Passion Points

Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:

The Lost Spiritual Discipline – Tim Challies
Watchfulness is “a careful observing of our hearts and diligent looking to our ways, that they may be pleasing and acceptable unto God.”

Eight Ways to Become More Humble – Jane Tooher (GTF)
Thankfulness stops pride growing. We can thank people for things that they do and who they are, and that’s important and encouraging for them. But we’re to thank God for that person, for the way he has worked in them. Thankfulness is a sign of a believer.

Organic Food, Essential Oils, and the Gospel of Grace – Stacy Reaoch (DG)
When promoting our own choices for food and medicine is becoming the latest form of evangelism, we are showing where our hope really lies — and that we are close to forgetting the gospel we say we hold dear.

Your 7 Job Responsibilities as a Church Member – Jonathan Leeman (TGC)
Will you sit back and stay anonymous, doing little more than passively showing up for 75 minutes on Sundays? Or will you jump in with the hard and rewarding work of studying the gospel, building relationships, and making disciples? We need more hands for the harvest, so we hope you’ll join us in that work.

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

Passion Points

Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:

Lord, Search My Heart: Breaking the Power of Canceled Sin – Jon Bloom (DG)
Micah 6:8 exposes me: I can love abstract ideas of justice and kindness, and neglect their concrete expression. It admonishes me: I cannot “do justice” or “love kindness” without loving real people. It humbles me, which is just what the Doctor ordered, if I’m really ready to walk with him.

10 Sure Marks of Humility – Tim Challies
Is there any trait more odious than pride or more precious than humility? Is there any trait whose presence we so highly honor in others and whose absence we so readily excuse in ourselves? Truly, pride is the chief of sins and humility the highest of virtues. Yet the Christian has the joy of seeing the Holy Spirit put pride to death and bring to life the beauty of humility. Here are 10 sure marks that you are growing in humility.

Doubt Your Own Anger: How to Kill a Quiet Killer – Ed Welch (DG)
We want peace, health, respect, love, control, influence, safety, and much more. Sinful anger appears when these desires and expectations quietly become more important to us than loving God and loving neighbor (James 4:1–2).

Why Do Christians Sing? – Tom Olson (EM)
Our singing is more than a warm-up for the sermon or a filler in the service. Singing stands alongside preaching as one of the two great ways God has ordained for His word to dwell richly in our hearts.

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

Passion Points

Here are some good posts for your weekend reading:

The Many Ways God Changes Us – David Powlison (Crossway)
We live with a God who has many, many, many ways of meeting us, and it’s good to become aware of them all.

I Am the Center of the Universe – Jared Wilson
Either I am the center of the universe and you all don’t know, or — I am not the center of the universe and I am upset that you all know.

Get Outside Yourself in Suffering – Stacy Reaoch (DG)
As Christians we’re not exempt from serving others because we’re going through a difficult season of life, but instead we’re called to lift our eyes heavenward and trust our sovereign God to give us the needed grace to keep going.

A Spiritual Barometer Check – Jason Helopoulos (TCC)
One of the easiest ways to assess ourselves is to examine our love for all the saints. Do I love God’s people more today? If so, it is assuredly true that I also love Christ more. It is a good barometer of our spiritual health. One that I must seek to employ regularly for it does not lie. If I love God, I will love His people.

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

Reflections on I Kings 1-2

David makes Solomon the next king and charges him to be faithful to God.

  • Exalting Oneself – Adonijah exalted himself as the next king only to be humbled when David made Solomon king. Later Adonijah tried a new scheme to exalt himself as king, and it cost him his life.  Are you seeking to exalt yourself?  Will you humble yourself before the Lord and let him exalt you in his own way and time (James 4:10)?
  • Faithful to God – David charges Solomon to faithfully follow the ways of the Lord with all of his heart and soul (2:1-4). Are you faithfully following the ways of the Lord?  Does your heart desire to be faithful?  In what ways are you tempted to be unfaithful?

Sermon Songs: Humility

Clothe yourself in humility
With truth renew your mind
Practice habits that are godly
Pursue that you might find

We are created – small are we
Dependent – so we pray
We have value – both you and me
Respect others today

Consider your sin and repent
Cry out for His mercy
Believe in Him whom God has sent
Give thanks – He set you free

Jesus died so that we might live
For righteousness today
In love He served and did forgive
Follow His humble way

– From a sermon on humility
(To the tune of “O God Our Help In Ages Past”)