Ouch! A Synopsis of Christ’s Teaching on Money

I’m in the middle of a two-part series on The Christian and Money, and it’s killing me. Seriously, comparing my thoughts on money with Scripture’s is devastating, though necessary. All of us—rich or poor, old or young, male or female—struggle with greed. In fact, I think there is probably no part of life in which [...]

Quick Hits (8/12/08)

Here are some miscellaneous thoughts and links for your consideration, including bits about Matt Hoskinson, The Solid Rock, homeschooling, how sanctification is like building boats, and a crazy YouTube link:
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Pray for Matt Hoskinson…and Grow with Him
Matt Hoskinson’s cancer journal has been extremely encouraging to me. Matt has been intentionally devotional, focusing more on spiritual than [...]

Sound Words: Lest We Forget

Scripture’s description of Christ’s establishment of the Lord’s Table on the night before His crucifixion is full of dramatic truths. By tying the ordinance to the Old Testament Passover (Matt 26:17, 26), He signified His redemption of mankind from sin’s bondage and equated Himself with the Passover’s sacrificial lamb, demonstrating that His death would turn [...]

Recognizing and Combatting Shallowness (Don’t Waste Your Life)

I’m spiritually shallow. It’s true.
The Lord has been revealing this to me in a variety of ways in recent days, including my own sermon preparation and devotional life, sermons I’ve heard (including an excellent treatment of the book of Jonah by missionary appointee Tim Bixby), and books I’ve been reading (particularly John Piper’s Don’t Waste [...]

Chime In: Conviction vs. Condemnation

I had another early morning Bible study with some men from church today. We went over chapter 12 of CJ Mahaney’s excellent little book Living the Cross Centered Life, a chapter entitled “Unloading Condemnation.” The friend leading the study (we take turns) started a profitable discussion on the difference between conviction and condemnation—a difference which [...]

START Your Prayers “In Jesus’ Name” (2 of 2)

In the previous post (which you should read prior to this one), I touched on the wonderful theology that is encapsulated in the phrase “in Jesus’ name.” I urged you (a) to understand what the phrase means and (b) to practice applying it by opening your prayers by reviewing and confessing the truths it communicates. [...]

START Your Prayers “In Jesus’ Name” (1 of 2)

Somehow, over the almost 2 millennia since the Lord Jesus taught His disciples how to pray, most Christians have come to understand the phrase “in Jesus’ name” merely as a sanctified sign-off. The phrase as we use it might rightly be translated in a number of ways:

“Sincerely,”
“Ten-four. Over-and-out.”
“Thanks for listening.”
“I’m done now. It’s someone else’s [...]

Purity Is a Positive Pursuit

A few weeks ago I completed a brief series on “Guys and Girls in the Church” with a message entitled “Purity is a Positive Pursuit.” The gist of it is this:
1. Merely avoiding immorality is an insufficient goal.
2. Merely avoiding immorality is an ineffective strategy.
In short, I believe that the pitfall into which many Christians [...]

The Church as a Slingshot

One of my favorite New Testament studies is considering the many “pictures” used to describe the church. The church is a flock, a building, a body, a family, an army, a bride, a cultivated field, etc. The pictures vary greatly, each providing a different perspective and emphasizing different truths. Well, another picture—which, though it isn’t [...]

Spurgeon on the Christian Soldier’s Great Love

Please plan a time over the next few days to read Spurgeon’s sermon on 2 Timothy 2:3, “A Good Soldier of Jesus Christ.” Outside of the Scriptures themselves, I doubt that you’ll read much that will be so profitable for your soul and Christ’s kingdom. I read a fair amount of Spurgeon, and I don’t [...]