The author reminds us of a resource for discipleship training—often overlooked but absolutely essential. In considering discipleship one could ask: What is my personal responsibility? Isn’t it someone else’s responsibility to disciple me? I just need to be willing to be discipled, right? Is there a personal responsibility beyond being willing? Many responsibilities could be […]
We are told in Scripture that God specifically calls two things by their names—His stars (Ps. 147:4) and His sheep (Jn. 10:3). That’s not the only link between the first and new creations. Astronomers call it the Great Wall. And it’s not in China. Light from Earth would take 200 million years to reach it. […]
This article shows the biblical balance between God’s will and man’s. The blazing African sun beat down on the crowded Arab market as women busily bartered with the merchants. The bustling walkways were lined with storekeepers selling their wares, as the children played nearby. The air was filled with the pungent smell of spices, and […]
Distinguishing the various aspects of sanctification is key to a true understanding of the doctrine. The word sanctify means “to set apart.” There is a whole family of words—sanctify, sanctification, saint, holy, holiness, consecrate, consecration—that all have the same root meaning. Very often sanctification means the process of separating from common or unclean uses to […]
“Christ “was delivered for our offences, and was raised again for our justification. Therefore being justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Rom. 4:25; 5:1) All who believe in the Lord Jesus Christ as personal Lord and Saviour are familiar with the doctrine of forgiveness. The redemptive work of […]
I recognize faces easily, although names are sometimes slow to come to mind. Just ask my children. Each is a unique person, and though I recognize them, I still occasionally mix up their names. What I never forget is that they are separate and distinct persons from me. Each is genetically complete, clearly human, and […]
John 3:16 is the gospel in a sentence, twenty-five words that bridge the gulf between a loving God and lost humanity. Yet in this wonderful array of Bible words, preachers often stress the little word “so.” “For God so-o-o loved the world,” they intone. And still the question lingers: How could such a God love […]
The primary purpose of this series is to provide helps for preachers and shepherds in teaching the Word of God to the saints, thus taking seriously our responsibility to “feed My sheep” (Jn. 21:15; see 1 Pet. 5:2). In particular, we hope to address the subject of expository preaching. Defining expository preaching Expository preaching is […]
The words “substitute” and “substitution” aren’t found in our Bible. But as the author shows, the idea is everywhere. A rifle is raised, its sights set on the most powerful man in the nation. Shots ring out and without hesitation Secret Service men pile on top of the president to take the bullets intended for […]