The mere natural sight of Jesus, however dear and beloved, did not bring the grace of faith during His days on earth. So, why do we seek instruction or edification through images made centuries later? Mere reflections, however true or faithful, cannot produce a more significant effect than the original.    Images of Jesus Christ... Continue Reading

Godly sorrow involves a hatred of sin, includes a fear of God, a longing for holiness, a zeal for the truth, and a willingness to receive appropriate punishment…Such confession and repentance could never be compelled. As Charles Spurgeon famously said when commenting on David’s confession in Psalm 51, “Honest penitents…come to the point, call a... Continue Reading

“There is scarce anything that gives such mortal stabs to religion among a people as contention. Where contention is alive, there religion will be dead; and there will be nothing flourishing that is good.” [Jonathan] Edwards goes as far as to say that Christ’s wounds “have been as it were opened afresh by the selfishness... Continue Reading

Anger over an offense should be dealt with swiftly, and that anger must not be allowed to linger. Forgiveness and reconciliation is what anger’s end game should be (Ephesians 4:32).   God is slow to anger (Ps. 103:8, 145:8), but the Psalmist also asks the Lord how long “shall thy wrath burn like fire (Ps. 89:46)?”... Continue Reading

The young man who sits in awe of the public ministry of the pulpit needs to know that the pastor who preaches to the church must also shepherd it. To be an under-shepherd in God’s church is a noble calling and a life well spent (1 Tim. 3:1). Yet the aspiring pastor must never forget that... Continue Reading

Now that the veil has been torn, all children of God are given access to pray and to present Gentile converts to the Lord as living sacrifices. Wonderfully, such a ministry does not require a seminary degree or a clerical robe. It does require that the knowledge of the Lord would be on our lips and that... Continue Reading

When we use inhuman words to describe ourselves, we slowly imagine ourselves less human. In time we become less human because our metaphors matter. In the church, the great Spirit-filled vehicle of becoming more human as we become more like Jesus, more like the world that sin made us forget, we should be especially careful to... Continue Reading

The events and thematic devices presented in Genesis are seen throughout the rest of Scripture. Crucial doctrines begin in this text, from the attributes of God to the depravity of man. This is the primary goal of Genesis: to set up themes in the Bible, which will ultimately culminate with Jesus Christ.   Author Since Genesis is the first book... Continue Reading

Christians who attend a “gay wedding” should be honest with themselves and announce publicly that they have changed their mind about homosexual practice in key ways that deviate from the only witness of Scripture. They will eventually come to that realization in the not-too-distant-future if they aren’t already putting on a fake mask now.  ... Continue Reading

Clearly, conscience plays a very important role. But with that said, a person’s conscience is not an inerrant or infallible guide, for it is possible for one’s conscience to be mistaken…as the Westminster Confession of Faith rightly says, the Bible alone is to be our “Final Umpire.”   The Wesleyan Quadrilateral vs. The Presbyterian Pentagon... Continue Reading