We had a covered dish lunch last Sunday at church. And everyone sat at tables in the fellowship hall wherever they wanted to sit. We didn’t have a section that was marked out for “people who had devotions every day this week.” They would have all been beaming with pride at each other. We also didn’t have a section marked out for “people who are gladly holding something against a fellow believer.” ...  Read More

I remember hearing in my 20’s that some churches teach you are not saved if you don’t speak in tongues. Oneness Pentecostals, for example, believe this. When I heard that I remembered what Paul said in 1 Corinthians 12: “Do all speak with tongues?” No. I also remember hearing some say that you must be baptized in order to be saved. That’s called “baptismal regeneration,” and it is taught by the Ro...  Read More

We know that the conversion of Saul, from terrorist to evangelist and from murderer to martyr, is one of the evidences in the Bible for the truth of the Gospel. It is almost Exhibit A in the New Testament that salvation is only by grace through faith, and not through good works. Why? Paul was a Pharisee of Pharisees, a young man who stood head and shoulders above others in his zeal for following t...  Read More

Thomas Edison said once, “I have friends in overalls whose friendship I would not swap for the favor of the kings of the world.” That’s the way I feel about the 6 men I serve alongside as elders of our church. Many of us have walked together for more than twenty years, and the weekly meetings for prayer and discussion on Sunday morning are a highlight of my week. We meet together almost every Sund...  Read More

The letter to the Galatians is considered by many to be a “capital epistle” of the Apostle Paul, along with 1 and 2 Corinthians and Romans, because of how clearly it sets forth the Gospel. Written around AD 50, just 20 years or so after the resurrection of Christ, Galatians is called by some the Magna Carta of Christian liberty. Martin Luther loved Galatians so much he called it “Catherine von Bor...  Read More

The gospel is paid for by blood and empowered by grace, and I believe every church that stays healthy will do everything it can to build a gospel culture, a grace-filled community, where the body of Christ can flourish.  I remember the story of the young man with long greasy hair that walked into a ‘proper’ church on a Sunday morning. His jeans were ripped and dirty, his t-shirt smelly and stained...  Read More

I remember hearing a sermon once on Elijah’s showdown with the prophets of Baal entitled, “Before the Fire Will Fall.” Remember the story? Elijah had to do a lot of work in preparation before fire came down from heaven and God revealed Himself and His glory to the people who followed Baal. Especially to the 400 prophets of Baal, who no matter how hard they tried just could not get any fire from he...  Read More

I recently read through my journal for 2009, and I love this excerpt from Friday, November 27 of that year: “I was at the YMCA on Wednesday, expecting Cindy to show up any minute. I was on a stationary bike and kept turning round as I was riding to look for Cindy’s appearance. At the same time I was listening to a message by Sinclair Ferguson on the Return of Jesus, and it struck me how this pictu...  Read More

I never get tired of reading Luke 2 and learning from the angels and the shepherds. Here are five important lessons we learn from these men who were “keeping watch over their flock by night” when an angel of the Lord appeared with good news of great joy. The Savior had been born in Bethlehem! How did the shepherds respond?They believed the Good News. We know this because as soon as the angels were...  Read More

The shepherds were watching their flocks by night. That’s all. Just a normal night for a shepherd. Maybe glad to have sheep to watch. Maybe also wishing they could do something for a living that didn’t subject them to the elements quite so much. It was quiet. And dark. Then everything changed in an instant. For them. For the world. The sky was lit up as an angel of the Lord appeared. The word for ...  Read More

Moses saw God’s glory in two ways. First, God passed him by in the cleft of the rock. Immediately after that, Moses saw God’s glory in His character. He gave Moses six ways to know Him and thereby to love Him.The first thing God revealed about His character is His compassion for His people. David compared it to an earthly father when he wrote, “As a father shows compassion to his children, so the ...  Read More

Moses cried out, “Please show me your glory!” Much has been written about this over the years, and we must not overlook this powerful plea. Charles Spurgeon likened it to Peter on the Mount of Transfiguration with Jesus and seeing Him in His glory. Peter blurted out, “Master, it is good that we are here. Let us make three tents, one for you and one for Moses and one for Elijah.” Can you blame Pete...  Read More