Does the Bible tell us about God’s incredible love for us? Of course. But the Bible is not primarily about us, the Bible is primarily about God. The Bible is not primarily a subjective account of God’s feelings for us; it is an objective record of God’s magnificent, glorious plan of redemption. The Bible doesn’t... Continue Reading

Apart from the fact that the verbal effort required to be politically correct and not offend people is now likely to induce an asthma attack in anyone who does not have a high degree of aerobic fitness, the other interesting thing about this is the arrival of the terms ‘omnisexual’ and ‘pansexual’.  I confess that... Continue Reading

Ultimately, it was Satan’s lie in the Garden of Eden that led to all the chaos experienced in the world today. This first lie resulted in the patriarchal madness presented above. Abraham and Isaac ruined their testimony before Pharaoh and Abimelech. Abraham and Isaac harmed their relationship with their spouses by encouraging them to lie.... Continue Reading

In one sense, there’s no real difference in the way we’d give Josh the good news compared to any other person. Just because Josh is sexually attracted to people of the same gender doesn’t make him foundationally different from anyone else.   Josh had always known he was different. From his earliest memories, he looked... Continue Reading

A ministerial amateur is not one who lacks formal training or advanced degrees from reputable institutions. An amateur is one who lacks the knowledge base, skill set, and experience for a particular task, in this case Christian ministry. This is to say, one can still be an amateur though holding an earned degree, and one can be... Continue Reading

God’s precepts are not contradictory. Divorce can be a good and holy option–standing fully in harmony with Scriptural forgiveness. You can come to divorce a spouse who has violated covenant, by God’s grace, without bitterness or vengeance, in Christian wisdom and love–and at the same time, pursue divorce. You can pursue the divorce of  an... Continue Reading

I once heard someone say that we are to be like gate keepers. We let in what is good and pure but shut out the wicked and impure. He said we can’t always help what comes up to the gate, but we can help what we let in and entertain. We can’t always help it when... Continue Reading

When a debate breaks out in your church about some theological issue, real leadership requires more than just laying out the main positions clearly and fairly. That’s a good skill, but people need to know what you think. They need you to lead them through the issue, wrestling fairly with the positions, and then reaching a... Continue Reading

What lessons can we learn from these biblical examples?  First, biblical literacy is important.  Ignorance of Scripture is no basis for faithful Christian lives and congregations.  Second, biblical literacy requires hard work.  It doesn’t just happen. The word of God must be diligently read and taught.  Like the Levites who worked with Ezra, we must... Continue Reading

I do not consider myself particularly prone to the temptation of pornography. I can sit at a computer early in the morning or late at night and not feel any pull to abuse the privilege. Not at this point. And yet, I explained to my son, I treat myself as one who is disposed to... Continue Reading