What Can You Do As One Single Person in This Massive World?
Learn three lessons from a single verse in Hebrews about Noah for the saving of your soul and your family.
You can do some very significant things. You can be conscious of the judgment to come, and you can live in the light of that reality. Secondly, you can build an ark for the saving of your family. You can set a priority on bringing your children, your grandchildren, your great grandchildren to Jesus Christ.... Continue Reading
In Appreciation of Reformed Theology
3 Elements of Reformed Theology
Reformed theologians embrace the tensions and difficulties in Scripture, digging deeper to understand it. The rigor of Reformed theologians to argue from Scripture alone has always struck me as their greatest strength and is far and away the most compelling piece for believing the doctrines of Reformed theology. On this Reformation Day, I’m reflecting... Continue Reading
The Mystery of Godliness
God himself was manifest in the flesh.
For if the Son of God be man, then he understands me and will have a fellow feeling for me. He knows my unfitness to worship sometimes—he knows my tendencies to grow weary and dull my pains, my trials, and my griefs: He knows what fierce temptations mean, For he has felt the same. Man,... Continue Reading
Praying the Imprecatory Psalms: The Case for Christian Curses
The persecuted church needs all the help she can get in the face of violent evil, and the imprecatory Psalms are a gift to her from our Heavenly Father.
Christians can sing a re-formatted version Psalm 139:19 by using the NT expression of justice, judgment, and vengeance in this way: “Lord, destroy the enemies of your church, either in your wrath or in the waters of baptism.” Like the saints of Revelation 6, Christians today are free to desire and invite the vengeance of God. Contrary to... Continue Reading
Fresh Insight into the Life of the Prince of Preachers
Review: ‘Spurgeon: A Life’ by Alex DiPrima
In Spurgeon: A Life, Alex DiPrima provides an updated and accessible biography of the Prince of Preachers. Few of Spurgeon’s many biographies accurately portray his life or reflect the scholarly precision his legacy warrants. This new portrayal serves the church because it “makes some improvements over previous accounts of his life and also takes into view... Continue Reading
Why WWJD Isn’t that Helpful
WWJD tends to let us write ourselves into the role of Jesus and encourages us to act accordingly.
Jesus doesn’t ask us to change our behaviour, he promises to give us a new heart and that will cause us to change. WWJD puts the emphasis on our doing and changing to copy Jesus whereas scripture puts the emphasis squarely on Jesus changing us so that we might be more like him. In the end,... Continue Reading
Pray and Do
Prayer in Nehemiah (10)
Prayer does not preclude action, but often includes it. Indeed, prayer is the first action, and that first action sets the tone and establishes the direction for what follows. In the model prayer Jesus taught His disciples to pray, He has us ask God for our daily bread. Yet, to the church at Thessalonica Paul writes:... Continue Reading
On the Other Side of the Wall
I should turn my lamentation into praise, my grief into hope, my sorrow into expectation, confident that Nick has gone where he can thrive, where he can flourish, where his every dream can be made good?
I cannot now see him, I can be certain that he is blooming there, on the other side of the wall, where the sun is brighter, where all shadows are gone. And I can anticipate the day when, I, too, will pass through the garden gate to finally see him in that place where he... Continue Reading
What Wondrous Love Is This?
The Heart of Christ for Sinners
Our tragic mortality never feels so real as when a parent or spouse or child dies. Losing my father left me feeling untethered….And nothing can fix this untethered-ness. Nothing can repair the loss that death deals out in cruel doses. Nothing, that is, except resurrection and the death-defeating love of Christ. In the summer... Continue Reading
What Does It Mean That God Is Omniscient?
God willed the existence of all that is and has decreed the unfolding history of all things great and small, from the beginning to the end.
God’s knowledge reaches to our thoughts, desires, intents, and inclinations….The God “who knows the heart” (Acts 15:8) knows the sin of all people, and they will give an account for their disobedience to Him. But there is hope and comfort for all who believe in Jesus Christ because God’s covenant promise is to “remember their sin... Continue Reading
The Mercy of Christ
Jesus receives sinners unto Himself.
All those found in Jesus Christ—those who trust in Him—are clothed in His perfect righteousness. His obedient life is seen to be theirs….Go to Jesus, and you will find all that you need. I have had on occasion the opportunity to preach on Luke 23:39-43, and I have titled that sermon, “The Merciful Christ.”... Continue Reading
Preach the Whole Truth
Counting the Cost with Charles Spurgeon
The man of conviction is going to be criticized. The man who speaks his mind, even with humility and love, is likely to be assaulted. However, we must be concerned first to honor God by faithfulness to all his revealed truth, in its proper place, perspective, and proportion, and to serve men by speaking that... Continue Reading
7 Ways the Particularity of Scripture Underlines the Exclusivity of Christ
Many are appalled at Jesus’s declaration that He is the only way.
As the only way to salvation, Jesus is worthy of our love, trust, and worship. He is also worthy of our gospel witness. May our recognition of Jesus’s uniqueness burden our hearts for the lost and stir our feet to take the good news about him to our universities and through them to the nations.... Continue Reading
The Increasing Value of Christian Testimonies
We need to commend the Christian faith in terms of its truth, relevance, and goodness.
We should still work towards explaining the gospel message. But as a starting point, people are often genuinely interested in our personal testimony. Traditionally, apologetics has been concerned with defending and commending the truth claims of the Christian faith. In the 1990s Christian apologist Alister McGrath, in response to changing social attitudes, suggested that... Continue Reading
The Good News of a Powerful and Compassionate God: Isaiah 40
The Lord wants his people to have the comfort they need, in order to live the lives He has called them to.
In Isaiah 40, and in the Lord Jesus, we see a God who is mighty enough to overturn the idols of a culture that fails to recognise that life belongs to him. We see a God who is compassionate enough to draw close to those who are deeply suffering. And to draw close to their... Continue Reading
4 Must-Read Books for Grieving Christians
Finding answers and hope amidst the doubts and questions of grief.
These four books were a lifeline of much needed comfort, wisdom, and encouragement for me, and it is my hope they will be the same for my brothers and sisters in Christ who are struggling to hold on to their faith amid devastating grief. When my son died in 2006, it was hard—even painful—for... Continue Reading
10 Mistakes I Made When Reading the Bible
Learning to read the Bible well, takes skill. It takes time. But it is worth putting in that effort.
While we should read the books of the Bible in their literary context, we mustn’t forget that God has inspired every word. He is the ultimate ‘series’ editor. This means that we should expect greater depth and more connection between books of the Bible than might be expected if they were only written by humans.... Continue Reading
The Goodness of Jesus
Let us know our God and worship Him because He is great and He is good.
God has most clearly shown us His goodness in the death and resurrection of His Son, Jesus. The Goodness of God is the Goodness of Jesus. He has saved us apart from our works. He regenerates us, renews us, gives us His Spirit, and justifies us freely. Now we are heirs of heaven and have... Continue Reading
Marie Durand — Part 3: The Indelible Legacy of the 1572 Saint Bartholomew’s Day Massacre
"I hope that God will deliver me, and if God gives me this grace, I will not leave you in a strange land."
[After twenty-two years of imprisonment. Marie offers to manage Anne’s finances, urges her to work hard, to be wise and godly, and not to rush into marriage.] “to Mademoiselle [Anne] Durand, at Onex, near Geneva, The Tour de Constance, April 27, 1752. The time must seem very long to you, my darling daughter, and no... Continue Reading
Making Gratitude a Portal to Unity
The intimacy, security, and belonging we desire with God travels across the bridge of thanksgiving that we construct daily.
We tend to look at gratitude the way we look at honesty, you either have it or you don’t. However, neither of these virtues works this way. As with all the fruit and characteristics of the Spirit, thanksgiving grows in us through dedicated focus and pursuit. Appreciation for God’s goodness to us is a learned... Continue Reading
Billy Graham’s Los Angeles Crusade and the Postwar Evangelical Movement
In God’s providence, Graham’s L.A. Crusade put postwar evangelicalism on the map.
Graham has been criticized by some Reformed observers for embracing “revivalism” and “decisionism.” Opinions will vary on those questions, but regardless of their soteriological preferences, most evangelicals still believe that God used Graham to contribute to the salvation of thousands of sinners over his ministry. The L.A. Crusade lets us reflect on the mysterious relationship... Continue Reading
What’s Worse: Pride or Pain?
Christians don’t seek out suffering or weakness as masochists, but we know that pain is a powerful instrument in our Redeemer’s hands for our good.
Pride isn’t just the bombastic statements like the boxer Muhammad Ali declaring, “I am the greatest.” It comes out in making God a footnote to our accomplishments. Pride always lowers our estimation of God. Charles Spurgeon’s peer Archibald G. Brown preached on pride and said, “The proud man is simply one who bends the knee... Continue Reading
Pray Till You Pray – Minister’s Letter Nov 24
These truths of, ‘praying until we pray, pray until we are conscious of being heard and pray till we receive an answer’, are as applicable to our church gatherings for prayer.
We know he does not always answer, ‘yes’. He sometimes says, ‘no’, and often he says, ‘wait’; but we must get to the point where we are aware he has heard and answered. The call to prayer is a call to perseverance – Jesus tells us to ‘ask, seek, knock (Matthew 7:7-12)’, to keep on... Continue Reading
Avoiding the Piety of Rome & Ricky Bobby
It's the most unauthorizedly visual time of the year!
Intentionally or not, the writers of this screenplay portrayed the sinful downside of popular, image-driven piety as well as has ever been done. While saying grace, the narcissistic and vapid Ricky reveals that he prefers an oddly specific (8 pounds, 6 ounces!) version of Jesus—the pudgy, non-threatening, cute baby version common to the seasonal piety of... Continue Reading
What Is God’s Blessing?
The fount of God’s blessing is ultimately revealed in the Son of God incarnate.
Sadly, the blessing that was enjoyed in paradise was lost as a result of the fall. The rest of the Bible tells the unexpected story of how God’s blessing from creation is rediscovered by means of God’s gracious covenant. Hints of how this would be accomplished were given to Adam (Gen. 3:15), Noah (Gen. 9:1),... Continue Reading
We’re About to See the Biggest Demographic Shift Since the Black Death
Fulfilling the Great Commission is the only way to ensure the continued presence of vibrant, resilient Christian communities.
In a world that prizes autonomy and convenience, the church can model a different way—a way of sacrificial love, covenantal commitment, and the beauty of generational faithfulness. It’s true the “nones” are on the rise in the West, but globally, Pew Research Forum predicts “secular” people in 2060 will make up a smaller percentage of the world’s... Continue Reading
Why Humanists UK hate Operation Christmas Child
Humanists UK initially don’t want to give anything altruistically at all and only reluctantly came round to the view that it might be better to do something non-religious at Christmas to one-up the Christians whom they hate most of all.
Humanists UK fail to acknowledge that every organisation has its reasons for what it does and every organisation operates in line with its core convictions. What they seem to believe is that such is fine when those core convictions are secular humanist ones, but not if they happen to be Christian. Even, it seems worth... Continue Reading
An Example of Why We Must Emphasize That Unnatural Lusts Disqualify for Office: A Reading in Missouri Presbytery’s 2020 Report on Allegations Against Greg Johnson
The constitution of the Presbyterian Church in America (PCA) prohibits the ordination of men who experience unnatural lusts, prudence also recommending against it.
Those and many other things in our theory and practice of church government follow from an inference, and in many cases one that is much less clear and logically necessary than the inference that it is imprudent in the extreme to ordain men given to unnatural lust, or that the church may act on such... Continue Reading
The Bishop’s Predictions
150 years later, the Bishop’s warning has surely proved true.
‘The best, the only explanation of the psalms….is this: that [Christ’s] Humanity found in them a collection of appropriate devotions: Prayer-book, liturgy, hymn-book, fitted and pre-harmonised for a Divine Sufferer and Pilgrim…They are lyrics primarily of the Humanity of our Lord, secondarily of ours’. ‘Read these psalms without this thought; they are petrifactions for a... Continue Reading
Do Children Need to Consent to Puberty?
Puberty is a natural developmental milestone in humans.
It’s puberty-blocking drugs—not puberty itself—that require consent. Even so, children can’t possibly understand the long-term effects and implications of synthetic hormones that pause a critical physiological process like puberty. Adults should be responsible for the welfare of their children, but sadly, too many have been deceived by society’s infatuation with transgender ideology. The United... Continue Reading