Verse two of the Christmas Hymn, “What Child is This?” provides much to ponder this Christmas. Read these words slowly and carefully: Why lies he in such mean estate, where ox and ass are feeding? Good Christian, fear, for sinners here the silent Word is pleading Nails, spear, shall pierce him through, the cross be borne for me, for you Hail, hail the Word made flesh, the babe, the son of Mary. Why does the hymn writer include this line in a song celebrating the birth of Christ? Nails, spear, shall pierce him through, the cross be borne for me, for you What Child is this? He was a child born for the nails, the spear, the cross. These are […]
Gospel
350 posts
Christmas is all about the joy of true light. John’s gospel teaches us that Jesus is the light for all of humanity. Any goodness in people is a reflection of the true light of Christ. In him was life, and that life was the light of all mankind. The light shines in the darkness, and the darkness has not overcome it. There is no authentic light in this world but the light of Christ. Anything else that appears to be light is but a reflection of the light of Christ. This is just like the way that the moon or the planets have no light of their own – they only reflect the light of the sun. 2,000 years ago […]
The thirty-three years of the life of Jesus Christ on earth held little expectation that this man’s life would be the most significant life in all of history. His life ended in public disgrace and shame. His birth was that of a peasant and his death was that of a criminal. He was born in the company of animals in a stable. He died in the company of thieves on a cross stained with his blood. The political leaders of his country tried to murder him as a baby. But it was the supposed bible-believing religious leaders who finally succeeded where Herod had failed. His friends fled from him at his trial. His family fled to Egypt when he was […]
This is part two of a series of posts contrasting discipline with retribution. In the first post of the series, I highlighted this consideration: Biblical discipline must not be seen as payment for the sins for which the discipline was administered. Retribution is not the goal of biblical discipline! In response, the question many of you raised was, “How does this work itself out in everyday family life?” This post will begin to address that question. In the first post, we saw how Psalm 103 provides direction on how to address the sins of your children. David calls us to compassion with these words: The Lord is compassionate and gracious, slow to anger and abounding in faithful love. As a father […]
It would not be surprising for your children to ask, “Why is God allowing these terrible fires to hurt so many people and destroy their homes?” You may even be asking yourself that same question! Here are three possible attempts to understand these catastrophic fires ravaging California and God’s involvement in them. 1. The Fires are random circumstance The first way is to attribute the fires to a random collection of circumstances that sparked these fires and led to the awful results. In this construct, God had nothing to do with the fires and the destruction they caused. God’s role is one of consoler and comforter. We are left with God playing the role of a bystander observing the fires […]
The process of parental instruction is complete when the truth that is learned begins to protect, build up and encourage the children who receive it. Merely delivering instruction is not what is honoring to God or helpful to children Biblical instruction always has the goal blessing the one who receives it. This instruction is not primarily for the benefit of parents. Rather, the instruction parents give to children is to adorn them. In Proverbs 1:8-9, the Holy Spirit says how your words of direction should impact your children: My child, listen when your father corrects you. Don’t neglect your mother’s instruction. What you learn from them will crown you with grace and be a chain of honor around your neck. […]
The gospel is about grace; School is about performance. The gospel is about receiving compassion; School is about earning grades. The gospel is about resting in the power of Christ in failure; School is about trying to avoid the shame of failure. The gospel is about acceptance in Christ regardless of performance; School is about gaining acceptance because of performance. Skilled and caring teachers and parents will work hard to bridge the gap illustrated by these contrasts. However, it is important to grasp that children can easily think that performance is more important than the gospel. There is a biblical balance to be deployed when considering the tension between the gospel and performance. The balance is found in believing that […]
Parents, if your desire is to see your children’s hearts become responsive to the gospel, the place to start is with your own heart. There are 3 core heart-attitudes to cultivate that will help mold your heart to be God’s instrument for presenting Christ to your children. The first attitude is humility. Humility is the source of the power that you need to represent Christ well to your children. Humility means that you trust God and follow him. Pride means that you trust yourself and refuse to rely on God’s truth. When you don’t rely on God’s direction for parenting you become from friends with the world. In Chapter 4, James warns that this friendship makes you an enemy of […]
Parents, your authority is established by what you honor. What you honor, what you value is a window into who you are. And the people who are looking the most closely through that window are your children. What you value the most is shown most clearly by your actions and not your words. The thoughts of what you value most are more transparent than you realize. These hidden thoughts are a huge factor in establishing your authority as a parent. Why? Because being driven by what God says is good and righteous centers your thoughts and brings honor to God! But, if honoring God is not uppermost in your thoughts something else will be. It is this replacement that will […]
If your children frequently praise God for the events that happen each day, you can know that a good foundation for life is being built in their hearts. However, If you hear your children frequently complain or grumble, they are becoming a slave to their own desires. This means there is trouble ahead. Sin feeds on the demand for immediate happiness and gratification. That is why a child can go from seeming bliss to outrage in an eye blink. One moment everything is fine. Then he sees his brother with a toy that he wants and he erupts with a howl that sounds like he is being tortured. Why? Because he doesn’t have what he wants, what he thinks he […]