Fight the Good Fight: 1 Timothy, A Preaching Series

Nothing could be more valuable to a young believer than to be mentored and discipled by an older and more mature one.  This is what the apostle Paul did for Timothy.  Paul loved and guided this young man, not only by seeing him come to faith, but by continuing to empower and encourage him with […]

Don’t Want to Hear It

“I hate him…he never prophesies anything good about me, but always bad.” 1 Kings 22:8 Those are words from a notoriously awful king of Israel, a fellow by the name of Ahab.  Ahab is famous for his opposition to Yahweh and to his prophets.  Elijah confronted Ahab and, at the command of the Lord brought […]

You are not your own; you were bought at a price. (1 Cor. 6:19-20)

“Remember who you are!”  That’s what Mufasa said to Simba in the Disney classic The Lion King.  Simba had forgotten his identity as king in the midst of his carefree Hakuna Matata lifestyle.  He needed to be regrounded and reoriented in his identity as the king. The most important thing in the world is knowing […]

Love Incarnate, An Advent Preaching Series on the First Epistle of John

Love is the cardinal Christian virtue.  The Apostle John is famous for the centrality of love in his teaching.  It is John who tells us in his gospel how God loved the world (the superlative John 3:16).  It is also John who tells us that God is love (in this epistle).  But what exactly is […]

Not So Bad. In Fact, Quite Good

It has become trendy in recent years to lament how much harm the church has caused. In some cases there is indeed much to lament: sex abuse scandals, for instance.  Yet, in many of these conversations I have found the “harm” to be rather vague. Language about hypocrisy or hurt feelings might be mentioned, but […]