1. Those whom God effectually calls, He also freely justifieth (Rom. 8:30; 3:24); not by infusing righteousness into them, but by pardoning their sins, and by accounting and accepting their persons as righteous; not for any thing wrought in them, or done by them, but for Christ’s sake alone; nor by imputing faith itself, the …
A Fourth Decade of Psalms/Psalm 38
Introduction: This is a striking psalm, and is listed among the penitential psalms. It begins with virtually the same words as Psalm 6, the first of the penitential psalms. But the repentance shown by David here is quite distinct from what many Christians call repentance, and this is something we really need to deal with. …
Buckets of Blog Water
Some time ago, I posted a note on my invitation to a debate over Auburn Avenue issues. I did that here. And now, on The Puritan Board, there is an ongoing discussion of that invitation. The consensus appears to be that a debate with me would be a bad idea, with a few folks questioning …
Inscribed on the Gates
The first commandment has been given in the context of the others. Now Moses begins a detailed exposition of this foundational commandment in chapters 6 through 11. “Now these are the commandments, the statutes, and the judgments, which the LORD your God commanded to teach you, that ye might do them in the land whither …
Too Big for One Mouth
We are a large congregation, and this means that we must take great care with our tongues. Many in the modern world have drifted into the view that when an institution gets large enough, the basic patterns of godly speech no longer apply. Within a small group, slander and gossip can readily be identified as …
He Will Destroy All Battle Gear
Minister: Lift up your hearts! Congregation: We lift them up to the Lord! God is known through Judah’ hills, His Name is great in Israel. Salem holds His dwelling place, His tent of praise on Zion’s mount. He breaks the arrows and the bows, The shields and swords, all battle gear. Our God is greater …
Read All About It
One of the characteristics of modern assumptions about the Bible is that in the Old Testament God dealt with His people in more physical or earthy ways, and that in the New Testament His promises and deliverances are of a more spiritual (meaning ethereal) nature. Thus, we don’t expect God to actually deliver us from …
The Rest That Works
We are discovering that celebration is hard work. We are in the middle of a great season of personal and corporate celebrations—graduations from high school, from college, weddings, and so forth. This is a time of great joy, and joy naturally calls us to work so that we might give fuller expression to that joy. …
The Ten Words
So we now come to the Ten Commandments. As with everything, context should govern all our understanding, but this is especially important when we are considering the question of law. “And this is the law which Moses set before the children of Israel . . .” (Dt. 4:44-5:33). We have to understand the grace of …
Sabbath Kindness Again
God and Father, we thank You for Your Sabbath kindness to us. You have shown that kindness to us over and over again, and so we continue to thank You for it. We are thankful for the food, for the wine, for the fellowship around this table, and for all the hard work that went …