“Much of the best music the world has ever produced is in some way Christian, yet at Christmas time they go out of their way to showcase the worst. It’s the spiritual equivalent of McDonalds bringing the McRib back every year for a limited time. If the baby Jesus were alive today, he’d demand earplugs along... Continue Reading

“Christian service is unique for three reasons. First, it is unique in its source. That source is our redemption in Christ. Second, it is unique in its objective, which is to model, as far as is possible, Christ’s kind of servanthood. Third, it is unique in its character, for it is motivated by God’s holy-love.... Continue Reading

“The greatest battle that Jesus has won was not the fall of Jericho but his conquest of sin by dying in our place on the cross.  Just as Joshua’s greatest day was when he met Jesus Christ, our greatest day is when we believe in Jesus and trust him to forgive all our sins.”  ... Continue Reading

“Jesus teaches us here that all our speech—every word—is spoken before God and lies under his scrutiny. Each word involves the reality of God in our lives. That is, by each spoken word those around us can know if God is really in our character. Our language betrays our heart. It is unavoidable. “For out... Continue Reading

“It is only a matter of time before something like this happens to someone you know. At some point you may well be faced with the opportunity to go rooting through another person’s emails after they have been hacked and made public. So let me ask: Will you read those emails? Will you read your... Continue Reading

“Christ is the picture given to the husband to follow in leadership. He must be willing to give up the greatest personal comforts for the sake of his bride, just as Christ was. Therefore, the husbands concern in marriage is not his happiness and ease, but his wife’s.”   Last week we began looking at... Continue Reading

“Mr. Anyabwile and others think that in the providence of God the deaths of black men at the hands of police, particularly the shooting of Michael Brown in Ferguson, MO, and the stranglehold used on Eric Garner in New York City, have pressed upon American society and the Christian church the issue of racial justice.”... Continue Reading

“If your primary goal is to be entertained, follow an entertaining pastor. If your primary goal is to know Jesus, follow a pastor who can lead you to the throne. If you don’t know how to assess which is which, ask yourself whether people walk away from the worship gathering thinking, “Wow, that pastor is... Continue Reading

If we want to give our children the gift of clearer gospel understanding this Christmas, we must put more thought into how we lead them than we put into buying gifts and making Pinterest crafts. How should we shepherd our kids through a season laden with greed? Should we give one present per child, tithe... Continue Reading

And so I began to fear that I hadn’t really been saved—or, at least, that my story of being saved wasn’t quite legitimate. My before-and-after-conversion pictures (assuming I could even pinpoint a particular moment) didn’t look that different. With no outward markers of coming to Christ, I questioned whether I had at all. Perhaps I... Continue Reading