two on suffering

first courtesy of Vitamin Z we get this comforting bit that we will never be able to fully explain the problem of evil but that we can trust God anyway:
So how do Christians explain the problem of evil?
The reality is, we can’t provide an exhaustive theodicy or explanation of the existence of evil.  Our minds [...]

I Peter 1:1-13

I have been spending a little time in I Peter again this week. I just love that letter and the more I study it the more that I see everything important is there.
Yesterday in Bible study we looked at the first 13 verses of the book.
Peter is writing to the elect exiles of the [...]

who do you trust? part III

all right, now let’s go back where we started. In John 10:10, Jesus contrasts himself and his mission with the thief.
The thief comes to steal, kill and destroy. Jesus came to bring abundant life.
and here are we sheep in the middle. we have a choice to make.
do [...]

faith comes from hearing

At one of my less regular stops on the blogosphere this morning, I found an excellent example of how to interpret the Bible.
Romans 10:17 says:
17 So faith comes from hearing, and hearing through the word of Christ.
what does that mean and what doesn’t it mean? how do you know? Go read John [...]

panting for God

how long has it been since you felt like this?
1 As a deer pants for flowing streams,
so pants my soul for you, O God.
2 My soul thirsts for God,
for the living God.
Jeff Mangum talked about self feeding this morning at church.
The thing is that until [...]

dealing with doubt

here is John Piper talking about doubts

a lesson in faith from Hebrew midwives

Kevin DeYoung points to Exodus 1:17 for a lesson in faith from Hebrew midwives.
here it is:
“17But the midwives feared God and did not do as the king of Egypt commanded them, but let the male children live.”
and here is Kevin’s conclusion:
The bottom line is that we will never display strength in the face of temptation, [...]

going with what you know

sometimes in the midst of heartbreak and pain, it is easy to lose sight of God. We get overwhelmed. Platitudes and cliches in that moment don’t help.
That is why I love the Psalms. David was an emotional guy on an emotional roller coaster. Compare Psalm 35 (David on a [...]

John 10

I have been spending some time in the Gospel of John lately. It is amazing how reading familiar words can have a new impact on you when you are reading them again.
Just look for a minute at some phrases from John 10.
here are verses 3-5:
3. To him [the shepherd] the gatekeeper opens. The [...]

he knew what was in man

John Piper’s sermon from last sunday on John 2:23-25 is both haunting and reassuring.
John 2:23-25
Now when he was in Jerusalem at the Passover Feast, many believed in his name when they saw the signs that he was doing. 24 But Jesus on his part did not entrust himself to them, because he knew all people [...]

a fascinating article

Courtesy of Carl Trueman here is an article in the Times of London from an atheist. His point is that what the continent of Africa needs is the spiritual renewal brought by Christian missionaries.
Here is a teaser, but you have to read the whole thing, it is fascinating.
But travelling in Malawi refreshed another [...]

Paradise

In a Tabletalk article Burk Parsons mentions the 2005 film Paradise Now about Islamic terrorists about to blow themselves up and uses it as a segue to discuss the concept of Paradise for believers:
Jesus promised paradise to the thief on the cross (Luke 23:43), and He has promised paradise to us (Rev. 2:7). Just as [...]

two lines at once

Ramblin’ Pastor man has several quotes from Charles Spurgeon posted. Go take a look. I especially enjoyed this bit here:
Not only are there a few cardinal doctrines, by which we can steer our ship North, South, East, or West, but as we study the Word, we shall begin to learn something about the [...]

thought for the day

from David Bosch, Believing the Future via Todd Hiestand.
“Mission is more than and different from recruiting to our brand of religion; it is alerting people to the universal reign of God.”
David Bosch in Believing the Future

podcasts

we started a study of Luke at Vista Church three weeks ago. The podcasts are here. I highly recommend all three of them. Jeff Mangum has been on flaming fire. three of the best messages that go right at the heart of the matter of faith and trust with which I [...]

on doubt

Here is a post from C.J. Mahaney talking about Os Guiness and his book In Two Minds: The Dilemma of Doubt and How to Resolve It (IVP, 1976). This book is now sold as God in the Dark: The Assurance of Faith Beyond a Shadow of Doubt.
as I have said before, Mark 9:24 is [...]

evidence

What is evidence?
being a lawyer, I am used to thinking of evidence as coming from admissible documents and witness testimony. whenever I am preparing a case, I engage in “discovery.” discovery is a process of asking questions and requesting documents related to the event that is the subject of the case. [...]

where we are.

according to George Barna, in 2001 8% of americans were evangelicals defined as follows:
All Barna Research studies define “evangelicals” as individuals who meet the born again criteria; say their faith is very important in their life today; believe they have a personal responsibility to share their religious beliefs about Christ with non-Christians; acknowledge the existence [...]

do we tolerate sin?

Ligonier has a book review of Respectable Sins: Confronting the Sins We Tolerate (NavPress, 2007) by Jerry Bridges.
Tragically, the idea of sin has disappeared in many churches, and where the concept remains, it is sometimes deflected. In other words, we readily condemn those outside of the church for flagrant sins, all the while silently condoning [...]

New link in the sidebar

I put a new link over to the right to this excellent page on Resurgence. It is an excellent refutation of doctrinal errors that some leaders are making in an attempt to be culturally relevant.
I post here again Driscoll’s summary words on the topic.

if you have time, here [...]

Mr. Obama’s faith

here is a transcript of an interview Barack Obama gave back in 2004. Read all of it when you can, but in the meantime I found these exchanges to be fascinating:
OBAMA:Where do you move forward with that?
This is something that I’m sure I’d have serious debates with my fellow Christians about. I think that [...]

getting our children engaged in christian growth

My lovely wife and I have been wondering about/concerned with the question of how to encourage our children to appropriate the Faith for themselves in a vibrant and real way. Julie sent a link out yesterday to some folks as follows:
www.therebelution.com
this is an interesting website….these teens are showing that their youth doesn’t have to [...]