The essence of church membership is the sense of belonging to something so much greater than any one of us individually. We are thus motivated to give, serve, love, and care. The biblical understanding of church membership is an incredible concept. It is not a term we should abandon.   Two years ago I released... Continue Reading

The hummingbird in a nearly worshipful pose surveys the tower that by his efforts he has prevented others of lesser strength or cunning from drinking their fill and becoming renewed.  When the Church allows its main focus to shift to solving the ills of society, however noble and compassionate, without a foundation of the Living... Continue Reading

We face an extremist political ideology, akin to communism or fascism, where in fact it originated. But its political currency is not social class or national identity or race: It is sex. A radical sexual ideology that began with feminism but now includes homosexualism and perhaps other sexualities has wheedled its way to the commanding... Continue Reading

The brokenness of sexuality all around us demonstrates something far deeper than a crisis of culture. The brokenness of sexuality around us demonstrates a crisis of worship. We will not get out of this with better Internet filters or more accountability groups. We must recognize that technology will continue to offer fallen humanity what it... Continue Reading

How is the biblical standard of the peace and purity of the church upheld and strengthened by this move? How can the staff and people of Willow Creek PCA work with Tchividjian in an air of normalcy without turning a deaf ear to his history? And how will this ministerial culture affect people’s attention to... Continue Reading

Thus today, even when the people disagree with the decisions of the Supreme Court there is no remedy.  The people were misled into thinking that power was in their hands.  The people were flattered, but the people were deceived.  This seed of “We the Supreme Court” was planted in 1789 in Philadelphia, and it was... Continue Reading

Trump doesn’t speak to the thin veneer of compulsory sensitivity training we’ve all endured. He speaks to the bones of who we are: people who love the Bible, are Protestant, and went to Sunday School. It doesn’t matter so much that he does not live a Biblical ethic in his personal nor professional life. It... Continue Reading

Finding loopholes around church discipline–whether by leaving one church or another or by some other way–demonstrates a heart that fails to grasp that God disciplines sons and daughters. In other words, grace and steadfast love grounds discipline; hatred avoids discipline.   I consider myself a “grace boy.” That is, all the debates that have been... Continue Reading

Why do parents long to have above average children? And why are children willing to go along with their Herculean efforts to achieve such status? According to Time, and a similar story from aeon.com, “You Can Do it Baby!”, it has everything to do with our drive for success.   I’ll never forget the way... Continue Reading

“While good works aren’t meritorious of salvation, they are a necessary component of Christian faith. As James states, “faith apart from works is dead” (James 2:26). Paul makes this same point when he contends that we are not saved by good works but that we are saved for good works.”   Good works aren’t bad. They... Continue Reading