Reformation21

Reformation21

...which He made to abound toward us in all wisdom and prudence,having made known to us the mystery of His will, according to His good pleasure which He purposed in Himself, that in the dispensation of the fullness of the times He might gather together in one all things in Christ, both which are in...
'What makes a preacher choose any book or passage of the Bible to preach on?' That's the sixty-four thousand dollar question I tend to ask myself on not a few occasions and feel I have to answer to my congregation (usually when I'm beginning a new series). I suppose there is a degree of similarity...
It is very common in my sermons for me to make an evangelistic application to the text. Those who hear my sermons often will recall that it isn’t unusual for me to make a statement applying the text by imploring the listeners to believe in Jesus, to stop finding security in their good works, and to...
“Blessed are the meek, for they shall inherit the earth.” (Matthew 5:5) Evangelicalism is a house divided politically in 2020. The last few weeks have seen major evangelical volleys back and forth over the political divide. The brouhaha started with Christianity Today’s editor-in-chief Mark Galli’s...
Recently, I preached on the devastating consequences of Jacob’s polygamous and incestuous marriage to Leah and Rachel. This was not the first time the Old Testament confronts us with the sticky problem of polygamy. It first appears in the genealogical record of Cain’s reprobate descendants, where...
The mind turning in on itself
As one of the many people living with an anxiety disorder, I hope to use this article to pass along a few things I have learned which might prove beneficial to you, and as always to dispel certain misperceptions. Rather than sticking to my usual essay format, I'd like to offer a some initial...
You learn a lot about what matters to someone by what drives them to extremes. Think of a person camping out, lining up in the rain, to get concert tickets. Think of a couple paying physical and emotional costs to adopt a special needs child from overseas. The same is true for God. In the New...
Recently, a video of Francis Chan surfaced in which he tries to explain what he now believes about the real physical presence of Christ in the Lord’s Supper. Without wishing to dissect the many erroneous arguments Chan made about the unity of the visible Church throughout the first fifteen hundred...
Some find it misguided to praise men. It was, after all, the Corinthian problem that they openly declared their allegiance to men: Apollos, Paul, or Peter. In doing so they caused major divisions in the Corinthian church. But we are not, I think, to conclude from this that we are never to express...
Thank you for joining us at reformation21 , where we strive to encourage biblical thinking and holy living. As we look forward to the year ahead, here are ten articles that you may have missed in 2019: 10. Adam Parker, The Pastor as Hourly Employee? Elders, are you watching every move your pastor...