In Heaven…

On earth we experience beauty and joy in many ways: fellowship with beloved friends, the fragrance and flavor of a favorite meal, the spontaneous smile of recognition from a 9-month-old baby, the glory of a view from a mountain peak, the simplicity of a newly opened flower bloom, and so much more. God has been […]

How God comforts His people

I’ve been told that I’m not always the best patient when I am sick. It seems that I whine a little much about my illness, perhaps even venturing into the category of complaint and discontentment. I do acknowledge that I have a propensity for not being patient with any sickness — I just want it […]

Day and night in the Bible

If you have ever needed to rid yourself of a few pounds, you know how your mind can be absorbed with thoughts about food while on a diet. You wake up hungry. You are hungry before meals, shortly after meals, and at bed. When you aren’t engaged in a task, your mind wanders to the […]

Fighting for Church Unity

Unity in the local church is the goal of every church (or it should be). It is not always easily or readily attained, as a newspaper account about a church in Wales a couple of generations ago testifies: Yesterday the two opposition groups both sent ministers to the pulpit. Both spoke simultaneously, each trying to […]

Alcohol and Liberty: What’s a Christian to Do?

While there has been a historical temptation to drink alcohol and too many have followed that desire too heartily (resulting in drunkenness and addiction), the prevalence of alcohol in Christian circles seems much stronger today than it has been in past years. I have heard multiple pastors and church leaders speak repeatedly about the virtues […]

The Hard Work of Sanctification

As believers we cannot expect a life of ease; in fact, we should anticipate a life of labor. We labor to serve one another in the church. We labor to disciple and discipline our children well. We labor to cultivate and develop our spiritual gifts. We labor not to sin — to control our personal […]

Fellowship with God

This post was originally published June 3, 2013; it is being republished today because the theme fits this past Sunday’s sermon so well. The term “fellowship” is used regularly in the context of the church (do non-believers use the word?). Often the word is used synonymously for “food” or “feast,” as in, “be sure to […]

Have you considered God’s kindness — and severity?

The most popular cultural conception of God is that He is loving. The idea is that He is a God of all (and only) grace, overlooking the foibles, peccadilloes, and even most severe sins because He is too nice to be mean. He is so loving that He could never be angry. This perception is […]

God doesn’t change

God doesn’t change. God hasn’t changed. God won’t change. God can’t change. God is what He is. God is what He always has been. And God will always be what He has always been. In contrast, our lives know only change. We get older (and weaker and ultimately, frail). Our children get older. Our job […]

36 Spiritual Blessings of Salvation

Lewis Sperry Chafer delineated at least 33 blessings that the believer receives upon coming to Christ. He comments: “The Scriptures reveal 33 stupendous works of God which together comprise the salvation of the soul. They are wrought by God instantaneously, are grounded on the merit of Christ, and are eternal. Accordingly each member of the […]

God is with us. Always.

The kinds of questions children sometimes ask about God are not so different than the questions we have about God: Who created God? What does God look like? Why can’t we see God? How can Jesus fit in my heart? Why did God create Satan? Why do people get sick and die? Where is God? […]

Giving Thanks for 40 years of God’s Faithfulness

This past week, we gave thanks to the Lord as a congregation for His faithfulness to us over the 40 years of the church’s existence. A large amount of time, energy, and financial resources went into that celebration. Is it legitimate to do something like that celebration? Why should we be overt in our expression […]

Don’t I have a part in my salvation?

Several years ago when I began a sermon on the early part of Ephesians chapter one, I said something like, “This morning we want to talk about God’s work in salvation, specifically His election of sinners to salvation. And as I said the word ‘election,’ some of you instinctively bowed up and already feel resistant […]

There’s no boasting in Heaven

It often first surfaces in the seemingly innocent words of a three-year-old venturing into unknown tasks — “I can do it!” the child adamantly asserts to his parent. Yet he likely cannot do it and he may even be endangering himself in his quest. Oh, that we learned to stop bragging after those first foolish […]

Christ came for sin

In Romans 8:3, Paul identifies the reason for Christ’s advent — He came “for sin” (ESV). That is, He came for the purpose of addressing the problem of sin. He came for sin because sin was (and is) the great problem of mankind. We tend to think we have bigger problems than sin. We have […]