Idolatry and the World
What use are the Ten Commandments today? Last time we looked at the First Commandment as it specifically relates to the Church; now we’ll consider it with respect to the world in general. As it appears in the Bible, the…
Category Reformation21
Cultural Appropriation Is Standard Christian Fare
Cultural appropriation—the art of appropriating aspects (songs, stories, apparel, traditions, rituals, etc.) of some (minority) culture by an entity that doesn’t inhabit that culture—seems to have secured its rank among the cardinal vices of our age. Those found guilty of…
God Has Spoken
In early 2008 some of my college roommates and I spent our Spring Break hiking through a beautiful section of the Appalachian Trail. During our first night in the mountains of western North Carolina the biting cold awakened me. I…
The First Commandment and the Church
What use are the Ten Commandments today? We already know them, and we already know no one follows them. Except Jesus, and that’s why we need him. Let’s move on. Yet, as Treebeard would say, let’s not be so hasty.[1]…
Ready to Testify
When the great Protestant reformer Dr. Martin Luther famously stood before the Roman Catholic Diet of Worms in Germany in 1521, he had been called upon by the Holy Roman Empire to explain himself—or more specifically, his doctrine. He did…
Run to Win
As we saw last time, a Christian is like a runner in a race in that he must run. Obviously, a runner doesn’t take a seat in the stands when the starting pistol goes off. He runs. How does a…
Pastoring the Police
It is always tragic to hear of a police shooting or an unjust use of force by police officers. Anytime anyone in a position of authority abuses that authority, it is especially abhorrent in God’s sight, because God ordained authorities…
Welcome to God’s House
Walk prudently when you go to the house of God; and draw near to hear rather than to give the sacrifice of fools, for they do not know that they do evil. Do not be rash with your mouth, And…
A Simple Way to Speak to Jehovah’s Witnesses
For the most part, Christians know that Jehovah’s Witnesses (JWs) are a cult and have some strange beliefs. But when they begin to talk about God and his Son, Jesus; when they ask about faith and salvation; when they use…
4 Predictions for the Post-Pandemic Church
We are rounding the curve into the reckoning phase. When disaster strikes, people (or communities, or nations) often move through three stages: crisis triage, reckoning/ regrouping, and finally redirecting. Crisis triage looks like keeping the ship afloat and surviving till…