The sermon series through Amos continues.
When Normal is Odd
A word for excess (anachusis) is used once in the New Testament (1 Peter 4:4). The apostle Peter refers to the lives of unbelieving Gentiles, given over to lust, drunkenness, revelings, parties, and living this way in “excess of riot,” they believe that living moderately is just plain strange. Living reasonably is the most unreasonable …
Preach the Communion into Communion
“Try to make church fellowship full of life and love by preaching and living the gospel of love and brotherhood” (Charles Spurgeon, An All-Round Ministry, p. 108).
The Un-Fukuyama
“These are not the last days of history, they are simply the last days of ungodly humanism” (Steve Schlissel, Christian Culture in a Multicultural Age, p. 23).
Extreme Obedience?
“It is not really possible to love God too much. It is not possible to take his Word to extremes, because His Word prohibits that use of it. If a man is careful to keep his conduct, motives, attitudes, and manner within the boundaries set by Scripture, how could we object to him without objecting …
Politicians or Prophets?
Continuing the important theme of reading and declaring God’s judgments in history, here is an important argument for why Christians must recover an understanding of why it must be done. “But I say unto you, It shall be more tolerable for Tyre and Sidon at the day of judgment, than for you . . . …
So Far Left That . . .
The McCains own seven houses, but they haven’t paid taxes on one of them for four years. My guess is that they got out of rotation in their visits, and forgot they owned it. If they keep this up, because the condo is in default, they won’t anymore. Obama now has the Democratic nomination sewn …
In Every Generation
This word of exhortation is addressed to our young people, to those of you who have been growing up in the covenant. Most of you are in a very different position than your parents—they have been on a pilgrimage from unbelief, or from other, very distinct expressions of Christian faith. For them, as a matter …
Administering the Sacraments
The sacraments are ordinances of the Church; in other words, they are one of the things that makes church into Church. As such, the authority to oversee their administration, and the teaching that accompanies their administration, lies with the government of the Church. This is why the Westminster Confession restricts administration of the sacraments to …
Grand Kids in a Row
The Merkles got back from the UK for the summer, and so we had our first unified sabbath dinner since last October. Afterwards, we lined them up on the deck in birth order and took some pics.