One neat thing about the blogosphere is the increasing accessibility to old gospel resources that would otherwise be buried in libraries. Case in point: J.C. Ryle Quotes.

This blog is a repository of Christ-centered content from the nineteenth-century Bishop of Liverpool — who was also the subject of John Piper's recent biographical message at the Desiring God Conference for Pastors.

In a recent post, Erik Kowalker highlights the top 25 posts over the past few years:

1. 5 Dangers For Young Men
2. 9 Lessons From God Concerning Sickness
3. 7 Marks of a Right Heart Before God
4. 5 Tips For Raising Godly Children
5. 8 Symptoms of False Doctrine
6. 5 Marks of True Repentance
7. 8 Profitable Ways to Read the …

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We know that before Paul was born God had set him apart for his apostleship.

He who had set me apart before I was born, and who called me by his grace, was pleased to reveal his Son to me, in order that I might preach him among the Gentiles. (Galatians 1:15–16).

And we know that Paul became a Christian-hating (Acts 9:1), Christ-persecuting (Acts 9:5), zealot (Philippians 3:6; Galatians 1:14) before  he was converted. Forever after he would call himself “the chief of sinners” because of these wicked days (1 Timothy 1:15; 1 Corinthians 15:9).

We also know that God broke into Paul’s life dramatically and decisively to bring him to faith (Acts 9:3–19). Which means that he could have pl…

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Deuteronomy 6:20–21:

When your son asks you in time to come, "What is the meaning of the testimonies and the statutes and the rules that the Lord our God has commanded you?" then you shall say to your son, "We were Pharaoh’s slaves in Egypt. And the Lord brought us out of Egypt with a mighty hand."

Charles Spurgeon:

Fathers and mothers are the most natural agents for God to use in the salvation of their children. I am sure that, in my early youth, no teaching ever had such an impression upon my mind as the instruction of my mother; neither can I conceive that, to any child, there can be one who will have such influence over the young heart as the mother who has so tenderly care…

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Ray Ortlund Jr.:

Wisdom is more than brains. It is more than morals. We could memorize the whole Bible, and mean it from the heart, without wisdom. Wisdom is skill, expertise, competence that understands how life really works, how to achieve successful and even beautiful results. We see a picture of wisdom in Exodus 35:31, where the word translated “wisdom” in Proverbs 1:2 is used for the skill of an artist adorning the tabernacle. We see wisdom in Jeremiah 10:9 where the expertise of goldsmiths is called “the work of skilled men,” or wise men. We see wisdom in Psalm 107:27 for the know-how of sailors, who use the winds and tides to make their way through the sea to their destination. W…

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We shouldn't open our books without praying, but we'd better pray without opened books.

I think B. B. Warfield would give a thumbs up here. In his salty essay, "The Religious Life of Theological Students," Warfield explains that study should be devotional. He says that study itself is a "religious exercise of the most rewarding kind." And while this is all true, he doesn't stop here. He goes on to say there are other religious exercises that demand our "punctual attention." There are other aspects of our devotional life that can't be neglected "without the gravest damage" to ourselves.

Praying Is About Joy

Throw all the aspects of our devotional life into a hat and tell me to draw one.…

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Compiling church member names and contact information into a directory is useful for a number of reasons: it helps members connect, it reminds pastors of the souls they are accountable for, and as Mark Dever stresses, it encourages pastors and members to pray for one another.

Church directories may be full-color and printed with family pictures, or text-based and photocopied into a booklet, or, more commonly today, posted online in the members’ section of a website. The work required to manage and update the information is no small task, but often it pales in comparison to the task of motivating a whole church to get their pictures taken.

For all its uses and challenges, there’s one fu…

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Richard Sibbes:

Nothing is stronger than humility, which goes out of itself, or weaker than pride, which rests on its own foundation. . . . And this should be particularly observed because naturally we aspire to a kind of divinity, in setting about actions in the strength of our own abilities; whereas Christ says, ‘Without me ye’, the apostles, who were in a state of grace, ‘can do nothing’ (John 15:5). He does not say, you can do a little, but nothing.

Of ourselves, how easily we are overcome! How weak we are to resist! We are as reeds shaken with every wind. We shake at the very noise and thought of poverty, disgrace or losses. We give in immeditately. We have no power over our eyes, to…

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Tribulation is here, and we need to know God's word.

This is the gist of chapter 7 in Greg Beale's A New Testament Biblical Theology. In 37 pages, he lays out how the eschatological tribulation has been inaugurated with Jesus and the church. It's here, now.

Tribulation Already

Telltale marks of the tribulation, according to Daniel 7–12, include persecution and deception through false teaching. The apostles were mindful of how present these things were in their own day, especially the rise of false teaching. John even drops the A-word (antichrist) in 1 John 2:18, 22; 4:3; 2 John 1:7. Though it seems to have not yet reached its climax, the tribulation clearly has begun (the whole period betw…

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Spiders, hedonism, revivals, and the mysteries of the trinity — Jonathan Edwards's mind was rich and his writings are prolific. Digestible overviews of his life and writings are always appreciated.

During the recent conversation between John Piper and Douglas Wilson, mention was made of moderator Joe Rigney's trip to New Saint Andrews College in Moscow, Idaho in March of 2010. Joe is Assistant Professor of Theology and Christian Worldview at Bethlehem College and Seminary where he teaches undergraduates in the Christian Worldview Program and courses on Jonathan Edwards at the seminary. It was on the trip to NSA that Joe delivered an introduction to Jonathan Edwards, his theology, his writ…

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If you are old and fear that Christ will not accept you for having sinned away the better part of your life, let Jonathan Edwards compel you. This is from a sermon titled “No Obstacle to the Pardon of the Returning Sinner,” based on Psalm 25:11, “For your name’s sake, O Lord, pardon my guilt, for it is great.”

I am afraid God will not accept of me, when I offer him only mine old age.

To this I would answer

Hath God said anywhere, that he will not accept old sinners who come to him? God hath often made offers and promises in universal terms; and is there any such exception put in?

Doth Christ say, All that thirst, let them come to me and drink, except old sinners? Come to me, all ye th…

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