The God of peace be with you as you begin a new month for his glory.
Coming up today:
- Gaslighting and biblical counseling
- What’s so spiritual about spiritual gifts?
- Magisterium
- and more …
Sales & Deals
Because it is a new month, there is a whole new batch of Kindle deals to sort through. Of special note, IV Press has put its entire ebook collection on sale. I’ve captured some of the best series and standalone books right here. That includes the Bible Speaks Today commentaries, Tyndale Old Testament and New Testament Commentaries, New Studies in Biblical Theology, and so on.
Over at Westminster Books you’ll find the Prayers of the Church series deeply discounted.
Recommended Reading
Before the Snow Returns. Andrea Sanborn shares a seasonal reflection that leads nicely into Easter. “This is the tug-of-war between the new life and the old, the cold bite of disappointment wrestling with the hope of better. Of more. Of failure and forgiveness, of discouragement and hope, of worry and contentment.”
Evangelism Is Not a Thing You Do. This article by Tripp Almon explains how evangelism and discipleship relate to one another. “Evangelism and discipleship are not two different missions. They are one unified way of life, applied to people at different points along the same path. Non-Christians need the gospel to meet Jesus. Christians need the gospel to become more like him.”
A Lifeline in the Heartache of Divorce. “Divorce doesn’t just shake your life—it often shakes your faith. Maybe you’re struggling to pray. Maybe some days are okay, and on others, you don’t know where God is. Maybe you don’t see the point of following God anymore at all. You trusted him, you believed in his goodness, and yet here you are, sifting through the ruins of a life you thought was secure.” Vaneetha Risner offers compassion, realism, and biblical comfort in This Was Never the Plan: Walking with God through the Heartache of Divorce. Get 30% off with code CHALLIES.
Survivors Among Discarded Brothers and Sisters. Because it is a new month, you should have a new allotment of free articles from WORLD. It would be worth using one on this article. “The Boozer Twins were born in 2007, but the technology that enabled their parents to select them 20 years ago has only become more advanced and mainstream. A host of venture-capital backed fertility startups are promising to help couples have their ‘best baby.’ But really, they’re just practicing a new kind of eugenics: one in which children are ranked and selected (or discarded) based on their assigned genetic score.”
Gaslighting and Biblical Counseling. Casey McCall brings clarity to an oft-misused word. “Have you ever been ‘gaslit’? Have you ever ‘gaslit’ someone else? Do you even know what this term means? I heard it used countless times before I eventually got curious. Once I figured out its meaning, I realized that I hardly ever hear it used correctly.”
Why I’m a Disabled Person, Not a Person with a Disability. James Abernathy: “Was this reflection really me? I hoped to God it wasn’t: skinny legs whittled down to skin and bone, a protruding belly lacking muscle and form, bleak arms that barely worked, uncontrollable fingers that curled up in spasms, and a head disproportionately large compared to my frail, withering body. Surely this broken body I saw through tears of shame wasn’t me.”
What’s So Spiritual about Spiritual Gifts? Michael Jensen explains what’s so spiritual about spiritual gifts. “My observation is that we have the same lazy habit in talking about spiritual gifts in the Christian life as we do in talking about gifts in general. That is: we appeal to something spooky to explain where they come from, and we yearn for them as a marker to our identity. What’s more, the idea of a non-deliberate, almost spontaneous experience simply sounds more authentic than something we have rationally considered.”
Definition
I recently had to double-check my understanding of Magisterium, so I turned to my trusty Baker Compact Dictionary of Theological Terms. It’s a good definition for Protestants to know.
The teaching office of the Catholic Church. Consisting of the pope with the bishops, the Magisterium bears the responsibility of giving an authentic interpretation of divine revelation, whether in its written form, Scripture, or in the form of Tradition. Correlatively, no individuals, relying on their own judgment, may distort Scripture according to their own understanding and interpret it in a sense contrary to the Magisterium’s interpretation. As it focuses on teaching and preserving the Catholic faith, this office—specifically the pope and, with him, the body of bishops—enjoys the gift of infallibility in matters of faith and morals.
Debunking the Debunking
Michael Kruger debunks some of the supposed debunking of the resurrection of Jesus Christ.
Flashback
Why Do You Do What You Do (And Not Something Else)? When I ask others why they do what they do, I’m often blessed to hear them describe their love for things I’ve never considered lovable…As I listen and ask follow-up questions, I learn—I learn to appreciate what I have often never considered before and even what doesn’t especially enthuse me.
Let me tell you, the more labour you have put forth for the Kingdom of heaven, the more degrees of glory you shall have.
—Thomas Watson
