// January 14th, 2010 // No Comments » // Church, Jesus Stuff, John Piper, Matt Chandler, grace, reformed, sermons, suffering
In light of the news that Matt Chandler had a brain tumor, John Piper came to preach at The Village Church in Texas. He did a great job speaking on suffering and the sovereignty of God out of Romans 8.
// January 14th, 2010 // No Comments » // Jesus Stuff, John Owen, Life, Puritans, grace, mortification, reformed, sin, theology
Seeking mortification of sin just to quiet the soul and find relief from the torment of the conscience, all the while neglecting to deal with the root cause of sin, is a result of self-love. Men are diverted from coming to God this way. This is one of the most common deceptions in which men ruin their souls. They seek to apply themselves victory over the troubling sin, but do not allow their conviction to lead them to the gospel.
-John Owen, Mortification of Sin
// November 13th, 2009 // No Comments » // Books, D.A. Carson, Jesus Stuff, Life, Quote of the Day, grace, reformed, sin, theology
The authorities who crucified Jesus were in fact, quite unwittingly, carrying out God’s purposes. As the praying Christians put it in Acts 4, “indeed Herod and Pontious Pilate met together with the Gentiles and the people of Israel in this city to conspire against your holy servant Jesus, whom you anointed. They did what your power and ill had decided beforehand should happen” (Acts 4:27-28). They thought they were so wise, so politically astute; in fat, by their folly they brought to pass, in God’s perfect providence, his own wise plan–the very plan that they dismissed as foolishness. Amazing Grace: in God’s wise purposes, they killed the Lord of life.
-D.A. Carson, The Cross and Christian Ministry
// November 4th, 2009 // No Comments » // Calvin, Faith, Jesus Stuff, Life, Quote of the Day, calvinism, grace, theology
If we honestly consider within ourselves how very blind our thought is when faced with the heavenly secrets of God, and how very unfaithful our heart is in everything, we shall not doubt that faith is infinitely beyond all the power of our nature and that it is an extraordinary and precious gift of God. For as St. Paul says, “Nobody knows the things of man, except for the spirit of man which is in him; and nobody knows the things of God except the Spirit of God.” …The Holy Spirit witnesses to our spirit the God is our father and that we are his children.
-John Calvin, Truth For All Time
// November 3rd, 2009 // No Comments » // Books, Calvin, Faith, Jesus Stuff, Life, Quote of the Day, grace, reformed
Christian faith is, rather, a firm and solid assurance of the heart, by which we cling securely to the mercy of God which is promised to us though the gospel.
-John Calvin, Truth For All Time
// November 3rd, 2009 // 1 Comment » // Books, Calvin, Jesus Stuff, grace, reformed, theology
Now the reason why the Lord treats some mercifully and exercises the rigour of his judgement towards others must be known by him alone, for he, with very good intentions, has wished that it should be hidden from us all. The coarse insensitivity of our mind would not be able to bear such a great light; nor would our smallness be able to understand such great wisdom.
In fact, all those who will try to rise to such a height, being unwilling to hold in check the foolhardiness of their spirit, will experience the truth of what Solomon says: that he who desires to investigate the majesty of God will be crushed by his glory (Proverbs 25:2).
It is enough for us to have decided this in our hearts: that this dealing of the Lord, although hidden from us, is nonetheless holy and just. For if God wanted to ruin all humanity, he would have the right to do it. And in those whom he rescues from perdition, one can contemplate nothing but his sovereign goodness.
-John Calvin, Truth For All Time
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