HARMLESS THOUGHTS

I finished listening to the ChristianAudio version of John Piper's book  Does God Desire All To Be Saved?  a few weeks ago, but didn't have a chance to write the review until today. The question, "Does God desire all to be saved?"  is a challenging question and a challenging answer (no matter what your answer) and it made for a challenging book to read.  The question is challenging no matter how you answer it, because whichever way you go there are implications. A simple, "Yes." doesn't even really answer the question. Some believe that all will be saved... eventually. I don't believe that. I can't. The Bible just doesn't leave room for that interpretation. But nevertheless, some can answer yest to this question, believing that all will eventually be saved. Others might answer yes, knowing full well that all are not saved, but are doomed to eternal punishment. This leaves a new challenge. Does God have unmet desires? Is God unsuccessful...

I just finished listening to ChristianAudio's Taking God at His Word: Why the Bible Is Knowable, Necessary, and Enough, and What That Means for You and Me by Kevin DeYoung. In the last few years I have spent a significant amount of time reading and studying several different confessions of faith, belief statements, and other similar historical documents. One of the most important aspects of a comprehensive statement of faith is the portion related to a view of the Holy Scriptures. When listening to this audio book, I found myself taken back to those confessions and statements as Kevin DeYoung expounded on the scriptures. The chapters of this book methodically teach from the scriptures that the Bible is Knowable, Necessary, Infallable, and Sufficient. It does a wonderful job at balancing between being a completely understandable, introductory work on the scriptures, without losing the reinforcement and structure typical in a good, solid theological work.  In other words, I coul...

For Christians the beginning of the day should not be burdened and oppressed with besetting concerns for the day's work. At the threshold of the new day stands the Lord who made it. All the darkness and distraction of the dreams of night retreat before the clear light of Jesus Christ and his wakening Word. All unrest, all impurity, all care and anxiety flee before him. Therefore, at the beginning of the day let all distraction and empty talk be silenced and let the first thought and the first word belong to him to whom our whole life belongs. ~Dietrich Bonhoeffer (Life Together) or... in the words of King David: Give ear to my words, O LORD; consider my groaning. Give attention to the sound of my cry, my King and my God, for to you do I pray. O LORD, in the morning you hear my voice; in the morning I prepare a sacrifice for you and watch. (Psalm 5:1-3 ESV)