As iron sharpens iron,
one person sharpens another. (Proverbs 27:17)
“Jesus commands us in Mark 12:30, ‘Love the Lord your God … with all your mind’—our minds are connected to our affections. When we limit mindless entertainment and replace it with deeper content and conversations, our relationship with God and others will benefit.” - TGC
“The UK announced last week that they will extend their ban on new puberty blocker prescriptions for minors who are gender confused.” - AiG
“Singing is so core to spiritual growth, spiritual discipleship, and being holy. Christmas carols exemplify that.” - CPost
“I see ‘A Charlie Brown Christmas’ as a fascinating historical moment. It’s the true story of an unassuming comic strip character who crossed over into television and managed to voice hefty, thought-provoking ideas – without getting booted off the air.” - The Conversation
“Ironically, the intellectual heft of historic Catholicism and its enviable aesthetic achievements seem to be the very things that the pope regards with indifference. And both of these seem to connect to that telltale sign that always presages trouble in Christian circles: a loss of the transcendent in favor of the immanent.” - Carl Trueman
“There’s intense debate over practicalities in Trump’s plan regarding the money required and whether Congress will appropriate it, how to track down persons living here illegally…. Beyond calculations on what’s feasible or wise or popular, Christians are pondering what’s moral and immoral.” - Religion Unplugged
A sermon preached at Calvary Baptist Church in Simpsonville, SC in 2016.
Imagine with me that on Christmas morning, one of the gifts you receive is a small box. You hold it in your hands, and it isn’t very heavy. You shake it and it rattles a little. You know that good gifts come in small packages, so you tear off the paper with anticipation. Inside you find a key. Would you be excited?
“The key is the realization that our memory is far from perfect, and if you don’t get the idea down immediately (and I mean right now), chances are you’ll lose it.” - Phil Cooke
“A lack of pastoral care is more likely to lead to a lack of spiritual health, which in turn hinders the work of the commission…. So what do we do if the status quo is chewing missionaries up rather than building them up?” - 9 Marks
“Not all colonies had a state religion. Thanks to Roger Williams and his dissenters, Rhode Island never did. Another point is to examine what happened after the colonies gained independence. By 1800, five states had disestablished their state religion and by 1833, all states had done so.” - Throckmorton
“If one rejects the inspiration of scripture, but still wants to claim to be a Christian, now you’re left with an epistemological dilemma. How can you possibly know what parts of the Bible are inspired and to be believed and obeyed, and which parts can be dismissed?” - Ref21
I have never been a stargazer, at least not in the sense that some are. I have known people who will brave any kind of weather and stay up all night to watch for the appearance of some unique star.
But, while I admire their beauty and am amazed at their nearly incomprehensible qualities, stars have never been my hobby—to say nothing of my passion. Suffice it to say, I would need another lifetime, and greatly increased interest, to become any kind of an expert on the stars.
“So if I’m committed to expositional preaching, how do I address those important but occasional questions that arise? Are expository preachers allowed to preach topical sermons?” - TGC
“when you don’t grind or dig out a stump, sometimes there’s still life left in it, and these little shoots grow up, and they look like branches with leaves. That’s Isaiah’s image when he speaks of “a shoot from the stump of Jesse, and a branch from his roots.” - Theology in 3D
“White Evangelicals were the strongest voting demographic for Donald Trump. Exit polls say their support increased to 82 percent from 76 percent in 2020….But this win does not necessarily evince optimism.” - National Review
“This article seeks to address the senior pastors of conservative churches and encourage them to pursue, preserve, and promote a conservative philosophy and practice of Christian music in their local churches.” - P&D
From Lectures to My Students: A Selection from Addresses Delivered to the Students of The Pastors’ College, Metropolitan Tabernacle
First Series, Lecture IX
By C.H. Spurgeon
In your sermons cultivate what Father Taylor calls “the surprise power.” There is a great deal of force in that for winning attention. Do not say what everybody expected you would say. Keep your sentences out of ruts. If you have already said, “Salvation is all of grace” do not always add, “and not by human merit,” but vary it and say, “Salvation is all of grace; self-righteousness has not a corner to hide its head in.”
Excerpt from Patricia Engler’s new book, Modern Marxism: A Guide for Christians in a Woke New World - AiG
“In nearly half of congregations—45%—their leaders thought most participants didn’t share the same political views, making politics a sometimes treacherous topic.” - RNS
“Scripture highlights the fact that God loves His people. It was love that drew God from heaven to earth in the incarnation. In Christ, God becomes like us in order to dwell with us––and all because He has loved us. This is the wonder of the Immanuel promise (Is. 7:14).” - Feeding On Christ
“Gavin Ortlund lays out the argument from eternal truths for the existence of God.” - YouTube
“The lack of vocal opposition by the (American) Senate to the nomination of multiple candidates whose lifestyle fits the definition of moral turpitude is an apt reflection of what Alasdair MacIntyre has described in his book After Virtue.” - Mere Orthodoxy
“Those who have been cast out of their biological families for following Christ now have God’s family to welcome them. Even if they don’t own their own houses, they have hundreds of houses to stay in, where they’ll be warmly welcomed. Jesus promises not only eternal happiness but a hundred times more happiness here and now.” - Randy Alcorn
“despite the well-meaning intentions of the Canadian government, a dystopian nightmare has followed in the wake of assisted dying with no end in sight. To make matters worse, Canada’s program has expanded to other nations.” - Providence
“The bill would also allow people who have been subjected to trans procedures as minors the right to sue if they come to regret their decision.” - CPost
“The aim of manuscript preaching is to make it look like you’re not preaching from a manuscript, which isn’t easy. I’ve had my fair share of fumbles along the way. But those fumbles have taught me some things.” - 9 Marks
“Where congregants once began with ‘My grandmother always said …’ they now regularly begin with ‘I was listening to this podcast …’ or ‘I saw on YouTube …’” - TGC
“Here’s a look back at 2024 through 14 of our most striking research findings. These are just a small slice of the Center’s many research publications from this year.” - Pew
