Be Afraid — to the Glory of God Proverbs 1:7 April 19, 2020 When we are afraid, we are tempted to do things we would otherwise consider irrational. Consider these three folks who have a fear of bugs and spiders: A man was filling up his car at a gas station when he noticed a […]
Read More Sermon: Be Afraid – to the Glory of GodGod has created mankind according to two genders (Gen. 1:26-28). And with those two genders God makes clear that there is to be sexual union that results in children (Gen. 1:28). And as Moses explains the institution of marriage in Gen. 2:24-25, it is clear that God has not only created us as sexual beings […]
Read More The kind of sex God prohibits — and why[Keeping the heart] is the hardest work; heart-work is hard work indeed: to shuffle over religious duties with a loose and heedless spirit, will cost no great pains; but to set thyself before the Lord, and tie up thy loose and vain thoughts to a constant and serious attendance upon him; this will cost thee […]
Read More Watch your heartSome helpful articles from the last week: David Murray has “20 Helps to Sermon Listening.” Number 1? “Read and mediate on God’s Word every day: Daily Bible reading whets our appetite for the main course on the Lord’s Day. We can’t expect to be ready to digest spiritual food if we’ve not been eating through […]
Read More Grab bagThis blog was originally posted on June 11, 2010. The “fish story” is the poster-child for exaggeration. The longer the fish is dead, the bigger it grows. But fishermen are not the only ones who are prone to stretching the boundaries of a story. A 25-pound weight loss creeps up to 30, then 35 or […]
Read More God, please don’t give me too much (repost)“For as he thinks within himself, so he is…” (Prov. 23:7a; NASB) A quick trip to the local bookstore and even a superficial perusal of the food section will yield a plethora of books on dieting and eating designed to help the reader change his habits of consumption. The tenor of the books? “You are […]
Read More Spiritual food“Better is a poor man who walks in his integrity than he who is perverse in speech and is a fool.” (Prov. 19:1; NASB) A number of years ago, Ted Engstrom told this story in his book Integrity: For Coach Cleveland Stroud and the Bulldogs of Rockdale County High School [Conyers, Georgia], it was their […]
Read More IntegrityOne of the best tools for studying Scripture is a good concordance. Seeing how an author discusses a topic throughout a book or in his other books, or discovering how other authors discuss the same topic will help one develop a full theology on a given topic. One book where it is particularly useful to […]
Read More A short concordance for ProverbsIs it possible for God to hate? Does God hate? Yes, it is possible for God to hate and yes, He does hate. He hates anything that is contrary to righteousness. His hatred is a means of defending His truth, integrity and good. He is against anything that violates His standard of what is right. […]
Read More What the Lord hatesHuston Smith, senior professor of religion at Syracuse University, recounted his interaction with a famous author and professor: While I was teaching at MIT, Aldous Huxley joined us for a semester as distinguished visiting professor in the humanities. Needless to say, he was in demand all over New England, and my regard for him was […]
Read More What is wisdom?John R. W. Stott recounts the letter written by Robert Murray M’Cheyne to the Rev. Dan Edwards on October 2, 1840 after Edwards’ ordination as a missionary: I trust you will have a pleasant and profitable time in Germany. I know you will apply hard to German; but do not forget the culture of the […]
Read More How’s your heart?Say the word “fool” and the image of one who is easily duped comes to mind: Larry, Mo and Curly, Barney Fife, Laurel and Hardy. Yet they, and the characters they portrayed were not so much fools as simpletons who were essentially harmless, innocent, and amusing. Not so with the fool. Scripture is clear that […]
Read More Identifying the foolWe are to do everything humanly possible to be at peace with all men (Rom. 12:18). Yet harmony in human relationships cannot always be accomplished. Elizabeth Barrett was an accomplished writer and poet, yet her marriage with Robert Browning caused an irreconcilable rift with her parents. As he did with all his children who married, […]
Read More Sunday Leftovers – Relationships According to Proverbs“Like apples of gold in settings of silver Is a word spoken in right circumstances” (Prov. 25:11; NASB) It was supposed to be a simple fencing project. Buy a few panels, take the old ones down, put the new ones up. Real easy. And real unrealistic. It evolved into one of my typical projects, one […]
Read More A gold applePastor Kent Hughes recounts the fable of two men who lived in an ancient city — one was envious while the other was covetous. The ruler of this city sent for the two men and offered to grant each of them one wish. A small difference arose, however: he would grant the first man exactly […]
Read More Do not let your heart envy sinners
