The Fragility of Idols and the Security of the Savior
While the human longing for security and stability is as old as humanity itself, we are living in a cultural moment where safety and security remain in the forefront of our minds and in the foreground of conversations.
Once we are aware of our own fault lines, we seek to reinforce these places with the sturdy, immovable, unchangeable words of Scripture. Grass withers, flowers fade, and false centers shake, but the Word of God stands forever (Isaiah 40:8). We would do well to listen to the advice of writer of Hebrews to those... Continue Reading
Do You Long for Truth and Meaning in Life? Read Hebrews
Hebrews reveals the perfection of Jesus as the one and only Mediator between God and humanity, who secures our communion with God.
Hebrews presents a realistic but hopeful paradigm to make sense of your daily experience: like the Israelite generation who left Egypt with Moses, your life is a trek through a hostile wilderness, en route to a homeland that transcends this sin-stained earth. A Treasury of Truth and Encouragement Hebrews is a rich treasury of... Continue Reading
The Old Testament: Spectacular Stories and One Gospel
If we read or teach the Old Testament without landing on Christ, we’ve missed the point.
By powerfully saving Israel from danger and their enemies, God points us his greatest work of salvation (Luke 24:27; see John 1:19-27). Israel was waiting, expecting a Messiah to save them. But what many of them missed was that he came to deliver us from our sins (Matthew 1:21). Many make a similar mistake today. ... Continue Reading
“Freed” Rather Than “Justified:” A Strange and “Unjustified” Translation of Acts 13:38, 39
Why would modern translations depart from one of the earliest clear proclamations of the gospel?
At stake is the accurate record of the early proclamation of the saving gospel of salvation by grace alone through faith alone in Christ alone. In terms of the progress of redemption, this speech of Paul at Antioch, delivered at the heart of the trade routes of Asia, represents the fullest record of an early... Continue Reading
Curved in upon Ourselves
Correlation doesn't equal causation—unless you're in a feedback loop
Failure to honor God leads to mental darkness, which leads to idolatry, which leads to a debased mind, which leads to corrupt actions, which leads to a disordered moral vision, and so on. Do people behave like beasts because they treat God like a creature, or do they treat God like a creature because they... Continue Reading
Praying in Jesus’ Name
When we pray to God by faith in Christ, we bring our requests to God in light of what Christ has accomplished in the work of redemption.
Looking to Christ by faith in His name means trusting in Him to supply what He has secured. We pray in Christ’s name as an act of faith in Him as the only Mediator and the fulfiller of the covenant promises. Certain practices have become so familiar among Christians that believers can be in... Continue Reading
What Did Paul Mean by “New Creation”?
On the day of the resurrection the Lord’s promises to his people will be fulfilled, and the people of God will be restored and unified.
The crucifixion of Paul and all believers to the world occurred when they were crucified with Christ (Gal. 2:20). A radical disruption has taken place so that the love for the present world has been severed at the cross. Old polarities, such as whether one is circumcised or uncircumcised are fundamentally irrelevant. What matters is... Continue Reading
How to Plan Wickedly Well
Our planning, even our careful and intentional planning, can be quietly wicked.
One way God guards us against arrogance is to remind us of our mistiness. Everything that feels so big, important, and impressive in our earthy lives right now will vanish and vanish quickly. We’re just a tiny burst of moisture, one that will evaporate almost immediately. God, on the other hand, knows everything there is to... Continue Reading
A Proof for God’s Existence
If change occurs, God exists. If anything exists, God must exist, and be upholding all else in existence. God cannot not exist.
Some may not be used to thinking of God as an unmoved mover. Yet is not the first cause of all things God? If God is anything He is that. But many more attributes may be derived from the unmoved mover being pure act, which will show that we are dealing with God. This is... Continue Reading
Already But Not Yet
God can, and indeed already has, conquered sin and death in Jesus. No longer enslaved without hope, Christians pray and fight the “long defeat.”
From 10/21-7/22, our now 43-year-old son Jordan went through great adversities. He responded to ongoing wicked trauma on many fronts by trying to take his life three times. We felt the power of that vortex too. Once, in Mexico, he jumped from a tower, broke his back and smashed his feet. His back required 8-hour... Continue Reading
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