Rusty Rabon
Rusty Rabon has served in vocational Christian ministry in local churches since 1981. He also served as a Christian radio announcer for 15 years. He married his wife Terri in 1978 and they have 3 grown children and 6 grandchildren. You can find books by Rusty Rabon here.
Rusty also hosts a book reading program called READING GREAT BOOKS on his Facebook page. You can follow Rusty at www.rustyrabon.com, on Facebook and on Twitter.
Episode 017 - Dale Tedder on 'Lord of All'
T. M. Moore and Rusty Rabon talk with pastor and author Dale Tedder about his new book LORD OF ALL: A Study of the Person and Work of Jesus Christ. They talk about the importance of believing the truth about Jesus as He is revealed in Scripture and also about living in the reality that Jesus is Lord of all.
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"We are ambassadors for Christ, since God is making his appeal through us; we entreat you on behalf of Christ, be reconciled to God." (2 Corinthians 5:20 NRSV)
God Is Love - "Love Divine, All Loves Excelling"
For God so loved the world that he gave his only Son, so that everyone who believes in him may not perish but may have eternal life. (John 3:16 NRSV)
Quenching Our Thirst - "What Grace is Mine"
On the last day of the festival, the great day, while Jesus was standing there, he cried out, “Let anyone who is thirsty come to me, and let the one who believes in me drink. As the scripture has said, ‘Out of the believer’s heart shall flow rivers of living water.’” (John 7:37-38 NRSV)
The liturgical season of Lent reminds us of the importance of examining our lives – of keeping “short accounts” with God – of the truth of Socrates’ dictum that “the unexamined life is not worth living.”
Episode 016 - The Importance of Prayer
On this episode of The Ailbe Podcast, T. M. Moore and Rusty Rabon talk with David Timbie and Randy Warner about the importance of prayer. They discuss how vitally important prayer is personally, and also how to involve others in praying together in groups.
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A New Heart - "I Want a Principle Within" (Ash Wednesday)
Create in me a clean heart, O God, and put a new and right spirit within me. (Psalm 51:10 NRSV)
Episode 015 - Stuart Kellogg on The Post-Covid Church
T. M. Moore and Rusty Rabon talk with author Stuart Kellogg about his latest book, THE POST-COVID CHURCH. Based on his research of church and cultural trends, Kellogg has much to say to churches and pastors about coming out of the pandemic to "thrive" and not just "survive."
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The Name of Jesus - "That Beautiful Name"
"After eight days had passed, it was time to circumcise the child; and he was called Jesus, the name given by the angel before he was conceived in the womb." (Luke 2:21 NRSV)
The Joy that Christmas Brings - "Joy Has Dawned"
Following a night of confrontation with the spirits in Charles Dickens’ classic tale, A Christmas Carol, Ebenezer Scrooge experienced a joyous Christmas morning.
The Christmas Spirit - "Thou Who Wast Rich"
Do you remember the generosity of Jesus Christ, the Lord of us all? He was rich beyond our telling, yet he became poor for your sakes so that his poverty might make you rich. (2 Corinthians 8:9 Phillips)
J.I. Packer’s 1973 book Knowing God has been formative for many, many people in their understanding of what the Bible teaches about God. In chapter five of the book, “God Incarnate,” Packer gives a thorough study of the meaning and implications of our Lord Jesus Christ – God the Son – becoming a human being. Packer’s thoughts, along with the stanzas of the Gospel hymn “Thou Who Wast Rich” by Frank Houghton, give us much to meditate on as we ponder the miracle and wonder of God’s grace in Jesus that we celebrate at Christmastime, and the impact it should have on us all year long.
Packer writes, “The key text in the New Testament for interpreting the incarnation is . . . 2 Corinthians 8:9: ‘Ye know the grace of our Lord Jesus Christ, that, though he was rich, yet for your sakes he became poor, that ye through his poverty might become rich.’ Here is stated, not the fact of the incarnation only, but also its meaning; the taking of manhood by the Son is set before us in a way which shows us how we should set it before ourselves and ever view it – not simply as a marvel of nature, but rather as a wonder of grace.”[1]
Thou who wast rich beyond all splendor, all for love’s sake becamest poor;
Thrones for a manger didst surrender, sapphire paved courts for stable floor.
Thou who wast rich beyond all splendor, all for love’s sake becamest poor.
Packer continues, “How are we to think of the incarnation? The New Testament does not encourage us to puzzle our heads over the physical and psychological problems that it raises, but to worship God for the love that was shown in it. For it was a great act of condescension and self-humbling. ‘He, Who had always been God by nature,’ writes Paul, ‘did not cling to His prerogatives as God’s equal but stripped Himself of all privilege by consenting to be a slave by nature and being born as a mortal man. And, having become man, He humbled Himself by living a life of utter obedience, even to the extent of dying, and the death he died was the death of a common criminal’ (Philippians 2:6 ff., Phillips). And all this was for our salvation.[2]
Thou who art God beyond all praising, all for love’s sake becamest man;
Stooping so low, but sinners raising, heaven-ward by Thine eternal plan.
Thou who art God beyond all praising, all for love’s sake becamest man.
Packer concludes, “We talk glibly of the ‘Christmas spirit,’ rarely meaning more by this than sentimental jollity . . . But . . . the phrase should in fact carry a tremendous weight of meaning. It ought to mean the reproducing in human lives of the temper of Him who for our sakes became poor at the first Christmas. And the Christmas spirit itself ought to be the mark of every Christian all the year round . . . The Christmas spirit is the spirit of those who, like their Master, live their whole lives on the principle of making themselves poor – spending and being spent – to enrich their fellow men; giving time, trouble, care, and concern, to do good to others – and not just their own friends – in whatever way there seems need.[3]
Thou who art love beyond all telling, Savior and King, we worship Thee.
Emmanuel, within us dwelling, make us what Thou wouldst have us be.
Thou who art love beyond all telling, Savior and King, we worship Thee.
Follow this link to enjoy Steve Green’s lovely and worshipful rendition of this hymn.
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To subscribe and receive A SONG TO THE LORD in your email, just follow this link. And if you are interested in other devotional writings by Rusty Rabon, click here. T. M. Moore and Rusty Rabon host THE AILBE PODCAST, which you can find here. Rusty also hosts a Zoom book reading program called READING GREAT BOOKS five nights each week (Thursdays through Mondays). The Zoom link and current book information is available here.
All We Really Need - "On Christmas Night All Christians Sing"
In his book Hidden Christmas, Timothy Keller draws a comparison between receiving advice and receiving news.