Archive for March 2014
Set Your Mind on Things Above
John Owen is well known for his thoughts on overcoming temptation and communion with God. He was a precise observant of the soul of man and how we are to live before God in upright relationship. The following passage from Owen reminds me of Colossians 3:1-3, a passage that we would do well to meditate…
Read MoreCredo’s Cache
Each week we will be highlighting important resources. Check back each Friday to see what we have dug up for you. From this week’s cache: 1. Why Is This Issue Different?: By Kevin DeYoung – DeYoung notes: “In short, those who pervert the grace of God into a license for sensuality are false teachers who do not…
Read MoreChrist and Culture: An Interview with Greg Forster (by Matthew Claridge)
Is Christ with, for, or against culture? Whatever the answer, we cannot be content with an ambiguous “and.” This is an issue of increasing concern and urgency to evangelicals as they watch whatever common ground they assumed was in place in American culture swiftly eroding under their feet. Yet it is in these times of…
Read MoreIs justification by faith alone still the dividing line? (Horton, Ryken, Vickers, etc.)
In the recent issue of Credo Magazine, “Justification: The Doctrine On Which the Church Stands or Falls,” one of the feature articles was a roundtable discussion called, “Is justification by faith alone still the dividing line?” In this article executive editor, Matthew Barrett talks to Michael Horton, Brian Vickers, J.V. Fesko, Guy Waters, Korey Maas,…
Read MoreBooks At a Glance
Fred Zaspel has been a contributor to Credo Magazine since its inception. So we were very excited when he told us about a new service he is providing called Books At a Glance. Here is what Books At a Glance is all about: Why didn’t someone think of this sooner? If you love books, your greatest frustration…
Read MoreOvercoming the World (Video now available)
Ligonier Ministries recently had their National conference, inviting some outstanding speakers. This year’s theme was “Overcoming the World.” Here is the description: As has been true in every generation, the church today faces many challenges from the world. The intellectual and moral opposition that we face can seem overwhelming at times, which is why we…
Read MoreTime to be Alone, Time for Community
Last semester I had my students read Life Together, by Dietrich Bonhoeffer for a class on spiritual formation. This work gives practical advice on how life together in Christ can be sustained in families and Christian communities, even in times of persecution. The role of personal prayer, worship in common, everyday work, and Christian service is addressed.…
Read MoreBarrett’s Book Notes: Stephen Nichols and W. Robert Godfrey
This week it was announced that Steve Nichols will be the new president of Reformation Bible College and the chief academic officer of Ligonier Ministries. We would like to extend our congratulations to Nichols who is an outstanding scholar, teacher, and writer. One of the things Nichols does so well is bring church history to…
Read MoreCredo’s Cache
Each week we will be highlighting important resources. Check back each Friday to see what we have dug up for you. From this week’s cache: 1. The New Calvinism: A Triumph of the Old: By Rick Phillips – Phillips notes: “Old Calvinists should look on the New as a signal advance achieved by the labors of our own…
Read MoreOn Helm’s Review of Oliphint (Nate Shannon)
Editor’s note: On the Credo Magazine blog we like to have a mix of lay-level posts as well as more advanced academic posts. We also like to have good interaction and thoughtful debate between thinkers. Paul Helm recently wrote a piece called, “Eternal God and God in Time,” in which he gave a critique of…
Read MoreJustification by Faith: The Preachers Life Preserver (David Schrock)
Preaching is serious business. And preachers should feel the weight of rightly declaring God’s gospel. Yet, such a serious calling exposes preachers to what Spurgeon called “fainting fits.” When the harvest is plentiful, pride is the preacher’s temptation, but when the response is lean, despair hangs in the air. With such threats, what will preserve…
Read MorePrizing Christ Above All
I had the privilege recently of attending a conference called THINK14 at College Park Church in Indianapolis, where John Piper was the keynote speaker. In four sessions Piper walked through the book of Philippians in a fashion that was exegetically rich and eminently applicable to life. I was most captured in his thoughts on chapter 3,…
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