In church world we have done a good job of helping people to know about Jesus’ three years of ministry two millennia ago, but a lousy job of helping people to know that that same Jesus is praying for them today.   There are some obvious ways in which the idea of connecting might relate... Continue Reading

Whether it is the arrangement of sound, colour, shapes, numbers, words, or ideas, beauty is found in the combination and arrangement of disparate parts to make a unified whole. Whether found naturally, or re-shaped by God’s image-bearers, created beauty is a re-enactment of Genesis 1:2-3: order, harmony, equality is brought to bear upon what is... Continue Reading

Throughout the history of the church, there has always been a theology of the covenants. The Reformation recovery of the gospel and the biblical distinction between grace and works made it possible for Reformed theology to construct a detailed and fruitful covenant theology.   Until recently, it was widely held that covenant theology was created... Continue Reading

We can no longer assume that the people in America understand even the basic truths about the true God. Those of us who do know Him, must teach them. This is fundamental to the work of the Great Commission (Matthew 28:18-20).   In his acceptance speech for the Templeton Prize for Progress in Religion in... Continue Reading

If I say I believe in God and yet regularly neglect prayer, reading of God’s Word, and worship of God, while also unrepentantly practicing the works of the flesh, I am, in Charnock’s words, “deservedly termed” an atheist.   In Stephen Charnock’s classic work, The Existence and Attributes of God (published 1682), he includes a... Continue Reading

Ministers of the gospel in this age need to be ready and willing to lose their place in polite society to boldly proclaim the whole counsel of God and defend the witness of the church towards the good news of salvation in Christ alone, and the biblical holiness without which no man will see the... Continue Reading

With hundreds of visitors that attended each week, there was no way that Spurgeon could meet with every single one of them. This is why he taught his congregation not merely to visit with one another after the service but to be ready to engage those around them.   When Charles Spurgeon first arrived in... Continue Reading

The foundation of Daniel’s life and ministry was his absolute determination and resolve to serve the God of Israel and remain true to Him, even in the pagan land of Babylon (Dan. 1:8). He displayed moral integrity in the most difficult of situations.   Of all the great characters found on the pages of Holy... Continue Reading

Tough circumstances, continued disappointment, unmet desires, unfulfilled expectations, and unheeded demands work together in some fashion to produce the perfect environment for bitterness.   Have you ever been bitter about something? Are you bitter now? This week I have been studying through the Book of Ruth. In it, if you are one who currently is... Continue Reading

Owen’s career was carried on in tumultuous times and in the midst of much personal trouble, ill-health, grief, and even fear for his life. He achieved much in his lifetime, but Gribben explains that by the end he was surrounded by the scent of failure.   Crawford Gribben is a professor at Queen’s University in... Continue Reading