Articles

Most Christians all over the world confess their faith in worship using one of two ancient, historical creeds: The Apostles’ Creed and the Nicene Creed. When we confess the faith using one of these creeds, we not only confess those things we believe, but we remind ourselves that Christianity is a lot older than we […]

God is gathering a people for Himself. He finds them in Satan’s kingdom and calls them effectually by the Holy Spirit in His infinite grace. He convinces them of sin and makes them willing and able to believe in Christ and to follow Him along the narrow way which leads to everlasting life. But will […]

If I have heard it once, I’ve heard it a thousand times: ‘A Calvinist evangelist? Isn’t that an oxymoron? Calvinism undermines evangelism.’ This accusation has been repeated so many times that few make the effort to argue it. Instead, it is simply assumed. Never mind that some of the church’s greatest evangelists have been Calvinists. […]

Pray in the Spirit. (Ephesians 6:18) Some time after Peter preached at Pentecost where three thousand were saved, he and John were going to the temple to pray when they saw a lame man begging alms. Peter said, ‘I have no silver or gold but what I do have I give to you. In the […]

What word best summarizes the content of the Bible? I have received an array of answers to that question, such as: God, Christ, grace, truth, and love. In fact, there are many words in the Bible, and we need them all rightly to understand and gratefully to live our new life in Christ. However, while […]

1. Jesus Claim: Jesus had no interest in maintaining a male-female requirement for sexual relations. What the evidence really shows: Jesus believed that a male-female requirement for sexual relations was foundational, a core value of Scripture’s sexual ethics on which other sexual standards should be based, including the ‘twoness’ of a sexual union. Jesus predicated […]

The Apostle Paul exhorts the congregation in Rome in Romans 12:11 ‘Never be lacking in zeal, but keep your spiritual fervour, serving the Lord.’ This text is easily understood; there are no complicated words; the structure is obvious. First of all the exhortation is stated in a negative form telling us we’re never to lack […]

Wealth obtained by fraud dwindles, but the one who gathers by labour increases it. (Proverbs 13:11) Because the Bible is written by God the Holy Spirit through men whom he raised up for that purpose, it does not lie. It is infallible. It speaks truth on every issue. Ill-gotten wealth is a good case in […]

It is a constant surprise to me that many Christians are worried about guidance. Please don’t misunderstand me. I do not mean that Christians should not be concerned about doing God’s will. But why is it that many (and I think ‘many’ is the appropriate word) Christians get worried, confused and at times even spiritually […]

When I began to consider what I should say in these pages, I found myself pulled in two directions. My first impulse was to lament the spiritual decay that people of my generation have observed at close range and to urge the next generation to carry on the struggle against it with unremitting faithfulness and […]

Resting in the Redeemer Do you think that the Christian life is hard? If so, what makes it hard, and if not, why does it seem so hard for so many professing Christians? We can begin to consider this matter in terms of the context of the question and in terms of our defining what […]

During my seven years as a campus minister, there were two different women in our ministry who became pregnant out of wedlock. In these cases, since they were associated with a group of students, it was among those students that they had most of their relationships. Of course, a campus ministry group is not a […]

On Saturday evening, December 27th, 2008, Grace and Truth Christian Congregation in Rishon LeTsion, Israel, bid their pastor adieu as Baruch Maoz ended his term of service as Pastor of the church. Representatives from the churches in Israel were invited to attend. Following are his parting words. He had addressed the church earlier that day. […]

Do honest atheists exist? By honest, I don’t mean atheists who pay their taxes and keep their promises and choose not to steal or lie. What I mean in asking the question is whether or not there exists an atheist who honestly believes there is no God. There are, undoubtedly, many who claim to be […]

But Shem and Japheth took a garment and laid it upon both their shoulders and walked backward and covered the nakedness of their father. (Genesis 9:23). Noah was a righteous man, called by God to bring the animals into the ark, along with his wife, three sons and their wives, in order to preserve the […]

The annual National Prayer Breakfast meets ‘in the name and the Spirit of Jesus Christ.’ Pastors at the recent Promise Keepers National Clergy Conference affirmed their unity by shouting ‘Jesus’ in answer to the call to name ‘the Messiah in whom you have trusted your souls.’ These are but two movements that represent an attempt […]

Every Christian is called by God to be faithful. Whatever else we are called to be, we are called to be faithful, unyielding, kindly but uncompromising believers. I don’t suppose any right-thinking Christian would disagree. I wonder, however, if you have made faithfulness an excuse for the absence of spiritual usefulness and fruitfulness in your […]

Times of sadness are a normal part of the Christian life. To see the world rejecting the Saviour and accepting other gospels that are no gospels is grievous. The prophet Jeremiah lamented the state of the people of God and the destruction of Jerusalem. Our Lord wept over Jerusalem sinners. He wept also at the […]

Husbands love your wives as Christ loved the church and gave himself up for her. (Ephesians 5:25) Any Christian husband knows that obeying this command is an awe-filled, humbling task. Our tendency is to err in one of two directions. Some of us abdicate while others dominate. You are abdicating your responsibilities to your wife […]

‘A prayer for one who feels that he is approaching the borders of another world’, from Alexander’s Thoughts on Religious Experience),1 pp.259-262. Most merciful God, I rejoice that Thou dost reign over the universe with a sovereign sway, so that Thou dost according to Thy will, in the armies of heaven and among the inhabitants […]

It is 500 years since God brought John Calvin into this world. During 2009, many Reformed churches and Christians in particular are remembering with gratitude this gift of Christ to his church. Publishing houses are producing books at a rapid pace of knots, articles, papers, conferences, and website and blog postings proliferate. But who was […]

The New Testament uses the experiences of Israel in the New Testament to teach the Church important lessons about itself. It uses what Israel experienced, not just as illustrations, but as experiences God’s people have had before, which can occur again in different historical circumstances. See, for example, the use made of Israel’s idolatry in […]

It was my great privilege to be at the Carey Conference in Swanwick once again. We were packed out there. I travelled up by car with four African students from LTS – two from West Africa (Femi and Klebert), two from South Africa (Richard and Clinton). FIRST DAY The first session was chaired by Hugh […]

Eunice Grace Field, member of the church at Grove Road, Eastbourne, passed away peacefully in the Hove Bethesda Home on July 3rd, 2008, aged 98. Our friend worshipped in Salem Chapel, Carshalton, with her husband Ben. They were baptized together at Salem and joined the church there on December 5th, 1937. Here her soul was […]

Wives, be subject to your own husbands. (Ephesians 5:22). There is perhaps no one biblical command more misunderstood, maligned, or mocked in our culture. This is true for at least two reasons. First, none of us like to be told what to do. It’s in our DNA. Don’t you silently become irritated when officials verbally […]