Trust reduces our sorrows, and makes us “cheerful in the midst of all difficulties and discouragements.” Manton cites Psalm 13:5, which says: ‘I have trusted in thy mercy; my heart shall rejoice in thy salvation.”   “Trust in God.” “Trust in Christ.” “Trust the Bible.” We hear this word often as Christians as we are... Continue Reading

In the Bible, the distinction is made between a shepherd and a hired hand (John 10:11-15). A shepherd (elder) has in his heart a God-given love for the sheep and a desire to care for those entrusted to him. The hired hand is unwilling to become as emotionally involved.   The following is a list... Continue Reading

The ringing phone adds a need for an urgent decision (to answer the phone or not) and immediate responses during the conversation. A scheduled meeting (or planned phone call) might bring with it nervous anticipation. Traveling to meet someone on their turf can communicate that you are going out of your way for the sake... Continue Reading

Secret sin is serious sin. We must recognize that, “All sins are first and foremost a defiance of the holy laws of God.” (John R. W. Stott) If we are to experience spiritual health and blessedness, we need to know the truth about ourselves and to admit it. This is an elementary rule of mental... Continue Reading

 Pastors who welcome those who go out to spread the gospel of Jesus’s death and resurrection have the dual effect of meeting the immediate needs of those ministers and modeling hospitality for the church. It may be this kind of ministry that Jesus has in view when He describes hospitality as the fulcrum of judgment... Continue Reading

We must have our hope set upon him. We must believe that if there is happiness to be found, it will only be found because of him. If we are not looking to him for our answers, we will be essentially untethered — in which case, anything goes, and any advice will be worth a... Continue Reading

The centrality and importance of this sacrament in the life of the local church is extremely obvious from the Bible. It is a way for God’s people, in the context of the local church, to remember Jesus’s death and partake—by faith— in his body and blood. In this, God gives real grace to his people... Continue Reading

Here’s how Martin Lloyd-Jones explained it in his sermon on Matthew 5:10-12: …It does not say, ‘Blessed are those who are persecuted because they are objectionable.’ It does not say, ‘Blessed are those who are having a hard time in their Christian life because they are being difficult.’ In many different places the New Testament... Continue Reading

A holy people cannot help but stand out—not merely for what they abstain from, but for what they pursue, defend, and build. Holiness is not passive resistance but active fruitfulness. A people set apart by God are known not simply by their confessions but by their cultivation of civility—their ability to be fruitful and multiply... Continue Reading

The term “Evangelical Church,” understood in its biblical and historical roots, remains a sound and eminently practical theological construct among Reformed churches. The word “Evangelical” should evoke thoughts, remembrances, and affections of unity and peace in the Church of Jesus Christ.   “…if our gospel is veiled, it is veiled to those who are perishing.... Continue Reading