How a church worships week in and week out forms the people—it molds their culture by shaping their inclinations through habitual practices, because as we have already seen, the shape of the liturgy transmits its values. Like that path through the forest, when people travel along the liturgy that we have provided for them, they... Continue Reading

And it is here that the Rachel Dolezal story exposes the silliness and the absurdity of postmodernity, and its accompanying commitment to relativism.  It shows–perhaps more clearly than any other recent example–that postmodernity simply doesn’t work. It shows that we can’t create our own realities after all.  We can’t make something true just because we... Continue Reading

I was immediately drawn in when he said this because although it is good, true, and important to discuss Christ’s work on the cross and how that applies to our sanctification, the believer also needs to hold fast to where Christ is now, interceding on our behalf at the right hand of the Father, and... Continue Reading

Awareness of my grumbling showed me where I desire my kingdom, rather than God’s kingdom, to flourish. That is always the issue. When I grumble in response to circumstances, I am stating that the values of my kingdom matter more than the values of God’s kingdom. I am stating that people should work better for my... Continue Reading

Do you see? The worldling has an insoluble problem when faced with such tragedy as this horrendous slaughter. Taken seriously, the reigning worldviews of our day leave us helpless to describe murderer, victims, or incident, in any terms other than either “…and then that happened,” or even (God help us all) positive terms. Then after describing them, they have... Continue Reading

So is homeschooling selfish? Have homeschoolers enthroned the needs of their own children at the expense of the larger society? In declining to send our children to public school, have we truly turned our backs on the lost of the world? This, after all, is the real charge that Christians level at homeschooling.   By... Continue Reading

While responsibility for sin lies directly on the conscience of the one who forsakes their marriage vows, I’ve often wondered what might be done to help prevent such tragedies. I remember asking one of the elders of our church what accountability or oversight had been given to the pastor prior to his fall. To my... Continue Reading

The greatest believers are subject to great weaknesses. In no way do these truths give a license to sin; instead, they give a sober realization that “nothing good dwells in us” (Rom. 7:18). We must distrust ourselves, bear with the weak, and hold fast to Christ. We must flee to our Great High Priest, who... Continue Reading

Instead of focusing on “lust,” if this passage is to be correctly taught, the emphasis should be placed squarely on the will: that is, “What is the proper response to sexual desire?” There are proper outlets for sexual desire, but it is the exercise of the sexual appetite outside these confines is the problem. Even... Continue Reading

There is no logical reason, apart from a prejudice against zoophilia, to restrict such marriages to humans.  This reductio ad absurdum shows that once you move away from biblical law, logically anything goes. Once the church no longer feels bound by Scripture, there are unforeseen consequences and eventually what can happen, will happen.   It... Continue Reading