Our congregation continues to grow, which can only be a problem if we cease to grow in love. Paul tells the Thessalonians that their love for the brethren throughout Macedonia was highly spoken of. But this, for Paul, was inadequate. He wanted them to love “more and more.” You are loving congregation, but far from …
What Grace Prepared
We are gathered here to eat the Lord’s Supper, not our own suppers. We all have homes of our own, and kitchens in them, and dining rooms. We have left behind our own food. This is not because we are ungrateful for it, but rather because we know that our food is not the food …
Marriage As Manifest Glory XXVIII
INTRODUCTION: We come now to the question of “what headship is not.” It is not enough for us to use the biblical words and phrases, we must know what they mean in Scripture. THE TEXTS: “Look not every man on his own things, but every man also on the things of others. Let this mind …
Six Day Foundation
Our Lord and God, we call upon You now, asking You to bless us as we bless and magnify Your name. You have summoned us, gathered us, called us, and as a consequence we cry out to You. You have established the seasons, You have established the pattern of the week, with one day of …
Blood on the Envelope
July 2005 Dear Friends of Credenda, I see that the time has come for me to write another support letter to those of you who help keep the ministry of Credenda afloat. And so let me put it to you this way. Having grown up in evangelical ministry circles, I have been acquainted for many …
Marriage as Manifest Glory XXVII
INTRODUCTION: The usually cynical Ambrose Bierce defined a widow in this way: “A pathetic figure that the Christian world has agreed to take humorously, although Christ’s tenderness towards widows was one of the most marked features of his character.” James tells us that pure and undefiled religion involves visiting widows (Jas. 1:27), and a moment’s …
Professional Arrogance
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) Growing Dominion, Part 55 As we consider our responsibilities in the business and professional world, we have to begin by distinguishing different kinds of professional or vocational arrogance. The first is arrogance of an anti-intellectual sort-driven by the egalitarian assumption that anyone can …
Jeremiah the Babylonian Tank Gunner
I don’t know what the deal is with World magazine, but the most recent issue has gummed something up again. Just before a very good summary of an article that I co-wrote with Doug Jones (“Owning the Curse”), Gene Veith destroys the value of that accurate summary by his introduction to it, which goes like …
Just Come
Because the Lord’s Supper is a covenant meal, it may be abused. It is a covenant Supper, not a magic Supper. In the history of the Church, tragically, abuse has happened often. Paul says here that it is possible for the Supper to do more harm than good. He says that when the Corinthians came …
There It Is
As you may have surmised, this concludes my old posts from the Vision 20/20 list discussion of a few years back. They are now accessible in the archives of this blog, which was the point.