My thanks goes to Zondervan for sponsoring the blog this week to tell you about a new book titled What It Means To Be Protestant. Sponsors play a crucial role in keeping this site going and I’m thankful for each and every one of them.
Today’s Kindle deals include a nicely varied selection. Be scroll down to yesterday’s deals to take a look at Rob Ventura’s Expository Outlines and Observations on Romans which is a really good deal at that pricing.
Sanctification Explained Simply
I found Bryan Schneider’s explanation of sanctification very helpful. I suspect you will also. “There is a danger in sanctification—a false pride that can creep in. The old enemies of legalism and self-reliance can make the cross fade into a distant memory. This often happens when people see sanctification as a stairway upwards. They imagine that they were saved at a certain point, and as they climb the stairs of holiness, they become increasingly aware of their progress.”
What Is a Hyper-Cessationist?
My understanding of cessationism might vary a little from Ryan Denton’s, but even with that being so, I share many of his concerns about what he calls “hyper-cessationism.” “For some time now, I have been deeply troubled by some of the assumptions that the term ‘cessationist’ now seems to carry. Cessationism has morphed into something dark and suffocating. It has become a thick, wet blanket used to smother anything that smacks of the supernatural.”
When Life Feels Crushing
Sarah Walton: “Some seasons are like that. They aren’t just overwhelming. They aren’t just hard. They aren’t just exhausting. They’re paralyzing, and from a humanity standpoint – they feel unbearable.”
“OK, Boomer”
Brad Littlejohn considers how the younger generation may fail to respect the older generation (and in a way that may be different from the past). While he writes primarily about the political context, the same can be true within the church.
Spurgeon’s Five Marks of a Healthy Church
J. Drew Tillman tells how Spurgeon defined a healthy church. There’s lots we can all learn from him!
Being, Rather Than Doing, Daily Devotionals
People who struggle with consistency in personal devotions may find some help in this article from TGC Australia. “Yes, we should set time aside to do daily devotions. But let’s not forget that Christian living is more than that. It is continuous devotion, where devotion is an attitude, rather than a task. It is more accurate to say we are ‘being’, rather than ‘doing’, devotion.”
Flashback: In the Beginning There Were No Canyons
…the brightest of the blooms grow only in the places that have been prepared by the heavy hand of the Master.
Walk humbly—you have far more to be humble about than you realize.
—D.A. Carson
