Three Tests God Ordains for His People
Knowing that tests are purposeful, we can rest, understanding that the Master is fully in control of both the test and the outcome.
As a teacher, I don’t ask test questions because I need to know the answers. I ask questions because my students need to know the answers. Likewise, God ordains tests for us, not for his sake, but for ours. He ordains tests today just as he did in the Old Testament with the testing of his people,... Continue Reading
Free to Love
love is joyfully and willfully sacrificing yourself to serve others by doing them good.
This is what we see in the gospel, and this is what Christians endeavor to do as we respond to the gospel. The gospel is the most heart-melting and liberating truth. It models and motivates true love. What is love? And how do we love others? There is unlikely a word that is more familiar... Continue Reading
We Are Not Germs: The Case for Human Dignity
Christianity teaches that human dignity is rooted in the holiness of God; it reflects God’s dignity.
If you call me to sacrificial, altruistic action in behalf of human beings, you better have a reason. And it should be greater than simply, we should be for people because we’re people. Because unless we can establish that it means something to be people, it’s pure emotion. And rights granted on the basis of... Continue Reading
Winning One Another
Nothing less than one’s eternal destiny is at stake when someone wanders.
God the Holy Spirit turns wanderers back to Himself, but He ordinarily uses people to do so, just as He uses means to bring people to saving faith in the first place. Just as God will use our faithful prayers and proclamation of the gospel for the saving of His elect, He will use our... Continue Reading
Forgive Me Not
Should we forgive someone who does not ask for our forgiveness or does not show repentance in the asking?
When we stand praying and forgive someone who has wronged us, we take it upon ourselves to undertake the heart work of forgiveness. When the wrongs we have forgiven others resurface uninvited in our minds, we must cry out to our God: “I do forgive; help me in my unforgiveness.” There is a debate... Continue Reading
The Duty of Devotion
Devotion is an expression of love and loyalty rooted in both duty and delight.
Christians often speak of devotion. We speak of “devoting ourselves to God” and, more commonly, of “doing our daily devotions.” This word is familiar to every believer, but I wonder how often we consider what it means and what it entails. What is this devotion we offer to God? And what’s the connection between devotion... Continue Reading
Don’t Be Caught without a Confession
Holding to a confession is an act of humility, admitting that we are not, as we would wish, the final arbiters of truth.
J. Gresham Machen wrote, “In the sphere of religion, as in other spheres, the things about which men are agreed are apt to be the things that are least worth holding; the really important things are the things about which men will fight.” In this way, confessions of faith are at the core of Christianity.... Continue Reading
Godliness Is Not Your Personality
Why do we take our individual, personality, character, gifts, or calling and make that the sum total of godliness for everyone else?
Why do we take our individual, personality, character, gifts, or calling and make that the sum total of godliness for everyone else? The introvert equates godliness with quietness. The extrovert equates godliness with activity. The generous person equates godliness with giving. The social person equates godliness with hospitality. The workaholic equates godliness with hard-work. The... Continue Reading
John 3 Might Not Mean What You Think It Does (2)
The habit of associating the work of the Spirit with great social, religious, and even psychological events is deeply ingrained in the the American psyche.
Again, in John 3, our Lord Jesus did not prescribe particular experiences nor large-scale social-religious events or movements. He prescribed new birth by the Holy Spirit. We have added the concomitant experiences and events. When we do this, in our own way, we are seeking to make a bit more reasonable and understandable the mysterious,... Continue Reading
Are You Always the Hero of Your Stories?
When I try to look awesome, I’m not doing a good job showing how awesome Jesus is.
Making yourself the hero all the time is like playing dress-up. It is not reality. This is living in a fantasy world. After all, my wife lives with me, she knows what is actually true. No matter how hard I tried, even unwittingly, to pretend and write my own script my home remains a “no-spin-zone.” ... Continue Reading