thought life Life of the Mind, 2 January 15, 2020 [See the first installment here. There I argued for four simple ideas: Your thought life matters. Your mind and heart are never really separate. You are called to a sanctified mind. And you
thought life Life of the Mind December 18, 2019 [Here, I hope to begin a short series of posts considering our thought life.] What do you think when you hear "thought life" or "life of the mind"? This doesn't seem to be
relationships Guarding Our Words December 04, 2019 My friend Adam Niess preached for us last Sunday from James 3 with the exhortation to guard our tongues. It was a helpful, clear and convicting sermon. Our family has been using his
apologetics Apologetics for the sake of the church November 20, 2019 And when he [Paul] wished to cross to Achaia, the brothers encouraged him and wrote to the disciples to welcome him. When he arrived, he greatly helped those who through grace had believed,
God's Law How I Love Your Law November 06, 2019 I've been enjoying reading Ernest Kevan's book The Moral Law - it has been a helpful reminder of the goodness and greatness of God's law. It is also a useful tool for preachers
history History as a work of honor October 30, 2019 Count this as the post of a proud pastor. A friend and member of our congregation, Diana Vice, after months of hard work, was able recently to honor a local WW1 soldier named
1 Corinthians 14 Looking Closely at Speaking in Tongues October 16, 2019 1 Corinthians 14 is not an easy passage. The rise of modern Pentecostalism over the last 120 years has made the issue of speaking in tongues a perpetual issue, making it even more
Baptism What Does Baptism Do? October 02, 2019 There are different ways to approach the regular debates and confusions about baptism. One way I've found helpful lately is to ask the Scriptures, "What does baptism do?" When we look for God's
the church The Church is a Means of Grace September 18, 2019 Recently we had the joy of seeing our two oldest kids make their profession of faith before the elders and then the congregation. It has been a joy to give God thanks for
The Lord's Supper God's Genius in Communion September 04, 2019 Many are familiar with 1 Corinthians 11:23-26, where Paul lays out how Jesus' instructions for the Lord's Supper. In fact, you may have heard it so many times you could quote it
church unity Connecting with Local Churches August 21, 2019 It's easy for reformed churches, and Christians in those churches, to feel isolated from other Christians in their communities. Because of the doctrinal differences, the depth of theological convictions, and the distinctiveness and
links Cold Links August 07, 2019 It's been a few months since the last installment of cold links, my attempt to pan the nuggets of gold out of the avalanche of mud on the internet. These articles aren't necessarily
What is Good Preaching? July 17, 2019 Francis James Grimke (1850-1937) was a presbyterian minister in Washington, D.C. and Jacksonville, Florida. An African-American pastor, highly respected for his long leadership and preaching, he also gave voice and leadership to
Pictures of Preachers July 03, 2019 John Stott was an English Anglican pastor, whose commentaries and books on preaching have been a help to many pastors. Although it's not his best-known work on preaching, my recent read through The
friendship Friendship is Powerful June 19, 2019 Friendship is inherently enjoyable. Not always, perhaps, but this voluntary, loving association of our life with another's is simply one of God's great gifts. Because friendship is so incredibly personal and enjoyable, it's
leadership How to disagree with your spiritual leaders June 05, 2019 A couple weeks ago a man in our congregation disagreed with a decision by our elders. (Thus far, nothing new.) He made his disagreement known. (Again, unsurprising.) But in the process of hearing
Psalms Songs of Disruption May 15, 2019 The following is a guest post from our friend and transplant to Australia, Laura Cerbus. Laura is originally from the Pittsburgh area and now lives in Melbourne, Australia, where she and her husband
kingdom Getting the Kingdom Right May 01, 2019 Ever since I came into the Reformed Presbyterian church twenty years ago, I've been hearing about this kingdom. Though I grew up in reformed churches, the idea of Jesus being the Mediatorial King
sexual morality Lies & Sex April 17, 2019 The devil is a liar. Since the beginning, lies have been his stock and trade, his most valuable weapon against God's children. So effective are his lies that the world and our hearts
preaching Elihu the Preacher April 03, 2019 There are many great examples for preachers in the Bible. Ezra's passion to study and obey God's Word (Ezra 7:10), Jeremiah eating the scroll (Jer. 15:16), Ezekiel's forehead "like emery harder
Bible reading A Guide for Bible Reading March 20, 2019 I hope your personal and family worship is going well! From painful personal experience, I know how easy it is to let this most basic spiritual discipline slide, especially when it feels like
Parenting Covenant Evangelism, part 2 March 06, 2019 A couple weeks ago, I posted some thoughts about how we bring the gospel to children of the church while avoiding both revivalism and hyper-covenantalism. This has spurred good conversations with families and
Parenting Covenant Evangelism February 20, 2019 In the RPCNA, when parents bring their children for baptism, they take several vows, one of which regards our responsibility to bring the good news of Jesus to our children: Do you promise
links Cold Links February 06, 2019 Rather than linking the newest, faddiest articles and posts, I thought it might be helpful to link to those which have stood some test of time. So here is good reading which has
Poverty Principles of Poverty, part 2 January 30, 2019 Two weeks ago, I attempted to lay out from the book of James his Christlike and counter-cultural principles about poverty. In this post, I hope to explore some applications of those principles. But
