Godly Leaders Welcome Correction
To become a leader known for welcoming criticism, you must invite those under your leadership to approach you when they have concerns.
Just because criticism can hurt doesn’t mean it’s not good for us. Scripture paints a positive picture of anyone who welcomes correction as wise (Proverbs 9:8, 15:31) and those who reject it as foolish. Furthermore, we’re instructed to use all Scripture “for reproof” and “for correction” for our good and God’s glory. If you’re... Continue Reading
The Lure of Androgyny
Gender fluidity and ambiguity are being driven in part by the collapse of family and community.
The increased expression of ambiguous sexuality reflects a deeper metamorphosis that has been under way since the 1960s, of which today’s obsession with gender identity is but a part. There is a gravitation toward an androgynous mean, which I believe has been forced upon us by the sexual revolution’s reconfiguring of the human ecosystem. ... Continue Reading
The Real Genius of the Reformation
Why are we still celebrating Reformation Day more than five hundred years later?
Reform calls to mind the idea of progress toward a desired result. It is a word that evokes positive change. With such a diffused use of the word, however, it tends to lose its virtue and efficacy. When one speaks of the Protestant Reformation, therefore, the reform intended and celebrated may be lost in a... Continue Reading
The Case for Sermon-Centric Sundays
What is the foolishness of preaching? A steady diet of Christ-centered, Scripture-saturated expositional preaching is exactly what sinners need to become more and more like Jesus.
God has ordained the preached Word, working in unison with the Holy Spirit, as the method by which he turns mortal enemies into adopted sons. In Romans 10, Paul asks, “How are they to hear without someone preaching?” He answers: “So faith comes by hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ” (v. 17). How... Continue Reading
Spiritual Depression: A Cause and Cure
I find almost invariably when people come to me in a state of spiritual depression, that they are depressed because they do not know the faith as they should.
The antidote to depression is to have a knowledge of him, and you find that in His Word. You must take the trouble to learn it. It is difficult work, but you have to study it and give yourselves to it. The tragedy of the hour, it seems to me, is that people are far... Continue Reading
Christianity Is Not a Frowning Contest
Do we really believe God loves for his children to be glad? How do our daily lives reflect this truth?
Christians ought to be celebrating constantly. We ought to be preoccupied with parties, banquets, feasts, and merriment. We ought to give ourselves over to celebrations of joy because we have been liberated from the fear of life and the fear of death. We ought to attract people to the church quite literally by the sheer... Continue Reading
Charles Dickens and Theodicy
Light is never so radiant as when contrasted with darkness, good never so virtuous as when juxtaposed with evil.
With the advent of the Christ, the opposing forces of good and evil, light and dark, make war against one another. But when standing against the darkness, light isn’t simply light; it’s brilliantly victorious. According to Christ, “the light has come into the world, and people loved the darkness rather than the light because their... Continue Reading
God Wrote a Book
The Wonder of Having His Words
One of the greatest facts in all of history is that God gave us a Book. He gave us a Book! He has spoken. He has revealed himself to us through prophets and apostles, and appointed that they write down his words and that they be preserved. We have his words! We can hear in... Continue Reading
Social Media’s Attack on Meekness
Does your time spent online stir up passions and move you from a spirit of humble quietness to one of contemptuous frustration?
Someone says something online that we find offensive, and we retaliate with a harsh word, a quick jab, or a joke a their expense. What we have done in that moment is allowed them to steal our blessing of a quiet and gentle spirit to pay them back for their worthless words. Most people are quick... Continue Reading
Fruitless Fig Trees
There is a lie being perpetrated all through the Church in our day. That lie is that it is wrong to confront those who are teaching false doctrine.
It is such a huge tragedy that the predominate form of Christianity in the world right now is the product of the Church Growth movement. This movement is all about restructuring churches so that they will appeal to the unchurched. They take away the Gospel and replace it with easy-believism which saves no one. ... Continue Reading