It is the Acts of the Old Testament: the story of how God’s house was established and filled with the Spirit, how his people prayed, worshiped, failed, repented, were captured by their enemies and ultimately set free, and how Gentiles came to worship him. There are heroes like Peter and John (Solomon, Hezekiah, Josiah). There are... Continue Reading

 In 356, the Synod of Béziers, composed mostly of Arians, sentenced Hilary to exile in Phrygia (in present-day Turkey). It was there that Hilary wrote his best-known work, On the Trinity, where he supported his stand with Scriptures from both Old and New Testament. For Hilary, the doctrine of the Trinity is not only biblical,... Continue Reading

Paul testified, “But one thing I do: Forgetting what is behind and reaching forward to what is ahead, I pursue as my goal the prize promised by God’s heavenly call in Christ Jesus” (Phil. 3:13–14). However, there is also a difference—a massive difference— between overlooking your past and forgetting about it. Paul never overlooked his past.... Continue Reading

There must be a depth of truth that leads to the extent of praise. Expositors understand they are not The Entertainer, but the Worship Leader, informing people of truth that will drive their devotion. Exposition slowly turns the church from being a place where consumers our king to a place where Christ is King.  ... Continue Reading

A Big Gospel in Small Places is filled with a combination of quotes from the likes of Puritans and contemporary thought and statistics on ministry. There are many pastors in small places who need to be reminded that preaching a Bible-saturated, gospel-centered sermon to forty-five people matters. This book is oozing with that kind of... Continue Reading

The fear of God is the missing ingredient in most professing Christian’s walks. The Spirit-filled believer does fear God and walks in submission to Him in all things. The fleshly believer does not fear God and walks according his or her fleshly fears and lusts. They may indeed deeply desire to have victory over their... Continue Reading

We write a lot on this blog about how context matters. But we aren’t only concerned with the sentences and paragraphs surrounding your favorite verse. This example from Luke 20 shows the importance of at least three different Scriptural contexts. The location of the question in Luke 20 and the baptism in Luke 3 reminds us that the immediate context... Continue Reading

The most powerful part of Flanagan’s essay comes in its latter half, a challenge to supporters of abortion rights, when she discusses the technology that enables 3D ultrasound imaging of the fetus in utero. “These sonograms are so richly detailed that many expectant mothers pay to have one made in a shopping-mall studio, much in... Continue Reading

The gospel is a greater treasure than temporary gratification, a greater pleasure than sin to enjoy. Knowing that there is no good thing we can do that would make God love us more in Christ actually frees us to love and obey him rather than to take advantage of His grace (see all of Romans... Continue Reading

The pastor’s role as an overseer is to guard the church’s behavior. Interpersonal relationships matter as the church is called to maintain the unity of the Spirit and the bond of peace (Eph. 4:3). Likewise, weekly worship must be orderly and arranged in such a manner as to bring glory to God. When the weekly... Continue Reading