Does depression depress God?
by Pastor Josh Moody
The first thing to remember is that depression can be used by God. God is not surprised by depression. No, depression is part of God’s sovereign plan. God has a design to use depression for His glory.
Take some biblical examples. The prophet Elijah was depressed – I [...]

Posted in Doctrine, Jonathan Edwards, Josh Moody, Martyn Lloyd-Jones 2 Comments »

In this message (Can You Lose Your Salvation), Dr. Walter Martin present a compelling argument for the the Doctrine of Perseverance and he also discusses the Doctrine of Assurance.
Proof Text:
Hbr 6:1-12; Jhn 5:24; Jhn 6:35-40; Jhn 6:44; Jhn 6:46-51; Jhn 6:53-58; Jhn 6:60-65; Jhn 10:27-30; Jhn 12:32; Tts 2:11; 1Jo 2:2; Jon 1:1-3; Jon 2:1-10
(HT: [...]

Posted in Assurance, Doctrine, Perseverance, Walter Martin 3 Comments »

Mark Driscoll has recently put out a video clip (view with caution) describing how, for him, the Song of Solomon should be understood. It could be, that in many ways, he is correct in his view of this Old Testament book.
In any case, the real question is this, is Driscoll honoring God and operating in [...]

Posted in Bible, Biblical Interpretation, Doctrine, Mark Driscoll 19 Comments »

Pastor William Farley, in his book, Outrageous Mercy: Rediscover the Radical Nature of Christianity, says the message of the cross matters.
The message of the cross matters to us for at least four reasons.
First, the cross is our message. It is the heart, soul, and center of Christian faith and practice. There is no good news [...]

Posted in Atonement, Book, Doctrine 1 Comment »

The Ancient Christian Commentary on Scripture (Online Source)
… is an ecumenical project, promoting a vital link of communication between the varied Christian traditions of [...]

Posted in Doctrine No Comments »

‘Edwards cherished the Calvinist doctrine of the sovereignty of grace. He agreed that Christ died only for the elect and that they alone would experience the supernatural and sovereign “divine influence and operation, by which saving grace is obtained.’
E. Brooks Holifield in ‘Edwards as Theologian’ in The Cambridge Companion to Jonathan Edwards, 149.

Posted in Calvinism, Doctrine, Doctrines of Grace, Sovereign Grace No Comments »

I recently had the opportunity to talk with Michael Gaydosh at Solid Ground Christian Books about some of the great works they are making available to a new generation of readers. There is a resurgence of interest in Reformed Theology and SGCB has made it there goal to provide God-centered, Christ-exalting, Scripture-saturated Reformed and Calvinistic [...]

Posted in Book, Book Review, Books, Doctrine, Doctrines of Grace, Monergism Books, Puritans, Reformed Faith, Reformed Theology, Solid Ground Christian Books 3 Comments »

Two Lectures on Monergistic Regeneration (MP3s)
Last week we held our Reformation Society of Oregon meeting and Dr. Art Azurdia III gave two expositions/lectures on the subject monergistic regeneration. We have posted the MP3s for free download. IMHO, they are superb biblical exegesis and I highly recommend them for your personal edification.
Right-Click and save to your [...]

Posted in Doctrine, Doctrines of Grace, Monergism, Regeneration No Comments »

Where in today’s church do you hear the doctrine of ‘The Fear of God‘ preached or lived out by its members. To be sure, there are pastors who still preach this doctrine and there are no doubt, church members who understand and live in ‘The Fear of God’.
It is no streach however to suggest that [...]

Posted in Book, Book Review, Books, Church History, Church Life, Doctrine, Dr. Arnold L. Frank, Fear of God No Comments »

Is the Shorter Catechism Worth While? by Benjamin B. Warfield
The Shorter Catechism is, perhaps, not very easy to learn. And very certainly it will not teach itself. Its framers were less careful to make it easy than to make it good. As one of them, Lazarus Seaman, explained, they sought to set down in [...]

Posted in B.B. Warfield, Doctrine, Theology, Westminster Shorter Catechism No Comments »

In his commentary on Ephesian, R. Kent Hughes shares this on the elect.
… the telltale evidence (not the cause) of one’s election is holiness. Harold Ockenga, pastor of Park Street Church and founding president of Fuller Seminary and Gordon-Conwell Seminary, put it in no uncertain terms:
If God has elected us He has not elected us [...]

Posted in Bible, Book, Book Review, Commentary, Crossway, Doctrine, Election, R. Kent Hughes, Salvation No Comments »

Dr. Robert Peterson, Professor of Systematic, Covenant Theological Seminary, provides a most helpful article on Assurance that you will want to read.
The following is an abstract of the article

Moving From Uncertainty Toward Assurance — How God Assures His Adopted Children
God not only rescues His people from their sins; He also grants them assurance of salvation. [...]

Posted in Assurance, Bible, Bible Study, Crossway, D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Doctrine, Martyn Lloyd-Jones, Theology No Comments »

In The Great Exchange: My Sin for His Righteousness, Jerry Bridges and Bob Bevington ask and answer this question:
“What is sin? It is often described as ‘missing the mark’—that is, failure to live up to the rigorous standard of God’s holy law. But the Bible makes it clear that it is much more than [...]

Posted in Atonement, Bible, Bible Study, Biblical Theology, Bob Bevington, Doctrine, Jerry Bridges, Justification, Scripture No Comments »

Pastor Richard Phillips’ exposition of the book of John
Welcome to the expository preaching of Pastor Phillips. Here you will find Pastor Phillips’ sermons arranged by the books of the Bible in alphabetical order.Pastor Phillips’ sermons are available in MP3 and PDF format.
Note: To save the sermon to your computer, right-click the download link and [...]

Posted in Bible, Bible Study, Biblical Theology, Doctrine, Exposition, John, Preaching, Richard Phillips No Comments »

Blogger Timmy Brister has issued a challenge to Christians to read through some of the most important writings of the Puritans, reading one book a month through 2008. Here is his suggested list, with links to each book at Westminster Bookstore, where you can get them all for at least 30% off list price:
January: The [...]

Posted in Bible Study, Book, Books, Doctrine, Puritans 1 Comment »

By most measures the significance of J. Gresham Machen is minor. Few outside the world of conservative Presbyterianism know about the man once recognized as the most articulate and intelligent proponent of historic Protestantism in the United States. Indeed, most assessments of Machen highlight his historical importance, a sure sign of fading significance. As early [...]

Posted in Book, Church History, Division, Doctrine, J.Gresham Machen No Comments »

The doctrine of the clarity (or perspicuity) of Scripture (i.e., that the central message of the Bible is clear and understandable, and that the Bible itself can be properly interpreted in a normal, literal sense) has been a cornerstone of evangelical belief since the Reformation. The dominant Roman Catholic idea had been that the Bible [...]

Posted in Bible, Bible Study, Doctrine, PDF, Scripture, Sola Scriptura, Theology 3 Comments »

Though known for his commentaries on the Bible, few understand the passion and heart in this man. In his book, Method for Prayer, Henry’s love for Jesus, passion for prayer, and love of Scripture can clearly be seen. The book is divided into different methods of prayer. In each chapter Henry offers some insights but [...]

Posted in Book, Doctrine, Matthew Henry, Prayer, Puritans No Comments »

I found the following quote from Peter Kreeft’s book, Catholic Christianity, very interesting. Following the quote I will offer some thoughts to consider. (Words in italics represents specific areas of interest to me, not the author)
Why be a Catholic?
If you want to invent your own religion, do not be a Catholic. If you want to [...]

Posted in Catholicism, Doctrine, Peter Kreeft, Roman Catholicism 2 Comments »

The doctrine of justification is under considerable debate today. Traditional Evangelicals have their view, Roman Catholics theirs, Emergent types yet another, and then we have the ‘New Perspective on Paul’
Counted Righteous in Christ, by Pastor John Piper, is a most helpful book making a defense of the biblical doctrine of justification.
Are Christians merely forgiven, or [...]

Posted in Book, Book Review, Books, Church History, Crossway, Desiring God, Doctrine, Justification No Comments »

The following comes from Steve Camp at CAMPONTHIS. I have read the complete post and it is our desire to address truth and error in the same manner.
That being said, we continue to welcome your comments at this blog but we are asking you to forgo the humor and sarcasm when dealing with serious [...]

Posted in A. W. Pink, Apostacy, C. H. Spurgeon, Doctrine, Error, False Doctrine No Comments »

Here is a link to the audio from the recent Building Bridges Conference: Southern Baptists and Calvinism
I do not consider myself to be a Calvinist, but I do share Pastor Jeff Noblit’s passion for the inherency and sufficiency of scripture for all faith and practice. I share a high view of God and His sovereignty. [...]

Posted in Doctrine, Evangelicalism, Evangelism, False Doctrine, HeartCry Missionary Society, Jeff Noblit, Missions, Paul Washer 3 Comments »

?If ever there should come a wretched day when all our pulpits shall be full of modern thought, and the old doctrine of substitutionary sacrifice shall be exploded, then will there remain no word of comfort for the guilty or hope for the despairing. Hushed will be forever those silver notes which now console [...]

Posted in Charles Haddon Spurgeon, Doctrine, Justification No Comments »

I have been recently directed to the SLJ Institute for a great collection of (free) resources from the ministry Dr. S. Lewis Johnson. Johnson is considered by many to be one of the best expositors of the 20th Century. His impact continues today in the preaching ministries of many, including John MacArthur and Steve Lawson [...]

Posted in Doctrine, Theology No Comments »

Lately I have been doing a considerable amount of study on Christ’s atonement and related doctrines like justification by faith. I have been reading through several wonderful books that I would like to make you aware of.
One such book is The Great Exchange by Jerry Bridges and Bob Bevington. The Great Exchange is an [...]

Posted in Doctrine, Justification No Comments »

The audio and manuscript (and now video) are posted of John Piper’s lecture last night at the Evangelical Theological Society in San Diego.
Opening the session, John Piper says:
. . . the truth of justification has become increasingly embattled, so that the truth as I see in the New Testament is increasingly confused [...]

Posted in Desiring God, Doctrine, Gospel, John Piper, Justification 1 Comment »

For those that might wonder what we believe, I have added a Statement of Faith page to the blog.
You can click here to read it.

Posted in Doctrine No Comments »

Mohler writes:
The 20th century witnessed an increasingly energetic revolt against doctrine. A denial of specific formulations of classical Christian doctrine has been evident in some quarters, while others have rejected the very notion of doctrine itself.
Doctrine has even fallen on hard times even among those who call themselves evangelicals. Some evangelical historians now argue that [...]

Posted in Albert Mohler, Doctrine No Comments »

Helping People Have the Assurance of Salvation — April 5, 1999 — John Piper (Online Source)

FULL ASSURANCE IS GOD’S WILL FOR US. “And we desire that each one of you show the same diligence so as to realize the full assurance of hope until the end.” Hebrews 6:11
ASSURANCE IS PARTIALLY SUSTAINED BY OBJECTIVE EVIDENCES FOR [...]

Posted in Assurance, Bible, Biblical Theology, Desiring God, Doctrine, John Piper, Justification, Salvation No Comments »

From Symphony of Scripture:
Transubstantiation is derived from the Latin term tansubsubstaniato, meaning ”change of substance”. This term was incorporated into the creed of the Forth Latern Council in A.D. 1215
Transubstantiation is defined by the Roman Catholic Church’s Council of Trent as follows: “By the consecration of the bread and wine, a conversion (or change) is [...]

Posted in Apologetics, Bible, Catholicism, Church Fathers, Church History, Church Life, Controversy, David E Lister, Division, Doctrine, Roman Catholicism, Transubstantiation No Comments »

A good friend shares this commentary on Doctrine in Music
Lately, I’ve had things on my mind (about the spiritual decline of churches in America) that have really been bugging me. The discussion of spiritual decline could lead into many areas of contemporary churches, but in this particular article, I’ll be dealing mostly with worship songs, [...]

Posted in Doctrine, Music 3 Comments »

Greg Gilbert from 9Marks shares his assessment of Brian McLaren.
Read the article here.

Posted in 9Marks, Brian McLaren, Doctrine, Emergent, Emergent Church, False Doctrine No Comments »

Lane Palmer, a youth ministry specialist with Dare2Share, appears to be a fan of Harry Potter.
From The Christian Post we read these words from Palmer:
Are you just a little bit sad? Harry Potter and the Deathly Hallows is out, and it really is the end of an era. If you’re one of the 325 million [...]

Posted in Bible, Dare2Share, Doctrine, Evangelism, Harry Potter No Comments »

Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, from his exposition of Ephesians 2, discusses false evangelism.
The trouble with all false evangelism is that it does not start with doctrine, it does not start by realizing man’s condition. All fleshly, carnal, man-made evangelism is the result of inadequate understanding of what the apostle teaches us in the first ten verses [...]

Posted in Doctrine, Evangelism No Comments »

Chris Rosebrough at Extreme Theology gives us insight into Rick Warren’s constant practice of taking scripture out of context.
Those of you familiar with Rick Warren’s writings are aware that this man is a scripture twister. He constantly rips passages out of context, exegetes bad paraphrases and generally proof texts his own ‘made up’ doctrines.
Read the [...]

Posted in Bible, Doctrine, Error, Rick Warren No Comments »

In 2003, Desiring God held their first National Conference. Here are the audio files from that conference.
Audio File 01: A Divine and Supernatural Light Immediately Imparted to the Soul by the Spirit of God
Audio File 02: A God-Entranced Vision of All Things: Why We Need Jonathan Edwards 300 Years Later
Audio File 03: Sarah Edwards: Jonathan’s [...]

Posted in Church History, Church Life, Doctrine, John Piper No Comments »

Read here this unbelievable heresy from the now deceased Catholic theologian Henri Nouwen.
Today I personally believe that while Jesus came to open the door to God’s house, all human beings can walk through that door, whether they know about Jesus or not. Today I see it as my call to help every person claim his [...]

Posted in Apostacy, Billy Graham, Catholicism, Discernment, Doctrine, Ecumenism, False Doctrine, Henri Nouwen 6 Comments »

From an article entitled ‘Ragamuffin‘ in Christianity today, find these excerpts:
The first time the late singer-songwriter Rich Mullins heard former Franciscan priest Brennan Manning on tape as he drove through the edge of the Flint Hills in Kansas, his eyes filled with tears. He steered the truck to the side of the road. There, as [...]

Posted in Brennan Manning, Catholicism, Dallas Willard, Doctrine, Michael W. Smith, Mysticism, Rich Mullins 4 Comments »

OnePlace.com - Justification by Faith

To print: Click here or Select File and then Print from your browser’s menu

Justification by Faith
by: John MacArthur

The Reformation doctrine of justification by faith is, and has always been, the number one target of the enemy’s attack. It provides the foundation of the bridge that reconciles God and man-without that key [...]

Posted in Apostacy, Bible, Catholicism, Church History, Doctrine, John MacArthur No Comments »

As you read this story keep in mind I teach my kids theology directly from the Word of God and they love it. They don’t even know what the word relevant means or who the Simpsons are. The Church is in a sad state of affairs when the leader of a major denomination actually likes [...]

Posted in Church Life, Church of England, Doctrine, False Doctrine, Modern Church, Modern Gospel, New Evangelicalism, News, Simpsons, TV 2 Comments »

Watch an excerpt of Piper protesting the prosperity gospel and exulting in God, whose glory shines in suffering.

The audio in this clip is from the message “Where Is God? (UCF).“

Posted in Doctrine, Modern Gospel No Comments »

Listen and decide for yourself. I think R.C. Sproul has gone to far here.
The following audio is a 7 minute audio excerpt from R.C. Sproul’s teaching entitled “Who is Truth?“. It’s part of his series called a Blueprint for Thinking.
I suppose if you are not of the “Reformed Theology” perspective you are a Pharisee.
powered by [...]

Posted in Doctrine, Theology 20 Comments »

Book Warning: ‘Handbook of Christian Apologetics‘ — Not what you may think.
The book, ‘Handbook of Christian Apologetics’ is said to categorize and summarize all major arguments for all the major Christian teachings. But be warned, this book is authored by two very dedicated Roman Catholics (Peter Kreeft & Ronald K. Tacelli). Of special interest [...]

Posted in Books, Catholicism, Doctrine, Ecumenism No Comments »

From Watcher’s Lamp:
Families across the country will celebrate their children’s graduations from high school and college. As a father of a graduating senior, I look back and am amazed at where the time has gone, and how fast it goes.
My daughter has attended school under the threat of the Beltway Sniper, suffered through the loss [...]

Posted in Church Life, Doctrine, Modern Church, New Evangelicalism 1 Comment »

Please follow with us as we expose just a small sampling of the infiltration of Roman Catholicism into the ‘Evangelical’ world.
When leading Lutheran theologian Richard John Neuhaus converted to Catholicism in 1990 the move sent shock waves through Lutheran circles in the United States because of his prominence in that Church. Neuhaus was ordained a [...]

Posted in Catholicism, Chuck Colson, Discernment, Doctrine, Evangelism, God's Word, Missions 96 Comments »

In this article, Alan Keyes provides a thought provoking perspective on the recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling in Gonzales v. Carhart. Things are not as they may seem according to Keyes. Read the article and come to your own conclusion.
Disclaimer: As I understand it, Keyes is a Roman Catholic. With that in mind, take what [...]

Posted in Abortion, Catholicism, Doctrine, News No Comments »

A Treatise Concerning Religious Affections stands as Edwards’s most penetrating interpretation of the awakenings of his time, not to mention one of the most penetrating of any time. As in Some Thoughts, he argued against the extremes of emotionalism on the one hand and intellectualism on the other. Affections were essential to true religion, but [...]

Posted in Bible, Church History, Doctrine, Jonathan Edwards, Preaching No Comments »

I found myself this past Sunday listening to my pastor, from the pulpit, saying that he had several ‘on fire’ Catholic ‘Christian’ friends. He went on to say that his friends felt called to the Catholic Church. Consider the following portion of scripture for a clear understanding of how we are to live:2 Corinthians 6:14-17 [...]

Posted in Catholicism, Discernment, Doctrine, Evangelism, God's Word 1 Comment »

Google Video Link Here
HT: Ben Davis, Symphony of Scripture
At Symphony of Scripture, Ben Davis has taken the time to provide some great notes to go along with this video. Enjoy.

Posted in Bible, Books, Catholicism, Church History, Cults, Discernment, Discipleship, Doctrine, Emergent, Evangelism, Preaching, Purpose Driven, Revival, Rick Warren, Theology No Comments »

Do you know for sure if a pastor, evangelist or TV preacher’s teaching is biblical? How do you measure the fruit of his ministry - by the number of decisions for Christ he generates? This CrossTV.com clip will help you judge the preaching and teaching at your church, comparing it with the bible.

Posted in Bible, Discernment, Doctrine, God's Word No Comments »