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
Renowned Christian Scholar Carl Trueman to Join Grove City College Faculty
Grove City College announced that Carl R. Trueman, one of America’s foremost Christian voices and an accomplished church historian, will join the faculty in the fall.
“Grove City College has enjoyed great success in its ability to attract leading Christian scholars like Dr. Trueman to its ranks, enhancing academic excellence and the Christ-centered learning and living environment we offer our students.” McNulty said. “Grove City College’s exclusive focus on undergraduate education is very appealing,” Trueman said. He is looking forward to... 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
Southwest Pilot Hailed As Hero: ‘God Is Good’
After successfully landing her damaged plane Southwest Airlines pilot Tammie Jo Shults texted a longtime friend: “God is good.”
After graduating from MidAmerica Nazarene University in Olathe, Kan., in 1983, Shults joined the U.S. Navy in 1985. She was one of the first female fighter pilots in the Navy, which didn’t allow women to fly in combat until a few months after Shults left active duty, in 1993. But she participated in training missions... 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
3 Lessons I Learned the Hard Way as a Pastor
I realized only suffering-laden service on the front lines of ministry could make me the godly, humble, wise, selfless leader this congregation desperately needed.
At last, I said: “I’m grateful you want to honor my studies, but please don’t mistake a degree for maturity, competence, fitness for ministry, and certainly not for godliness. The one does not necessarily portend the others. All it really means is that I persevered long enough to meet some academic requirements.” From the standpoint... Continue Reading
Charles Spurgeon’s Call to Preach Christ in a Christly Manner.
“Ministers of the gospel, let Christ be your subject, and let Christ be your model: find in him not only the truth you utter, but the way and life of your utterance.”
Christ was zealous for his Father’s business. Zeal for God’s house consumed him so thoroughly that he was in great distress until his mission (that is, his excruciating death) could be accomplished (Luke 12:50; John 2:17). As such, argued Spurgeon, Christ always preached solemnly. “There was weight about every word that he said, meaning in every... Continue Reading
Nurturing Friendship
Just as a plant will not thrive without water, sunlight, and rich soil, a friendship will not thrive if left on its own.
Deep friendships take time and are often forged through the fires of trial and suffering. Just as a gardener gets their hands dirty when they tend their garden, tending a friendship may be messy at times. We’ll have to sacrifice time. We’ll have to hear hard stories. We’ll have to walk with friends through painful circumstances.... Continue Reading
Keeping the Evangel in Evangelism: Why Evangelicalism Can’t Abandon the Old, Old Story
Evangelism that calls sinners to repentance and spreads the fame of God’s name is at the very heart of the mission of God’s people.
Historical evangelicalism has always valued both theological principle and vigorous evangelism. Indeed, we cannot be authentically and faithfully evangelical without holding both of these features in tandem. The unity between evangelical theology and evangelism is not forced or fabricated. Our theological convictions should irrevocably give birth to our evangelistic fervor. The Great Commission stands... Continue Reading