Everyone here wants things, and there is no problem with that. That is a design feature; it is how God made us. But there are frequently deep problems with how and why we want things. And the central problem is that we tend to want things that God gave to someone else, simply because that …
The Oil of Insincerity
When we are not getting along with others, the pressing temptation is always to believe that you are just as you have always been, and that they have somehow changed. This is often not true at all, but even if it were true, that does not put you in the right. Perhaps they have changed …
Getting at the Real Ones
As we come, week after week, to confess our sins, we need to learn to make certain fine distinctions. In one direction is the peril of a false scrupulousness, and in the other we see the error of rejecting that, and settling in complacently to substandard Christian living. We don’t want hyper-scrupulousness of conscience, but …
As Settled By the Sacred Text
When our Lord was tempted by the devil in the wilderness, He answered with Scripture, as we all know. Three times He was tested, and each time He replied in the words of Deuteronomy. But this is sometimes misunderstood. We tend to think that Jesus was quoting Scripture at the devil, as though the devil …
Upside Down, Gently Bobbing
Not a person in this room has to struggle with the temptations that other people have. And every person in this room does in fact have to struggle against the temptations that present themselves, daily, to each. Now as we all seek to establish our walk with Christ, one of the perennial temptations will be …
Worshiping with Little Ones
Many of you are here as parents of little ones and, in some cases, many little ones. For you, the worship of the Lord is a far more arduous task that it is for the rest of us. All of us are engaged in the work of worshiping the Lord, but you are carrying young …
Feral Children in a Digital World
Over the last several decades, our church has grown significantly in our numbers, and we thank God for it, but during the same time period, the world has been undergoing a technological and cultural transformation. And the frontier of that transformation necessarily runs right through the teen years. Now a moment’s reflection should tell you …
The One Who Looks Down on Galaxies
We have come to worship the one who touches the mountains and they smoke. He touches the mountains and sometimes they just disappear into the sky. We worship the one who nods, and the oceans gather into their storms. We worship the one who looks down on all the galaxies we might be able to …
The Weight of Glory on Your Lap
Many years ago we made the decision to disband our children’s church and nursery, and go to a system of parents training their little ones to worship along with us during the service. We do have cry room, and so on, but the intent is to have our children grow up into the worship of …
A New Song
This exhortation concerns something we do in every worship service, and consequently it is possible for the whole thing to start becoming “old hat.” I am referring to our practice of psalm singing, and not in a way that we can simply check off our list. “Sang my quota of psalms today, or this week. …