trust God. He will do a better job of dispensing justice than you will. In the meantime, do good to those who hurt you. The result is that you will heap burning coals on their heads.   Big Idea: When faith brings hostility, bless, pursue peace, and leave justice to God. Imagine someone taking a... Continue Reading

The Spirit illumines us to the meaning of Scripture, not only so our minds will grasp the meaning, but so that meaning will permeate our lives and transform us from the inside-out. God has given the Spirit to Christians so we might know, understand, and experience the things He has freely given us in the... Continue Reading

There is tension and mystery in the relationship between the divine and the human in the choices we make. Scripture usually emphasizes the divine or the human side of the equation. Sometimes both perspectives are placed side by side. In either case, the two always go together. God is completely sovereign, and we are responsible... Continue Reading

Christians are no longer characterized by hypocrisy.…salvation entails a genuine inward change so that a person’s outward religious life matches, to a significant degree, what is happening on the inside.   You’ve heard it before. One reason people give for not being a Christian is that the “church is full of hypocrites.” Why believe the... Continue Reading

The study of church history informs us about our predecessors in the faith, those who have helped shape our Christian communities and thus make us what we are.   Human beings are historical beings. Our lives are inextricably tied to the past, our own immediate past obviously but also that of other humans. As V.... Continue Reading

Discerning and voicing truth is not an enemy of love. Because no human being can live without forming opinions, we must learn to distinguish the unavoidable evaluation of human practices from the unjust, prideful condemnation of human hearts.   In my previous post, I isolated a deductive argument regarding the biblical restrictions on attending same-sex... Continue Reading

Try to figure out what you’re thinking while in the midst of temptation. What do you really want? What do you think this immoral act will give you? This is difficult because immorality is not particularly logical. But your thinking provides the avenue to your heart. You and I must identify the lies before we... Continue Reading

As the head of the church, the beginning and firstborn from the dead, Jesus is not to have the preeminence in some things, but in all things. Let us give Him that honor by putting Him first in every area of life.   In the United States, we show respect for the highest office by... Continue Reading

Romans 9:10–12 says that God’s choice of Jacob but not Esau is a striking case of divine election because the boys were twins and neither had a proper interest in the covenant at first.   My grandparents were legally permitted to leave communist Russia in the 1930s, in an era when borders were sealed. Almost... Continue Reading

What is most promising for an adaptation of The Magician’s Nephew is that Lewis’s use of narrative supposal ensures that discussions about Aslan, even if seriously flawed, will maintain meaningful points of connection to Jesus.   Early in the first century, a former skeptic turned devout Christian entered Athens. As he wandered the streets, the... Continue Reading

When morality is no longer undergirded by a definitive moral standard it can be redefined in all sorts of supposedly reasonable and rational ways, which leads to almost anything being accepted and justified.   During a trip to South Africa last year, I visited the Apartheid Museum in Johannesburg. In one section, a wall lists... Continue Reading

When someone falls in public, don’t imagine that it could “never” happen to you because you are so righteous and self-controlled. Pray for the victims and their family. Pray that the abuser is convicted and repents. And pray that you may not fall into sin in your heart.   Every so often the stories of... Continue Reading

Has someone denied your dignity? He or she is wrong. Don’t match your life with their words or actions but with God’s words and actions toward you. Take mismatched thoughts captive every time they pop up. Your dignity is not at stake.   True dignity comes from the Lord. It makes sense, because there is... Continue Reading

The peace that passes understanding, that belongs to those who belong to Christ, is neither from the world nor for the world.   My wife has a diamond ring passed down to her from her grandmother. Rather than being held in place by prongs, the gem is nestled in an old fashioned gold filigree setting.... Continue Reading

Jesus’s final words on the cross were a prayer drawn from a psalm: “Father into Your hands I commit My spirit” (Luke 23:46 drawing on Psalm 31:5). Jesus prayed the Bible in His final words.   Have you ever wondered what to pray? How about praying things you find in the Bible? The Bible doesn’t... Continue Reading

God’s presence isn’t a niche. It’s the plot. The book’s twelve chapters walk the whole route: creation and the Garden, the Flood, the patriarchs, Egypt and the exodus, the wilderness, the tabernacle, the temple, exile, and then Christ. From Christ it keeps going, into the Christian, the church, and the new creation.   Ask a... Continue Reading

It seems to me that being dressed for the feast is being dressed in honor of the Son, not for your own honor. It is to be humbled before the invitation to repent and believe the good news. The invitation goes out to all the world, but those who are chosen are dressed for the... Continue Reading

A theory, developed by Stephen Hawking, that the early universe existed in all possible quantum states at once, and our presence today retroactively “selected” the life-friendly path. The leap of faith: This relies on a speculative interpretation of quantum physics that assumes present observers caused past history billions of years ago.   When I was in... Continue Reading

In the New Testament, God promises wisdom to all who earnestly seek it. Wisdom is not just the ability to ‘see around the corners of life,’ but rather the ability to live in light of what is true and good. Thus, there is no true wisdom apart from knowledge of God. Proverbs explains that wisdom... Continue Reading

The Father perfectly knows the thoughts of the Spirit who intercedes for us according to God’s will. The Spirit’s requests, which reflect Jesus’ good plans for his saints, always come to the Father perfectly intact, untainted by human sin or limitations. In other words, the Christian’s prayers will always turn out for the best not... Continue Reading