Maundy Thursday is the traditional English name for the Thursday preceding Easter. The name derives from the Latin version of Jesus’ words in John 13:34: mandatum novum do vobis ut diligatis invicem sicut dilexi vos ut et vos diligatis invicem, “A new command I give you: love one another as I love you, you love one another.” The “new command” is a “new mandate,” thus Maundy Thursday. Jesus exemplifies this new command in his humble act of washing the disciples’ feet (John 13:5). Jesus issues the “new command” on the same day as the first Lord’s Supper. Thus Maundy Thursday has come to be a commemorative celebration of the institution…
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“Hate Group” Report from SPLC Still Malignantly Flawed
The Southern Poverty Law Center (SPLC) has released its annual “Year in Hate and Extremism” report that identifies “940 active hate groups across the United States in 2019.” Anyone familiar with this list knows how malignantly flawed it is. It designates a number of mainstream Christian organizations as “hate groups” simply because of their beliefs about homosexuality and transgenderism. Two groups highlighted in the report are the Alliance Defending Freedom (ADF) and the Family Research Council (FRC). ADF’s senior counsel, Jeremy Tedesco, slammed the report and its timing in an interview with NBC News saying,
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Nashville Studio Singers Record “It Is Well” with Their Phones
Isn’t it astonishing that, the worse things get, the more Christians sing? The video above was released yesterday by a group of Nashville Studio musicians called the Ten Two Six Music Group. Incredibly, they recorded this on their phones! I was delighted to see an old college friend of mine in this one. His name is Jason Barton, and among other things he sings with Amy Grant as well as his own band 33 Miles. So to Jason: Salute, brother! Here’s the full story on the song as it was reported by the NBC affiliate in Nashville:
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Be Ye Glad
If life as God intended it is anything, it is a fight for joy. Especially in moments like the one we are in now. Praise God that Christianity is a singing religion. The Lord really does wish for us to have a deep and abiding joy in him, and he often sustains us in joy through our songs: “Let the word of Christ richly dwell within you, with all wisdom teaching and admonishing one another with psalms and hymns and spiritual songs, singing with thankfulness in your hearts to God.” –Colossians 3:16 In my sermon last Sunday, I told the story of a time in my own life when the…
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Comfort for the Afflicted: God’s People and the Coronavirus
Our church still isn’t gathering on Sunday morning, but we are gathering around our scattered screens to sing and to pray and to hear a message from God’s word. Yesterday, I delivered a message about finding comfort in the midst of affliction. The text is 2 Corinthians 1:1-7, and you can download it here or listen below. Below the audio is an excerpt: ————— Many of you have been experiencing fear and dread at the possibility of contracting COVID-19, of being hospitalized, perhaps even of dying. Some of you are fearful about elderly family members or other loved ones with compromised immune systems. But even if you aren’t afraid of…
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Banished from the public means of grace
Our church was scattered by the coronavirus this morning. We did not gather together as usual at the intersection of Southern Parkway and Third Street. No, today we were spread out all over the city of Louisville and beyond. Our college students were literally scattered across North America as many of them were compelled to go back to their hometowns after colleges and universities closed last week. Our church’s missionaries remain scattered all over the world. None of us could be together this morning. If you know what it means to be the ekklesia of God, your heart ached like mine did. For this is not how it is supposed…
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Battling the Coronavirus Panic
Our nation is facing a real challenge right now, and it is a real gut-check for Christians. Will we trust in Christ, suffer faithfully, show compassion, and bear witness? Or will we get swept away by the panic that seems to be unfolding in some places? I want to be clear about what I mean. I am not winding up to rebuke those who are taking seriously the novel coronavirus and who are being vigilant to do all they can to stop the spread and to encourage others to do the same. This is not a drill. It’s real. We all need to be vigilant. And we need to take…
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Mama Xue: The woman from Wuhan who received Christ on her deathbed
“Zhang Ru Zhen, affectionately known as Mama Xue, was the first novel coronavirus casualty in Sichuan province. Before the 80-year-old took her last breath on January 29, Pastor Peng Qiang of Chengdu’s Blessings Reformed Presbyterian Church was able to share the gospel with her. The following is an excerpt of Pastor Peng Qiang’s message at a special memorial service for Mama Xue and is reproduced from their church’s WeChat account. Her son’s eulogy has also been published on our site.” Continue Reading…
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Pulling the lever for pro-abortion candidates is no option for prolifers
It seems to me that Michael Gerson has almost entirely misread the argument that Andrew Walker makes in a recent National Review column. Gerson writes: “Walker is making the following claim: If you think abortion is a matter of life or death, then you must support whoever opposes it most vigorously, even if he or she is an immoral lout.” Walker actually makes no such claim anywhere in his article. Walker is not offering an argument for voting for Trump. He’s offering a defense of religious pro-life voters who plan to vote for Trump. Walker defends them because Trump-opponents like Gerson are often treating all Trump voters as if they…
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What does it mean to “act like a man” in 1 Corinthians 16:13?
I’ve been preaching through 1 Corinthians at our church for the last couple years, and in my most recent message we came to a little phrase in 1 Corinthians 16:13 that has become a stumbling block for some readers. The underlying Greek verb (andrizesthei) is rendered variously as “act like men” (ESV, NASB; cf. CSB, KJV) or “be courageous” (NIV, NRSV, NLT). Some of those who favor “act like men” understand the text as a call to manhood. Others dismiss that interpretation by noting that the command is addressed to both men and women. For my part, I think either translation is fine. Both of them are actually capturing something…
