John Calvin, Institutes of the Christian Religion: Words fail to explain how necessary prayer is, and in how many ways the exercise of prayer is profitable. Surely with good reason the Heavenly Father affirms that the only stronghold of safety is in calling upon his name (Joel 2:32). By so doing we invoke the presence […]
Read More The profitability of prayerFrom Christianity Today: A Hollywood nod to a Christian film has come as a shock to the entertainment world, as the song “Alone Yet Not Alone” (from the movie by the same name) was nominated for an Oscar. The song beat out Coldplay, Taylor Swift, and Lana Del Ray to join the other four nominees […]
Read More Joni Eareckson Tada song nominated for an OscarEssential Truths for Assurance Selected Scriptures from 1 John 1-3 January 19, 2014 One essential for learning is repetition. Few of us memorize a Bible verse the first time we see it. We go over it again and again. We write it down, read it in our Bibles, review it on notecards, look it up […]
Read More Sermon: Essential Truths for AssuranceJonathan Edwards, in “The Christian Pilgrim” (Works, vol. 2): God is the highest good of the reasonable creature; and the enjoyment of him is the only happiness with which our souls can be satisfied.—To go to heaven, fully to enjoy God, is infinitely better than the most pleasant accommodations here. Fathers and mothers, husbands, wives, […]
Read More Heaven is betterBeginning today Amazon has Jay Adam’s foundational book, A Theology of Christian on sale for the Kindle for only $3.99. This is an excellent resource for all biblical counselors — and for at least a short time it is available in digital format for a great price. A Theology of Christian Counseling: More Than Redemption.
Read More Kindle Sale: A Theology of Christian CounselingMartin Niemöller was a pastor in Nazi Germany who interned in Sachsenhausen and Dachau concentration camps from 1938 to 1945 for so-called activities against the state. Following his release he revealed how the Bible sustained him during those years: What did this book mean to me during the long and weary years of solitary confinement […]
Read More Sunday Leftovers: Teach Me, LordRobert Murray M’Cheyne was a pastor in the early 19th century who lived a brief, though influential life. One year before his death at the age of 29, he compiled a Bible reading plan (OT once and NT and Psalms twice in one year) for his church and wrote the following letter to warn and […]
Read More Some dangers and advantages to reading the Bible“Teach Me, Lord:” A Prayer for God’s Word to Do Its Work Psalm 119:33-40 January 12, 2014 I have been using some kind of “read through the Bible in a year” plan for longer than I can remember. I’ve read through the Bible chronologically (like we’re doing this year); I’ve used the Navigator “Book-at-a-time” plan […]
Read More Sermon: “Teach Me, Lord”Neither a farmer nor a rancher am I. Yet for at least two weeks during a couple summers of my youth, I became a “temp” farmer, working on my uncle’s dairy farm. It was a time not only for a “city-slicker” to be exposed to some life realities, but also a fun time with my […]
Read More The sinner’s pathway – redirectedOops. Some parents had a great idea for their children’s special Christmas gift one year. They ordered a kit for a tree house from a mail order catalogue. On Christmas Eve, as the mother and father began to assemble the pieces, they discovered to their dismay that while they had received the plans for a […]
Read More The sinner’s pathwaySome helpful articles from the last week: You may have made a resolution this week about your Bible reading for this year. Here is some good counsel for “How to read the whole Bible in 2014” (including a variety of Bible reading plans) by Justin Taylor. I’ve also posted several plans for our church here. […]
Read More Grab bagA job interview that didn’t go the way you expected. A dinner that came out the oven smoky and flat instead of light and fluffy. A checkbook that appears to be inflicted with the black plague. A friend that suffers from a chronic illness. A favorite shirt that gets lost by the dry cleaner. An […]
Read More “Why did I not die at birth?”The first sins recorded in Scripture — Adam and Eve’s rebellion (Gen. 3) and Cain’s murder of Abel (Gen. 4) — provide two distinct examples of the way temptation and sin work in an individual’s life. They are a reminder that not every temptation is the same; sin and its origins are multifaceted and insidious. […]
Read More The first two sinsToday is a day when many people make resolutions for how they will conduct their lives in the coming year. How will they relate to family members? What will they do with their jobs? How much time will they spend exercising? serving others? How much weight is realistic to lose? What will they read? A […]
Read More More and more resolutionsAre you resolving to read the Bible more consistently this year? Here is a tool that might help — the ESV audio Bible is free this month from Christian Audio. Put it on CDs to play in your car, or listen on your iPod or iPhone while you work out, take a walk, or during […]
Read More Free ESV audio Bible
Words of Grace 