“Many modern songs are scatty, cloying, fluffy, incoherent, repetitive, flighty, bumbling, empty, careless, shallow, heretical, repetitive, nauseating, anaemic or repetitive. The fact that they nevertheless make their way into our times of corporate worship is not primarily the fault of the songwriters.”   I’m a huge fan of contemporary worship music. I don’t even apologise... Continue Reading

Only the incidentals of our current situation have changed.  The underlying principles remain always the same, and thus  the church’s task remains the same: to declare with a ‘This saith the Lord!’ that this age is passing.  Now is not the time to lose confidence in the very mode of God’s action in this world,... Continue Reading

Rather than pursuing biblical masculinity in order to reach Christ, men should pursue Christ first and become the men God has already made them to be. This is Pyle’s banner, and it bears a striking resemblance to Hannah Anderson’s conclusion in Made for More. There, she invites women to recover their primary identity as being... Continue Reading

 I am fortunate: my ‘day job’ is something which pays a living wage, which I love doing, and which offers significant overlap with my pastoral work.  Most other bivocational pastors I know do not enjoy such privilege.   They drive buses or work office jobs or even (in one case) run a ranch in order... Continue Reading

This book is ideal for those whose ministry is in a church context where there are many who are unchurched. It would be a useful tool for a spiritual mentor to use in a discipleship relationship with a new believer. The writing is clear, practical, and Biblical. Reading through Crowned, you feel as though Melissa... Continue Reading

Beale points out in his last lecture of his Biblical theology series that every time a man leaves his father’s household to cling to his wife (Gen. 2:24), we have “a parable, a repeated parable, of what Christ would do as the husband of the church: leave his father, cleave to the church. He would... Continue Reading

The New Pastor’s Handbook: Help and Encouragement for the First Years of Ministry (Baker) is exactly the sort of book I wanted to read when I was starting out in the ministry. With 48 bite-sized chapters on topics like calling, candidating, reading, using your time wisely, busyness, thankfulness, visitation, discontentment, discouragement, envy, and the privilege... Continue Reading

There’s a reason why historic Reformed/Presbyterian churches respond so quickly, strongly, and ecclesiastically (i.e. in a churchly manner) to preaching that clouds the gospel by mixing law/works and gospel/grace.  When we hear things like “works are instrumental in justification” or “final justification at the last day” or “the lawful gospel” or “I’m not sure ‘imputation’... Continue Reading

My intent in providing this summary of Lee’s points is not simply so that we may learn a bit of history about a heresy that arose in the early church. My hope is that, by learning and understanding the ways in which Gnosticism is contrasted with Biblical Christianity, we might be better able to spot... Continue Reading

In The Biggest Story, Kevin DeYoung—a best-selling author and father of six—leads kids and parents alike on an exciting journey through the Bible, connecting the dots from the garden of Eden to Christ’s death on the cross to the new heaven and new earth. With powerful illustrations by award-winning artist Don Clark, this imaginative retelling... Continue Reading