“It isn’t surprising that Karen Swallow Prior’s article, not to mention the criticism that followed it, caught my attention. It made me think about the implications of the Billy Graham rule for women in Christian academia. It also made me think about the words of another famous Christian who died just a few years after... Continue Reading

In each culture I have found truth and aspects to be admired. But as good as our cultures can be, “culture” is created by humans, and like humans, it is fallen. And every culture I have ever encountered has been riddled with sinful attitudes and behaviors.   I had an interesting conversation with a couple... Continue Reading

“I’ve heard sermons about the nails and the thorns. Granted, the physical agony of crucifixion is a ghastly thing. But thousands of people have died on crosses, and others have had even more painful, excruciating deaths than that. But only One received the full measure of the curse of God while on a cross.”  ... Continue Reading

“Plead earnestly that every home would be, as it were, a little church, earnestly and consistently about the worship of God in the home, led by the father, with the families gathered together to read the Word, sing God’s praises, and pray together — all for God’s glory.”   The Lord calls all believers to... Continue Reading

“If we keep reading we see that Jesus soon after goes into the temple. He comes upon a bustling religious event. There are lots of people, animals, noises, and activities. Imagine the sights, sounds, and smells that would have greeted the Savior’s senses. Jesus is infuriated with a holy anger, and he carries out a... Continue Reading

“Preaching comes through Christ’s sent messengers. This implies that preachers are necessary for preaching and that God must equip and send them to preach on Christ’s behalf. This point builds upon the previous post, which defined preaching as a public authoritative proclamation of the gospel through Christ’s ordained ambassadors.”   Salvation is an expansive term.... Continue Reading

“Ministers are slandered, vilified, addressed in anger – not by those who are the enemies of Christ and his gospel, but by professing Christians. And when the watching world catches glimpses of such behavior within the family of God, they rightly wonder what kind of ‘family’ it really is.”   I recently found myself in... Continue Reading

“My parents knew that I needed additional influences in my life when I was a teenager, and they sought these out. I’m exceedingly grateful they did so that I would learn to follow Jesus. Sometimes the best way to communicate the importance of a principle is to show examples.”   “How should we have other... Continue Reading

“Five hundred years after the Reformation, the religious revolution that swept across Europe, the leaders of the Church of England – itself created in the decades of upheaval – have called on Christians to repent for the divisions, persecution and death.”   It unleashed an orgy of death and destruction across Europe. In England alone,... Continue Reading

Keyes does not shun the word “transformation,” but does see a danger of being simplistic in approaching cultural transformation, particularly in believing that political success will be decisive, since transforming a culture is extremely complex. But, he said, “if we are salt and light, we can’t avoid being transformative.”   The transformation of society to... Continue Reading