A Nice Update on an Old Discussion

What Is Love?

Here is Paul Tripp’s definition of love: “Love is willing self-sacrifice for the good of another that does not require reciprocation or that the person being loved is deserving” (What Did You Expect? p. 188).

In the following he unpacks the definition (pp. 188-189) one phrase at a time.

Jonah and Jesus

This is an encouraging word from Tim Keller. He compares Jesus and Jonah when each was caught in a storm at sea. His conclusion will bless:

Both Jesus and Jonah were in a boat, and both boats were overtaken by a storm—the descriptions of the storm are almost identical.

Both Jesus and Jonah were asleep.

In both stories the sailors woke up the sleeper and said, “We’re going to die.” (see the entire article here)

A Great Description of the Christian LIfe

I am not what I ought to be.
Ah! how imperfect and deficient.
Not what I might be,
considering my privileges and opportunities.
Not what I wish to be.
God, who knows my heart, knows I wish to be like him.
I am not what I hope to be;
ere long to drop this clay tabernacle, to be like him and see him as He is.
Not what I once was,
a child of sin, and slave of the devil.
Thought not all these,

not what I ought to be,
not what I might be,
not what I wish or hope to be, and
not what once was,

I think I can truly say with the apostle,

“By the grace of God I am what I am.”

—Cited in Letters of John Newton, p. 400.

The Love Chapter

Valentine's Day is getting closer. This is a nice graphic of the content of 1 Corinthians 13 - the Love Chapter of the Bible.

The Anti-Psalm

These are David Powlison’s reflections on Psalm 131. And as he teaches the Psalm, he re-writes it as the exact opposite—rather an interesting teaching technique. It speaks well to our spiritual condition.

So here are the familiar words of Psalm 131

O Lord, my heart is not lifted up;
my eyes are not raised too high;
I do not occupy myself with things
too great and too marvelous for me.
But I have calmed and quieted my soul,
like a weaned child with its mother;
like a weaned child is my soul within me.

O Israel, hope in the Lord
from this time forth and forevermore.

And here is Powlison’s anti-psalm:

Self,
My heart is proud
and my eyes are haughty
and I chase after things too great and too difficult for me.
So of course I’m noisy and restless inside; it comes naturally,
like a hungry infant fussing on his mother’s lap,
like a hungry infant, I’m restless with my demands and worries.
I scatter my hopes onto anything and everybody all the time.

What the Bible Really Says About Sex . . . Really?

Several people have commented to me about Newsweek magazine's article "What the Bible Really Says About Sex?" In this response, Al Mohler addresses the issues well.

Has the church misunderstood the Bible’s teachings on sexuality for over two thousand years? The current issue of Newsweek magazine reports on “new scholarship on the Good Book’s naughty bits” that is supposed to turn our understanding of the Bible’s teachings on sex upside down.

Lisa Miller, Newsweek’s religion editor, wrote the article entitled “What the Bible Really Says About Sex.” Well, the one thing you need to know up front is that the article falls far short of its title. Keep Reading

A Theology of Snow

After a long week of ice and snow, it might be good to consider what the Bible says about snow. Mel Lawrenz wrote an essay on "The Theology of Snow".

Fifty Fruits of Pride

Here is a self-diagnostic that ought to warn you of the seriousness of pride.