Mary Kassian on The ShackMary Kassian, author of The Feminine Mistake writes about William Young’s portrayal of God in The Shack: “The Shack contains terribly wrong concepts about God. Plain and simple. If you think it doesn’t, then you’re well on your way to accepting the image of the Christa on the cross. In a…
It has been too long, I think, since I’ve posted a prayer from The Valley of Vision. This one, titled “Humility in Service,” seems appropriate for a Sunday morning as the day will undoubtedly bring us many opportunities to serve our brothers and sisters in Christ and many opportunities to share the Good News with…
The following quote comes from Iain Murray’s book Evangelicalism Divided (on page 291 if you must know). I think it offers good food for thought (even on a Saturday morning). The ecumenical call [in the mid-20th century] was not for truth and salt; it was supremely for oneness: the greater the unity of ‘the Church’,…
With a new Friday comes a new Free Stuff Fridays giveaway. This week’s sponsor is Moody Publishers. They are offering a package of some of their most popular new releases. There will be five winners, each of whom will receive: All you need to do to have a chance at winning is to add your…
Years ago a Christian band called Hokus Pick used to tour Canada once or twice a year. They were a great bunch of guys who truly loved the Lord. I would often catch them in concert and even promoted a handful of shows for them. Every time they toured, they did so with a different…
The Rape of Solomon’s Song (Conclusion)John MacArthur has posted the final article in his series on the Song of Solomon. He addresses some of the questions and comments left by readers here at Challies.com. A Call to Intentional MotheringCarolyn McCulley writes about a series on Revive Our Hearts that sounds like it would be greatly…
So this is it. As of today we’ve read the final chapter of William Wilberforce’s Real Christianity. This marks the seventh classic we’ve read together. I am going to offer a few closing remarks and then open it for discussion in case you’d like to reflect on the book. And then I guess we’ll have…
When Abortion Meets TotalitarianismSlate: “Sixteen million girls are missing in China. And now we know what happened to them: They were aborted because they weren’t boys.” Your Federal Tax DollarsHere is a fascinating infographic giving an overview of what happens to your tax dollars (assuming you live in the US of A). The Truth about…
John MacArthur has kicked off a bit of controversy with his posts on Song of Solomon and, in particular, with his rationale for doing so–addressing pastors who, when preaching through the book, “employ extremely graphic descriptions of physical intimacy as a way of expounding on the euphemisms in Solomon’s poem.” In his first two articles…
Animal Rights and Imago DeiWalter Kaiser reacts to “an op-ed piece by Nicholas D. Kristof entitled “Humanity Even for Nonhumans” He argued that one of the great historical landmarks of the presidential election in the United States last year was not in the race or the president himself, but it was in ‘the limits of…
There was a time when my mother was actively involved in the pro-life movement here in the Toronto area. I have many memories of journeying downtown with her, taking the subway and bus with mom, so we could volunteer in some way in the fight against abortion. I have fond memories of it, mostly. At…
The Rape of the Song of SolomonJohn MacArthur is beginning what looks to be an interesting series in which he will attempt to refute those teachers and preachers who “employ extremely graphic descriptions of physical intimacy as a way of expounding on the euphemisms in Solomon’s poem.” Says MacArthur, “In fact, Solomon’s love-poem epitomizes the…
In early 2006, firefighters in Orange County, California, anticipating a dangerous forest fire season, began a controlled burn of 10 acres of canyon land forest. They lit a small fire to prevent a bigger fire, attempting to reduce the amount of flammable material that might serve as tinder during the dry season. They thought everything…
Doctrine IS PracticalA good word from John MacArthur: “Practical insights, gimmicks, and illustrations mean little if they’re not attached to divine principle. There’s no basis for godly behavior apart from the truth of God’s Word. Before the preacher asks anyone to perform a certain duty, he must first deal with doctrine. He must develop his…
It is Easter today, and I woke up thinking about this song, a new favorite Easter hymn. It is written (not surprisingly) as a collaborative effort between Keith Getty and Stuart Townend. You can find at least a couple of different versions of it at Amazon or on iTunes. There is the studio version on…
A few days ago, while studying 1 Timothy, I came across an interesting portion of Philip Ryken’s commentary and I thought I’d share it with you. Ryken comments on 1 Timothy 1:17, those verses that inspired a classic hymn of the Christian faith: “To the King of ages, immortal, invisible, the only God, be honor…
With a new Friday comes a new Free Stuff Fridays. We are once again giving away music, this time courtesy of our sponsor Blake Hicks (visit www.blakehicksmusic.com.). Blake is a student at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary where he is completing his second(!) Masters degree. One of those multi-talented types, he is also an excellent graphics…
As seems to be the case with most boys, my friends and I went through a stage where we found great joy in tying people to things. In second or third grade we would take turns being the guys who would grab the skipping ropes and twist endless knots, fastening one of our friends to…
Today is Good Friday and, not coincidentally, today we finish reading The Cross He Bore by Frederick Leahy. It has proven, I think, a valuable read leading to those days we set aside to particularly remember Jesus’ death and resurrection. Today’s text is Matthew 27:45: “Now from the sixth hour there was darkness over all…
Good Wednesday?Walter C. Kaiser Jr. explains why Good Friday until Easter Sunday really is three days. Red Envelope DayMotte Brown writes about Red Envelope Day. “The ultimate goal of this symbolic gesture is to change the president’s heart on abortion. Otto writes, “This is a message to [the president] that God hears the cry of…