Category Archives: Character

Lewis on the role of husbands

Posted by on February 29, 2012 1 comment

The Business of Heaven

Referring to Ephesians 5:25-33, Lewis observes the following:

The husband is the head of the wife just in so far as he is to her what Christ is to the Church. He is to love her as Christ loved the Church—read on -and gave his life for her (Ephesians 5:25). This headship, then, is most fully embodied not in the husband we should all wish to be but in him whose marriage is most like a crucifixion; whose wife receives most and gives least, is most unworthy of him, is—in her own mere nature—least lovable.

All at once he follows her…

Posted by on February 27, 2012 Comments Off

In a recent Bible reading I took some notes on Proverbs 7:22.  Proverbs 7 is a warning against adultery and provides us with many insights into both the adulteress (who is portrayed as seeking the man) and the man who falls for her wiles.

22 All at once he follows her,

as an ox goes to the slaughter,

or as a stag is caught fast

Read more »

Screwtape and the flesh

Posted by on February 15, 2012 2 comments

While reading C.S. Lewis’ “The Screwtape letters” in chapter 12, I came across the advice of the demon Screwtape about repentance and sin for the believer:

And while he thinks that, we do not have to contend with the explicit repentance of a definite, fully recognised, sin, but only with his vague, though uneasy, feeling that he hasn’t been doing very well lately.

The distinction Screwtape is making here is critical. Read more »

The enemy within

Posted by on February 13, 2012 Comments Off

Kris Lungaard spent some time reading John Owens work on the mortification of sin and shrunk it down into a book that all believers should read, The Enemy Within. This is a great book. In it he focuses on how the mind, affections and the will are all involved in sin.

“Each of the faculties of your soul has duties before God.  The mind is the sentinel, commanded to watch carefully over the soul by questioning, assessing, and making judgments: ‘Will this please God?’ ‘Is this according to God’s Word?’ If the mind determines that an action is right the affections should then fall in line and desire, long for, and cling to that which the mind said was good.  Last, the will puts the soul into action, carrying out what the mind said was good and the affections hungered for.” (p56)

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One another in James 4-5

Posted by on January 27, 2012 Comments Off

I’ve been reading through James over the last few days and I was struck by three “one another” statements in chapters four and five.

James 4:11 says “Do not speak against one another,” and James 5:9 tells us “Do not complain against one another.”  These two verses are another way of saying do not slander or gossip.  Yet, in every church there are those who slander and gossip – I know because I am occasionally numbered among them.  It is easy to say “I don’t gossip!”  Yet, how often do we speak against one another?  Or complain against one another?  We know that it won’t be with those who we are talking about, but it will be in the presence of friends and perhaps family.

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The hidden life of prayer

Posted by on March 30, 2011 Comments Off

The Hidden Life of Prayer (eBook)Last year I read through this little book and really enjoyed it. I noticed it is available on Monergism books in kindle format for US$2.45 which is chump change.

This is a very practical book that does a great job of pulling together the writings and practices of some of the great Christians throughout history including Charles Spurgeon, Jonathan Edwards, David Brainerd, Martin Luther, George Whitfield and George Muller.

The book is organized as you’d approach prayer: beginning with composing our mind, then dealing with worship, confession, requests and finishing with how we can expect God to answer.

If you are looking for some encouragement in prayer, this is a great book for that purpose, and it’s short and easy to read.

If you don’t have a Kindle, you can either buy one (support this site by buying through this link) or purchase the paperback version instead.

Sermon: Psalm 16

Posted by on January 27, 2011 Comments Off

On Sunday I preached on Psalm 16 at Heretaunga Christian Center (and then again at Moera Gospel Chapel).

This Psalm is Messianic – that is it describes Jesus Christ.  In this case it provides insight into the spiritual life of both David and Jesus Himself that gives us insight into the commitment these men had to God and the benefits that they saw as a result of their walk with God. Read more »

He gave him no answer…

Posted by on June 29, 2010 Comments Off

When the Pharisees put Jesus on trial before Caiaphas, the final charge they brought against him was blasphemy. This was on the basis of Jesus claiming to be the Son of God and His sitting “at the right hand of Power and coming on the clouds of heaven” (Matt 26:63-66). But for the unbelieving Pilate, this would be a hard accusation to put a righteous man to death for.

But this is exactly why the Pharisees delivered Him to Pilate – so that he could sentence Him to death. To be sure, they heaped other accusations against Jesus to make sure that Pilate would see Him as a threat. However, Pilate could see right through this ruse, and when he questioned Jesus, he asked him “are you the king of the Jews?” to which Jesus merely said “You have said so” (Matt 27:11). Read more »

Our need to see our sin

Posted by on April 18, 2010 Comments Off

In my last post I mentioned that we need to have a greater understanding of our own sin and depravity. Its only when we see this that we will see our need for salvation, but it also will illuminate the depth of Gods grace and may lead us to a deeper worship of God. Read more »

Faint and languid assent

Posted by on August 2, 2009 Comments Off

Our reading group is currently reading Henry Scougals “The life of God in the soul of man”. This is a remarkable book, which I recommend every follower of Jesus Christ read. Read more »