A summary of Platt on God’s remedy for our sin: How can a holy God look at a guilty sinner and say: “Innocent”? We rightly expect God to justify the innocent and condemn the guilty. And none are innocent. So how can God call the guilty innocent? Jesus’ death is the payment for sin. All […]
David Platt on Total Depravity
“Everything in all of creation responds to God, until you get to man and we have the audacity to look him in the face and say ‘no.’ From this sin, we see lostness all over this book (Isaiah). What does it mean to be lost? It means to be cut off from God. To live […]
Louie Giglio's Mashup of Stars Singing "How Great is Our God"
Louie Giglio brought in some amazing illustrations from astronomy to illustrate the supremacy of God. Apparently, the electromagnetic radiation that quasars emit translates into sound. “Stars don’t just shine; they also sing.” So he put some quasars up on the screen and then the sound their signals reduce to. Then he did this for some […]
"God is Bigger Than We Think He Is"
Louie Giglio: There is a ripple effect of the gospel that is undeniable. It doesn’t lead us to just contemplate what happened to us, but proclaim what Christ has done. God is bigger than we think he is. I don’t know how big you think he is, but he’s still bigger than that. God is […]
Louie Giglio: Why We Exist
“This world is messed up to an amazing magnitude. But in the midst of this there is a God, who is great beyond our wildest imagination. “And he has linked arms with us and given us marching orders if you will, and we are not at our leisure tonight. We are here under the mandate […]
A List of Resources and Strategies for Finishing the Great Commission
Last April I was part of the Lausanne Orlando 2011 Leadership Consultation, a follow-up to the Lausanne Congress on World Evangelization last fall. The leaders of the consultation have recently compiled and synthesized the notes from the discussions and made them available in a pdf. The document is divided into four sections: Best available resources […]
Why Christians Worship – Why Worship Matters at a Conference on Leadership
The worship is going on right now. Since I’m down in the tech room and can’t really participate, it has me thinking. And if you think about it, it actually raises a question: Here we are at a conference on leadership, and we are worshiping. Why? Why do Christians worship at all? If Christianity were […]
Jonathan Edwards' Advice to Pastors
Edwards: Ministers, in order to be burning and shining lights, should walk closely with God, and keep near to Christ; that they may ever be enlightened and enkindled by him. And they should be much in seeking God, and conversing with him by prayer, who is the fountain of light and love.
Using Our Words to Build a Healthy Church
Doug Wolter: Isn’t it amazing that God uses our mouths as a means of building up his church? And when the church is strengthened, its influence can spread outward into the lives of others. I think of Paul as he reminds Timothy to “fan into flame the gift of God” (1 Tim. 1:6). What a […]
Does God Really Want You to be Encouraged?
This is a good article by John Piper on Hebrews 6:17-18. Here’s a core excerpt: This text assumes that God had already said enough to give us encouragement. But God is not a God of minimums. His aim is not to speak as few encouraging words as possible. He speaks some words to give us […]