The following are two posts (almost in their entirety) from Erik Raymond over at the IrishCalvinist. They are a helpful meditation on the gospel and on the beauty of Christ. This is the medicine we all need. It is beholding Christ that will in fact, as Paul states, contribute to our being transformed into Christ-likeness.

From Pt. 1

Throughout the Scriptures God maintains an uninterrupted resolve towards the display of his own glory. He values himself supremely and will not tolerate any disagreement on the matter. For indeed this valuing of divine preeminence is also our chief responsibility as the creation. We are to agree with God as to his supremacy and beauty and then respond to him with an affectionate and sincere explosion of delight in the God who is beautiful. (more…)

Through some recent events I have had the opportunity to think through, study, and readjust my own thinking with regards to how a Christian is to view and handle alcohol.

I have become more convinced than ever of the wisdom of God’s instructions and that following those instructions bears rich fruit in the edification of the body and the display of the glory of the gospel.

Here is a kind of systematized summary of Scripture’s teaching on Christian liberty and alcohol that I put together. It was extremely helpful for me to examine Scripture as I put it together and hopefully it serves you in that way as well.

Feel free to give feedback and thoughts in the comment section or through e-mail.

(8/9/07 at 4:05 pm- Note: in re-reading the article and receiving some feedback I have made some minor changes- nothing that significantly changes the content)

On Monday Tim Challies posted an article on how husbands lead that might help in seeking to meditate on and apply what we looked at on Sunday evening in Ephesians 5:25-33.

Read it here.

As always my sermon last night did not contain any original thoughts. I would hope that what I said was first of all rooted in Scripture and its application to our lives. In addition to this I know that I have benefited tremendously from various authors who are skilled at explaining biblical truth.

The following is a list of resources to investigate manhood more thoroughly. Obviously this is a big part of who we are as men and what we do with our lives- it seems that it deserves our time and attention.

Scripture-

Ephesians 5:25-33

1 Peter 3:7

Titus 2:2, 6-8

1 Corinthians 16:13

1 Timothy 3:1-13, Titus 1:5-9

Articles-

Various Articles from the Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood

“For Guys Only: The Marks of Manhood” by Al Mohler

“The Fruit of Immaturity” by Alex Chediak

Sermons-

Biblical Manhood and Womanhood Sermons by John Piper

Marriage Sermons by John Piper

“Sex, Romance, and the Glory of God: What Every Christian Husband Needs to Know” by C.J. Mahaney

Various Sermons from the Council for Biblical Manhood and Womanhood

Books-

“Recovering Biblical Manhood and Womanhood” Edited by John Piper and Wayne Grudem- This book is available online as well as in print. The Forward and Chapter 1 are particularly helpful.

“Love that Lasts” by Gary and Betsy Ricucci- available at our Resource Table on Sundays.

“The Exemplary Husband” by Stuart Scott

This is just a sampling- Enjoy!

Oh, magnify the LORD with me, and let us exalt his name together! -Psalm 34:3

As you prepare yourselves and your families for worshiping together tommorrow night here are a couple of items to assist you.

The text we will be looking at tommorrow night will be Ephesians 5:22-33. We will examing God’s design for men and how the gospel is practically applied to living as a husband.

Here is a list of the songs we will be singing. Maybe pick one or two to sing together as a family as you prepare to praise God for His grace.

Let Your Kingdom Come
How Great is our God
Great is Thy Faithfulness
The Love of God
Beautiful Scandalous Night
O Come and Mourn

Also, tommorrow is the first Sunday of the month so we will be reflecting on the cross of Christ together and remembering His work as we celebrate the Lord’s Supper together.

There is a reason why Sunday is the best day of the week and the church is the dearest place on earth. Looking forward to worshiping together with you tomorrow evening.

BTW- sorry this is rather late in getting posted- if we decide to make this a practice we’ll try to get it up by Friday night.

Conflict is inevitable in life and in relationships.  It is not a matter of if but of when.  Part of dealing with and avoiding sinful conflict is learning where it comes from and how it arises.

James 4:1 and following contains incredible wisdom from God on understanding the source of our conflicts.

One of the best treatments and applications of this text I have come across done by C.J. Mahaney.  It was made available earlier this week in the form of an article and it can also be accessed as an audio sermon.  This is a must read (or listen)- maybe I am saying this too often- but I really mean it!

Listen to it.  Apply James 4.  By God’s grace grow to handle conflict in a God-glorifying manner.

The origin of the following quote may seem a little odd but stick with me and see if it doesn’t prove helpful for your thinking about the gospel and its application.

This quote was taken off of a comment thread from a blog titled The Institute and was pointed out to me by a blog called Jollyblogger. To add to this confusion, the commentor remains anonymous (all the more reason to use discernment in reading it). Oh well, here it goes.

Luther said that the life of a Christian is a life of repentance. The same goes for life in marriage. A marriage in the context of the gospel always has repentance and forgiveness available when sinners eventually sin. Thus surviving in marriage isn’t based on how strongly in love you feel at any given moment, but upon the promise of God to bless repentance and forgiveness. From that sure foundation, a man and woman can get busy in the gospel’s mission of loving their neighbor, with their first neighbor being their spouse.

That is why I DO think “we just need to preach the gospel more.” But I mean to preach the gospel fully so that it touches all aspects of life’s brokenness, as the Bible preaches it. That means we don’t just preach the gospel as a theological abstraction for people to assent to or not, as if their assent will magically cure their marital (or other) problems. It means we get our hands and our hearts dirty by engaging with the mess of our friends’ and neighbors’ lives. It means we show people that their identity is found in Christ, not in their spouse or their spouse’s feelings about them. It means we show them that the example for them to follow is that of Christ’s committed love to His bride, the church, rather than the example of their parents and step-parents who have each been divorced at least once. It means we explain to people that their obsessions with pornography, shopping, eating, gambling, working, etc., are actually bondage, but Christ came to give freedom. It means that we teach people that their family’s mission is not to become wealthy or secure or happy but to serve their neighbors. There are countless ways that the gospel is the answer to the struggles of marriage.