A La Carte (June 14)
May the Lord be with you and bless you on this fine day.
Today’s Kindle deals include a few more interesting titles.
Your Short-Term Trip Should Be About You (and that’s not a bad thing).
“I’m still a fan of short-term missions. This is not an anti-missions-trip article. Those are out there. This is not one of them. So why do I still encourage these trips? Because I believe God can use them to transform lives. Not necessarily the lives of the people you are serving. But your life? Yes!”
What Makes a Bible Translation Bad?
What makes a Bible translation bad? Mark Ward offers a few important points.
Reclaiming the Remarkable Power of Liturgy
Sihle Xulu explains some of the power of liturgy. “Just like Israel we’re prone to forgetfulness and fearful idolatry. Thus we need constant reminders of the gospel story. One of the most effective ways for that is gospel-shaped liturgy in our corporate gatherings.”
Three Building Blocks for a Christian’s Political Theology
“Every pastor desires to see his congregation formed theologically (and if the pastor doesn’t want that, he should!). Part of this theological formation involves thinking through a number of questions that relate to church and state.” Kevin DeYoung offers three building blocks.
When Things Look Like They Can’t Possibly Get Worse
“My grandmother — one of the saintliest people I’ve ever known — used to say, ‘I can’t imagine things getting much worse. Jesus must be coming back soon.’ I chuckle when I think of her words because things indeed seem to have gotten much worse. Ideas that would have shocked my grandmother in the 1970s have now become widely accepted and celebrated — sometimes even enforced — in culture even the church.”
How do you plan on fighting sin?
“We will never drift or coast to victory over sin. We will never stumble into it. In fact in many cases we won’t fight it because we haven’t even identified it as a sin. We’re going to think in this post about what it means to fight sin.” Al provides a beginner’s guide to fighting sin.
Flashback: This Broken, Beautiful World
In our greatest joys we are never far from tears and in our deepest sorrows we are never far from laughter. Such is life in this broken, beautiful world.
Discontent helps nothing. It never removes a hardship, or makes a burden any lighter, or brings back a vanished pleasure. One never feels better, for complaining. It only makes him wretched! —J.R. Miller
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Weekend A La Carte (May 7)
May God bless you today as you prepare to gather to worship him on the Lord’s Day.
Today’s Kindle deals include a number of good options, including Andrew Wilson’s award-winner.
(Yesterday on the blog: As You Pray about Roe v Wade)
Salvation, Past, Present, and Future
So much depends upon properly understanding this: “From one point of view, of course, the Old Testament serves as the model of what Christ would come to accomplish. But Hebrews teaches us never to lose sight of the fact that the priesthood, sacrifices, liturgy and life of the Old Testament church are simply a rough copy. Christ is the original; He is the antitype, the pictures of the Old Testament form the type.”
Four Temptations Young Preachers May Face
Chopo Mwanza suggests four temptations that may be especially troublesome for young preachers.
4 Reasons We Should Study the Book of Revelation
Nancy Guthrie offers four good reasons to study the book of Revelation.
My Slave, My Choice
Many people treat the pro-choice cause as if it is on the side of science, but as this article shows, there are other terrible things that have once been said to be on the side of science.
A Molech Primer
“Ever since the Roe vs. Wade case main-streamed abortion in the United States, the ability to take the life of one’s baby has achieved a religious status. Judging by responses to news that Roe vs. Wade may be overturned, people have certainly responded as if their idols were under attack. I think it is helpful for Christians to understand that abortion does indeed function as a sort of sacrament in our society. But we are not alone.”
In Christ, We Have Direct Access to God
Let’s never lose the wonder of having direct access to God!
Flashback: Advance! Advance in Submission
Young Christian, you are also commanded to heed the fifth commandment. How can you expect to obey God through great accomplishments later in life if you will not obey God in this simple command now?You are as much serving God in looking after your own children, and training them up in God’s fear, and minding the house, and making your household a church for God, as you would be if you had been called to lead an army to battle for the Lord of hosts. —Charles Spurgeon
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A La Carte (November 18)
Good morning. Grace and peace to you.
We are seeing some Kindle deals related to ETS. They are worth checking out.
(Yesterday on the blog: The Beauty of an Heirloom Bible)
Assurance of Things Hoped For: Christians Will Meet Again in Heaven
You know what I love about blogs? That people write content as good and encouraging as this, and then joyfully give it away for free. “‘You’re welcome,’ I replied, mostly because those were the only words that formed in the weight of the moment. If he noticed my emotion, I’ll never know. For he simply returned to reading the open Bible in his lap. Our visit to Maine was filled with times like this—long periods of quiet introspection, beside an octogenarian who has been a significant force in my life for more than thirty years, with staccato spurts of outward expression.”
Capturing A Moment
Here’s another great example. “The warm sunlight is filtering through the trees, there’s music in the air, and amid the bustle of the servers and the clink of the cutlery there’s a constant hum of lively conversation. I’m not there. I don’t even know where it is, but when I look at the painting of this scene that hangs over our mantle, I can hear it all. I can feel it all, and I love it.”
The 2021 Reformed Gift Guide
Having trouble checking off your Christmas list? Here is a curated guide packed with great ideas that is sure to make them smile! Also, don’t miss out on the early Black Friday deals. (Sponsored Link)
Why did God wait to reveal the Trinity?
That’s a very good question! Dr. Blair Smith answers it in this video from RTS.
Book Tribalism
It’s worth reading Jim Elliff’s little tale about a tribe that was exposed to the Bible and then, a while later, to Christian books.
Why Did God Give Us the Book of Revelation?
Many of us are about to begin reading Revelation in our Bible-reading plans. Here’s an article from Lucky Mogakane that reminds us why God gave us that particular book. “When asked, most Christians will admit they haven’t read the book of Revelation. And those who have, usually say they will never read it again. Forgetting that it was written for our blessing (Revelation 1:3), many Christians are fearful of Revelation.”
Until You Pray
Glenna Marshall discusses what it means to “pray until you pray”—an old Puritan expression.
Flashback: Satan’s Great Trick
Satan’s great joy is to convince you that the sin you are about to commit is very small and the sin you have just committed is very large.The choice is not whether you will be a Christian soldier or a Christian civilian but whether you will be a prepared Christian soldier or an unprepared one. —Iain Duguid
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A La Carte (May 23)
Happy Victoria Day to my fellow Canadians. I hope you enjoy your day off!
Today’s Kindle deals include a list of titles from Crossway.
(Yesterday on the blog: Vultures Are Always the First to Smell Carrion)
After Roe: What’s Our Job Now?
Here’s George Grant in Tabletalk: “Circumstances change. Laws, courts, and administrations come and go. Elections raise up and cast down the mighty. Popular opinion waxes and wanes. But through it all, the callings and responsibilities of Christians in this poor, fallen world remain the same.”
The Sermon That Divided America
It has been 100 years since Fosdick preached his most famous sermon. Obbie Tyler Todd gives the background on it here. “To say that Harry Emerson Fosdick’s sermon ‘Shall the Fundamentalists Win?’ (1922) ignited the fundamentalist-modernist controversy requires a bit of qualification. In truth, the lines had been drawn for at least a decade.”
Harry Emerson Fosdick and the Spirit of American Liberalism
Kevin DeYoung has a good article on it as well. It’s hard to overstate just how important a sermon it was. “On May 21, 1922, Harry Emerson Fosdick took to the pulpit of Old First—the historic First Presbyterian Church (est. 1716) located on Fifth Avenue in Manhattan—to deliver what would be his most famous sermon.”
A Letter to Special Needs Mothers
I expect someone out there could use this encouragement.
My Relationship Status with My Emotions? It’s Complicated.
“Recently I woke up in the night feeling terrible, like I had sinned in some great way. Over the course of my life I’m sure I’ve had this experience dozens of times, maybe hundreds. How do I make sense of that? Where did that emotion, that feeling come from?”
Died: Fred Carter, Little-Known Black Artist Behind Chick Tracts
CT has a fascinating obituary for Fred Carter, the artist behind many of the Chick tracts. “Carter—an African American artist who drew gospel tracts, evangelical comic books, and Black Sunday school curricula—died on May 9 at the age of 83. He was the close collaborator of Jack Chick, pioneer of the popular evangelistic cartoons known as Chick Tracts. According to Christian Comics International, more than half of Chick Tracts were drawn by Carter.”
Flashback: Embrace Your Purpose
God saves you to sanctify you, to restore you to the life he intended for you before you gave yourself to sin.No one who murmurs under God’s chastening hand, is ever made better by it. —J.R. Miller
