Andy Naselli has a helpful article titled "Why you should organize your personal theological library and a way how."
Although he states the obvious when he says "organizing your personal theological library enables you to function more efficiently and productively" and "few people would disagree that it's prudent to organize your library," he points out that "personal libraries today can be more complex than they were a few decades ago because we may have print books and articles, electronic books in platforms like Logos Bible Software or Accordance, PDFs, Word docs, audiobooks, MP3s, videos, blog posts, and more."
Before he shares in the article how he organizes his library, he acknowledges that his "isn't the only way to do it, and it's probably not the best way. But the system works well for me given my personality, training, and goals, and it may stimulate you to develop or tweak your own system in a way that serves you well."
His conclusion: It's wise to organize your library so that you can research efficiently, and this article suggests one way to do that today by using Zotero. The organizational method we use is merely a tool--a means to an end. And the end is to glorify God as good stewards of his varied grace.
Sunday, October 24, 2010
Love to Jesus
Here's a prayer titled "Love to Jesus" from "Valley of Vision: A collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions" edited by Arthur Bennett (pages 46-47):
LORD JESUS,
If I love thee my soul shall seek thee,
but can I seek thee unless my love to thee
is kept alive to this end?
Do I love thee because thou art good,
and canst alone do me good?
It is fitting thou shouldest not regard me,
for I am vile and selfish;
yet I seek thee,
and when I find thee there is no wrath
to devour me,
but only sweet love.
Thou dost stand as a rock between the scorching sun
and my soul,
and I live under the cool lee-side as one elect.
When my mind acts without thee
it spins nothing but deceit and delusion;
When my affections act without thee
nothing is seen but dead works.
O how I need thee to abide in me,
for I have no natural eyes to see thee,
but I live by faith in one whose face to me
is brighter than a thousand suns!
When I see that all sin is in me, all shame
belongs to me;
let me know that all good is in thee,
all glory is thine.
Keep me from the error of thinking thou dost
appear gloriously
when some strange light fills my heart,
as if that were the glorious activity of grace,
but let me see that the truest revelation of thyself
is when thou dost eclipse all my personal glory
and all the honour, pleasure and good
of this world.
The Son breaks out in glory
when he shows himself as one who outshines
all creation,
makes men poor in spirit,
and helps them to find their good in him.
Grant that I may distrust myself, to see
my all in thee.
LORD JESUS,
If I love thee my soul shall seek thee,
but can I seek thee unless my love to thee
is kept alive to this end?
Do I love thee because thou art good,
and canst alone do me good?
It is fitting thou shouldest not regard me,
for I am vile and selfish;
yet I seek thee,
and when I find thee there is no wrath
to devour me,
but only sweet love.
Thou dost stand as a rock between the scorching sun
and my soul,
and I live under the cool lee-side as one elect.
When my mind acts without thee
it spins nothing but deceit and delusion;
When my affections act without thee
nothing is seen but dead works.
O how I need thee to abide in me,
for I have no natural eyes to see thee,
but I live by faith in one whose face to me
is brighter than a thousand suns!
When I see that all sin is in me, all shame
belongs to me;
let me know that all good is in thee,
all glory is thine.
Keep me from the error of thinking thou dost
appear gloriously
when some strange light fills my heart,
as if that were the glorious activity of grace,
but let me see that the truest revelation of thyself
is when thou dost eclipse all my personal glory
and all the honour, pleasure and good
of this world.
The Son breaks out in glory
when he shows himself as one who outshines
all creation,
makes men poor in spirit,
and helps them to find their good in him.
Grant that I may distrust myself, to see
my all in thee.
Friday, October 8, 2010
Do I have to have sex with my spouse?
In an "Ask the Counselor" video, CCEF faculty member Winston Smith responds to the question, "Am I obligated to have sex whenever my spouse asks?"
For more information, visit the CCEF Web site at http://www.CCEF.org.
For more information, visit the CCEF Web site at http://www.CCEF.org.
Saturday, October 2, 2010
Gospel tweets
Tullian Tchividjian, the pastor of Coral Ridge Presbyterian Church in Fort Lauderdale, said he reluctantly starting tweeting on Twitter but has realized how blessed he has been to think and communicate concise (140 characters) but clear gospel truth.
Follow him on Twitter here.
Read the rest of his thoughts concerning tweeting here.
Here's a sample of tweets he recently shared on his blog:
•The gospel doesn’t simply ignite the Christian life; it’s the fuel that keeps Christian’s going and growing every day.
•The gospel reminds us that we become more mature when we focus less on what we need to do for God and more on all God has already done for us.
•The gospel tells me my identity and security is in Christ–this frees me to give everything I have because in Christ I have everything I need
•Christian growth doesn’t happen first by behaving better, but believing better–believing in deeper ways what Christ has already secured for you
•The gospel tells us we don’t need to spend our lives earning the approval of others because Jesus has already earned God’s approval for us
•When you understand that your significance and identity is anchored in Christ, you don’t have to win—you’re free to lose
•Christian growth doesn’t happen by working hard to get something you don’t have. It happens by working hard to live in light of what you do have
•The world says that the bigger we become, the freer we will be. But the gospel tells us that the smaller we become, the freer we will be.
•When you are united to Christ, then all that is Christ’s becomes yours: Access to God and affection from God can never be lost
•The gospel explains success in terms of giving, not taking; self-sacrifice, not self-indulgence; going to the back, not getting to the front
•The gospel empowers us to live for what’s timeless, not trendy–to follow Jesus even when it means going against what’s fashionable
•Because of Christ’s finished work, sinners can have the approval, acceptance, security, freedom, love, righteousness, & rescue they long for
•The only antidote there has ever been to sin is the gospel—and since we never leave off sinning, we can never leave the gospel.
•Because of Christ’s propitiatory work on my behalf I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, praise or popularity.
•The gospel never starts with what we need to do; it always begins with what God has already done; to get it backwards is to miss the gospel
•The vertical indicative (what God’s done for me) always precedes horizontal imperative (how I’m to live in light of what God’s done for me)
•What we need practically can only be experienced as we come to deeper understanding of what we are positionally—whats already ours in Christ
•When you are united to Christ, no amount of good work can earn God’s favor and no amount of bad work can forfeit God’s favor
•Jesus came not to angrily strip away our freedom but to affectionately strip away our slavery to lesser things so we might become truly free
•The irony of the gospel is that we truly perform better when we focus less on our performance for Jesus & more on Jesus’ performance for us
•The gospel tells us that what God has done for us in Christ is infinitely more important than anything we do for him.
•The world says the more independent you become, the freer you’ll be; the gospel says the more dependent you become, the freer you’ll be
•The Gospel frees us from trying to impress people, prove ourselves to people, and make people think we’re something that we’re not.
•Isn’t it ironic that while God’s treatment of us depends on Christ’s performance, our treatment of others depends on their performance?
•We need God’s gospel rescue every day and in every way because we are, in the words of John Calvin, “partly unbelievers until we die.”
•Believing fully the truth that “salvation belongs to the Lord” means that you place ultimate trust in Christ’s efforts, not your own.
•Daily sin requires a daily distribution of God’s grace
•The hard work of sanctification is the hard work of constantly reorienting ourselves back to our justification.
•Grace can be defined as unconditional acceptance granted to an undeserving person by an unobligated giver.
•The law tells us what God demands from us; the gospel tells us what God in Christ has done for us because we could not meet his demands.
•Being justified by God and made acceptable on the basis of Christ’s righteousness not only pardons us for the past but empowers us for the present
•Paul never uses the law as a way to motivate obedience; He always uses the gospel.
•The gospel teaches us that being a slave to Christ is the essence of freedom, while being free to myself is the essence of slavery.
•When you understand God’s grace, pain leads to freedom because deep suffering leads to deep surrender!
•When we depend on things smaller than Jesus to provide us with the security and meaning we long for, God will love us enough to take them away.
•The gospel is the good news that God rescues sinners. And since both non-Christians & Christians are sinners, we both need the gospel.
•The gospel grants Christians one strength over non-Christians: the strength to admit they’re weak.
•The gospel frees us to realize that while we matter, we’re not the point.
•The Gospel alone can turn us into people who give everything we have because we understand that in Christ we already have everything we need
•The gospel isn’t just the power of God to save us, it’s the power of God to grow us once we’re saved.
•When we transfer trust from ourselves to Christ, we experience the abundant freedoms that come from not having to measure up.
•The gospel makes wise those who know they’re foolish and makes fools out of those who think they’re wise.
•It never ceases to amaze me that God’s love to those who are in Christ isn’t conditioned on how we behave but on how Christ behaved for us.
•Sin turns you inward; the gospel turns you outward. Sin enslaves you by making you big. The gospel frees you by making you small.
•In the gospel, God comes after us because we need him not because he needs us. Only the gospel can free us to revel in our insignificance.
•Mt. Sinai says, “You must do.” Mt. Calvary says, “Because you couldn’t, Jesus did.” Don’t run to the wrong mountain for your hiding place.
Follow him on Twitter here.
Read the rest of his thoughts concerning tweeting here.
Here's a sample of tweets he recently shared on his blog:
•The gospel doesn’t simply ignite the Christian life; it’s the fuel that keeps Christian’s going and growing every day.
•The gospel reminds us that we become more mature when we focus less on what we need to do for God and more on all God has already done for us.
•The gospel tells me my identity and security is in Christ–this frees me to give everything I have because in Christ I have everything I need
•Christian growth doesn’t happen first by behaving better, but believing better–believing in deeper ways what Christ has already secured for you
•The gospel tells us we don’t need to spend our lives earning the approval of others because Jesus has already earned God’s approval for us
•When you understand that your significance and identity is anchored in Christ, you don’t have to win—you’re free to lose
•Christian growth doesn’t happen by working hard to get something you don’t have. It happens by working hard to live in light of what you do have
•The world says that the bigger we become, the freer we will be. But the gospel tells us that the smaller we become, the freer we will be.
•When you are united to Christ, then all that is Christ’s becomes yours: Access to God and affection from God can never be lost
•The gospel explains success in terms of giving, not taking; self-sacrifice, not self-indulgence; going to the back, not getting to the front
•The gospel empowers us to live for what’s timeless, not trendy–to follow Jesus even when it means going against what’s fashionable
•Because of Christ’s finished work, sinners can have the approval, acceptance, security, freedom, love, righteousness, & rescue they long for
•The only antidote there has ever been to sin is the gospel—and since we never leave off sinning, we can never leave the gospel.
•Because of Christ’s propitiatory work on my behalf I no longer need preeminence, prosperity, position, promotions, praise or popularity.
•The gospel never starts with what we need to do; it always begins with what God has already done; to get it backwards is to miss the gospel
•The vertical indicative (what God’s done for me) always precedes horizontal imperative (how I’m to live in light of what God’s done for me)
•What we need practically can only be experienced as we come to deeper understanding of what we are positionally—whats already ours in Christ
•When you are united to Christ, no amount of good work can earn God’s favor and no amount of bad work can forfeit God’s favor
•Jesus came not to angrily strip away our freedom but to affectionately strip away our slavery to lesser things so we might become truly free
•The irony of the gospel is that we truly perform better when we focus less on our performance for Jesus & more on Jesus’ performance for us
•The gospel tells us that what God has done for us in Christ is infinitely more important than anything we do for him.
•The world says the more independent you become, the freer you’ll be; the gospel says the more dependent you become, the freer you’ll be
•The Gospel frees us from trying to impress people, prove ourselves to people, and make people think we’re something that we’re not.
•Isn’t it ironic that while God’s treatment of us depends on Christ’s performance, our treatment of others depends on their performance?
•We need God’s gospel rescue every day and in every way because we are, in the words of John Calvin, “partly unbelievers until we die.”
•Believing fully the truth that “salvation belongs to the Lord” means that you place ultimate trust in Christ’s efforts, not your own.
•Daily sin requires a daily distribution of God’s grace
•The hard work of sanctification is the hard work of constantly reorienting ourselves back to our justification.
•Grace can be defined as unconditional acceptance granted to an undeserving person by an unobligated giver.
•The law tells us what God demands from us; the gospel tells us what God in Christ has done for us because we could not meet his demands.
•Being justified by God and made acceptable on the basis of Christ’s righteousness not only pardons us for the past but empowers us for the present
•Paul never uses the law as a way to motivate obedience; He always uses the gospel.
•The gospel teaches us that being a slave to Christ is the essence of freedom, while being free to myself is the essence of slavery.
•When you understand God’s grace, pain leads to freedom because deep suffering leads to deep surrender!
•When we depend on things smaller than Jesus to provide us with the security and meaning we long for, God will love us enough to take them away.
•The gospel is the good news that God rescues sinners. And since both non-Christians & Christians are sinners, we both need the gospel.
•The gospel grants Christians one strength over non-Christians: the strength to admit they’re weak.
•The gospel frees us to realize that while we matter, we’re not the point.
•The Gospel alone can turn us into people who give everything we have because we understand that in Christ we already have everything we need
•The gospel isn’t just the power of God to save us, it’s the power of God to grow us once we’re saved.
•When we transfer trust from ourselves to Christ, we experience the abundant freedoms that come from not having to measure up.
•The gospel makes wise those who know they’re foolish and makes fools out of those who think they’re wise.
•It never ceases to amaze me that God’s love to those who are in Christ isn’t conditioned on how we behave but on how Christ behaved for us.
•Sin turns you inward; the gospel turns you outward. Sin enslaves you by making you big. The gospel frees you by making you small.
•In the gospel, God comes after us because we need him not because he needs us. Only the gospel can free us to revel in our insignificance.
•Mt. Sinai says, “You must do.” Mt. Calvary says, “Because you couldn’t, Jesus did.” Don’t run to the wrong mountain for your hiding place.
The love of Jesus
Here's a prayer titled "The love of Jesus" from "Valley of Vision: A collection of Puritan Prayers & Devotions" edited by Arthur Bennett (pages 44-45):
O FATHER OF JESUS,
Help me to approach thee with deepest reverence,
not with presumption,
not with servile fear, but with holy boldness.
Thou art beyond the grasp of my understanding,
but not beyond that of my love.
Thou knowest that I love thee supremely,
for thou art supremely adorable, good, perfect.
My heart melts at the love of Jesus,
my brother, bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh,
married to me, dead for me, risen for me;
He is mine and I am his,
given to me as well as for me;
I am never so much mine as when I am his,
or so much lost to myself until lost in him;
then I find my true manhood.
But my love is frost and cold, ice and snow;
Let his love warm me,
lighten my burden,
be my heaven;
May it be more revealed to me in all its influences
that my love to him may be more fervent
and glowing;
Let the mighty tide of his everlasting love
cover the rocks of my sin and care;
Then let my spirit float above those things
which had else wrecked my life.
Make me fruitful by living to that love,
my character becoming more beautiful every day.
If traces of Christ's love-artistry be upon me,
may he work on with his divine brush
until the complete image be obtained
and I be made a perfect copy of him,
my Master.
O Lord Jesus, come to me,
O Divine Spirit, rest upon me,
O Holy Father, look on me in mercy
for the sake of the well-beloved.
O FATHER OF JESUS,
Help me to approach thee with deepest reverence,
not with presumption,
not with servile fear, but with holy boldness.
Thou art beyond the grasp of my understanding,
but not beyond that of my love.
Thou knowest that I love thee supremely,
for thou art supremely adorable, good, perfect.
My heart melts at the love of Jesus,
my brother, bone of my bone, flesh of my flesh,
married to me, dead for me, risen for me;
He is mine and I am his,
given to me as well as for me;
I am never so much mine as when I am his,
or so much lost to myself until lost in him;
then I find my true manhood.
But my love is frost and cold, ice and snow;
Let his love warm me,
lighten my burden,
be my heaven;
May it be more revealed to me in all its influences
that my love to him may be more fervent
and glowing;
Let the mighty tide of his everlasting love
cover the rocks of my sin and care;
Then let my spirit float above those things
which had else wrecked my life.
Make me fruitful by living to that love,
my character becoming more beautiful every day.
If traces of Christ's love-artistry be upon me,
may he work on with his divine brush
until the complete image be obtained
and I be made a perfect copy of him,
my Master.
O Lord Jesus, come to me,
O Divine Spirit, rest upon me,
O Holy Father, look on me in mercy
for the sake of the well-beloved.
Thursday, September 30, 2010
When should parents talk to their children about sex?
When should parents talk to their children about sex? Julie Lowe answers this question in CCEF's "Ask the Counselor." Her answer, in short: talk often, talk freely, and talk soon. See the video below for her complete answer.
(HT: Tim Challies)
(HT: Tim Challies)
What should Christians do about Halloween?
Below are two articles that take the position that Christians should view Halloween as an opportunity to give glory to God by intentionally loving their neighbors who come to their houses on this one night of the year.
Halloween: A Missed Opportunity for Evangelicals
Why All Good Christians Should Celebrate Halloween
"... I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel ..." (1 Corinthians 9:22-23 ESV)
Halloween: A Missed Opportunity for Evangelicals
Why All Good Christians Should Celebrate Halloween
"... I have become all things to all people, that by all means I might save some. I do it all for the sake of the gospel ..." (1 Corinthians 9:22-23 ESV)
The Gadarene graphic novel
John Piper wrote an "extended, imaginary" story based on Mark 5 about the Gadarene demoniac, and Desiring God published that story as a 144-page graphic novel titled "The Gadarene." It seems like a good tool to share with other people who are into graphic novels or for those who want to see the story in a fresh way. Below is a video about it.
(HT: Tim Challies)
(HT: Tim Challies)
Wednesday, September 29, 2010
The grace of God in the Bible
Dane Ortlund through short sentences or paragraphs traces the message of God's grace in each book of the Bible.
Sunday, September 26, 2010
Does Christianity have a vision for society?
A Muslim friend to Mark Dever: "That's the problem with Christianity: you have no vision for the state or for society as a whole."
Mark Dever's concluding words in his 19 Sept. 2010 sermon titled "Jesus Paid Taxes" (Mark 12:13-17):
"Does Christianity have a vision for the state or the society as a whole, or is Christianity—as my Muslim friend implied—so heavenly minded that it's of no earthly good?
"I think visions like the one my friend had for the state are way too shallow. They're about swords and external conformity to laws. Jesus Christ comes to do something much deeper than any social revolutionary has ever been able to do. He's come to actually change our hearts, to change our natures. The Bible shows us that God has a wonderful vision for his world. We’ve all rejected that vision. And yet even after that rejection, God, in his amazing mercy and love, continues to pursue us. Jesus Christ, his own son, stood there teaching the very people that would in a few days' time seek his life, arrest him, beat him, have him put to death.
"I know there are Marxist and Muslim utopian visions for our world. There are secular visions, too. But none of these visions sufficiently take into account the things the Bible teaches about the sinfulness of humans, about our being made in God's image, about God's goodness, his love, his holiness. Utopian visions of politics or nations or the state always lead to tragedy. They always lead to tyranny and despotism and terrible distortions of God's will.
"Friends, it is the truth of Christianity, about God being holy and loving, and our being made in God's image, and yet fallen, and God's provisions and promises for us in Christ—it is all of these truths together that lead us to sufficiently respect the fallen governments of the world, and yet give us hope to endure them, and to work and hope for something infinitely better. So God gives us the peace that comes with such hope and the strength to get up another day, to continue following Jesus until he brings us home."
(HT: Thabiti Anyabwile, Collin Hansen, and C.J. Mahaney)
Mark Dever's concluding words in his 19 Sept. 2010 sermon titled "Jesus Paid Taxes" (Mark 12:13-17):
"Does Christianity have a vision for the state or the society as a whole, or is Christianity—as my Muslim friend implied—so heavenly minded that it's of no earthly good?
"I think visions like the one my friend had for the state are way too shallow. They're about swords and external conformity to laws. Jesus Christ comes to do something much deeper than any social revolutionary has ever been able to do. He's come to actually change our hearts, to change our natures. The Bible shows us that God has a wonderful vision for his world. We’ve all rejected that vision. And yet even after that rejection, God, in his amazing mercy and love, continues to pursue us. Jesus Christ, his own son, stood there teaching the very people that would in a few days' time seek his life, arrest him, beat him, have him put to death.
"I know there are Marxist and Muslim utopian visions for our world. There are secular visions, too. But none of these visions sufficiently take into account the things the Bible teaches about the sinfulness of humans, about our being made in God's image, about God's goodness, his love, his holiness. Utopian visions of politics or nations or the state always lead to tragedy. They always lead to tyranny and despotism and terrible distortions of God's will.
"Friends, it is the truth of Christianity, about God being holy and loving, and our being made in God's image, and yet fallen, and God's provisions and promises for us in Christ—it is all of these truths together that lead us to sufficiently respect the fallen governments of the world, and yet give us hope to endure them, and to work and hope for something infinitely better. So God gives us the peace that comes with such hope and the strength to get up another day, to continue following Jesus until he brings us home."
(HT: Thabiti Anyabwile, Collin Hansen, and C.J. Mahaney)
If we can but teach Christ to our people, we shall teach them all
"Throughout the whole course of our ministry, we must insist chiefly upon the greatest, most certain, and most necessary truths, and be more seldom and sparing upon the rest. If we can but teach Christ to our people, we shall teach them all. Get them well to heaven, and they will have knowledge enough. The great and commonly acknowledged truths of religion are those that men must live upon, and which are the great instruments of destroying men’s sins, and raising the heart to God." (Richard Baxter, The Reformed Pastor)Thursday, September 23, 2010
Bad news and good news: A gospel presentation
What is the gospel? Watch the "Bad News/Good News" video below from Evan Tell, a ministry whose mission is to:
- Declare the gospel, clearly and simply.
- Activate believers around the world.
- Prepare upcoming generations to reach the lost.
Remember: It is not a prayer that saves you. It is by God's grace, because of Jesus Christ's work on the cross, through faith in Christ alone that saves you. Prayer is nothing less than coming to God as a beggar with empty hands asking for his mercy and telling him what we are doing in response to his glory and grace.
What is the Bad News/Good News approach?
The Bad News/Good News approach is an easy way to present the gospel. There are 4 points to remember and 4 Scripture verses to support them.
1. Bad News #1 – We are all sinners.* (Romans 3:23)
2. Bad News #2 – The penalty for sin is death. (Romans 6:23)
3. Good News #1 – Christ died for you. (Romans 5:8)
4. Good News #2 – You can be saved through faith in Christ. (Ephesians 2:8-9)
(Note: If you are experiencing problems viewing the video from this site, visit Evan Tell.)
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