Ligonier Ministries

Did anyone believe in justification by faith alone before the Reformation?

One of the classic works on this question was written by a man by the name of James Buchanan. It was simply titled Justification, which addressed the chief issue of the Protestant Reformation of the sixteenth century. One of the …Read More

How is Christianity’s message of salvation different from other religions?

NICHOLS: So many religions are works-oriented, so they really stress what is on you as the adherent and that you have to measure up to a standard in order for God to accept you. Sometimes we say that we come …Read More

Is it true that the blood of Jesus takes away sickness?

In the ultimate sense, it is true that in the new heavens and new earth there will be no coronavirus. It is a product of the fall. I think that the fourth servant song of Isaiah 53 refers to the …Read More

What does it mean that the Trinity is three in person but one in essence?

FERGUSON: By one essence, we mean that God is one being. The word essence comes from the Latin verb esse, “to be,” so what we mean is that He is one being. When we speak about Him as being three …Read More

Is there hope for a child who turns away from Christ as a college student?

THOMAS: Yes, of course Scripture provides hope for anyone who turns away from Christ. There is always the possibility of repentance—even deathbed repentance. The dying thief, pastorally, is an important example that even on one’s deathbed one can turn and …Read More

What are the signs, or marks, of the true church?

I could appeal to what the Reformers said, which would’ve been the preaching of the Word and the right administration of the sacraments. An easy way to identify a true church is often, first, by what happens in the pulpit. …Read More

How do I know I am truly a Christian when I constantly struggle with sin?

One thing I would recommend is to read 1 John. In many ways, 1 John was written exactly for this question of assurance. There are a number of things we are told in 1 John, and one principle is very …Read More

How can I cultivate a consistently biblical prayer life?

First of all, take the Lord’s model prayer in Matthew 6, “Our Father, who is in heaven, hallowed be Your name.” That was really given to be an outline to provide the structure for our prayers. It’s like the skeleton, …Read More

Does God predestine people to hell?

This is really a question about what we call “double” predestination. It is a serious question and, therefore, should not be answered in any sort of joking way. The easy side of talking about predestination is to talk about the …Read More

Who can administer the sacraments?

4. There be only two sacraments ordained by Christ our Lord in the Gospel; that is to say, baptism, and the Supper of the Lord: neither of which may be dispensed by any, but by a minister of the Word …Read More

How should we pray when natural disasters strike?

The most important prayer is that whatever the providences of God may be, He will use them to turn people to Christ. It’s wholly appropriate that we should pray that God would turn back the fires, but beyond that, our …Read More

Am I not elect because I don’t know the moment I was born again?

LAWSON: The issue is right now, at this moment, Are you saved or are you not saved? There are some people who cannot pinpoint exactly when they were converted. One reason might be that they were sitting under such shallow …Read More

Whom has Christ authorized to baptize? Can parents baptize a child at home?

PARSONS: Christ has authorized His elders of His church, His undershepherds, to baptize. Yet, we also have run across many circumstances where people have been baptized by someone other than an elder of Christ’s church, and that’s where we have …Read More

Does God love us just the way we are?

SPROUL: The kingdom of God is not Mister Rogers’ Neighborhood. There are few things more dangerous than preachers preaching that God loves everybody unconditionally, because the message people hear is: “There are no conditions. I can continue to live just …Read More

How is total depravity true when many people appear to act morally and do good deeds?

THOMAS: Total depravity doesn’t mean that everyone is as sinful as they possibly could be. Total depravity allows for a range of sinful rebellion, but also common grace. Calvin had a doctrine of common civility. When he talked about the …Read More