I wonder—when was the last time you heard another Christian preach or speak about conviction of sin? When was the last time you saw someone on the brink of salvation in tears of anxiety and burden because of a distinct awareness of their sinfulness? It seems to me that true conviction is not present as much as it should be today. If Spurgeon is right, if anyone has not experienced it, we should be very concerned about the validity of... Read more
I’m a member of the UK’s telephone preference service, which means I very rarely get cold sales calls over the phone. However, I’ve noticed a concerning tendency recently. A company phoned me, saying my number had been “specially selected for a new government sponsored program of IVAs.” In fact, they weren’t the first company to ring me and try and get me to take out what is essentially a last step before bankruptcy. Unless these companies know something about the... Read more
I only just recently discovered that videos from Billy Graham are available free online. I had a look at the following sermon from 1958 and it was really heartwarming. O may God raise up preachers like Billy again! Billy will soon be 90 years old and some people have set up a site for people to send their stories of how Billy’s preaching touched them. Read more
The Doctor was given his nickname, I believe, not so much because of his medical degree, but rather because of the way in which he used his diagnostic skill to get to the root of the human predicament. This quote is a good example of that: To fail to control ourselves means a loss of energy. These things can actually be measured. When I say ‘self-control’ I include controlling one’s temper, controlling one’s spirit. Have you ever seen a man... Read more
I’ve been sharing a number of quotes from Spurgeon’s The Soul Winner. Today I thought I’d share one which is quite striking. It argues that since conversion is a miracle, it is by a trail of such miracles we can know if someone is called to preach. “A new and heavenly mind must be created by omnipotence, or the man must abide in death. You see, then, that we have before us a mighty work, for which we are of... Read more
Anger is very much associated with our sense of rights. We feel that we have been violated and “deserve” better treatment. The truth is, none of us deserve anything but hell. We build up for ourselves a mental picture of our ideal life, of what we want, so that it becomes an idol. When we don’t get our own way, we start to throw our toys out of the pram and feel justified to be angry. James challenges these thoughts... Read more
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One of the interesting controversies of theology is the nature of man. Many assume we are tripartate — body, soul, and spirit. Others argue strongly that Scripture suggests we only have two parts — body and soul/spirit. In today’s quote from Spurgeon, he seems to suggest we have two parts before salvation and three parts after. I would be interested in your thoughts on this. Do you think he was right? Have you heard anyone else teach this? You can... Read more
I wrote this post today on my way to the hospital with my son, Henry. I’ve taken the day off to be with him while he undergoes major dental surgery. Henry is a very observant boy and noticed the gauge that’s pictured here under one of the seats on the train. We watched it and it fluctuated randomly, but seemed to go up when the train was stationary and down when it was moving. The Internet is a great way... Read more
I have been quoting from Spurgeon’s The Soul Winner a fair bit lately. He is like a breath of fresh air. O for God to raise an army of preachers who truly understand the point he makes in the following quote: “… to win a soul, it is necessary, not only to instruct our hearer, and make him know the truth, but to impress him so that he may feel it. A purely didactic ministry, which should always appeal to... Read more
In an incredibly helpful discussion, chaired by Justin Taylor at the recent DGM conference, Driscoll defined friends as follows: “They love you, have hope for you, and have time for you.”I can’t think of a much better definition than that. Read more
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