Sunday Leftovers (12/20/09)

The story of the birth of Christ is populated by a broad variety of people who — superficially at least — seemed to have no particularly significant qualifications for their involvement in the story. The credentials for Joseph and Mary are humble at best: poor, young, alone, largely ostracized by family and friends. The shepherds […]

They saw Christmas, Pt. 2

[Continued from yesterday.] Consider two more groups of people who saw that first Christmas, and their kindred spirits who still see Christ today. Two oft-forgotten God-believers are Simeon and Anna (their story is told in Luke 2:22-38 if you wish to refresh your memory about them). There were a number of similarities between these two. […]

Grab bag

Al Mohler has had several thought-provoking posts recently: “Starting Something You Cannot Finish” “An Amazing Article on Abortion…” “The Kindle Experience…” (Would you read an electronic book?) Reflections on Tiger Woods — “The Travail of Tiger Woods” (Mohler) “Hunting Tiger Woods” (Mahaney) “The Seduction of Power — the Tiger Woods Story” (Witherington) “Tiger and the […]

They saw Christmas

If there were people who, though proximate to Jesus’ birth, missed Christmas, examples also abound of those who celebrated Christmas the Christ way. Consider Mary. Though young in years (she was probably a teenager), she was mature in spirit. Luke tells us that she and Zacharias experienced similar angelic revelations (1:5-38). Yet when Zacharias was […]

They missed Christmas, Pt. 2

(Continued from yesterday) There were others that missed that first Christmas. They were two groups of people that should have known Christ — but still chose to ignore Christ. There were the religious leaders. They knew where Christ was to be born (Micah 5:2), but showed no interest in Him when the wise men showed […]

They missed Christmas

They missed Christmas. Oh, they were there. They saw the baby. They heard the cries of joy from the shepherds. They might have heard the testimonies of Anna and Simeon. They heard the story of angelic visits from Joseph and Mary. But they missed Christmas. Take, for instance, the innkeeper. When a teenage couple in […]

The uncommon Word

In my office, literally within arms reach of my desk I have 18-20 English Bibles. That doesn’t count my Bibles at home or in my car, the many versions on my computer, or the hundreds of commentaries on my shelves that also contain English translations of the Scripture. I affirm that having Scripture so readily […]

An Overview of Revelation

Tomorrow in our Bible reading plan we begin reading the final book of the Bible — Revelation. This book, often read, widely speculated about, and frequently puzzled over, is one of the most confusing to more than a few readers. A good guide will help you through this book. And Robert Thomas is just such […]

What could you do…?

Adolphe Monod observes, as D. L. Moody did in a previous generation, that it is unknown just what might be accomplished through the life of an individual wholly committed to God: We have no idea of what we would be able to do if we were completely lost in such total harmony with God; if […]

Sunday Leftovers (12/13/09)

As a child, I was taught what you might call “formula prayers” for bedtime and meals — a prayer that was repeated at each meal and another at each nightfall. The same words were given with the same intonation at the same time each day. It was many years before I felt liberated to pray […]

The wonder of the cross

Yesterday I was going through a stack of articles that I’d tagged to be filed and came across one in which the author was reflecting on the nature of the cross and the atonement — he had been meditating on the “practical outworking” of the atonement, and had come up with three insights (which he […]

What is sin?

Were we able to daily understand the reality of sin and its consequences, it would have far less attraction to us. Two statements from two different writers have helped me in comprehending what sin really is. I have heard John MacArthur say on numerous occasions, “Sin is what we do when we are disappointed with […]

Questions to diagnose the heart of your child

The trouble of arriving at adequate solutions to complex problems is the difficulty of diagnosis. Make a mistake in evaluation and you are almost certain to make an inadequate response. That’s true for a mechanic and a car engine, a student and a math equation, a plumber and a clogged drain, an accountant and a […]

John Piper is thankful (and so am I)

John Piper has written much about thanksgiving and Desiring God has put together some of his thoughts. If you need more stimulants to gratitude, you might try “Some Thanksgiving Reading.” A number of thoughts on gratitude from this blog can be found at “Gratitude.”

Thanksgiving is for everyday

The leftovers sit in the refrigerator, the football feast is over, and maybe even some of the Christmas shopping is ended. But thanksgiving isn’t over. Thanksgiving isn’t for a day; it’s for everyday. Yesterday morning I read Habakkuk again — and was reminded why gratitude is important. Though the fig tree should not blossom And […]