Resources by Piper, John

During my first seven years in the pastoral ministry (1980-1987), I felt very green — inexperienced, and in some ways unprepared. Before coming to Bethlehem Baptist Church at the age of 34, I had never been a pastor. I was in school full time till I was 28 and then taught college Bible courses until […]

J. I. Packer says that the Puritans are the theological and devotional Redwoods of the western world.1 My own experience is that no one comes close to the skill they have in taking the razor-like scalpel of Scripture, and lancing the boils of my corruption, cutting out the cancers of my God-belittling habits of mind, […]

THE RIPPLE EFFECT OF THE WORD I’ve been thinking again about the importance of reading and writing. There are several reasons I write. One of the most personally compelling is that I read. I mean, my main spiritual sustenance comes by the Holy Spirit from reading. Therefore reading is more important to me than eating. […]

The doctrines of grace – otherwise known as the 5 Points of Calvinism or TULIP We believe that these 5 truths are biblical and therefore true. We believe that they magnify God’s precious grace and give unspeakable joy to sinners who have despaired of saving themselves. Total Depravity Our sinful corruption is so deep and […]

What do we mean by the sovereignty of God? We believe that God upholds and governs all things ‘from galaxies to subatomic particles, from the forces of nature to the movements of nations, and from the public plans of politicians to the secret acts of solitary persons’ all in accord with his eternal, all-wise purposes […]

On his 89th birthday (August 31) NPR Senior News Analyst, Daniel Schorr, observed that President Bush had “staked out a non-position†on the debate between evolution and intelligent design. Bush had said that “both sides ought to be properly taught in the schools of America.†Then, with manifest scorn, Schorr linked the devastation of Hurricane […]

God gives good press to doctrine. But surveys of evangelicals usually do not-until recently. In God’s book, knowing his Son and believing true things about him is liberty. “You will know the truth, and the truth will set you free” (John 8:32). God’s self-revelation in the Bible is not a wax nose. Paul calls it […]

This sounds so simple. In principle it is. But in practice we sinners are wired to trust in means, not God. Over and over I devise plans, and then find my initial enthusiasm rise or fall as the plan seems smart or not. This is trust in plans, not trust in God. There is no […]

October 29, 2003 Dear Mr. Prowse, It would be my great joy to persuade you that God’s demand for worship is beautiful love, not ugly pride. On March 30, 2003 you wrote in the Financial Times: “Worship is an aspect of religion that I always found difficult to understand. Suppose we postulate an omnipotent being […]

Have you ever considered I am asking you to consider that what is coming to us in the 21st century may be so catastrophic, so unprecedented in this country, that everything we ever knew of earthly securities will fail by John Piper One of the great advantages of being a pastor and laboring to understand […]

Vessels of Mercy Knowing the Riches of His Glory (Romans 9:23-24) by John Piper "What if God, desiring to show his wrath and to make known his power, has endured with much patience vessels of wrath prepared for destruction, 23 in order to make known the riches of his glory for vessels of mercy, which […]

It is wrong to wager with a trust fund. And all we have, as humans, is a trust fund. Everything we have is a trust from God, to be used for his glory by John Piper The West Virginia pastors who accepted Jack Whittaker’s tithe on his $170 million Powerball booty should be ashamed of […]

A Letter to the Sniper October 23, 2002 by John Piper To the Sniper, I write as a pastor concerned for your soul and for the lives of your victims. I base what I say on the Bible, God’s word. I think this is what Jesus Christ would want you to read. May he use […]

HOW OPEN THEISM HELPS US CONCEAL OUR HIDDEN IDOLATRIES Open Theism implies, therefore, that we should not think about the wisdom of God’s purpose in causing or permitting our calamities by John Piper Open theism may help conceal deep idolatry in the soul. One of the great needs of our souls is to know if […]

HOW TO KILL SIN A Sermon on the Mortification of Sin “If Christ is in you, though the body is dead because of sin, yet the spirit is alive because of righteousness. 11 But if the Spirit of Him who raised Jesus from the dead dwells in you, He who raised Christ Jesus from the […]

THE RIPPLE EFFECT OF THE WORD More Thoughts On Reading And Writing I’ve been thinking again about the importance of reading and writing. There are several reasons I write. One of the most personally compelling is that I read. I mean, my main spiritual sustenance comes by the Holy Spirit from reading. Therefore reading is […]

There are 7 characteristics that qualify Spurgeon as a helpful guide to preachers who need strength to preach through adversity. At five minutes past eleven on Sunday night, January 31, 1892, the prince of preachers, CH Spurgeon, died. The following useful summary of his ministry was written by John Piper. SPURGEON WAS A PREACHER He […]

ALL WE WILL GET IN 2002 IS MERCY January 1, 2002 Let us make crystal clear at the beginning of 2002, all we will get from God this year as believers in Jesus is mercy. Whatever pleasures or pains come our way will all be mercy. This is why Christ came into the world – […]

What Jesus wants most for Christmas is that his elect be gathered in and then get what they want most to see his glory and then savor it with the very savoring of the Father for the Son. What does Jesus want this Christmas? We can see the answer in his prayers. What does he […]

WHY I DO NOT SAY, “GOD DID NOT CAUSE THE CALAMITY, BUT HE CAN USE IT FOR GOOD.” Many Christians are speaking this way about the murderous destruction of the World Trade Towers on September 11, 2001, “God did not cause it, but he can use it for good.” There are two reasons I do […]

TERRORISM, JUSTICE AND LOVING OUR ENEMIES September 12, 2001 Someone asked me after our Tuesday prayer service in response to the terrorist attack, “Can we pray for justice, and yet love our enemy at the same time?” The answer is yes. But let’s start with or own guilt. Christians know that if God dealt with […]

Just before Thanksgiving I had flown to Greenville, South Carolina, to visit my stepmother and to help my father make some adjustments to living alone after she had moved into a nursing home. When my visit was over I left his house with enough time to drive by some of the places where I grew […]

A Key to his Courage John G. Paton was a missionary to the New Hebrides, today called Vanuatu, in the South Seas. He was born in Scotland in 1824. I gave my Pastors’ Conference message about him because of the courage he showed throughout his 82 years of life. When I dug for the reasons […]