A repost from February 2012. “You don’t have to know a lot of things for your life to make a lasting difference in the world, but you do have to know a few great things that matter and to be willing to live for them and die for them. The people that make a durable … More A Life Worth Living (John Piper)
Influential pastor and teacher, John Piper, got a heated response from some recent comments made in an interview regarding women as pastors and seminary teachers: “If it is unbiblical to have women as pastors, how can it be biblical to have women who function in formal teaching and mentoring capacities to train and fit pastors … More Women Pastors & Professors Who Shaped Me
We’re honoring the 500th Anniversary of the Reformation at MainStreet this month by exploring some of the key figures. Last week we focused on Luther, and I preached a portion of a Luther sermon. This week we’re meeting John Calvin! I can’t think of a better place to turn to learn about John Calvin and … More John Calvin the Preacher
Human beings glorify God not by curling up in a helpless, hopelessly depraved blob just relieved that God is great enough for the both of us. Rather, God is most glorified in us when we, God’s image-bearers in the world, are living most in tune with God’s purposes for our lives, utilizing our God-given gifts and passions, flourishing in our God-directed pursuits, and accomplishing great things in the name of God and for the expansion of the Kingdom of God. … More God’s ‘Man-centered’ Gospel & Glory
You can’t even get through one verse in 1 Peter before coming across an enormously controversial theological issue: divine election and foreknowledge. “Peter, an apostle of Jesus Christ, To God’s elect…who have been chosen according to the foreknowledge of God the Father…” I didn’t even try to wade into these choppy waters in my sermon this past … More God’s Chosen ‘Elect’? (1 Peter 1:1-2)
Pastor John Piper on the supremacy of God in preaching: Christian preachers, more than all others, should know that people are starving for God. If anyone in all the world should be able to say, “I have looked upon thee in the sanctuary, beholding thy power and glory,” it is the herald of God. Who … More John Piper on Preaching
Repost from Spring 2010 but I’m in the exact same place personally. -JB “My soul is consumed with longing for your laws at all times…How sweet are your words to my taste, sweeter than honey to my mouth” (Psalm 119). It’s perhaps my favorite time of year. I’m sitting in the backyard, listening to the lively noises … More Springtime Feasting on the Word
From DesiringGod.org. Initially, it may be tough to tell the difference. A gifted Bible-expositor and an entertainment-oriented preacher, with a penchant for garnishing his ideas with some Bible, may not demonstrate much disparity at first. But give it some time. And check the congregation over the long haul. It will make a world of difference. … More Preaching That’s Tethered to the Bible
Whether or not you agree with his theology, you can’t deny he makes a great snow angel! I’m sure there’s a Calvinism joke here somewhere… :)
We’re all like lumps of clay that over time have been shaped and molded by dozens of influential hands — and experiences and words and ideas and moments and conversations and books and dreams and successes and failures — but mostly people. I am a firm believer in learning from people of different persuasions, and … More Some Key Influences
WATCH: John Piper interviews Rick Warren on Doctrinal Issues
Here’s a litmus test to see whether you see the world through a Christian worldview or have been conformed to the culture we inhabit: Do you believe in Retirement? Read the New Testament and show me on Christ follower who wasted away their final years in self-indulgence and liesure while a broken and dying world … More Thoughts on ‘Retirement’
“Soon I turn 65. One could look at this two ways: 1) it’s the age most people retire, or 2) it’s the age Winston Churchill became Prime Minister and led England and the Western World to victory over Hitler’s aggression. I find Churchill much more inspiring than retirement.” -John Piper, Pastor
Frankly, I don’t know which view of God’s foreknowledge is ultimately correct. For centuries, people have generally fallen into either the Calvinist camp or the Arminian camp. We were all settled into this deeply entrenched, long-standing either-or match when this pesky Open View came along creating more confusion and stirring up new debate. What if … More Greg Boyd & the Open View of God’s Foreknowledge
I have long made it a habit to listen to both Greg Boyd and John Piper’s sermons each week. I like to be pushed from both sides, and keep myself balanced theologically. (Well, my theological convictions lean heavily toward one side, but want to keep wrestling with the opposing views.) Every once and a while … More Piper Sermon + Boyd Sermon = Schizophrenia (updated)
Martin Luff pointed me to the Tall Skinny Kiwi’s good thoughts in response to this video where John Piper comments on the ‘Emerging Church.’ Check out the video and then read this response. What are your thoughts?
“Listen! A farmer went out to sow his seed. As he was scattering the seed, some fell along the path, and the birds came and ate it up. Some fell on rocky places, where it did not have much soil. It sprang up quickly, because the soil was shallow. But when the sun came up, … More PARABLES: Sower, Seed and Soil 1
In light of the recent John Piper interpretation of the Minneapolis tornado, Greg Boyd hosted a Q&A centered around the debated concept that God might be behind the natural disasters in the world…as well as other related questions from the congregation. Well worth checking out links below! LISTEN TO AUDIO WATCH VIDEO
The last time Pastor Piper offered his theological commentary on a local disaster (35W Interstate Bridge Collapse) it sparked a lengthy response from Pastor Greg Boyd. So, naturally, I have been waiting for Boyd to weigh in on Piper’s recent interpretation of the Minneapolis “Tornado Warning.” Here it is. Check out Boyd’s response HERE. Well, … More Greg Boyd Responds to Piper’s Tornado Warning
There is a lot of discussion over Pastor John Piper’s statement that God sent a tornado to Minneapolis yesterday to warn the ELCA leaders not to condone homosexuality. Read more about it HERE. This story has my head spinning and my theology challenged. I feel I need to come clean with my confusion because I … More God & Tornados: A Personal Confession
When Pastor John Piper speaks, he speaks with bold conviction. When John Piper speaks about local disasters, I listen carefully and critically. Especially when Piper’s Twitter update reads: “Tornados do have a voice. They talk to Lutherans. And the rest of us. They talk about sexual sin. Stay tuned.” Yesterday a tornado hit downtown Minneapolis … More John Piper: Tornado Talks to Lutherans about Homosexuality
Those who read my series of posts on the debate between John Piper and N.T. Wright must read the following interview with N.T. Wright by Trevin Wax. This is one of the clearest, most concise summaries of what exactly is at stake and which issues are on the table in the debate. Let me quote at … More N.T. Wright Responding to Piper on Justification (Trevin Wax)
How is God glorified by human beings? Our chief end is to glorify God with our lives. Our chief temptation, from Genesis 3 onward, is to “exchange the glory of the immortal God” for lesser glory — especially glorification of man (cf. Rom. 1:23). I agree with this whole-heartedly. But how exactly is God most … More Man-Centered vs. God-Centered 4: How is God Glorified?
Jeremy L. Berg 