Skip to content ↓

Explore September 2016

  • Free Stuff Fridays

    This week’s Free Stuff Fridays is sponsored by Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. There will be 5 winners this week, and each winner will receive a great prize: a set of the collector’s edition Sermons of Charles Spurgeon. Originally published in 1883 in ten volumes, this handsome 1996 reprinting by Baker Books combines the collection into…

  • Maybe You Need To Declare a Name Amnesty Sunday

    It’s probably a silly idea. It’s probably the kind of thing we came up with late on a Friday afternoon and laughed about before realizing, “Actually, maybe there’s something to this.” Somehow it became a bit of a tradition for Grace Fellowship Church and, even better, one we rather enjoy. We call it “Name Amnesty…

  • A La Carte (September 30)

    I’m writing today from Heathrow Airport in London, as I stop over briefly while journeying up to Edinburgh, Scotland. I am looking forward to visiting my friends at 20schemes and attending their upcoming weekender. I’ll also be preaching this Sunday at Duncan Street Baptist Church. Today’s Kindle deals include : Beating the College Debt Trap…

  • Set An Example: Don’t Surrender To Low Expectations

    Last week I kicked off a new series that I’m writing with younger Christians in mind—high schoolers, college students, people just getting started in the independent life. In the opening article I introduced our key verse: “Let no one despise you for your youth, but set the believers an example in speech, in conduct, in…

  • A La Carte (September 29)

    I think we’ve come to that part of the month–the end of the month, usually–when the Kindle deals tend to dry up. But in a day or two we will coast into October and there should be a fresh batch. Until then, here are some articles that may interest you. Deserted Island Top 5 I…

  • Letters to the Editor (Hurting Others, Video Games, Seminary)

    It has been nearly a year since I laid the comments section to rest and begin inviting letters to the editor in its stead. It has been a blessing to receive so many hundreds of letters over the past year and to be able to share the best of them. Here are a few from…

  • Free Stuff Fridays

    This week’s Free Stuff Fridays is sponsored by Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. There will be 5 winners this week, and each winner will receive a great prize: a set of the collector’s edition Sermons of Charles Spurgeon. Originally published in 1883 in ten volumes, this handsome 1996 reprinting by Baker Books combines the collection into…

  • Gift

    What Is the Gift of Singleness?

    What is this gift of singleness that demands so much attention from Christian pastors and writers? And when some believers have such a strong desire to be married, is it right and considerate to refer to singleness as a gift? These are valid questions that stem from a desire to understand a tricky text. In…

  • A La Carte (September 28)

    Today’s Kindle deals include just 3: All of Grace by Charles Spurgeon, A History of Israel by Walter Kaiser, Learn to Read New Testament Greek by David Croteau. Westminster Books has ESVs on sale this week, with the compact versions taking the leading role. Distinguishing Among the Three Persons of the Trinity within the Reformed…

  • Jesus Always, the Sequel to Jesus Calling

    This book is going to be big. Huge, even. Its predecessor has sold well over 10 million copies and more than a decade after publication has no less than 6 editions on the list of Christian bestsellers. Today, at last, comes the long-awaited sequel, releasing to great fanfare—a million-copy first printing backed by a huge…

  • Review: ESV Reader’s Bible, Six-Volume Set

    I like a clean desk. I like to begin my day with nothing on it other than my computer and keyboard. I don’t want to see stacks of paper, bundles of cables, piles of books, or anything else that might distract or offer an alternative to the task at hand. So I try to begin…

  • A La Carte (September 27)

    Today’s Kindle deals include : A new one from GLH Publishing, Essentials of Prayer by E.M. Bounds (50% off for the first week). Also consider Living in God’s Two Kingdoms by David VanDrunen, Reading God’s Story by George Guthrie, Relativism: Feet Firmly Planted in Mid-Air by Greg Koukl, The Absurdity of Unbelief by Jeffrey Johnson…

  • Sponsored Collection cover image

    The 10 Questions Anyone Considering a Call to Ministry Must Answer

    This sponsored post was provided by Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. The call to ministry is indeed a subjective thing. We use phrases like “feeling called” and “sensing a call.” Sometimes we may talk about “discerning” a call or “wrestling with” a call. If you are in one of those categories of thinking, how can you…

  • Christian Men and Their Video Games

    If you’re a gamer, or a Christian gamer at least, you’ve rolled your eyes through a hundred articles by now, each one telling you why your gaming is sad, wasteful, pathetic. You’re immature, you’re addicted to pleasure, you’re a dopamine junkie. You might even have found yourself compared to a porn addict since in many…

  • monday

    A La Carte (September 26)

    Today’s Kindle deals include several from Crossway on the Trinity: The Deep Things of God by Fred Sanders (a personal favorite), Communion with the Triune God by John Owen (edited by Justin Taylor & Kelly Kapic), Experiencing the Trinity by Joe Thorn, and more. Matthis Media also has several: God’s Good Design by Claire Smith,…

  • Fall From Grace

    You’ve heard of people who have experienced a fall from grace. The celebrity said something foolish, the media ran with it, and she never quite recovered. “You like me. You really like me.” The athlete was found to have used substances that enhanced his performance, earning him stolen medals, records, and victories. He lied about…

  • Is Seminary Really Necessary?

    The church has been well-served by pastors who ministered without formal seminary training. John Bunyan, Charles Spurgeon, and Martyn Lloyd-Jones are standout examples of men who had impactful and long-lasting ministries even though they never attended seminary. No wonder, then, that the question often arises: Is seminary really necessary? Might it be better to get…

  • Weekend A La Carte (September 24)

    It’s hard to believe that we’ve come to Autumn at last. It was a hot, beautiful, brilliant summer but I’m glad to see it finally give way to fall. I get to spend my day today in a church baseball tournament, but will leave you with a collection of interesting reading: Glasgow University archivists find…

  • Weekend A La Carte

    A La Carte (October 2)

    Today’s Kindle deals include : This Day in 1529. 487 years ago today the Colloquy of Marburg, which attempted to unify followers of Luther and Zwingli, began and ended in disagreement over the doctrine of the Eucharist. Switzerland remained Reformed and Germany stayed Lutheran. * Flashback When God intends to do a great work He…

  • Free Stuff Fridays (Nabeel Qureshi Edition)

    This week’s Free Stuff Fridays is sponsored by Zondervan. There will be 5 winners this week and each of them will receive a great package of material from Nabeel Qureshi. The winners will receive: Enter Here Giveaway Rules: You may enter one time. As soon as the winners have been chosen, all names and addresses…