One of the hidden gems on the internet is no doubt LibriVox. It’s a website containing a huge number of books in the public domain that have been turned into audiobooks—audiobooks you can listen to for free. The recordings are all done (I think) by volunteers, which means the quality changes from book to book, but the books I’ve listened to have all been done well enough to enjoy.
Exegetical Meditations (32)
All the world generally fits into one of two categories: 1) those who saw Jesus, and 2) those who didn’t. And yet, in at least some sense, even those of us in the second category can see him.
After Jesus resurrected from the dead he made a point to show himself to his followers. For a period of forty-days he appeared to many as way to make it clear that he was no longer dead—that death no longer had a hold of him. In one of the more striking stories of his appearances, Jesus is on a beach while his disciples are out fishing on the lake. They had been out all night and hadn’t caught anything. Jesus, from the beach, called out to them—though they didn’t know it was him—and he told them to drop the net on the other side of the boat. They obliged and they caught so many fish that they struggled to haul the net back in.
Listen to "Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God"
The most famous sermon given by any puritan was probably “Sinners in the Hands of an Angry God.” It was preached by Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758) in what is now Connecticut on July 8, 1741.
The story goes that Edwards had difficulty even making it through the sermon because of how the congregation reacted. They didn’t react in offense—as some might expect—instead, they reacted as those being convicted by the Holy Spirit and brought to repentance. They pleaded for Edwards to tell them how they could be saved. This was because they had been confronted with the truth of their sin and were coming to terms with their standing before this holy God and, at the same time, they were being confronted by that same God—in Christ—and his great love for them.
Emails to a Christian (3)
Hi Mark,
I’m happy to hear you’re going to church and enjoying it. It really does make a difference in our walk with Jesus to be walking it with others. We weren’t made to do this (mainly) alone, but with the Spirit of God primarily and then with fellow believers.
In your previous email you listed five or six questions about church. I’m only going to give answers to two of them. This isn’t because I don’t think the other questions are worth answering; it’s because I think it would be better for you to speak to your pastor and maybe others in your church about them. I’m happy to have the conversations and I hope they continue but, just so we’re both on the same page, you have a pastor and he’s not me.
Exegetical Meditations (31)
When working through lists of biblical “contradictions” it doesn’t take long before you run into the one with Judas and his death.
The indictment usually goes something like this. In Matthew’s gospel, he tells us that Judas hung himself. But, in Acts, Luke tells us that Judas fell headlong and his body burst open with his intestines spilling out. The “contradiction”—they tell us—is obvious. He can’t both die by hanging and falling headlong at the same time.
The ones leveling this accusation of a “contradiction” often lament that even two gospel writers couldn’t get their stories straight.
Exegetical Meditations (30)
We often hear that husbands ought to love their wives as Christ loved the church. But, that’s really only half the statement Paul made.
He begins that particular section of Ephesians 5 by telling his readers how Christ loved the church. Jesus gave himself up for her and, in so doing, made her holy by cleansing her with water through the word. He did this and then presented her to himself as a radiant church, free of stains, wrinkles, or any other blemish. Because of Christ’s work, she—the church—was and is now holy and blameless. That’s what Jesus did and Paul says that husbands ought to do the same thing.
Exegetical Meditations (29)
Why worry about tomorrow? It’s out of your control. In fact, it’s out of everyone’s control except God’s.
Nevertheless we worry about tomorrow because we think we have control. We raise our kids, go to work, invest our money, buy houses, start companies, retire, move, do all those things because we want to. And, as can happen with anything, after we’ve done anything long enough or watched other people do the same things, we start to think it’s in our hands—we’re the masters of it. The problem is, biblically speaking, we’re not.
No Patience for Blasphemy
I don’t remember much about the day, but I remember the car ride.
I’m not sure exactly how old I was. All I know is I was old enough to be in the front seat, but not yet old enough to leave the seatbelt at the standard height. I had to adjust it lower so it wouldn’t scratch my neck. I was riding with my mom and we were going somewhere. Where, I can’t recall. I do, however, remember the radio was on and the music was turned up. I liked most of the music my mom liked: rock and roll. Perhaps even some classic heavy metal—depending on the band and how “heavy” it was. I still like it. She does, too. And that made rocking out in the car easy, and a must. As my mom drove and the tunes played on, there came a song now infamous for the moment I haven’t forgotten.
Exegetical Meditations (28)
Have you ever gotten into conversation with someone over what it will be like when Jesus comes back?
The conversation can be wild. Fun, no doubt, but it can get wild, because of the massive amount of interpretation going on with just a few verses. The question, I think, we ought to be asking ourselves before, during, and after those conversations is something like, “How can I think and talk responsibly about something in the Bible when there’s so much disagreement?”
Exegetical Meditations (27)
In this world right now there is either death or life and peace. And there is no in-between.
What Paul wrote about our minds in Romans 8:6 is a plain reality. Our minds are going to be governed by something and Paul sees that something as either the flesh or the Spirit. He tells us that if our minds are governed by the flesh, death is the result—the fruit our lives will produce. Contrary to that, he tells us that if our minds are governed by the Spirit (of God)—the Holy Spirit—a fruit called “life and peace” will be brought forth. What governs our minds means everything for the lives we want to live.