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Weekend A La Carte (June 15)

A La Carte Collection cover image

I am grateful to Moody Publishers for sponsoring the blog this week so they could tell you about a timely new book titled Known for Love. In it, Casey Hough provides a biblical and theological framework for thinking through the hard situations we encounter with family and friends. Drawing from a well of faithful biblical scholars, Hough provides insights for everyday Christians living in a sexually broken world.

Westminster Kids Week wraps up with a neat new title from Paul Tautges.

Today’s Kindle deals include some newer and older titles.

(Yesterday on the blog: Making Good Return)

The Lord Sees: Learn to Rest in God’s Justice

Trevin Wax: “The heart’s silent cry, giving rise to tears of anguish no one else sees—the aloneness compounds the heartache. In those moments when you’re wronged, or your name is slandered, or your intentions are questioned . . . In the times when you feel alone or abandoned . . . In the aftermath of saying what’s true and paying a price, when you’ve experienced the deep wounds of injustice or betrayal . . . the Lord sees.”

3 Reasons Why Your Small Group Is Not a Church

Church is good. Small group is good. But it’s important that we maintain the distinction between them. “I will explain three reasons why your small group is not a church, but keep in mind that all three reasons (not just the first) are simply clarifying and unpacking this fundamental point: churches wield heaven’s authority, small groups do not.”

How Can I Be a Godly Father?

Joel Smit considers a few biblical fathers and their examples of faithfulness or lack of faithfulness. “These Old Testament stories are given by God for more than just parental instruction, but at the same time, they are not less than that. Therefore, they offer us both warnings and opportunities to learn how to best lead our children (and ourselves) toward godliness.”

Gender in the Void

Doug includes some interesting points in his look at the deconstruction of gender. “Gender exists, and it is a real thing. That is why the sexual revolutionaries have the footing to speak rationally about it; we all have an objective point of reference. They must borrow from the traditional worldview to make any sense of their own. However, they refute themselves when they lean on the historical understanding of gender in their attempts to undermine it.”

Are Images of Christ OK?

TGC has a pair of articles that each answer this question: Are images of Christ OK? The negative response is linked above while the positive response can be found here. (For what it’s worth, I’d lean well toward the “no” side.)

The Getting of Wisdom

“We are a culture obsessed with assessment. In addition to physical assessments, these days, there are all kinds of tests to measure our personality, emotional state, intellect, productivity, and relational capacities. Do you know what we’ve never been able to find a tool to measure? Our wisdom.”

Flashback: Fruitfulness and Usefulness

Look inside, to be certain, but also look outside to ensure the fruit of your relationship with the Lord is a gift not only to you, but to all you know, all you love.

Human fatherhood exists to display the beauty of God’s Fatherhood. Our highest calling as fathers is to be the image of God’s fatherhood to our children.

—John Piper

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    A La Carte (May 8)

    A La Carte: She forgot our names / “Gender-affirming care” for children / The woman who saved her church / The Trojan horse of a bad dictionary / Piper’s myths about eternal rewards / Tell your kids stories / and more.

  • Test Everything

    Christian, Do You Test Everything?

    A little while ago, the Bank of Canada became concerned about the amount of counterfeit currency circulating within the country. They began to educate the population with a short and simple mantra: “Touch, tilt, look at, look through.” These are four simple tests that can quickly show a bill to be genuine or counterfeit.

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    A La Carte (May 7)

    A La Carte: The babies money can buy / Deconstruction is sooo 2022 / Tips for leading a Bible study / Arguments against physician-assisted suicide / Your pastor isn’t your therapist / Book and Kindle sales / and more.

  • A La Carte Collection cover image

    A La Carte (May 6)

    A La Carte: Jeremy Clarkson got scammed? / Dying for sex / Materially rich and spiritually emaciated / Gain is godliness or godliness is gain? / Reclaiming a rich interior life / and more.

  • When the Bible Seems Confusing, Lean in and Look Close

    When the Bible vexes us, when it befuddles us, when it talks over our heads or down to our sensibilities, guest writer and author of From Eden to Egypt, Alex Duke tells us this is an invitation to lean in and look close. #Sponsored

  • Foremost false teacher

    The World’s Foremost False Teacher

    In the days since Pope Francis died, I have seen a number of Protestants write about his legacy. Some of these writers have expressed great appreciation for him while others have expressed great concern. The reactions to these articles, and especially the critiques, have been interesting to me. Some people have expressed dismay that their…