Like many lights illuminating a large room, the triune God shines more brilliantly through Christians gathered together than apart. Gifted grace fosters “humility and gentleness, with patience, bearing with one another in love” and being “eager to maintain the unity of the Spirit in the bond of peace” (4:2). Graces are others-centered, which means that... Continue Reading

The deepest problem of unbelief has never been merely the absence of information. Nor has the ultimate goal of redemption ever been merely the correction of intellectual error. The biblical story begins with humanity turning away from God Himself, and it ends with humanity brought back into the presence of God Himself. The final victory... Continue Reading

We should desire all people to ‘serve the Lord with fear, and rejoice with trembling’ lest the Son’s wrath be kindled against them (Psa. 2:11, 12). Therefore, it is right to apply such prayers to the enemies of the church today. Jesus promises that the gates of hell shall not prevail against her (Matt. 16:18).... Continue Reading

The diversity of body parts is not detrimental to the body as a whole—it’s essential to it. What makes a body a body is the unity of the diversity. The same is true in the church: What makes it the church is the part you play. Your feeling like you have a part to play... Continue Reading

So many saints in name only hear the Word of Christ through the Spirit of Christ Sunday after Sunday. The way forward is back: Return to those very words, and believe! There’s power in the words. There’s life, real life, not reputation-only life, in those words. By the grace of the Spirit, we have these... Continue Reading

Do we really need to fill our rest full of “holy” activities for it to be meaningful to the Lord? Is a good holiday the one that leaves us practically burnt out after serving the Lord so hard? Is a good Sunday necessarily the most active Sunday? I see no evidence for this in the... Continue Reading

The God who created the cosmos will certainly rule it wisely and well and will accomplish his own purposes throughout its existence.  Isaiah 44.23-45.18 This passage, which lies between the first two Servant Songs, focuses on God’s deliverance of Judah from captivity in Babylon and their consequent return to the land. The God who created... Continue Reading

Our justification does not come some day in the undetermined future, based on our own works. Every true believer is declared righteous in Christ and has both legal and relational standing as God’s children. All believers are coheirs with Christ (Rom. 8:17). Christians not only have the benefit of being justified in Christ, but they... Continue Reading

We have to be careful that what doesn’t matter to us might not be the same for someone else. The best path to follow is to focus on ourselves instead of being preoccupied with how someone else is spending their time and energy.     “I’m not afraid of failure, I’m afraid of succeeding at... Continue Reading

Wherever such people gather in Christ’s name, there is the church. It might be a grand cathedral, a converted warehouse, a school hall, or a living room. The location is incidental. The essence lies in the people themselves: those called out of darkness into God’s marvelous light.     If you ask a group of... Continue Reading