For the past decade or more, I have had an interest in the concept of holiness. The interest was piqued by Dr. Peter Gentry, now retired Old Testament professor from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary (SBTS) in Louisville, KY. Years ago, I listened to a lecture by Dr. Gentry where he challenged the idea that…
Adultery doesn’t just happen. More often than not, there’s a slow drip of relational disconnectedness and over months and years, the drip becomes a cascade of deep, relational conflict culminating in the decision to commit adultery. A Christian needs to be aware of the chain of events that often leads to adultery and realize that this…
Jonathan Leeman writes that church discipline aims to… Expose sin. Sin, like cancer, loves to hide. Discipline exposes the cancer so that it might be cut out quickly (1 Corinthians 5:2). Warn. A church does not enact God’s judgment through discipline. Rather, it stages a small play that pictures the great judgment to come (1…
Pursuing personal holiness, practicing the disciplines of discipleship and making full use of the means of grace and growth (Bible reading, daily prayer, regular fellowship, active worship and witness, and sharing in the Lord’s Supper). Seeking congregational renewal, in worship, fellowship, maturity, and outreach, with pastor and people collaborating to ensure that all minister and…
Several years ago I shared that I wanted to use this blog to encourage and educate individuals on how they can pursue Jesus with more joy, obedience and faithfulness. The issue of porn has brought great heartache to many men and increasingly women in and outside the church. Here’s a great article on How to…
Andrew Sister’ song “Don’t Sit Under The Apple Tree” has some great lyrics with regards to the “spirit” of this post. Several weeks ago I took my bride to a show at a cultural arts center in Tempe, AZ. The show was The Bridges of Madison County. My bride is an old soul. She…
The Anatomy of Adultery from A Man and His Marriage material: Unintentional neglect of each other in your marriage. Both the friendship, and the physical intimacy begin to wane. Someone of the opposite sex is really kind to you. They notices you, compliments you, affirms you, and you feel respected. The compliment turns into a conversation. Maybe…
I have learned in whatever situation I am to be content (Phil 4: 11). There’s a place for legitimate discontentment. All of us should, to some degree, be discontent with our spiritual growth. If we aren’t, we will stop growing. There’s also what we might call a prophetic discontentment with injustice and other evils in…
When we describe someone’s attributes, we usually make a distinction between a person and his attributes. For instance, you may say your mother is patient, but you wouldn’t say that your mother is patience. And you would say that your mother is more than a mere list of traits. In the same way, God is…
Heath Lambert, who serves as the Executive Director at the Association of Certified Biblical Counselors recently wrote a book called Finally Free: Fighting For Purity With The Power Of Grace that our pastoral interns recently read and discussed. His book was particularly helpful, insightful and full of practical wisdom. One such chapter was on how to use…
Theology Along the Way 