In a culture that places an inordinate value on youth and image, caring for those who lack both can be a lost art in church ministry. Pastors who practice this art, however, will come to see how church members who are most connected to the past can have a positive impact on shepherding the local... Continue Reading

Everyone will face suffering in life, and the grace of lament helps Christians persevere. I recommend this book for anyone who is grieving or walking through suffering. Since every person daily interacts with the effects of sin upon the world, all believers will benefit from learning how to respond to sin and suffering with lament.... Continue Reading

It is hard to underestimate what a seismic shift it was for the early church to come to terms with the idea that salvation for Jesus was for gentiles who remained as gentiles rather than joining the historic people of God by becoming converts to Judaism.   The account of the Council of Jerusalem in... Continue Reading

There is a species of wrong teaching out there that says if you believe Jesus is your Savior, you are so completely saved that even if you live your entire life without obeying any of Jesus’ commands, you are still truly saved. Sanctification is like a bonus. Doesn’t really matter but it can be a... Continue Reading

There is a growing concern among some people that the younger generation, including our covenant youth, are putting off adulthood as long as possible. And perhaps that is partially due to what they see in the lives of those of us who are older. Leisure is all-consuming these days. The leisure economy is what makes... Continue Reading

Throughout history, the church has read Scripture as reporting a God-created creation that occurred over six 24-hour days (or instantaneously, in at least one instance) within the last several thousand years. From the church fathers through Augustine (instantaneous creation), Aquinas, the Reformers (including Calvin), the Westminster Divines, and the post reformers, this has been the... Continue Reading

Discernment is more complicated than simply checking out the endorsements or letting someone decide for us who is good and who isn’t. By discerning, we have the opportunity to grow. We have the opportunity to become more rooted in what we believe. This is the kind of noble discernment the Bereans had, and it is... Continue Reading

There are plenty of places in the New Testament that speak of sin as a “principle” operating within us or as a specific violation of the law of God, but we cannot find any other support for the idea that there is a unique sin in each believer’s life that is somehow more powerful than... Continue Reading

If God called a man into the pastorate, the Puritans believed his life would display certain characteristics that confirmed this calling. A survey of Puritan writings on the subject reveals that the Puritans did not elevate one aspect of calling above the rest but rather sought a confluence of characteristics that demonstrated God’s wise hand... Continue Reading

These pages breathe an atmosphere of weary resignation. Hart depicts himself as a lonely battler for the truth of universalism—which hardly seems to be the case, given that many academic theologians today share his views. Here’s another oddity: the total absence of joy in this book. Someone who is genuinely convinced that everyone is finally... Continue Reading