Ask Pastor John

God is self-existent and self-sufficient, far beyond any need or lack. So, what can we give to God when we gather for corporate worship?

The command to “serve the Lord” appears all through Scripture — but Scripture also assures us that God has no needs. So, how do we serve an all-sufficient God?

For some, forgiving family from the heart may be one of the hardest steps of obedience. Pastor John offers five ways forward when forgiveness feels impossible.

Sibling rivalries have fractured families since Cain and Abel. So, how does God work redemptively between siblings, and how might parents do their part to promote peace?

Increasingly, parachurch ministries are allowing women to occupy positions of spiritual authority once reserved for men. Do they have biblical warrant to do so?

In Isaiah, God promises that “the former things shall not be remembered” in the new creation. Will we really have no memory of this age in the age to come?

Why do so many of us reach instinctively for our phones in the morning? Pastor John identifies six temptations and points to a better way to begin our day.

How can a preacher faithfully call out a culture’s sins while still sounding the dominant note of amazement at the glories of God in Christ?

How can we recognize what Paul calls “an unhealthy craving for controversy” in ourselves and others? Pastor John identifies six traits of a controversy-loving spirit.

“The laborer deserves his wages” — including those who labor in preaching and teaching. But how might a church decide what a pastor’s wages should be?

In Paul’s elder qualifications, he seems to assume that pastors will be married. So how should churches assess the qualification of a single man who wants to pastor?

Why does Paul call Christians to pray for kings and other political rulers — and what specifically might we ask God to do in them and through them?

In a world filled with wars and rumors of wars, earthquakes and famines, a right understanding of the end times can bring stability to anxious minds.

When Jesus returns, he will magnify the radiance of his glory by multiplying our own joy in that glory. We will happily marvel, and he will forever shine.

If we’re going to rejoice in even the worst circumstances, then we need clear and strong reasons for why God wills suffering for the children he loves.

Tony Reinke shares two upcoming changes to ‘Ask Pastor John’ in light of a brand-new John Piper sermon podcast called ‘Light + Truth.’

Throughout the New Testament, Jesus and the apostles draw some profound connections between the glorious second coming and our ordinary everyday lives.

On May 19, 2023, Tim Keller entered the reward of his Master. In this special episode of Ask Pastor John, Tony Reinke shares a sermon clip from Dr. Keller on the joy of God in the face of cancer.

Discussions of the second coming often spiral into speculation — or misconception. Pastor John explains five mistaken beliefs about Christ’s return.

In the midst of a busy life, how can we find the time to read great Christian books? We might begin by setting aside just fifteen minutes a day.

God does not give us a list of foods and drinks we can and cannot consume. Instead, he gives us his words and his Spirit to shape how we see all of life.

If we are going to find lasting satisfaction in the beauty of Christ, despite the pain of rejection, four massive changes need to happen in our hearts.

Headship calls a man to put away his anger and initiate reconciliation — no matter how much of the fault lies with his wife or with his children.

The movement from orthodoxy to demon theology happens sometimes slowly and sometimes suddenly — but always because love for Christ has grown cold.

“Nothing is to be rejected if it is received with thanksgiving,” Paul says. So can Christians enjoy pot if they thank God for it?

What is the deepest source of your joy — what God gives to you, or who God is for you?

Will a professing Christian go to hell if he never shares the gospel? Pastor John gets to the heart and offers practical suggestions for growing in evangelism.

Paul desired that “in every place the men should pray, lifting holy hands.” Should men in the church today still lift their hands when they pray?

At the core of Christian Hedonism is the glorious reality that the duty God requires of us is the path to our greatest joy.

Should parents allow children to cross-dress? Pastor John explains why this cuts across the grain of God-created reality and how to offer counsel to Christian parents.

Jesus promised that his followers would be “hated by all,” but Paul said pastors must be “well thought of by outsiders.” So should the world like us or hate us?

Jesus could have healed the man born blind with a simple command; instead, he used spit and mud. Why?

If a man has a history of fornication, is he disqualified from the office of pastor — or can he still be considered “the husband of one wife”?

If God has really given us “a spirit not of fear but of power and love and self-control,” then why do we still struggle with fear and anxiety?

In the face of every fear and insecurity, the gospel says, “In Christ, God is for you — always and forever, with all of his heart and soul. So what can man do to you?”

In Psalm 15, David tells us to despise the vile; in Matthew 5, Jesus tells us to love them. How can we do both?

God “desires all people to be saved,” Paul tells us — but clearly not all people are saved. Does this mean God cannot do what he wants to do?

Christ’s global purpose to ransom people from every tribe and tongue can be summed up in his words, “I have other sheep. I must bring them also.”

God gave work as a blessing in the beginning, but we live now on the other side of the fall. So is our work today a blessing or a curse?

Alongside his personal study of Scripture, what whole-Bible commentaries has Pastor John found most helpful over the years?

If you want to settle the question of personal identity, don’t ask “Who am I?” Ask, “Whose am I?”

We know the devil can tempt us and attack us and try to deceive us, but can he put thoughts into our heads?

At every moment, God knows the thoughts and intentions of every human heart. Pastor John explores six vast implications of this foundational truth.

The book of Romans interprets life — and it also transforms life. Pastor John shares how Romans has shaped him, from conversion to the pastorate.

How can a Christian business leader speak about his success in a way that makes God, not him, look great?

Is there really a difference between complaining about our problems and venting about them — or are we just kidding ourselves?

What is the simplest, shortest definition of Christian Hedonism? Pastor John explains in two minutes why pursuing joy in God is essential to the Christian life.

Women, Paul says, “will be saved through childbearing.” How does childbirth save women — and what about women who never have children of their own?

Those who play the victim to their sexual lusts act like slaves, like dogs eating their vomit, like washed pigs rolling in mud. But in Christ, they don’t have to stay that way.

Even if you remember only one sentence of a book, that one sentence can create an immeasurable moment, a flash of insight that shapes you forever.