“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) The Basket Case Chronicles #166 “There are, it may be, so many kinds of voices in the world, and none of them is without signification. Therefore if I know not the meaning of the voice, I shall be unto him that speaketh a …
In Deadly Earnest, not Acting Like It
“To do so is not natural, it is to be an actor; and acting, however skilful and however much admired, is in the pulpit a crime, — and, as the diplomatists say, not only a crime, but worse, a blunder” (Broadus, Preparation and Delivery, p. 418).
Three Chains I : Fear
Introduction: Over the course of the next few weeks, we are going to be considering three chains that the enemy of our souls wants to use in order to keep us in bondage. But in Christ, we have been set free, and set free means set free from each of these chains, and from all …
Wine in a Cup, and Blood Spilled
There is a striking similarity between the bread we see here and the body of Jesus Christ. There is also a striking similarity between the wine in the cup and the blood of Jesus. If there were no similarity it could not work as a sacrament—it could not even work as a metaphor. But there …
Generosity Grows
James tells us that if we sin at just one point of the law, we are guilty of offending against all of it. This is because the law is simply a description of what the triune personal God is like, and so an offense against Him at this point or at that point is still, …
An Eye That Actually Sees
“The most potent element in the delivery of a real orator is often the expressiveness of the eye” (Broadus, Preparation and Delivery, p. 415).
Tangled Blatts
“At thy right hand there are pleasures for evermore” (Ps. 16: 11) The Basket Case Chronicles #165 “And even things without life giving sound, whether pipe or harp, except they give a distinction in the sounds, how shall it be known what is piped or harped? For if the trumpet give an uncertain sound, who …
Idols and Tyranny
Introduction: One of the reasons we have trouble dealing realistically with evil in this world is that we have drawn mental cartoons of the evil beforehand. When someone says “tyranny,” we think of goose-stepping armies, missile parades, and funny looking helmets. But then, when something genuinely bad happens in our own lives, and we see …
The Household of Faith, Hope, and Love
One of the ways we diminish our understanding of the Lord’s Supper is through saying that it is just a metaphor. In the first place, the world is more mysterious than that and there is no such thing as “just” a metaphor. God created the cosmos by speaking, and words are not impotent little labels. …
The Soul of the Building
Scripture tells us to strengthen the things that remain—strengthen the things that appear to have some lingering stability. Shore up the permanent things. But because of our penchant for idolatry, we sometimes make a grave mistake when it comes to this. We see churches and cathedrals built centuries ago, and we think that the stone …