For the Love of Those Fighting Against Homosexuality
In my own denomination, the PCA, the latest dustup is swirling around the Revoice conference being held in St. Louis at Memorial Presbyterian Church (PCA).
Not surprisingly, this is causing a great deal of division and confusion within the PCA. The confusion is quite understandable. People inside and outside the PCA are wondering if the historically conservative denomination is now embracing homosexuality. However, the organizers and speakers of Revoice profess fidelity to the biblical position on sexual intimacy – that... Continue Reading
Is Sola Scriptura a Rejection of Teachers and Tradition?
Luther had a place for tradition, and he also firmly believed in teachers.
Sola Scriptura may be considered a Reformation plank, but it is also, more accurately, a biblical one. It is fruitful, however, to consider how the Reformers thought of sola Scriptura. We see this best in the way Luther responded to his critics. It’s one of those moments we wish we could have seen firsthand. It took place... Continue Reading
How Jesus’ Death Proved He Was King
It is a kingdom not of this world (John 18:36), but instead a whole new creation.
Put another way, by his own death and resurrection, the Lord Jesus put death to death and destroyed “the one who has the power of death, that is, the devil” (Heb 2:14). Because he died and came back to life, Christ holds “the keys of Death and Hades” (Rev 1:18) so that “death no longer... Continue Reading
10 Things You Should Know About Quenching The Spirit When You Preach
It is the aim of the Spirit in our preaching that by means of the meaning of the words to awaken the appropriate affections of the heart and bring about genuine transformation in how we live.
Our manner and delivery and energy in the pulpit should be a reflection of the glory and magnitude of the one about whom we speak. The delight and passion with which we preach must correspond to and adequately reflect the grandeur and splendor of the One we proclaim. Anything less will inevitably quench what the... Continue Reading
Reaching and Revitalizing Rural America: Overcoming Misconceptions, and Answering the Call (Part 2)
In reality, rural America is in a perilous position — perhaps in greater danger of decay and decline than many cities.
Research shows that, regardless of geographic location, life-giving congregations and mission-minded, energetic churches that are active and engaged in their community are still needed in every rural county. A “Christian presence,” particularly one that is about nominal identity rather than engaged participation, is simply not enough in rural America. There is a need for church... Continue Reading
A Royal Wedding Images THE Royal Wedding
Each human marriage is an image of the divine union between Christ and the church.
Harry and Meghan formed a covenant through the making of vows. Jesus Christ forms a covenant relationship of marriage with his bride, the church. The covenant unites not only the man and woman but also their families. Harry and Meghan made covenant vows before God and witnesses that united them in a one-flesh union. That... Continue Reading
On the Revoice Conference, “Gay Christianity,” and the Apostle Paul’s Showstopper Words to the Corinthians
Christians cannot affirm “gay Christianity” because the apostle Paul emphatically closed off any uniting of a fallen identity to a Christian one.
On the subject of Christianized homosexuality–the issue the Revoice conference is forcing us to confront–if Paul held the view that these people could retain their fallen sexual identity but break with fallen sexual practice, he would have used different language. He would have restricted his comments to a denunciation and prohibition of past behavior–something like... Continue Reading
How Is Love of Money a Root of Evil?
The love of money is fundamentally not an overspending problem; it is a contentment problem (“Godliness with contentment is great gain”).
“But those who desire to be rich fall into temptation, into a snare, into many senseless and harmful desires that plunge people into ruin and destruction. For the love of money is a root of all kinds of evils. It is through this craving that some have wandered away from the faith and pierced themselves... Continue Reading
A Warning To Those Who Work With Words
The man who swings a hammer all day is likely to have a physical advantage over the man who reads and writes; the man who reads and writes is likely to have an expressive ability over the man who swings a hammer.
There are inevitably times in life where those who work with words have to interact with those who do not. They have to discuss matters of utmost importance. They have to debate crucial decisions. They have to arrive at shared vision and direction. And sometimes, in such situations, the masters of words have the ability... Continue Reading
Primary or Secondary Importance?: Interpretive Anarchy?
How do we find agreement in dogma when there is no final infallible interpreter and thus such a wide variation in interpretations?
With the Reformation and its call for Sola Scriptura there arose what Kevin Vanhoozer describes as an interpretive anarchy. This can be seen most tellingly in Luther’s famous “Here I Stand” speech: “Unless I am convinced by the testimony of the Scriptures or by evident reason–for I cannot accept alone the authority of popes or... Continue Reading
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