What “moment” were you saved?

Puritan pastor John Owens articulated much better what I said about the exact time of a believer’s salvation a couple of weeks ago: “He that is alive may know that he was born, though he know neither the place where nor the time when he was so; and so may he that is spiritually alive, […]

Sunday Leftovers (12/3/06)

“Christianity is everywhere in our culture, and yet Christ is so hard to find. We have an institutional Christ, a social Christ, a popular Christ, and a cultural Christ. Where is the Lord Jesus Christ?” asks writer and musician John Fischer. It’s a perceptive question for a church culture where the supremacy of Christ is […]

Another Reformation?

On Reformation Day (October 31) Dallas Seminary professor John Hannah provided a compelling call to return to the driving force behind the Reformation — a commitment to the sufficiency of Scripture. He concludes with these insights and admonitions: Is the real point of Christ’s redemptive mission to create a body of people who grasp the […]

More on marriage

Al Mohler offers more thoughts on the state of marriage in America.

Sunday Leftovers (11/12/06)

While the reality of indwelling sin in the life of the believer is known by most believers, Calvin was right when he said “No one knows the one-hundredth par of the sin that clings to his soul.” When just external activity is considered, disobedience and sin may seem superficial and peripheral. Yet when the activity […]

Chambers on “Fellowship in the Gospel”

In this morning’s devotional from My Utmost for His Highest, Oswald Chambers addresses the topic of a purpose-driven life that is rooted in the desires of God. After sanctification it is difficult to state what your aim in life is, because God has taken you up into His purpose by the Holy Ghost; He is […]

Jerry Bridges on the importance of the gospel

The gospel is not a “one-time” truth, but an everyday truth, as Jerry Bridges has articulated: To preach the gospel to yourself, then, means that you continually face up to your own sinfulness and then flee to Jesus through faith in His shed blood and righteous life. It means that you appropriate, again by faith, […]

Sunday Leftovers (11/5/06)

The truth that a believer may have assurance and confidence in his salvation is rooted in the work of Christ. The believer’s confidence is not in being able to keep himself, but in the power of God and the sufficiency of Christ to keep him. This is why it is essential that the believer keep […]

Another sad day

The complete truth has not yet been revealed about the circumstances of Ted Haggard’s resignation as pastor of New Life Church in Colorado Springs and as President of the influential National Association of Evangelicals. Until that truth is revealed, we would be wise to neither speculate nor gossip about it. Prayer, particularly for the protection […]

Reformation Week Reflection #4

John Calvin: As all mankind are, in the sight of God, lost sinners, we hold that Christ is their only righteousness, since, by his obedience, he has wiped off our transgressions; by his sacrifice appeased the divine anger; by his blood, washed away our stains; by his cross, borne our curse; and by his death, […]

Reformation Week Reflection #3

The story of the death of the two English Reformers Hugh Latimer and Nicholas Ridley is well known. Ryle recounts their meeting and death at the stake: Ridley first entered the place, and earnestly holding up both his hands, looked towards heaven. Shortly after, seeing Latimer, he ran to him, embraced and kissed him, saying, […]

All Saints Day

“Remember those who led you, who spoke the word of God to you; and considering the result of their conduct, imitate their faith.” (Heb. 13:7; NASB) The typical American neighborhood was inundated last night by an assortment of ghosts, goblins, witches, and vampires, interspersed with a few pirates, angels, cartoon characters, bunnies, puppies, scarecrows and […]

Truth and Scripture in the postmodern world

This morning Al Mohler synthesizes a commentary written by Methodist pastor Rob Renfroe, who offers his analysis of why the Methodist church is debating such important issues in that denomination. Mohler’s summary says: Clarifying the issues is a first step toward answering the crucial questions. Rob Renfroe has done a commendable job of clarifying the […]

Reformation Books

Are you curious about the reformation, but don’t know much about it? Here are three books that I’ve found helpful (this is not intended to be an extensive listing, but just enough to give you an introduction and taste of the lives of some of the key men of the Reformation). They all offer brief […]

Reformation Week Reflection #2

John Calvin: …justification by faith [is] the first and keenest subject of controversy…Wherever the knowledge of it is taken away, the glory of Christ is extinguished. And later: How comes it that we are “carried about with so many strange doctrines” (Hebrews 13:9)? Because the excellence of Christ is not perceived by us. So of […]