One of my favorite poems is "Birches" by Robert Frost: "When I see birches bend to left and rightAcross the lines of straighter darker trees,I like to think some boy’s been swinging them.But swinging doesn’t bend them down to stayAs ice-storms do…"1 Frost imagines the weeping birches as the result of some boy's play. But he knows better. Fun-loving boys, swinging on … [Read more...] about Literal Metaphors
What Heaven Means
When we say "heaven," what do we mean? J.I. Packer, in Growing in Christ, writes: "Heaven" in the Bible means three things: (1)The endless, self-sustaining life of God. In this sense, God always dwelt "in heaven," even when there was no earth. (2) The state of angels or men as they share the life of God, whether in foretaste now or in fullness hereafter. In this sense, … [Read more...] about What Heaven Means
Audio Bibles
I want to commend audio bibles to you. We live in a time of podcasts and audiobooks. Why not also listen to the Bible? We have always been first aural. We learn language through hearing, not reading. Indeed, the ability to listen is nearly universal. And listening overcomes illiteracy, low literacy, and dyslexia. For centuries, the public, audible reading of … [Read more...] about Audio Bibles
Only the Childlike
"Truly, I say to you, unless you turn and become like children, you will never enter the kingdom of heaven" (Matthew 18:3, ESV). Only the childlike... An adult believes he knows best. An adult would like to see the schedule first. An adult would like the discounted version. An adult is wary of commitments. An adult doesn’t want surprises. An adult prefers … [Read more...] about Only the Childlike
The Model Disciple
[Sermon Notes] A Story In the first century, in Israel, there was once a man named Timaeus. Timaeus, like so many, found a girl, settled down, and had a child. A boy in fact. The pride of every father in Israel, the joy of every mother. They had so many hopes and dreams for this boy. But something went tragically wrong. We don’t know all the details, the exact timing or … [Read more...] about The Model Disciple