Podcasts · Religion & Spirituality

Ask Pastor John

Desiring God

300 episodes

John Piper answering tough theological and pastoral questions.

Episodes page 2 of 6

  1. Delighting in a Holy God

    · 14 min

    God’s children are set apart as saints, given the privilege of sharing in Christ’s moral beauty. Pastor John explains how God’s holiness draws us to him.

  2. Suffering for Joy

    · 14 min

    Christianity isn’t a fix for all suffering in this life — but it does offer unshakable joy in trials and immediate relief from the deepest of pains.

  3. Ten Seconds After You Die

    · 12 min

    Do the souls of believers “sleep” in the grave after death, or do they go to be with the Lord? Pastor John explains the logic of the resurrection.

  4. Don’t Let Her Die Before You Say This

    · 9:33

    How can we show Christ’s love to a dying, unbelieving loved one? Pastor John shares ten ways believers can embody God’s love.

  5. Fur Babies and Pet Stewardship

    · 14 min

    How should Christians steward pets? Pastor John offers guidance for enjoying animals without treating their companionship like human companionship.

  6. Wasted Talents

    · 11 min

    Without Christ-exalting love, spiritual gifts serve as self-promotion — even when they produce powerful results.

  7. Where AI Fails

    · 14 min

    How important are emotions in the Christian life? Pastor John looks to AI and suffering to clarify the essence of what makes us unique as human beings.

  8. Long Sorrows Set the Stage

    · 12 min

    In Scripture, long periods of suffering and pain serve as a backdrop for God’s great kindness. Pastor John offers three reasons for long sorrows.

  9. The Bondage of Singleness

    · 14 min

    What does true freedom look like in the Christian life? Pastor John describes the apostle Paul’s burden for both single and married believers.

  10. Sex Is Worship

    · 13 min

    If sex outside of marriage doesn’t hurt anyone, why does Scripture call it sin? Pastor John unfolds the spiritual significance of sex from 1 Corinthians 6.

  11. The Wrong Kind of Cross-Centered

    · 13 min

    Should every sermon make a beeline to the cross? Pastor John traces the pattern of the New Testament from the death of Christ to the holiness of Christians.

  12. Will You Be Happy in a Million Years?

    · 16 min

    Eternity with God can sound too good to be true — even impossible. Will heaven really never end? And if not, will we still be happy after a million years?

  13. Made Lonely by Holiness

    · 12 min

    How should we respond when friends embrace worldly entertainment? Pastor John offers encouragement for when personal convictions lead to loneliness.

  14. Dying to Live

    · 14 min

    How do we present ourselves to God “as a living sacrifice”? Pastor John applies Romans 12:1–2 to believers’ daily lives.

  15. Stop Waiting for a Sign

    · 13 min

    Should all believers assume they are called to missions? Pastor John provides seven factors to direct a desire for ministry at home or abroad.

  16. Your Only Roadblock to Heaven

    · 12 min

    God’s sovereign grace is strong enough to overcome all human sin and rebellion — changing belief in Jesus from “will not” to “want to.”

  17. Everything Happens for a Reason

    · 15 min

    Does the Bible teach that everything happens for a reason? Pastor John offers grounding from Romans 8 for God’s purpose in our suffering.

  18. Your Main Calling in the End Times

    · 12 min

    When Christians encounter signs of the end times, how should we respond? Pastor John outlines a biblical approach to waiting well for Jesus’s return.

  19. Five Escapes from Dry Devotions

    · 13 min

    How can believers push past surface-level Bible reading to the reality behind the words? Pastor John offers five practices to enliven dry devotions.

  20. Why Smart People Reject God

    · 13 min

    Why do people reject God when creation proclaims his presence? Pastor John explains how truth becomes suppressed, both internally and externally.

  21. Hope for Screwups

    · 12 min

    How can those who have wandered far from God come back home to him? Pastor John offers hope in the face of deep failure.

  22. Marks of a Godly Boss

    · 11 min

    How do Jesus’s teaching and example shape our leadership? Pastor John examines the traits of a godly leader in the home, church, or workplace.

  23. Waiting Is the Hardest Part

    · 13 min

    What is God doing while we wait in a painful place? Pastor John shows how God uses waiting to produce a new security, a new song, and a new significance.

  24. The Gospel of Gorgeous

    · 13 min

    How can we find peace when struggling to see the goodness of our individual design? Pastor John illustrates God’s love and wisdom in his creation.

  25. Regretting the Day I Was Born

    · 13 min

    When does faithful lament become sinful complaint? Pastor John offers five statements on lament to help us cry out to God in great pain.

  26. Aging with Joy

    · 12 min

    How do we cling to Christ when faced with the unknowns of aging? Pastor John encourages older Christians in the battle against bitterness and fear.

  27. The Hardest Heart God Can Save

    · 14 min

    By nature, we are selfish and God-ignoring and God-belittling. But no matter how hard a heart may be, the sovereign God can still save.

  28. Life Guidance for Sinners

    · 12 min

    Indwelling sin still pervades those who are in Christ. But God’s mercy is more than enough to meet, match, and master any guilt we bring to him.

  29. Learning to Delegate

    · 11 min

    How might pastors approach the many administrative needs of a congregation? Pastor John draws four helpful guidelines from Jethro’s counsel to Moses.

  30. Is Sex as Dangerous as Christians Make It Seem?

    · 13 min

    Why do Christians make such a big deal about sex? Pastor John shows what godly sexuality says about the God who made us and the Christ who redeemed us.

  31. Why Is Christianity the Best Religion?

    · 11 min

    Why is Christianity the best religion? Pastor John offers four reasons, including the hope of the gospel and the uniqueness of the God-man.

  32. Why Mental Clarity Arrives at Night

    · 13 min

    How does God’s word guide our heart’s instruction in the night? Pastor John explains the ways God uses nighttime counsel to teach and lead us.

  33. Three Metrics for Your Fitness

    · 13 min

    When does stewardship of the body cross over into self-glorification? Pastor John helps us test our motivations with three questions.

  34. Are Raised Hands in Worship Just Showing Off?

    · 12 min

    When we lift our hands in worship, are we displaying public faithfulness or public performance? Pastor John gives three ways to test our hearts.

  35. Piper, Did You Miss Something?

    · 13 min

    How do we rejoice in God without neglecting to rejoice in our salvation? Pastor John clarifies how to rightly rejoice in God and his good gifts.

  36. Maximize Your Daily Bible Reading

    · 16 min

    How does reading the Bible lead to life transformation? Pastor John offers three suggestions to experience more of the Spirit’s power.

  37. Make a Life Plan for 2026

    · 17 min

    How do we craft a personal mission statement? Pastor John helps us draw the details of our lives into God’s ultimate purpose.

  38. God Wants Your Resolve

    · 10 min

    How can we make New Year’s resolutions in a way that honors God? Pastor John explains the mystery of fulfilling resolves in the strength of another.

  39. The Gift Trap

    · 12 min

    How can we root our joy in Jesus rather than in his gifts? Pastor John gives four strategies for loving God in and above every gift.

  40. What a Fruitful Devotional Feels Like

    · 16 min

    What does it feel like to meet the living God in the pages of Scripture? Pastor John gives us a glimpse into a profound encounter with God.

  41. Complacency: A Silent Killer

    · 17 min

    How do we avoid falling into spiritual complacency amid daily routines? Pastor John warns of the danger of viewing God as a nonfactor in everyday life.

  42. When You Get Accused

    · 15 min

    How should we respond when we face accusations, especially if they seem unwarranted? Pastor John helps us bear all kinds of criticism with gutsy guilt.

  43. Loving Aging Parents Well

    · 14 min

    How can we love our aging parents through the many challenges of caregiving? Pastor John shares counsel from Scripture and personal experience.

  44. Keeping Sovereign Grace in Gospel Partnerships

    · 14 min

    Why would a gospel-driven ministry define itself as Reformed? Because Reformed theology guards and glorifies the grace at the heart of the gospel.

  45. Marriage Survival After Betrayal

    · 15 min

    How can trust regrow in the aftermath of adultery? Pastor John identifies two needed miracles for a marriage to survive and thrive again.

  46. The Apostasy of Impatience

    · 12 min

    Can a Christian lose patience and not be in sin? Pastor John explains why patience and impatience may be more complicated than we think.

  47. Improving the Body Without Fixating on Image

    · 12 min

    As we steward the body, our appearance might change for the better. How do we keep our focus on being a whole person, not just an attractive shape?

  48. Why Satan Persists

    · 15 min

    Satan wouldn’t exist if God didn’t keep him around — so why is he here? Pastor John explains four ways in which God is using Satan for his glory.

  49. What False Teachings Should Make Me Leave a Church?

    · 13 min

    Differences in belief can feel bigger than they are — but sometimes they are truly big. What separates personal opinion from soul-damaging theology?

  50. The God Who Breaks Us with Kindness

    · 14 min

    If God refuses to act “for our sake,” does that mean he refuses to do us good? Pastor John resolves a perplexity and holds forth lavish grace from Ezekiel 36.

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