Sometimes the slogan “All truth is God’s truth” is used to justify dealing in any sphere of knowledge as an act of worship or stewardship. The impression is given that just knowing God’s truth and recognizing it as such is a good thing, even a worthy end. But the problem with this is that the devil does it.

“If anyone imagines that he knows something, he does not yet know as he ought to know. But if anyone loves God, he is known by God.” (1 Corinthians 8:2-3). Which I take to mean that until we know in such a way that we love God more because of it, we do not yet know as we ought to know...

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John Piper's new book Finally Aliveis scheduled to release next week. We hope to have it available at the Desiring God Conference for Pastors on Monday, February 2.

This is the first of 6 posts introducing this book. This first one is a Q&A with John Piper about why he wrote the book. The last 5 will provide 5 of my favorite quotes from Finally Alive and some endorsements.

Q: Finally Alive is a whole book dedicated to the theme of the new birth. Why take up this doctrine?

A: In December 2006, I finished preaching through Romans with a joyful thankfulness for the great truth of justification that looms so large in that book. It seemed to me that what was needed was to head o…

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Here are 15 pro-life truths that help clarify the issue of abortion and give you brief talking points with those you would like to persuade.

In addition I include the links to the main abortion providers in the Twin Cities.

Sometimes we are so overwhelmed at being treated better than we deserve that we must exult in the all-sovereign God—the God of birds' flight and Obama’s rise. When King David pondered how many were God’s “wondrous deeds,” he said, “I will proclaim and tell of them, yet they are more than can be told” (Psalm 40:5). That’s the way I feel watching God’s public mercies in the last few days...

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In my thinking about the nature of the church, I am often inspired by Dietrich Bonhoeffer, who was hanged by Hitler in 1945. He wrote a little book called Life Together that described his plan for church community in the agonies of World War II in Germany. John Godsey says that it involved “a kind of theological education that was startlingly new in Germany: a communal life in which Jesus Christ’s call to discipleship was taken seriously.” That is what we want to do at Bethlehem—take Jesus and his church seriously...

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One of the most memorable moments of my seminary days was during the school year 1968-69 at Fuller Seminary on the third level of the classroom building just after a class on systematic theology. A group of us were huddled around James Morgan, the young theology teacher who was saying something about the engagement of Christians in social justice. I don’t remember what I said, but he looked me right in the eye and said, “John, I love Jesus Christ.”

It was like a thunderclap in my heart. A strong, intelligent, mature, socially engaged man had just said out loud in front of a half dozen men, “I love Jesus Christ.” He was not preaching. He was not pronouncing on any issue. He was not singi…

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I took a few days recently to put my sermons on Ruth into a small book that may be called A Sweet and Bitter Providence. One of the spillovers from that effort was a renewed sense of how much we need great stories that embody great truths.

Ruth and Boaz is a great love story. When a story is permeated with God and his vision of life, we get to watch truth happen. The beauty of truth is not explained to us. It is lived before us.

God’s truth concerning manhood and womanhood is beautiful. Most of us are so sinful that we don’t model it well. So we need teaching and we need storytelling. And we need Christ to forgive us and renew us and send us back again and again into this truth...

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I gave a presentation at the Evangelical Theological Society (ETS) meeting in Providence, Rhode Island, last month titled "Why God Is Not a Megalomaniac in Demanding to Be Worshiped."

It is probably the shortest public presentation I have made in the last 20 years! The reason is that I wanted to leave time for questions and criticism. So more than 25 of the 45 minutes allotted to me was Q&A. If we can get the audio recording, we will post it.

But for now, here are seven theses that summarize what I am on the planet to communicate.

This is overflow from a pastoral staff discussion on how to be free from covetousness. Fred Johnson had drawn our attention to Achan’s stealing and lying in Joshua 7:11. Jericho had fallen before Israel. The riches of the city were not to be taken. But Achan took garments and silver and gold. He hid them and tried to deceive the leaders.

Why did he do this? When he was caught, Achan gives the answer: “I coveted them and took them” (Joshua 7:21). Covetousness. He desired the silver, gold, and garments more than he desired fellowship with God...

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This is the 1-year anniversary of my dad's dad dying.

So I thought it would be a good day to commemorate him through this 10-minute video that was made for the pastors conference last month.

In it, my dad walks around the neighborhood and the house he grew up in and talks about the memories of his father that this brings up.