The Great Need of Reformed Churches Is Not Great Preachers

I think this is an excellent one from Tim Challies, and about right.

Building a Sermon with Biblical Theology 

Continuing on the theme of preaching, this one looks at how to build your sermon with biblical theology. You might think all good theology is biblical (and it is), but biblical theology is really about the biblical storyline and how each part of the bible functions as a unified whole.

The Gospel Is All about Jesus

‘The gospel is all about Jesus. The Jesus that Christians believe in is good, even when His followers violate His teachings. The Bible never says you have to believe in Christians to be saved. (If it did, I could not believe the gospel!) It says you have to believe in Jesus, who said, “I am the Way, the Truth and the Life; no one comes to the Father but by Me” (John 14:6). He’s the One we’re invited to come and see (John 1:46). He’s the only One who can save and transform us.’

Learning to Love a Broken Church 

‘Every church is broken and falls short of its goals. Every church is full of people still in the middle of their sanctification. Therefore, our relationships are challenging, our ministries are limited, and our holiness is a slow progression.’

If God Doesn’t Need Us, Why Did He Create Us?

This is a very common question and a helpful (and quite brief) answer.

The Manosphere and the Way of Christ: Why “Alpha Masculinity” Falls Short of Biblical Manhood

This one takes a look at the manosphere and compares it to the biblical vision for manhood, particularly through the paradigm of the masculinity of Jesus.

From the archive: We need more than mere explanation

‘Give most pastors a passage to read and then ask them broadly what is going on, they could give you a reasonable stab at it fairly quickly. And, of course, we can all check our working with the plethora of commentaries available to us and see if someone, somewhere has recognised that what we think it’s saying is at least a potentially credible understanding. Understanding what is going on in the text is not generally the most difficult issue. I think for many of us, there are two (related) things that are far harder. First, taking our understanding of the text and making our understanding understood by, and interesting to, those listening. Second, applying our understanding of the the text to the lives of those listening.’