Truth For Life Blog

No Passive Defense in the Christian Life

TFL — Wed, 05 Aug 2026 04:59:59 GMT

In 1 Peter 5:8, Peter issues two incisive imperatives: “Be sober-minded; be watchful.” We have a duty of personal vigilance, since, as Peter goes on to explain, “your adversary the devil prowls around like a roaring lion, seeking someone to devour.” There can be no passive defense in the Christian life. The moment we let our minds wander, the moment we get lazy, unguarded, or slothful, we are immediately in a spiritual danger zone.

The Necessity of Action

The British evangelist Alan Redpath used to ask young people, “Do you have blanket victory?” He wasn’t using “blanket” in the sense of “total” or “all-covering.” He simply meant the blankets on their bed! Were they, he was asking, resisting the urge to be lazy with the God-given gift of their daily lives?

In the book of Proverbs we find a clarifying picture of the cost of the lazy life:

I passed by the field of a sluggard,
by the vineyard of a man lacking sense,
and behold, it was all overgrown with thorns;
the ground was covered with nettles,
and its stone wall was broken down.
Then I saw and considered it;
I looked and received instruction.
A little sleep, a little slumber,
a little folding of the hands to rest,
and poverty will come upon you like a robber,
and want like an armed man. (Prov. 24:30–34)

The world reassures us, “There’s nothing wrong with a little bit of laziness.” But the Bible responds, “Yes, there really is!” And this is all the more true and pressing when, as Peter reminds us, predatory spiritual forces are hot on our heels. In such circumstances, we have to stay awake and alert—and we’ve got to act.

The story is told of a chaplain on the South Coast of England. The sailors to whom he ministered said to him once, “Chaplain, if you were in the real world like the rest of us, you would know that it’s not so easy. When we sin, we are just swept along by the wind.” In response, the chaplain pointed out over the bay at the sailing ships crossing this way and that, and he said,

One ship drives East, one ship drives West
By the self-same wind that blows;
It’s the set of the sails, and not the gales,
That determines the way it goes.¹

Nothing could be more obvious in life than that the winds and currents push us where God says not to go. But just as the skillful sailor sets sail to beat windward, we may choose to move against the currents of the world, the flesh, and the devil, hard going as it may be.

The Path of Resistance

The reason that we must be alert, the reason that we must be awake, is in order to mount this resistance movement. The Bible warns us to flee all kinds of things—sexual immorality (1 Cor. 6:18), idolatry (1 Cor. 10:14), false doctrine (Rom. 16:17), greed (1 Tim. 6:10–11), and so on. But we are never, ever told to run away from the devil; instead, we’re told to resist him (1 Peter 5:9; James 4:7), and to do so in the assurance that God’s Word will actually take care of all things necessary in relation to his malignant designs.

How are we to do this? We may “stand against” his schemes by taking up the armor of God (Eph. 6:11), being “firm in the faith” (1 Peter 5:9 NIV). The definite article there, “the faith,” tells us we’re talking about the truth of the Gospel, not the strength of our own belief. It means that we need to have a theological underpinning for dealing with our sinful desires, as in the hymn:

When Satan tempts me to despair
And tells me of the guilt within,
Upward I look and see Him there
Who made an end of all my sin.²

In other words, we stand firm in the doctrine of the atonement and in our union with Christ.

We are never, ever told to run away from the devil; instead, we’re told to resist him.

We might easily imagine the Evil One coming to us and asking, “Have you been reading your Bible the way you should?”

If we’re honest, most of us would likely reply, “No, no—but I’m going to do a better job soon, I promise. Perhaps starting Monday.”

“And what about the matter of Christian love?” he might then ask. “Are you loving people the way that Jesus said to love?”

“Well, no,” we’d perhaps reply, “I’m not. I haven’t been doing real good on that either. I’ll get it sorted out, though. I’m going to redress the balance.”

And so on it would go, with the devil targeting our failings each in turn, until eventually we feel ourselves being crushed under the weight of all the endeavor necessary to measure up to God’s perfect standard.

There’s only one answer that we can give that offers freedom and hope, and that is to look to Jesus. Jesus is all our righteousness.

That answer, the Bible affirms, only leads to despair. There’s only one answer that we can give that offers freedom and hope, and that is to look to Jesus. Jesus is all our righteousness. We set Him before the Evil One, and then we can say, “You can go back to hell where you belong, because it’s checkmate. I am in Christ. ‘There is therefore now no condemnation’” (Rom. 8:1). Then our resistance will be grounded on something firm and final.

The Source of Our Help

If we stand amidst this battle distracted, disengaged, disinterested, what will become of us? We will be easy prey. Our vigilance is necessary so that when the hour of trial comes, we may be ready to look away to the cross, to set our minds on things above, where Christ is, seated in victory at God’s right hand (Col. 3:1–2). Then we can remember the promise that Peter, after he has issued his imperatives, goes on to declare: “The God of all grace, who has called you to his eternal glory in Christ, will himself restore, confirm, strengthen, and establish you” (1 Peter 5:10).

This article was adapted from the sermon “Security” by Alistair Begg.

Ella Wheeler Wilcox, “’Tis the Set of the Sails,” paraphrased in Derek Prime, From Trials to Triumphs, A Bible Commentary for Laymen (Ventura, CA: Regal, 1982), 32. ↩︎
Charitie Lees Bancroft, “Before the Throne of God Above” (1863). ↩︎

The Story of God and Us: Finding Our Place in God’s Plan for the World

TFL — Mon, 03 Aug 2026 05:00:00 GMT

Have you ever wished you could see how the entire Bible fits together as one cohesive story? In The Story of God and Us, pastor and theology professor Jonathan Murphy retells the grand narrative of Scripture from Genesis to Revelation. You’ll begin with creation and trace the line of God’s unfolding plan of redemption through the fall, the patriarchs, the kings, the prophets, and then the coming of the Messiah in the Gospels. You’ll continue the storyline of God’s faithfulness from generation to generation in Acts and the Epistles and finally anticipate all to come as revealed in Revelation. This captivating book connects all the dots for those who’ve never read the Bible in its entirety or those unsure of how all the people and events tell one unified story.

Rather than treating the Bible as a collection of disconnected stories, Murphy demonstrates how every part of Scripture points to God’s faithfulness, His covenant promises, and, ultimately, His Son, Jesus Christ. Along the way, you’ll gain a deeper understanding of God’s character and discover how you fit within His greater story.

One of the book’s greatest strengths is its ability to combine theological depth with practical application. Murphy pauses routinely to point out important lessons we must not miss from those who trusted in God’s promises and those who failed and reverted to their own understanding. Murphy’s warnings and encouragements are a great help as you aim to live faithfully, trusting in God even when He appears not present.

The Story of God and Us is a highly recommended book to use for a group Bible study with those who are new to learning the story of the Bible.

Request your copy of The Story of God and Us when you donate to Truth For Life today.

“Jonathan Murphy’s overview of the greatest story ever told is understandable, accessible, and wonderfully encouraging.” — Alistair Begg

Alistair Begg Shares Memories of How "Parting is Such Sweet Sorrow"

TFL — Mon, 03 Aug 2026 05:00:00 GMT

Dear Friend,

August 3, 1983, was a day I will never forget.

Forty-three years on, it remains etched indelibly in my memory. The previous evening had been spent with family and friends at my father’s home just outside Glasgow. I recall the laughter, the stories, and the sense of wishing to make the evening last, because when we said goodnight, we knew that the dawn would mean a parting, and “Parting is such sweet sorrow.” The following morning, Susan, I, and our three wee ones (ages four, two, and ten months) walked across the tarmac and boarded a Northwest Orient Airlines 747, which would take us to Boston to connect with a flight to Cleveland.

In writing about this now, I realize, to my shame, how little thought I gave to another parting eight years before, when, newly married, Susan and I sailed out of New York for London, leaving her family behind. She was only twenty! I don’t remember ever asking her just what that parting meant for her, her mum, and dad but simply swept her off to a new world and a new life! It surely didn’t help her father, as he filmed our departure, to see the hammer and sickle flying above the Russian ship that would be our passage to London. Before you enquire: It was the least expensive way to get ourselves and our few belongings to the UK. Incidentally, our ship, the Mikhail Lermontov, later sank off the coast of New Zealand in 1986.

The sadness of separation was softened by the sweet anticipation of what the new day would bring. Perhaps one day, if we have time and you are interested, we can have coffee, and I will tell you of the warm welcome we received from our new church family in Cleveland and of the beginnings of the great adventure which continues to this day.

The privileges and challenges of raising our children are behind us now, and, like so many of you, we have graduated to the noble, fascinating, enjoyable role of grandparenthood. We were young, and now we are old, able to tell our stories and share the hymns that helped establish our faith, hoping that our grandchildren will also be strengthened by them. We have a unique opportunity to field questions they might not care to ask their parents and to provide insights and guidance for them as we drive them to school or to sporting events. I don’t recall my grandparents ever “preaching” to me, and certainly not at me, but their down-to-earth godly goodness influences my life to this day.

Susan is much better than I am at being intentional about these matters. On a recent trip with two of our nine grandchildren, we used the occasion to reinforce the importance of personal faith and the blessings of family—and together had tons of fun!

A recent study shows that children and young people’s enjoyment of reading has risen for the first in recent years time since 2021. One of my grandmothers was a great reader, and she encouraged me to follow her example. Our book offers this month might help us to do the same. The Language of Rivers and Stars helps us to speak of the wonders of God in creation, and The Story of God and Us invites us to ponder God’s faithfulness from generation to generation.

Thank you always for your faithful partnership as we seek to fulfill our mission, not least of all in seeking to see our grandchildren become committed followers of the Lord Jesus.

With my love in the Lord Jesus,

Alistair

Psalm 71:17–18

Wallpaper: Trinity

TFL — Mon, 03 Aug 2026 05:00:00 GMT

“There was never a time when God did not exist. … God existed always as a Trinity—God the Father and Son and the Holy Spirit.”
—Alistair Begg

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Past Resources from Truth For Life

TFL — Mon, 03 Aug 2026 04:45:00 GMT

At Truth For Life, we take great care to select books each month that cover a diverse range of topics and that will help you grow in your faith. Below, you’ll find a list of our past recommended resources. While we don’t currently have all of the titles in stock, you’re welcome to browse to find new titles for your personal library.

Nehemiah Knew When to Rest

TFL — Wed, 29 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

The book of Nehemiah gives us a spectacular picture of godly leadership and initiative: Facing a run-down Jerusalem with a broken-down wall after the Babylonian exile, Nehemiah, the book’s namesake, leads the people in rebuilding the wall and rededicating the city and its people to God. Yet at the outset of the “great work” that Nehemiah accomplishes and the challenges that accompany it, Nehemiah 2:11 contains a simple sentence that we may be tempted to overlook: “I went to Jerusalem and was there three days.”

Why “three days”? Based on all that we read in the opening sections of the book, we can reasonably imagine that Nehemiah was champing at the bit to get started with the rebuilding efforts. After months of travel, anticipating the opportunity for work, could somebody so keen to lead and be active waste his time like this?

In fact, Nehemiah didn’t “waste” his time; he used it strategically, to rest from his journey. This is something that we do well to meditate on. By and large, our culture is reluctant to acknowledge what is an essential element in every task—namely, rest and relaxation. The models that young men and women in the marketplace are encouraged to follow are the kind of dramatic, unsleeping tycoons who appear on the covers of magazines, charging from one task to another with a laptop open in front of them. Yet despite the apparent worldly success that accompanies such a lifestyle, it comes with a cost—often one that impacts the church and the family first.

The kind of hard-driving leadership that we often want to emulate in our culture needs to be held up to the light of the Scriptures. In this simple sentence, Nehemiah provides a necessary antidote for many of our frenetic and frantic existences. After a journey of some eight or nine hundred miles, without the privilege of air travel or a highway system, there was one thing he knew he needed: rest. The task to which he had been called was crucial. The work would be demanding. It required his full strength. And because Nehemiah was a wise man—and, we may safely assume, because he understood the pattern of rest that God had established in the Sabbath—he took the time to relax.

Many Christians are overtired, and they don’t realize it. They’re too busy to observe their own exhaustion. Their judgment is impaired, their efficiency is diminished, and they’ve bought into a way of thinking that says we’re only effective when we’re running around from one task to another. They haven’t found their security in God alone. They haven’t learned to rest in His love and provision. They’re trying to justify their existence by trying to do it all—and they can’t!

A wise man or woman, no matter how dramatic their conviction regarding the project in front of them, no matter how consumed they are with the vision, no matter how tempted they are to charge ahead at the first available opportunity, ought to learn from this simple sentence: “I went to Jerusalem and was there three days.” If Nehemiah thought it was wise to take a break and a breath, even while his beloved city’s wall was yet a ruin, shouldn’t we?

This article was adapted from the sermon “Planting the Vision” by Alistair Begg.

Wallpaper: Clear Proof

TFL — Mon, 27 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

“Faith … considers the amazing work of Christ as being a clear proof of the Father’s intention to fulfill His word.”
—C. H. Spurgeon

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God Is Generous. Do We Pray Like It?

TFL — Wed, 22 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

One of the evidences of being adopted into God’s family is that we pray. Paul says in Romans 8:15, “You have received the Spirit of adoption as sons, by whom we cry, ‘Abba! Father!’” In the family of God, we have the privilege of baring our hearts to the Father.

Yet for all the privilege it represents, prayer can be a challenge. Charles Simeon, a minister in Cambridge for fifty-four years, on one occasion said it was easier for a pastor to preach and study for five hours than to pray for his people for one half hour.¹

We will be helped as we remember that when we come to God, we come to Him as our generous Father. That is the way Jesus taught us to pray (Matt. 6:9; 7:9–10; Luke 11:2). And few prayers demonstrate this attitude for us like Paul’s prayer in Ephesians 3:14–21. As we consider what Paul asks, on what basis he asks, and why he asks it, we can see what it means to pray as children in the family of God.

What Does Paul Ask?

As Paul prays, we can see, first, that he’s not preoccupied with material things or undesirable circumstances. Those are real concerns, but they’re not the central issue. Jesus had told the disciples, regarding their anxiety for needs like food and clothing, “Seek first the kingdom of God and his righteousness, and all these things will be added to you” (Matt. 6:33).

So the prayer that Paul prays is first of all a prayer for the kingdom: “that according to the riches of his glory he may grant you to be strengthened with power through his Spirit in your inner being” (v. 16). Our “inner being” is our essential self, the real core. Just as a golf swing depends on core strength, so our whole life depends on the strength of our inner being. The work of the Spirit of God within our hearts is to transform us, strengthening that core self even while the outer body wastes away with the passing world (2 Cor. 4:16), to the end that “Christ may dwell in [our] hearts through faith” (Eph. 3:17), making His home with us.

Paul further asks that his readers would be “rooted and grounded in love” (v. 17)—rooted like a tree and grounded like a temple. This, he prays, will give them “strength to comprehend with all the saints what is the breadth and length and height and depth, and to know the love of Christ that surpasses knowledge, that you may be filled with all the fullness of God” (v. 18–19). This takes us far beyond our personal preoccupations! This is more, even, than just asking that we would love God more. It is aiming at our understanding God’s immense and immeasurable love for us.

When you become a Christian, you should find that within short order, you have a whole new view of Jesus, a whole new view of the people who love Jesus, and a whole new view of mercy.

Paul himself had at one point been an archenemy of Jesus and the church—until Jesus revealed His love to him. Paul understood the extent of God’s mercy. This should be true of anyone who becomes a Christian. You may not be lying by the side of the road like Paul was, struck blind by a great light (Acts 9:3–8), but when you become a Christian, you should find that within short order, you have a whole new view of Jesus, a whole new view of the people who love Jesus, and a whole new view of mercy.

Paul’s hope was that through this his readers might be “filled with all the fullness of God.” The old hymn reminds us how transformative that gift will be:

O fill me with Thy fullness, Lord,
Until my very heart o’erflow
In kindling thought and glowing word
Thy love to tell, Thy praise to show.²

As the inner being fills up with God’s self, the whole life overflows with God’s goodness—and to the wonderful gift of God Himself is added all the fruit of joy and promise of hope that He brings.

On What Basis Does Paul Ask?

Perhaps we might wonder what prompts Paul to ask for such a generous gift with such boldness. The answer is that he knows he has a generous Father. God can do what we ask, and far more than we ever thought of asking—“far more abundantly than all that we ask or think, according to the power at work within us” (Eph. 3:20). There is nothing we can ask for or think of asking for about which God does not say, “I’m able to do better than that.” Especially after having sent His Son to die for us, “will he not also with him graciously give us all things?” (Rom. 8:32).

Jesus had masterfully and humorously encouraged the disciples, arguing from the lesser to the greater: “Which one of you, if his son asks him for bread, will give him a stone? Or if he asks for a fish, will give him a serpent?” (Matt. 7:9–10). What a ridiculous idea! If sinful human fathers are not so cold, why would we ever expect God to be?

John Newton, who wrote “Amazing Grace,” discovered this reality of God’s generosity when he wrote,

Thou art coming to a King;
Large petitions with thee bring,
For His grace and power are such,
None can ever ask too much.³

The problem in our prayers is not that we ask for things too great or that our prayers are too big. The problem is that we’re guilty of doubting God’s ability and generosity, and thus we become fearful of entreaty. As James explains, “You do not have, because you do not ask” (4:2). We ought to stop coming to God saying, “We’re just asking… We’re just wondering…” We need not “just” do anything! God is generous—and therefore, we can come boldly.

To What End Does Paul Ask?

Yet with all this in mind, we should also observe that Paul finishes his prayer by praying that God will get all the glory He deserves: “To him be glory in the church” (Eph. 3:21). This, we must remember, is the end of all truly godly prayer.

Just as God’s glory has been, is, and will be revealed in Jesus, so His glory is revealed in His people. It was revealed in Paul when God changed him from an enemy to a son. The believers in Ephesus reading this letter were Jewish and gentile Christians, called by God from hostile cultures and identities into one fellowship, united by the cross of Christ. As they came to comprehend God’s love for them, they glorified Him in their love for one another.

The problem in our prayers is not that we ask for things too great or that our prayers are too big. The problem is that we’re guilty of doubting God’s ability and generosity, and thus we become fearful of entreaty.

But God’s glory isn’t just revealed in Jesus and displayed in the church; it is also to be declared to the nations. Habakkuk looks forward to a day when “the earth will be filled with the knowledge of the glory of the Lord as the waters cover the sea” (2:14). Filled with the knowledge of God’s love, equipped by His generosity, and seeking His glory, apostles and missionaries through the ages have sacrificed comfort and kinship, life and limb to bring the word of Jesus to those who have not heard. They went out in the spirit of the modern hymn:

When faced with trials of every kind,
We know the outcome is secure,
And Christ will have the prize for which He died,
An inheritance of nations.⁴

When we pray, then, we do not come timidly before a reluctant God. We come as beloved children to a generous Father, asking Him to do what only He can do: strengthen us by His Spirit, deepen our grasp of Christ’s immeasurable love, and fill us with His own fullness. These are the kinds of prayers our Father delights to answer—not because we deserve His favor but because He has already welcomed us into His family through His Son.

And as He answers, the spotlight does not fall on us but on Him. The Father’s generosity produces a people who reflect His character, display His love, and proclaim His glory to the world. So let us come often, ask boldly, and leave the results in the hands of our generous Father, to whom, as Paul writes, “be glory in the church and in Christ Jesus throughout all generations, forever and ever” (Eph. 3:21).

This article was adapted from the sermon “Entreating the Extravagant Generosity of God” by Alistair Begg.

Hugh Evan Hopkins, Charles Simeon of Cambridge (London: Hodder and Stoughton, 1977), 149. ↩︎
Frances Ridley Havergal, “Lord, Speak to Me” (1872). ↩︎
John Newton, “Come, My Soul, Thy Suit Prepare” (1779). ↩︎
Stuart Townend and Keith Getty, “O Church, Arise” (2004). ↩︎

Wallpaper: Fantastic Exposition

TFL — Mon, 20 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

“If you want to understand your Bible … then you need to realize that essentially what you have is a fantastic exposition throughout history of the promises of God made to His servant, Abraham.”
—Alistair Begg

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Two Book Set: Christ and His Threefold Office and Christ Humbled yet Exalted

TFL — Thu, 16 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

From seventeenth-century Puritan minister and author John Flavel, Christ and His Threefold Office and Christ Humbled yet Exalted invite you to see Jesus more clearly and love Him more deeply through a fuller picture of who He is and what He’s done for you.

Revised for modern readers, Flavel’s insights remain true and relevant today. In Christ and His Threefold Office, Flavel explores the biblical truth that Jesus fulfills three essential roles in the life of every believer: Prophet, Priest, and King. In Christ Humbled yet Exalted, he walks readers through the humiliation and exaltation of Christ, from His humble incarnation to His reign at the right hand of the Father.

In these books, you’ll read about the completeness of Christ’s work and come to better understand your ongoing need for Him. They’re meant to be read slowly and prayerfully as you’re reminded that Christ is your fountain of joy and everything you need.

Request this two-book bundle when you donate to Truth For Life today.

How Backsliding Happens, According to John Bunyan

TFL — Wed, 15 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

In Hebrews 10:26–27, the unnamed writer of the book issues a solemn warning: “If we go on sinning deliberately after receiving the knowledge of the truth, there no longer remains a sacrifice for sins, but a fearful expectation of judgment, and a fury of fire that will consume the adversaries.” When we read these verses, we are reminded that clearly, in the writer’s context, there were those who had not simply neglected the gatherings of God’s people but also drifted from their moorings to the truth of God in Christ. They had become, in familiar church language, backsliders.

Reading such a warning, we should note that the writer is clearly not referring to genuine believers who had simply failed, stumbled, or temporarily lost interest in the things of Christ. As Calvin writes, “There is a great difference between individual lapses and a universal desertion of this kind.”¹ This is not someone who had a temporary lapse. This is someone who was a total deserter—someone who took the Christian uniform, then trashed it, burned it, and essentially said, “I have nothing to do with this anymore. I’m done.”

At one point in his allegorical masterpiece The Pilgrim’s Progress, John Bunyan raises (through the character of Hopeful, the traveling companion of his protagonist, Christian) the question of how such backsliding occurs. After reviewing “the reason of … sudden backsliding,” Hopeful asks Christian, “Now I have shown you the reasons of their going back, do you show me the manner thereof.” For today’s believers, Christian’s explanation provides a helpful examination of the process by which the sorts of people mentioned in Hebrews come to fall away:

They draw off their thoughts, all that they may, from the remembrance of God, death, and judgment to come.
Then they cast off by degrees private duties, as closet prayer, curbing their lusts, watching sorrow for sin, and the like.
Then they shun the company of lively and warm Christians.
After that, they grow cold to public duty; as hearing, reading, godly conference, and the like.
They then begin to pick holes, as we say, in the coat of some of the godly, and that devilishly, that they may have a seeming color to throw religion (for the sake of some infirmities they have espied in them) behind their backs.
Then they begin to adhere to, and associate with themselves with carnal, loose, and wanton men.
Then they give way to carnal and wanton discourses in secret; and glad are they if they can see such things in any that are counted honest, that they may the more boldly do it through their example.
After this they begin to play with little sins openly.
And then, being hardened, they show themselves as they are. Thus being launched again into the gulf of misery, unless a miracle of grace prevent it, they everlastingly perish in their own deceivings.²

As we read through this list, we may see the fallen inclination of our sinful hearts reflected in it. To the extent that we do, we should heed the warnings of Hebrews: “Take care, brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God” (3:12), for “it is a fearful thing to fall into the hands of the living God” (10:31).

And yet those same hands, the writer reminds us, are also the ones that keep us so that we can say in truth, “But we are not of those who shrink back and are destroyed, but of those who have faith and preserve their souls” (10:39). May we examine ourselves, then, thoroughly, and also come to rest and trust thoroughly in the keeping power of the one who has given us His grace and mercy.

This article was adapted from the sermon “Keeping Near, Keeping On” by Alistair Begg.

John Calvin, The Epistle of Paul the Apostle to the Hebrews and the First and Second Epistles of St. Peter, trans. William B. Johnston, ed. David W. Torrance and Thomas F. Torrance, Calvin’s New Testament Commentaries (Grand Rapids: Eerdmans, 1963), 146. ↩︎
John Bunyan, The Pilgrim’s Progress: From This World to That Which Is to Come; Delivered Under the Similitude of a Dream, Moody Classics (Chicago: Moody, n.d.), 176–77. ↩︎

Wallpaper: Sanctification

TFL — Mon, 13 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

“Our sanctification is a long and continued process.”
—C. H. Spurgeon

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Study the Bible—but Don’t Miss Christ

TFL — Wed, 08 Jul 2026 05:00:01 GMT

Have you ever considered that you can be pharisaical in your study of the Bible? It’s true! In John 5, for instance, Jesus acknowledged the Pharisees’ commitment to studying their Old Testaments, but with an important caveat: “You search the Scriptures because you think that in them you have eternal life; and it is they that bear witness about me, yet you refuse to come to me that you may have life” (John 5:39–40). The Pharisees knew their Scriptures well—but they missed Christ in them and so missed the point entirely.

Even for believers in a faithful, Bible-preaching church, it is possible to be meticulously, vociferously, painstakingly committed to the Bible and yet to be unconverted. What can we do about this problem? Unlike the Pharisees, we need to come to the Bible understanding the most important thing about it: that it is a book about Christ. And knowing it is about Christ, we can then study it with the confidence of someone who has “looked up the answer at the back of the book.” Christ is the answer! And so we ought to teach Christ in all the Scriptures so that we may come to know and love Him better.

Teaching Christ from Scripture

For those who have the privilege of preaching or teaching the Bible (whether from the pulpit, in a Sunday school class, or at a child’s bedside), the great danger is that we would do so without presenting Christ. We may pride ourselves on the systematic and consecutive nature in which we move through the Scriptures. We may spend hours and hours of our week in quiet study or opening the Bible’s pages alongside other believers. Yet we may at the same time be so close to the text that we fail to stand back from it and see the big picture of redemption through the Lord Jesus.

The apostolic pattern, right from the day of Pentecost on, is to present the Lord. In Acts 2, when Peter addressed the crowd, he began, “Men of Israel, hear these words: Jesus of Nazareth…” (v. 22). He didn’t begin with the benefits of the Gospel or appeal to their felt needs: “I know a number of you are unhappy, your marriages are falling apart, you’ve had difficulty with your finances, some of you are in deep dilemmas with your teenage children,” and so on. No, he began by confronting them with the Savior, telling them who He was and what He did (Acts 2:22–36).

It’s much easier to tackle the how-tos and present little moral messages than to present Christ. It’s similarly easy to adopt a political posture or to condemn everything and everyone. The hard thing to do is the right thing to do: to demonstrate how every iota and every dot of God’s Word (Matt. 5:18) points ultimately to God’s Savior. What a dreadful waste of creative energy it would be to provide instruction about almost everything rather than the saving story of Jesus!

Knowing Christ in Scripture

Of course, if the Bible needs to be taught properly, it also must be learned properly—and that will mean studying it with a desire to know Christ better.

In Luke 24, following Christ’s death and resurrection, two disconsolate disciples do not realize they are walking and talking with the risen Lord Jesus. They explain to this “stranger” that the salvation story has come to a grinding halt in a Palestinian tomb. But before Jesus reveals Himself, the text says, He “interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself” (v. 27). And when He finally makes Himself known, what do the two disciples latch on to? “Did not our hearts burn within us while he talked to us on the road, while he opened to us the Scriptures?” (v. 32). They came to know Christ in the Bible.

R. Hudson Pope wrote a little prayer that teaches us how we ought to come to the Scriptures:

Make the Book live to me, O Lord,
Show me Thyself within Thy Word,
Show me myself, and show me my Savior,
And make the Book live to me.

In other words, when we approach the Scriptures, whether in our quiet times, at a Sunday morning service, or elsewhere, we shouldn’t treat it as simply another task on the to-do list: “Teeth brushed? Check. Hair combed? Check. Bible read? Check.” That would be to miss the glory and wonder of what Scripture really offers us: an opportunity to know the Savior of the world through His Word.

The real test of whether the Word of God is dwelling in us richly (Col. 3:16) is not going to be our ability to articulate a storyline or turn to the right reference. It is going to be that, as a result of having Christ taught to us in all the Scriptures, we come to know Christ in them.

Loving Christ Through Scripture

In 1 John 4:8 we read, “Anyone who does not love does not know God, because God is love.” It stands to reason, then, that to know God is to love—not only to love our neighbor but also to love God Himself as revealed to us in Jesus (Matt. 22:37–39). When we come to know Christ in the Scriptures—truly know Him—then we will also love Him.

We should beware of any approach to the study of the Bible that doesn’t issue in a growing love for Jesus. And how may we know that our love is genuine? Not through a certain surge of feeling when we sing on Sunday morning! No, Jesus tells us: “If anyone loves me, he will keep my word. … Whoever does not love me does not keep my words” (John 14:23–24).

Love for Christ, in other words, shows itself in our obedience to His commands. We don’t need a growing list of rules to keep; we need a love for the Savior who bought us with His own blood and a growing desire to honor Him with our thoughts, words, and deeds. As we come to love Christ in the Scriptures, we will come to see that “his commandments are not burdensome” (1 John 5:3).

As with the Pharisees (and the genuine disciples!) of Jesus’ day, God searches our hearts. He knows who we are and where we are. Some of us are very proud of our heavily annotated Bibles—so much so that we’ve come to look to them, rather than to Christ, for assurance of our faith. What a tragedy it would be if all that study filled us with information but failed to bring us to Christ! Let us rather seek to be people who teach Christ, know Him, and love Him through the Word that He has given us.

This article was adapted from the sermon “The Heart of the Matter” by Alistair Begg.

Wallpaper: The Grace of God

TFL — Mon, 06 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

“The grace of God does not relieve me of my responsibility to be obedient; the grace of God makes possible my obedience.”
—Alistair Begg

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The Christian Citizen in the Worldly Society

TFL — Wed, 01 Jul 2026 07:05:28 GMT

A sensible middle schooler can likely grasp the teaching, found throughout the New Testament, that although as Christians we may be disregarded as naive or bizarre, we are not to live in such a way as to be dismissed because we are bad, intolerant, rebellious, or disrespectful. Christians are to be exemplars of obedience—even in a non-Christian society!

This was the case in Crete when Titus was pastoring there. In the first century, the church found itself placed under a religiously pagan and institutionally corrupt government, not a blissful Christian state or a nation founded on Christian principles. It was a government far worse, arguably, than anything that America has ever known. Nevertheless, Paul says that in such a context, Titus was to “remind them to be submissive to rulers and authorities, to be obedient, to be ready for every good work, to speak evil of no one, to avoid quarreling, to be gentle, and to show perfect courtesy toward all people” (Titus 3:1–2).

As we read these verses today, they represent a call to rediscover the nature of our Christian citizenship—that is, not our citizenship in heaven (though that is certainly important and worth considering) but how our Christian identity should shape our participation as citizens in our worldly societies. What should Christian citizens look like? Paul gives us six marks.

First, as citizens in the world, Christians should uphold the rule of law by being obviously subject to the authorities nd internally characterized by hearts of obedience—“submissive to rulers and authorities” and “obedient.” Christians of all people should recognize the chaos that ensues when law is disregarded. Of course, Peter and John insisted that it was more important to obey God than to obey men (Acts 5:29). That is a valid and necessary exception. But in the history of the church, there has been a proclivity to call down the exception clause to excuse all kinds of conduct and ignore the call of Scripture to live exceptionally lawful lives.

Second, Christians should be marked by an eagerness to render whatever good service they can—“ready to do whatever is good.” It is out of an awareness of this truth that some of the greatest social and educational advances have come in the history of the Western world. Believers who understood this sought the benefit of all humanity, often at great cost to themselves. As God looks upon our culture, He expects us to be salt and light in our society, shining forth His own goodness (Matt. 5:13–16).

Christians should uphold the rule of law by being obviously subject to the authorities.

Third, Christians should not take part in insulting and abusive language toward others—“to speak evil of no one.” Slander is a sin whereby we seek to exalt ourselves by defaming others and, in doing so, destroy relationships. It is not what we are called to, even—perhaps even especially—when speaking of those whom we perceive as our ideological or political opponents.

Fourth, Christians are not to be fighters; they are “to avoid quarreling.” The Greek word Paul uses here is amachos, which means “absence of fighting” or “without fighting.” Christians, in other words, are to resist the temptation to take the law into their own hands and mete out punishment.

Fifth, the Christian in society is to display consideration—“to be gentle.” Not only is belligerence to be absent, but in its stead there is to be a spirit of sweet reasonableness toward the fallen. We should be prepared to yield personal advantage in order to express help and consideration for others.

And sixth, the Christian citizen is to display a humility that is marked by meekness—“to show perfect courtesy toward all people.” The word praotēs (“meekness” in the KJV) refers to patient trust in the midst of difficult circumstances. As citizens in the world, Christians will doubtlessly be on the receiving end of wrongs—but they are to be prepared to patiently bear those wrongs while acting quickly to alleviate the wrongs done to others. They should not be immediately defensive of themselves, even as they are quick to go to the defense of others.

We should be prepared to yield personal advantage in order to express help and consideration for others.

Of course, to be such a citizen is a high calling—higher, indeed, than we can naturally achieve on our own. As Paul finally reminds Titus, “We ourselves were once foolish, disobedient, led astray, slaves to various passions and pleasures, passing our days in malice and envy, hated by others and hating one another” (v. 3). It is only the grace of God that rescues us from remaining in such a sorry state.

In our relationships with our countrymen, then, we must resist the temptation to look down our theological noses to become pharisaical and condemn those who fail to meet a standard that we ourselves didn’t meet. God, we must remember, was and is gracious to us—and so we may show grace to honor the Lord, seeking to reflect His character as we embrace the joys and duties of citizenship in a lost and wandering world.

This article was adapted from the sermon “Living in Society” by Alistair Begg.

What Inspired Alistair Begg to Host Basics?

TFL — Wed, 01 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

Dear Friend,

The Eclectic Society was founded in 1783 by several Anglican clergymen, the most famous of the early members being John Newton, hymn writer of “Amazing Grace.” The Society came together for the express purpose of deepening their fellowship in the Gospel and encouraging one another to be faithful to it. In the history of the Church, similar gatherings of Christian fellowship and unity in the Gospel have proved to be of eternal significance.

Why mention this now? After all, that took place almost as far back as the founding of our United States of America!

The answer is simple: When our Basics Conference for pastors and church leaders began in 2000, it originated with a similar purpose. I had read the book In Search of Excellence and had been intrigued by the author’s observation that the best-run American companies had at least one thing in common: They did the basics well most of the time.

That got me thinking about how this approach could be applied to things that may not be easy but that are straightforward—for example, hitting a golf ball, or even marriage. Neither is easy, but in essence, both are straightforward and call for a steady commitment adhering to the basics. In terms of marriage, no romantic trip to Hawaii will compensate for neglecting the foundations. (A friend just sent me a humorous note suggesting that three of the hardest things to say are “I am sorry,” “I forgive you,” and “Worcestershire sauce”!)

A third venture that fits this framework is surely pastoral ministry. In church leadership, there are no dull days. Some are disappointing, others may be delightful, few are dramatic, and all are humbling. C. H. Spurgeon encouraged his students along these lines:

If you seek humility, try hard work; if you would know your nothingness, attempt some great thing for Jesus. If you want to feel how utterly powerless you are apart from the living God, attempt especially the great work of proclaiming the unsearchable riches of Christ, and you will know, as you never knew before, what a weak, unworthy thing you are.

So our plan is to take Basics on the road! This year in September, we’ll be hosting Basics 2026 in Southern California. Our aim is to make Basics not only a time to encourage pastors in their ministries, but also, like the Eclectic Society, an opportunity for fellowship in the Gospel. If you’re in ministry or church leadership, let me warmly encourage you to attend. Registration is now open at basicsconference.org, and there are discounts for students if you’re in seminary or exploring a call on your life to shepherd God’s people.

Few pastors I know would complain about suffering from a surfeit of encouragement! So, let me encourage you to make it possible for your pastor to attend in September by inviting the members of your congregation to gift his registration and travel expenses as an indication of your gratitude for his faithfulness.

I remain thankful to each of you for every letter and email you send encouraging me to run the race, keep the faith, and finish the course for the sake of the Gospel.

Our book offers this month are gems! Christ Our All: Gaze at Him is a collection of fourteen brief readings that point you to rest in the love and peace of Christ. The two-book set from John Flavel, a Puritan minister, is drawn from his classic work The Fountain of Life and is a set you won’t want to miss adding to your library.

Enjoy these summer days, and come and visit us if your travels bring you to Northeast Ohio.

With my love in the Lord Jesus,

Alistair

Christ Our All: Gaze at Him

TFL — Wed, 01 Jul 2026 05:00:00 GMT

In a world that constantly tells us we need more—more success, more clarity, more control—we can far too easily fall into a pattern of subtly looking beyond Jesus for satisfaction, identity, or assurance. The 14-day devotional Christ Our All gently but firmly calls us back to the simple yet life-changing truth that Christ is enough.

Over two weeks, you’ll be reminded through thoughtful meditations that everything you need is found in Christ. If you’re feeling discouraged or spiritually restless, these readings invite you to find joy, gratefulness, and rest in what Christ has already accomplished. You’ll be encouraged to lift your eyes off yourself and your circumstances and to focus them on Him.

In each of the 14 meditations, you’ll explore who Christ is and what He’s done for you, not only as your Savior but also as your Shepherd, Light, Assurance, and Friend. You’ll read about His grace, His glory, and how deeply He cares for His children.

This is a short but encouraging read you can keep coming back to or share with a friend. Request your copy of Christ Our All: Gaze at Him when you donate to Truth For Life today.

Wallpaper: Understanding the World

TFL — Mon, 29 Jun 2026 07:59:59 GMT

“When we read the Bible, we are reading history, and we are reading and geography. This will frame and form our understanding of the world.”
—Alistair Begg

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“Consider, Take Care, Exhort”: How to Stay Faithful in the Wilderness

TFL — Wed, 24 Jun 2026 04:59:59 GMT

In many ways, the journey of God’s people from Egypt to Canaan serves as a pattern and a picture of the Christian life. As Israel moved to its rest in the promised land, so the church moves toward its rest in heaven; and as they experienced temptation and declension in the wilderness, so do we.

The pressure surrounding God’s people in the wilderness was such that they were constantly looking back to Egypt—much to God’s displeasure. The writer to the Hebrews therefore warns us (borrowing the words of Psalm 95) not to do as they did: “Today, if you hear his voice, do not harden your hearts as in the rebellion” (Heb. 3:7–8). We don’t want to look back, let alone go back, to Egypt; instead, we want to look forward and follow the example of those who have proceeded “firm to the end” (v. 14).

With this goal in view, Hebrews 3 offers us three directives. As we put each into practice, they will help us to keep moving toward the promised land and prevent us from turning our eyes back to Egypt.

“Consider Jesus”

First of all, Hebrews 3 directs us to “consider Jesus” (v. 1). Such consideration is more than a casual glance at Christ, an infrequent or careless hour or two a week given over to the things of God. In Puritan language, it means “centering down”—bringing all of life and thinking to bear on this one end. In the words of golf coach Harvey Penick, it is to “take dead aim.”¹

This is the same word that Jesus used when He told His disciples to “consider” the ravens and lilies (Luke 12:24, 27). He was saying to them, “I want you to look carefully, apply your mind to this, in such a way that, in understanding the significance of what is being taught, it may become a life-transforming principle for you.” In the same way, the writer to the Hebrews is urging the readers, and us, to fix our gaze on Christ, allowing the sight of Him to revolutionize everything else.

Consideration is more than a casual glance at Christ, an infrequent or careless hour or two a week given over to the things of God.

This is a practice with a number of benefits. We will gain great confidence as we remember the Lord’s faithfulness. We will remember our purpose and direction in life. We will be spared from the need to compare ourselves to others, knowing that it is before our own Lord that we stand or fall (Rom. 14:4). It will cure us of discouragement in the face of worldly disappointments as we remember the heavenly promises with joy.

To consider Jesus is to consider one who is to us an Apostle and a High Priest (Heb. 3:1). As Apostle, He represents God to us, and as High Priest, He represents us to God. He speaks from God to His people, and He represents His people to God. As the hymn writer puts it,

Before the throne of God above
I have a strong and perfect plea,
A Great High Priest whose name is Love,
Who ever lives and pleads for me.²

Take Care of Your Heart

In the wilderness, as Psalm 95 reminds us, the people hardened their hearts. In biblical language, the heart is the moral center of our being, the place where the issues of life are addressed. So the question of our heart’s orientation is essential.

It may be easy for us today to look at the wilderness wanderers and say, “My, my! Weren’t these people really dreadful?” But when we think realistically about ourselves, we have to admit that there’s a fair chance we would have been numbered among the hard-hearted rather than with the few who had faith. So Hebrews warns us, “Take care , brothers, lest there be in any of you an evil, unbelieving heart, leading you to fall away from the living God” (v. 12).

There’s a fair chance we would have been numbered among the hard-hearted rather than with the few who had faith. So Hebrews warns us, “Take care.”

A heart of unbelief is what prevented the generation in the wilderness from entering into the land of promise (v. 19). As their hearts increasingly hardened, they were increasingly unbelieving. And their unbelief was an indication of their disobedience. There are direct connections between the deaf ear, the hard heart, and the wandering life. Someone who professes faith in Jesus Christ while wandering from the track of obedience has a hard heart and a deaf ear and, without repentance, will fall away rather than staying firm to the end. Willful disobedience and Christian assurance never go hand in hand.

The great danger, then, is presumption and complacency. So the word to us is “Take care.” In other words, we’re to make sure, to pay careful attention, to jump to it—and not, through inattention, to fail to listen to God’s words—both of comfort and of warning.

Exhort One Another

Hebrews 3 finally directs us to “exhort one another every day, as long as it is called ‘today’” (v. 13). It’s sometimes said that the devil’s favorite word is tomorrow. By contrast, the Christian is called to obedience today—in this instance, in embracing the responsibility we share for one another. We are “holy brothers” and sisters, made a family together in Christ through the “heavenly calling” we share (v. 1). It is only sensible, then, that we would watch out for and encourage one another.

This kind of concern for others doesn’t mean nosiness or interference. Rather, it involves thoughtfulness, care, and the recognition that no one lives to himself or dies to himself (Rom. 14:7). Our lives, we might say, are like coals in a fireplace. If you get the tongs, take one piece of coal, and lay it on the hearth, it will quickly begin to lose its heat and fade out. But if you take a piece of coal that has been isolated from all the others, dead and dark, and put it into the midst of the heat, it will light up again and mingle with the flame.

Our relationships with each other should be marked by a care and comfort that strengthens, so that when a crisis emerges, we’re able to hold firmly to the end.

Our relationships with each other should be marked by a care and comfort that strengthens, so that when a crisis emerges, we’re able to hold firmly to the end. As sin approaches us, exaggerating its appeal, exaggerating the satisfaction that it has to offer, we need to beware lest we are blinded by its attractive glow. We need to beware lest we close our minds to the reality of God’s retribution. And we need to be thankful that God has put others around us so that we might “consider,” in relationship to each other’s lives, “how to stir up one another to love and good works” (Heb. 10:24).

These are not matters of marginal importance. When we make the effort to consider Jesus, mind our hearts, and encourage each other, our hearts will be prevented from hardening, and many will be fortified to stay firm to the end and enter into the promise. It is by these means that we will avoid the fate of the wilderness wanderers. As one commentator has written of this generation, “What a long, long line of graves—the saddest in the world! They came out of the bondage of Egypt under faithful Moses … but they fell as corpses in the wilderness!”³ If we wish to avoid their fate, we would do well to embrace the helps offered to us by God’s hand, in God’s very Word.

This article was adapted from the sermon “Holding Firmly to the End — Part One” and “Holding Firmly to the End — Part Two” by Alistair Begg.

Harvey Penick, Harvey Penick’s Little Red Book: Lessons and Teachings from a Lifetime in Golf (New York: Simon and Schuster, 2012), 45–46. ↩︎
Charitie Lees Bancroft, “Before the Throne of God Above” (1863). ↩︎
R. C. H. Lenski, The Interpretation of the Epistle to the Hebrews and the Epistle of James, Commentary on the New Testament (Minneapolis: Augsburg, 1961), 123. ↩︎

Wallpaper: God Reigns

TFL — Mon, 22 Jun 2026 07:59:59 GMT

“God reigns over the nations;
God sits on his holy throne.
The princes of the peoples gather
as the people of the God of Abraham.
For the shields of the earth belong to God;
he is highly exalted!”

Psalm 47:8–9

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