James tells us the source of quarreling and wars. He says, authoritatively, that people fight and quarrel because of their covetousness. Covetousness, in its turn, a violation of the tenth commandment, is the opposite of contentment. When you are weeding in a garden, it is not enough to simply clip the weed so that it …
False Reproach As Glory
Peter tells us that we are happy when we are reproached for the name and sake of Jesus Christ. He tells us that we should not be astonished when we are confronted with attacks, persecutions, and slanders. But more than this, Peter states, in line with what the Scriptures tell us elsewhere, that it is …
Rejoicing When Others Lie
All things work together for good for those who love God and are the called according to His purpose. This assurance from God is a deep assurance in times of natural calamity, but it is even more profound when we are confronted with the consequences of sin and rebellion. This too, is controlled by God …
Gearing Up for Mother’s Day
One of our cultural customs honors our mothers once a year on Mother’s Day. There is no divine sanction for the particular day chosen, but the theme of the observance is required in the Ten Commandments, and Paul tells us that this is the first commandment with a promise—that your life may be long in …
The Church Is Like . . .
You have perhaps heard the old saying that the church is not a rest home for saints, but rather a hospital for sinners. Like everything else that is true, we must guard against holding this truism falsely. We are the covenant people of God, and we should want to live faithfully before Him over the …
Goodness to God; Gladness to Man
We are here because we believe the Word of God. We are here because God has summoned us. We are here because God promises to forgive us our sins as we confess them in Jesus’ name. We are here because God is dealing with us; God is at work in our midst. But there are …
Look at Your Hands
The fact of death is woven into this fallen creation. The fact of resurrection is woven into the new creation. We are to live in the old order, as heirs of the new. We cannot do this by sight, and so we are summoned to walk by faith. Look at your hands. You know that …
Beloved of God
You are here as saints, as the elect of God, as Christians, as believers. Now one of the central things that believers must do when they assemble to worship God is—believe. This means that we are not to conduct exercises in abstract theological problems. We are not doing math; we are meeting with God. So …
The Company of the Peeved
Even though we are Christians, a forgiven people, we still struggle with remaining sin. God in His ultimate wisdom did not choose to translate us immediately to heaven the moment we were converted. His desire is for us to learn how to love Him, over the course of our lives, when there is an adversary …
The Gods NASDAQ and DOW
We cannot understand the world around us apart from right worship. And yet, day after day, we see a world which cries out to be understood. We see conflict, distress, warfare, and oppression, and we sometimes despair of comprehending our role in it. This problem has been accentuated by the current war, but this actually …