Love and marriage

In his book, What Did You Expect? Redeeming the Realities of Marriage (a really fine book), Paul Tripp offers the following definition for love: Love is willing self-sacrifice for the good of another that does not require reciprocation or that the person being loved is deserving. From that definition, he draws two dozen implications for […]

They were “rock solid”

I can think of few condemnations worse than this one — you have been faithful to Christ, but you don’t love Christ. This is the condemnation of the Ephesian church by Christ. You might say it this way — they were rock solid for Christ; He just took no pleasure in it. For Christ there […]

It left its first love

It was a church with an incredibly rich history. Founded by the apostle Paul along with Priscilla and Aquilla, it was first pastored by Timothy. And Jesus’ beloved disciple John was probably its “Pastor Emeritus.” It was the recipient of a letter from the apostle Paul that was rich in elegance and theology (and her […]

The day after Valentine’s Day – now what?

Yesterday was the day for candy, card, and flower shops. Today is the day for lovers. Yesterday the retailers made their money. Today marriage partners make their marriages. Call me fussy. Call me a curmudgeon. Call me a spoil sport. I just don’t like being told by business and industry when is the best time […]

Valentine’s Day and the love of God

Today, on the day when the rest of the world celebrates the human love, what better time is there to remember the divine love of God for man. What follow are some reflections of men who have “said it better than me” about God’s love: When Karl Barth, the famed German theologian, visited the Untied […]

Book Review: Love or Die

Title: Love or Die: Christ’s Wake-Up Call to the Church Author: Alexander Strauch Publisher: Lewis & Roth, 2008; 99 pp. $9.99 Recommendation (4-star scale): A few weeks ago I preached a message on Revelation 2:1-7 — the Ephesian church’s loss of love for Christ. A couple days after the message, a friend said to […]

Grab Bag

A list of collected resources, interesting articles, and even an opportunity or two from the last week: Allister Begg’s conference for pastors is always interesting and helpful. I’ve listened to the audio for the last two or three years, and this year one of the speakers is a guy named Piper. Hmmm. I won’t be […]

Today’s Quote (10/13/08)

Michael Wilkins, In His Image: Love is an unconditional commitment to an imperfect person, a commitment I give myself to in order to bring the relationship to God’s intended purpose.

Today’s Quote (10/11/08)

John Norman, “Bringing in the Outcast” (Discipleship Journal): We all have “lepers” in our lives—people we don’t want to touch because we’re repelled by their personalities, social skills, or emotional problems. Too often, we exclude certain people even from the Body of Christ because they don’t seem to fit in—another church would be better for […]

Today’s Quote (10/10/08)

John Piper, Desiring God: Love is the overflow of joy in God that meets the needs of others. The overflow is experienced consciously as the pursuit of our joy in the joy of another. We double our delight in God as we expand it in the lives of others. If our ultimate goal were anything […]

How to love your enemy

Do you ever wonder how to love your enemy and pray for those who persecute you (Mt. 5:44)? John Piper, contemplating that command of Christ, relates it to the familiar pattern for prayer that follows in Mt. 6 — It would be unwarranted to think that the loving prayer for our enemy should ask for […]

Sunday Leftovers (6/3/07)

A fundamental means of surviving — no, thriving — in marriage is by cultivating love in that marriage. Husbands are called to love their wives (Eph. 5:25-30). Wives are called to love their husbands (Titus 2:4). In the classic passage on love, all believers (including both husbands and wives) are called to a life of […]