the season.

I had a wonderful group of dedicated teachers and a servant-minded staff who were committed to the students. I was truly privileged to work with them.

And I was privileged to be a student under you and those teachers! Transitioning now to the church side of things, you’ve served now for 5 years (2016-2017, 2020-2022) as a non-staff pastor at Hampton Park. What is something that you learned about pastoral ministry during these years?

Shepherding is hard work, life is not easy, we’re all sinners helping other sinners to love Jesus more and to help one another in our daily walk with Christ.

That’s an excellent, succinct summary of pastoral/church ministry! What are you most thankful for during your time serving as a pastor at Hampton Park?

Faithful and knowledgeable men and women to work beside.

I’m sure there are many similarities and differences between being a school administrator (which you did for close to 40 years at HPCS) and being a pastor. What are a couple of those similarities and differences? 

Both are working with different groups of people and completing tasks in a timely manner.

In school work you are acting in the place of a parent to teach, train, and discipline young people to understand academic subjects and to learn the disciplines of homework and study.

In the church you invite and motivate to action but there are not any grades or parent teacher conferences to rate the progress.

Did you know that as of Sept 17, 2022, you have been a member of Hampton Park for 50 years? 

I know it now!

A half-century is a really long time to stay at one church. Not many people do that these days. What would you say has been the greatest benefit for staying committed to Hampton Park over the past five decades?

Being able to see second and even third generations serve Jesus. Also, being able to see the positive changes in church polity.

How do you hope to continue serving at Hampton Park now that you will not be a part of the pastoral body?

Active involvement in our life group and Sunday School. It has been exciting to get to know several young couples and encourage them in the rearing of their children. I’ll continue to sing in the choir for another year or two.

What most excites you when you look at how God is at work at Hampton Park right now?

I’m excited about the different gifting of our Pastors and the unity of leadership. The many couples with young children are the future of the church.

When you see Bruce, be sure to thank him for his decades of service to our church and school. We’ll miss him on the pastoral body, but we are thankful that he’ll continue to minister alongside us as a church member for years to come.

 

Psalm 111:2 – “Great are the works of the Lord, studied by all who delight in them.”

God’s works are amazing. We know this is true because we’ve experienced it over and over again. Each day we have a thousand reasons to give thanks to God. And at certain moments in our lives, God works in particularly significant ways that are worthy of repeating (“I will give thanks to the LORD…in the congregation…” Psalm 111:1). Even in the middle of the most difficult circumstances, we have real, tangible reasons to delight in God, particularly that he is with us in the valley (“…I will fear no evil for you are with me…” Psalm 23:4) and that he intercedes for us (“…the Spirit himself intercedes for us with groanings too deep for words…” Romans 8:26). Often, it’s the moments of deep darkness where God works in us the spiritual formations that we later share with others: “…who comforts us in all our affliction, so that we may be able to comfort those who are in any affliction, with the comfort with which we ourselves are comforted by God” (2 Corinthians 1:4). God is at work, using His Word to shape us and fashion us in the likeness of his Son Jesus Christ. And all of this is for our delight in him.

At Hampton Park, we want to grow your delight in God. And according to Psalm 111:2, your delight in God both fuels your desire to study his works and results from your study of his works. It’s a cycle of joy in God. Who are those who study God’s works? They are those who delight in God’s works. And what happens when those who delight in God’s works study his works? They delight in God even more and thus desire to study His works more. May God work this cycle of delight into each of our lives!

One of the ways we want to encourage your delight in God is by putting a variety of encouraging resources at your fingertips that will help you study God’s works, fueling your delight in Him. Here are some of the resources that you have access to as a member of Hampton Park.

Articles – We have a growing list of articles on our website that range from meditations on Scripture texts to pastoral interviews to sermon clips to pastoral statements on various topics. We plan to continue to post many more of these in the coming year, and we hope these encourage your delight in God.

Member Testimonies – One of my favorite resources on our website is our video library of member testimonies from our Evening Gatherings. You can watch baptisms or hear stories of God’s grace or watch gospel partner interviews all on this page of our website. (Note: this page of our website is password protected for members only. If you need the password, please contact the HPBC office.) Watch and be encouraged to delight in God!

Online Bookstore – The pastors have compiled a list of recommended resources into an online bookstore with heavily discounted books. We just recently added a section on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood. We’ve chosen these resources because we believe that they point you to gospel truth in various areas of life and that as a result, they will fuel your delight in God.

We hope that you will take advantage of the many awesome resources that you have as a member of our church. Use them in your personal worship, family worship, or in your discipleship with other members of our church. There are even resources here that you can use to help you in your evangelism. Through them, may God be lifted up in our minds and hearts so that we delight in him and desire to pursue him even more.

Have you ever had the experience of trying to explain a matter to someone while watching them become distracted by a single word or phrase, thus missing the point? This happens when we listen to others for what we want to hear, rather than hearing what is actually being communicated. I’ve sometimes wondered what biblical writers would think of many of the controversies over what they wrote. Perhaps their response would be, “You are missing the point!”

In our current sermon series on 1 Thessalonians, Pastor Conley made this excellent point in his sermon introduction to one of the most debated passages in this letter (and even in all of Scripture), 1 Thessalonians 4:13-18. His introduction considered this question: is it possible that all of the debate surrounding this text actually misses the point of why it was written? If this text was intended to be the center of a controversy, would Paul have chosen to end the paragraph with these words: “Therefore encourage one another with these words”?

There are two main reasons why I would encourage you to listen to this sermon introduction again.

1. Four Cautions. Pastor Conley gives four helpful cautions for how we approach this biblical text and really any text of Scripture, particularly “controversial” ones. The cautions are vital to helping us not miss the point of what the biblical authors are saying. Listen to the cautions, write them down, and let them instruct your interpretation of Scripture.
2. Theological Humility. Towards the end of the introduction, Pastor Conley displays exemplary theological humility, culminating in this statement: “I’ll just confess when I thought about this text some months ago, thinking about preaching on it, I didn’t know that I would be preaching it the way I’m going to be preaching it today. And I think I was better served to read what the text says and what it communicates to us.” No pastor is above Scripture. Rather, a faithful pastor submits himself to what God has actually said, adjusting as needed. This is Life by the Book in action. Praise God for a preaching pastor who leads this way!

Watch the clip below, then the whole sermon, and be encouraged!

“No!” my 19-month old daughter yelled as she ran away from me into the next room. I didn’t teach her that. She was born that way. But truthfully, she comes by it honestly because I feel the same sentiments inside of me when my authorities ask me to do something that I don’t want to do. My 10-year-old son sometimes reminds me of this as he glances over my shoulder to see the speedometer. I had asked my daughter to hand me the pencil that was in her hand before any self-inflicted wounds could happen. Now, if I didn’t teach her to respond with such brash refusal, where did it come from? Paul calls it a sin nature: “…[we] were by nature children of wrath, like the rest of mankind” (Eph 2:3). She was born with a sin nature that she received from me and that I received from my parents and they received from their parents and on and on like the rest of mankind, back to our first parents Adam and Eve (see Genesis 5:3).

Submission is hard for those of us who have a sin nature. But even 19-month-olds need to learn that they have been born into a world of authority so that when they are 19 years old or 29 years old, they are not having to learn this important life-lesson for the first time. God set up our world as a world of authority. Authorities are put in place by him to promote order, to provide security, to help people flourish. And so, the apostle Peter says with full confidence, “Be subject for the Lord’s sake to every human institution” (1 Peter 2:13). Don’t miss that small prepositional phrase “for the Lord’s sake” (literally: “because of the Lord”). In Peter’s theology, there are no self-made authorities. In the next verse he’ll make this a bit more explicit by saying that these authorities are sent by God (cf. Romans 13:1-5).

If you are anything like me, when you hear this command to be subject to your earthly authorities, you immediately start coming up with exceptions to the command (“But what about if they are evil and hate God?” “What if they tell me to do something wrong?”). Like I said, my 19-month-old comes by it honestly. This knee-jerk reaction misses the point. So, Peter gets really practical and specific, zooming in on those authorities that we might be most likely to justify rejecting: “…whether it be to the emperor as supreme, or to governors as sent by him to punish those who do evil and to praise those who do good” (1 Peter 2:13-14). From our highest governing authorities to local governing authorities, Christians are called to joyful submission. Why? Because in their joyful submission that is witnessed by their governing authorities and neighbors, Christians silence those who would otherwise ignorantly claim that they are a detriment to society. That’s my paraphrase of v.15 (“For this is the will of God, that by doing good you should put to silence the ignorance of foolish people”). God’s will is to magnify the glory of his name by creating (that is, re-creating!) a people with a new nature who live righteous lives of submission to their governing authorities.

And how does God go about re-creating a people who joyfully submit to their authorities? Don’t miss this. He does it by setting them free: “live as people who are free” (1 Peter 2:16). This might send your head spinning a bit. The two commands in this paragraph are (1) be subject…to every human institution and (2) live as people who are free. Now those are two interesting commands to put in the same paragraph! Interestingly, only one of them is actually a command: be subject (v.13). The other is not a command but literally reads, “as free people.” There’s no main verb in v.16. This verse is simply following up on the command from verse 13 and adding to our understanding of it. So, putting this together, the command in 1 Peter 2:13-16 is this: “be subject…to every human institution…as free people…”

So, how do we reconcile these two seemingly contradictory themes (submission and freedom) that are sandwiched together in this paragraph? The answer, I believe, is found in a proper understanding of Christian freedom. Christian freedom is not the absence of authority. Rather, Christian freedom is the right ordering of authorities. In fact, Peter defines a life of freedom as putting ourselves under the authority of God, our ultimate authority: “live as people who are free, not using your freedom as a cover-up for evil, but living as servants of God” (1 Peter 3:16). Peter says that God is the ultimate authority who sends earthly governing authorities to act on his behalf, encouraging good and punishing evil. So, somewhat paradoxically, Christian freedom is the basis or foundation of our submission to our governing authorities. The knee-jerk reaction of the re-created servants of God with new natures is a freedom to joyfully submit to their governing authorities.

So, brothers and sisters, live as those who are free. Rightly order your authorities. This is how Peter ends this section (in v.17), by re-emphasizing the ordering of our relationships and authorities. He does this through a chiasm of sorts, emphasizing the middle portion:

A – Honor everyone. (broad earthly relationships)

B – Love the brotherhood. (broad spiritual relationships)

B¹ – Fear God. (highest spiritual authority)

A¹ – Honor the emperor. (highest earthly authority)

As Christians, you are free to live as servants of God. You are not chained to your former, sinful knee-jerk rejection of authority. As Christians, you are free from your culture’s tendency to speak ill of authority. As Christians, you are not bound to walk in lock-step with any particular party’s platform or rallying cries. Your ultimate authority is higher than that. You are free to live as God’s servant, following his commands, to the glory of His great name. May we joyfully live this way as we enter into another political season.