The social gospel becomes a big problem when it turns into a socialist gospel, including a push to grow the national government. Local Christian efforts that deal with problems otherwise left to government have the potential to shrink government by showing that private groups can do a better job.   When I taught classes on... Continue Reading

God must sometimes cast us into a sick bed—into the absolute immobility of the fetal position—where we groan and writhe and pray and plot and plan and connive and capitulate, over and over again, until—at long last—the dreadful fever to justify ourselves finally breaks, and the compulsion to win God’s love through our own good... Continue Reading

In order to examine the rationality of the present “cancel culture,” suppose the first impulse to bid Edwards farewell remained as the unvarnished desire and, thus, something we would attempt to do. What would the advice be in such an instance? Stop reading Jonathan Edwards? Ignore any Edwardsean influence in American culture or evangelical theology?... Continue Reading

Explaining further, he helped me understand that stepping out of the shadows and asking for help put me on a path to restoration. Our pastor clearly admonished me to not “script” the recovery but to instead process the pain privately with trusted professionals, then later (much later) share the process. He, and others, walked with... Continue Reading

Yes, ministry is important. Yes, you have been called to study, preach, and shepherd. And yet, before any of that can even be done, our Savior is calling you to love your wife and son. To serve them, guide them, model for them the great power of the gospel in your own life.   This... Continue Reading

 Jesus understood the OT to be the Word of God written, and he saw it as pointing to him. His view of the OT became the view of the writers of the NT. It seems to follow that Christian interpreters ought to follow the lead of Jesus and the authors of the NT.    Our... Continue Reading

Standing against people in the church who teach contrary to the faith is a battle probably none of us wants to fight. Yet, this is part of our calling in the church militant.   Years ago, a seminary professor gave us a simple but profound assignment. He had us read through the whole New Testament,... Continue Reading

Writing to the churches in Asia, the apostle went toe to toe with a heresy called Gnosticism, a heresy that denied the deity of Christ, licensed immorality, and encouraged a loveless pride based on mystical “revelations” from above.   In this the love of God was manifested toward us, that God sent His Only-begotten Son... Continue Reading

If you’ve been following the bouncing ball, the shutdowns created joblessness and isolation that served to spur many to turn to drugs or suicide. The shutdowns also forced the closure of many of the government and non-government avenues of help for people in trouble. And the shutdowns caused a massive decline in revenue for these... Continue Reading

If public worship is the most spiritually significant, momentous thing we can do on earth, is it any wonder that the Devil attacks it more than anything else. We are constantly tempted to devalue the public worship services of our church, for all kinds of reasons.   How would you answer these questions?: How can... Continue Reading