Can Unbelievers Do Good Deeds?
The Protestant Reformers of the sixteenth century affirmed that the sinful pollution and corruption of fallen man is complete, rendering us totally corrupt.
The term that is often used for the human predicament in classical Reformed theology is total depravity. People have a tendency to wince whenever we use that term because there’s very widespread confusion between the concept of total depravity and the concept of utter depravity. Utter depravity would mean that man is as bad, as... Continue Reading
How to Help Your Kids Get Excited about Reading the Bible
If we’re not excited about this book, we can’t expect our children to be.
We can communicate our delight in the Bible by the way we conduct family worship. Let our body language, our expressions, and our tone of voice all transmit vigor and vitality. Work at showing how even one part of the passage applies to our children’s lives. The Obstacles Parents face huge obstacles in trying... Continue Reading
Fathers, Avoid Exasperating Your Children
What are some of the ways fathers fail in this area?
An undisciplined child will grow sullen, angry, depressed, frustrated, and ultimately shameful in behavior. And just because they may not be under roof does not mean they should be overlooked. Young adults need their parents more than they know. Recently in class, I was reminding pastoral students that they learn to shepherd a congregation,... Continue Reading
The Real Story of Christianity and Abortion
The only consistent biblical logic is to affirm the sanctity and dignity of every human life from the moment of fertilization.
Let there be no confusion on this question. The Bible reveals the sanctity of all human life, the early church affirmed the sanctity of every human life, and anyone who performs an abortion is not “doing God’s work.” Rather, he is undoing it. As the Didache, echoing Deuteronomy, reminds us from so long ago, we are... Continue Reading
I Sure Wish They Would Go To Church!
Who is responsible for adult children of Christian parents leaving the faith and the church?
Your tears are not in vain, but don’t weep in despair. Keep trusting in Jesus to do the work. Receive his forgiveness if and where you have failed. Have confidence in the Gospel you know your children have heard and understood. Stop apologizing for your faith or your call to them to come to Christ. ... Continue Reading
Charles Hodge on the Status and Nurture of the Church’s Children
Hodge argued that baptized covenant children ought to be nurtured and discipled as members of the church.
Hodge makes use of the distinction between the visible and invisible church to argue for a church that is both mixed (when viewed through the lenses of men) and regenerate (when viewed through the lenses of God, something that only He can do!) And since members of the visible church include both believers and their... Continue Reading
Knowledge without Zeal
God’s people love the Bible because of their love for God—not merely because of their love of knowledge.
If you love to gain knowledge about God, but you lack a proper zeal to serve God, you must examine yourself to see if you are in the faith. We must remember the warning of James—faith without works is dead (James 2:17). Even demons are capable of possessing knowledge (v. 19). The torchlight of the... Continue Reading
The Great Pope Within
"I am more afraid of my own heart than of the pope and all his cardinals. I have within me the great pope, self."
The Christian life is one that can only be lived in dependence on Christ as He is set out in the Scripture. The word of God is the sole authority by which we test all things and to which we hold fast in all matters of faith and practice. If we give him free reign,... Continue Reading
“I will give you rest…”
If you have not found rest for you souls, you have not yet found Christ. Come to him, I urge you, and rest.
Aren’t you tired of it? Aren’t you tired of self-appointed prophets gaining wealth over the backs of the poor and downtrodden? Aren’t you tired of watching your every step, making sure that you are manly enough, feminine enough, righteous enough, a good enough parent, a good enough citizen? Are you weary of the constant vigilance?... Continue Reading
Love your (Transgender) Neighbor as Yourself
How should we relate as Christians to those who genuinely feel they are trapped in the wrong body?
We should treat them with compassion. Gender dysphoria is a very real cause of suffering for those who experience it. More than 60% of people who suffer gender dysphoria also suffer mood disorders, anxiety disorders and suicidal thoughts. A 2011 study found that 41% of transgender people attempt suicide at least once. That is a tragic... Continue Reading