Eternal | TLG Christian News

Daily Prayer for February 5

05/02/2017 0 Comment

I will praise you, O Lord, with all my heart; I will tell of all your wonders. I will be glad and rejoice in you; I will sing praise to your name, O Most High. Psalm 9:1–2, NIV Lord our God, keep us in your Spirit. Surround us with your protection, so that in body and soul we may praise your might and be joyful even in a world full of evil. Shine into our hearts, that we may discern what is right and good and eternal. May you do more than we can ask or understand for those who still walk in dark..

God Hates Evil Thoughts

04/02/2017 0 Comment

We are more than our thoughts and more than our desires, but we are certainly not less. What fills our minds and forms our dreams tells us who we really are, what we really long for, whom we really serve. Evil thoughts and evil desires reveal a deep captivity to sin and evil. This should concern us, for God assures us he has a deep loathing for evil thoughts. He has a deep loathing for those who think evil thoughts. We have already seen that God hates idolatry, sexual immorality, injustice, hypo..

The Importance of Theology

04/02/2017 0 Comment

“Systematic theology thus contemplates the body of biblical teaching as a living organism, offering loving attention to its various members and tracing their organic relations to each another. Ultimately, systematic theology helps us better understand God and all things in relation to God.”

“Systematic theology” is a label with admittedly clinical connotations. It conjures a picture of the theologian as someone who takes in hand the living Word of God only to dissect and dismember the body of b..

Tiny Gospel: A Sampler

03/02/2017 0 Comment

By John Frye
In my past spiritual formation and in my current neck of the woods, the gospel was and is reduced to “Jesus died for your sins, simply receive him, and you’ll be forgiven and go to heaven when you die.” All these things are true, but none of them are the gospel as defined by Paul (1 Corinthians 15:1-8) and by the gospel sermons preached by Peter and Paul in the Book of Acts.
Let me rehearse for you the tiny gospel I received and passed on to others. You might conclude I’ve exaggerat..

5 Confessions of a “Failed” Church Planter

02/02/2017 0 Comment

I’ve planted several churches and I know how hard it can be. I’ve never “closed” a plant, but I’ve sat with several others that have. It is painful– but sometimes it is helpful.

I think that doing an “autopsy” is a helpful part of the learning experience, and something which is not done often enough. Here is one such reflection from John Thomas, a former planter.

As an aside, one of the more fascinating documents we references in Viral Churches was an autopsy report by Todd Hunter. At the time..

Thought for the evening of Thu February 2, 2017

02/02/2017 0 Comment

Verse”And these are ancient things.” — 1ch 4:22
ThoughtYet not so ancient as those precious things which are the delight of our souls. Let us for a moment recount them, telling them over as misers count their gold. The sovereign choice of the Father, by which he elected us unto eternal life, or ever the earth was, is a matter of vast antiquity, since no date can be conceived for it by the mind of man. We were chosen from before the foundations of the world. Everlasting love went with the choice,..

Final Call (February 1)

01/02/2017 0 Comment

Welcome to Final Call, a brief, hand-picked selection of news, articles, videos, and curiosities from the Internet and beyond.

Second Opinion
I recently reviewed Greg Koukl’s book The Story of Reality. So, too, did David Steele, whose reviews I always enjoy. Here is what he says about it: “The Story of Reality is a very important book. This book should be devoured again and again by Christian people. And this book should be gifted to people who have yet embraced the Story. Koukl writes with an ..

What Should You Look For In A Church?

01/02/2017 0 Comment

What characteristics should you look for in a biblically solid church?
Expositional PreachingIf you are at a church that does not preach from the Word of God, then you are at nothing more than a social gathering like a country club, because if they are not preaching the Word, they are not feeding the flock, and they are being disobedient to Christ’s commands to feed His sheep (John 21:17). The Apostle Paul tells Timothy to “preach the word; be ready in season and out of season; reprove, rebuke, ..

Good Jurors Make Good Christian Case Makers

01/02/2017 0 Comment

When picking a jury for a homicide trial, it’s important to try to pick folks who will fairly examine the evidence without a pre-existing emotional or volitional bias. Good jurors are able to set aside their partialities and presuppositions in order to evaluate the evidence fairly. There’s a strong parallel between the characteristics of a good juror and the characteristics of a Good Christian Case Maker (I’ve written much more about this in my book). Let me tell you what I look for in a juror, ..

A Few Observations From My Recent Time in the Pit

01/02/2017 0 Comment

The Spirit used these words to draw me to Zephaniah 3:17 and Psalm 103. Places that have been a life line for me time and time again. And again I noticed in Psalm 103 how God’s love for me, His dealings with me, is not fundamentally determined by my performance but by His settled decision to cast unremitting and eternal love upon me. That’ll blew me away. And the clouds started to lift.

After a few weeks of pretty deep depression I’m beginning to see the light again. I’m still not totally sure ..