Ligonier Ministries

Which of the Bible’s teachings do you find most difficult to accept?

SPROUL: Probably the hardest doctrine of the Bible to accept is hell, for the obvious reason that it is so difficult for any human being to think about the idea of everlasting punishment on anybody. There’s just a human struggle …Read More

Why is expository preaching so important?

I could give a list of reasons that I give in talks about this matter, but simply, I believe that expository preaching is so significant because 2 Timothy 4:1–2 comes after 2 Timothy 3:16–17. The end of 2 Timothy 3 …Read More

How should Christians respond to times of suffering?

Thankfully, we are able to develop means of alleviating human suffering. Our nations are putting vast resources into trying to find an antidote to the virus. That is altogether appropriate and Christ-like because He sought to alleviate suffering. We also …Read More

How can Christians live as lights in a dark time?

CHARLES: A couple of things come to my mind. One is what Burk mentioned, which is the second great command that Jesus gives—to love your neighbor as yourself (Matt. 22:39). We, as shepherds in our church, have been trying to …Read More

What words of comfort can help me fight fear and anxiety?

FERGUSON: This is a time for us to prove in our own lives the gospel that we’ve always professed to believe. To start the conversation, in the well-known passage in which Jesus teaches us about living the Christian life during …Read More

How can Christians continue to minister to one another when large gatherings present a health risk?

FERGUSON: I never thought I would ever say, “Praise God for technology,” but my wife told me yesterday that our son, who is a minister of a smaller congregation, set up a YouTube channel for the congregation to have their …Read More

How are you praying through the crisis surrounding the coronavirus (COVID-19)?

I’ve been praying for many weeks, particularly when the virus was largely within the Wuhan region in China. I have many friends who minister both in and through China, as I’m sure many of us do. I have a great …Read More

How is your church maintaining worship and fellowship in a time of quarantines and self-isolation?

CHARLES: We’re just in the midst of coming here, making plans, and going home, so we’re still working through plans. Hearing the question breaks my heart. The reality just breaks my heart. I woke up this morning with Philippians 1:3, …Read More

What can the “Young, Restless, and Reformed” movement learn from the historic Reformation?

That’s a big question, and there’s a great complexity to the answer. One thing we need to always keep in mind is that truth is never a fad. When God’s truth goes out, it never returns void. It always goes …Read More

How do you carry out discipleship and evangelism in your church?

First of all, we are an unapologetically preaching and teaching church. That is the starting place for us, and it’s key to the disciple-making process. The Great Commission teaches us that we are to go and make disciples of all …Read More

Are preachers and pastors more important than other Christians?

THOMAS: There is an important Reformation principle behind this question: the priesthood of all believers. That was a profound rediscovery at the time of the Reformation. Religion had been hidden in a language that people didn’t understand by professional people …Read More

Did believers in the Old Testament have a complete understanding of the Trinity?

SPROUL: I don’t think the average New Testament Christian is able to gain a complete understanding of the Trinity. I suppose that what you mean is, “Can you find the Trinity in the Old Testament?” I think you have to …Read More

Since Jesus is God, who is a Spirit, how can Christ also be human?

When we say that Jesus is God, we have to be very careful to qualify what we mean. We mean, when we say that Jesus is God, that Jesus has a divine nature—but He also has a human nature. Obviously, …Read More

Should the gospel be heard with joy or with dread?

The good news of the gospel of Jesus Christ is indeed good news about salvation, but it addresses the bad news of our sin and our guilt before God. There is a sense in which the good news, the glad …Read More

Do Christians go immediately to heaven when they die?

Historically, classical Christian theology speaks of what we call the status intermedius, or the intermediate state. That has to do with where we go immediately upon death, as distinguished from our state after the final resurrection. This is what the …Read More