Tag: sin

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:

8 Signs Your Christianity Is Too Comfortable – Brett McCracken (TGC)
But comfort-seeking is our default mode in a consumerist society, so we often find ourselves in “comfortable Christianity” without even knowing it. What are some indicators that our Christianity has become too cozy, more like a pleasant bottle of port than the uncomfortable, sharpening faith the New Testament envisions?  Here are eight signs that your Christianity might be too comfortable.

The Stupidity of Sin – Kevin DeYoung
Everyone who knows the Bible, knows people, or knows his own heart, knows this to be true: sin makes us stupid.

5 Common Evangelism Excuses – Mark Dever (Crossway)
…even at the time you’re not witnessing, you’re busy spinning, justifying, rationalizing, and explaining to your conscience why it was really wise and faithful and kind and obedient not to share the gospel with a particular person at that time and in that situation.

A Category You Won’t Find in the Bible: The Churchless Christian – Thabiti Anyabwile (Crossway)  It is vital for Christian witness, vital for Christian growth and discipleship, and vital for the health of our local congregations that every Christian find a healthy church that they’re able to be a part of, and serve their gladly.

Hope you have a great Lord’s Day with your local church!

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points1 Comment

Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:

Can I Sing ‘Amazing Grace’ If I Was Saved at Six? – John Piper (DG)
There are six reasons that Christians like me can feel the greatness of our sinfulness, and the wonder of grace, even if we have no recollection of ever being an unbeliever….

Envision the End of Your Sin – Garrett Kell (TGC)
Gracious Lord, we need help. Make us sober-minded. Keep us vigilant. Help us see the end of our sin.

Reflections on the 50th Anniversary of My Diving Accident – Joni Eareckson Tada (TGC)
Grace softens the edges of past pains, helping to highlight the eternal. What you are left with is peace that’s profound, joy that’s unshakable, faith that’s ironclad.

7 Reasons God Commands Us To Sing To Him – Mark Altrogge (TBC)
Our God is so great, and so good and so glorious, he’s worthy of all of our praise. And one of the easiest ways to praise him is by singing. Let’s “sing the glory of his name!”

Hope you have a great Lord’s Day with your local church singing praises to our gracious and glorious God!

What God Hates

On By BrianIn Idolatry, PASSION Collections

Tim Challies recently finished an excellent series on eight things God hates.  In Challies’ words:

The God who loves must also hate. The God who loves all that is good and pure and holy must hate all that is evil and defiled and perverse. 

If we are going to love God, we must hate what he hates.  If we are going to love people, we must hate what God hates since these things that he hates are also hurtful to people.

So below are links to the first four.  I encourage you to take the time to read them, and examine your life.  Where do you see these tendencies in your life?  For which of these might you need to repent and find forgiveness in the sacrifice of our Savior?

God Hates Idolatry

God Hates Sexual Immorality

God Hates Injustice

God Hates Hypocrisy

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

Here are some good posts for your weekend and beyond:

Why Devotional Bible Reading Is Good Bible Reading – Dane Ortlund (Crossway)
That’s reading the Bible devotionally—when you come to the Bible and say, “Okay, what is here that needs to change me and mess with me, to tweak me and to correct me, to lead me more clearly and more deeply into communing with God?”

How to Mortify Sin – Sinclair Ferguson (Ligonier)
Like Olympic long jumpers, we will not succeed unless we go back from the point of action to a point from which we can gain energy for the strenuous effort of dealing with sin.

5.5 Hours of Teaching through the Letter to the Galatians – via Justin Taylor
Here are the videos from the expository plenaries at the Gospel Coalition National Conference (April 3-5, 2017) in Indianapolis, with the theme of “No Other Gospel.”

‘One Anothers’ I Can’t Find in the New Testament – Ray Ortlund
It is also striking to notice the “one anothers” that do not appear there.  For example, sanctify one another, humble one another, scrutinize one another, pressure one another, embarrass one another, corner one another, interrupt one another, defeat one another, sacrifice one another, shame one another, marginalize one another, exclude one another, judge one another, run one another’s lives, confess one another’s sins . . . .

Hope you have a great Lord’s Day practicing the real “one anothers” and communing together with our great God!

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:

Enjoy Your Prayer Life – Michael Reeves (EM)
In one sense your prayer life is disgustingly revealing. Your prayer life reveals how much you really want communion with God and how much you really depend on him.

Why You Can’t See Your Biggest Flaws – Tim Keller (TGC)
By definition the sins to which you are most blind, that you make the most excuses for, and that you usually minimize—are the ones that most have you in their grip.

8 Ways God Works Suffering for Our Good – Tim Challies
Suffering never comes our way apart from the purpose and providence of God and for that reason, suffering is always significant, never meaningless. Here are some ways that God brings good from our suffering.

Why the Church Needs Teens and Teens Need the Church – Jaquelle Crowe (Crossway)
All Christians are called to live in community with God’s people. All Christians are called to serve other members of God’s people, to love them, to be held accountable by them, to be taught by them. And teenagers—of all God’s people—need that so much.

Hope you have a great Lord’s Day!

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:

They Know My Voice – Matt Rogers (GCD)
The subtle danger of the unrelenting noise in our lives is that we may miss the voice of God.

Do You Think You’re the Exception? – Jon Bloom (DG)
Behind every willful sin, every conscious act of disobedience to God, is a presumption that what God, or his rightful authority (whether government, school, employer, or parent), says is best for the masses around us need not apply to us.

Every Click Counts: What You Should Know About the Internet – David Mathis (DG)
Every click is a kind of vote. Every time you click, you say, in effect, I want this — and more of this.

Church Member! Fight to Attend Your Church Weekly! – Geoffrey R. Kirkland
Attend the sweet times of fellowship where you remember the gospel, feast upon Christ, receive conviction by the Spirit, and edification from God’s people. Prioritize it!

Hope you have a great Lord’s Day worshiping our Lord with your local church!

Passion Points

On By BrianIn PASSION Points

Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:

3 Motivations to Hate Sin – Erik Raymond
Until sin is actually hated for its odious and repulsive character we will not make true progress in godliness.

Kindness Changes Everything – Stephen Witmer (DG)
We open ourselves to the supernatural work of the Holy Spirit when we ask him to produce in us kind hearts that overflow through kind lips.

18 Prayers to Pray for Unbelievers – Tim Challies
A friend asked the question: How do I pray for unbelievers? How do I pray effectively? I trust that every Christian regularly prays for family or friends or colleagues or neighbors who do not yet know the Lord. And while we can and must pray for matters related to their lives and circumstances, the emphasis of our prayers must always be for their salvation. Here are some ways the Bible can guide our prayers.

Why We Desperately Need the Body of Christ – Paul David Tripp (Crossway)
Your walk with God is a community project. The isolated, separated, loner, Jesus-and-me religion that often marks modern church culture is not the religion that is described in the New Testament.