This past Sunday I began the sermon by talking about vindication. I said, "Everyone wants to be vindicated, proven to be in the right. Too often the desire for vindication comes in midst of conflict. One person sees things one way, the other person sees things another way and they both think they're right. They both want to be proven right and more than that, they often w...

This afternoon I was meeting with a group of pastors and we were talking about what pastors talk aboutministry. We prayerfully considered gathering our churches together one Sunday evening for a combined time of prayer. We thought that our congregations could benefit from praying through A.C.T.S. (Adoration, Confession, Thanksgiving, and Supplication) and hearing a sermon ...

On Tuesdays, I am reading through Sinclair Ferguson's The Christian Life: A Doctrinal Introduction with another brother in the church. This past week we talked about chapters 8 and 9, but I was particularly encouraged by chapter 8, "True Repentance." One of the things that struck me, as it has before, is how wonderful God's mercy is. In the course of identifying elements i...

In his book Holiness by Grace, Dr. Bryan Chapell wrote, "The tears of confession and the joy of pardon are required to produce the gratitude that empowers the Christian life" (p.35). I've only just started reading Dr. Chapell's book, but I expect it to be a good one by what I've read so far. Many years ago a dear friend taught me the principle that Dr. Chapell propounds, ...

I've been sitting in lectures on the Christian life over the last couple of days, and we've basically been circling around one theme that ought to have a profound impact on every area of our lives as Christians. That one theme can really be summed up or presented in a couple of Scripture passages: There is therefore now no condemnation for those who are in Christ Jesus (R...

At the Tuesday night men's Bible study, one of the brothers (not me) led us in a few songs from his guitar. We closed with "It is Well." After we had finished singing, I mentioned to the brothers that third verse of that hymn has to be one of the best stanzas in all of hymnody. I'm sure if I gave you few words you'll be able to recite the rest, but just in case, here's the...