If we fail to see to see the glory of Christ predicted in the Old Testament and then unveiled in the New Testament, we have failed to truly understand God’s Word. The Bible is replete with proclamations of the glory of Jesus Christ, and even the minor prophetic books declare the majesty of this...

In the first part of this series, we looked at some of the ways that security in Christ can cure our feelings of insecurity. In this second part, we consider how security in Christ leads to a magnanimous spirit. Saved, Secure, and Satisfied in All Situations To experience true security and lay our...

In the first post of this two-part series, we began to examine the various reasons why the Christian may struggle to find peace with the help of William Bridge’s first sermon from his work, A Lifting Up for the Downcast . In it, he focused on Psalm 42:11, “Why art thou cast down, O my soul? and why...

Remodeling a home (or church) is hard work. Not only does it take a great deal of planning, hard work, blood (if you happen to be accident prone), sweat, and even tears. There are often unforeseen trials that accompany the work, like leaky pipes, rotted wood, and poorly run wires that all need to...

The culture in which we live is diametrically opposed to the idea of the family as set forth in Psalm 127. Here, the Psalmist refers to a household, composed of a father and mother who married early and are blessed by an abundance of children, as a direct and wonderful blessing from God. It is, in...

Unconditional election, when rightly understood, is one of the most freeing doctrines for the under shepherd to embrace and one of the most assuring doctrines for the Christian to hold. It is beautiful because it reveals the beauty of our God whose grace is sovereign and whose mercies are new every...

History is replete with the stories of despots and tyrants who wielded unbridled power with cataclysmic results. Everyone knows the horrors of the Hitlers of the world. Shakespeare famously wrote about a man who committed atrocious acts of paranoid murder to keep power in Macbeth . In both history...

“And let us consider one another to provoke unto love and to good works: Not forsaking the assembling of ourselves together, as the manner of some is; but exhorting one another: and so much the more, as ye see the day approaching.” For Christians living in the rampantly-individualistic twenty-first...

There was a time when 2 Timothy 3:12 worried me. In it, Paul tells Timothy, “Indeed, all who desire to live a godly life in Christ Jesus will be persecuted.” It wasn’t the idea of persecution that worried me, but the idea that, at that point in my life, I couldn’t really think of any great moments...

Christian virtue is lovely to behold. Jonathan Edwards, in his treatise A Dissertation Concerning the Nature of Virtue , described it as, “Something beautiful , or rather some kind of beauty , or excellency.” [1] Edwards did not mean that a delicate flower or an excellent meal possess virtue;...

There I was: Already running late for an appointment and stuck in traffic behind a line of cars behind a horse and buggy. In my frustration, I thought to honk my horn at the primitive horse-drawn carriage but was stopped when I remembered the all-important truth: God is sovereign. What I perceived...

It may be surprising, after noting his valiant tenacity, to recognize that John Knox was, by his own admission, a coward by nature when it came to embracing his call to ministry. It was, actually, something he seemingly opposed at first. Indeed, Knox did not rush into Gospel ministry. He was a man...

Wittenberg, Germany—October 31st, 1517—An obscure Augustinian Monk stands outside the doors of the Castle Church. In his hand, he holds a hammer and is prepared to nail in place The Ninety-five Theses . His intention is not to deface the church or start a commotion. Rather, this is the common...

Preaching the Word of God is one of the most blessed tasks a man may be called to perform. However, just as James warns that not all should desire to teach—for their judgment will be all the harsher before Christ (James 3:1)—many others prove to be ineffective communicators of gospel truth because...

Note: Read more on John Bunyan's pastoral heart here. The life of John Bunyan proves, perhaps more than any other, that God indeed does not call the equipped, but rather equips the called. Bunyan understood the great grace he had been gifted in Christ, and he was eager to use every moment and every...