“When current fear comes and it is looming large in your life, then what we need to do is . . . remember what God has done, remember his past faithfulness. . . . Let his past faithfulness cultivate current faith in us in the present.” –– Courtney DoctorIn her keynote message at TGCW22, Courtney Doctor teaches from 1 Samuel 17 about the true champion in the story of David and Goliath.Doctor says the battle between David and Goliath is actually about the King who has won the battle for us—King Jesus, in whom is our salvation and victory over sin and death. She teaches on three things about David that helped him win the battle and, if applied to our own lives, will help us in our own battle against sin:1. Realize God’s greatness. David realized that coming in the name of the living God was more powerful than all the armor or weapons Goliath had.2. Remember God’s faithfulness. Recalling all the times God saved him from danger in the past gave David faith in the present.3. Represent God’s people. Those who were in David’s army won because he won. The same is true if we're in Christ—because he has won, we also receive the victory even though we didn't earn it.Doctor closes with this reminder: “We are running after our Champion [Jesus] into a battle that has already been decided, so fix your eyes on the King of Glory, realize his greatness, remember his faithfulness, and keep running after him.”

“[God’s Word] did a much deeper work in Rahab than merely making her afraid. . . . While the hearts of all of the rest of the people in Jericho melted into fear, Rahab's heart melted into faith.” –– Nancy GuthrieIn her keynote message at TGCW22, Nancy Guthrie teaches on the faith of Rahab and the encouragement it provides for us to risk everything for God.There's a thread of protection from God’s judgment throughout the Old Testament for those who believe his promises are true. In the book of Joshua, Rahab—a prostitute and outsider—understands the most foolish thing a person can do is set themselves against the living God, ignoring what he's promised. Instead of remaining faithful to the people in her context, Rahab risks everything to join the people of God. Rahab is welcomed because of her faith and is ultimately saved from destruction. This teaches us salvation comes to those who risk everything on the Word of God being true, and salvation comes to those who rest completely in the mercy of God.Guthrie concludes with an exhortation and says, “Do not presume upon the mercy of God; take hold of it. Risk everything on the promises of God being true and that they are for you, no matter who you are or what you’ve done.”

“Christ was conformed to the image of the serpent that we might be conformed to the image of Christ.” — Jen WilkinIn her talk at TGCW22, Jen Wilkin teaches about the significance of the serpent on the pole as referenced in Numbers 21. In this Old Testament passage, Wilkin explains, the serpents point back to Egypt and the severity of the punishment from God in the 10 plagues. It's a reminder to the people of Israel at the time not to harden their hearts in disobedience. The Israelites repent, and God provides a way of healing. Moses then holds up a bronze serpent on a pole (foreshadowing and representing Christ on the cross) and God’s people have a chance to look and live.“It is the same for us today,” says Wilkin. “All that is required of us for salvation is to look on Christ and believe.”

“Everything you need has been purchased by the blood of Jesus . . . for your enjoyment now, in the midst of the wilderness, and your enjoyment, forever.” – John PiperIn his keynote message at TGCW22, John Piper describes four scenes in the wilderness of Exodus 17 that are brimming with implications for our own lives:God brought his people to a waterless place in the wilderness on purpose. God commands the movement of our lives—we do not go into the wilderness by accident.The Israelites did not trust that God's purposes were for saving and instead, they actually despised God. For those who do not trust God and despise him, his patience will run out.God answers the people with water and more importantly, with his life-giving presence. What people need more than water is God’s presence, even today.Moses memorializes the failure of the Israelites. God intends for this failure to be seen in light of the gift—God himself. “In your wilderness,” Piper says, “don’t be like them. Do not harden your hearts. Trust him.”Piper closes by referencing how God passed over the sins of the people in the Old Testament by punishing those sins through the cross of Christ 1,400 years later. Piper says, “Every undeserved blessing you will ever taste now and forever is owing to the death of Jesus.”Though may not understand all the reasons why God chooses to bring us into a waterless encampment, we can trust his character, his saving power, and his good purposes. When we find ourselves in the wilderness, may we thirst for more than water—finding all we need in Jesus, himself.

“We need to remember the reality of God and that there is nothing too hard for him. All of us have something in our life where this truth needs to be applied.” — Jackie Hill PerryIn Genesis 22, when Abraham is asked to sacrifice his only son, he obeys immediately. In her message at TGC's 2022 Women's Conference, Jackie Hill Perry explained how Abraham's obedience was directly tied to his unwavering faith in God—for whom nothing is too hard.When Abraham thought about the sacrifice he had to make in the future, he remembered the resurrection (of his body and Sarah's) in the past. If God could do a miracle then, he could do a miracle now. Abraham’s faith is proved by his willingness to sacrifice his son and is affirmed by God, who then provides a ram as a substitutionary sacrifice. This provision saves Isaac from death, separation, and destruction.The ram foreshadows Christ, who is not only our substitution for sin but also the Son of God who returned from the dead to glorify the Father. Perry calls us to remember who God is and what he has done when we're tested and tried. And just like Abraham, may we come to the other side of our trials refined with a faith that's affirmed by God.

“We deserved the flood . . . we are given the ark, and his name is Jesus.” –– Melissa KrugerIn her keynote message at TGCW22, Melissa Kruger uses the story of Noah and the flood to illustrate God's unchanging character and grace. She points out three key takeaways:God is just, therefore salvation is needed.God is gracious, therefore salvation is provided.God is powerful, therefore salvation is effective.Kruger says that the main point of the flood was that God, in his mercy, remembered Noah, pointing to our very real salvation in Christ—the true Ark. She challenges us to be sure we are “in the Ark” and to warn others of the coming storm of judgment, beckoning them to the Ark with urgency. With joy, we tell those in a discontent and disgruntled world that God is just, gracious, and powerful. Kruger ends with the encouragement that when we doubt, we can remember, “It’s not about you. It’s about the soundness of your Ark.”

“Accomplishing the Great Commission will not be easy, but we’ve been commanded by God to take the gospel to all people groups.” — David PlattIn his message at TGC's 2021 National Conference, David Platt urges local church leaders and pastors to prioritize the 3 billion unreached people across the globe. He reminds these leaders that God has commanded their obedience in the Great Commission for the sake of his global glory.Platt gives 10 ways church leaders and pastors can shepherd their people to obey this command:1. Preach the unfading Word of God in view of the unreached world.2. Call people to a supreme love of Jesus and radical identification with him, for missions is the overflow of that.3. Reorient local discipleship around the global purpose of God.4. Train and empower people to make biblical disciples and multiply biblical churches without dependence on performances, programs, and professionals.5. Lead the church to pray and fast for that which can only be accomplished by the Spirit.6. Send missionaries to the unreached from your local church.7. Promote multiple avenues for people to go to the unreached (on short-, mid-, and long-term trips).8. Give wisely, generously, and sacrificially from the local church to missions.9. Prioritize urgent spiritual needs in the world, while providing for physical needs.10. Prepare people to suffer and die and shepherd them amid suffering and death as they make disciples among all the nations.Platt ends with an exhortation that we're not living for this world—we have an enduring city to come. Platt says when our eyes are fixed on eternity and on Christ, whatever the Lord calls us to do for the sake of his name makes sense.

During a panel discussion at TGC21, Hannah Nation, Ryan Zhang, and S. E. Wang from China Partnership discuss the experience of the Chinese church and how the American church can learn from its suffering and kingdom mindset.Since the 1970s, the church in China has grown 60-fold, which is a clear sign of revival. Nation and her team challenge and encourage the American church to pray for revival and learn from the Chinese church by adopting these four beliefs and practices:1. Believe that prayer is real and powerful.2. Know that the church really is the best gift you can give to your city.3. Don’t slow down in evangelism as you encounter pressure or persecution.4. Keep repentance central in the life of the church.Stories of persecuted pastors from China show that the more focus is put on kingdom advancement, the more Christ is seen and glorified. One Chinese pastor said it best: “Survival is not our calling. Rather, the goal of the church is uncompromisable evangelism and discipleship.”

“When we say that we should sing the Word, we mean that our singing ought to be biblical.” – Ligon DuncanIn the book of Hebrews, we are exhorted to offer acceptable worship to God, but what does that practically look like? Ligon Duncan not only answers the “what” of acceptable worship, but also the “how.”Worship is defined as “glorifying and enjoying God forever,” which is done in two ways:Gathering to worship with the body of Christ.Worshipping God in all of life, with everything we have.These two elements of worship work together, ensuring that we are not hypocrites with our hearts far from God as we enter the assembly of worship, and encouraging us, while in the assembly, to also worship in private.Most importantly, Duncan reminds us that acceptable worship is worship according to the Scriptures—it is filled by the Word and framed by the Word. Not only do we read God’s Word, but we pray it, preach it, and sing it. And we do it all with a heart of gratitude. This is what acceptable worship means.

At TGC's 2021 National Conference, Trevin Wax taught on the importance of being a multi-directional leader and how to have a heightened awareness of problems your flock may encounter.Wax defines multi-directional leadership as “a manner of leadership grounded in the unshakable conviction that all the truth revealed in Scripture must be deployed for the good of God’s people.”The pursuit of this type of leadership can be difficult as it requires dexterity and vision to protect the flock from all sides. Wax warns against being a one-directional leader who fights alone and allows the culture to set the agenda for what's addressed to the flock, and he says healthy leadership is about “speaking the right word in the right moment to the right people.”Wax gives four ways pastors and church leaders can apply a sensitivity to being multi-directional:1. Delight in Scripture.2. Listen carefully to people who sound various alarms, and discern if they're valid.3. Know yourself and the dangers to which you're susceptible.4. Know your people and their tendencies and leanings.