Apologetics isn’t just for some Christians, it is for all Christians. We all must know what we believe, why we believe it, how to live it, how to defend it, and how to proclaim it—and we must do so with gentleness and respect. —Burk Parsons in Tabletalk Magazine
According to Jesus, there is a wide gate and a narrow gate, a life-and-death scenario, and a warning that few find life. It’s a sobering statement, blunt and serious. It’s difficult to imagine that Jesus and His listeners could consider this topic of spiritual trailblazing without thinking about David’s psalm on the same topic written so many years before. David says as a declaration to God’s goodness, “You make known to me the path of life." These two statements about the way to life—one spoken by King David and the other by David’s King—serve together to encourage disciples who often find themselves turned around on the path of life. —Tom Holland in this month's Tabletalk Magazine
Coram Deo: Many believers neglect to study the Old Testament because they find it confusing or because they assume that it is less important to the Christian faith than the New Testament. As Mark’s gospel shows us, however, this is not the case. We cannot understand Jesus or His gospel without a proper grounding in the Old Testament Scriptures. Thus, it is important for us to read and study the whole counsel of God. Let us not neglect the study of either testament.
Coram Deo: Jesus’ message to the Jews, and by extension to all people, is the same as John’s: Men and women can have a place in God’s kingdom only if they repent of their sins and turn to the Lord alone for salvation (Mark 1:14–15). We cannot rely on our church membership, our history of Christian service, or the faith of our parents in order to be saved. Instead, we will be redeemed only if we turn from our sin and place our faith in Christ alone for salvation.
Today we are at the dawn of the digital revolution, and we are grappling with many of the very same fears people faced at the dawn of every other communications revolution. We fear the ubiquity of digital devices; we fear living so much of our lives in the glow of little screens; we fear the consequences of recording our thoughts and our lives in apps. But even now we can have hope. —Tim Challies in Tabletalk Magazine
Coram Deo: The contrast between John’s water baptism and the baptism of the Holy Spirit also points to the fact that water baptism is insufficient if it is merely an outward rite that is not accompanied by true faith. What really matters is Spirit baptism—not a second blessing of the Holy Spirit after a first baptism in water but the sovereign work of the Spirit in changing our hearts and granting us faith. That is the only kind of baptism that will save. Have you received it?
Coram Deo: Jesus not only died for us; He also lived for our sake. His death on the cross is meaningless without His perfect life of obedience that qualifies Him as the spotless Lamb of God and attains the righteousness for believers that we could never attain for ourselves. Jesus has done what we cannot do, so we can be confident of our salvation if we trust in Him. God the Father sees us in Christ, His Son who never failed, so He cannot cast us out of His kingdom if we receive and rest on Christ alone.
Repent daily. Protect the weak. Sacrifice comfort. Forgive neighbors. Love enemies. Practice generosity. When we believers relinquish our perceived “due” and find rest in the grand privileges we possess as sons and daughters of God, the light of the gospel beams brightly before a desperate and dark world. —Don Bailey in Tabletalk Magazine
Coram Deo: In his commentary Mark, Dr. R.C. Sproul notes how Jesus’ victory over temptation in the wilderness would have been particularly relevant to first-century Christians. They faced persecution and death for holding firm to their confession, and in Jesus they had an example of One who refused to worship any but the one true God even when He was promised the kingdoms of the world. This same Jesus will give us strength to persevere in faith if we seek His face.
America has, in the opinion of some, become Hindu, not just in the vocabulary we now use (avatar, karma, yoga, mantra, and so on) but in the widespread acceptance of the underlying Hindu affirmation of pantheistic “One-ism.” —Peter Jones in Tabletalk Magazine
We worship at the altar of our desires, but there’s someone so much greater and better. So, during those times when our idols rear their ugly heads, we pray and ask God to reveal Himself even more mightily. He’s already changed our heart of stone to a heart of flesh. We can rest assured that He will finish the work He began—including helping us put away our idolatry. —Trillia Newbell in this month's Tabletalk Magazine
Coram Deo: The gospel is not a message that “you can have your best life now”; that “God loves you and has a wonderful plan for your life”; or that you must “ask Jesus into your heart.” Some of these statements may be true if qualified properly, but none of them is the gospel. The gospel is Jesus Christ—who He is and what He has done. If we are not preaching that, we are not preaching the gospel.
When God makes a covenant with His people, He can punish them for covenant breaking, but He never cancels the covenant promises He has made. —R.C. Sproul in Tabletalk Magazine
If God did not act first, no one would be saved. —R.C. Sproul
Coram Deo: Jesus is often regarded as a good teacher, but as many Christian apologists have noted, we insult Christ if we view Him as merely a good teacher. Our Lord was not simply a wise moral philosopher; rather, He spoke with divine authority. What He says, therefore, must be believed. His Words are truth itself, and if we do not heed what He says, then we will find ourselves outside of His kingdom on the last day.
A truly healthy church is one in which its members are theologians, coming to church each Sunday with a readiness to think and learn, with an insatiable appetite for more. —Iver Martin in Tabletalk Magazine
Coram Deo: As Romans 8:19–21 indicates, the salvation that Jesus brings will encompass even the physical order. That cannot happen, however, until Christ deals with the evil powers that hold creation hostage. Jesus dealt the decisive blow of victory on the cross, and now He sets people free from the devil’s tyranny as the gospel goes forth. We are called to pray for this gospel to succeed wherever it goes that God’s elect will be freed to serve Him in gladness.
When our grief is debilitating and it feels impossible to function, God does not sit aloof in heaven. He does not leave us to figure out how to handle grief on our own or how to cast about for resources to get through it. He walks every step of the journey with us. —Elizabeth Groves in January's Tabletalk Magazine
Coram Deo: Several biblical texts show us God’s sovereignty in revealing Himself. Our Creator does not show Himself on demand; rather, He chooses to reveal Himself and His purposes when He sees fit. This happened during Jesus’ ministry when He would not let others speak of Him. It happens today, as God chooses when and where to reveal His salvation to His elect and call them to faith through His Word. God is wise in how He reveals Himself, so let us not demand that He act on our timetable.
Creation groans as it awaits its final redemption, but this groaning is not futile. Over all creation stands the resurrected Christ—Christus Victor—who has triumphed over the powers of evil and will make all things new. —R.C. Sproul in Tabletalk Magazine
I bought my grandson his first baseball, bat, and glove today, and he muttered a necessary “Thanks.” So, I stopped him and said, “Look me in the eyes; put a smile on your face and say, ‘Thanks, Pops! This is great!’ ” After a few tries, he finally got it. Even when children know they should say “thank you,” we still have to teach them how to express their thanks effectively. Something like this is true for God’s children as well, no matter what age we may be. —Richard Pratt Jr. in January's Tabletalk Magazine
Coram Deo: If Jesus, who is the Son of God incarnate, found it so necessary to pray, shouldn’t we also pray? Fellowship with the Lord in prayer is an absolute necessity if we will be sustained in life and ministry over the long haul. This is true whether we minister as pastors, in secular workplaces, or in our homes.
Coram Deo: Christ hates what sin has done to His creation, and He is full of compassion for those who suffer the effects of the fall. Our Lord’s grace and compassion is seen in His reaction to the disobedient leprous man in Mark 1:41. Some manuscripts state that Jesus was moved by anger, not pity. Dr. R.C. Sproul explains our Lord’s anger: “He was filled with a righteous indignation against the ravages of the fallen world, such as disease. He hated disease, but He cared for the person afflicted by the disease.”
God's graciousness is not totally removed from any individual during this lifetime. In hell, it is. —R.C. Sproul
Coram Deo: True faith takes risks and will stop at nothing to reach the object of faith. We see this in the account of Jesus’ healing of the leper, who did not allow social convention or ceremonial law to keep him from the Savior. He recognized the author of the law and knew that He had the power to do what the law in itself could not; thus, his approaching Jesus honored the spirit of the law, for He sought out the One to whom the law points. May we pursue our Savior with such fervent faith.
If Jesus is risen from the dead, then the things He did and said that are explicit or implicit claims to deity must be taken seriously. If He is who He claimed to be—the eternal Son of God—and if He offers complete forgiveness of sin to all who place their faith in Him, then the absolute pinnacle of true foolishness is to reject Him. —Keith Mathison in January's Tabletalk Magazine
Coram Deo: Forgiveness is our greatest need. Disease, depression, sorrow, poverty, injustice, and all other ills are true needs; ultimately, however, all these ills exist because sin has corrupted creation. Not all of our problems are caused by our specific sins, but all of them are due to the fact that we live in a fallen world and suffer from sin’s corruption. If we are not saved from our sins, any fix to these problems is temporary and hell awaits us. Have you trusted in Christ for the forgiveness of your sins?
Coram Deo: Biblical faith is not naive wish fulfillment that believes in something just because it makes us feel better. Neither does it involve believing despite the evidence. Instead, biblical faith is confident trust in an objective but unseen reality for which there is much evidence. Christians have grounds to believe what they believe, and therefore we are not being irrational to believe in God and His raising of Jesus from the dead.
As Christians, we must beware of becoming self-righteous in our reaction to those who dehumanize people. There were Christians who were taken in by Hitler and Christians who defended slavery. We must not dehumanize those with whom we disagree. We especially want to make clear to those who have defended abortions or had abortions that all those who come to Jesus in repentance and faith find forgiveness. —W. Robert Godfrey in Tabletalk Magazine
When we ask questions in our pain, we are looking for the God who is there. It is the longing to see God act in ways He has said He will. When we ask questions humbly, we are not denying His character, but seeking the God who has revealed Himself to be just, merciful, good, and loving. When we pray—especially in our suffering—we raise our voices in a plea for God to answer us, waiting in faith that He will in His perfect providence. Let us not doubt. —Joe Thorn in January's Tabletalk Magazine
From a legal perspective, a vote for choice is a vote for abortion. —R.C. Sproul
Coram Deo: Christian faith is more than just belief that God exists. It does not take any special gift of faith to believe in the existence of the Creator, for many people have lived and died believing that God exists even though they never became Christians. Biblical faith involves believing also the specific promises of God. We must believe God, not simply believe in God. Ask the Lord this day to strengthen your faith in His promises so that you will continue to trust in Him alone.
A theologically astute, immature Christian is like a five-year-old flying an Apache helicopter. Here’s this massive weapon: it can destroy arguments and defend against heresy; it can soar to the heavens and take in glorious sights no one at sea level will ever witness… It’s fast. It’s furious. It’s impressive. But it’s also dangerous. —Kevin DeYoung
Coram Deo: Many people in this world will regard us as fools for leaving everything behind for God. So often, the sacrifices that we make do not lead to any evident reward in this life, so it is easy for earthly minded people to believe Christianity is a fool’s game. Yet, we know that the Lord will bless us abundantly at His return for all that we have given up for His sake (Mark 10:29–31). And as these heavenly treasures cannot be lost, we actually make the wisest decision possible when we follow Christ.
If left to ourselves, we would not only gravitate toward, but would be swept into idolatry. —R.C. Sproul
Coram Deo: Jesus says that servants are not greater than their master. If He suffered for His faithfulness to God, His disciples will also suffer for trusting in Him and living by His Word. If we share His vocation on earth, however, it follows that we will share in the glory He received for fulfilling His Father’s will and trusting Him without fail. Christ’s sure promise is that we will share in His glory. That is reason enough to trust Him even when it is hard to do so.
True faith always reflects itself in our speech and actions, albeit imperfectly. If our faith never manifests itself in our speech and life, then it is not a real faith. It is not a believing in the heart. —Guy Richard in Tabletalk Magazine
Coram Deo: That faith is the gift of God is some of the best news we could ever receive. If faith is God’s gift to us, we do not have to depend on our own fervor or strength for our salvation. Since God is omnipotent, the only kind of faith He can give is persevering faith, faith that is strong enough to press through every doubt and trial. The faith we have is of divine origin, so we can look with confidence to Christ that He will keep us safe forever in and by this faith.
All Christians I know of who believe that the Sabbath is still in effect agree that on the Sabbath we should be worshiping, and also that on one day in seven there should be rest from unnecessary commerce and labor. —R.C. Sproul from Ligonier Ministries
Coram Deo: Without the proper diet, our bodies will be weak and sickly. The same is true of our faith. If we do not nourish it regularly, we will be tossed about by every wind of doubt, and we will fall into sin more readily. We feed our faith by hearing the preaching and teaching of God’s Word. This is the proper diet that the Lord has ordained for our souls. Let us take as many opportunities as we can to hear the Word of God so that we will grow strong in our faith.
All people have faith in something, but we are not saved simply by having faith. We are saved only if we have the correct object of faith. No one can come to the Father except through Jesus (John 14:6). If we are not people of faith in Jesus, we will be lost for all eternity. —Robert Rothwell in January's Tabletalk Magazine
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