Tag: faith
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A Prayer for the Fourth of July
“It is for freedom that Christ has set us free. Stand firm, then, and do not let yourselves be burdened again by a yoke of slavery.” ~ Galatians 5.1 Lord Jesus, it’s the Fourth of July – a holiday set aside to remember and revel in the freedom we enjoy as citizens of America. As…
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The Problem of Pretentious Piety
Brennan Manning, in his thoughtful book, Ruthless Trust, identifies a problem with the superficial spirituality of pretentious piety: In a world where the only plea is “Not Guilty”, what possibility is there of an honest encounter with Jesus, who “died for our sins”? We can only pretend that we are sinners, and thus only pretend…
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Thoughts of God
I appreciate Justin Taylor for causing me to consider two seeming conflicting perspectives from two 20th Century giants of the Christian faith: A.W. Tozer and C.S. Lewis: A. W. Tozer, from The Knowledge of the Holy: What comes into our minds when we think about God is the most important thing about us. The history of mankind…
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10 Minutes After Church
What do you usually do immediately after your Sunday morning church service ends? If you’re like most of church-going humanity, you probably have a routine. Upon the final “Amen”, you arise from your regular spot and your body follows a subconscious script. You may go to the nursery to pick up a child, maybe you…
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REAL Christians Waltz
Listen to how Bob Flayhart, Senior Pator at Oak Mountain Presbyterian Church in Birmingham, AL, describes a Gospel-centered Christian Life: A Gospel-centered life is the Christian Waltz. A waltz is a dance made up of three steps. Christians need to consider the Christian three step when it comes to growth. In the first step, we…
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Balance of Faith
A true, vibrant Christian faith is someting akin to a balancing act. In a post this morning, Tim Keller suggested: If we are going to grow in grace, we must stay aware of being both sinners and also loved children in Christ. Keller’s paradigm reminded me of something Edward Payson – “Praying Payson of Portland”…
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Appropriating Grace
Here is an important reminder and challenge from Richard Lovelace, from his monumental Dynamics of Spiritual Life: Only a fraction of the present body of professing Christians are solidly appropriating the justifying work of Christ in their lives… Many… have a theoretical commitment to this doctrine, but in their day-to-day existence they rely on their…
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Help My Unbelief
If I had a favorite hymn from Red Mountain Music, this would probably be it. It reflects the common duality of our hearts, simultaneously Believing and Struggling to Believe; simultaneously Saints & Sinners. (See Mark 9.24) It reflects and explains the cause of Paul’s dimemma: Failing to do what he wanted to do, and doing…
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A Key to Vibrant Prayer
We are not desperate to pray because we are self-deceived. We are blind to our depravity. We don’t see ourselves as we really are. Do you want to learn to pray more? Learn of your sin. Ask God to show it to you, to give you a glimpse of your need. Ask him to show…
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How Faith Speaks
“We can put it this way: the man who has faith is the man who is no longer looking at himself and no longer looking to himself. He no longer looks at anything he once was. He does not look at what he is now. He does not even look at what he hopes to…
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A Right Definition of Faith
How shall we distinguish a healthy faith from one that is built on more shaky ground? Consider this insight from John Calvin: “Now we shall possess a right definition of faith if we call it a firm and certain knowledge of God’s benevolence toward us, founded upon the truth of the freely given promise in…
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Difference Between Faith and Hope
The question may occur to us: What difference is there between faith and hope? We find it difficult to see any difference. Faith and hope are so closely linked that they cannot be separated. Still there is a difference between them. Consider the following distinctions offered by Martin Luther, from his commentary on Galatians: First,…
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Resurging Calvinism
Jonathan Dodson, of Acts 29 Network, has posted a great synopsis of beliefs in an article titled: The Message of Resurging Calvinsm. This falls into the category of: I Wish I’d Written That – it so simply and concisely summarizes what I have been teaching at Walnut Hill Church. Dodson clearly describes 5 areas of important Faith distinctives: Gospel…
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Theology for Life
As a pastor from a confessional denomination one of the more difficult tasks I regularly – even constantly – encounter is helping people past a distatse for doctrine. I understand why so many are so often hesitant to embrace any system of doctrine. “Doctrine divides” is a commen lament. And, regretably, it is often an…
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Hume Offers Tiger Way Out of the Woods
I’ve been a fan of Brit Hume ever since, during my college years, I saw him as a panelist of a debate for the 1984 Presidential Election. The panelist preceding Hume asked a question to one of the candidates, who then essentially filabustered – he talked in non-sensical circles until his time had elapsed. In his turn Brit…
