Are you confident that you know and are fulfilling God’s purpose for your life? Tom Tarrants observes that God’s purpose for our life has two major aspects: His purpose in the world to come, and His purpose in the present world. These are intricately intertwined, and it is important to approach our need for guidance in the pressing affairs of the present world, which seem so urgent, in the context of God’s larger, eternal purpose. Once we situate ourselves in this framework, we can more readily discern and embrace God’s particular plans in the unique circumstances of our lives. . . Read this article online.
Recommended Reading:
Discovering God's Will by Sinclair Ferguson (Banner of Truth, 2013)
Discovering God’s Will draws out fundamental principles by which God guides us, applies them to practical situations like vocation and marriage, and underlines many important biblical counsels. It shows that the guidance God gives comes primarily through knowing, loving and obeying him.
Don't Waste Your Life by John Piper (Crossway, 2003)
In this best-selling book, John Piper makes a passionate plea to the next generation to avoid the dangers of a wasted life, calling us to take risks and make sacrifices that matter for eternity—with a single, soul-satisfying passion for the glory of God that seeks to make much of him in every sphere of our lives.
The metaphor of birth provides a helpful way of understanding fuller implications of what it means to know God and to grow in that relationship. Just as a human being is physically born into the world and moves through a developmental cycle from infant to child to adolescent to adult, so a child of God is born spiritually and is called to move through a similar developmental cycle. To read the full article https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/Knowing_God_Personally_page1 Recommended Reading: Knowing God by J.I Packer https://www.christianbook.com/knowing-god-j-i-packer/9780830816507/pd/1650X?event=ESRCQ One of the top 50 books that have shaped evangelicals (Christianity Today, 2006) Platinum Book Award, Evangelical Christian Publishing Association For over 40 years, J. I. Packer’s classic has been an important tool to help Christians around the world discover the wonder, the glory and the joy of knowing God. ...
According to Gregory Ganssle, the Christian story makes sense of our deepest longings. That is, the story that Christianity sets forth fits well with the things we value most and with the kinds of people we want to be. In this article, he develops one aspect of this fittingness, the centrality of relationships to our well-being. . . Read the full article. Recommended Reading: Gregory E. Ganssle, Our Deepest Desires: How the Christian Story Fulfills Human Aspirations (IVP Academic, 2017). InterVarsity Press | Amazon | Christian Book Distributers ...
Two themes that surface in Augustine’s sermons that may be helpful for our discipleship: understanding (1) salvation as primarily a process, a pilgrimage that is completed only in the future at our final destination, heaven, and (2) future rewards as a motivating factor for present godliness. Show notes: To read the article go to https://www.cslewisinstitute.org/Augustine_on_Heaven_and_Rewards_page1 Recommended Reading: Gerald Bray, Augustine on the Christian Life: Transformed by the Power of God (Crossway, 2015) Augustine is widely considered to be the most influential theologian in church history after the apostle Paul. Dramatically converted from a life of licentiousness to one of wholehearted devotion to Christ, the humble North African pastor quickly established himself as a leading figure within the ancient church. In Augustine on the Christian Life, historian Gerald Bray explores the rich spirituality of this extraordinary man, examining his historical context, approach to the Christian life, and work as a preacher and teacher of God’s Word. Drawing on Augustine’s many writings—including his classic spiritual autobiography, the Confessions—Bray demonstrates Augustine’s enduring relevance for Christians today. This book is part of Crossway’s Theologians on the Christian Life series. https://www.christianbook.com/augustine-christian-life-transformed-power-god/gerald-bray/9781433544941/pd/544941?event=ESRCG ...
