Preaching: More Than Teaching
The hard part is preaching it in such a way that God’s people see how his Word is applicable to and practical in all areas of faith and life.
“If the goal [of preaching] is solid biblical teaching, then a sermon full of the truth always comes up trumps. But if the goal of expository preaching is that God’s Word changes lives – converting sinners and sanctifying saints – then, all of the sudden, the stakes are much higher…. If the point of preaching... Continue Reading
The Last Act Is Bloody. Always Bloody.
The denial of death, or at least of the necessary horror at death, has come to infect our world.
“I have remarked in the past that too often Christians celebrate the resurrection of Christ from the grave without really acknowledging why he was in the grave in the first place. We jump from Good Friday to Easter Sunday without lingering outside the tomb. That explains not simply the Malarkey incident but also much of... Continue Reading
Modern Bible Is Too Dull, Says Philip Pullman
“Speaking of the demise of the King James Bible and the Book of Common Prayer, the author said: ‘I do regret that children don’t have this experience of language which is grand and stately, and above their heads if you like. Because it gave me an immense amount of pleasure to hear the cadences and... Continue Reading
‘Selma’: American History, Raw And Honest
I leave movies more discouraged and sure that our world will never truly change. But Selma is different. I left this movie hopeful.
Selma is much more than Black history. It is American history. It is our history. Within all of us we understand the fight and struggle for change in order to make a better life for those who will come after us—even if that means that we won’t live to see that change. Selma is not a movie for... Continue Reading
Spurgeon’s Sorrows: Realistic Hope For Those Who Suffer From Depression
Spurgeon, the famed preacher, wrestled against depression through much of his pastoral ministry
“Spurgeon’s Sorrows takes a balanced approach to the role of diet and medicine to relieve some of the symptoms of depression, in some people, some of the time. However, the author also wisely concludes, as did Charles, that dietary or medicinal relief is not a solution in and of itself and should not be pursued... Continue Reading
A Vine-Ripened Life: Spiritual Fruitfulness Through Abiding In Christ (Review)
"The Vine-Ripened Life" is a much more rich and edifying alternative to a book like "Jesus Calling"
“A Vine-Ripened Life is a pastoral book. Gale writes with a gentle tone, using personal examples and practical illustrations to accompany his teaching. The focus of each chapter isn’t primarily the fruits of the Christian life, but the Vine, Jesus Christ. In his first chapter Gale asserts, “If we come away from this study without... Continue Reading
How To Write More Gooder
Here are a few simple practices which may help a great deal
“Books on writing don’t scratch where most people itch. They get into things like transitive verbs and active voice and the difference between affect and effect, useful in hedging the driveway but less relevant in knowing how to turn on the lawnmower. Most people don’t need help going from good to great. They need help... Continue Reading
The KKK, Selma, and Southern Christianity
Maybe the evangelicalism of the 1940s - 60s did not understand the Gospel as clearly as many believe
“I am struck with the absence of Southern evangelical resistance to the Klan. Rev. Lance Lewis, an African American Presbyterian minister asked, “How is that you simply allow the demonic use of the cross in this way while at the same time telling your children that the cross is our most precious symbol of God’s... Continue Reading
What’s The Problem With Christian Books?
I have a recurring problem in my reading; too often I find Christian books uninspiring
“Too many Christian books are more concerned with warning about something bad than encouraging the enjoyment of something good. This tends to be the case even when the book purports to be written to help the reader understand something that is good. Too many Christian books seem to be written because the author is irritated... Continue Reading
Tyndale Pulls Book, But Should Repent Along With the Church
Just because someone is talking about Jesus, heaven, hell, etc., doesn’t mean that what they are saying is true or has any real bearing to Biblical truth.
I know it’s difficult to warn people against such books with horrendous theology. They don’t like it. To try and warn someone against something like Jesus Calling insults the ones who read it because they have deemed it right in their own eyes. But we still must try. The general population of the church is not... Continue Reading
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