In my own pastoral experience, I am most refreshed and stimulated to renewal when people seek the Lord and eagerly join in the ministry of the church. The Apostle Paul expressed his own joy and renewal over the service and love of people who rolled up their sleeves and jumped into service with Paul.  ... Continue Reading

The Spirit is not just a representative or a substitute for the absent Jesus. Where the Spirit is, there is the Father and the Son. The Spirit does not just represent Jesus. Rather, because of the nature of their relationship, he actually brings Jesus with him. Because of the work of the Spirit, Jesus really... Continue Reading

Our obedience is a litmus test for whether our love for God is true. A want of willingness to submit to God in whatever He commands is symptomatic of a lack of love for Him.  The opposite of love is at the heart of our not obeying God’s commandments, which is how God describes our... Continue Reading

Can using language and engaging cultural ideas have a negative outcome? Some think so. A group of American evangelicals have used the analytic tools of a contemporary political ideology to describe inequality in American culture. In response, a second  group has decried such a method as being incompatible with Christianity. Who is right?    Low-density... Continue Reading

Horrell is right to recognize that nobody reads Scripture in a vacuum. We are all deeply affected by the social and intellectual contexts in which we live, and we all come to Scripture with various questions and biases, many of which we are often not even aware. It is also legitimate to seek insight from... Continue Reading

Evangelism is a biblical mandate for every Christian. Yet you find it difficult, don’t you? So do it. The thought of standing on some street corner with a megaphone or knocking on some random person’s door frightens the daylights out of me! But I refuse to use what I cannot do as well as others... Continue Reading

When the psalmists take up the moniker “righteous,” they are not adducing moral perfection or proclaiming to be self-righteous. They are not saying, “God is going to take care of me because I am morally perfect.” So, what is the difference between righteousness and self-righteousness?   The Psalms are rich spiritual food for the Christian... Continue Reading

Some will enter into eternal perdition. We should lament this as Jesus lamented over Jerusalem. We should preach repentance as God preached it to Israel. We should pray for all people and offer Christ the saviour for all men to all and sundry. And we should desire above all that everyone be saved and come... Continue Reading

God gave the command and he didn’t negotiate it. Obey it, or die. He repeated that command over a dozen times. he gave Pharaoh chance after chance. But he didn’t change his mind. Obey it, or die. Those are the options. And Pharaoh chose to die with his whole army rather than bend the knee.... Continue Reading

Jesus is a most sympathetic friend, fellow sufferer, and Savior. He has walked a hard road. He has felt his own anguish and crushing pain (Isaiah 53). He understands. He is compassionate toward you. By the comfort of his presence and sympathy, he intends to draw you out and draw you to Himself.   Dear... Continue Reading