What Does the Bible Say About the Reasons for Disasters like Hurricanes Harvey and Irma?
Addressing the common notion that disasters and tragedies are a direct consequence of the sins of the people they affect.
The fact is, God is working out His redemptive ends in ways we cannot possibly fathom. His providence is like a tapestry of such immensity and complexity that we will not be able to discover the pattern until he is finished with it. The problem is that we only see a minuscule portion of that... Continue Reading
Three Truths to Settle Your Heart During a Storm
Trust in the God who is sovereign, wise, and good.
So, there you have it. Three truths to plant deep into your heart. As Jerry Bridges wrote, “Someone has expressed those truths as they relate to us in this way: ‘God in His love always wills what is best for us. In His wisdom, He always knows what is best, and in His sovereignty, He has the power to bring... Continue Reading
Ministry Is Not Mastery
Pastors face pressures to be “successful” and efficient.
Pastors sin. One of our sins is to try to become what we are not, masters, CEOs, or ranchers. We are ranch hands. We work in the mail room not the board room. The great good news for sinful pastors is that Chief Shepherd laid down his life for us and our sins. He redeemed... Continue Reading
5 Marks of a Contented Heart
Through the gospel, God makes himself our treasure. In other words, God makes us content in him.
We know that this contentment is not simply idealistic but rather characteristic of the Christian life. As believers, we continue to learn contentment by learning to trust and treasure God in every situation. God has provided us with the Bible and the church to be the means by which we work this out in our... Continue Reading
Instruction & Parenting
As the children grow, we as parents must be deliberate in our teaching and instructing of their hearts.
So how do we teach and instruct? It’s something that we can’t not do. We can’t ignore this clear command. We’re called to impress God’s truths deeply on the hearts of our kids (Deut 6.4-9). Come my children listen to me and I will teach you the fear of the Lord (Ps 34.11). So what... Continue Reading
An Open Letter to the Sexual Sufferer
The life-giving Spirit speaks to the heart deeper than the most awful experience.
How do you ever come to terms with betrayal and violation at the hands of an evildoer? There are no easy answers or quick solutions. Other people—who genuinely care, who want to be helpful—often don’t really understand. Pain and woe bring a loneliness—“The heart knows its own bitterness” (Prov. 14:10). Even people who do understand... Continue Reading
Are Protestants Closer to Catholics than Martin Luther? A Response to the Recent Pew Study (Part 1)
The Reformers argued the Bible was the highest and only infallible authority.
“U.S. Protestants also are split on another issue that played a key role in the Reformation: 46% say the Bible is the sole source of religious authority for Christians – a traditionally Protestant belief known as sola scriptura. Meanwhile, 52% say Christians should look both to the Bible and to the church’s official teachings and tradition... Continue Reading
Is The Nashville Statement A Surrender?
The Nashville Statement is helpful in forcing us Christians to face what we really believe about marriage, sex, and sexuality — which, like it or not, has become the most important issue dividing the church today.
Would I have liked to have seen something about divorce, pornography, and similar sins indulged in by straights? Yes. Do I think it’s a big deal that those things were left out? No. The perfect shouldn’t be the enemy of the good enough. I was e-mailing this morning with a conservative Christian friend who... Continue Reading
Union With Christ in the Heidelberg Catechism, Part 1
There has been much debate in Reformed Christendom over the last few decades over the nature of our Union with Christ, especially as it relates to the ordo and historia salutis
It is important to note before we close, that this Engrafting into Christ by faith, by which we receive all His benefits by faith, is a personal, vital, mystical, existential Union. We will have much more to say on this in the next post, but it must be pointed out here that the only Union... Continue Reading
Is God Pleased With You?
God’s love for us, His pleasure with you and your security, is not bound up in Jesus’ death plus your obedience record afterward.
This doesn’t negate the need for a Christian to obey God’s word (Romans 6, 1 John, etc). However, it transforms the way that we view obedience to God as His kids. On a Tuesday you don’t have to earn a happy status with God, even with all of the garbage you did on Monday. You... Continue Reading