If you keep “glorifying God through faithful and clear communication of your text” as the goal of your preaching, then trimming down your sermon can become just another act of faithfulness and worship.   For me, the hardest part of preparing a teaching or sermon is figuring out what information to leave out. Cutting down a sermon... Continue Reading

Christians may be a genuinely prophetic voice against the injustices of our culture. We may need to sharpen some critiques, such as those against current manifestations of greed, while on others, such as those related to sex and gender, we need the courage to continue to proclaim Biblical truth against the cultural tide.   The... Continue Reading

While God occasionally displays his glory through miracles, he far more commonly displays it through the beauty of providence. Look for it and you will see it; see it and you will praise him for it.   I suppose it is possible that I have witnessed a miracle in my lifetime, but if so, I’m... Continue Reading

Years have passed since that difficult period in our lives. I wouldn’t wish that experience on anybody. I am grateful, though, for the lessons that God taught us in that difficult year.   We’d just started the process of planting a church when we got a phone call that changed our lives. We didn’t know... Continue Reading

The person who gets sinfully angry has forgotten his new gospel identity in Christ. When we’re tempted to respond to people or circumstances with sinful anger, it is the renewal of our minds with biblical truths that will empower us to walk in grace and humility.   The key to overcoming anger is what you... Continue Reading

The risen and ascended Christ has “all authority in heaven and on earth” (Matthew 28:18). People from every tribe, tongue, and nation are being redeemed by the blood of the Lamb. The risen Christ will reign until He has put all His enemies under His feet, including the last enemy, death itself (1 Corinthians 15:25–26). As the... Continue Reading

Studying the writings of a pastor-theologian from a different historical context opened my eyes for seeing well-worn paths in new ways. The means of grace are not new or innovative concepts, but rather the ancient paths reinvigorated by considering them afresh through the lens of a joy-absorbed sage.   During a particularly stressful period of... Continue Reading

What is wrong with these people? Their brainwashing and indoctrination is now fully complete. They cannot think straight and they no longer know the difference between reality and fantasyland. And they write and say all this crapolla with a perfectly straight face! This really is the end of Australia and the West.   In an... Continue Reading

Social revolutionaries who want doctors or teachers or bureaucrats to step between parents and children on sexual issues are revealing their hostility not only to parental rights but to human nature and how we were created. This deeply misguided agenda will only cause children harm in the end.   In internet lingo, to “say the quiet... Continue Reading

Without the regulative principle, we are at the mercy of “worship leaders” and bullying pastors who charge noncompliant worshipers with displeasing God unless they participate according to a certain pattern and manner. To obey when it is a matter of God’s express prescription is true liberty; anything else is bondage and legalism.   What is... Continue Reading