The Lord’s Day is Christians delighting in God’s mercy, rejoicing once again of their honored status before God. But, some will say, we can do this throughout the week and do not need a special day for this. That is true. We should always boast of God. But we also should not be wiser than God or the apostles.
Read MoreWhat do you think? Is the Lord’s command a suggestion to ignore? Or is it really an invitation to know God’s goodness in a deeper way?
Read MoreChristians of past generations often thought about what is “sacred” and “secular,” as well as what is “holy” and “profane.” These days, however, for a number of different reasons, many Christians do not dwell on these things so much anymore. And that is a shame.
Read MoreHang a picture of Jesus in your home, and your sins will be visited upon your children and your children’s children.
Read MoreParaphrasing C.S. Lewis a little bit here, Trendy words come and go. They mostly go. May the Lord have mercy on us, that idol and idolatry are not just another passing thought of the moment. But that we find lasting delight in God, find our satisfaction and contentment in him who said, “I will never leave you nor forsake you.”
Read MoreThat is, Jesus’ commanding grasp of Scripture was a result of his deep devotion to obey God’s word. The more he obeyed, the more he grew in wisdom. And as his obedience to God’s Word was flawless, he came to possess a flawless understanding of God’s Word.
Read Morehidden behind a sizable pulpit. That is intentional. In the worship service, God’s Word faithfully preached from the pulpit has the attention of the worshippers. The minister is but a servant of the Word, and he is never the central figure of the worship service.
Read MoreSunday is Father’s Day, and, naturally, my inbox is flooded with notices of special sales. Leaving aside the unabashed consumerism for a moment, we may profit from reflecting on honoring our fathers. Interestingly, honoring our heavenly Father with appropriate gifts is the theme of Malachi 1:6–11.
Read MoreEvangelical Christians often say “We are saved by faith.” It is a perfectly fine statement as long as we understand that it is actually highly compressed statement of convenience.
Read MoreIndeed, what would you say to people who say they are hungry, but refuse the delectable food that is offered, and instead shatter their teeth trying to eat gravel? You would say that they are crazy.
Read MoreWhy would you stick with the old when you can have the new? Of course, this is the mantra of the Madison Avenue, and we would be well advised to ignore it. However, Christians can joyfully affirm “What is new is better than the old” at least in one place. The new covenant is absolutely better than the old covenant.
Read MoreThis Lord’s Day we will witness the covenant baptism of baby Evangeline. One of the reasons Christ calls children to himself is so that he may extend to them the promise of new birth and adoption into God’s family.
Read MoreHardly nothing is more important. Yet not many things are as neglected as it. It has been attacked, denied, and twisted more times than can be counted. We all think we know it. But only a precious few self-professed Christians can even state it rightly.
Read MoreTo say that the Holy Spirit is not in the Old Testament is almost as brilliant as saying there were no roads before maps were drawn.
Read MoreGratitude is the one thing, if it is missing, would cause our worship to be rejected by God.
Read MoreAs we look forward to celebrate Christ’s resurrection, we look back at the first Easter Sunday recorded for us in John 20:1–18. There we see Mary Magdalene, and the last things she wanted to do was celebrate!
Read MoreThis coming Lord’s Day is the Palm Sunday, which begins the Passion Week, leading to Good Friday and Easter Sunday. It is a long-standing church tradition that on Palm Sunday we turn to one of the New Testament passages that tells us about Jesus’ triumphant entry into Jerusalem.
Read MoreIs Jesus a cheerleader or a redeemer? A cheerleader stands off to the side, away from the field of action, and sings the praise of the athlete. “You’re doing great! Keep going! Woo-hoo!”
Read MoreWe want to know Christ. Our only Redeemer and friend. Our sure hope and the fountain of never-ceasing grace. Everything else is rubbish. Everything else can, and will, leave us. Christ is all that matters. Do you believe this?
Read MoreIt just sounds so unfair, doesn’t it? It was Adam who sinned. We weren’t even around when he did. Yet we are considered sinners along with Adam, and suffer the consequences of his sin. Because of what Adam did, we will all die. How is this fair? Is this not a clear evidence of God’s injustice?
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