Not the Sort of Religion I Would Invent
Christians have always been tempted to try to make Christianity more appealing
“The message of the cross is foolishness. This is the point: the very nature of Christianity is not the kind of religion that appeals to human nature. Christianity is the kind of religion whose worshipers boast of no glory and claim no rewards for their efforts. Instead, Christians confess their weakness and sinfulness.” If... Continue Reading
The Apostle’s Creed: An Introduction
The Creed is often seen as something that unites Christians
“Clearly, the Apostle’s Creed was an expression of truth meant to combat a particular heresy. But like all good creeds it unites the church in any generation around Biblical truth. So, in this series we are going to look at a valuable and enriching statement of the Christian Faith and we will do it line... Continue Reading
The Spirit and the Supper
Feeding on Christ in the Supper empowers the Christian to live the Christian life
“The Lord’s Supper is spiritual nourishment promised by the sign of bread and wine and realized by the Holy Spirit. If this empowering is the work of the Holy Spirit, it must also be said that the Spirit works through faith. In other words, this empowering comes through believing the Gospel, both as it is... Continue Reading
Who Decided What Would Be in the Bible & When? – Canonicity
The “canon” refers to the books that are contained within the Bible; those which are the word of God.
How do we know which books belong in the Bible? How do we know that these 66 books are the correct ones? How do we know we’re not missing something? And who decided what would be included in the Bible and what would not? It’s a question you hear often. And it’s one that... Continue Reading
Deep Darkness Before Dawn
The prophets are not always immediately applicable unless we broaden our view of application and consider the story behind the symbols.
My family has endured the most difficult year of our lives. We’ve experienced unexpected grief and have, at times, felt overwhelmed by darkness. But in the midst of our sorrow, we have found hope in this image from Isaiah. The picture of new life emerging from the old stump has helped us place the sorrows... Continue Reading
Marriage in a “Me” Culture
Man indeed has defined marriage according to our own terms.
We see marriage determined by our opinions on gender and sexuality, marriage for convenience, divorce because we’re bored, and websites that have profited from selling affairs to married people. So much of our world’s approach to marriage is concerned with how it affects “me,” “my truth,” and “my desires.” Just recently, my local church... Continue Reading
Womanhood Without a Checklist
Wouldn’t it be so much better if we put up just a little more law to keep women in line?
Whether you’re prone to jump on the hamster wheel and chase down the unattainable goal of perfection, or more like me, and find yourself laying down on the hamster wheel and being trampled by the more motivated hamsters, you’ve probably experienced the shame of not achieving all that you feel you ought. There is... Continue Reading
Loving the Church
What do you think love inside a church is? Do you love your church? How?
Love in a church also involves mercy and forbearance, even as we have received mercy and forbearance. Love covers a multitude of sins. Some of your fellow members are easy to love. Some are difficult. And that’s just the point. The easy-to-love teach us how to love the difficult-to-love. The annoying ones. The immature ones.... Continue Reading
“Engaging the Culture” Doesn’t Work Because Christian Beliefs Are a Mark of Low Status
In spite of the resources poured into these efforts, American culture has increasingly embraced the cultural and sexual Left.
What this plan never took into account is the dynamics of social status. Evangelicals sought to engage the culture by being relevant, by creating works of art, by offering good arguments for their positions. None of these addressed the real problem: that Christian belief simply isn’t cool, and that very few people want to lower... Continue Reading
De-Conversion
While some creep away from the faith like a gliding glacier, the de-converted are glaciers calving off, crashing into the sea with devastating effect.
De-conversion stories seek to convince Christians that their ‘outdated, naïve beliefs’ are no longer worthy of assent. People tell how they once thought like you, but have now ‘seen the light’. Christianity has never lacked people, who once in the fold, later left. They tell their stories with a conviction, passion, and evangelistic zeal to... Continue Reading