Small Beginnings: J. C. Ryle in Exbury
Ryle’s early life teaches us the importance of not despising small beginnings.
Pastors are often tempted to be dissatisfied with their churches and long for greater prominence and larger congregations. But this dissatisfaction is part of the enemy’s lies and such outcomes must be left to the Lord. Instead we should see that God is also at work even in less than ideal situations. When we... Continue Reading
You’re Dead, Start Acting Like It
There is no more wrath for you to bear.
The irrefutable realities of the death and resurrection of Jesus are more than mere doctrinal points to quibble over; they are the soil from which our lives must grow, or as Paul says, the head from which we are nourished. “To live is Christ and to die is gain” is more than a hashtag for... Continue Reading
The Four-Hundred-Year Flower
Arminius, Dort, and the Battle for Grace
Because of my ethnic heritage and my Reformed upbringing, I’ve always had a soft spot for the Canons of Dort, even when many Christians — if they’ve even heard of Dort — have considered it an embarrassment of overwrought sovereignty and doctrinal hairsplitting. And yet, the Canons of Dort are not just for Dutch people, and... Continue Reading
Black Holes and the Wonder of Creation
the only way Einstein can develop a theory on paper, and have it play out in practice a hundred years later, is if our galaxies were designed by an Intelligence far greater than we can fathom.
The Psalmist tells us that the “voice” of this “speech” goes out “through all the earth.” The new image of a black hole is yet another way in which God’s “eternal power and divine nature” have been “clearly perceived … in the things that have been made” (Romans 1:20). Astronomers made news by capturing... Continue Reading
The Danger of Discontentment
It is the pursuit of the “Pop Life” that has led many believers astray.
Sadly, many Christians today are discontent with life. They have become emotionally and psychologically jaundiced from a sense that their life lacks that “pop”—that something—that person, that thing, that experience which they believe will provide the level of fulfillment, significance, and satisfaction they’ve longed for but have yet to discover. In 1985, Prince and The Revolution released the critically-acclaimed... Continue Reading
The Time Jesus Shared Depressing News
Jesus paints his disciples a bleak picture, assuring them their futures would include persecution and difficulty.
“But stay awake at all times, praying that you may have the strength to escape all these things that are going to take place and to stand before the Son of Man.” (Luke 21:36). Here, Jesus calls the disciples to live watchful lives of continuous prayer and points them to their ultimate hope, salvation on... Continue Reading
What Happens When We Don’t Talk About Virtue?
We need to return to the sources of the virtues.
The disappearance of discussion of the virtues from our culture is of some significance. It indicates that traditional morality, in which these virtues occupied center stage, has gradually faded and is about to disappear both from our culture and from our consciousnesses. The crucial question is, of course, how we should assess this development. Is... Continue Reading
Caught Between Worlds: Living in a New Normal
Why is adapting to change so hard?
Sometimes “new” can be desired and exciting, but other times it’s not. Most of us want to live out James 1:2 and persevere through trials, but day-to-day living can instead be a roller coaster of pining for the past, trying to live in an unfamiliar present, and looking towards eternity. Most of us aren’t... Continue Reading
What Ever Happened to the “S” Word?
Scripture teaches that sin is “any want of conformity unto or transgressing of the Law of God.”
We only hear the word sin on television or in movies today when someone is mocking the concept in the Christian worldview or trying to snare a Christian on a moral issue. If someone wants to corner a believer on calling an unethical act sin, then we should answer them according to their folly and get them... Continue Reading
God Makes Us Vulnerable and Invincible
We are desperate for an enduring sense of safety and security.
As deep as the drive is for safety in the human heart, we have no guarantees of it in this life. As much as we’d like to think that God will protect those who love him from any trouble whatsoever befalling us, we know this is clearly not true from experience or from the Bible.... Continue Reading