Individual and Community Discipleship
We often assume that discipleship requires an arrangement between a disciple maker and a disciple. But is this the only way discipleship happens?...
Keep Reading
Disciplined by Faith: Part 1
Most Christians know the feeling. You sit down to read the Bible and pray, wanting to enjoy a passionate experience of God, but,…crickets. You struggle to focus on the text, and what you grasp seems irrelevant to your pressing concerns. Your prayer time is dry, and your burdens don’t feel any lighter afterwards. You wonder, “What was the point? Did I just waste 30 minutes of my life?” You’ve probably walked away from a church service with the same feeling. Neither the songs nor the sermon seemed relevant to the issues weighing on your mind. You didn’t love the songs, and the sermon was dry. Again, you wonder, “Did I just waste 75 minutes of my life? How did any of that help me address my problems?” How should we respond these discouragements?...
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Instincts for Spiritual Care
Appropriate spiritual care varies from situation to situation. Some people need direct, strong confrontation while others need gentle compassion. We must evaluate people, and we must tailor ministry to the need of the moment. Otherwise, we may do more harm than good. All of us can improve our ministry by building good instincts for spiritual care. By this I mean we can become increasingly adept at reading people and situations and at responding appropriately to them....
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You're Not the Only One
When we endure trials and temptations, we often despair because we believe things like, “I’m the only one who has ever faced this,” “This is the worst thing ever,” or “My trial will never end.” Satan wants to isolate us in our hardship and overwhelm our perspective. If he succeeds, we spiral into despair, apathy, and bitterness. However, the Bible teaches that evil always resists God’s work. Therefore, our pain is not unique, and we are not alone, especially when we walk alongside fellow Christians....
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A New Pulpit Bible
Life Point is transitioning to using the NASB as our pulpit translation. Find out why we are making the transition and how it will affect our life as a church....
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A Heritage from the Lord
The birthrate in the United States is declining sharply, and a major force behind the decline is the shifting values of our culture. What does the Bible say about these shifting values, and how should Christians think about family as they plan their lives?...
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Lovers of Truth in an Age of Nonsense
I am increasingly concerned that Christians are following the culture’s lead as it spirals toward emotionalism and nonsense. However, Christianity is a religion of truth; therefore, no one should be more committed to truth, logic, and rational thinking than Christians....
Seeing Souls with a Gospel Lens
One of the greatest ministry challenges we all face is how to effectively reach people who come from a very different world than our own. 1 Corinthians 9:19-23 provides important counsel for overcoming these walls and also a timely challenge for how we view people in divisive times such as we are facing today....
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What Did God Teach Me in Quarantine
I will never forget Wednesday, March 11, 2020. That Wednesday, our country began aggressively shutting down. The next 11 weeks were probably the most draining season of ministry I have ever experienced. By Wednesday, May 27, when we published our plans for restarting services, I felt as worn down as I have in a long time. The world is far from being “back to normal,” but now that I’ve had some time to reflect, I’d like to give thanks to the Lord for some important lessons/reminders that he taught me during quarantine....
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Justice vs. Authority?
The world right now wants to make you decide between justice and authority, but that is a false dichotomy. God says that both are important, and both are fulfilled in the person of Christ....
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Obedience to God or Men?
Last week I wrote a blog post entitled, “Human Authorities and the Present Moment.” My thesis was, “Obedience to God-ordained authorities ranks very high in the priorities of a biblical ethic; therefore, the threshold for disobeying authorities must also be high.” In this post I want to explore what type of things meet this threshold....
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The Problem of Psalm 91, Part 1
Psalm 91 is arguably one of the most beautiful chapters in all of the Bible. However, there is a strain of teaching in Psalm 91 that doesn’t seem to mesh with reality. The psalm says that “He who dwells in the secret place of the Most High” (v. 1) will escape with his life from battle, though ten thousand fall beside him (v. 7). Not only will he not die from the plague, but the plague will not come near his house (v. 10)! He will be delivered from trouble (v. 15). He will live a long life (v. 16). No evil will befall him (v. 10)–he won’t even dash his foot against a stone because God’s angels are protecting him (v. 11-12)! How, I ask, can that be true?...
The Problem of Psalm 91, Part 2
In part 1 of this post, we introduced the interpretive problem of Psalm 91 and examined some less than satisfactory answers to that riddle. In part 2, we will discuss how Jesus’ own life, death, and resurrection helps us to interpret Psalm 91....
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Human Authorities and the Present Moment
Many Christians are growing tired of government restrictions and churches are antsy to begin meeting. Some have begun to wonder if they should ignore restrictions, they deem foolish or unconstitutional. Whenever we are faced with complicated and emotionally charged questions, our selfish bias can easily distort our view of reality or even our interpretation and application of Scripture. Therefore, it is essential that we go back to Scripture and read it honestly for what it has to say. In this post, I'd like to consider what 1 Peter 2:13-3:22 have to say about our present situation....
Steward Your Stimulus Check Wisely
We will all be receiving stimulus checks shortly. How will you steward yours?...
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Biblically, what Can and Can’t We Say about COVID-19?
One of the tremendous benefits of a crisis is that it forces people to think. Perhaps now, more than ever before in our lifetimes, people are asking questions. "Why does sickness exists in the world?" “What should I be living for?” “What happens when I die?" Bible-believing Christians must step to the plate and answer these questions. However, there is a danger here. In seeking to shine light on current events, Christians can easily go too far and say more than Scripture allows! When that happens, we damage not only our own reputation, but also that of the church and of God! More than that, we displease our Lord. Whether He is dealing with unhealthy speculation (Job 42:7-9), those who would add to the Bible (Deut 4:2; 12:32; Rev 22:18), or all-out false prophecy (Jer 23:9-40; 2 Peter 2:12-17; Jude 1:12-19), God doesn’t have nice things to say about those who put words in His mouth. So what can and can’t we say about COVID-19?...
You Cannot Worship with Your Church, but Don’t Skip Family Worship!
Throughout church history, Christians have recognized three forms of worship: personal, family, and corporate. When extremely unusual circumstances cause us to suspend church worship temporarily, the other two forms become all the more vital. So what are you doing for family worship?...
Overcoming Anger
In my last post I argued that anger is a severe problem we can’t ignore. Even if you despise your anger, you may not believe you will ever make progress against it. However, the Scriptures tell a different story. This post offers practical counsel for overcoming anger....
Helping Others Overcome Anger
In my last post, I outlined three broad principles for overcoming anger. Unfortunately, knowing these principles is often the easy part of helping an angry person. The hard part is overcoming the obstacles to sound counsel that anger creates. Therefore, this post offers four practical ideas for helping others overcome anger....
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Your Anger Is Not Okay
Anger is a bigger problem than we often realize. The Bible warns us about the dangers of anger and commands us to put it away. This post challenges us to recognize the wickedness of anger and how it makes us vulnerable to Satan's attacks, so that we will do the hard work of putting anger away through the strength of Christ....
How Should Christians Think about Animal Rights?
There is a lot of passionate debate in our society over the fair treatment of animals. This post reflects on the debate from biblical perspective noting how the story of creation and the gospel itself speak to modern questions....
Sanctification by List?
I watched a documentary recently about one of the best rock climbers in the world. One thing that stood out to me about this rock climber was his commitment to personal growth in his sport. And one symbol of his commitment was his climbing journal, in which he meticulously tracks his performance. I wonder if we as Christians could learn from his example as it relates to tracking our spiritual progress....
Christ Is the Gift of the Gospel
As evangelists, we often struggle to merge the free grace of the gospel with the demands of discipleship. This is because we don't always understand that Christ is the primary gift of the gospel, and everything else flows from him. In this post, I will demonstrate the primacy of Christ and how every other gift of the gospel stems from him....
Individual and Community Discipleship
We often assume that discipleship requires an arrangement between a disciple maker and a disciple. But is this the only way discipleship happens?...
The Name of God and the Movies
We would all agree that taking God’s name in vain is a sin (Ex 20:7). But is it a sin to watch movies in which His name is misused? How should we think through this issue, and what should be the heart behind our decisions?...
Bible Rules vs. Family Rules
How do you respond when your children rub up agains the differing convictions of other Christian families? It's important that we respond well in these moments and use them to prepare our kids to be discerning and to relate well to fellow believers. ...
Pray in the Spirit
Ephesians 6:18 tells us to “pray in the Spirit.” But what does that mean? It’s a command, so we better figure out!...
My Yearly Bible Reading Journey
Three years ago, I began an epic journey. I started reading through the Bible every year....
Parenting Resources
This spring, I taught a class on parenting at our church. In preparation for the class, I interacted with a number of different parenting resources. Here are five of the resources I found most helpful....
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"Sorrowful yet Always Rejoicing"
I don’t like sorrow. You might respond, “Of course, who does?” But I really don’t like sorrow. My natural instinct is to flush it out as quickly and aggressively as possible. I don’t want to think about what is wrong, and I especially don’t want to talk about what is wrong. I want to smash my pain into a tiny ball and launch it into outer space. But the longer I did pastoral ministry, the harder it became to flush sorrow. The weight of my responsibilities became heavier as did the spiritual battles I watched people fight and sometimes lose. Every time I grieved, I tried to drive out my sorrow and experience what I thought was joy. But my understanding of joy and sorrow began to change when I studied biblical joy for a sermon series, and it has continued to grow as I have meditated on the subject....
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Why Do We Have a Sunday Night Service?
Coming back to church for a Sunday evening service is often difficult for people to manage. This post reflects on what Life Point is trying to accomplish through our Sunday evening service and on the benefits of making it part of your weekly routine....
Six Reasons to Attend Sunday School
I think it is true of most churches that the Sunday morning worship service is the best attended service they offer. And yet most churches offer other services to meet a variety of needs. Our church is no exception. Although we don’t take attendance during Sunday school, I would venture to say that Sunday school attendance is about half that of the main service. In light of these things, I thought it might be profitable for me to encourage you to consider making Sunday school attendance a new habit....
Isn't Sunday Morning Enough?
Many Christians have always assumed that attending Sunday morning worship is enough church for the week. This post offers five reasons why Christians should consider being with the church as much as possible. ...
Introspection That Edifies: Part 2
Part 2 of this post continues to explore the role of introspection in the life of a Christian. I will offer warnings and encouragement to the perfectionist who always worries about his standing with God and give 4 conclusions for all Christians regarding more edifying introspection....
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Introspection That Edifies: Part 1
The role of introspection in the Christian life has always been fascinating to me because of the role it has played in my Christian experience. There have been countless times where I have read the Word or listened to it preached, and I have been challenged to look deeply at the patterns of my own heart and life. But there have been other times that improper introspection has wreaked havoc on my walk....
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Is It Really Okay Not to Be Okay?
We must cultivate a church culture in which it's okay not to be okay, as long as you're seeking grace....
Unity vs. Uniformity
When people ask me what it is like to pastor Life Point Baptist Church, I typically respond by saying something like this: “Pastoring Life Point is incredibly hard but incredibly exciting.” Both the difficulty and the excitement are tied in part to the theological and philosophical diversity of our church....
Ruminations on the "Righteousness of God"
Luther had always assumed that this righteousness was something he was responsible to achieve in order to earn salvation. But the more he gave himself to achieving God’s righteousness, the more he realized how far he fell short and the more he grew to hate the God who would demand such an impossible standard. He believed that he must be missing something, but for years, he couldn’t find a solution. Finally, he had a breakthrough.......
Does the Bible Really Teach Two Types of Forgiveness?
I’d like to make a case for two distinct types of forgiveness. When a person gets saved, God forgives all of his sin—past, present, and future. This is often referred to as “positional forgiveness.” Although some people may not like that term, I don’t think anyone even close to orthodoxy really disputes the idea. However, the Bible is clear that even after salvation, believers will continue to sin; therefore, they must continue to confess their sins, and God will be faithful to forgive them. We call this, “relational forgiveness.” Sadly, there are those who deny this doctrine....
Three Great Books on Prayer
In preparation for our recent study on prayer, I read several books on the subject. Here are my three favorites....
A Hidden Enemy of Sound Judgment
During one of my first staff meetings at Inter-City, Pastor Doran challenged us that if we were truly going to help each other grow and lead the church well, we had to be able to debate ideas without taking things personally or letting emotion cloud our judgment. It was fairly simple advice, but in the years since I have thought back to his admonition many times as I have fought my own mental battles and watched others miserably fail similar ones....
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My Favorite Podcasts
Do you listen to podcasts? About one in five Americans do, according to a recent survey; and that number is increasing rapidly. I discovered podcasting last fall, when I set up a podcast for our church. Since then, listening to podcasts has become a regular part of my week. I like to listen while I get ready in the morning, drive, or work in the yard. I listen primarily for personal growth, not for entertainment (though there’s nothing wrong with listening for fun). Here’s what I currently subscribe to and why....
On Singleness, Dating, and Marriage
This past Sunday, I briefly touched on the tricky subject of dating and marriage. It’s no secret that we live in a day with many conflicting ideas about these subjects. Secular culture has always been obsessed with romance; but sadly, I've heard a lot of Christians express bad ideas also. Several years ago, I came across an interview by 9Marks, and it really challenged my thinking on these issues. I think you would benefit from what the participants have to say....
The Nuts and Bolts of a Godly Legacy
My sermon last Sunday was entitled, “How to Leave a Godly Legacy.” If you were not present you can listen to the sermon here. We looked at several characteristics of a life worth honoring from 1 Timothy 5:5...
Humility
Are you a humble person? What is humility and what is it not? Let's find out based on Philippians 2:3-4....