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Writings on Christianity

Suffering For The Sake Of Christ (Phil 1:29-30)

 Suffering For The Sake of Christ For it has been granted to you that for the sake of Christ you should not only believe in him but also suffer for his sake, engaged in the same conflict that you saw I had and now hear that I still have. (Phil 1:29-30 ESV) In Phil 1:29-30 […]

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Writings on Christianity

Six Fundamental Truths of Theistic Philosophy (Tsouloufis)

My friend Dan Tsouloufis is passionate about teaching and helping Christians thinking critically about their faith.  He gave me permission to share something he wrote to help Christians defend and consider a biblical worldview.  Here it is: The Six Fundamental Truths of Theistic Philosophy                 (From a Judeo-Christian Worldview)  by DanTsouloufis I feel compelled to […]

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Writings on Christianity

Jesus as Yahweh the God of Israel

JESUS AS YAHWEH THE GOD OF ISRAEL How could any Jew in the first century have considered Jesus to be God? How do understanding Jewish notions of monotheism from that period help us in this question?  British evangelical scholar Richard Bauckham has given us one of the best answers to these questions in his essay […]

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Writings on Christianity

3 Indicators God is Calling You Into Vocational Ministry

Is God calling you into vocational ministry?  How do you know?  How can you be sure? The English puritan William Perkins gives us a very helpful answer to this question in his book “The Calling of Ministry.”  To know that one is being calling into ministry requires three things: a genuine desire (affirmed by your […]

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Writings on Christianity

More Quotes from Charles Bridges’ “Christian Ministry”

Here are more quotes from Charles Bridges’ “Christian Ministry”: 11.  Need to pursue life with the eyes of faith: “Daily experience reminds us the extreme difficulty of maintaining spiritual perceptions of eternal things.  The surrounding objects of time and sense spread a thick film over the organs of spiritual vision, and the indistinct haziness, in […]

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Writings on Christianity

Quotes from “Christian Ministry” by Charles Bridges (Part I)

As mentioned in my previous post, here are some of my favorite quotes from Charles Bridges’ “Christian Ministry” 1.  Summary of Christian ministry: “the sum of our whole labor in this kind is to honor God, and to save men” (8). 2. What our task is not: “It is not our province to prescribe what […]

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Writings on Christianity

Book Review: Charles Bridges’ “The Christian Ministry”

For the past several months I have been working my way through a stack of pastoral theology books.  Recently, I finished Charles Bridges’ “The Christian Ministry—with An Inquiry into the Causes of its Inefficiency.”  First published in 1830, the work has managed to remain surprising relevant for all who wish to consider the task of […]

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Writings on Christianity

Acoustic Show This Friday July 5th

This Friday July 5th from 6-8 PM at Kimmer’s Ice Cream in Downtown St. Charles (1 W Illinois St), I’ll be playing an acoustic show with my friend Dan Alcanatra.  Dan is an excellent song-writer and it will be a real joy not only to share the stage with him, but also to play some […]

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Writings on Christianity

Must I Have a Dramatic Conversion Experience To Know That I Am Saved?

Must I Have a Dramatic Conversion Experience To Know That I Am Saved? The church is not a mere building, but the people of God who are redeemed by Christ.  Yet not everyone who attends worship services or even claims to be a Christian actually is a Christian; the terrifying reality is that on the […]

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Writings on Christianity

A Mental and Emotional Wellness that Endures (Clowney)

A Mental and Emotional Wellness that Endures Ice cream, relationships, Stanley Cup victories, a job promotion, financial security, the reassurance of a friend–all things which bring us mental and emotional joy and wellness.  While wonderful as these things may be, there is a greater mental and emotional wellness that our hearts were made for: being […]