6 Reasons Why Adam and Eve’s Eating of the Forbidden Fruit Was a Terrible Transgression against God
God created the world for his glory—so that his creation would live unto him, giving him praise in all things.
Genesis describes how everything God created was good (Gen. 1). God created humans as his royal image bearers to rule over creation, tend his garden, and care for his creatures—honoring their creator in all. Adam and Eve were righteous and upright, with the full ability to obey God and keep all his commands. The... Continue Reading
God’s Eternal Plan for You
Jeremiah 29:11: “For I know the plans I have for you, declares the Lord, plans for welfare and not for evil, to give you a future and a hope.”
I have a coffee mug and a journal with this very verse imprinted on them. These are too often taken out of context and used to teach that God wants to bless you; that he wants you to be healthy, wealthy, and happy all the time. Aside from glossing over parts of the Bible that... Continue Reading
The One Thing We Can Know in Our Hurts
Looking at the cross, we can know we are very loved.
This is perhaps the chief way the Holy Spirit comforts us in our afflictions. He reminds us of what Christ has done for us. And this is not because the Spirit is at a loss as to how to encourage us. He’s not like our well-meaning friends who like to spout cheap inspirational clichés and... Continue Reading
Our Deepest Need
“Your sins are forgiven.”
Christ’s forgiveness is broad and general. It is not like the paralytic offended Jesus earlier in the day and now Jesus is forgiving him. Christ offers him something so much better by pronouncing upon him wholesale forgiveness for his sins. The account of the healing of the lame man in Mark 2:1–12 includes a... Continue Reading
Sharpen Your Axe!
Wisdom, rightly understood, is the acknowledgement of God’s existence and the willingness to cede to his authority.
The wise person is not the one who has accumulated lots of facts and can destroy everyone else at Jeopardy, but the one who has submitted himself to the will of God. “The fear of the Lord is the beginning of wisdom.” No wonder then that elsewhere Solomon says: “The beginning of wisdom is this:... Continue Reading
The Most Dangerous Place to Live
The Subtle Perils of the Past
God does not mean for our hearts to live in yesterday. He gives us fresh mercies each day to enjoy (Lamentations 3:22–23). But passing these, we can travel back in our minds to relive that season’s happiness. Yesterday, hopes were high and life was worth living. Today proves too disappointing. So, with glazed eyes and... Continue Reading
Jesus Is Lord. Period.
We’re rendering unto Caesar too much time and attention.
The apologetics potential in opposing Trump (or supporting him) is too easily exaggerated in our minds. Scripture promises that Christian unity will point the world to Jesus (John 17:21) and that good works will prompt non-Christians to glorify God (Matt. 5:16, 1 Pet. 2:12). It doesn’t indicate that our voting record can be the 21st-century... Continue Reading
The Hard Apprenticeship of Sorrow
Depression is a deeply damaging and oft times deadly malady.
I have never required hospitalization for depression or received a diagnosis. But most days I walk about with what I refer to as my dark or stubborn shadow. He sits on my shoulder and whispers destructive and damaging things in my ear. That is a typical day. And then there are the days when that... Continue Reading
How Should We Benefit From Communion?
In this brief article I would like to try and answer the question by highlighting an often-neglected aspect of the Lord's Supper: its corporate and covenantal character.
We too easily—and unbiblically—think of the Christian life in personal, singular categories. I do not mean for one moment that the Christian faith is not personal, or that there is no such thing as individual faith. Yet God’s people are one, and salvation brings us into the one Body of Christ, His Church (1 Cor.... Continue Reading
In Praise of Heavy Providences
The Bible is full of reminders about how, in the call of God, things will be difficult rather than easy, complex rather than simple, strenuous rather than leisurely.
God brings into our lives “heavy providences” as a means of nurturing in us “God remembrance.” I call these circumstances “providences” because it’s God who brings them. I call them “heavy” because, well, that’s what they are—circumstances that are not easy and call for a deep dependence on God for His strength to endure. It... Continue Reading
