Skip to content ↓

A La Carte (July 14)

tuesday

There are a couple of Kindle deals for you to take a look at today. It certainly has been slow lately…

(Yesterday on the blog: 12 Key Statements on Human Sexuality)

Take the Time

“My mother tells the story. Her dad was going blind. So every morning she or her sister would stop by the home where he stayed. And read the Bible to him. One particular day, Mom was in a hurry. On a tight schedule. She rushed in with no time to spare. Out of breath and talking fast. ‘So, Daddy, which chapter do you want me to read today?’ In his slow Southern drawl, Grandaddy said ‘Well, how about Psalm 119?’”

How Can I Obtain Assurance Of Salvation? (Video)

Here’s John MacArthur on obtaining assurance of salvation.

How Early Christianity was Mocked for Welcoming Women

Michael Kruger writes about about the popularity of the Christian faith among women in the days of the early church. “What do we make of the fact that early Christianity was mocked for being pro-women? Well, it certainly turns the tables on the over-used criticism in the modern world that early Christianity was a patriarchal, misogynistic religion that was hostile to women. While that claim is repeated over and over, it is hard to sustain in the context of the ancient world. Indeed, it seems more true of the non-Christian, Greco-Roman elites.”

A Catechism on Pastoral Theology

Daniel Hyde is building out a catechism on pastoral theology. It’s good!

The Church Doesn’t Need Online Watchmen

Caleb Wait: “Christians on the internet can sometimes be like the fake Batmans in Christopher Nolan’s The Dark Knight—copycat caped crusaders wearing hockey pads and DIY cowls. Our personalities online can often mimic a kind of ‘second life’ as vigilantes: ‘Self-appointed citizens who undertake the role of law enforcement in their community without legal authority, typically because the legal agencies are thought to be inadequate.’”

10 Reasons We Should Still Take The Coronavirus Seriously

WORLD offers some reasons we should still take the coronavirus seriously. “An Alaskan reader challenged us to share 10 reasons to take the coronavirus pandemic seriously—to believe that it is ‘not a hoax,’ as she put it. Her state’s experience with the coronavirus has encouraged its residents to see it as a faraway problem: The entire state has suffered only 17 deaths so far, whereas a single nursing home in my area saw a higher death toll.”

The Jesus Movement Followed 1968. What Will Follow 2020?

1968 was an extremely tumultuous year but, as Donald Whitney points out, “in retrospect, it’s encouraging to realize that rumbling beneath it all, the Jesus Movement was gathering momentum as a work of God’s power that would flourish across the country in the years immediately following. The high-water mark of this decade-long movement was surely Explo ‘72. Some 80,000 young people gathered in Dallas’ Cotton Bowl … to hear Billy Graham preach six times. By the end of the week some 100,000 to 200,000 gathered for a Christian concert that is often credited as the genesis of what became known in the 1970s as Christian Contemporary Music.”

Flashback: The Narrowest Religion in the World

The Christian religion is at once the broadest and the narrowest in the world. It is a faith that admits every possible kind of person. But it admits them in only one way.

There are two kinds of blind spots. One is to be blind to our sin. Another is to be blind to the Spirit at work in our lives.

—Tim Lane

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (December 11)

    A La Carte: Gift giving in an age of abundance / Canada’s Bill C-9 / In memory of Jubilant Sykes / Motherhood is a refining fire / A gentle pastor isn’t a weak pastor / When God’s plans leave us distressed / and more.

  • Southern Africa

    A Trip to Southern Africa

    I don’t often write trip reports after I travel, except, of course, in the form of books and documentary projects like Epic and From the Rising of the Sun. Yet, I thought I would make a rare exception after returning from my recent journey to Southern Africa (and, strangely, Northern California). While I am accustomed…

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (December 10)

    A La Carte: Top 10 theology stories of 2025 / Mama, you don’t have to save Christmas / Giving up all your Sundays to advent / An empty chair at Christmas / Pray for the church in Rwanda / Kindle deals / and more.

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (December 9)

    A La Carte: Reforming generosity / Let the young man come to church / Your wife is beauty / Combating imposter syndrome / Be known, not impressive / Dan McClellan / and more.

  • AI Slop

    The Rise of AI Book Slop

    We often hear these days of “AI slop,” a term that’s used to refer to the massive amounts of poor-quality AI-created material that is churned out and unceremoniously dumped onto the internet. This was once primarily artistless artwork and authorless articles, but has now advanced to much bigger and more substantial forms of content.

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (December 8)

    A La Carte: A plea to older women / Let someone serve you in suffering / Why AI writing can’t compete / Influencers / The hidden danger in online sermons / Discipling young people / Excellent Kindle deals / and more.