One of the clearest commands Jesus gives us in the Gospels is to give to the poor. Jesus became poor for us, and we must also love the poor with radical generosity.

Christian growth is described through the metaphor of the fruit of the spirit, which is a gradual process that begins with the seed of the Holy Spirit. As we are changed from the inside out, organically and radically, we will find deep joy and lasting change.

The default mode of the human heart is to work on our behavior and outer appearance, but the gospel changes us at the heart level. To grow, we must understand the difference between religion and the gospel, and apply the gospel to our hearts to confront the idols at the root of our sin. This talk was given at a training conference at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City.

The cure for our self-absorption is an encounter with God. The real God is infinitely glorious, weighty, and beautiful. When God moves from being a concept to a reality, he changes our beliefs and priorities by displaying his beauty, man’s sinfulness, and purifying man by grace. Once changed, we can live new lives for him.

Haman, who plots to kill the Jews exiled in Persia, exemplifies pride and its downfalls. His pride manifests itself in self-absorption, an inability to learn from his mistakes, a progression into more serious forms of evil, and a blindness to his own pride. Pride is overcome by forgetting oneself and clothing oneself in the overwhelming praise of the Father through Christ.

Only God can bring us to the place where we are earnestly seeking him. When we begin to experience a spiritual appetite for him and his presence, we will know that we belong to him.

Jesus tells his disciples to have private prayer lives. Using the disciplines of morning and evening prayer, we can process our lives before God and bring him our requests while being at peace with the outcome. This talk was given during a leadership training session at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City, and includes suggestions concerning Bible study, meditation, and contemplation.

Psalm 1 gives us a key to deeper fulfillment in every dimension of our being: meditation. Its essence is reading and reminding ourselves of the truths of God while dwelling in his presence. As we dwell on him with our minds, our other dimensions ignite, affecting our lives and relationships, infusing them with wisdom, stability, and delight. This talk was given during a leadership training session at Redeemer Presbyterian Church in New York City.

God has an infinite willingness to forgive, but forgiveness is not easy and comes at infinite cost. If we resist the work of the Holy Spirit, showing us where we're wrong and leading us to repentance, it is possible for us to deny God and put ourselves outside of his power to forgive. Only through an understanding of the gospel can we come to confession and repentance.

The Holy Spirit is the source of spiritual power available to all Christians. When we trust in Christ’s work done on our behalf, we can turn from trusting ourselves, and our spiritual life will begin.