I’ve always thought the account of Simeon in Luke 2:21-35 was a very precious and moving story. I’ve read it and been stirred by it at all times of the year. But it’s particularly striking around Christmas. Simeon was an elderly man who had been promised by the Holy Spirit that he wouldn’t die until he had seen the promised Messiah, … More All I Want for Christmas: Simeon’s Hope
When the pastor closes in prayer, the service ends, and the congregation is dismissed, what’s the first thing you say about a great sermon? One thing I hear (and say) far too often: “That was a great sermon.” “He did a great job.” “He’s a great preacher.” These are ways of communicating our conviction over the message … More A Great Sermon or a Great Savior?
Four years ago, on August 11, 2008, I preached my first message as Associate Dean of Men at The Master’s College. With 14 pages of single-spaced notes on a music stand and 45 staffers and student leaders packed into the corner of a dorm lounge, I told “The Story Above All Stories” — my first … More The Story Above All Stories
Remember Jeremy Lin? This undrafted, unheralded, 6’3″ Asian-American put the sputtering New York Knicks on his rookie shoulders and took the NBA by storm back in February. Gushing headlines about the 23-year-old Harvard grad consumed one of the few industries where being a Harvard grad puts you behind, not ahead. His 38-point, 7-assist explosion (a) against … More Linsanity (or, Why We All Claimed Jeremy Lin): Ethnicity, Status, Religion, and the Search for Vindication
Dear Christian, Please help. Please help the younger generation of Christian high schoolers, college students, recent graduates, singles, and young married’s. Please help us learn to walk with Christ, read the Bible, love one another, develop a prayer life, conquer temptation, make wise decisions, and move in the right direction. We need you. We need the ripeness of … More Mentor: A Plea to Older Christians
“Why People Stick by Scandal-Plagued Pastors” by CNN’s John Blake is a brief foray into the blind loyalty that many knowing parishioners maintain toward their scandalized pastors. Sue Thompson, a public speaker herself, has been burned before. She explains that followers often build a “spiritual firewall” around their pastors so that reasonable suspicions and legitimate … More When the Pastor Falls: Lessons from Church Scandals & Blind Loyalty
How do the people of God gather to worship? At the building, with the church. We don’t gather at the church, because the church is not a location. We don’t meet in the church, because the church is not a building. We meet at a building (or a home or a park or a cave), with the church. … More At the Building, With the Church
The church of Jesus Christ in America today is afflicted with a terrible malady: the passivity of its men. Whether due to widespread spiritual lukewarmness, ignorance about the church’s mission, a general fear of responsibility, the malaise of false humility, a sense of aimlessness and incompetence, or the stiff-arming of adulthood, young men and men overall … More Every Man
Shortly after Saul was killed on Mount Gilboa, David was made king and immediately began to establish his kingdom (1 Chronicles 11:1-8). The Chronicler then records, “David became greater and greater, for the LORD of hosts was with him” (11:9). The first immediate evidence given to demonstrate how God blessed and supported David is the mass of trained, committed, fierce, … More Valiant Men
This week my good friend Derek Brown will be guest-blogging for me. We got to know each other during a summer missions trip to New Zealand in 2000 and have remained good friends ever since. Derek is married to Amy and currently attends Southern Baptist Theological Seminary in Louisville after serving as a middle school pastor for several … More Blogging and Accountability in the Local Church (Guest-Blog by Derek Brown)
This is the manuscript of the sermon I preached tonight at Placerita Baptist Church as part of our SummerFest 2009 series on “Worldliness.” I promised that I would post it here for further consideration and discussion. I have edited a few things that are unnecessary for a blog-post, and some elements will be unique to … More A Heart-Driven Modesty: God and Clothing (Sermon Manuscript)
There is an undercurrent of religious discontent in my generation that is no longer an undercurrent. It is now, and has been for some time, a flood. People are disillusioned with Christianity, hyper-aware of the slighest whiffs of hypocrisy and externalism, clamoring for (a hundred different definitions of) authenticity, and generally frustrated with the church, organized … More Do It As the Church
In co-teaching an adult Sunday School class in Proverbs for the past year, I’ve come to realize that the Hebrew sages had a deep and nuanced psychology. I realize that over the last several decades, “psychology” has become a buzzword in conservative Christian circles and a ten-letter curse word throughout the biblical counseling movement. The rise of … More The Psychology of the Sages
Usually our battles against pride are individual battles, because we know our own hearts (hopefully) and we know how much we need to fight. But in the last several years I’ve grown increasingly nauseated by some of the institutional, corporate, community pride that seems to thrive in some Christian circles. Relentless criticism of other organizations, … More Institutional Pride: Thoughts on Corporate Arrogance
This list was handed out at a TMS graduation luncheon a year or two ago. It may be helpful or thought-provoking for some, both pastors and others. It’s interesting how each mistake has a universal principle behind it that can apply to anyone. Attempting to out-MacArthur MacArthur — going beyond reasonable extremes set by John. … More “The Most Common Mistakes Made by TMS Graduates in Their First Ministry After Seminary Graduation”
One week ago today I attended a very insightful Q&A session with John MacArthur, James MacDonald, and David Wells at The Master’s College’s annual Truth & Life Conference. I brought my laptop and took detailed notes, so I’ll try to give you my best paraphrase of the best answers. The questions are in bold. When … More Q & A at the Truth & Life Conference
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