J. I. Packer, Keep In Step with the Spirit: Holiness…is the fruit of the Spirit, displayed as the Christian walks by the Spirit (Galatians 5:16, 22, 25). Holiness is consecrated closeness to God. Holiness is in essence obeying God, living to God and for God, imitating God, keeping his law, taking his side against sin, […]
Read More Holiness is…It has been said that the self-examined life is not worth living. I’ve repeated that slogan many times. But there is a tempering corollary that is not said often enough. The self-examined life is not worth living. And the over-examined life may be detrimental. The latter statement needs to be made because the over-examined life […]
Read More Self-examination for weak consciencesWho is the Holy Spirit? Selected Scriptures February 16, 2014 It seems that we live in a time when theological error is particularly thriving. There have always been false teachers. They just seem to abound today: There is confusion about the church and unity — should we embrace every entity that calls itself a church […]
Read More Sermon: Who is the Holy Spirit?From Justin Taylor, yesterday: Lady Jane Grey (1536/7-1554) is a daughter of the Reformation whose story of faithfulness and grace deserves to be better known. To explain why this 18-year-old girl was beheaded after a 9-day reign as Queen of England, we first have to offer an all-too-brief primer on the political background of Tudor […]
Read More The Execution of Lady Jane GreyOne of the most helpful books on biblical counseling, Counseling the Hard Cases, edited by Stuart Scott and Heath Lambert, is on sale as a digital book for Kindle for $2.99. The hard copy of this book retails for $32.99, so this is a terrific deal. This is a book that should be on every […]
Read More Counseling the Hard Cases, Kindle version on saleAudio from the recent Essentials Conference on fellowship, hosted by Countryside Bible Church is now available. The messages included: Sunday, Feb. 9 “The Challenge and Limits of Biblical Koinonia” (Romans 15:5-7) — Mike Fabarez “The Kind of Body Life God Favors” (1 Thessalonians 5:12-15) — Jerry Wragg “Body Life: Deformity or Symmetry” (Romans 12:3-8; 1 […]
Read More Essentials Conference audioFrom a recent sermon by Keith Palmer (quoting an unnamed source): What does it mean to be united to Jesus Christ? The die has been cast. I have stepped over the line. The decision has been made. I am united to Jesus Christ. I won’t look back, let up, slow down, back away, or be […]
Read More What does it mean to be united to Christ?Love One Another, Pt. 3 1 John 3:19-24 February 9, 2014 Many people struggle with the question of whether or not one is saved. John Piper gets to the central issue about assurance when he writes: The most agonizing problem about the assurance of salvation is not the problem of whether the objective facts of […]
Read More Sermon: Love One Another (Pt. 3)Charles Spurgeon, “Three Arrows, or Six?” in Intended for Good: It is a very difficult task to show the meeting-place of the purpose of God and the free agency of man. One thing is quite clear, we ought not to deny either of them, for they are both facts. It is a fact that God […]
Read More God and man: sovereignty and responsibilityMelvin Tinker, Intended for Good: …it is in and through the ordinary day-to-day things of life and the most unassuming of people that God is mightily at work, moving secretly and silently to bring about his great plan of salvation for the world.…We are not to make the mistake of thinking that God is only […]
Read More God is working todayA few theological thoughts about while doing today’s Bible reading (Exodus 5-8): Pharaoh’s initial response to Moses’ request to release the Israelites was similar to and a precursor to the way many unbeliever’s today reject God — “why should I do that? Who is God and why should I obey Him?” (Ex. 5:2) God actively […]
Read More God and ExodusAfter last night’s debate on origins between Ken Ham and Bill Nye, the tempting question to ask is, “Who won the debate?” I suspect that both evolutionists and creationists will claim victory by their representative in the debate. But for the believer in Christ the debate isn’t about winning and losing. It was encouraging to […]
Read More Who won the Ham/Nye origins debate?Dear Ann Landers: A few years ago, I committed a crime (a misdemeanor). I was arrested and charged. Since I had never been in trouble before, my lawyer had my record expunged. Will this show up on a police background check? I’m looking for a job and want to be sure my prospective employers won’t […]
Read More ExpungedWith all the cultural talk about the economy, it’s easy to get confused about financial priorities. And it’s hard to keep a biblical perspective for why we have money and material possessions. But the Apostle John won’t let us forget. “But whoever has the world’s goods, and sees his brother in need and closes his […]
Read More Sunday Leftovers: Why God gives us material possessionsLove One Another, Pt. 2 1 John 3:15-18 February 2, 2014 The story, an open secret in the crowded nylon city of Mount Everest base camp, trickled out from the high Himalayas: A British mountaineer desperate for oxygen had collapsed along a well-traveled route to the summit. Dozens of people walked right past him, unwilling […]
Read More Sermon: Love One Another (Pt. 2)
