We used to be a country devoted to protecting and ensuring the rights of its citizens. Our rights were those innate human qualities and capacities, endowed by a Creator God, infused into the human spirit, needing only to be expressed, not provided by any man-made authority. Now we are a country devoted to fabricating and engineering the... Continue Reading

So then, are you pure if you have never had sex? Not if you’ve been cheating the system in other ways. If purity was only based on sex, then after I got married I would no longer have to strive for a life of purity. Sexual abstinence is good, but your purity is NOT defined... Continue Reading

Finally, living without church membership is not healthy. Independence—the desire to choose for yourself what’s right and wrong—is at the heart of sin. You need the humility lesson of submitting to flawed elders. You need the encouragement of sharing victories with your church. You need the fellowship of sharing sufferings with your church.   This... Continue Reading

I am grateful to Kevin DeYoung for the timely reminder that we must all examine our hearts when offering criticism of others. That is a convicting point.  I would submit, however, that the YRR does not at this point look sleazy to outsiders because of the sinful motives of the critics of celebrity pastors but... Continue Reading

Peterson says we are too impatient. We do not really believe in the power of prayer, the ministry of the word (and sacrament), and patient spiritual direction. We want to fix problems. And we want it now. My own heart does. I look at my kids and see things I don’t like and I see... Continue Reading

The ‘Scary Black Robe’ Factor: Stereotypes often win out. Many unbelievers think of pastors as strange, alien people—something like Jedi Knights from Star Wars. The robe and clerical collar don’t help much. For this reason pastors are often perceived as unapproachable, mysterious, and even intimidating. You however are a “normal” person. (Well, most of you anyway).    I... Continue Reading

I want my husband to love God more than he loves me or our children. Why? Because if he loved us more than God we would serve as his idols, and would eventually let him down. We are not good gods. But a husband who loves God above all other people in his life will... Continue Reading

“If you push a decision on something that innovates on the Bible’s testimony, you’re creating the division. Division begins with that first departure. The first step away from the agreement is the original divide. It is simply necessary, then, for Christians to walk away from a divisive person (Titus 3:10). Perhaps they may even say,... Continue Reading

“Was this reversal a wholly pragmatic decision? I don’t know. Do they now truly agree with the biblical standard regarding homosexual sin? I hope so. But let us remember that oftentimes repentance is a process. Assuming the worst, that World Vision’s quick reversal was merely a pragmatic response to what would surely have been a... Continue Reading

“Christians have many different opinions about what constitutes good government. Jesus said that his “kingdom is not of this world” (John 18:36). That marvelous statement still leaves an important question unanswered: As long as we live in this world, what kind of civil government is right for humankind?”   Is God a Democrat? A Republican?... Continue Reading