“ALMIGHTY and merciful God, of whose only gift it cometh that thy faithful people do unto thee true and laudable service; Grant, we beseech thee, that we may so faithfully serve thee in this life, that we fail not finally to attain thy heavenly promises; through the merits of Jesus Christ our Lord. Amen.” – 1662 Book of Common Prayer
Read MoreMORNING WORSHIP (9:30): Charlie Wingard, preaching: 1 Kings 4 ADULT SUNDAY SCHOOL (11:00): 1. READING THE BIBLE BIBLICALLY A study of how to use the structure, genres, and themes of the Bible to read it with more wonder, depth and understanding. Having considered how these aspects are seen throughout Scripture as a whole, we will apply them to reading select books of the Old and New Testaments. 2. INTRODUCTION TO CHRISTIAN ETHICS Using the Westminster Larger Catechism, the class surveys important moral decisions that contemporary Christians face. Issues include the role of God’s law in a believer’s life, the sanctification of the Lord’s day, abortion, capital punishment, end of life issues, sexual purity, fidelity in marriage, homosexuality and same-sex “marriage,”…
Read More“To love any thing more than God, is to make it a god.” – Thomas Watson, The Ten Commandments (Banner of Truth, 2009, first pub. 1692), 55. “Pride makes a god of self, covetousness makes a god of money, sensuality makes a god of the belly; whatever is esteemed or loved, feared or served, delighted in or depended on, more than God, that (whatever it is) we do in effect make a god of.” – Matthew Henry, Commentary on the Whole Bible, vol. 1 (Macdonald, orig. published 1706), 358-359.
Read MoreIntellectual genius, courage, piety, and administrative skill make Anselm of Canterbury one of the most admired Christians of his age. Born in northern Italy, he accepted the formidable task of establishing order in the English church, serving as archbishop of Canterbury during the reigns of two kings who demanded the right to appoint bishops in the church. Anselm demurred. Conflict and exiles were the stiff price he paid for his principled stand. His most famous work, Cur deus homo (usually translated, Why God Became Man) presents his doctrine of Christ’s atoning work. Sin insults God’s honor, and man is forever lost unless he makes satisfaction. But this fallen man cannot do; sin is too grave, too outrageous. Wonderfully, the Triune…
Read More10 Favorite Books on Preaching
At a Providence Presbytery meeting earlier this month, a fellow minister and I discussed books about preaching. It reminded me of a former colleague’s request several years ago for a list of my favorite books on preaching. In no particular order, my ten favorites are: 1. The Supremacy of God in Preaching, John Piper 2. The Art of Prophesying, William Perkins 3. Christ-Centered Preaching, Bryan Chapell 4. The Christian Ministry, Charles Bridges. My favorite book about the pastor and his work. 5. The Reading and Preaching of the Scriptures in the Worship of the Christian Church, Hughes Oliphant Old. I believe there are now six volumes; I have read the first three. 6. Between Two Worlds, John Stott. This is the…
Read More(“St. Augustine in His Study” by Vittore Carpaccio, 1502) “So anyone who thinks that he has understood the divine scriptures or any part of them, but cannot by his understanding build up this double love of God and neighbor, has not yet succeeded in understanding them.” Augustine of Hippo (354-430) On Christian Teaching, 1:36
Read MoreSeventeenth century Puritanism produced some of Christianity’s most able preachers. Many of them received a university training that required the careful reading of texts in Latin, Greek, and Hebrew. A language-based educational system prepared future ministers to find a home in biblical texts. If they tutored children of the affluent, they sharpened their expository skills. (T. David Gordon, Why Johnny Can’t Preach. P&R, 2009) The written text no longer dominates America’s educational landscape, and comparatively few students devote themselves to rigorous study of literature or ancient languages before entering seminary. Preaching suffers. T. David Gordon’s Why Johnny Can’t Preach engages the modern preacher by considering his ability both to read biblical texts and communicate compellingly their God-breathed truth. The minister’s…
Read More“The more we abound in God’s work the more comfort we may expect in him; if the day has been busy for him, the night will be easy in him. Silence and retirement befriend our communion with God.” – Matthew Henry on 1 Kings 3:4-5
Read More88. In how many things does true repentance or conversion consist? In two things: the dying of the old man, and the making alive of the new. 89. What is the dying of the old man? Heartfelt sorrow for sin, causing us to hate and turn from it always more and more. 90. What is the making alive of the new man? Heartfelt joy in God through Christ, causing us to take delight in living according to the will of God in all good works. 91. What are good works? Those only which proceed from true faith, and are done according to the Law of God, unto His glory, and not such as rest on our own opinion or the…
Read MoreALMIGHTY and everlasting God, who art always more ready to hear than we are to pray, and art wont to give more than either we desire, or deserve; Pour down upon us the abundance of thy mercy; forgiving us those things whereof our conscience is afraid, and giving us those good things which we are not worthy to ask, but through the merits and mediation of Jesus Christ, thy Son, our Lord. Amen. (1662 Book of Common Prayer)
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