I’ve begun reading “The Meaning of the City” by Jacques Ellul. It’s old, but it’s an outstanding book. He points out something I never noticed - that after Cain kills Abel and is then given his punishment and protection by God, Genesis tells us Cain’s reaction: to have a child and build a city. It’s the city that Ellul is interested in, and I was fascinated by his observations.
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Most books, articles and counselors on sexual sin deal with surface issues and fail to get to the heart of the matter. They want you to have accountability, they want you to avoid situations, and they want you to know that you are not alone (among other solutions), but as good as these suggestions are, they only provide temporary solutions that deal with surface issues.
I’ve worked with guys in the area of sexual temptation Read the rest of this entry »
It seems that most things don’t move at the speed I would like them to: getting my children to bed is too much of a challenge, shopping with my family takes entirely too long, check-out counters and cars are always moving too slow. There is no question about it, I’m impatient (and these are just the little things in life!). I’ve never really thought much about my impatience. In fact, many times I’ve justified my impatience as “righteous impatience” because I’m just trying to do what is right by getting my kids to bed on time! But then I read John Piper’s Battling Unbelief and I see my impatience for what it is: another sin.
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“Though shame has been fashionable as a prevalent diagnosis for emotional dysfunction, its roots are deep in the human condition, and the pain it can bring is real. If we are to live the kind of free and radically loving and holy lives Christ calls us to, we must understand the place of shame and how to fight against its crippling effects” (57). So writes John Piper in his excellent book, Battling Unbelief. So what is shame and how do we fight it?
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It’s been a good week: People have complimented my recent sermon, which makes me feel talented. I was accepted into a good seminary, which makes me feel smart. My wife is about to have a baby, which makes me feel like a stud. And both my fantasy football teams won, which makes me feel like a good coach. I’m feeling good about myself. That is, until I read John Piper’s Battling Unbelief, which makes me feel like maybe I’m not even a Christian.
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I traveled to Jamaica this past July, a trip which involved flying in a plane. Anyone who knows me well knows that I hate flying for a number of reasons. Needless to say, I experience a lot of anxiety leading up to the flight and, especially, on the flight itself. After the emotions of the flight wear off, I usually laugh at this anxiety, but John Piper’s Battling Unbelief has exposed it for what it really is: the sin of unbelief.
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This post begins a series of posts on John Piper’s excellent new book, Battling Unbelief: Defeating Sin with Superior Pleasure. The book itself is a shortened version of Piper’s The Purifying Power of Living by Faith in Future Grace, but it contains enough meat and practical application to satisfy us all. What will be provided here is just a brief summary of Piper’s message, which I wholeheartedly accept. For those desiring more (no Piper pun intended), skip the summary and buy the book!
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