Look at the Book

In a world full of evil, an elder’s job is not to fight an impossible battle against outside influences but to silence error within the church.

What enables elders to rebuke and exhort with all authority? Only their tight grip on the healthy doctrine given to them in the word of God.

What do the various elder qualifications mean, and where can we go to learn more about them? Each is rooted to Scripture and crucial for pastors.

In Paul’s list of elder qualifications, does “husband of one wife” mean “never remarried” — and does “his children are faithful” mean they must be Christians?

An elder’s ability to lead his family reflects more than his ability to lead the church — it reflects how outsiders will view the church itself.

What task could be so important that an apostle would leave behind a trusted friend to see it accomplished? For Paul, it was establishing leaders in the churches.

Paul had a trusted messenger all over the Roman Empire, grounded in the same faith and so dear to him that he called him his child. Who was this Titus?

When Paul talks about the hope of eternal life, he considers the word a crucial ingredient — but does he mean the word he preached or the Word who became flesh?

Before the beginning of time, God promised eternal life — and not only that, but he planned everything it would take to bring about his purposes.

What can hold up our faith, deepen our knowledge, and set free our godliness so that it overflows to others? Only the hope of eternal life.

How does internal godliness reveal itself? For the elect, the knowledge of the truth can’t help but produce good works.

With boldness and delight, the New Testament talks about God’s people as elect from before the foundation of the world. Why don’t we talk that way more?

When Jesus changed Paul from a persecutor to a preacher, he gave Paul authority as an apostle. But what does that apostleship mean for the church today?

If Christians are sons of God, why does Paul call himself a slave of God? John Piper describes what it means to be a slave (and yet a friend) of God.

What is the message of Paul’s letter to Titus? John Piper points out three mountain peaks to guide those who study this powerful text.

After all that Paul says in his final letter, what parting desire did he have for Timothy? He wanted him to experience the Lord Jesus’s presence with his spirit.

At the end of his letter and his life, Paul bursts into a doxology at the thought that God will rescue him from the lion’s mouth and bring him safely home.

What hope do we have in suffering and persecution? John Piper meditates on the power of God to strengthen us even when everyone else has turned away.

What can unbelievers expect in return for rejecting God’s grace? Alexander the coppersmith, a strong opponent of the gospel, serves as a sobering example.

What gives us the strength to keep believing until the end? John Piper points to the hope of Jesus’s second coming as essential for finishing our race.

When Paul writes about receiving “the crown of righteousness,” does he mean Jesus’s righteousness given to us, or our lived-out righteousness in him?

As Paul approaches the end of his life, he knows he has lived like an athlete who wrestles and runs to win the prize. But what is the good fight?

From conversion through suffering to death, Paul considered his life a resource to be spent for the faith of God’s elect.

As Paul approaches the end of his life, what is his climactic plea to Timothy? John Piper examines four marks of a fulfilled ministry.

Why does preaching matter? By tracing the path away from sound teaching, John Piper shows the importance of preaching in the life of every believer.