Bleep! Why Christians Shouldn’t Cuss
We cherish the purpose for which God gave words.
Christians understand that an inability or unwillingness to take control of our language shows a lack of self-control or lack of graciousness toward others. Swearing shows that you are unconcerned about that which ought to concern Christians: edification, grace, humility, patience, self-control, evangelistic witness, being an example to children, integrity, and many other virtues that we... Continue Reading
Pastors & Churches: Don’t Celebrate Brokenness
We welcome brokenness, but we promote wholeness through confession of sins and struggles with others.
Be wise as you teach on brokenness. Admit that leaders are broken people who need grace. Confess we will battle brokenness until Christ returns or brings us home. But praise a greater aim than brokenness. If broken people is not your goal, quit celebrating it as a badge of honor. Acknowledge brokenness as a reality, not as a... Continue Reading
The Doctrine Of The Covenant Of Works Comes From Scripture
There are many who have no idea how or why the Reformed reached their conclusion that God made with Adam a covenant of works, which was finally fulfilled by Christ the Last Adam
This is a systematic belief but the Reformed were driven to it by Scripture. Grace is for sinners, not for the righteous. Adam was righteous before the fall but God was gracious to him after the fall. We all fell in Adam and he is gracious to his elect to justify, to sanctify, and to... Continue Reading
A Question of Torment: Can You Lose Your Salvation?
Again and again, God makes it very clear that he will keep and preserve every true believer.
Because God was the one who started the work of salvation and God would be the one who would complete it. This gives me an incredible amount of peace. If my final salvation were up to me, I wouldn’t make it. I’m sure of that. I’m no spiritual Superman or hero (to paraphrase Dave Matthews). Without... Continue Reading
The Gospel for Single Moms
It is the very fact that few single moms actually want to be single moms that highlights why the gospel is so sweet and necessary.
The result of the Fall of Man is that we all live in less than ideal circumstances. The great deception that Paul addresses in Galatians in particular is that we are tempted to start our Christian walk in dependence on God but try to continue it through out own ability to maintain ideal circumstances. Paul... Continue Reading
How Should We Understand “Her Desire” in Genesis 3:16b?
Tracking the metanarrative reveals that Genesis 3:16b points to “frustration” as the foundational longing that underpins “desire” as used to describe Post-Fall marriages.
“Desire” in Genesis 3:16b is not just the “battle of the sexes” as presented in the NLT. Desire is not the crutch for unwise counsel that often has been dispensed by pastors and counselors to otherwise victimized wives. Rather “desire” in Genesis 3:16b results from the frustration felt by the victim of an abusive relationship,... Continue Reading
Why You Should Study Theology
Sound doctrine is good for followers of Jesus. We need to know the truth, which means we must study the truth.
“Doctrine” is a biblical word and the Apostle Paul shows us that sound doctrine is a good thing we should embrace. After all, “doctrine” refers to teaching and “sound” means something is healthy. Sound doctrine is a shorthand way of saying that teaching is healthy and good for us. This means it corresponds to what... Continue Reading
The Dangerous ‘Well Done’
Three Risks in Receiving Affirmation
Very much like fire, praise from (and of) other people is both a gift and a danger, meant to be carefully stewarded. We ought to be wise, thoughtful, and measured in receiving it — and in giving it. It is sometimes good, and often dangerous, to be praised by other people. We know praise... Continue Reading
6 Misconceptions About the New Testament
Biblical revelation unfolds in an organic step-by-step way, rather than all at once.
Christ inaugurated what the apostles built upon through the inspiration of the Holy Spirit. Additionally, a concept may be present despite the lack of specific vocabulary naming the concept. Christ clearly indicated that salvation could only come through him (Jn. 3:16-17; Jn. 14:6) despite never using the word justification. Likewise, Paul also taught that Christians... Continue Reading
The Problem Is Enmity, Not Ethnicity
The problem of racial reconciliation is rooted in our inherent enmity with God, not our inherent ethnicity.
What Christians who are demanding justice must understand – and accept – is that the gospel doesn’t promise relief from the injustices and inequities of this world. In fact, it promises just the opposite (Jn. 16:33). The world in which you and I live still lies in the power of the evil one (1 Jn.... Continue Reading