Though Jesus was full of compassion, truth was the priority. While not indifferent to feelings, He interacted with others as one who knows that gospel truth alone is what saves. Truth, He taught, “will set you free” (John 8:32). Jesus’ mission was “to bear witness to the truth” (18:37). Sixty-six times in the New Testament the... Continue Reading

Practicing — really practicing — love and discernment is not merely about winning an argument or being on the right side of history, but about being right before God for eternity. If we want to glorify God in all we do, we cannot settle for discernment without real love. If we want to be more and more... Continue Reading

Our hunger for tweet-length solutions, for snackable, bite-sized redemption plans has collapsed our ability—both as a church and a nation—to build towards sustainable healing. This type of healing takes place over generations and centuries, yet we seem to prefer to patch things up with a flashy band-aid (perhaps one printed with our favorite superhero). Blame... Continue Reading

Step one has a single purpose: Gather information. What precisely is the complaint, the objection, or the challenge your friend is offering? Step two: Find out the specific reasons—if he has any, and if he can articulate them—for holding the contrary view he’s advancing. These two steps provide you with a kind of map you can use... Continue Reading

Each of us leads and each of us follows. Each of us is called to lead and to follow in a distinctly Christian way. According to Jesus’s Golden Rule, that must look something like this: Lead in the way you’d want to be led; follow in the way you’d want to be followed.   Even... Continue Reading

When reformation came to the Old Testament church, family heads took the lead to seek out teaching, and they were obedient to what they were taught. Church officers applied their abilities to the congregation’s need for teaching, discipling them to do what God required and keeping watch over their response to that teaching. In this... Continue Reading

A vegetarian theology, devoid of doctrinal meat and served with the sparkling water of religious platitudes, is not hearty enough to make stout Christianity which leaves an imprint on this world. It is bloodless, boneless, tasteless, colorless, lukewarm, allergic to depth and substance. It may borrow Christian terms and phrases, but it does not carry... Continue Reading

As church buildings reopen (or stay open), it is tempting for relatively able-bodied folks, eager to exercise our religious and civic freedom, to claim the best seats in the house. But what of those who are physically unable to enter the assembly, or who are hesitant because health precautions are being ignored or boastfully defied?... Continue Reading

Since the preaching of the gospel is the primary means by which God saves His people, ministers of the gospel should concern themselves with pursuing growth in their ability to skillfully communicate the truth of Scripture. Pastors should avail themselves of all the means of growth that are at their disposal. In so doing, we... Continue Reading

The CRC Synod 2016, in response to multiple overtures, adopted the following: That synod appoint a new study committee to articulate a foundation-laying biblical theology of human sexuality that pays particular attention to biblical conceptions of gender and sexuality. The central aim of this theological task will be to provide concise yet clear ethical guidance... Continue Reading