Author and professor John Patrick suggests that there are nine questions that every person must answer — Where did I come from? Why am I here? Where am I going? How do I come to terms with death? How do I make sense of suffering? How can I possibly believe in justice? What can I […]
Read More “But God…”Jeremiah said that, “the heart is more deceitful than all else And is desperately sick; Who can understand it?” (17:9). That statement affirms the doctrine of depravity — a man’s heart might desire sin far worse and far more than one can conceive. Depravity does not mean that a man sins as much as he […]
Read More The kinds of men God savesIs God unfair to condemn sinners to hell? Many people — even many members of many church denominations — will say, “Yes, that is unjust of God. How could God be less kind than me?…” Yet Paul answers very differently. In Romans 9, interacting with the question of theodicy — God’s righteousness is judging the […]
Read More The riches of God’s mercyWhat is the message of the cross? “For the word of the cross is foolishness to those who are perishing, but to us who are being saved it is the power of God. For it is written, “I WILL DESTROY THE WISDOM OF THE WISE, AND THE CLEVERNESS OF THE CLEVER I WILL SET ASIDE.” […]
Read More The message of the crossB. B. Warfield: Ideally all of Christ’s children were saved before the foundation of the world, when they were set upon by God’s love, and given by the Father to the Son to be saved by Him. Objectively they were saved when Christ died for them on the tree, purchasing them to Himself by His […]
Read More The process of salvationDo you believe the gospel? Specifically, do you believe the power of the gospel to change and transform the lives of those who believe the gospel? I don’t ask the question rhetorically; I ask it actually. Do you believe the gospel has the ability to save anyone and transform his life? Do you believe that […]
Read More Do you believe the gospel?“If you ask where God’s glory most is seen, I will not point to creation, nor to providence, but to the raising of Jesus from the dead,” said Charles Spurgeon. There is a parallel to that statement. If God’s glory is most seen in the resurrection of Christ, then His glory is likewise seen in the […]
Read More All things are possible for GodMark 10 might be called a study in contrasts. Just as the qualities of oil and water are revealed when they are placed in the same jar, what Jesus says is clarified by two contrasting accounts in this chapter. In the first, the disciples want the children surrounding Christ to be sent away; Jesus wants […]
Read More Salvation – a study in contrastsFrom Tim Challies’ blog this morning — Reading Michael Wittmer’s excellent new book The Last Enemy, I came across a powerful little story that I wanted to share with you. I trust you will enjoy it as I did. My friend Jeff stopped by the hospital to visit one of his dearest senior saints. Charlotte […]
Read More Tell Me The Story One More TimeChristopher Hitchens, considered a leader in the “New Atheism” movement, has died. Pastor and theologian Douglas Wilson, who had a long-standing relationship that grew out of a series of debates with Hitchens (he commented one time, “if Christopher and I were not careful, we were in danger of becoming friends”), has written a compelling reflection […]
Read More A reflection on Christopher Hitchens’ deathJohn Piper sets out to resolve the question of whether Paul and James contradict each other about the relationship between faith and works: Paul says in Romans 4:2,3: “If Abraham was justified by works, he has something to boast about; but not before God. For what does the Scripture say? ‘And Abraham believed God, and […]
Read More Faith and works: Are Paul and James contradictory?Martin Luther: Now, we are sure that Christ pleases God, that he is holy and so on. Inasmuch, then, as Christ pleases God and we are in him, we also please God and are holy. Although sin still remains in us, and although we daily fall and offend, grace is more abundant and stronger than […]
Read More Pleasing GodIn Colossians 3:11, Paul says (echoing v. 4 — “Christ, who is our life…”), “Christ is all, and in all.” That is, Christ is all-sufficient. He is everything a believer needs and He is everything to that believer. And He is in all believers equally — no one gets an extra dose of Jesus. His […]
Read More Christ is allJust because I have life this moment does not mean that I am guaranteed life in any future moment. For the believer, this is a comforting statement because he can be happy with life here and he is happy with life in eternity (which is Paul’s point in Phil. 1). For the unbeliever, this is […]
Read More The uncertainty of the continuance of lifeThe release of one book has produced a massive (and needed) output of words in the blogosphere on the topic of hell. I’ve been planning to write something myself (perhaps tomorrow morning). For now, this 8-minute excerpt from a message by R. C. Sproul is a sober reminder of the profound work Christ accomplished by […]
Read More The curse of God and the grace of Christ
Words of Grace 