“We cannot tell whether God means to bless America and the world by preserving Donald Trump, or to judge it. Time will tell. The same is true (although most likely on a smaller scale) for the Comperatore family. Surely, God’s providence allowed their loss.” - Don Johnson
“If we read all of Daniel, we note how powerful, awesome, and dangerous the kingdoms of men are. It’s no wonder that, while working in DC, I felt the oxygen sucked out of my chest when I passed a standing president in the doorway. But Daniel calls us to be captivated by something even more awesome” - TGC
“we’re so close to the situation that it’s hard to see anything other than the struggle. We see the ‘black,’ but we can’t see how that same struggle fits into the bigger picture. We can’t see the overall beauty because we’re too close to the picture.” - Chuck Lawless
“In those three words, I’ve found a powerful prescription to fight the cynicism and discouragement I often feel in personal evangelism. Paul knew, no matter the present opposition, God’s gospel would find an audience.” - 9 Marks
There has been no shortage of debate amongst Christians about the relationship between divine sovereignty and human responsibility. Because of our finite perspective —and our insistence on having a theology that logically makes sense to us—we are tempted to downplay, diminish, or even outright reject one of these truths in favor of the other. In his little book, A Defense of Calvinism, Charles Spurgeon cautions us against this error:
“God’s sovereignty and the wicked acts of men coordinate most shockingly in the death of Jesus. God used ‘the hands of lawless men’ to execute His ‘definite plan’ to offer His precious Son as payment for our sins (Acts 2:23; 4:28).” - Ligonier
Lately, the words of this classic hymn have echoed in my head. The stirring melody by Jean Sebelius has become the theme music for my summer. Be Still My Soul.
As Chris Anderson argues in his book, Theology That Sticks,* the great hymns of the faith often remind us of the truths of God’s Word far longer than any book we read or sermon we hear. Let’s walk through the lyrics of Be Still My Soul and discover what Scripture passages German hymnwriter Kathrina von Schlegel (and translator Jane Borthwick) reference throughout this hymn.
“I wouldn’t be surprised to learn that I’m the only person in the world who reads through back issues of the Ann Arbor Baptist, a periodical from the late 1800s. But periodicals like that were the blogs of their era and within their pages I find such interesting articles and poems.” - Challies
“Why does God restore Job? I won’t bury the answer: God is God and he does what he wants. He wants to restore Job. This is what the entire book drives at.” - TGC
“Think about it. We could have an all-powerful God who doesn’t love us. Or we could have a loving God who means well but doesn’t have the power to make good things happen. Instead…” - Randy Alcorn
