We should read the Bible as one story, of one covenant of grace, with one church united in Christ, with Gentile salvation in view from the beginning. Yet we should also believe that God has a future plan for ethnic Jews, not by giving them a separate destiny as a separate people of God but... Continue Reading

The true aim of the angelic revolution, therefore, is not to achieve equality but to replace one hierarchy with another, and Satan himself admits: “orders and degrees/Jar not with liberty, but well consist” (V.792-793). He is truly the deft Deceiver. First he rouses the pride and private passions of the angels, by declaring them uncreated... Continue Reading

Young adults today have less friendships, genuine social interaction, abilities to make a decision, and live in constant fear—fear of things that are not scary. Fear of life. Shrier explains why. We live in a strange new world that overly values gentle parenting; trauma-based therapy (even where there’s no trauma); over-medicating of our children; and... Continue Reading

Aaron Renn charts the decline of social and legal acceptance of historic Christianity from the 1960s to the present. He identifies three eras of this decline: a “positive world” in which Christianity was still widely favored (1964-1994), a “neutral world” in which Christianity was one acceptable choice among many (1994-2014), and a “negative world” in which... Continue Reading

Pastoral leadership from the pulpit is critical. Most often, we find books on leadership and books on preaching, but rarely do we find volumes that argue for the interconnectedness of the two. Currie, Pace, and Shaddix make the connection admirably. Pace and Shaddix address this interconnectedness more succinctly and practically, while Currie’s work is more robust... Continue Reading

“In Romans 13, Paul is arguing that the state or civil government is a biblically sanctioned institution. He is not saying how Christians are to live before or submit to that institution except that we are to not revolt against it in private revolution but are, instead, to support it and submit to it as legitimate sphere of... Continue Reading

The idea behind the cultural mandate is that God entrusts us with something and expects us to do something worthwhile with it, something he finds valuable. This mandate implies an expectation of human achievement.   “God has created us in his image so that we may carry out a task, fulfill a mission, pursue a calling.” —... Continue Reading

Of course, calling all of this “information” is misleading. Perhaps we should call it content, because it’s not all equal and it’s not all equally true. But that’s part of the problem. What happens when you take a populous whose idea of an informed person is someone capable of juggling massive amounts of incoherent and... Continue Reading

Life isn’t primarily about evangelization or Bible memorization, or even obedience to Christ’s commands, important as all of those are. Life is, first and foremost, an abiding relationship with a gracious and loving Lord. It is living a D’Vine Life in Christ.   Yes, my title has a double meaning: The vine in John 15 is Christ, who... Continue Reading

Pastors and Their Critics begins with a scriptural foundation, allowing the further comments by Beeke and Thompson to stand firm on previously expounded texts. Further concepts explored in this book include: how to receive and respond to pastoral criticism, constructive criticism, coping with criticism, and preparing for criticism while in seminary. These later chapters are a... Continue Reading