A Person’s Deep Longing (Smith)

Humans differ from animals in various ways. For example, humans are made in the image of God and we have "souls that will last forever" as the kids' catechism rightly says. For another example, humans have deep longings of the heart. Here's how James Smith explains Augustine's view of humans and our longings: Augustine opens…

The Riddle or Enigma of Man (Bavinck)

 Here's a great excerpt from the first chapter in Bavinck's Our Reasonable Faith (aka The Wonderful Works of God or Magnalia Dei). I really like how Bavinck integrates Augustine and Pascal in his biblical reflections: The conclusion, therefore, is that of Augustine, who said that the heart of man was created for God and that it cannot find…

Motives at Work in Sexual Sin (Powlison)

Last week I mentioned David Powlison's forthcoming book, Making All Things New.  Today I want to highlight part of it that is quite helpful in thinking of the nuts and bolts of sexual sin, whether it be adultery, pornography, homosexuality, or lust (and so on).  Below are various motives at work in sexual sin, which…

The Religious Compartment

 Two days ago I mentioned William Wilberforce’s book called Real Christianity (that’s the modern title for it anyway).  In chapter four he explains the true character of the real Christian life and then contrasts it with the beliefs and practices of nominal Christians.  The second section of this chapter is where Wilberforce describes how nominal…

The (Deceitful) Heart

Here's a good summary of what the heart is - in biblical terms. "'Heart' is used different ways in the Bible.  Sometimes it is the mind believing or being enlightened (Rom. 10:10; Eph. 1:18), the will deciding and acting (2 Cor. 9:7, Eph. 6:6), or the affections feeling (2 Cor. 2:4).  In Hebrews 4:12 the…