How would you address some critics who suggest your writing is simplistic? I would give them a good John Stott book or a John Piper book. I realize that I’m kind of nightstand reading. Some people write lullabies; I write lullabies. Outlive Your Life: You Were Made to Make A Difference, by Max Lucado –... Continue Reading

Particularly helpful were the chapters on the history of the gay rights movement in America…. Most people sitting in the pew have no understanding how homosexuality has become so normalized in our society Authors Joe Dallas (Desires in Conflict, The Gay Gospel, When Homosexuality Hits Home) and Dr. Nancy Heche (The Truth Comes Out) team... Continue Reading

“Contextualization is speaking to people with their terms, not on their terms.” “Contextualization is not giving people what they want but rather it is giving God’s answers to questions they are asking and in forms they can comprehend” Tim Brister completes his review of Church Planter: The Man, the Message, the Mission by Darrin Patrick... Continue Reading

Sacred cows die hard. And tipping them is not just anyone’s game. When it comes to conservative American evangelicalism, there may be no cherished belief that needs to die more than its explicit allegiance to one political party. An evangelical attachment to the history of America and to patriotism has colored its views on how... Continue Reading

“The gospel is not good advice on how to reach up to God; rather, it is a declaration about what God has already done to reach down to us. It is good news about a historical event that changes everything” Tim Brister continues his review of Church Planter: The Man, the Message, the Mission by... Continue Reading

The unifying theme among all seven characteristics seems to be that the Spirit of God controls the man in his character (who he is) and empowers the man in his calling (what he does). Tim Brister begins a three part review of Church Planter: The Man, the Message, the Mission by Darrin Patrick (Wheaton: Crossway,... Continue Reading

‘Being a lifelong Vanderbilt fan helps you to accept the cross.’” A passionate Christian and a rabid football fan, Auburn graduate Chad Gibbs set out, in his humorous new book, “God & Football,” to find the balance between his religious faith and his devotion to the emotional whirlwind of college football in the South. “As... Continue Reading

Ted Olsen of CT interviews Bradley R. E. Wright about his recent book: Christians Are Hate-Filled Hypocrites…. and Other Lies You’ve Been Told (Bethany House, July 2010) Young people are not abandoning church. Evangelical beliefs and practices get stronger with more education. Prayer, Bible reading, and evangelism are up. Perceptions about evangelicals have improved dramatically.... Continue Reading

‘On Evil’ belongs to the genre of religious psychology, where Eagleton brilliantly relates the ultimate concerns of the theologian with the penultimate concerns of the psychoanalyst. Two events happened this spring in New York City that flummoxed our sophisticated pundits. First, a naturalized citizen failed to detonate a car bomb in Times Square. Why did... Continue Reading

Gilbert asks and answers four crucial questions: Who made us?, What is our problem?, What is God’s solution to that problem?, and, How can I be included in that solution? Consider the variety of answers you would receive if you asked the man-on-the-street, “What is the Gospel?” Greg Gilbert, assistant pastor at Capitol Hill Baptist... Continue Reading