Posts Tagged ‘spirituality’

            Psalm 1:3 declares that the righteous who meditate on God’s word prosper in all that they do, whereas the wicked are blown away like chaff.  This sounds wonderful, but reality often contradicts it.  The wicked prosper and the righteous suffer.  Does Psalm 1 mislead us?  Is God’s word false? Read the rest of this entry »

            Having grown up in the city and suburbs, I have the congenital urban disease.    What is this urban disease?  It is a disease of ignorance that debilitates our spiritual life.  Read the rest of this entry »

            A fellow pastor recommended Timothy Keller’s Counterfeit Gods (New York: Dutton, 2009) to me after I had stated that the Bible teaches that the fundamental human problem is idolatry.  I highly recommend it and here’s why. Read the rest of this entry »

Recently I was struck by Paul’s description of conversion.  “… You turned to God from idols to serve the living and true God and to wait for his Son from heaven, whom he raised from the dead, Jesus who saves us from the coming wrath” (1 Thessalonians 1:9-10).

We evangelicals claim to be biblical.  Indeed, the very name “evangelical” is derived from the Greek word for “gospel.”  Nevertheless, our gospel proclamation emphasizes the benefits of receiving forgiveness or personal healing.  Now, forgiveness and healing are part of the gospel, but Paul’s preaching centered on challenging people’s idolatry, the need to serve God, and hoping in the coming of Jesus Christ. Read the rest of this entry »