“First, the believer’s security is assured. Christians will not fail if they look dependently to their merciful and faithful high priest. So many temptations and pressures, insidious as well as blatant, can lure us away from Christ and the faith we profess. This epistle seems to demand so much from us in relentless pilgrimage, strenuous... Continue Reading

The enormous problems with the social gospel Dorrien so admires notwithstanding, it is this witness to the power of the gospel amid suffering and oppression that makes this book an important read for Christians today. It was Christ himself who was being persecuted in these black brothers and sisters (Matthew 25:40, 45), and it was... Continue Reading

First published in the U.K. in 2007, Married for God has only just made its way across the Atlantic thanks to Crossway. Ash, who serves as Writer in Residence at Tyndale House in Cambridge, describes his book simply: It’s “a straightforward account of what the Bible teaches about marriage.”   It’s not like we’re hurting... Continue Reading

“Its Aim is Building, not Demolishing.  All criticism involves some element of demolition.  But its ultimate aim is to build something better, even beautiful, in its place.  If our motive is to leave a person’s life in smoldering ruins, we are doing the Devil’s work.  But if our am is a better person, we are... Continue Reading

The major thrust of Small Town Jesus is for more men to plant more churches in small towns. This is a good emphasis, but church revitalization needs to be emphasized as well. If we can focus on ministry in cities and small towns at the same time, surely we can focus on church planting and... Continue Reading

But in addition to Phoebe, Paul mentions eight other women in this section of greeting. “Moreover, five of these women—Prisca (v. 3), Junia (v. 7), Tryphaena and Tryphosa (v. 12), and Persis (v. 12)—are commended for their labor ‘in the Lord.’” (Douglas Moo, The Epistle to the Romans, 927). This list of greetings reveals something... Continue Reading

“Today’s Evangelical revisionists should take sober note. Time and again I tremble when I hear or read their flimsy arguments. They may be lionized by the wider advocates of the sexual revolution for fifteen minutes, because they are siding with that wider culture in undermining the clear teaching of Jesus and the Bible that stands... Continue Reading

I think it’s clear that Owen did not view Constantine’s “countenance and protection” of “the Christian religion” as an entirely positive historical event. It led the church away from a sole reliance on ecclesiastical power and the truth of Scripture, as they instead began to rely on “General Councils, armed with mixed power, partly civil... Continue Reading

Because God has promised to bless those who with true faith hear his word and partake of his sacraments, Reformed churches stress the importance of corporate worship.  God speaks to us, blesses us, feeds us, helps us (etc.) through these means of grace, so we should want to be there every time he is graciously... Continue Reading

“If certain tasks daunt you because you dread having to meet your own standards of perfection, it may help to imagine what a B-minus student, writer, attorney, or radiologist would accomplish. Force yourself to perform only that well, in the interests of accomplishing the task. You’ll be amazed not only by the amount of work... Continue Reading