“Sin is what we do when you are not fully satisfied in God.” —John Piper, Future Grace, p. 9. “If we are not fulfilled and secure in God, we will inevitably seek other sources of happiness and security.” —Ken Sande, The Peacemaker: A Biblical Guide to Resolving Personal Conflict, p. 112. SHARETHIS.addEntry({ title: "Fully satisfied in God?", url: "http://www.deTheos.com/2008/03/24/fully-satisfied-in-god/" });

“Christianity alone among the world religions claims that God became uniquely and fully human in Jesus Christ and therefore knows firsthand despair, rejection, loneliness, poverty, bereavement, torture, and imprisonment. On the cross he went beyond even the worst human suffering and experienced cosmic rejection and pain that exceeds ours as infinitely as his knowledge and power exceeds ours. In his death, God suffers in love, identifying with the abandoned and godforsaken. Why did he do it? The Bible says that Jesus came on a rescue mission for creation. He had to pay for our sins so that someday...

Another semester has started at Multnomah, and Kari and I are stoked to be able to do this Spring term together. We share two courses on our schedules, one on Conflict Transformation, meeting at the end of the day on Mondays. The other one is Prayer, first thing Monday morning. We already sensed in the days leading up to classes that there had been a marked difference in our prayer life, a deeper love for God and sense of His listening to our prayers. I do not chiefly prayer because I am duty-bound (you must pray!), but more so because my heart and mind is in love with God. We could call this...

I recently began reading Overcoming Sin and Temptation, the updated and edited version of John Owen’s classic Of the Mortification of Sin in Believers (find it on CCEL here). This edited version is helpful, not just because of the updated language and comments, but also because it brings Owen to life for a new generation who need his influence, insight, theology and boldness. One may download the new book, Overcoming Sin and Temptation, from JohnOwen.org here (PDF). Owen was… Here’s one of my favorite quotes from Owen: Do you mortify; do you make it your daily work; be always...

This past summer I read a short little book by Mark Dever, What is a Healthy Church? It was a quick, good read, and I highly recommend the book. Recently, permission was given to New Attitude to post the first chapter of the book, free to read and download (PDF). Find it here. Much of Dever’s ministry is emphasizing and developing nine marks of healthy churches. I have grown in my understanding, appreciation and devotion to the local church. God had to tear down my pride, humble me by painful circumstances and bring confusion before allowing me to see the light of the beauty of His Bride,...

The Council on Biblical Manhood and Womanhood has posted a summary list of the free books they offer for online reading and download. Find the entire list here. Each of these books are available free as PDFs. If I had to wear a label on the issue on manhood and womanhood in the church and society I would aptly be called a “complementarian.” There is equality in value (worth, glory, even perhaps in skills in many areas) between Kari and I, yet we both joyfully submit to God’s ordained order in our home and in the church. Equal in value; distinct in function/roles. I find that...

My favorite author John Piper has come out with a new theological and exegetic book, The Future of Justification: A Response to N.T. Wright. In it he, among other things, champions the biblical doctrine of the imputation of Christ’s righteousness to the believer on the basis of faith in Jesus. He deals primarily with the Bible in responded to the Bishop of Durham Tom (N.T.) Wright, a champion of the “New Perspective on Paul” position. I look forward to reading parts of the book soon (as a reference), since some of the parts are not as germane to my studies and daily battles...

Well, I’d rather we all get some genuine affections for GOD in our hearts and minds! Do you desire your Creator above all else? Christian Audio’s free audiobook download for November is Jonathan Edwards’ Religious Affections. Description: Jonathan Edwards (1703-1758), the central figure in New England’s first Great Awakening, offers here his most detailed description of the signs–true and false–of revival, while highlighting the role truly balanced emotions play within the Christian life. He takes a long, hard look at the evidence of true conversion–the...

“What we suffer from … is humility in the wrong place. Modesty has moved from the organ of ambition. Modesty has settled upon the organ of conviction; where it was never meant to be. A man was meant to be doubtful about himself, but undoubting about the truth; this has been exactly reversed. Nowadays, the part of a man that a man does assert is exactly the part he ought not to assert — himself. The part he doubts is exactly the part he ought to not doubt — the Divine Reason.” (emphasis mine) –(G.K. Chesterton, Orthodoxy (Garden City, NY: Image Books Doubleday...

Monday night I arrive home from class to find a box awaiting me. It was books the books I bought from the DesiringGod special $5/book sale back in late June. I was among 11,000 orders than day (they normally get about 100 daily), so I understand the delay. It was worth the wait. (And by the way, a disclaimer: I looked at the box of books and then to Kari and said, “You are worth more than all my books; I’m not opening these tonight. I’d rather be with you.” We were able to catch up from our days and the books waited until today to be sorted out.) Now the books of John...