Why Does God Test Us?
Think back over the past year of your life. When have you grown the most in knowing, loving, trusting and obeying God? For most of us the answer will not be in times of strength but of weakness, not in…
Tag Trials
Romans 8: A Little Help From Milton
“For the creation was subjected to futility, not willingly, but because of him who subjected it, in hope that the creation itself will be set free from its bondage to corruption and obtain the freedom of the glory of the children of God.”…
Desert Wastes and Delightful Waters
When was the last time you wandered in the desert wastes of addiction or anger, dissensions or divisions, enmity or envy, idolatry or impurity, sensuality or strife, finding no way to fulfill the hole in your heart, but desperately trying…
the Deadly Sins of Proverbs 6:16-19: Oh, Be Careful Little Feet Where You Go
Studies on nonverbal communication have shown that the feet reveal our intentions often more than our faces or words do. If you are in a conversation with a friend and they are smiling at you but their feet are pointed…
Thirsting for God
It is often the case that we only begin to appreciate what really matters in life when, for some reason, we have lost it. We say, ‘absence make the heart grow fonder’ when we are forced to be away from…
Psalm 46:10: Be Still Knowing God
Recently I had been thinking about how to minister to several members of our congregation because of what God is calling them to go through again which will surely tax their energy and emotions. I had also been pondering what…
Joshua Janavel and the Plight of the Waldensians
Joshua Janavel and the Plight of the Waldensians When the troops of the Duke of Savoy asked the Waldensians to give them hospitality, Joshua Janavel was not convinced. The Waldensians had survived through a long history of persecutions, starting in…
Suffering and Redemption
It would be tempting to think that yet another article on suffering at this time is nothing more than jumping on the bandwagon of the current situation; but that is not altogether the case. Yes, we are facing a crisis…
Good News from a Far Country: Learning the Gospel from a Nineteenth Century Scotsman
When I found that Banner of Truth was slated to reissue nineteenth-century Scottish pastor Horatius Bonar’s exposition of the doctrine of justification The Everlasting Righteousness[1] this year, I was inordinately delighted. That’s because, outside of Scripture, The Everlasting Righteousness is…
Johann Heermann and the Comfort of the Cross
Johann Heermann and the Comfort of the Cross In the spring of 1630, while the Thirty-Year War raged around Europe, pastor and poet Johann Heermann wrote a hymn to inspire his congregation to meditate on Christ’s suffering. Ah, holy…