Following Elijah’s stunning victory over the prophets of Baal in 1 Kings 18, he turns his attention to drought that continued to linger over the land. Back in 1 Kings 17, Elijah had announced a drought on the land because of the apostasy of the people. They had backed into Baalism and paganism. And their failure to remain faithful to the Lord carried the judgment of God removing his word from the people, signified by the lack of rain or dew. This was also a polemic against Baal, the storm god. The Baal cycle would be broken and the LORD would show himself to be God.
Columns
"With which person in the Bible do you most identify?" This is a question I have often asked others in the church over the years. Most of us lack even enough self-awareness to able to answer the question. Others among us have a propensity to appeal to the best characters in Scripture.
For the previous post in this four-part series, p
The sermon was the minister’s attempt through reason to encourage faith as it affected this life and the next. They were committed to a style that was plain but not dull. Each minister was pledged by his own creed to use a balance of doctrine and practice, faithfully devoted to the exposition of the Word of Scripture, and understood by all. Every Puritan sermon began with a definite Biblical text. Once a text was selected, the preacher’s immediate duty was to clarify it in all possible ways. Thus the lengthy Puritan sermon had a structure of its own.
Although believers have received the promise of an eternity with the triune God in the new heaven and the new earth, we’re often tempted to lose an eternal perspective, whether during days of mundane matters or terrible trials. You may be single and dread facing another lonely night, or you may be lonely in marriage. You may feel displaced and unappreciated at work. Your relationships with one or more of your children might be strained and it’s all you think about. Or you doubt God’s promise to protect you and provide for you.
If someone were to ask you what passions, pleasures, or desires you have, what would you say? Upon further reflection, how would you respond if they asked how these passions, pleasures, and desires cause fights with those who stand in your way of them? When we think about passions, it’s important to remember that they are not necessarily bad things. You might be passionate about music, gardening, health and fitness, or sports. You might desire a godly spouse or a better paying job to provide for your family.
Hannah Allen – Rescued from Serious Mental Struggles
One of the most moving, honest, and encouraging stories of a battle with mental disturbances comes from a 17th-century English Puritan, Hannah Allen, born around 1638 to pious parents. Her father, John Archer, a merchant, died when she was still young and her mother decided to send her to London to attend school. There, she lived with a paternal aunt until she was 12.
Marianna Slocum – Bringing the Good Seed to Mexican Tribes.
Marianna Slocum was excited about her upcoming wedding to Bill Bentley, a missionary she had met two years earlier. The big date was only six days away. They had just returned to her home after Bill’s speaking engagement in New Jersey and an enjoyable sight-seeing in New York.
Romance
Last January, a new professor wrote with a little conundrum. A student scored a 27% on his final, realized that he might fail the course as a result, and called the professor three weeks later to plead for mercy - a second chance - so he could pass the course.
In Matthew 12, Jesus and the disciples experienced events that had to be bitterly disappointing. Jesus healed a demon-possessed man who was blind and mute and the Pharisees said “It is only by Beelzebul, the prince of demons, that this man casts out demons” (12:24). A little later, they came to him and said “Teacher, we wish to see a sign from you” (12:38). But they had just seen a sign; what could possibly satisfy them?
Martin Luther’s Table Talk is arguably the most entertaining of his works. The Weimar Edition contains six volumes under this head alone! Thus, volume 54 in the American Edition represents about one-tenth of the total bulk of what we know as Table Talk. However, as the American Edition explains there are good reasons for editing the work. For example, there are less trustworthy sayings and there are sayings that have been elaborated on by his students. All of this is to say that the American Edition removes the dross.
I was recently struck anew by reading Genesis 26. It’s the story of Isaac dwelling in Gerar. The story is familiar. We might read it in “like father, like son” fashion. As Abraham told Abimelech that Sarah was his sister, Isaac did the same. Yes, we sometimes learn from our parents. Even the patriarchs passed on what was not good. But that’s not what struck me.
It is often the case that a minister only begins to really appreciate the value of his books when the time comes for him to part with them. Sometimes it happens when he runs out of space on his shelves and he is forced to thin them out. Or it may be when it comes to his retirement and he is downsizing his house and there simply isn’t the same amount of space in his new accommodation. Either way, he finds himself struggling to decide which ones to keep and which to let go. It begins to dawn on him that these volumes mean more to him than he may have previously realised.
The first question and answer of the Heidelberg Catechism has resonated with generations of people familiar with it.
Q. What is your only comfort in life and in death?
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Where is Christ most glorified?
As hard as it is for many to believe, the Son of God was never more glorified than as he hung on the cross of Calvary, absorbing the righteous wrath of a holy God as a substitute for sinners. The slate of our sins was wiped clean, and the record of debt that our transgressions demanded was nailed to the cross and marked “Paid in full.” This is the message Paul wants to convey to God’s people in his letter to the Colossians—Christ’s glory and the cross go hand-in-hand.
As I watched the events of Hurricane Helene unfold at the end of September, and heard of the devastation those in the western part of my state were facing, my heart was grieved. Normally I’m further removed geographically from natural disasters of this sort, but this time it hit much closer to home. Our family had spent many vacations in the mountains of western North Carolina. People we knew lived there. I had spoken at retreats there. And a few women who had been rescued, and were now living with family in Charlotte, came to the Bible study I teach.
We think of Thanksgiving as a holiday, but it is an exercise that requires some intentionality. It implies that the thanks given can be received. When growing up my mom would make my favorite dish on my birthday. I would thank her, and she would receive the thanks with a hug. It is this very thing that shows the inadequacy of idolatry. The idol is unable to receive the thanks of the worshiper. Idolatry has crept into the observance of Thanksgiving in many American homes. How so?
Having laid a foundation for the nature and authority of the Holy Scriptures as the Word of God in the three opening articles, the Chicago Statement on Biblical Inerrancy proceeds to define and defend mankind’s capacity to receive God’s Word. The framers of the Statement make the following affirmation in its fourth article:
We affirm that God who made mankind in His image has used language as a means of revelation.
Taken from forthcoming book, Daily Doctrine by Kevin DeYoung, Copyright © 2024. Used by permission of Crossway, a publishing ministry of Good News Publishers, Wheaton, IL 60187, www.crossway.org.
