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Practice Your Righteousness in Fasting Mar 11, 2019

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Scripture records the fasts of numerous people and groups of people. Moses, David, Elijah, Hezekiah, Jesus, and Paul fasted (Deut. 9:9; 2 Sam. 12:16; 1 Kings 19:8; 2 Kings 18:6; Matt. 4:2; Acts 9:9). Jehoshaphat called for the nation of Israel to fast (2 Chron. 20:3).

I Confess: Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and the Gospel Mar 11, 2019

Show notes

Imagine how silly I felt, sitting there repeating this self-help mantra over and over. As silly as it felt, and still feels, I have followed my psychiatrist's instructions and again learned the power of speaking truth. And I know that when it starts to feel like the life is being sucked from me, I can confess all the truths. I am worthy of basic dignity. I am baptized. I am not worthless or a burden. I am forgiven.

A Life Interrupted Mar 11, 2019

Show notes

Arm over arm I make my way to the other side of the pool. Mentally I count the strokes. As I touch the pool wall, I pull my head out of the water and meet his eyes, anxiously hoping to hear the words, “Perfect! That’s exactly what I had in mind!”

You Can't Baptize Hedonism Mar 07, 2019

Show notes

Recently, a well-known pastor suggested we should obey the commandments in Scripture in order to experience a level of joy we cannot tap into any other way. The theological system that creates statements like this is commonly referred to as “Christian Hedonism.” To be clear, that is not the name critics have given it. It is the name given and used by its theological subscribers. There are many problems with the statement and the theology that produces it, but today, let’s focus on three.

When Christ Sings for You Mar 07, 2019

Show notes

What are the thoughts that run through your head as you read or sing this section of Psalm 51? Do you wonder if you sing or pray them with enough contrition? Do you worry you lack a clean heart, a steadfast spirit, the joy of salvation?

Marked Mar 06, 2019

Show notes

On Ash Wednesday, sinners and saints leave church marked with a cross, marked with the sign and material of death. Heads become canvases painted with ashes. The sobering words, “for you are dust, and to dust you shall return” spoken to Adam and Eve as they rebelled against the Lord, are echoed today (Gen. 3:19).

Jesus' New Exodus Mar 04, 2019

Show notes

Unlike other gods, Jesus isn't far away. He doesn't wait for us to find Him on some distant mountaintop. He's near us now, nearer to us than our next breath. He's true God, begotten of His Father from all eternity. He's true man born of the Virgin Mary. He's your Lord. He's our God.

The Feast of Transfiguration Mar 01, 2019

Show notes

Sitting in my office is a painting called The Two Crowns. In this painting, a king rides through the streets in full regalia, seated on an elegant, white horse. The crowd goes wild for him. The women swoon. The king, however, is distracted. He stares at the upper corner of the painting, at a dark, almost imperceptible crucifix, at the true King, his sovereign Lord, crowned with thorns.

One Substance with the Father Feb 28, 2019

Show notes

Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the Holy Spirit, (Matt. 28:19)

"How many do they worship?"

This question was asked of me by a representative from a neighboring church.

Balaam's Donkey Feb 27, 2019

Show notes

God is used to working with colorful figures. One of the most colorful in the Bible is Balaam. Hailing from Mesopotamia, Balaam was what we might call a shaman or a soothsayer. He was not a Hebrew. But he knew the God of the Hebrews, in addition to other purported deities he believed he could summon or charm.

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