In pondering the reality of my God who does not change, I am compelled to be grateful. In light of the following Scriptures that speak to God’s immutability, I am freshly overwhelmed by this truth. “For I the LORD do not change; therefore you, O children of Jacob, are not consumed. ~ Malachi 3:6 Every…
Dr. Jordan B. Cooper: Calvinism Logical, Not Biblical
I want to begin with a direct quote from Dr. Jordan Cooper at the 56:46 mark. “And I think this is the thing about Calvinism, what’s appealing about it, is that it is a very logically consistent system. It is very logically consistent with itself. It answers a lot of questions. I like questions. And…
A Burden for the Lost
Charles Spurgeon tells of a girl who was near death. This girl approached her pastor asking him to preach at her funeral. She spoke to him of her father, who was an unbeliever and who had never accepted a single invitation from her to come to church. “Pastor, you will bury me, won’t you?” she…
The Brokenhearted Apostle
I am speaking the truth in Christ—I am not lying; my conscience bears me witness in the Holy Spirit—that I have great sorrow and unceasing anguish in my heart. For I could wish that I myself were accursed and cut off from Christ for the sake of my brothers, my kinsmen according to the flesh….
The Believing Prophet, Habakkuk Part 4
“Behold, his soul is puffed up; it is not upright within him, but the righteous shall live by his faith. “Moreover, wine is a traitor, an arrogant man who is never at rest. His greed is as wide as Sheol; like death he has never enough. He gathers for himself all nations and collects as…
The Groans of the Saints
Romans 8:23 And not only the creation, but we ourselves, who have the firstfruits of the Spirit, groan inwardly as we wait eagerly for adoption as sons, the redemption of our bodies. To better understand these groanings, we need to go back to the garden before the fall. We need to remember that the original…
The Comforted Prophet, Habakkuk Part 3
Habakkuk 2:2–20 We left off in our last study at quite the cliffhanger. Habakkuk, our dear perplexed but expectant prophet, has continued to wrestle in prayer with God. He had uttered his second complaint, exhibiting true honesty in prayer, and now would wait on the Lord for His reply. And so, we return to the…
The Expectant Prophet, Habakkuk Part 2
We all suffer from this nagging problem of not wholeheartedly believing God is good. On Sunday, we can sense the presence and nearness of God, then wake up Monday wondering if He even loves us. Many would say, “Well, certainly God is good! Of course! The Bible declares it!” And yet, those very individuals aren’t…
The Perplexed Prophet, Habakkuk Part 1
The Perplexed Prophet — Habakkuk 1:1–11 A theologian once said, “You should preach with the Bible in one hand and a newspaper in the other.” What was meant by that is the Bible is the interpreter of human affairs, of human history, not the other way around. And this will be a key area in…
Power Is Necessary
“Because our gospel came to you not only in word, but also in power and in the Holy Spirit and with full conviction.” — 1 Thessalonians 1:5 This is such a heart-probing Word. My prayer is that the Spirit of God will take this sharp Word and search every one of us today. It serves…