CURRENT EVENTS:

• What Does Pope Francis Believe? Ross Douthat, a Roman Catholic, writes that “It seems worth stepping back a little bit and trying to clarify what this unpredictable pontiff actually believes. Or, rather, what I think he believes.”
• A Quick and Easy Guide to the Planned Parenthood Videos. Mollie Hemingway provides a quick and easy guide to the 10 videos that have been released thus far and what they show.
• 2015 Fall Conference at Reformation Bible College: Audio and Video Check out the sessions from the 2015 Fall Conference at Reformation Bible College on the theme, “So Great a Salvation.” R.C. Sproul was joined by Steven Lawson, John MacArthur, and Stephen Nichols to address the scope of the biblical gospel and the efficacy of God’s saving grace.

CHRISTIAN LIVING:

• How an Affair Really Begins. Tim Challies shares the 6 “e’s” that Tommy Nelson uses to describe the “ease” with which people fall into extra-marital affairs.
• 3 Telltale Signs You Are a Foolish Christian. Our friend Kevin Halloran writes “I don’t consider myself a fool, at least not very high up there on the “foolishness index” Scripture provides in the book of Proverbs. But reading Ephesians 5:15-21 tells me something different.”
• A Prayer for Days When We’re Feeling Weary. Here’s another wonderful prayer from Scotty Smith.
• Enjoy Your Possessions Before They Possess You. Tony Reinke shares four things that will help us rightly enjoy the gifts God has given us.
• Is the Enemy of My Enemy My Friend? Albert Mohler writes “In a time of cultural conflict, the enemy of our enemy may well be our friend. But, with eternity in view and the gospel at stake, the enemy of our enemy must not be confused to be a friend to the gospel of Jesus Christ.”
• Four Indications You Have an Untrustworthy Team Member. Eric Geiger writes “An untrustworthy team member can spoil and corrupt the collective character of a team. One team member can adversely impact the whole, can adversely impact the culture of the team you lead. Here are four indicators of an untrustworthy team member.”
• Satan’s Subtle Art of Destruction. Burk Parsons writes “I offer the following thoughts to the end that you would not be outwitted by Satan, or be ignorant of his schemes, as you fix your eyes on Christ, the author and finisher of your faith (Hebrews 12:1).”
• Do You Have to Go to Church to Be a Christian? In this short article, R. C. Sproul writes “How can we consistently and persistently absent ourselves from that which He has called us to join—His visible church? I offer a sober warning to those who are doing this. You may, in fact, be deluding yourself about the state of your soul.”
• Adoption. Noel (wife of John) and Talitha Piper talk about adoption in this 12-minute video.

 

TO MAKE YOU SMILE:

• The Pope in America. I bet you didn’t see this funny video clip.

• Before my secret meeting with the Pope I asked him to come wearing white if deep down he agreed with the Reformation. Pretty crazy. Kevin DeYoung

• You’ll never be a mature Christian until you understand that God remembers his promises and forgets your sins. Kevin DeYoung

• Careful. Our desires are like fireworks. They can light the night sky with beauty and wonder. But misused they can burn down a neighborhood. Zack Eswine

• You want to do large things famous & fast. But most things that truly matter need small acts of overlooked love over a long period of time. Zack Eswine

• When the gospel is at stake, everything is at stake. R.C. Sproul

• To call a Christian a theist is roughly equivalent to calling the space shuttle Atlantis a glider. R.C. Sproul

• Today, the chief ministry of the Holy Spirit is to take the work of the Son and bring it to fruition in us. R.C. Sproul

• When you go through a trial, the sovereignty of God is the pillow upon which you lay your head. Charles Spurgeon

• Our hope in Christ for the future is the mainspring and the mainstay of our joy down here today. Charles Spurgeon

• As long as we think we are not that bad, the idea of grace will never change us. Tim Keller

• Power, approval, comfort, and control are meta-idols that hold sway over our daily lives. Tim Keller

• Jesus smashed two of the rich young ruler’s assumptions: Christianity is something you can ADD and something you can DO. Tim Keller

• When we watch Jesus, we are watching God respond to human suffering. Paul Miller

• He was prepared to be humbled…is there any room for pride in our own lives? Mark Jones

• If you are in Christ, you are fully and completely forgiven for all your sin—past, present and future. Matt Chandler

• The rule of the gospel is, that when we see our brother under any difficulty, we should be ready to bear the burden with him. Jonathan Edwards

• Obedience and faithfulness is what God is calling us to. Bob Smart

• Can you have any greater assurance that you are praying the will of God than when you are praying the Word of God? Don Whitney

• The stress that some of us feel – it’s a lack of faith, it really is. Francis Chan

• For Christians especially, identity is determined far more by the Gospel than it is by our sexual feelings. Michael Horton

• There are many roads that lead to hell, but only one way to go to heaven. Steven Lawson

• In Christ, God’s face shines out, full of grace and gentleness to us poor, unworthy sinners. John Calvin

• There is no higher human state than to hunger and thirst for righteousness, and for that desire to be satisfied. Robert Yarbrough