It always cost time and money to do justice...And yet there are times when doing justice really costs. These verses talk about a time of trouble--literally, "the day of adversity." In times of crisis, from recession to government coups, the most vulnerable are most endangered, and to defend them puts you in the way of harm as … Continue reading The Day of Adversity
Tim Keller
More than an Underdog
The reason for this persistent story line of the Bible is not simply because the writers like underdogs. It is because the ultimate example of God's working in the world was Jesus Christ, the only founder of a major religion that died in disgrace, not surrounded by all of his loving disciples but abandoned by … Continue reading More than an Underdog
An Effective Template for Preaching Christ-Centered Sermons
The "gospel-centered" movement has swept through many churches. This is a good thing. It's even impacted preaching as many pastors now strive to preach Christ in every message. The bankruptcy of merely preaching a message on how to be a "good" person has been exposed. But when you actually read the Bible, you are confronted with … Continue reading An Effective Template for Preaching Christ-Centered Sermons
Book Review Blitz: Reason for God, Proof, and More!
Reason for God by Tim Keller Great apologetics book. I use it all the time for my preaching in thinking of how to engage skeptical and postmodern people. Current on the trends in philosophy and sociology. Very good on the gospel. This is definitely a BUY. Proof by Daniel Montgomery and Timothy Paul Jones Refocuses the infamous … Continue reading Book Review Blitz: Reason for God, Proof, and More!
Pray Better: Paraphrase the Lord’s Prayer
Advice from Tim Keller: The Lord's Prayer may be the single set of words spoken more often than any other in the history of the world. Jesus Christ gave it to us as the key to unlock all the riches of prayer. Yet it is an untapped resource, partially because it is so familiar...How do … Continue reading Pray Better: Paraphrase the Lord’s Prayer
Walking with God through Pain and Suffering by Tim Keller: A (Short) Review
My wife miscarried in early 2013, which led us to wrestle with the question, “Where is God in the midst of suffering?” It is not easy. If anything else, however, Christianity is a religion which causes you to wrestle through such questions because at the center of the faith is the suffering and death of Jesus Christ. … Continue reading Walking with God through Pain and Suffering by Tim Keller: A (Short) Review
The Cross and the “Cursing” Psalms
If we “tone down” the cry against injustice as something “primitive,” we cannot appreciate the cross—because there we see that the punishment for such cruelty is exactly what the Psalmist has called for. We see God’s “little one” being dashed to pieces. Yes, the punishment that human injustice and evil deserves is just as bad … Continue reading The Cross and the “Cursing” Psalms
A to Z of the Christian Life
The gospel is not just the ABCs but the A to Z of the Christian life. It is inaccurate to think the gospel is what saves non-Christians, and then Christians mature by trying hard to live according to biblical principles. It is more accurate to say that we are saved by believing the gospel, and … Continue reading A to Z of the Christian Life