The God of love and peace be with you today.

Westminster Books is doing some spring cleaning which means they have some really good deals for you.
There are a few more Kindle deals to consider today.
(Yesterday on the blog: Why Do Billionaires Want to Live Forever?)
What We Need is Power
Jared Wilson: “Should we go into God’s inerrant, infallible, inspired word looking only for things to do, we will come away with God’s good instructions for the good life but without the power to actually do them. The power to obey does not lie in the commandments. The power to get through the day does not come from the instructions on how to get through it. The power to glorify God is in the glorious gospel, which says not ‘Do’ but ‘Done!’”
Jesus, Friend of Sinners
“Some Christian circles assume that if a pastor or church is drawing in sinners, they must be compromising the message of the Bible. Maybe they’re seeker-sensitive, watering down the more offensive doctrines of Christianity. On the flip side, pastors who have a reputation for castigating sinners, faithfully exposing the sins of society, must be doing something right. But the truth is, neither approach captures the complexity of Christ’s gospel ministry.”
Why is it important to study the Christian creeds, confessions, and catechisms?
Steven Lawson, Derek Thomas, and W. Robert Godfrey all comment on creeds, confessions, and catechisms in this clip from a Ligonier conference. Also, good on Lawson for rattling off all the different headings of systematic theology.
You’re So Vain, You Probably Think This Post Is About You
This one may cause you to think and confess.
Is the Concept of a “Self-Authenticating” Bible a Modern Invention?
Michael Kruger discusses one important way we can know that certain books belong in the Bible. “Christian theologians—especially in the Reformed world—have long argued that there is a more foundational way we can know books are from God: the internal qualities of the books themselves.”
Keep It Simple
“What do you feel when someone asks you to disciple them? I imagine you’re excited because a hungry, likely younger Christian, wants to grow. I imagine there’s probably also stress because you don’t know where to begin. A wealth of good resources is at your fingertips, but that can make things more complicated. So where do you start?”
Flashback: Being the Answer to Prayer
If we pray that God will comfort those who have endured a great loss, we ourselves should be eager and willing to be used as the means of comfort, to be the ones God uses to weep with those who weep, to bear another’s burden and so fulfill the law of Christ. Pray and then act to see the prayer answered.

In many homes the sorrow over the living is greater far than that for the dead who have passed to sweet rest. —J.R. Miller

Good morning. Grace and peace to you.

Westminster Books has a sale on the fledgling EBTC commentary series which has gotten off to a very strong start with volumes by James Hamilton, Thomas Schreiner, Andreas Köstenberger, and others. It’s great to begin collecting a series when it has only just begun!
(Yesterday on the blog: The Legend of the Battle-Weary Crusader)
My Christmas Gift Bought with a Child’s Heart
I love this one. “Suddenly shy, my six-year-old hesitated, a worried brow replaced his eagerness. His eyes lost some of their shiny dance. Grasped between small hands of offering, he stretched it toward me, then sat back on his haunches. Behind him, lights from the tree twinkled, a kaleidoscope halo of color. His eyes never left mine, and I recognized how desperately he desired to please me with his present. I saw bare longing in his wide broody dark blue eyes. I felt their desire.”
God’s Plan When Our Plans Fail
I think you’ll enjoy reading some thoughts from John Piper on how God’s plan proceeds even when our plans fail.
“Millions are Dying Without Christ”: Thinking Through a Popular But Insufficient Reason to Move Overseas
“There’s much to love about this impulse. … And yet, I try to remind my Christian friend that this fact by itself isn’t a sufficient motivation for someone to enter cross-cultural ministry. For at least two reasons.”
Finding a Church That Suits Our Every Need and Desire Is Not the Ultimate Purpose of Church
Benjamin Watson says, rightly, that “finding a church that suits my every need and desire is NOT the ultimate purpose of attending church. The primary purpose of church is gathering together in song, prayer, proclamation, and admonition to worship the Lord. Church is about Him, not me.”
A Great Way To Make Friends
Yes, it really can be this simple.
Comfort for Christian Parents of Unconverted Children
Jim Elliff: “All Christian parents wish that God would show us something to do to secure our child’s salvation, and then ‘we’ll do it with all our might’ because we love our child so much. Yet, God has not made salvation the effect of somebody else’s faith; our son or daughter must come to Christ on his or her own.”
Flashback: Momentary Obedience, Forever Honor
How do we show honor to our parents, especially when we are adults?

There are some of us old-fashioned Christians, who still believe that a loving God creates dark nights as well as bright noon-days; that he not only permits trouble, but sometimes sends troubles on his own children for their spiritual profit. —Theodore Cuyler

May the Lord be with you and bless you today.

Westminster Books has a deal on a new systematic theology.
Today’s Kindle deals include a couple of noteworthy titles.
(Yesterday on the blog: The Gap Between Our Greatest Grief and Our Greatest Joy)
What Are Atheism and Secularism?
Ligonier has a helpful and quite extensive introduction to the twin philosophical worldviews of atheism and secularism.
Gospel Mourning
“Jesus said, ‘Blessed are those that mourn.’ It is in this gospel mourning God comes to his people. The Spirit gives comfort as we mourn for sin and the effects of sin on a hurting world. We look to the Christ which came down in search of all those who would mourn by faith.”
3 Reasons I’m Glad That God is Sovereign Over Tragedy
Jacob offers three reasons that he is grateful that God is sovereign over even tragedies.
Overlooked Details of the Red Sea Crossing
The crossing of the Red Sea is one of the Bible’s most familiar stories. “So if we were asked to recount this story, we could probably list many of the highlights without consulting Scripture. However, because the episode is so famous, and depictions of the event are so numerous, we will inevitably miss some details. The story is perhaps too familiar.” Indeed.
17 Dates Along the Old Testament Storyline
Mitch has been sharing some really interesting writing about the Old Testament. Here he shares a series of dates that help explain the OT storyline.
Can Satan Put Thoughts into Our Heads?
He sure can, as John Piper explains here.
Flashback: Her Weakness Is Her Strength
It is to the weakest that we owe the greatest honor, to the frailest that we owe the greatest allegiance, to the ones most likely to be overlooked that we owe the greatest attention.

Do you want to make your Christianity attractive and beautiful to others? Then acquire the grace of patience now, before you experience illness. Then, if you become ill, your illness will be for the glory of God. —J.C. Ryle