The Statement on SJ&G Explained: Article 8, The Church
The church (ἐκκλησία) is the assembly of God's people who are saved by faith alone in Christ alone and gather together in local assemblies for both service and worship.
It has been God’s plan from the beginning for his people to associate together, help one another, and assemble for worship and service in a community of a local church. In short, the church is God’s will for your life. The high mark of the believer’s life should be centered in and through the local... Continue Reading
God Doesn’t Want You to Fix the World
God wants us to be a blessing to the world.
To be a blessing sums up what it means to love our neighbors as ourselves (Matt 5:43–45; Matt. 15:1–9;). To be a blessing is at the essence of any morality that Christians should strive to achieve. It’s the kind of morality or holiness or ethics that matters to the people around us. And YHWH... Continue Reading
The Decalogue and the Sabbath Discrepancy
"But the seventh day is a Sabbath to the Lord your God."
In light of these differences, it needs to be asked why God’s laws – which were inscribed in stone when originally given – could appear to be altered in any way. The different wordings themselves provide the best clue. The Ten Commandments, given by God at Sinai, have played a vital role in both... Continue Reading
Mothers, Teach Your Sons
In his ten years of living I haven’t refrained from teaching him anything I think of that seems worthwhile.
My son needs to see that the woman who taught him everything from clapping his hands to long division is going to be mom enough to teach him the hard stuff, too. To address what the world will try to plague him with in no time at all. To describe to him in detail how... Continue Reading
Jerks for Jesus
Why the temple cleansing (etc.) isn't your permission to always be fighting.
Certainly the Bible says at least as much — if not more — about speaking the truth in love, not tearing down, and letting our speech be gracious as it does “letting people have it.” In any event, what are we to make of the biblical support for this kind of online behavior? It’s... Continue Reading
Is God More Tolerant Today?
Something has changed. But it’s not God.
The summum bonum—the highest good—of our culture is tolerance. Not surprisingly, as our culture becomes more tolerant and less concerned about sin, so does the god they worship. To support the idea that God is getting more tolerant, some appeal to the Bible. We are all prone to imagine a god that is more like... Continue Reading
Even the Smallest Sin…
Out of 3002 respondents in the US, 58% rejected the idea that "even the smallest sin deserves eternal damnation."
Unlike several of the other findings, in which there is a noticeable shift in the beliefs of 18 year olds from those of 65 year olds in the church, there was uniformity of rejection in the represented age groups. That ought to give us pause about what has and what is being taught in our... Continue Reading
The Majesty of Suffering
“It is a blessed thing to be subject to the sovereignty of God". John Calvin
Whatever suffering God allows you and I to go through, is suffering that He takes us through. Meaning, He never leaves us to our own devices to deduce or figure out how to endure or tolerate it, but instead walks hand-in-hand with us in the midst of it (Ps. 23:4). God grants to His people the gift of suffering... Continue Reading
The Gracious, Sovereign, Effectual Call (Murray)
John Murray’s "Redemption Accomplished and Applied" is an outstanding resource
“If you haven’t read this book, I highly recommend doing so sooner than later! You’ll come away with a greater appreciation of Christ and what he did (and does) for you!” John Murray’s Redemption Accomplished and Applied is an outstanding resource that gives a clear and concise summary of what the Bible teaches about Christ’s... Continue Reading
3 Ways We Corrupt the Idea of Freedom
We might be tempted to think that freedom means a lack of moral constraint
“Another way we might misunderstand the nature of freedom is by thinking that freedom means a lack of personal responsibility. This misunderstanding runs rampant in the world around us. We see people abandoning their responsibilities to their families because they are tying them down.” “You can’t make me do this. Don’t you know this... Continue Reading