Does Modesty Matter Anymore?
Biblical modesty is about revealing true gospel value.
Both Paul and Peter, under the inspiration of the Spirit, address a key question that continues to plague our culture today—“What makes a person beautiful?” Of concern here is how does one live as a new creation in Christ and make that image look beautiful? What qualities are revered and elevated among those who walk... Continue Reading
When Our Voices Fail
"When I cannot find words in my heart to bring to my lips, these truth-laden, Scripturally-rich hymns rise in my spirit!"
It was suddenly so clear to me how important the great hymns I had learned had been in building up my faith and driving home the essential biblical truths I so needed to rest upon at that very moment. Hearing and feeling through song what I knew to be true from God’s Word both settled... Continue Reading
The Early Symptoms of Spiritual Danger
"Those once enlightened, who have tasted the heavenly gift...if they fall away cannot be renewed again to repentance."
On occasion, we wonder if an individual really has been converted. And sometimes we have an inexplicable, ill-defined sense that something is missing. But we cannot read the heart. Even so, we hear of friends—whose faith we never doubted—turning away from Christ. I can still recall the conversation although it took place more than three... Continue Reading
The (Satanic) Power Of Positive Thinking
One could triangulate the personality of Milton’s Satan using just three figures from popular culture: singer Katy Perry, fictional boss Michael Scott, and motivational speaker Tony Robbins.
While Katy Perry has popularized the self-empowerment ballad, I might substitute her part in the satanic identity for one of six dozen other purveyors of the ego anthem. The earliest is probably Frank Sinatra’s “My Way,” though the example I lately gave my Paradise Lost students was Whitney Houston’s rendition of “Greatest Love of All.” ... Continue Reading
10 Things You Should Know about Reformed Theology
A survey of a Reformed catechism or systematic theology shows that there is much more to Reformed theology than the doctrine of salvation.
Reformed theology does not depart from our ancient Christian heritage but affirms the catholic, orthodox doctrines of God and Christ that form the backbone of the great confessional tradition of worldwide Christianity. Though the Reformers were excommunicated by the Roman Catholic Church, they did not cast off the Trinitarian faith of the councils of Nicaea,... Continue Reading
Sitting in the Dust with the Disgraced American Church
It's ironic that God doesn't seem to care about his reputation nearly as much as we do.
All my life I have struggled with the desire to be the good girl, to follow the good Christian rules of praying before meals and sticking a fish on my car and moving to deepest darkest Africa. There was this underlying current to the evangelical culture around me that if we all looked really nice... Continue Reading
The Christian’s North Star
Proverbs 3:5-6: The North Star for the child of God.
The next thing to note is that our trust should be constant: in all your ways acknowledge him. Take one step at a time, and make sure that each step is under God’s direction. Always make your plans in total dependence on God. It is nothing short of self-idolatry to imagine that we can carry... Continue Reading
Biblical Unity and Separation
All of us are in various stages of spiritual growth and repentance to be sure, but the mark of the washing of regeneration is there to be seen in all of God’s people that cannot be counterfeited.
According to those in the seeker-sensitive, Woke, and New Calvinist camps unity is what the Church must be about. This unity is all encompassing with no regard for doctrine, et cetera. Instead, they have created a humanist unity. For instance, the seeker-sensitive seeks unity no matter what one’s belief system is while the Woke camp... Continue Reading
Redemption Applied
As thoroughly ordinary as Jesus is, His life explodes beyond the common.
The God-man undertook a divinely appointed, unrepeatable, and decisive historical role. Like the Adam of Eden, the last Adam—Jesus Christ—was a public man. In His representative calling, Jesus became the “merciful and faithful high priest . . . [who made] propitiation for the sins of the people” (v. 17). Only this one man has accomplished that extraordinary,... Continue Reading
The Destiny Hermeneutic
You and I must live with a preparation mentality – and with a destiny hermeneutic.
You can’t interpret personal suffering and societal brokenness without remembering that God is not satisfied with the world as it is. The Creator – who made this world and rules everything in it and who is the definition of goodness, wisdom, love, and truth – has promised to one day make all things new. ... Continue Reading