- 5 Dangers of Money. Paul Tripp writes “Money matters, but God’s grace matters even more. It alone provides both the strength and the freedom we will continue to need until the dangers of money are no more.”
- What Does It Mean to Abide in Christ? Sinclair Ferguson writes “In a nutshell, abiding in Christ means allowing His Word to fill our minds, direct our wills, and transform our affections. In other words, our relationship to Christ is intimately connected to what we do with our Bibles!”
- God Invites You to Delight Yourself in Him. Randy Alcorn writes “To delight in God is to be happy with Him and in Him. To do that, we must cultivate our relationship with Him just as we do with other people by spending time with Him, bowing our knee before Him as our Lord, and also spending time with Him as our friend. That’s how we get to know Him, by learning and meditating daily on what’s true about Him.”
- What’s the Purpose of the Spiritual Gifts? In this two-minute video, Michael Horton provides a helpful perspective on the spiritual gifts. When we understand the gifts and their purpose, we can more easily understand how God has uniquely gifted each one of us.
- Distinguishing Marks of a Quarrelsome Person. Here’s a helpful (and convicting) article from Kevin DeYoung.
- How Do We Become Spiritually Mature? John MacArthur writes “We know that sanctification is a divine work through the Word by the Spirit of truth. So, we must plead with the Spirit that He would mold and shape us into the image of Christ, through the truth, from one level of glory to the next.”
Click on ‘Continue reading’ for:
- More interesting article links
- Doug Michael’s cartoon
- Favorite Quotes of the Week
Thinking Theologically
- Calvinism 101. On this episode of the Crossway podcast Kevin DeYoung unpacks Calvinism, discussing the famous five points summarized in the TULIP acrostic, the problem with cage-stage Calvinists, and the one question he’d ask Arminians to consider.
- The Suffering and Glory of Psalm 22. Robert Godfrey writes “This psalm is not only the experience of every believer, but it is also a very remarkable and specific prophecy of the sufferings of Jesus.”
- What is the Gospel? Scott Sauls writes “The hard news of the Gospel is that the universe and everything in it is wearing down all the time, and we are more sinful and broken than we realize. The freeing news of the Gospel is that God, through the person and work of Jesus, plans to restore both the universe and his people to their original beauty and glory.”
- The Garden of Eden, Legalism, and Antinomianism. In this brief video clip from the 2017 Ligonier National Conference, Sinclair Ferguson discusses the relationship between Satan’s lie in the garden and legalism and antinomianism.
- The Unstoppable, Global Gospel. Enjoy this talk by Tim Keesee from the 2019 Gospel Coalition National Conference.
- Reading the Bible Upside Down: Why the Pope Changed the Lord’s Prayer. John Piper writes “All I want to do here is point out how the Pope’s reported rationale reveals an approach to Scripture that undermines its authority. His approach is to do what you might call a hermeneutical headstand. He turns things upside down.”
- Stop Praying “Be With” Prayers. Alistair Begg writes “Search the Scriptures, and you won’t find a prayer recorded that just asks God to “be with” his people. The prayers of the saints have far more weighty, far more spiritual concerns.”
Biblically Speaking
- The Battle for Biblical Truth. John MacArthur writes “In the face of ever-changing cultural trends, the church needs to boldly proclaim the eternal relevance and evergreen applicability of the Word of God.”
- Piper and Charles on Scriptures They Turn to When Discouraged. Every Christian deals with discouragement. The question for each of us is not whether discouragement will come, but where we will turn when it does. Watch this seven-minute video of John Piper and H. B. Charles Jr. discussing their own favorite Bible passages for battling discouragement.
- Get Out! Tim Keller on the Exodus Story. Tim Keller writes “If you’re a Christian, you’ve already crossed over. God has dealt with sin and death, and all of your other problems are merely flea bites in comparison. That’s how you deal with your flea bites—by not looking at them as massive problems. Look at what God has already done for you.”
- Verses That Changed My Life (John Piper). In this episode of the Crossway podcast, John Piper reflects on key verses that have had a huge impact on his life—passages that helped him trust God in the midst of a cancer diagnosis, understand Paul’s message in the book of Romans, and grasp the connection between our joy and God’s glory.
- Is God Present in Hell? Hell isn’t the absence of God but the presence of His judgment. From one of the live Ask R.C. events, R.C. Sproul gives us a biblical definition of hell.
- Should We Pray for the Filling of the Spirit? In this two-minute video, Michael Horton explains what the Bible means when it talks about being “filled with the Spirit” and talks about how Christians can pursue that goal.
- The Heart of the Calvinist-Arminian Debate. On this episode of the Ask Pastor John podcast, John Piper addresses a question about how to address “prevenient grace”.
- Is Suicide the Unpardonable Sin? What is the unforgivable sin? From one of the live Ask Ligonier events, Sinclair Ferguson helps us understand this sin and what to do if you think you’ve committed it.
- Are Faith and Belief the Same Thing? To be a Christian is not simply to believe that God exists but to place your trust in Him. In this short video from one of Ligonier’s live Ask R.C. events, R.C. Sproul considers what it means to have faith.
- What is God’s Glory? In this episode of the Ask Pastor John podcast, John Piper addresses what is meant by God’s glory.
- Can a Person Be 100% Sure of His or Her Salvation? Is it possible to know with certainty that we are saved? From one of Ligonier’s Ask C. events, R.C.Sproul clarifies our Scriptural mandate to pursue assurance of salvation.
- What is Biblical Stewardship?C. Sproul writes “Fundamentally, stewardship is about exercising our God-given dominion over His creation, reflecting the image of our creator God in His care, responsibility, maintenance, protection, and beautification of His creation.”
- How Does God’s Sovereignty Not “Do Violence” to the Will of Man, as the Westminster Confession Says? Since God sovereignly directs all things, does that mean we don’t have free will? From a live Ask Ligonier event, Robert Godfrey helps us think through this question and clears up misconceptions about the human will.
- Is God Equally Active in Causing the Salvation of the Elect and the Damnation of the Reprobate? God is in charge of both salvation and damnation, but He does not exercise them in the same manner. From one of the live Ask Ligonier events, Robert Godfrey corrects a common misconception about predestination.
- Ask Ligonier with H.B. Charles Jr. On June 6, H.B. Charles Jr. joined Nathan Bingham for a live Ask Ligonier You can watch the event here.
DOUG MICHAEL’S CARTOON OF THE WEEK
- Whatever you’re aiming for, Jesus is better. Bob Goff
- Nothing but God can satisfy the heart of man. George Whitefield
- The only works of righteousness that serve to justify a sinner are the works of Christ. R.C. Sproul
- Bitterness arises in our hearts when we do not trust in the sovereign rule of God in our lives. Jerry Bridges
- Temptations and occasions put nothing into a man, but only draw out what was in him before. John Owen
- Dear person who reads theology: If your reading is causing you to look down on other believers, you’re doing it wrong. “It is the goal of good theology to humble us before the triune God of majesty and grace. Michael Horton
- How we treat God’s name reflects how we feel about Him. R.C. Sproul
- Let your Christianity be so unmistakable, your eye so single, your heart so whole, your walk so straightforward that all who see you may have no doubt whose you are and whom you serve. C. Ryle
- You cannot have union with Christ unless you are truly converted. And you cannot have union with Christ if you have made an identity out of anything else, including your sexuality. Rosaria Butterfield
