Neighbor Helps Rescue an Uncooperative Cat

A year or two ago my friend Linda's cat escaped. It was cold and rainy, and that cat would not come home. Not for three days! The cat wasn't exactly lost; ...

On Good Days and Bad, We Hope in Christ's Shed Blood

Do you ever have a day that runs something like this? You get up in the morning …. [and] you stub your toe on that nail sticking out of the wall ...

Tim Keller on Being "Middle-Class in Spirit"

Tim Keller offers the following definition for what Jesus meant by being "poor in spirit":

It means seeing that you are deeply in debt before God, and ...

Unlucky Lost Dog Loved by Its Owner

I saw a sign once that I love—a lost dog sign. There was a big cash reward for whoever found the lost dog, and a description of the dog. It said: ...

Many Christians Just "Play with the Box" of God's Gift

I gave birth to a son who just doesn't understand gifts. My wife and I would go out when he was a little guy to buy what we thought was the [perfect] ...

Two Phases of Gratitude for Our Salvation

Jared Wilson defines "gospel wakefulness" as treasuring Christ more greatly and savoring his power more sweetly. He illustrates with the following:

Imagine ...

The Litmus Test for Our Understanding of the Gospel

The litmus test of whether or not you understand the gospel is what you do when you fail. Do you run from God and go try to clean yourself up a bit before ...

Parents Pay Their Son's Debts and Credit His Account

Michael Horton uses the following story to illustrate how Christ has paid our debt of sin and credited us with his righteousness:

After my junior year ...

How Justification by Faith Transforms Lives and Communities

One day theologian Miroslav Volf was visiting a friend who pastors a church in Sandtown, a desperately poor and dangerous neighborhood in Baltimore. As ...

The Gospel Breaks Life's Old Foundations

"My hearing [the good news of Jesus] gave me a heart wound. By God's blessing, my old foundation was broken up, and I saw that my righteousness ...