“Jesus commands us to love our enemies and bless those who curse us. That being the case, it is hard to see how He can possibly command us to hate our family, especially when God gave us the commandment to honor our father and mother.”   The word hate is a strong one. When I was little,... Continue Reading

“The comfortable moments when I pat myself on the back for how well I am doing are the moments that should alarm me the most. I need to reach for the glasses of Christ-like humility, remembering that nothing good dwells in my flesh, and search my heart for secret pride and its symptoms.”   Pride... Continue Reading

“Retirement is a pretty cool idea, the thought of being able to enjoy 20, 30, or even 40 years without working is the societal equivalent of utopia. Unfortunately the math doesn’t work. It hasn’t worked for the last several decades, and it certainly doesn’t work now.”   I thought long and hard about writing this... Continue Reading

Is labeling the horrors inflicted by Islamic State on ethnic and religious minorities “genocide” the prelude to stepped-up U.S. action to put a halt to it? Or is it in fact a substitute for such action?   For almost two terms in office, Barack Obama and his team have studiously avoided acknowledging the most obvious... Continue Reading

While warning against the flagrant abuses of Constantinianism, (Adams) also noted that most early American colonies united faith with franchise. Here is how he raises the establishment question: “In thus discontinuing the connection between Church and Commonwealth—did the people of these States intend to renounce all connection with the Christian religion?”   The Rev. Jasper... Continue Reading

The “things” that are either hidden or revealed are the content of Jesus’ teaching. Let’s remember that He has just unleashed a blistering critique upon the religious leaders. These were the wise, learned, and respected people of the day. The fulcrum for rendering the judgment was what they did with His teaching.   If we... Continue Reading

‘Puritane’ was often an ‘odious’ slur against faithful Christian witness and a learned preaching ministry. Some of what we take for granted today – such as the importance of sitting under biblical preaching and a faithful ministry – was maligned by many in that day as a cause for disgrace.   ‘Puritan’ has been co-opted... Continue Reading

“Gnosticism may be said to have been the second great heresy faced by the Church. The name comes from the Greek gnosis, meaning ‘knowledge’, and states the distinguishing tenet of Gnosticism; salvation is for the Gnostic primarily a matter of acquiring and using secret knowledge.”   Introduction When Jude writes in his Epistle, ‘Beloved, when... Continue Reading

“I know my impressions here are anecdotal, but so are the stereotypes on the other side. Are there lazy, entitled, narcissistic Christian Millennials? Of course there are. But I see no evidence that there are any more of them than there are lazy, entitled, narcissistic Baby Boomers or Gen-Xers or any other age cohort.”  ... Continue Reading

“Repentance is what he preaches. Repentance is what he desires. Repentance is what we desire. Repentance is a characteristic of those enjoying the Kingdom of Heaven; at least this is so until the King comes again, and we lose our reason to repent.”   John the Baptist is the God-appointed, Spirit-filled herald. He is passionate about... Continue Reading