“Theological error should not be ignored. It seeks its level. It manifests itself in places we might not expect. It is up to us to know the signs and to pay attention. Naiveté in such matters does not serve us well.”   Years ago, in the second house in which Mrs Heidelblog and I lived,... Continue Reading

Any book written by Marilynne Robinson will sell, and that may be the problem. “The Givenness of Things” is billed as a collection of essays, but it consists preponderantly of discursive half-baked musings. Ms. Robinson prefaces one of her many inchoate ideas by admitting—I suppose in this case to her credit—“My thoughts on the subject... Continue Reading

“I’m naturally sensitive and have a history of taking things too personally. But by God’s grace, I’m working hard against this tendency because I want to love people, not react to them. Sometimes it’s as simple as growing thicker skin in order to love someone past their rough edges.”   My friends are good forgivers.... Continue Reading

“The point of terrorism—and what makes it appealing to those who cannot fight traditional-style battles—is to inject fear into others. To freeze economies by making people too afraid to go out shopping. To tear societies apart since people are too afraid to gather in public places. In short, the point is to make us too fearful.”... Continue Reading

“I am still surprised by the number of churches that have no intentional, strategic plan to help Christ followers do evangelism. Ideally, of course, believers will naturally talk about Jesus, but even passionate people sometimes need direction and equipping.”   I’ve been a professor of evangelism for almost twenty years. Over the years, I’ve continually... Continue Reading

“When we look at a tree and see bad fruit, we conclude it is a bad tree (Matt. 7:17-20). When we look at the same tree and it has good fruit, new fruit, we conclude the tree has changed. There’s not just new fruit but a new tree. This is what God does for His... Continue Reading

“There are times when believers are divided over serious and consequential questions, and controversy is an inevitable result. The only way to avoid all controversy would be to consider nothing we believe important enough to defend and no truth too costly to compromise.”   I recently watched as a young mother acted quickly and decisively to... Continue Reading

“The charge of heresy is a serious one. We cannot be trivial or frivolous in throwing around the term. But Paul’s response to the Judaizers (among many other passages of Scripture) teaches us that there are times when we must draw clear lines of separation, even among those who would call themselves Christians.”   More... Continue Reading

“What the Bible is not saying is that you can’t trust yourself to observe whether a car is coming and it is safe to cross. Of course you  can do this. However, what it is getting at is the fact that fallen humanity, sinners, are inclined towards foolishness.”   I trust myself. A lot. This... Continue Reading

“We have a tendency as Christians to link good feelings, whether it be at a concert or a worship service, with the moving of the Spirit. But we should be careful about that. We are too dependent on our feelings and too little dependent on faith.”   More than thirty years ago, when I was... Continue Reading