Tag: Sinclair Ferguson

Links for the Weekend (2024-12-13)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

Recovering Christ at Christmastime

Here’s a brief but powerful reflection about Christ and Christmas from Sinclair Ferguson.

Perhaps the reason that He is not central to us at Christmastime is that He has been stolen from our lives long before Christmas. So the first issue to settle is really this: Is Jesus central in my life day by day during the rest of the year? If not, why would I imagine that He will suddenly become central to me on Christmas Day?

Can I Pray to the Holy Spirit?

This is an important question, and Fred Sanders gives a good (short) answer: can I pray to the Holy Spirit? (This is a video with a transcript.)

Advent Sunday: Christina Rossetti

Our poem of the week: Advent Sunday, by Christina Rossetti. This poem contemplates the second coming of Christ, one of the important practices of Advent.

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2024-02-02)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

I Still Feel Shame for My Past Sins. What Should I Do?

Sinclair Ferguson answers this question about shame for Ligonier. This is available as an audio recording (a podcast) as well as a transcript.

10 Things You Should Know about American Criminal Justice

This was eye-opening for me. This Crossway article (and advertisement for one of their books) explains some of the misunderstood facts about the American criminal justice system.

Concerns about and criticism of the criminal justice system is not un-American; rather, it is quintessentially American. The American Revolution often brings to mind tea taxes and the Boston harbor protest of such. But skimming the Declaration of Independence, one realizes that the colonists were also quite concerned about abuses of the criminal justice system by King George III. In the very first Congress, James Madison proposed a series of constitutional amendments—now known as the US Bill of Rights—that were overwhelmingly focused on how criminal prosecutions must be conducted. The American founders understood that the power to criminally punish was an enormous one and the emotional outcry to solve a crime could lead the authorities to run roughshod over the rights of the accused. 

Laughter

Here’s our poem of the week. It’s a great reflection on Sarah’s laughter when she learned of her pregnancy in old age.

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2023-01-20)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

A Family Vacation, a Broken Transmission, and a God Who Is with Us

This story of the practical (and surprising!) provision of God on a family vacation is wonderful.

It was the second day of our much-anticipated family camping trip to Yellowstone and Grand Teton National Parks. We were a good five-hour drive from home, and our vehicle’s transmission had just completely failed.

I Am Not My Own: How Heidelberg Healed Me

This article provides some background on the Heidelberg Catechism and some meditation on that wonderful first question and answer.

The poignancy of her reply struck me. She had recited the answer to question 1 of the Heidelberg Catechism, a centuries-old doctrinal statement that beautifully captures the central elements of the Christian faith. Over time after this conversation, when the wages of sin encroached upon my own life, I too found myself repeating these words, and thanking the Lord that when our own fallenness overwhelms us, we can rejoice that we belong to the One who laid down his life for us (John 10:11; 1 John 3:16).  

What is covenant theology?

Sinclair Ferguson answers this question in a 5-minute video.

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2022-11-18)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

This is a pre-Advent version of our regular links post. Advent begins on Sunday, November 27, so the Discipleship Committee has put together some recommendations. (Thanks, Discipleship Committee!)

Good News of Great Joy

Good News of Great Joy, available as a free download or to purchase, is a collection of short Advent devotionals by John Piper.

The Christmas Promise Advent Calendar

This family-focused devotional contains Scripture verses and discussion starters for each day of Advent. The daily sessions are brief and can work for a variety of ages.

The Jesus Storybook Bible: A Christmas Collection

This interactive collection is recommended for children ages 4 through 8. It includes songs, narrations, Scripture, and activities.

Love Came Down at Christmas

Love Came Down at Christmas is a daily devotional by Sinclair Ferguson. Not typically a Christmas text, 1 Corinthians 13 becomes a fresh lens through which we can view the arrival of Jesus.

What is Advent?

Noel Piper, wife of Pastor John Piper, answers this question in a succinct but informative article. 

On the WPCA Blog This Week

This week on the blog we published an article written by Sarah Wisniewski called When Shall We Fold Socks? If you haven’t already seen it, check it out!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2022-09-23)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

A New Song: In the Valley (Bless the Lord)

Tim Challies recently released a book on sorrow, and the group CityAlight wrote a song inspired by the book. The words are simple but powerful. Here’s the second verse.

When the road that I tread

Fills my heart with despair

And it seems like my grief has no end

Still to Jesus I hold

Who will walk with me there

And the Lord he will give me His strength

Age with Joy

I enjoyed this meditation on aging. Our approach to aging can distinguish Christians from the world!

Just as Death has lost its sting, so aging has lost its ability to cheat us. We may momentarily lose loved ones or abilities, our outward self will waste away; but it is only a momentary loss, and as the Holy Spirit renews us day by day, our inward lives are strengthened, more robust and alive. Even as our flesh decays and we are nothing but bones in the ground, this is but a temporary reality. Because the grave is indeed swallowed up in Christ’s victory. We are laid to rest, yet we will rise again with bodies imperishable.

Can you summarize the doctrine of the believer’s union with Christ?

In a video from Ligonier Ministries, Sinclair Ferguson gives a 2-minute answer to this question about union with Christ.

On the WPCA Blog This Week

This week on the blog we published an article I wrote called Let the Guilty Lament. If you haven’t already seen it, check it out!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (2022-03-04)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

The Blissful and Trivial Life

Marshall Segal wrote about the media we consume and the effects that can have on our soul.

The medium is not the enemy — television and YouTube and Instagram are not the enemy. But if Postman was right, the medium can be wielded by our world, our flesh, and our enemy when we soak up entertainment and ignore the consequences. What, if any, of your entertainment habits need to be curbed or redirected for the sake of your soul? What are ways you are seeking to cultivate the spiritual gift of your mind — slower Bible study or memorization, reading substantive books, meaningful conversation with friends, more time in unhurried reflection and meditation? 

What’s in Your Mind, Believer?

The role of the Law in the life of a Christian has been a difficult issue for centuries. In this article, Sinclair Ferguson helps us answer this question by looking at the role of the Law in the Bible as a whole.

The anonymous author of Hebrews was fascinated by the relationship between the Law and the gospel. He explained how the Mosaic administration was like a shadow cast backwards into the old covenant period by the work of Christ in the new covenant (Heb. 8:5). Now that the new covenant has been forged in the blood of Christ, the old is revealed for what it always was, shadow rather than reality. Now it is “obsolete” (8:13).

Christ Will Be My Hideaway

This song is one of my favorites that I’ve discovered in the past year. Christ Will Be My Hideaway is a song based on Psalm 91, written by Sovereign Grace Music.

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (4/30/2021)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

Help! My Beliefs Are Viewed as Intolerant

In a world where Christians are increasingly viewed as having views which are intolerant, Michael Kruger helps us to think carefully about this charge and offer a humble response.

In most conversations about exclusivity, the non-Christian often remains entirely unaware of why Christianity must be exclusive. Is there any internal logic for why Christianity makes this claim?

At this point, we need to reassure our non-Christian friend that Jesus’s claim about himself is not arbitrary nor is it merely self-aggrandizing. Rather, Jesus is making that claim because he, and he alone, is the only solution to the problem of sin.

What Does It Mean For God to Be Our Father?

Since we are told repeatedly, both in the Old and New Testament, to refer to God as “Father,” we should let the Bible tell us what that means. I don’t mean to spoil things, but having God as our father is very, very good news! Here’s one example:

He responds appropriately to requests, for our good – If you then, who are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father who is in heaven give good things to those who ask him! (Matthew 7:11)

How to Mortify Sin

The “mortification of sin” sounds like an old-fashioned term, but it is Biblical—it means putting sin to death. In this article, originally published in Ligonier’s Tabletalk magazine, Sinclair Ferguson writes about how Colossians 3:1–17 instructs us to mortify sin. (One extra bonus: this passage is part of the sermon text for this upcoming Sunday!)

Failure to deal with the presence of sin can often be traced back to spiritual amnesia, forgetfulness of our new, true, real identity. As a believer I am someone who has been delivered from the dominion of sin and who therefore is free and motivated to fight against the remnants of sin’s army in my heart.

Thanks to Phil A for his help in rounding up links this week!

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here. 

Links for the Weekend (9/20/2019)

Posted onAuthorRyan Higginbottom

Each Friday, I’ll post links to 3–5 resources from around the web you may want to check out.

How Christians Can Prepare for the 2020 Election

Daniel Bennett writes about the tension and conflict that will likely surround the 2020 Presidential election. He offers three ways that Christians can prepare themselves to be salt and light.

Christians should take political engagement seriously for the sake of the kingdom, to seek justice, to defend the defenseless, and to love our neighbors. But whereas much political engagement today stems from fear, anger, and even despair, ours should stem from our identity in Christ. It should reflect our confidence that whatever happens in the state of earthly affairs, and regardless of temporal wins and losses, the King of glory remains on his throne.

The Church is a Means of Grace

This is a great reflection from a pastor on his children making a profession of faith and how influential the people at his church have been on those children.

You don’t just need good preaching and communion. You need the gospel community good preaching creates. You need a church family to whom you are joined in communion. You need them to uphold your weak faith, to walk with you during hard times. You need the church’s help, their friendship, prayers, meals, examples, and teamwork.

How Do I Know That God Is for Me?

A beautiful, simple reminder at the Ligonier blog from Sinclair Ferguson.

This is the whole point of Paul’s question in verse 32. We can be sure that God is for us because this God, the God of the Bible, the God and Father of our Lord Jesus Christ, did not spare His own Son, but gave Him up to the cross for us all.

Note: Washington Presbyterian Church and the editors of this blog do not necessarily endorse all content produced by the individuals or groups referenced here.