John Owen (1616 – 1683) wrote a wonderful little booklet titled, Duties of Christian Fellowship: A Manual for Church Members. Our church’s pastoral intern, Andrew Graham, has been teaching it to our youth on Wednesday nights. We’ve also made it available to the whole congregation. The book is among the clearest and most concise works …
Many Christians think all sins are the same. Have you ever heard that before? Imagine someone commits a horrible crime. Let's say, for example, a man murders his whole family. And when the community hears about it, they're outraged. But then imagine that some Christians say, “We need to remember that we're all sinners.” “We …
Many people today spend a great deal of time on social media, video games, and television, so it's no wonder that someone submitted a question about how Christians should manage the time they give to entertainment. Some Christians have a very open and permissive view of entertainment. They view it as a gift of God …
Continue reading How should Christians manage time in entertainment?
There has been a good deal of debate about whether the Second London Baptist Confession of 1677/1689 (2LCF) is a serviceable confession for Baptist churches. Some have argued it's far too detailed for a whole congregation to affirm, and they suggest that a shorter confession like the New Hampshire Confession or the Abstract of Principles …
Continue reading Can a whole church really subscribe to a detailed confession of faith?
Preachers may faithfully preach thematic and topical sermons that explain the Bible. They are certainly free to preach sermons on particular texts of Scripture without preaching through whole books of the Bible. But here are some reasons that preaching through whole books of the Bible is valuable. 1. Preaching through books of the Bible forces …
Continue reading Why preach through whole books of the Bible?
Are believers in Christ required to obey any part of Old Testament law, or is all Old Testament law abolished? Both Dispensationalists and proponents of New Covenant Theology simply say that believers are under no obligation to any Old Testament law. In their view, the laws of the Old Testament are fulfilled and abrogated in …
Continue reading Are the Ten Commandments distinct from other Old Testament law?
Jeremiah Burroughs’ classic work, The Rare Jewel of Christian Contentment, is a treasure of wisdom and instruction. If you haven’t read it, I highly encourage you to get it and read it. American culture generally fosters discontentment and all the miseries and heartaches that go along with it. Discontentment is coveting what we do not have, longing for it inordinately, and believing that if we have it, we will be satisfied. Simply put, to be content is to obey the 10th commandment, “You shall not covet” by the power of Christ and the gospel of grace. Here’s my summary of 20 ways that Burroughs describes Christian contentment.
“Conflict” is any difference of opinion among people, where each person is trying to show how their position is correct. According to this definition, conflict doesn’t necessarily involve sin. Many conflicts are the result of misunderstanding or miscommunication. Sometimes conflicts are necessary because important principles are at stake. Thus, conflicts aren’t necessarily harmful. But far …
All are not true Christians who are members of the visible church of Christ. . . . The true Christian is one whose religion is in his heart and life. It is felt by himself in his heart . . . There is one thing in a true Christian which is eminently peculiar to him. That thing is love to Christ.
As soon as a person comes to faith in Christ, that person automatically becomes a member of the body of Christ (1 Cor 12:13), the universal Church (Eph 5:23-27). But the New Testament also teaches that all believers must be baptized and become members of particular local churches where everyone in the church agrees to …
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