Welcome to the online home of Tim Challies, blogger, author, and book reviewer.
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Who is Jesus? And why do Christians make such a big deal of him? Charles Hodge provides a stirring answer in his Systematic Theology. Why do Christians make such a big deal of Jesus? Here’s why… All divine names and titles are applied to Him. He is called God, the mighty God, the great God, God over all; Jehovah; Lord; the Lord of lords and the King of kings. All divine attributes are ascribed to Him. He is declared to …
A couple of days ago a couple of friends sent me pretty much the same email at pretty much the same time. Both thought I would benefit from a reflection written by Charles Spurgeon. It was, indeed, the right word at the right time. Here it is, modernized through the pen of Alistair Begg. O death! Why do you touch the tree beneath whose spreading branches weariness finds rest? Why do you snatch away the excellent of the earth, in …
Today the great majority of the people who read this site will be heading to church (or perhaps still taking in a service through a live-stream). As we assemble to worship, we will have the privilege of hearing the Bible read and preached. And in this brief quote from Harold Senkbeil we are reminded of what a privilege this is. Read it and be encouraged as you consider God’s precious word. In our digital age, we’re swimming in gigabytes of …
While most people know that few have ever preached like Spurgeon, not nearly so many know that few have ever prayed like Spurgeon. Believe it or not, many who attended his church spoke less of his preaching and more of his praying! The little book The Pastor in Prayer captures some of his pastoral prayers, and today I wanted to share just a brief excerpt of one that seems especially fitting as we prepare to worship on this Lord’s Day. …
As we prepare to join in corporate worship today, we would do well to consider what God accomplishes through such precious means of grace. Here is Spurgeon, in his early days, calling us to let sermons and prayers be our delight. Let sermons and prayers be thy delight, because they are roads wherein the Saviour walketh. Let the righteous be thy constant company, for such ever bring Him where they come. It is the least thing thou canst do to …
Sometimes we all need a little bit of help praying. And when that’s true of me, one place I know to turn is Scotty Smith’s blog where he posts new prayers on a daily basis. One that caught my attention this week was titled Who Gets to Rule Our Hearts This Week?. I thought I’d share it with you as we all begin a new week with its opportunities and temptations. Let the peace of Christ rule in your hearts… Col. …
Do you weep over your sin? There must be some things in life that bring you to tears, but is your sin one of them? We would all do well to consider these powerful words from Thomas Watson’s The Godly Man’s Picture for he warns “how far are they from being godly who scarce ever shed a tear for sin” and goes on to explain the beauty and necessity of repentance. How far are they from being godly who scarce …
We are mirrors. We are mirrors that reflect something of Christ. We gaze upon him, and as we do so some of his character, some of his attributes, some of his loveliness is reflected in us. The old author J.R. Miller once pondered this reality in a sweet little devotional. Take a few moments and appreciate what he says: We look into a little puddle of water at night, and see the stars in it; or by day and see …
As a father, I try to make it a habit to pray for my children each day before they even crawl out of bed. Before they’ve begun their day, I want to have already asked the Lord to bless, keep, and prosper them. Praying for my children was on my mind as I read this sweet, poetic prayer by Amy Carmichael. She did not have biological children of her own, but was Amma (mommy) to hundreds who were delivered to …
Yesterday I returned from a journey. It was not a particularly long one—just a week at a little vacation home five hours away. But even at the end of a relatively short journey, it was a joy to return to my home, to my place, to my bed. And it got me thinking about this prayer from Philip Doddridge. It’s a powerful prayer of praise and worship that is drawn from that wonderful collection of prayers Piercing Heaven. My God, …