How Many Motivations Are There for Godliness? – Kevin DeYoung

Is there just one proper gospel-centered rationale for holiness? Should we, in speaking about sanctification, avoid threats and warnings and coming judgment and focus simply on our acceptance in Christ? How many motivations does the Bible have for godliness?

I see at least twenty. In the three chapters of 2 Peter alone. MORE:

How Many Motivations Are There for Godliness? – Kevin DeYoung

Leaving the church means leaving Christ | Denny Burk

Yesterday you read an article by Denny Burk regarding Donald Miller's reasons for leaving the church. Here is a response to his reaction to the post.

Donald Miller has written a lengthy follow-up to his original post explaining why he has left the church (to which I responded yesterday). In this second posting, he doubles down on his original position that Christians need not involve themselves in a local church. They can attend if they want, if it helps them. But it is not necessary. It is certainly not a norm that should be imposed on all Christians everywhere.

Because Miller’s essay is so long (over 3,000 words!), I will not attempt a point-by-point rebuttal. Nevertheless, a response is in order since he takes issue with my contention that leaving the church is “spiritual suicide.”



Under point #8, He writes: MORE: Leaving the church means leaving Christ | Denny Burk

Donald Miller’s prescription for spiritual suicide | Denny Burk

I just read a rather stunning admission from Donald Miller. In a short blog post, he says that his learning style is not conducive for learning in traditional worship services. He doesn’t “connect” with God in singing praises or in listening to the preached word. On the contrary, he feels most connected to God when he is working to “build his company.” As a result of all this, he makes this confession:

MORE:

Donald Miller’s prescription for spiritual suicide | Denny Burk

Overcoming Spiritual Stagnation

(by Wyatt Graham - The Cripplegate)

A dark room that reeks of the musty smell that accompanies rot. Alone here, your mind wanders nowhere yet everywhere at the same time. A feeling of dread, loneliness or something wriggles through your bones. A sucking feeling in your gut tips you off that you are hungry but you are not sure. It might just be anxiety. All of this happened because of a keen experience of separation from God. A sort of spiritual anxiety. The Puritans described this feeling with the phrase, “the dark night of the soul.” They knew well about the malady of spiritual depression.

Spiritual stagnation is a problem that will bombard everyone at one point or another. Depression, fears and anxiety gush out, because we feel “separated” from God, from grace. We feel alone, sinful, dirty and unloved—or perhaps unloving.

Part of reason spiritual depression occurs, I am convinced, is because we have a wrong view of Biblical Change. We go to God and ask for ways to overcome our problems, our worries... MORE

Answers to Keys to Healthy Christian Growth in Godliness (Dane Ortlund) "...That’s the question I asked a handful of thoughtful men of God last week. Responses below. Please understand: I explicitly asked our brothers to keep it to a single, short sentence. Of course, whole volumes could be (and have been!) written addressing this question (here’s my favorite). So we gladly receive these wise statements remembering that sanctification is not a math problem. There is no formula. Every answer below needs a hundred footnotes. Point taken..."

Christian Sanctification: Indicative, But No Imperative? (Michael Bird)  Sunday, September 05, 2010 Christian Sanctification - Indicative but no Imperative?
"One of the standard features of Christian ethics is that it has an indicative part (what God has done for us in in salvation) and an imperative part (how we are to live in consequence). In other words, because of what God has done for you, now you should live in a manner worthy of your salvation. This pattern of indicative and imperative certainly works in Paul (e.g., Romans 6), but I would argue that it is also the pattern in the Pentateuch since the long is given to a redeemed people not to redeem the people. In fact..."

How to Love One Another: Affirm, Share and Serve (Tim Keller) "Most of us are familiar with the “one another” commands of the New Testament. In the study guide for Gospel in Life: Grace Changes Everything, Tim Keller offers a helpful taxonomy under the categories of affirming one another, sharing with one another, and serving one another. These form, he says, “nine ‘community-building practices’—specific behaviors that build Christian community.” For a more detailed unpacking of each point, see pp. 58-71..."

5 Reasons You Might Not Be Seeing Spiritual Growth (Jonathan Dodson) "1. Feelings can be misleading.
Just because we don’t feel holy doesn’t mean the Spirit isn’t making us holy. Feelings aren’t an adequate barometer of spiritual growth, but the gospel always leads us into growth. Bank your growth on faith in gospel truth, not in subjective feelings...."