Joshua Harris

Reasons Not to Marry an Unbeliever by Kathy Keller

2012-01-24T13:40:42Z

Kathy Keller, co-author of The Meaning of Marriage, writes an insightful article about her experience counseling Christians who are considering marriage to a non-Christian. "An unequal marriage is not just unwise for the Christian," she writes, "it is also unfair to the non-Christian, and will end up being a trial for them both."

"If only I could pair those sadder and wiser women---and men---who have found themselves in unequal marriages (either by their own foolishness or due to one person finding Christ after the marriage had already occurred) with the blithely optimistic singles who are convinced that their passion and commitment will overcome all obstacles. Even the obstacle of bald disobedience need not apply to them. Only ten minutes of conversation---one minute if the person is really succinct--would be necessary. In the words of one woman who was married to a perfectly nice man who did not share her faith: "If you think you are lonely before you get married, it's nothing compared to how lonely you can be AFTER you are married!"

Read the full article.

One-to-One Bible Reading Seminar

2012-01-19T20:25:12Z

David Helm, pastor of Holy Trinity Church in Chicago, will be here at Covenant Life on Saturday, March 3, to bring some important teaching and training based on his book, One to One Bible Reading: A Simple Guide for Every Christian. Can you think of people in your life that you would like to see progress spiritually--perhaps a non-Christian colleague, a friend at church, or a family member? One-to-One Bible Reading is a way to help them understand more of God's Word in a way that is simple and personal.

The seminar will look at who this kind of relational Bible reading ministry is for and how it works. You'll also be trained to begin putting it to use. It's not just about reading the Bible. It's about using your new Bible-centered relationships as the springboard for evangelism, discipleship, and leadership development.

I'm encouraging my entire church to come to this. Registration is free. If you're in the DC area, please come join us!

March 3, 8:30am-12pm
Covenant Life Church Auditorium
Register Here

UPDATE: For those who can't make it: yes, the audio of the seminar will be available online.

Torch of the Scripture

2012-01-19T20:06:20Z

"As we advance through the centuries, light and life begin to decrease in the Church. Why? Because the torch of the Scripture begins to grow dim and because the deceitful light of human authorities begins to replace it." - Merle d'Aubigne (1794-1872), Reformation historian

Authority is Like Soap

2012-01-08T12:09:06Z

"Authority is like soap, the more you use it the less you will have of it." - Mark Dever

New Attitude, Na, Next 1999-2012

2012-01-07T15:39:28Z

This May in Orlando, Florida, the thirteenth and final Next Conference will held. What an incredible ride it's been! God has poured out so much grace on this event over the years.

It all began when CJ Mahaney and I attended a Passion conference led by Louie Giglio in 1998. CJ looked at me and said, "We need to be doing this for the next generation of students in Sovereign Grace." So we decided to go for it. I was assigned the task of organizing a team of volunteers to launch a national conference for college students and singles. I'll never forget the first volunteer meeting on the the floor of our townhouse living room (we didn't yet own furniture). Larry and Nora Earles were the first people to sign on to serve! And they've been at every one since.

The name and location of the conference has changed over the years. We started in 1999 with the name New Attitude (a carry over from a magazine I had published and a series of regional conferences I'd conducted). Then in 2005 when my friend Eric Simmons began leading, we shortened the name to Na because, let's face it, the only thing named New Attitude is a Patti Labelle song and a few hair and nail salons. Finally, in 2008 when Eric went to plant a church and my friend Grant Layman took leadership, we changed the name to Next (to emphasize the focus of transferring the gospel to the next generation).

The conference was first held in Baltimore (1999-2000), then moved to Philadelphia (2001), then Louisville (2003-2008), back to Baltimore (2009-2010) and finally Orlando (2011-2012).

Several years ago, I told CJ that I felt the time had come for me to stop leading the conference. I hoped someone else in Sovereign Grace would take my place and keep the conference going, but I felt that the Lord wanted me and fellow pastor, Grant Layman, to be focused on priorities in our local church. So last year (Next 2011) was our final year of leading.

But I'm glad that Sovereign Grace is going to have one final Next Conference in Orlando this May. The theme, which has been a mainstay at the conference over the years, is the importance of the local church. They've lined up Matt Chandler, Kevin DeYoung, and Jeff Purswell as speakers with more to be announced. It looks like it's going to be a great time.

As this important chapter in my life closes, I want to take a minute to thank the people who made it possible. Thanks to...CJ and the leadership team of Sovereign Grace for giving me the chance to lead this conference over the years...Eric Simmons and Grant Layman whose leadership made it possible for the conference to continue and improve....Paul Medler and all the conference staff at Sovereign Grace who served so faithfully...all the hundreds of volunteers over the years who believed in the vision of this conference and gave generously of their time to serve students. And finally, thanks to everyone who came. Thanks for loving to worship Jesus and to study and learn from his word. I pray that what God deposited in you through this conference will continue to bear fruit in the years to come.

You can listen to all the messages from Next 2004 to 2011 here.

For information on Next 2012 visit www.thisisnext.org.

Confident & Desperate

2012-01-07T15:37:42Z

"I believe in eternal security. God keeps me secure by making me desperate to be kept--through prayer and the fight of faith." - @John Piper

Through This Man

2012-01-06T14:00:37Z

Paul preaching about Jesus in Antioch in Pisidia: "Let it be known to you therefore, brothers, that through this man forgiveness of sins is proclaimed to you, and by him everyone who believes is freed from everything from which you could not be freed by the law of Moses" (Acts 13:38-39).

The Best Ever Sovereign Grace Worship Album (As Voted By Me)

2012-01-05T17:26:39Z

So many great songs and albums have been produced by Sovereign Grace Music over the years, but my absolute all-time favorite is The Gathering. Recorded live at Worship God 11, it contains 15 songs that progressively tell the story of the gospel and our appropriate response to it.

The video above is of the song "Now Why This Fear." Some of my other favorite tracks are "When You Move", "Show Us Christ" and "As You Go." But the whole album is good and we're teaching a number of these songs to our church.

You can get all the info on buying the album and getting lead sheets and guitar charts here.

Prompted By His Word

2011-12-31T21:02:22Z

"And let us not take it into our heads either to seek out God anywhere else than in his Sacred Word, or to think anything about him that is not prompted by his Word, or to speak anything that is not taken from that Word." - John Calvin, Institutes, Book 1

Bible Reading Plans for 2012

2011-12-28T20:41:47Z

Justin Taylor has created a blog post with a wide array of Bible reading plans. There's no "one way" to study the Bible, but there are compelling reasons to have a systematic plan. If you need one (or want to try a new one), you'll find Justin's post helpful. Read it here.

Encountering God in "The Heavens"

2011-12-14T16:00:56Z

In time for Christmas shopping (for the slowpokes among us), I wanted to highlight this new book by my friend Kevin Hartnett called The Heavens: Intimate Moments with Your Majestic God.

Kevin works as NASA's Science Operations Manager for the Hubble Space Telescope. He is also a poet. And in his book, we behold the grandeur of God in His creation, and also in His word.

You can buy it here.

Dispatches from the Front

2011-11-22T00:55:11Z

Our family has been watching a series of excellent DVD's called Dispatches from the Front. Today we watched the episode set in India (you can view the trailer for it above). My three kids were enthralled. I want, and I want my kids to have, a heart for world missions. These videos stir that passion.

The description of the series on their website states, "Believers everywhere desperately need a renewed vision of Christ and the unstoppable advance of His saving work in all the earth. Our view of God's Kingdom is often too small and limited to what we have experienced. Dispatches from the Front highlights the marvelous extent, diversity, and unity of Christ's Kingdom in our world. The journal format of each episode underscores the daily unfolding of God's activity on the 'frontlines,' bringing viewers up-close with sights and sounds from distant corners of the Kingdom."

I would highly recommend this series for families and churches that want a "renewed vision of Christ and the unstoppable advance" of the gospel around the world.

Order the series here.

Why We Need Doctrine

2011-11-13T00:55:23Z

For different reasons a lot of Christians in my generation and older generations are leery of too much emphasis on doctrine. They have come to equate doctrine with church splits, hate mail, arrogance, and angry diatribes. They have seen how easy it is for life-giving truths to get reduced to empty formulas. No wonder that for them Christian doctrine can seem more hindrance than help when it comes to cultivating a vibrant relationship with Jesus.

I understand. If my heart is cold toward God, I can turn the most precious truth into an end in itself or a weapon to attack others. This is part of the reason I find the story of the wise builder so instructive. It reminds me that doctrine isn't about me or my little tribe. Jesus said that the person who digs down to the rock is the one who comes to him. This has to be the first and final motivation. Pursuing orthodoxy and sound doctrine has to begin with a heart drawing close to him--not to a theological system, denomination, or book.

It's easy to make the mistake of thinking that since theological beliefs shouldn't be our goal, we don't need them at all. But this isn't true in knowing Jesus any more than it's true in other relationships. For example, I have a nine-year-old daughter named Emma, whom I love very much. It is absolutely true that information and facts about my daughter can never take the place of actually loving her. But this doesn't mean I should avoid knowing about her. An important part of caring for and cultivating a relationship with my little girl involves a willingness on my part to learn her character and personality, her likes and dislikes. Details about her--the color of her hair, the music she enjoys, her gifts, fears, and dreams--are all important to me because she is important to me. While these truths about her could be empty data, because they describe a living person whom I love, they enrich and grow my love for her. Facts can never take her place, but I can't know her without them.

Doctrine can never take the place of Jesus himself, but we can't know him and relate to him in the right way without doctrine. This is because doctrine not only tells us what God has done but what his actions mean to us. A theologian named J. Gresham Machen, who lived in the 1920s, helped me better understand all this. His explanation of Christian doctrine helped me see how it connects to the living person of Jesus. In one of his books, Machen explains that while Christians in the early church wanted to know what Jesus taught, they were primarily concerned with what Jesus had done. "The world was to be redeemed," Machen wrote, "through the proclamation of an event."

Of course the event he's referring to is Jesus's death by crucifixion and his resurrection from the dead. The first Christians knew they had to tell people about this event. But simply telling them wasn't enough. They also had to tell them what the event meant. And this, Machen explains, is doctrine. Doctrine is the setting forth of what Jesus has done along with the meaning of the event for us.

"These two elements are always combined in the Christian message," Machen continues. "The narration of the facts is history; the narration of the facts with the meaning of the facts is doctrine. 'Suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified, dead and buried'--that is history. 'He loved me and gave Himself for me'--that is doctrine."

Doctrine is the meaning of the story God is writing in the world. It's the explanation of what he's done and why he's done it and why it matters to you and me.

- from Dug Down Deep, chapter 2

Spirit of God Descend Upon My Heart

2011-11-06T00:21:24Z

Spirit of God, descend upon my heart;
Wean it from earth; through all its pulses move;
Stoop to my weakness, mighty as Thou art;
And make me love Thee as I ought to love.

I ask no dream, no prophet ecstasies,
No sudden rending of the veil of clay,
No angel visitant, no opening skies;
But take the dimness of my soul away.

Teach me to feel that Thou art always nigh;
Teach me the struggles of the soul to bear.
To check the rising doubt, the rebel sigh,
Teach me the patience of unanswered prayer.

Hast Thou not bid me love Thee, God and King?
All, all Thine own, soul, heart and strength and mind.
I see Thy cross; there teach my heart to cling:
O let me seek Thee, and O let me find!

Teach me to love Thee as Thine angels love,
One holy passion filling all my frame;
The kindling of the heaven descended Dove,
My heart an altar, and Thy love the flame.

By George Croly. Thanks to Clara Boisvert for sharing it with me.

Jacob Wrestles the Angel

2011-11-03T22:22:27Z

Hat Tip: Sarah Harris