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A La Carte (March 15)

monday

Good morning and happy Monday. Grace to you today. I and my family are halfway through our 14-day in-house quarantine following our trip to the U.S. to see our daughter. It was worth it.

There are a few Kindle deals today.

(Yesterday on the blog: The Penitential Tear)

It Was Finished Upon That Cross

CityAlight released a beautiful new hymn over the weekend, just on time for Easter. I’m sure you’ll be blessed by it. “Death was once my great opponent / Fear once had a hold on me / But the Son who died to save us / Rose that we would be free indeed! / Free from every plan of darkness / Free to live and free to love / Death is dead and Christ is risen! / It was finished upon that cross.”

In the Name

Ed Welch: “A phrase like ‘in the name of Jesus’ is too crammed with meaning to be spoken with little awareness of what is being said.”

Cosmic Child Abuse (Video)

I’m just catching up with some of the clips from the documentary American Gospel: Christ Crucified and thought I’d share this one which refutes the idea that penal substitutionary atonement makes God into a cosmic child abuser.

Five Truths About the Body of Christ

“The Bible’s teaching about the church isn’t easy to grasp. The church is a ‘mystery.’ It is only with the help of the Holy Spirit that we can really begin to understand it at all. But God wants us to know who we are, and so He teaches us through pictures, analogies, and images.”

The Most Lavish Promise of God? Immeasurable Joy in the Ages to Come

John Piper: “At every point of history (even before history), this universe is designed in God’s wisdom — and governed by God’s providence — to be a theater for the glory of God, manifest consummately in the glory of his grace, enacted through the glory of Christ, which shines most brightly in his suffering for undeserving rebels.”

Billions Of Cicadas May Be Coming Soon To Trees Near You

Be warned: “A big event in the insect world is approaching. Starting sometime in April or May, depending on latitude, one of the largest broods of 17-year cicadas will emerge from underground in a dozen states, from New York west to Illinois and south into northern Georgia. This group is known as Brood X, as in the Roman numeral for 10.”

Rain or Shine, He Showed Up

Erik Raymond reflects on death. “Cold driving rain pelted my umbrella as I shrugged my shoulders and held them, hoping to absorb another centimeter of comfort from my wool scarf. Looking around, I saw the grief on the faces of friends gathering to pay final respects to one who has recently passed from this life into the next.”

Flashback: 2 Things to Know About Killing Sin

This is the usual issue with persons attempting the mortification of sin without an interest in Christ first obtained. It deludes them, hardens them—destroys them.

While Satan has a genius in getting people into trouble, he has no genius for getting people out.

—De Witt Talmage

  • The Men Who Have Done Most for God in this World

    “The men who have done the most for God in this world have been early on their knees.” This quote from E.M. Bounds would work perfectly well without the word “early.” It would then say, “The men who have done the most for God in this world have been on their knees.” Taken that way,…

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  • Free Stuff Fridays (TGBC)

    This week’s Free Stuff Friday is sponsored by The Good Book Company. They are giving away a bundle of books for ministry leaders.  The Bundle includes: As you look at all things through the lens of the gospel, you’ll increasingly become the fully-formed follower of Jesus and servant of his church that you have been…

  • Trump, Trudeau, and the 51st State

    These are strange days in Canada. The incoming President of the United States has suddenly promised to slap a 25% tariff on cross-border trade—a tariff that has the potential to devastate the Canadian economy. Some suggest it could cost Canada a 3% hit to its economy and the loss of hundreds of thousands of jobs.…

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    A La Carte: Discipleship in the Reformed world / Why Christians need to watch out for Jordan Peterson / The forbidden woman and the path to death / I’m no gambler / a firm foundation in an uncertain world / and more.