As many of you noted, the front page newspaper article last weekend made clear that some local unbelievers are very unhappy about the influence that our church is having in the community. We are grateful that we are having enough influence to be noticed, and we are equally grateful that our opponents have been judicially …
Do Not Forget the Lord
Chapter eight of Deuteronomy (like chapter seven) is structured chiastically. But because of the richness of this material, we will take two sessions to cover the one chiasm. “All the commandments which I command thee this day shall ye observe to do, that ye may live, and multiply, and go in and possess the land …
What His Work Tastes Like
You are the people of God, and this means that you have been saved, you are being saved, and you will be saved. The Scriptures teach us to believe that we have been saved definitively, and yet not to rest in some carnal fashion upon our laurels. We are also warned against that constant temptation …
Do Not Be Quiet, Lord and God
Minister: Lift up your hearts! Congregation: We lift them up to the Lord! Unto You I cry, O Lord my Rock; Do not be quiet. If You are quiet when I pray, Then I will float like those who drift Down to the pit, A floating leaf. So hear my prayers, When I offer prayers, …
An Artillery Exhortation
In the colonial era, it was the practice of ministers to preach what were called “artillery sermons” just before elections. The sermon today is an artillery sermon, taken in a broad sense, but I wanted to be a bit more specific here, with this artillery exhortation. In the civil realm, you will be casting ballots …
Four Men
The task of exegesis is to unpack from the text what is already there. The task is not eisegesis, to import what it would be pleasant for me to find were I to have my druthers. If I go on a trip without my wife, when I get to the motel room, one of my …
How Could It Not?
Just a few things to say about the Ted Haggard mess. For some important background, please check out these posts (here and here) from the Bayly brothers. There are two important points to take away from this most recent evangelical moral disaster. The first is that this was certainly hypocrisy, but it was not the …
A Remote Control With New Batteries
The Word of God tells us in countless places that we are to live with a view toward everlasting consequences. God tells us that our motivation in this should be hunger for blessing from Him. The moralistic philosopher Kant tried to teach us that a deed is not really moral unless it is done from …
Yet Another Sabbath
Gracious God and Father of Jesus, we thank You for the arrival of yet another Sabbath. Thank You for the gift of worship tomorrow morning, and for the gift of preparation for that worship now in this meal together. We thank You that the food represents countless hours of human labor and diligence, up to …
But He Invited Both of You
We have been called to liberty, but this liberty is no occasion for the flesh. We are granted full forgiveness, but this is not granted so that we might begin sinning with impunity. How can we who died to sin still live in it? The works of the flesh are plain, Paul tells us. But …