Ligonier Ministries The teaching fellowship of R.C. Sproul

Eschatology, the study of the last things, is a fancy word for something we all already do. All of us think about the end. Yes, our culture and our fears push to the periphery thoughts of our death and the life hereafter. But count on it: at some point in your life, you are going to agonize over what will happen to you after you breathe your last. You can’t attend a funeral—whether of a religious or nonreligious person—without hearing somebody’s eschatology, their concept of what happens after death. We are all eschatologists. But that doesn’t mean we always engage the end times well. In at least three ways, we could go wrong in this most basic theological discipline. Keep Reading

John 3:16 has become so familiar that we no longer find its words astonishing. But this remarkable verse reveals amazing truth that should delight us every time we hear it. Keep Reading

It was early on the morning of October 11, 1531. The first rays of the morning sun filtered through dew-laden pine trees, and between the stone and wood buildings surrounding the city square called “charity.” Typically, the square would have come to life gradually, the way a person likes to wake up when he has no plans for the day. But on this early morning the usually quiets streets of Zurich Switzerland teemed with frantic activity. An angry and hungry army of several thousand Roman Catholics—half starved by an unfortunate Protestant embargo—had crossed into the Protestant state of Zurich, Switzerland two days earlier.   Keep Reading

It is possible to lose sight of Jesus in one's theology, like a person admiring the beautiful colors of a painting but failing to notice the image the colors depict. But to theologize without Christ is to forfeit the foundation of our faith. We become like Peter, who knew his theology but took his eyes off Jesus and began to sink (Matt. 14:30). We must fix our eyes on Jesus (Heb. 12:2). One of the best ways to do so is to spend time in the Gospels. Keep Reading

Sooner or later every thoughtful Christian will feel the unsettling, soul-gripping claw of doubt. Keep Reading

To call the incarnation "relevant" almost sounds patronizing. But we need to recognize the intimate connection between this important doctrine and personal piety. Keep Reading

The historic Christian doctrine of the incarnation can be expressed in a few simple phrases which the Western church codified in the Athanasian Creed, (hereafter: Ath. Cr.) around the sixth century. Keep Reading

Breakdowns in fellowship can be gut-wrenching events in the life of Christian churches. When we part unhappily with other members of Christ's body, we can say with Robert E. Lee, at the death of General Jackson, "I have lost my right arm" (Cf. 1 Cor. 12:25-26). Keep Reading

Many of us lack a clear sense of purpose. Some of us live to hear others laugh at our jokes. Others live for the weekend, or to pay off a mortgage, or to retire. By contrast, all of us have a calling to live according to a grand design.  Keep Reading

There was once a powerful Syrian general named Naaman who had contracted the dreaded disease of leprosy. At God's instruction, the prophet Elisha promised Naaman healing if he would wash in the Jordan River seven times. Naaman was indignant. Dipping in the Jordan was too undignified an act for him, and it didn't fit his definition of help. If not for the persistence of his servants, he would have returned to Syria unhealed (2 Kings 5:1–14). For the same reason, many people miss God's simple, ordinary plan for their spiritual growth—diligent attendance to the means of grace. Keep Reading