A few days ago, I came across a question, “when is an issue important enough to correct someone?” The issue in that post seemed to be centered on correcting incorrect information (e.g., if something is not true, how often and when should I attempt to correct it?), and in that regard was helpful. However, that […]
Read More When should I confront a brother?Jonathan Edwards explores one of the reasons an individual might be caught in a state of depression: If you live very much in spiritual darkness, and without the comfortable presence of God, it may be this is the cause. If you complain that you have but little sweet communion with God, that you seem to […]
Read More If you live in spiritual darkness…Does God get disappointed when we believers sin? Here is a thoughtful and helpful answer from David Powlison: The statement I found particularly helpful: “Being not under wrath but under grace does not mean God is now somehow indifferent and does not respond appropriately to our sins.…There is a fatherly displeasure that God’s revealed in […]
Read More Does God get disappointed in believers when we disobey?The story is told about a visit that the 18th century king of Prussia, Frederick II of Prussia made to a prison in Berlin. Expectantly, the inmates all vainly attempted to prove to him their innocence and the injustice of their incarceration. Everyone, that is, with one exception. Seeing that one lone, quiet prisoner, the […]
Read More Sunday Leftovers (1/9/11)How dark is the darkness of sin? How black is the blackness of sin? Scripture tells us a number of realities about what it means to live in the dark: It is impossible to be “partially dark.” if one lives in any part of darkness, then he lives in full darkness and that darkness is […]
Read More Sunday Leftovers (10/17/10)Paul says that after putting off sexual sin (Eph. 5:3-4a), the believer is also put on the contrasting righteous action of gratitude. When tempted to sin as an expression of his discontentment with God, the believer is to consciously cultivate gratitude in his heart. How might we express gratitude in our hearts and with our […]
Read More Temptation and gratitudeFrom Josh Harris (Not Even a Hint): It doesn’t matter what something is rated, or how popular it is, or how seemingly innocent it appears. If it hardens your heart toward God, if it obscures your awareness of the ugliness of sin and the holiness of God, if it takes the edge off your spiritual […]
Read More Entertainment industry, the portrayal of sin, and discernmentToday was a day to catch up on a few yard projects. We had a mature rose bush that had died that needed to be removed, and Raye Jeanne planned to transplant a crape myrtle sprout that had grown up elsewhere in the yard in its place. But to plant the fledgling tree in that […]
Read More The parable of the monkey grassGo into virtually any Christian bookstore and you will find them gracing the fronts of greeting cards, serving as ornamental fixtures for shelves, and maybe even offering help as holders of candles or potpourri. They are chunky cherubs — sweet and innocent and harmlessly-winged little helpers. Yet Scripture views them as anything but that. It […]
Read More Thinking about angels and sinOur Scripture reading this morning included some of Solomon’s counsel to his son — Do not let your heart envy sinners, But live in the fear of the LORD always. Surely there is a future, And your hope will not be cut off. (Prov. 23:17-18) There is a relationship, this wise father advises, between an […]
Read More Your soul’s best interestRomans 8:28 is a well-known, often-quoted, hard-to-believe verse. That God uses the beneficent acts of our lives for our good is comprehensible. We do not struggle to understand how God is working good in our lives when we are recipients or instigators of gracious words and activities. But when the worst things in life invade […]
Read More How God uses sin for our goodAl Mohler, “The Pill Turns 50” “Has God Predetermined Everything? Even Sin?“ “Why fight sin if God uses it for good anyway?” Together for the Gospel panel discussions are now available A new book by John Piper, Jesus, the Only Way to God (July, 2010) Practical suggestions for how to encourage missionaries — and without […]
Read More Grab bagThe story of Israel in the book of Joshua is triumphal and victorious. It is filled with obedience, worship, and delight in God. The story of Israel in the book of Judges is sorrow and defeat. Judges is everything that Joshua isn’t. It is a book of disobedience, idolatrous worship, and rejection of God. And […]
Read More There are Canaanites in the land!Jesus said, “If your hand or your foot causes you to stumble, cut it off and throw it from you; it is better for you to enter life crippled or lame, than to have two hands or two feet and be cast into the eternal fire. If your eye causes you to stumble, pluck it […]
Read More How far will you go in your battle against sin and pride?The life of the believer is unique in many ways. One is the manner in which he must consider his sin. The follower of Christ is a new man — a new creature possessing a new life in Christ. And yet he still battles the flesh and sin on a daily basis — his only […]
Read More Sin and the new man
Words of Grace 