One of the surprising things about the Gospel is that Almighty God Himself invites us into His own rest! Most of us would probably give some money to someone suffering with a disease or to a newly released prisoner, but we would be less likely to invite him to live in our homes. But that... Continue Reading

If you want an engaging preacher or a flashy conference, you turn to the evangelicals. If you want to know how to think, for example, about marriage, euthanasia, fertility treatment, issues of church and state — matters which are part of a pastor’s daily diet and which are becoming more, not less, complicated — then... Continue Reading

How better to solve the questions and problems we face than to combine scientific inquiry with the ability to petition the creator of the universe? Christians who pursue the sciences are in the unique position to do just this. Science can be one more tool we use to serve God and to serve our world... Continue Reading

God in his sovereignty even overrides our sins. Maybe you really blew it. You feel like your sin has wrecked your life. Maybe you are suffering long-term consequences for a bad mistake. Remember there are no accidents with God. God is not the author of sin and he doesn’t tempt us to sin. But even... Continue Reading

Evangelicals, of course, believe that church growth and decline is ultimately in God’s hands. If America goes fully secular, we will receive that as part of God’s providential plans. But the clamor about the imminent death of traditional faith, in the short term, is much ado about nothing.   Devout and secular Americans alike have... Continue Reading

He who is God’s word made flesh trusted God’s written word through the power of God’s Spirit, and this has produced salvation. God’s word can and should be trusted. The First and Second Adam (1Cor. 15:45-49) reveal this. Who will you trust?   We are given various historical examples and descriptions of sin in Scripture.... Continue Reading

“Hymnals are intended to be a collective statement of faith for the denomination or group that adopts it. The theological content of our singing is certainly stronger when we have a primary resource that’s been examined, vetted, and solidified on that basis.”   A year ago yesterday I wrote a post about hymnals. A lot of people read... Continue Reading

“Sometimes, people who have been hurt badly in the past resort to patterns of forgiving everyone, or forgiving no one — both in a desperate attempt to find safe intimacy. Even if you haven’t been hurt badly, it’s okay (actually, it’s wise) to take time to detox from the hurt of the relationship.”   Vulnerability... Continue Reading

“When death comes knocking, we’re tempted to suppress the pain. We numb the pain with drugs, sex, entertainment, and alcohol. But when the smoke clears and the buzz fades, the fact remains that we’ve lost someone we dearly care about, and we can’t escape this sobering reality.”   For a while, I’ve dreaded the inevitable... Continue Reading

“Brooding, which is known among cognitive scientists as morbid rumination, is a mental state familiar to most of us, in which we can’t seem to stop chewing over the ways in which things are wrong with ourselves and our lives. This broken ­record fretting is not healthy or helpful.”   Coleridge said something along the lines of how sentimentality... Continue Reading