Okay, I didn’t preach on Sunday, but appreciating what Jack said about missions and evangelism, these two statements came to mind in the past couple of days (one is an expansion of a quote he gave in his message): All of the early Christians were missionaries. They did not leave the evangelistic task either to […]
Read More Sunday Leftovers (6/27/10)When I was in seminary, I had a professor who was prone to seeing the influence of Satan in (too) many places. He regularly regaled us with accounts of exorcism — including one that was allegedly controlling his wife’s failing eyesight. While there was some measure of interest and entertainment in his tales, I wondered […]
Read More Casting out demons?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 […]
Read More Love and marriageTomorrow begins a two-part series of sermons on missions at our church. And thinking about missions (overseas missions, anyway), often invites a question something like, “what will you risk for the cause of Christ?” John Piper has addressed the topic of risk in sermons and articles. But several years ago he gave two sermons entitled, […]
Read More Will we risk?How do you respond to suffering? And how do you respond when you suffer in a similar way again? And again? The example of Joni Eareckson Tada is an encouragement about how to respond when we suffer physically again and again. She has been a quadriplegic for more than 40 years, and her testimony of […]
Read More How do you respond to multiplied sufferings?We pray. But that is no guarantee that God will answer what we ask, the way we ask it, or in the time frame that we ask it. He is no genie in a bottle for us. So when God seems slow to answer, or answers prayers contrary to our asking, we might ask ourselves […]
Read More When God says “No”Bible reading is profitable. Sometimes it’s more profitable than at other times. How might we read the Scriptures so we received the greatest value from them? How about starting with a commitment? Saving money, losing weight, driving the speed limit, and speaking graciously all begin with a commitment to consistently follow through on a particular […]
Read More How to profit from your Bible readingIt seems so innocent, really. It’s just a fleeting thought about a single wayward dalliance. Or maybe it’s just a brief longing for a slight but sweet revenge. Or lingering look at an indulgent — and way-beyond-your-means — purchase. Or the contemplation of a series of stinging retorts that weren’t said and wouldn’t be said, […]
Read More What we think is what we areThis morning in the sermon notes, I had a fairly lengthy list of resources — books, audio, and articles — that I believe will be helpful encouragements in your battle against sin. I had intended to make a couple of comments about those resources, and simply forgot to do so (which is happening more frequently […]
Read More Some particularly helpful resources in the battle against sinSince it is true that God has provided in our salvation all that we need to live godly, and since it is true that sin is no longer our master, and since it is true that we have been liberated from the power of sin, then why do so many believers struggle with sin? Why […]
Read More Sunday Leftovers (6/20/10)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 […]
Read More They were “rock solid”I’ve already posted the background material for 1 & 2 Kings, but recently discovered I’d also put together a chart some time ago for 2 Kings. This may help you understand the flow of this book:
Read More Reading 2 KingsA note that I should have included in my comments about “Reading Jonah:” he was a man of the Scriptures. In his prayer from the belly of the fish, Jonah either quotes or alludes to 11 different Psalms: 2:2 — Ps. 18:4-6; 30:3; 120:1-3 2:3 — Ps. 42:7 2:4 — 5:7; 31:22 2:5 — 69:1-2, […]
Read More Jonah and his BibleJonah has often been decried as inspirational but mythical. Yet the historical account was authenticated by Christ. Further, the story is ultimately a great demonstration of the character of God and His grace to redeem even Gentiles. Read more about Jonah and its background here. Keith Palmer also preached on the book of Jonah last […]
Read More Reading JonahThose who are naive are often mocked for their innocent ignorance. Yet Scripture affirms that there are some things not worth knowing. Even more, knowing them is a detriment to our hearts. That’s why God said to Adam and Eve not to eat from that one tree in the middle of the Garden — the […]
Read More Some things are not worth knowing
