Prayer

What has been termed the most contentious and discouraging Presidential election in my lifetime has finally come to an end. America has spoken. For many Christians, a Trump presidency marks the end of a now fractured Republican Party's fall from unity, integrity, wisdom and stability. For others,...
J. Todd Billings
In this post in this short series , I offer a typology of interpretive approaches to biblical lament. The typology is rough, not comprehensive; my examples come from the "left," "right," and "middle," from theological conservatives and liberals. But they have one thing in common: they fail to...
J. Todd Billings
In this post in this short series , I offer a typology of interpretive approaches to biblical lament. The typology is rough, not comprehensive; my examples come from the "left," "right," and "middle," from theological conservatives and liberals. But they have one thing in common: they fail to...
Over the years it has been my practice, learned from others, to offer up praises and petitions framed by a passage of Scripture. Some of these passages were read in preparation for preaching, others offered material for meditation in daily devotion; still others were plundered specifically for the...
"We come to you this morning, our Maker, Redeemer and eternal Rest. You are the one who patterns the weeks of our lives, ordered by the work of your creation and the rest of your holy day. We praise you for giving us work for six days and rest for one day. We know that every day belongs to you, but...
What Andy Stanley has forgotten is that conversion to Christianity involves a supernatural rebirth that requires the Word of God. Forgetting this essential truth has been the tendency of the seeker-sensitive church-growth movement. This vital truth is forgotten wherever sociology is given a higher...
Over the years it has been my practice, learned from others, to offer up praises and petitions framed by a passage of Scripture. Some of these passages were read in preparation for preaching, others offered material for meditation in daily devotion; still others were plundered specifically for the...
The Christian doctrine of the Triune Godhead is often thought more in terms of an intellectual puzzle to be solved than a truth to be adored . But the fact of the matter is that the truthfulness of this Scriptural teaching is of immense practical comfort for the child of God. It is the Triune God...
I love the hymn "Jesus, What a Friend for Sinners" - but one line makes me uncomfortable every time I sing it: "Jesus! What a strength in weakness! Let me hide myself in him; tempted, tried, and sometimes failing , he, my strength, my vict'ry wins." Sometimes failing? How about many times...often...
How should we respond to heresy? As we have seen in our previous article , the early Christian theologian Irenaeus of Lyons (c.130-c.200) is a great model here. There must be a robust theological response based on Scripture. And confessional parameters must be emphasized. But there must also be...