Articles by Desiring God

David Mathis | The people of God perceive his majesty not only with the eye, but by the ear — in the greatness, power, and surprising glory of his roaring, thunderous words and his still, small voice.

Greg Morse | A professing Christian may live years in the church, even decades, yet in the end still hear those haunting words of Jesus: “I never knew you.”

John Piper | The New Testament opposes Christians looking to the state to teach, defend, or spread ideas or behaviors as explicitly Christian. The sword is not to be the agent of religion.

Jon Bloom | What qualities make someone the kind of person suffering people seek out and trust? He offers judicious counsel with discernible humility and kindness.

Marshall Segal | One day soon, God will make all we know unmistakably new. Have you learned to long, and pray, for the wonders of a better world to come?

Scott Hubbard | As men step into leadership, many expect the burdens of responsibility, decision-making, and initiative. Fewer are prepared for just how often they may fail.

Greg Morse | Faithfully following Jesus will put us at odds with those who ignore or refuse him. Does anyone in your life dislike how Christian you are?

David Mathis | You must be born again, says Jesus, to receive his saving grace, but how does ‘regeneration’ relate to predestination, justification, and the rest of salvation?

Joe Rigney | Do you want to catch a clear and beautiful vision of the Godward life? Take a text about the ugly futility of mutiny against God and turn it on its head.

Marshall Segal | Are you weighed down with the burdens and sorrows of life? Despite all of your afflictions, if you’re in Christ, his mercy is more.

Scott Hubbard | Those who often deal with doubts over their own salvation may find deeper assurance from a surprising source: God’s infinite commitment to his name.

David Mathis | What does it mean to raise children in the “discipline and instruction” of the Lord? These two concepts represent indispensable facets of faithful Christian fatherhood.

Marshall Segal | When suffering comes to those around you, don’t assume someone else will step up and help. Assume God plans to meet one of their many needs through you.

Joe Rigney | How often is there a hitch in your obedience, or an edge to your obedience, or self-pity in your obedience?

Greg Morse | Meet the sophisticated sloth: he dates but never marries, attends church but never joins, works hard only when others watch — and rarely finishes what he begins.

David Mathis | As sinful as we are, our heavenly Father is “slow to chide, and swift to bless.” How much more should earthly fathers aspire to be the same with our children?

Scott Hubbard | As an imperfect but God-fearing woman builds her house, she becomes for her children Wisdom’s first face, first voice, first touch.

Joe Rigney | Christians do not work for our salvation, but we do work out our salvation as God powerfully works within us. All Christian obedience, then, begins on the inside.

Marshall Segal | The greatest news in the world is that, through Jesus, people made by God, and who have rejected God, may still get to have God.

Greg Morse | The ground beneath our feet, the hills around our house, the sky above our heads — these seem as real as real can be. But another world is still more real.

Scott Hubbard | If today you woke up in a place you don’t like, dare to believe that God has purposes for you here, however much you may want to leave.

David Mathis | Fellowship is an irreplaceable means of grace in the Christian life and offers us two priceless joys: receiving God’s grace through the helping words of others and giving his grace to others through our own.

Scott Hubbard | How did the psalmists fall asleep on the most unlikely nights? They laid every care and sorrow before the Lord who is our shield, shepherd, comfort, and life.

Jon Bloom | Every earthly calling you accept will be one you eventually have to release. Have you thought about how to do that well?

David Mathis | God created the world to glorify himself. But does this truth diminish his love for his people in Christ? Consider Jonathan Edwards’s enduring answer.

Greg Morse | How many of us arrive on Sunday mornings, sing, listen, and then leave?

Jon Bloom | If God gives the Holy Spirit to those who believe in Jesus, why do we still have such a hard time walking in love?

Marshall Segal | In an age of independence and suspicion of authority, becoming a church member is a loud, arresting statement of our devotion to Christ and our need for his body.

John Piper | On April 14, 2023, one of the greatest missions leaders of the last hundred years passed into glory — and only glory can measure the global influence he left behind.

Scott Hubbard | To love another well, we need to put on Christ himself. We need to have his mind, offer his welcome, speak his words, show his love, and give his grace.

Greg Morse | What if the distractions keeping you from listening to sermons are an act of spiritual warfare?

Joe Rigney | The book of Leviticus can seem as mystifying as a foreign language — until we learn the basic nouns, adjectives, and verbs of the sacrificial system.

Marshall Segal | How pitiful would your life seem if Jesus did not rise? How promising and thrilling is it if he really did?

David Mathis | Jesus endured the cross, Hebrews tells us, “for the joy that was set before him.” What joy did Jesus see on the other side of Good Friday’s shame?

Greg Morse | Before Jesus gave his hands to the nails, he used them to wash the dirt from his disciples’ feet. What thoughts caused one so high to go so low?

Scott Hubbard | When the apostle Paul lost his legalism, he did not lose his discipline — not even a little. So what did he know about discipline that we may not?

Marshall Segal | A healthy, godly use of alcohol remains vigilant against at least five great dangers of alcohol.

Joe Rigney | If we love our children, we sometimes must say no. But we would do well to think carefully about how, and how often, we say no.

Greg Morse | The last picture of the church in Scripture shows a bride looking up to heaven, crying out, “Come!” Do we still look and long for our Lord’s return?

David Mathis | Jesus rose and ascended, then his Father seated him on heaven’s throne. But what is he doing right now up there where he’s been sitting for centuries?

Scott Hubbard | In the midst of suffering, it can be hard to imagine how all this heartache could possibly end in glory. That’s why God didn’t leave us to our imaginations.

Jon Bloom | Any Christian who lives in a cursed world like ours will need to learn resilience, and God hasn’t left us without staggering examples to follow.

Marshall Segal | If you want to pursue greater clarity in a dating relationship, look carefully in three directions: your desire, your community, and your opportunity.

Joe Rigney | An ancient proverb teaches us that we are to aim at more than just our children’s obedience. More than anything, we want their hearts.

Scott Hubbard | “Up and be doing.” It’s not the only wise counsel to give to someone walking through doubt or spiritual darkness, but it might be the counsel some need to hear most.

Greg Morse | Though our experience may tell us to expect few conversions, few baptisms, and no grand spiritual movements, the God who revives and awakens is still our God today.

David Mathis | Narnia, Lord of the Rings, Harry Potter — the best stories reward re-reading. And none matches the one we rehearse each spring as Easter approaches.

Greg Morse | Christianity without Christ is a sunless solar system, a waterless ocean, an airless sky. Yet how subtly and easily we who name Christ can lose sight of him.

Marshall Segal | What would life be like if you were unafraid of death? If you knew death would really be gain, what kind of life might you be free to live?

David Mathis | In the healthiest churches, we find a holy conspiracy between pastors who gladly care for the sheep, and sheep who do what they can so that the pastors might serve joyfully.