Darryl Dash's Blog, page 27

Longing for New Creation (Isaiah 35)

Big Idea: New creation will feature a rejuvenated world, changed humanity, and access to God himself, so take courage!

When I was studying to be a pastor, I was invited to speak to a primary school class at a Christian school. The topic was heaven. I had to stand in front of a bunch of kids and tell them what heaven is like.

It was awful. I knew heaven would be good, but I had no idea how to describe it. The thing about kids is that you can’t fake it in front of kids. They know if you don’t know w...

Saturday Links

Curated links for your weekend reading:

My Top 10 Theology Stories of 2023

This is the view of God’s mysterious providence from my little corner of the world.

Why the HR Mindset Can’t Condemn Genocide

An overemphasis on HR-style processes can lead an organization to forget the purpose is to serve people.

Practicing Faith in a Post-Faith World: Five Ways to Respond

How do we live by faith in a culture losing its faith?

The Wholehearted Pastor: Why Men of God Pursue Purity

The high calling God has given u...

Best Books of 2023

I get excited when people release their lists of favorite books from the past year. Here are some I’ve taken in:

The Gospel CoalitionFor the ChurchChristianity TodayTrevin WaxTim ChalliesAaron ArmstrongKevin HalloranRussell Moore

I’m sure they’ll be more.

Lists of books can be useful for finding good reads, but comparing our reading habits to others can be risky. I find this particularly true in my life this year. I wanted to read some demanding books this year, but never quite got to them, and tha...

The Gospel According to Isaiah (Isaiah 40:1-11)

Big Idea: There’s hope for us despite our sins because God will come, and you can count on it.

Something one of my teachers said has haunted me for years.

The teacher’s name was Haddon Robinson. He literally wrote the book on preaching. He was once named one of the twelve most effective preachers in the English-speaking world. He taught hundreds of students how to preach. On top of that, he was a man of integrity.

I once heard him say that out of all the sermons he’d heard preached, he had only hea...

Saturday Links

Curated links for your weekend reading:

9 Biblical Methods for Encouraging One Another

The best way to learn how to encourage is to watch others do it. The Bible models this for us in a variety of ways. Let’s look at the examples and learn how we can we use this powerful tool.

Dead Orthodoxy

There is a certain type of right thinking that is wrong.

DeYoung, Rigney, and the Moscow Mood

Let me begin by stating up front that DeYoung and Rigney are two of my favorite authors and thinkers, and so it should ...

Introducing Early Church History

When I first attended seminary, I had little knowledge of church history, and little understanding of why it might matter.

My church history professor, Dr. Michael Haykin, changed that. Nobody can listen to Dr. Haykin talk about church history without feeling his excitement about this field of study. I began to learn more, but I still felt like I was only beginning to understand the subject.

More recently, we’ve seen an explosion of books that make the subject of church history more accessible. Bu...

Longing and Lament (Isaiah 63:15-64:9)

Big Idea: Longing and lament points us to our need for God to come.

I want to talk about something that I don’t think I’ve ever talked about before in a sermon. I want to talk about the hiddenness of God.

I don’t know if you’e thought about this either. Sometimes God seems distant and hidden, often when we need him the most.

For instance, consider Dr. Helen Roseveare, a famous English missionary to the Congo. As a young woman, Roseveare told God, “I’ll go anywhere God wants me to, whatever the cost...

Saturday Links

Curated links for your weekend reading:

Hearing the Heart in Bad Theology

We can be wise and faithful counselors by recognizing that bad theology can reveal our counselee’s heart and then ask questions to better understand.

How to Get Ahead on Sermon Planning for the New Year

As you prepare for the new year, here are a few sermon planning ideas that may help you get a head start on sermon preparation.

It’s About What’s in the Text

We are aiming to understanding this text, seeking to understanding what...

The Pastor’s Reward

Pastoring is a privilege. One of the greatest privileges is the reward that awaits those who serve as pastors.

The Crown of Righteousness

Paul describes one reward in 2 Timothy 4:8: “Henceforth there is laid up for me the crown of righteousness, which the Lord, the righteous judge, will award to me on that day, and not only to me but also to all who have loved his appearing.”

As Paul approached his death, he looked forward to the crown of righteousness he would receive from the Lord himself. His fr...

Your Representative in Heaven (Hebrews 4:14-5:10)

Big Idea: Jesus is the representative we need, so hold fast and draw near to him.

I had a terrifying experience a few years ago.

I got a traffic ticket. No problem, right? Most of us have had one of those. I decided to fight the charge. And so I went to court. It can’t be that hard. It’s not a criminal court. It’s just a traffic one.

So I got there a little early. I waited for my name to be called. While I waited, they called other people up. Most of them were boring. But then they called one guy u...