June 2011
1 post
3 tags
“Be watchful, stand firm in the faith, act like men, be strong. Let all that you...”
– What Does It Mean to Act Like a Man? – Justin Taylor
May 2011
3 posts
6 tags
Her Desire, His Rule | Challies Dot Com →
“You will sin against your wife more than against any other person.”
5 tags
Advice for Aspiring Christ-Centered Preachers –... →
4 tags
“1 Corinthians 2:2: For I decided to know nothing among you except Jesus Christ...”
– The Cross, Our Life, and Christian Ministry « Miscellanies.
April 2011
3 posts
2 tags
Not One Of, but the One – Kevin DeYoung →
The foundational question for Jesus is not “what do I want you to do?” but “who do you say that I am?
4 tags
“To conclude in one word, the cross of Christ then only triumphs in the breasts...”
– John Calvin - Institutes of the Christian Religion: 3.9.6
5 tags
January 2011
5 posts
5 tags
“I am to be subject to my own husband, and to learn what it means to be his wife...”
– Whose Wife Are You? | Challies Dot Com
4 tags
“Until religious teachers inculcate clearly, fully, and practically, the grace of...”
– Archibald Alexander, Thoughts On Religious Experience (1844), pages 165–166 via: The Cross and Sanctification « Miscellanies.
2 tags
1 tag
“What does holiness look like? J.C. Ryle explains:
1. True sanctification then...”
– Ryle: The Visible Signs of Sanctification – Kevin DeYoung
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December 2010
2 posts
1 tag
Christmas as the End of History – John Piper
Creation out of nothing was an awesome event. Imagine what the angelic spirits must have felt when the universe, material reality of which they had never imagined, was brought forth out of nothing by the command of God.
The fall was an awful event, shaking the entire creation.
The exodus was an amazing display of God’s power and love.
The giving of the law, the wilderness provisions,...
3 tags
Why preachers should preach expository sermons
The following is a list from a book titled The Shepherd Leader by Timothy Z Witmer, of the top 10 reasons why preachers should preach expository sermons:
Expository preaching identifies exactly what is at the heart of the Christian message
Expository preaching requires that the shepherd concern himself with the intent of the Divine Author for every text.
Expository preaching respects the...
November 2010
1 post
2 tags
“Heaven is eternity in the presence of God through a Mediator.
Hell is eternity...”
– Heaven and Hell « Miscellanies.
May 2010
1 post
3 tags
Spiritual Disciplines - Prayer
Prayer is something that God expects of us if we follow Him. We should be devoted to regular prayer as it is the means by which we communicate personally to God. We should trust that He answers all our prayers, just not necessarily how we want. We should seek to grow in our prayer life primarily through reading and meditating on scripture, being led to a response from what we read. We should also...
April 2010
2 posts
3 tags
“How to Avoid Assuming the Gospel In Marks of the Messenger: Knowing, Living, and...”
– How to Avoid Assuming the Gospel – Justin Taylor
1 tag
The secret to marriage →
Some good advice…
March 2010
5 posts
3 tags
3 tags
Spiritual Disciplines - Bible Intake
Part 1
As Christians, God expects us to make an effort to fill our hearts and minds with His word, as it is how He speaks to us. We should use all means possible to listen to it and to read it. We need to reflect deeply on it as we read, and to be organised in how we work through it. Most of the time it is simply our laziness that stops us reading, so we need to remind ourselves that reading it...
5 tags
“There are outside-the-church idols and there are inside-the-church idols. It’s...”
– On Earth as it is in Heaven » Blog Archive » Counterfeit Gospels
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It's Almost Naptime!!: I don't want my children to... →
I love this woman’s grasp of what being a godly parent is all about!
3 tags
“The Bible tells us in plain terms that we are not sinners because we sin, but we...”
– Real Guilt and Sinfulness - Tim Challies
February 2010
6 posts
3 tags
Spiritual Disciplines - For The Purpose of...
Chapter 1 of this book is a primer for the rest of the book. It outlines to us the purpose behind why we should practice spiritual disciplines, that is, to achieve godliness in our lives.
Spiritual disciplines are not things to be done purely for their own sake. We are to do them with the goal of Christ-likeness in mind. They are the means by which we pursue God’s gracious mercy in...
5 tags
21 Questions I’ve Been Asking (Myself) Lately «... →
Some good questions to consider for those involved in church leadership…
2 tags
Spiritual Disciplines
Over the coming weeks I plan to re-read the book Spiritual Disciplines for the Christian Life, by Donald S. Whitney. I have read this book once before, about 9 months ago, and found it quite a good book to read. In fact I wrote the following review of it:
This is an excellent book that looks at what are 10 core spiritual disciplines - Bible intake, prayer, worship, evangelism, serving, ...
1 tag
“Did I get married too young? I may not have the freedom to globetrot at my own...”
– David Lapp - Did I Get Married Too Young? - WSJ.com
3 tags
Solomon’s Song for this Sunday (1) – Kevin DeYoung →
Even after years of marriage keep using words like “Come” and “Let’s.” Be a man. Be a leader. Try to impress her. You managed to do it once, but chances are much of your impressiveness has worn off under the rough edges of career, laziness, and time. Men shouldn’t get married so they can stop pursuing women. We get married so we can perfect the pursuit with same woman over a lifetime. Don’t...
2 tags
“According to our culture, meditation is the relaxation of the mind to the point...”
– Stephen Altrogge - How To Meditate On God’s Word
November 2009
3 posts
4 tags
“Proverbs, and the wisdom literature in general, counter the idea that being...”
– Graeme Goldsworthy - New Dictionary of Biblical Theology (IVP 2000), p. 210
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“Most men are not satisfied with the permanent output of their lives. Nothing can...”
– J. Campbell White, 1909, secretary of the Laymen’s Missionary Movement.
5 tags
“We do not need to devote ourselves to endless studies in theology and doctrine...”
– Tim Challies - To Love Him Is To Know Him
October 2009
1 post
“It is difficult to imagine the world in the year A.D. 2000, by which time...”
– John Stott in 1982 - I Believe in Preaching (p69) Stott the Prophet – Justin Taylor
September 2009
4 posts
3 tags
Who do you say I am?
Jesus and his disciples went on to the villages around Caesarea Philippi. On the way he asked them, “Who do people say I am?”
They replied, “Some say John the Baptist; others say Elijah; and still others, one of the prophets.”
“But what about you?” he asked. “Who do you say I am?” Peter answered, “You are the Christ.”
Jesus warned...
3 tags
Preaching = Masterclass
Thinking and talking about church lately, I have come to view the sermon part of church in a whole new light. We often view the sermon as the deep and meaty instruction that should stimulate us and provide us with good fodder to chew on throughout the week, until we reach next week’s sermon. But perhaps rather than viewing church as a once a week feast, we should look at it like a...
2 tags
5 Lies →
A helpful reminder about why we should be on our guard against sin.
5 tags
Follow Jesus
What does it mean to follow somebody? It means that you go where they go, and in doing so, you get in behind them. The disciples spent three years doing following Jesus, and while He was around, it was Him that took the heat from the Pharisees. Then when He left, ascending to heaven, the disciples continued to follow Him. But since He was no longer physically around, it was the disciples turn to...
August 2009
7 posts
4 tags
“After this I looked and there before me was a great multitude that no one could...”
– The Great Multitude in White Robes - Revelation 7:9-17
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Don't fishbowl God!
God is able!
Ephesians 3 is a great chapter when we stop and consider the words that Paul has used here. He reminds us that the mystery of the Messiah is the incredible grace and mercy of God to be found in Jesus. Through this, we are free to approach God, and be confident of our forigiveness and salvation. But Paul also prays for the Ephesians. He wants them to realise that God’s love for...
5 tags
A reconciled church
In our second sermon from Ephesians, on chapter 2, we looked at how the church is a work in progress. It is made up of sinful people who have been redeemed by Christ. His death on the cross opened up the means for us to be reconciled to God. And we are members of God’s family only through the reconciling work of Christ.
This being part of God’s family means that we are also reconciled...
4 tags
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Why church?
Church is a wonderful thing. Last Sunday we began a series from Ephesians, by looking at chapter 1. The great point that came through to me was the fact that the church is not some sort of by-product to come out of salvation, but rather something that God had always planned for His people.
Paul tells the Ephesians that he prays for them to be given the Spirit of wisdom and revelation. He wants...
4 tags
“Jesus accomplishes redemption and forgiveness through his life, death, and...”
– Justin Holcomb - Missional Pneumatology: Redemption Applied @ The Resurgence Blog
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“Here I must take counsel of the gospel. I must hearken to the gospel, which...”
– Martin Luther, St. Paul’s Epistle to the Galatians
July 2009
14 posts
2 tags
“The critical question for our generation—and for every generation— is this: If...”
– John Piper (via livebyfaith)
3 tags
“A discontented heart will say, ‘I am not so much troubled with my...”
– The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment (Chapter 7) - by Jeremiah Burroughs
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Dealing with Dodgy Doctrine - Questions
These are some questions that I had for people to consider at the end of Jude:
How often do you remind yourself of the gospel?
How often do you remind others of the gospel?
How are you strengthening and building up your faith?
How are you strengthening and building up the faith of others?
Are you genuinely living your life in response to the gospel?
6 tags
Dealing with Dodgy Doctrine - Our Response
After looking at God’s response to false teachers, we come to how we should respond. At the end of Jude’s letter, verses 20-25, he gives us some good pointers to think about, to help us to be prepared for false teaching.
Save Ourselves (20-21)
He starts off by recognising the need to be in training as Christians, in order that we are strengthened and ready whenever a spiritual issue...
7 tags
Dealing with Dodgy Doctrine - God's Response
Over the last 2 Sundays I have preached from the letter of Jude. I termed the 2 sermons ‘Dealing with Dodgy Doctrine’ because in the letter, Jude has to confront the issue that there are people creeping into the church who are teaching a false gospel.
In the first part (vv 1-19), Jude looks at what God’s response is to these false teachers. he does this by first reminding his...
3 tags
“For men and women who have much guiltiness upon them, the guilt of very many...”
– The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment (Chapter 6) - by Jeremiah Burroughs