This seemed like a pertinent quote for a Sunday morning. As we head to church and listen to the preaching of the Word, I’m sure it will be profitable to think just a moment about the unction of the Holy Spirit. This quote comes from Charles Spurgeon’s An All-Round Ministry. One thing more, and it…
To Praise Bands – James Smith recently penned an interesting and controversial letter to praise bands. I don’t agree with all he said, but I do appreciate the way he has stimulated my thoughts on the matter. It’s a conversation worth having. The Land of My Heritage – Luma Simms has an article on her…
When it comes to supposed contradictions in the Bible, a classic example is Paul vs. James on the subject of justification. Paul says, “For we hold that one is justified by faith apart from works of the law” (Romans 3:28). James says, “You see that a person is justified by works and not by faith…
This week’s Free Stuff Friday is sponsored by CBD Reformed and, as always, they are offering up 5 great prize packages, each of which contains 3 items. Among those items are two of my favorite books from 2011. In addition, CBD Reformed is offering a 4-day sale (February 24 – February 27) on the following…
7 Marks of Humility – God’s leadership principles are the complete opposite of man’s. Paul Tautges goes to Philippians and shows that in God’s economy the way up is down. The Best Chess Player in the World – Here’s an interesting profile of the world’s best chess player. The money quote: “I enjoy it when…
I spent much of my day yesterday wrestling through a couple of biblical genealogies (and enjoying every minute of it). I found myself reflecting on the end of the book of Ruth where we encounter a short but powerful genealogy. But before I get there, I want to remind you of the final scene in…
Visual Theology – If you are interested in purchasing some of those Visual Theology infographics/posters, you can get 20% off your order by using the code JUMP20. Google Glasses – What is this world coming to? “People who constantly reach into a pocket to check a smartphone for bits of information will soon have another…
It is one of Jesus’ more audacious claims–that all of the Scriptures testify to him. As Jesus appealed to the religious authorities of his day and as he exposed their ignorance, he declared that he himself is the subject of the Bible; he himself is the one all of the Old Testament Scriptures were pointing…
Challenger Disaster – All these years later, some amateur video of the Challenger disaster has just turned up. “Captured in an era that precedes mobile phones, when few people owned camcorders, it’s one of few video recordings of the disaster by a member of the public.” Never Retreat – This is a neat article from…
It has been more than a year now since I began offering free desktop wallpapers created by some fantastic Christian designers. I recently asked a friend to go through all of those wallpapers and select ten of his favorites. If you are interested in prettying up your computer a little bit, here are some great…
The Pilgrim’s Progress – Christian Audio is offering an exclusive offer to the readers of this site. If you’d like to get the audiobook of The Pilgrim’s Progress, you can have it for just $4.98. Just click the link and enter the code Challiesrtc. Why don’t you grab it and then listen to it with…
This series of infographics that I’m calling “Visual Theology” has visited the ordo salutis, the attributes of God and the books of the Bible. Today I continue this series with a stop in Philippians 4:8. This is the first of the graphics that answers a request from one of the readers of this site and…
My recent studies of Ephesians have marked me deeply. It may be that the most important application to my life has been in the awareness of Satan’s work around me and, on that basis, learning how to stand firm. Ephesians 6 is a powerful call to be aware of the enemy and his army; it…
A Prayer for Cuba – Carolyn McCulley: “Few Americans have traveled to modern Cuba. But I had the privilege of visiting there in August 2011, right before some of the travel restrictions for Americans were lifted. Because we did not travel with a tour group, we had a credible view of real Cuban life.” Meet…
This morning I found myself looking back through some of my old notes on Jonathan Edwards’ The Religious Affections. It is such a dense and sweet book; I found so many powerful quotes and just had to share a few of them with you. (Each paragraph is its own quote, entirely disconnected from the one…
Treasure In, Treasure Out – R.C. Sproul Jr reflects on how his wife beautified his home and his life. “My beautiful wife loved nothing more than to beautify. She devoted herself to creating a beautiful home. She planted flowers, bushes and trees outside. Inside she hung, placed, painted and etched. Even when she was not…
You might have noticed when reading through the Gospels that, when it comes to Jesus predicting Peter’s denial, Mark records Jesus telling Peter that he will deny him three times “before the rooster crows twice” (Mark 14:30). Matthew, Luke and John, on the other hand, don’t mention a specific number of crows. They just record…
This week’s Free Stuff Friday is sponsored the good people at ChristianAudio and they’ve got a pretty sweet prize package for you. Actually, they’ve got 5 of them. Five people will each win the CD or digital version (your choice) of the following: That is three great new audiobooks for your listening pleasure. Of the…
True Grit – I just finished listening to Donna Tartt’s amazing narration of the novel True Grit. Then I found that she had written this fantastic essay on the book. Romance Novels – Speaking of novels, I found this an interesting article on romance novels (Note: there’s one part that goes a bit awry when…
It was back in 2007 that I had an idea that genuinely changed my life. I wanted to read some of the classics of the Christian faith, but I knew that without some measure of accountability I would never have the self-discipline to make it happen. I realized that this accountability could come by reading…