Sin is not master

John Murray, Redemption, Accomplished and Applied: There must be a constant and increasing appreciation that though sin still remains it does not have the mastery. There is a total difference between surviving sin and reigning sin, the regenerate in conflict with sin and the unregenerate complacent to sin. It is one thing for sin to […]

Sunday Leftovers: four reasons for hope for the believer who sins

Toxicologists Frank LoVecchio and Jeffrey Suchard of the Good Samaritan Regional Medical Center in Phoenix conducted a study a few years ago and discovered that 15% of Arizona rattlesnake attacks occurred after the snakes had been mortally shot, bludgeoned, or even beheaded. One man shot and decapitated a snake, then waited five minutes before picking […]

Don’t be like everybody else

Martyn Lloyd-Jones: It should not be our ambition to be as much like everybody else as we can, though we happen to be Christian, but rather to be as different from everybody who is not a Christian as we can possibly be. Our ambition should be to be like Christ, the more like Him the […]

14 free Piper eBooks

Desiring God has made many of John Piper’s books available for free in PDF format for many years. In the past couple of years, in addition to his major writings, DG has also published a number of smaller works (mostly biographies) by Piper that are only available as ebooks. These also are free. Recently, they […]

Kindle ESV Study Bible on sale

The Kindle version of the ESV study Bible is on sale for $4.99 — that’s a great deal if the ESV is your primary Bible for reading and study. Go to Amazon.com to purchase this Bible.

The earth is the Lord’s

God, through Asaph, says in Psalm 50: “For every beast of the forest is Mine, The cattle on a thousand hills. “I know every bird of the mountains, And everything that moves in the field is Mine. “If I were hungry I would not tell you, For the world is Mine, and all it contains.” […]

For what do you wait?

“And now, Lord, for what do I wait? My hope is in You.” (Ps. 39:7; NASB) The plight of Merhan “Alfred” Nasseri was an unusual one, to say the least. In 1988 he arrived at Charles de Gaulle Airport in Paris on a two-day trip, but without a visa. Apparently his Iranian passport was confiscated […]

Berkhof’s Systematic Theology

Bible Training has made a copy of Berkhof’s Systematic Theology available in both .pdf and epub formats. This was the primary theology text I used in the first couple years of seminary, and I have repeatedly returned to it and found it helpful. The eschatology section in this book won’t be as helpful, but most […]

Ready to worship?

“O Lord, who may abide in Thy tent? Who may dwell on Thy holy hill?” (Psalm 15:1; NASB) It was a simple question. We do not know the circumstances under which it was asked, but we do know the heart from which it came. David, the man whose life was patterned after the heart of […]

A benefit of suffering: it exposes sin

Thomas Boston [The Crook in the Lot] writes of a number of benefits of our suffering and afflictions — the crooks (or bent, difficult pathways) in our lots (the circumstances of our lives that have been allotted to us. One of those is the exposure of sin in our hearts: There are some corruptions in […]

Day and night meditation

I am neither a farmer nor a rancher. Yet for at least two weeks during a couple of summers in 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 […]

When we don’t feel like praying

R. A. Torrey: Oftentimes when we come to God in prayer, we do not feel like praying. What shall one do in such a case? cease praying until he does feel like it? Not at all. When we feel least like praying is the time when we most need to pray. We should wait quietly […]

Weakness is the Way — a new book from J. I. Packer

Crossway has just released a new book by J. I. Packer entitled, Weakness is the Way: Life with Christ Our Strength. Here Packer talks about the premise behind the book. This looks helpful! Publisher’s Description: For Christians, weakness should be a way of life. Yet most of us try desperately to be sufficient on […]

Sunday Leftovers: Fellowship with God

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 bring enough food to the fellowship (feast)…” or “come Wednesday evening as we enjoy fellowship (a meal) together…” While fellowship can take place […]

“What is your position on Lordship Salvation?”

After my sermon from two weeks ago (“What Do You Know About Salvation — an Introduction to 1 John”), someone in another city listened to the audio and emailed me the question, “What is your position on Lordship Salvation?” Here is how I answered him. There is a short and a long answer to your […]