Pastor's Blog

Fascinating things, words. Amazing things. They allow us to reveal the otherwise unknowable proceedings of our minds to the minds of others, and they to us. What a lonely, frustrating world it would be if thinking beings should have no means to communicate what was taking place between their ears. Words are potent things, too, almost magical in their power. By their wizardry we are capable of not only revealing the secret world of our thoughts, but also of molding the thoughts of others. This power can be used for good or ill:  to enlighten and instruct, or to confuse and mislead, and the latter never more frequently than  in political discourse. It is a sad fact that politicians often use high-sounding terms to mask the true intent of their aims. Take, as an example, the many euphemisms that are used to justify the killing of children while still in their mother’s womb. The most ridiculous of these—but then again one of the most effective—is “Pro-Choice.” Who in the...

“Simon, Simon, behold Satan demanded to have you, that he might sift you like wheat” (Luke 22:31). This is a frightful thing; but there is nevertheless something very comforting in it, too. It’s frightful to think of being tested – of being "sifted" – by the devil. But what is comforting is to know that Satan’s power extends no further than what God allows. The devil had to have God's permission before he could lift a finger against Peter. Some people imagine that the devil has a power nearly equal to God and that he is often able to thwart God’s purpose. But they are not thinking very clearly. God is sovereign over all things. There is no power even beginning to approach the power of God. There is nothing beyond his absolute control. There is no being, whether devil in hell, angel in heaven, or man on earth, who can do anything independently of God. We should not think of the devil as exercising an unlimited power to do whatever he pleases. He can do no more t...