POLYGAMY

My good friend and blogging giant JT posts a very helpful article by Andreas Kostenberger about the biblical support against polygamy. Click here to read it.

THE SPORTS GUY

Bill Simmons lists several reasons why he likes sports. Good stuff!

KOBE OR LEBRON?

The Washington Post's Michael Wilbon weighs in. Read here.

THE FOOLISHNESS OF THE CROSS

Dr. Albert Mohler wraps up his 3 part commentary on the Foolishness of the Cross.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

We may not know, we cannot tell,
What pains he had to bear;
But we believe it was for us
He hung and suffered there.

There is a Green Hill Far Away - Cecil Frances Alexander

UNITED 93

David Beamer, father of Todd Beamer, reviews the movie United 93.

PARENTING

Dr. Gary Smalley lists 84 Ways Parents Can Offend Their Children

CHINA

Dr. Albert Mohler describes the result of China's "One Child Only" policy.... 40 million bachelors. Read the whole thing here.

NFL DRAFT

This weekend is the NFL draft. The Washington Post's Michael Wilbon is not a big fan of the draft. He makes some interesting observations.

I think it should be illegal to write any article on the draft without mentioning Demitrius Underwood.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

'Twas I that shed the sacred blood;
I nailed him to the tree;
I crucified the Christ of God;
I joined the mockery.

Of all that shouting multitude
I feel that I am one;
And in that din of voices rude
I recognize my own.

Around the cross the throng I see,
Mocking the Sufferer's groan;
Yet still my voice it seems to be,
As if I mocked alone.

Horatius Bonar

MONEY

Pastor John MacArthur writes

I believe one reason so many Christians in America are apathetic is they don’t really believe they need God. They have replaced Him with their estate planner and retirement fund. I’m not implying we should ignore planning for the future and, in effect, presume on God. But when you cling to your possessions and live in fear of not having them, you ignore the Holy Spirit’s leading and put your confidence in your wealth instead of God.

To read more, click here

REDNECKS, TURNBUCKLES, AND THE LORD JESUS CHRIST

Christian wrestlers taking the good news of Jesus to rednecks. For more, read here.


(HT: Mark Driscoll)

THE FOOLISHNESS OF THE CROSS PART 2

Dr. Albert Mohler posts Part 2 of his series on the foolishness of the cross.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

As we face the cross, then, we can say to ourselves both 'I did it, my sins sent him there' and 'he did it, his love took him there'.

For the cross which, as we have particularly considered in this chapter, is an exposure of human evil, is at the same time a revelation of the divine purpose to overcome the human evil thus exposed.

John Stott The Cross of Christ

WHY DID CHRIST DIE?

John Stott asks the question who was responsible for Christ's death in his book The Cross of Christ. His answer.
1. Judas because of greed.
2. The Jewish priests because of envy.
3. Pontius Pilate because of cowardice.
4. You and I because of our sins.
5. Christ died because he gave himself up voluntarily to do his Father's will.

PREPARING FOR WORSHIP

How should Christians prepare for Sunday worship? Pastor John Piper offers ten practical suggestions. Read them here.

THE SPORTS GUY

For those of you who are new to the brilliance of The Sports Guy, here is a great way to catch up.

MORE HERNANDEZ

No wonder Elaine dumped this pig.

QUOTE OF THE DAY

Envy is the reverse side of a coin called vanity. Nobody is ever envious of others who is not first proud of himself.

Before we can begin to see the cross as something done for us (leading us to faith and worship), we have to see it as something done by us (leading us to repentance).

John Stott The Cross of Christ


... only the man who is prepared to own his share in the guilt of the cross may claim his share in its grace.
Peter Green Watchers by the Cross

WHO DOES THIS GUY THINK HE IS?

Keith Hernandez? I think it was actually Roger McDowell who said it.

THE FOOLISHNESS OF THE CROSS

Dr. Albert Mohler writes on the foolishness of the cross.

CHRISTIAN MUSIC INDUSTRY

My "music guy" Vitamin Z, who works in the Christian music industry, raises some interesting questions about the industry.
1. What sort of accountability should exist within the industry?
2. Should Christianity have an entertainment industry at all?
3. Is it possible for Christian bands to be funded, housed and launched from the local church?

Read the whole thing here.

GAS PRICES

Here is an interesting website that tracks the price of a gallon of gas for every county in the United States.

(HT: Sign salesmen)

BASEBALL

Boston Globe columnist Bob Ryan writes on the vast changes in baseball over the last 100 years.

PARENTING RESOURCES

To see a list of resources recommended by the folks at Covenant Life Church, click here.

READING THE OLD TESTAMENT

Matt Harmon at Biblical Theology suggests
"if we read the OT without attempting to understand how that particular passage in some fashion points forward to Christ and the gospel, we are not reading the OT in the way that Jesus commands us to"

To read the whole thing, click here

SPURGEON AND DYING

Mark Dever posts an excellent Spurgeon quote on the Together for the Gospel blog.

MUSIC

I will be the first to admit I know almost nothing about music and spend little time listening to music. However, my man the Redhead Kingpin is my go-to guy when it comes to music. His blog http://takeyourvitaminz.blogspot.com/ has two new posts worth reading. One on Delirious' new record and the other on a must hear song from Nickel Creek. Vitamin Z's blog is a great one to bookmark.

MINOR LEAGUE BASEBALL

You've got to love some of the crazy ideas minor league baseball comes up with to get people to come to their games. Apparently they are not making enough money on their sign sales, right Ellis?

Return to Glory

One of my true passions (obsessions) is Notre Dame football. Looks like more good news out of South Bend. Charlie Weis for President in '08 after he wins ND a couple National Titles? Just a thought.

Doctrinal Maturity

A great word from John Piper on the importance of doctrinal maturity...

Paul said in 1 Corinthians 14:20, "Brethren, do not be children in your thinking; be babes in evil but in thinking be mature." ... Clear doctrine requires thought, and thought is seen to be the enemy of feeling, so it is resisted. There is the widespread sense that the Holy Spirit will guard the church from all error and so rigorous study and thought about the gospel are felt to be not only a threat to joy but a failure of faith. The result over a generation is the emergence of a people whose understanding of Biblical teaching is so hazy and imprecise that they are sitting ducks for the Galatians heresy. It arises right in their midst. Paul said to the elders of Ephesus in Acts 20:30, "From among your own selves will arise men speaking distorted things to draw away the disciples after them" He says in verse 27 that he has done his part to prepare them by "declaring the whole counsel of God."

MORE THOUGHTS ON THE CROSS

Below are several quotes on the centrality and uniqueness of the Cross taken from John Stott's The Cross of Christ

"Christ is to us just what his cross is. All that Christ was in heaven or on earth was put into what he did there... Christ, I repeat, is to us just what his cross is. You do not understand Christ till you understand his cross."

P.T. Forsyth The Cruciality of the Cross

"On this interpretation of the work of Christ (sc. the Pauline doctrine of reconciliation) the whole Church rests. If you move faith from that centre, you have driven the nail into the Church's coffin. The Church is then doomed to death, and it is only a matter of time when she shall expire."

P.T. Forsyth The Work of Christ

"In Christianity faith in the Mediator is not something optional, not something about which, in the last resort, it is possible to hold different opinions, if we are only united on the 'main point'. For faith in the Mediator - in the event which took place once for all, a revealed atonement - is the Christian religion itself; it is the 'main point'; it is not something alongside of the centre; it is the substance and kernel, not the husk. This is so true that we may even say: in the distinction from all other forms of religion, the Christian religion is faith in the one Mediator... And there, is no other possibility of being a Christian than through faith in that which took place once for all, revelation and atonement through the Mediator.

The Cross is the sign of the Christian faith, of the Christian Church, of the revelation of God in Jesus Christ... The whole struggle of the Reformation for the sola fide, the soli deo gloria, was simply the struggle for the right interpretation of the Cross. He who understands the Cross aright - this is the opinion of the Reformers - understands the Bible, he understands Jesus Christ."

Emil Brunner The Mediator

The Cross

"If the Cross of Christ is anything to the mind, it is surely everything -- the most profound reality and the sublimest mystery. One comes to realize that literally all the wealth and glory of the gospel centres here. The Cross is the pivot as well as the centre of New Testament thought. It is the exclusive mark of the Christian faith, the symbol of Christianity and its cynosure.
The more unbelievers deny its crucial character, the more do believers find in it the key to the mysteries of sin and suffering...... We find that, although the offence of the Cross remains, its magnetic power is irresistible."
Glory of the Cross by Samuel M. Zwemer quoted by John Stott in The Cross of Christ

THE DANGER OF BLOGS

Being so new to blogging, I found this article by Danniel Henninger to be thought provoking at the least.

LUST

Gary Smalley on the deceptiveness of lust....

"Lust makes us think that having some person we don't presently have would make us happier. Often that person is simply a figment of our imagination. Even if the person is real, we often attach character traits to him or her that are not real. Usually our lust focuses on sexual involvement. We imagine someone who is terribly fond of us and who prefers our presence and intimacy over anyone else's. We imagine that if we had such a person to hold in our arms, it would be exciting and wonderfully fulfilling. This is a terrible deception, for we forget or ignore the devastating consequences of living out our imaginations."

GOOD RESOURCE FOR FATHERS

For a couple years now, I have been receiving weekly e-mails from www.fathers.com
They typically cover issues relevant to fathers and always end with some good
Action Steps. I highly recommend signing up.

Finally some sports

I can't believe it took me almost a full day to post my 1st sports related article. Here is the latest column by one of America's funniest sports writers, Bill Simmons.

Take the train

I thought my 45 minute commute to work when I lived in Minneapolis was bad. Check out this guy who works in San Jose.

Reading and Studying

I promise this blog will not be dedicated entirely to worshiping CJ Mahaney! I enjoy his writing and preaching so much though that there will be a lot of it on here. Here is some great practical advice on how to develop a plan for reading and studying.

If you have not heard of it, here is a great blog where CJ, Mark Dever, Albert Mohler and Ligon Duncan post in preparation for their Together for the Gospel Conference in a couple weeks.

King Uzziah

Several months ago, I begin listening to sermons downloaded from the internet during my commute time to and from work. A practice that has blessed my soul a great deal and I highly recommend. Here is a talk delivered by Alistair Begg at the Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. The Scripture text is II Chronicles 26 and the subject is King Uzziah. May we pray ernestly for God to carry us to the end!

Note: The talk was given Tuesday March, 15, 2005.

I knew it!!!!

Forbes offers some good news for all us lazy guys out there?

True Greatness

Here is an excerpt from one of my favorite books, Humility: True Greatness, by one of my favorite pastors/authors, CJ Mahaney.

The Cross

The Cross is the blazing fire at which the flame of our love is kindled, but we have to get near enough for its sparks to fall on us.
John Stott