Cynicism Isn’t a Spiritual Gift
Cynicism is contagious. It has become a movement, a niche lifestyle, a way of being.
Cynics aren’t interested in salvation or transformation. They’re only interested in an endless self-loathing ministry of doom. A prophet speaks to people he loves with tears. A cynic disdains the people he is called to confront. A prophet’s desire is to see transformation. A cynic’s desire is to bring attention to himself. One of my... Continue Reading
Find Your Way to Help the Hurting
A Hundred Roads to the Hurting
Find your way to move toward the hurting. Don’t assume someone else is checking in. Don’t assume someone else will send a meal. Don’t assume they’re overwhelmed with messages and visits. When the trial comes — when sickness falls, when the job disappears, when the marriage collapses, when a loved one dies — assume God... Continue Reading
The Wonderful Harmony of Vivification and Mortification
We kill and we fill. We fight and we feast. We remove and we indulge.
We fight sin. We battle it. We kill it. But anyone who has waged this kind of war will tell you that the removal of any sinful habit, especially one we hold closely to our hearts, leaves an incredible void in its absence. We wonder if we can even go on, for we’ve come to... Continue Reading
5 Ways to Encourage Your Children to Serve
“Service” should be a major theme in your family.
Don’t underestimate your children by assuming they can’t serve others. They can and they should. Expect it. Model it. Don’t overestimate your children by assuming they’ll want to serve. They probably won’t unless their parents teach them how or their father convinces them it’s cool. Then you’ll have a hard time getting them to sit still. We... Continue Reading
Latter Glory
The Prophecy of Haggai and the Coming of Jesus
Haggai 2:9 isn’t predicting a future physical temple to be built at some point in Jerusalem in the end times. The words of the Lord in that verse are about what Christ would accomplish in himself and with his church. The word of the Lord told Haggai’s contemporaries that something greater than their temple was... Continue Reading
Thoughts on the Church’s True Nature and Mission: A Partial Rejoinder to Larry Ball’s Challenge to the Spirituality of the Church
The Spirituality of the Church is an inferred doctrine that arises from various aspects of the church’s nature, role, and relations, and in many cases, is best discussed at length.
The church has a definite purpose to accomplish, which her Lord has provided her with the authority, gifts, and power to achieve. It is her business to make disciples of all nations, baptizing and teaching them to observe all that Christ has commanded. This will often result in great social, economic, and political consequences, yet... Continue Reading
Know the Difference Between Laziness and Limitations
Why Does It Matter?
Laziness is clearly condemned in Scripture (e.g., Prov. 18:9; 21:25), while awareness of limitations and finitude is commended as wisdom (e.g., Ps. 90:1–12). Laziness is the shirking of duty and the prideful assertion that I won’t do that. Accepting my limitations is the humble acceptance that I can’t do that. Yesterday, while dressed in my typical uniform of sweats... Continue Reading
It’s “Very Good” to be a Man
Fighting for what you are FOR instead of fighting what you are AGAINST.
Men, masculinity is defined by God in Scripture. When that is the kind of man you are learning to become, or striving to become, then you have aligned yourself with God’s “very good” vision. Care nothing for what the haters and critics say. Do not apologize for your masculinity, do not be ashamed of it,... Continue Reading
WCF Chapter 3: Of God’s Eternal Decree
How to Affirm the Teaching of God’s Will and Works
How should we respond to God’s decree, not just his decision to pass over some, but to ordain all things? Embrace it! Believe that God’s eternal decree has established the meaning of your choices. God’s working in you “to will and to work for his good pleasure” is why you can and must “work out... Continue Reading
You Can’t Tear Down the Norm and Then Be Surprised by What Comes Next
When you deny the grounding, you destroy the norm.
Nothing that’s happening now is surprising to Christians who argued for keeping the opposite-sex definition of marriage. We had principled reasons for opposing same-sex marriage that had nothing to do with hate and everything to do with truth and the good of our society. This will become more and more clear over time, but that’s cold comfort in light of all... Continue Reading
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