The End for Which God Created the World

On Sunday, Michael mentioned a treatise by Jonathan Edwards entitled, "The End for Which God Created the World." We wanted to provide some helpful references here on the blog in case you would like to read this treatise yourself. There are a few different places on the Internet to find Edwards' work.

In 1998, John Piper wrote a book entitled, "God's Passion for His Glory." In the second part of his book, he provides the text of Edwards' treatise, along with helpful explanation. This is especially helpful as Edwards' mid-18th-Century writing style may be difficult to digest for modern readers. If you would like to read Edwards' work through Piper's book, these may be the steps to take:

1. Visit DesiringGod.org to find the online excerpt of Piper's "God's Passion for His Glory."
2. Read the Introduction to Part II, starting with Page 20 of the PDF file. This gives helpful notes on how to read Edwards' treatise as well as a clarification of the terms used.
   
3. Then read all of Chapter 1 of Part II in Piper's book. This is the actual text of Edwards' "The End for Which God Created the World," along with helpful notes from Piper.

Reading Jonathan Edwards is not easy, in part because we are no longer used to this style of writing today; but Edwards' thoughts are profound and compelling.

When 13 People Get Together

We've never called our Sunday night south-zone prayer meetings a "small group." For more than a year now, we've simply gotten together to pray for the needs of the church and to pray for each other. But regardless of what you call it, it's clear to me that community is taking place here.

Last night, a gathering of 13 brothers and sisters in Christ - friends - got together to enjoy a quick meal of leftovers, and then to sit around a room with a roaring fireplace to share and pray. In the span of just over an hour, we sang one hymn together, heard about concerns for loved ones and co-workers, rallied around those with specific fears or needs, and were encouraged about how this time of year presents a unique opportunity to share with those around us about thankfulness and about Jesus Christ.

And then we prayed. And that was it.

Never before in my life until now have I ever witnessed or experienced how simple and how refreshing and how God-honorhing it was - like last night - to see a handful of believers get together, care for each other, build community, and pray. I'd encourage you to witness it firsthand too.