A few months ago, I listened to a sermon by a prominent evangelical pastor in which he referenced the words “God with us” as among the foremost of the goals of God and the storyline of Scripture. The goal of this post is to give a brief understanding of what he means behind these words. … Continue reading When We Think God is Not “With Us”
How to Kill Sin: Christ & Church (Part 4)
Now on post four of our five-part series on killing sin, we see how Christ and the church can help us in our battle against sin. Remember John Owen's words, "Be killing sin, or sin be killing you." Christ as Helper Temptations will come. Yet, Christ, who has won the battle bringing us to victory … Continue reading How to Kill Sin: Christ & Church (Part 4)
How to Kill Sin: Declaring War (Part 3)
This is post three of five in the series on killing sin. Refer back to Post 1 and Post 2. We have now gained a working definition of both sin and temptation. Now we will see what Scripture tells us of declaring war against sin. Note: this is not a practical "how-to" guide, but understanding … Continue reading How to Kill Sin: Declaring War (Part 3)
I Am a Mocker
Holy Week – or Passion Week – is a very emotional week for my wife and I, for we always try to read the Scripture corresponding to the day that Christ was in that week. Thus we can gain a sense of how things played out at a chronological level. Chronological Bible reading is the most … Continue reading I Am a Mocker
How To Kill Sin: Temptation (Part 2)
We are now in the second post in the five part series on killing sin. The first post gave us a working definition of sin. This post will give us a working definition of desire and temptation. The goal is to heed John Owen's words, "Be killing sin, or sin be killing you." The question … Continue reading How To Kill Sin: Temptation (Part 2)
How to Kill Sin: Sin (Part 1)
This will be the first post in a five post series on killing sin. My prayer is that it better equips you to engage in the war that sin has waged against your soul! You may feel trapped by sin. You may know a friend that that has lost friendships and relationships due to sin. … Continue reading How to Kill Sin: Sin (Part 1)
No Benchwarmers in the Church
There are no benchwarmers in the church. In baseball, there are benchwarmers. In softball, there are benchwarmers. In basketball, there are benchwarmers. In football, there are benchwarmers. We don't want the bench to get lonely, right? The silly thing about all of these sports is that people are so often content with a benchwarmer position. Though … Continue reading No Benchwarmers in the Church
Know Why You Believe What You Believe
Know why you believe what you believe. What seems to be such a simple statement can bring about complicated implications. In order to know the why, we must also know the what; and in order to know the what, we must also know the why. Everyone believes something. An atheist believes, though it be in … Continue reading Know Why You Believe What You Believe
Pray To Be Sent, Not Safe
"Lord, keep us all safe today." "I pray for a hand of protection over everyone in this room." "May we all have a sense of security as we part ways today." All of us have heard either these exact prayers or variations of these prayers. They saturate our comfortable, American, churches. They permeate our culture. … Continue reading Pray To Be Sent, Not Safe
Book Review & Summary: The Mentoring Church
Phil Newton has written not only an incredibly academic work, but one that is highly practical and intensely pastoral. In The Mentoring Church, he takes largely a case-study approach as he looks at not only biblical models, but modern models of mentoring in ministry. After first laying a biblical foundation for why we, as churches, … Continue reading Book Review & Summary: The Mentoring Church
