I’m thinking about what I want to read in 2020. Below you’ll find some of my reading aspirations for next year.

1. To read the entire Bible.

Before seminary, I often used a Bible reading plan for my personal devotions. This was helpful. Once starting seminary, however, I felt like the...

I like to be organized when writing sermons. While there is a myriad of ways to write a faithful Bible sermon, I find some sort of sermon outline helpful during my sermon writing process.

Below you will find an expository sermon outline example. I got this from Bryan Chapell’s excellent book, C...

It’s time once again to share my top ten favorite books of the year. Putting this list together is always fun and hard. It’s fun because I love to read and recommend books; it’s hard because I only get to pick ten, and it’s not always easy to rank them! Nevertheless, this is...

Our church recently finished a sermon series on the Sermon on the Mount. As always, many resources served me well in my sermon writing process. Below you will find some of those resources along with other books on the Sermon on the Mount.

In no particular order:

1...

In his book The Cross and Christian Ministry,D.A. Carson writes about a profane activity that occurs in some churches. His words are eye-opening, to say the least. Indeed, these are some of the most convicting words I have read in a while. You can find Carson’s words below.

“We have...

How would you describe a false prophet? There are plenty of right responses to this question. Usually, what people think of are people who distort the Christian message for personal gain. If you said this you’d be off to a good start. But there is still one chief distinguishing mark of a...

“I’m spiritual but not religious.” Have you heard that expression before? I recently had a conversation with someone about faith. After a delay to articulate his beliefs, someone nearby helped by saying, “spiritual but not religious.” “Yeah,” he said,...

Note: This guest contribution by Brian J. Wright draws from Brian’s new 365-day devotional book,Inspired Questions: A Year’s Journey Through the New Testament (Christian Focus, 2019).

Preparing a good small-group discussion is no easy or speedy task, especially if attendance varies and...

I’ve followed Kanye’s music for years. I’ve also been following Jesus for some years, too. As a lifelong hip-hop fan and follower of Jesus, the news that Kanye West has come to saving faith in Jesus Christ brought me much joy. As I listened to his new album, Jesus is King, I heard...

Is there a wrong way to pray? Of course. You can pray to the wrong gods, in the wrong places, for the wrong reasons. This is one of the reasons why Jesus taught his disciples the difference between right and wrong praying.

The context is the sermon on the mount. When the sermon gets to prayer, Jesus...

“The Lord is my Shepherd; I shall not want.” This Bible verse from Psalm 23:1 is one of the most famous Bible verses in all of Scripture. This is a verse that encourages both believers and skeptics alike. But what does it mean that “the Lord is my shepherd?” ¹

Overfamiliar...

I recently turned 30. I’ve entered a new decade for the first time in, well, a decade. I’m brimming with thanksgiving and thinking of all the things that have shaped me into the person I am today. Good Christian books certainly make that list.

In this post, I want to share 30 books every...

Tenielle Neda is a Reformed Christian song-writer from western Australia. With over 25,000+ monthly Spotify listeners, she’s mustered up a bit of a following, all without having released an official album. After listening to her songs you can see the draw. In a day where so much music sounds...

Note: The following is an excerpt from Biblical Preaching, a free resource from Coram Deo Church (Acts 29) in Omaha, Nebraska. You can find the entire resource and more print resources from Coram Deo Church here.Used with permission.

Recently, I preached a sermon on anger (Matthew 5:21-26). As a result, I’ve been thinking more about this emotion. Today I want to share some of my imperfect reflections. This list not exhaustive just some things that came to mind. You can find them below.

In no particular order:

1....

Hospitality is an obligation for every Christian. Peter says to “Show hospitality to one another without grumbling” (1 Peter 4:9). One reason why he says to do so without grumbling is because his original audience, and you and I, are tempted to grumble when we show hospitality. But...

Cell Group. Home Group. Life Group. Growth Group. Community Group. Or if your church is varsity, Gospel Community Group. Whatever you call that thing in your church where people meet in homes for fellowship, prayer, and a Bible discussion, below you can find four ways to ruin it.

Of course, this...

Expository Preaching is a form of preaching that people talk about in books, at conferences, and online. But it’s become one of those things that’s often described but rarely defined. I’ll ask: What is the definition of expository preaching?

What Is Expository Preaching?

It’s...

It’s time for another segment of Book Blurbs. Not every book I touch makes this list, but only the ones I want to mention. Someone asked if I’m tired of reading now that I’m done with seminary. I pray that I would always have a voracious desire to read, but I am slightly weary....

Porn addiction. Greed. Verbal abuse. Gluttony. Drunkenness. All different kinds of sins, but they all stem from the same problem: a lack of self-control.

I’ve argued before that self-control is one of the biggest indicators of Christian character. Without it, you’ll eventually ruin your...

What is the rhythm?

The moment we hear the word “rhythm” related to our spiritual life, we probably think about balancing work and rest, maintaining certain tempos in life, or perhaps liturgical practices. We think about balancing two compartmentalized aspects of the Christian life...

I recently posted a step-by-step guide onhow to write an expository sermon. I thought it might be helpful to share a concrete example of what an expository sermon actually looks like for those who want to use the steps in the post.

In his book, Christ-Centered Preaching: Redeeming the Expository...

Learning how to write an expository sermon is hard work. Thankfully, we live in a day with plenty of preaching resources that can point us in the right direction. In this post, I will walk you through step-by-step on the sermon writing process for an expository sermon.

We’ll use Bryan...

It happens a lot. An evangelical Christian pastor disqualifies himself from ministry. As a young minister myself, I have been long warned and told of the temptations and sins that are unique to pastors. But there’s a difference between hearing about someone else’s fall and seeing it...

It happens a lot. An evangelical Christian pastor disqualifies himself from ministry. As a young minister myself, I have been long warned and told of the temptations and sins that are unique to pastors. But there’s a difference between hearing about someone else’s fall and seeing it...