Padkos–June 2015

  Whatever Happened To Sin? – Jeremiah Johnson   “those who refuse to acknowledge their sinfulness actually place themselves in bondage to their own guilt” Although I hear what he says about issues such as depression, I’m sorry John MacArthur did not explain himself better in the quoted passage. All in all an excellent article.

Who Decides What Sin Is?  - Jeremiah Johnson  “Whenever Christians fail to take sin as seriously as God does, we’re effectively saying His Word doesn’t apply to us. It’s a practical stiff arm to everything Scripture teaches about holiness, sin, and God’s righteous wrath.”

3 Reasons to Encourage Others – Paula Hendricks  “How could the truth that Jesus is returning soon encourage your friend in what they’re facing right now?”

Encouraging Without Even Trying – Paula Hendricks

10 Steps To Writing An Encouraging Letter  -  Paula Hendricks  “The main thing is: Are you available to share God’s encouragement with others who desperately need it?”

Christlike Versus Like Christ –  Peter Mead  “This means that Christlikeness will not flow primarily from Christlikeness explained and demanded.  Christlikeness will come  from liking Christ, from loving Him, from knowing and worshipping Him.” “Christlikeness isn’t the goal of preaching for sanctification, it is the fruit.”

Reasons We Don’t Read Our Bibles  –  Erik Raymond “Let’s be honest: if you don’t read your Bible it is because you don’t want to read your Bible. And to bottom line this further, this is indicative or your relationship with God. We cannot separate a love for the Word of God and the God of the Word.”

When God Bids Farewell  Part 1 – Ravi Zacharias

When God Bids Farewell  Part 2– Ravi Zacharias  The whole series HERE

Self Pity Refresher -  Eric Davis   “Self-pity: a self-absorbed, feeling sorry for oneself fuelled by a high view of self, a low view of God, and an attitude of entitlement.”

You Can’t Serve God And Entertainment  –  Phillip Holmes “If we devote inordinate amounts of time, money, and affection to anything, including entertainment, we will despise whatever draws us away. We’ve all been faced with the choice between spending time in prayer and God’s word or spending time with entertainment. At the crux of these crossroads, the all-satisfying gift of Jesus is pit against the temporal promises of entertainment. Whichever road is chosen increases hatred for the path denied.”

“Entertainment over-promises but under-delivers. It is unable to satisfy what our hearts truly long for. We want rest. We want comfort. But entertainment can only offer a temporary fix. As soon as we wake up from hours of binging on Netflix or scrolling through social media, our problems remain, still waiting to be confronted. And we’re faced with the truth that all we’ve done is put off the inevitable.”

“Addiction to entertainment is similar. The physical and health effects may not be as striking as heroin, but the spiritual effects are costly. We chase mindless entertainment hoping for relief for our souls, but instead all it really can promise is death. It distracts us from the highest and ultimate good with a mirage of happiness and comfort.”

“I have never walked away disappointed when I’ve pursued my joy in God through prayer and Bible reading, reminded myself of his promises in the gospel, repented of my sin, and cried out to God for comfort. Were all of my problems solved? No. But my joy was restored, and my soul had feasted on his promises. Likewise, every time I’ve used entertainment as a means of relief for my soul, I was left wanting and unsatisfied.”

“Here we uncover the beauty of our wonderful master and realize that Jesus is better. In communion with him, we experience lasting joy that entertainment can only promise but never provide.”

Our Culture Of Reading   –  Matthew Lee Anderson  “The false hurry that so many of us (this author included) are dominated by is not a recognition of the importance of this life, but a denial of eternity. For as George MacDonald once put it, “Of all things, time is the cheapest.”

12 Questions For a 6 Month Spiritual Checkup – Thom Rainer 

Proverbs 31 Man – JA Medders

Worship In A Selfie World  - Stephen Miller   “If we are going to learn to worship in a selfie world, we must continually look beyond our musical preferences, sentimental nostalgia, and contextual idealism, in order to gaze with wonder and awe at the character and acts of our mighty King and Saviour.”

Prayers From The Bible  - Colin Smith “How do you pray? Prayers that are rooted in Scripture are guaranteed to be aligned with the heart of God. Here is a list of 15 powerful prayers from the Bible that you can use word-for-word or to spur on your own prayers:”

Conquer The Grumbles – Michael Herrington  “But what comes out of my mouth when things don’t go my way indicates whose kingdom I serve.”

5 Questions to Ask The Text – HB Charles  “To get the right answers in your study of scripture, you must ask the right questions. This is called inductive Bible study.”

Why Would God Choose Me? – John Piper (also links to ‘Look At The Book’ studies on election)

Calvinism & Arminiasm  - John Piper

Complaining Without Grumbling  - Jon Bloom   “So go ahead and complain to God, but don’t grumble. Learn from the lamenting psalmists how to be a faithful complainer.”

Suffering Is Not For Nothing – Elisabeth Elliot series of talks

Accountability Questions – Brad Hambrick   ( I too much prefer to talk about friendship rather than use words such as ‘accountability’ ‘authentic’ etc UGH!!!)