Sin is no longer our king. It is no longer our sovereign. We need not follow its dictates. It cannot command us. We have been set free to serve a new Lord, a better Lord. Sin no longer sits upon the throne of our hearts, grace does in the person of King Jesus. That is... Continue Reading

In preparing sermons in my ongoing “Studies in First Peter” I found the Scottish Presbyterian Alexander Nisbet’s (1623–1669) commentary (1658) on 1 Peter 1:13–25 to be helpful and relevant to the current debate. With verse 13, Peter turns from indicative to imperative, from praise to God to exhortation to Christians. And in his comments on these verses, Nisbet lists... Continue Reading

When we think of discipline, it is often in the form of correction for what we have done wrong. But we are to endure discipline like athletes training daily. And we do not lose heart because we do have the most important finisher that went before us in the race. We are to look to... Continue Reading

The church possesses two books to aid in worship: the Word of God and the hymnal. The Scriptures stand as the perfect and unwavering revelation of God throughout the ages. It is our rule, and the only infallible word on all matters of our faith and practice. The hymnal exists in submission to the authority... Continue Reading

Enns’ absolute confidence that no rock actually moved throughout the wilderness strikes me as rather strange (and ultimately, dare I say, Bultmannian). My guess is that his confidence on this point stems from the rather mundane observation that rocks don’t stretch their legs all that often. Fair enough. But seas aren’t generally in the habit... Continue Reading

Meekness is a combination of patience, gentleness, and a complete submission to the will of God. Meekness is learning to be self-controlled instead of needing to be in control. Meekness is opening your heart instead of clenching your fist. Meekness is the firm resolve that it is always better to suffer than to sin.  ... Continue Reading

This resolves once and for all that the congregation of Highland Park Presbyterian Church owns and controls the assets of Highland Park Presbyterian Church, free and clear of any claims by the PC(USA). This result achieves HPPC’s goal in the litigation of clarifying its exclusive ownership and control of its property.   The letter from... Continue Reading

I’ll never forget the time I was sitting in a boarding gate waiting area, and the man on my left was telling two ladies sitting with him about how his life was filled with wonder ever since he started praying the Prayer of Jabez daily. I kept my mouth shut.   I love Jesus. I... Continue Reading

So there is a little bit of truth in what Mrs. Osteen says. Be obedient to God, worship God, do what God wants, in part because it is in your own best interest to do so and will bring to you the kind of true happiness that lasts. But Mrs. Osteen’s message is so badly... Continue Reading

The war, like it or not a real war, is being waged by Islam. But the real enemy, admit it or not, is our own culture’s loss of faith. We cannot pretend that — for the first time in history — this condition is not fatal to a culture. We cannot wish this away. We... Continue Reading