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Matthew 5
So here I am happily blogging along in that off-hand seat-of-the-pants spur-of-the-moment way that we bloggers often do--and then I come to Matthew 5, for crying out loud. The so-called "sermon on the...
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8 Characteristics of Salt-and-Light Living
Matthew 5:13-14 (you are the salt of the earth . . . you are the light of the world) is a passage usually spoken of in connection with the subject of evangelism. We are salt and light by being bold...
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The Gospel in the Gospel According to Matthew
In chapters 5-7 we have an example of Jesus' preaching, perhaps the supreme example in all the Gospels. And the truth is, it's not exactly what we might have expected. I mean, hadn't John recognized...
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Matthew 9: Harvesting Sinners
So I'm traipsing through Matthew, trying to catch the arc of the story and not get too wrapped up in the details. This is for my own sake, and no one else's. That is, I've got nothing particularly...
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Further Notes on Matthew: Chapter 10
Jesus has been performing many miracles of healing, but in chapter 9 he begins to run into resistance from the religious authorities. Why? Because he has claimed the authority to forgive sin. In fact,...
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On Cross-less Preaching
I have had several discussions lately about the need for the Cross of Christ and the fact of its atoning and redemptive purpose to be central to everything that goes on in church. A lot of people don't...
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Notes on Matthew 11
The point of this exercise--blogging through Matthew--is simply to put into writing the thoughts and impressions that "rise to the surface" as I read through the Gospel of Matthew. It is not to “study”...
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Matthew 12: Intensification
In Matthew 12 Jesus repeats and broadens his claims about himself, and as a result the enmity of the Pharisees is stirred to action. Their conflict with Jesus is not merely a philosophical one. They...
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Feeling Fluxish
So, here's the story, as of this moment. My job will be requiring me to go to work somewhat earlier now than in the past, so I don't think I'll have the time for morning blogging after this week. And I...
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Update
No, g&h is not dead, only slightly sleepy. I do want you to know that I've been trying the new Blogger beta and it is a vast . . . and I mean VAST . . . improvement. I mentioned in my last post...
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Quotatious
We--or at least I--shall not be able to adore God on the highest occasions if we have learned no habit of doing so on the lowest. At best, our faith and reason will tell us that He is adorable, but we...
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Carson on Passion
I'm about a year and a half through D. A. Carson's two part devotional, For the Love of God [Volume 1, Volume 2], and I continue to be amazed, challenged and consoled by its wisdom. From this morning's...
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The Foolishness of God
"We are fools for Christ’s sake," Paul says in the first letter to the Corinthians. God is foolish, too, Paul says. God is foolish to choose for his holy work in the world the kind of lamebrains and...
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A Forlorn Hope?
Over at Mark Dever's 9Marks website there's a lot of discussion about things "emergent." At this page several theologians are asked, "What do you hope will ultimately emerge from the emerging church...
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What's of First Importance?
It’s not easy being mildly unhappy in one’s church. You wonder if it’s just you, and not the church. You wonder if you’re not making mountains out of doctrinal mole hills. After all, the people are...
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Who's the point?
Jared at Shizuka Blog is sayin' it!We have not done a great job at making Jesus the point of the enterprise of faith. Hmmm, could that be the most overlooked elephant-in-the-corner in the history of...
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Here's what I think . . .
Well, if you want to know what I think, you should carefully read this post from the Imonk. I mean, he says it so welll, that I want to print out this post and hand it to everyone I know, saying,...
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The Gospel, Not Happy-Talk
Mark Lauterbach's GospelDrivenLife is one of the most consistently valuable personal weblogs in the Christian Blogosphere. Lately Mark has been running a series called "What hill to die on?" Especially...
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Marriage and the Atonement
Update on the recent church dissatisfaction post: some Sundays are more devoid of the Gospel than others, and I'm happy to report that this past Sunday was somewhat better than usual. The worship was...
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Retreating!
I'm off to a men's retreat for the next couple of days. Hanging around with about 60 guys in the woods. Ergo, I won't be roundabout till Saturday evening. I've had great times at these in the past, and...
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Update
Well, I had a great time at the Men's Retreat. Mostly because the setting was so dang pretty. I did a lot of walking in the woods alone, kayaking, swimming, and hiking with friends. These things made...
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Willard Alert!
Dallas Willard's new book is entitled The Great Omission. It sounds to me a little like a rehash of his earlier work, but I'm sure it will contain much Willardian wisdom. I found out about this book...
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Storms on Christian Superstars
Sam Storms has been working his way through Colossians in a running online commentary, and he has reached the letter's closing verses (Col. 4.7-17). Check out this opening to his latest post:here's a...
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Onward Sidewise: Musing about a Blogging Change
Well, it certainly has been hard for me to keep at this blogging thing lately. This has been the first unplanned extended gap in my blogging since I began 3 years ago. But it's good to remember that,...
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Closing Shop
Gee, I think I'm going to do it. Close down Gratitude & Hoopla. As a more than a few people have now and then noticed throughout the centuries, "all things must pass." The time seems to have come...
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