Ask Pastor John

How do preachers guard themselves from hypocrisy? Pastor John traces double-faced preaching to its deepest root: the love of human praise.

How did Paul endure such unimaginable sufferings without turning from Christ? Pastor John traces three threads of the apostle’s perseverance.

In Leviticus 21, God forbids men with physical defects from participating as full priests. How do we reconcile this prohibition with Jesus’s approach to the disabled?

How do we enjoy pizza, friendship, or any other good gift without committing idolatry? Not only by enjoying God more than his gifts, but also by enjoying him in them.

How do Paul’s travel plans relate to the Trinitarian depths of God’s love? Pastor John shows how ultimate reality undergirds the love between the saints.

Christians have not only the right but the calling to speak truth to power. But such speech differs greatly from mere political flag-waving.

The wrath of God is gone for those who are in Christ. But does God still sometimes bring physical suffering in response to unconfessed sin?

What factors should Christian students consider when choosing a college or major? Pastor John gives five guidelines for those who don’t want to waste their lives.

How can we know if our heart is hard toward God? Pastor John diagnoses hardness of heart, and gives a remedy for remaining soft to God’s Spirit.

“My God, my God, why have you forsaken me?” Do these haunting words from Jesus suggest he was confused by the horrors of the cross?

We live in a time of mounting global tensions, of wars and rumors of wars. What hope do we have for the future of missions should conflict continue to build?

In a day starving for transcendence, how might church leaders arrange every element of the Sunday gathering to promote joyful Godward reverence?

How might churches move away from casual culture toward heartfelt, happy reverence on Sunday morning? Pastor John shares five steps for preachers.

Is it wrong to drink coffee during corporate worship? Pastor John moves beyond mugs to the heart of the issue.

From college grads to retirees, many people love to keep bucket lists. Should Christians? Pastor John puts rest and recreation within a biblical mindset.

How can we discern the main point of not only a single verse, but an entire paragraph, section, or even chapter of the Bible?

God’s faithfulness to God may not sound like good news. But the foundation of our hope rests on God’s zeal to display the worth of his name.

On the first day of a new year, Pastor John commends a yearlong Bible-reading plan and invites listeners to join him from Genesis to Revelation.

Sometimes, perhaps even often, we read Scripture with our eyes, grasp its truth in our minds, yet feel little pleasure in our hearts. What can we do in such moments?

Christmas is a day for marveling. Pastor John shares four earth-shaking, soul-satisfying reasons to glory in the coming of the Son of God.

As a new year nears, Pastor John marvels at God’s grace from 2023 and shares exciting plans for the months ahead.

What makes regular Bible intake not only helpful for the Christian life, but crucial? Pastor John gives ten reasons to make the Bible part of your everyday.

The word “therefore” appears almost five hundred times in the New Testament. And every one of them is a doorway to life and love.

Pastor John never reads a book — even novels — without a pencil in hand. What does he do with it, and why won’t he use a pen?

How can teens make their lives count? From dating wisely to failing well, Pastor John offers twelve rules for teenage followers of Christ.