Tag Christ

people-woman_bv09sgbvqi

Same-Sex Attraction as Sin

There’s a great deal of confusion about the nature of temptation and same-sex attraction. Many Christians, even pastors and theologians, some of whom are ostensibly Reformed, believe that same-sex temptation is not a sin. For them, sin only occurs when…

heartcreation

The Heart of Creation

Rowan Williams. Christ the Heart of Creation. Bloomsbury Continuum, 2018. Hardback. 304 pp. $42.99. Advent has given us room for much needed reflection on Christ’s miraculous birth. To that end, I’m happy to recommend Rowan Williams’ Christ the Heart of Creation this holiday…

mysteryincarnation

A Mystery Beheld

Many things in life fill us with wonder. Our world is full of profound mysteries, but the greatest mystery of all is the mystery of the incarnation. One of the profoundest statements of this mystery is 1 Timothy 3:16: “And…

r21_arthead

The Joy of Justification

Theologians have often considered justification by faith alone to be “the heart of the Gospel” for the simple reason that justification is a legal declaration of pardon and righteousness–a once-for-all judicial act of God toward believers. Justification is judicial not…

r21_arthead

A Censorious Spirit

Sinclair Ferguson once lamented the fact that whenever he overheard others discussing some public theologian or individual at a conference, the statements were almost always prefaced with a negative comment such as, “Well, you know, the problem with him is…”…

r21_arthead

The House of Omri

The Mesha Stele is an ancient slab of basalt stone from the 9th century BC. It was named for Mesha, the king of Moab (2 Kings 3:4). This stele is actually an ancient document which records the struggles of the…

r21_arthead

Adoption and the Image of God

When I was in my early 20s, I met a college friend of my parents for the first time. After a short conversation, she smiled and commented, “You’re just like your dad!” She wasn’t just referring to my appearance, but…

r21_arthead

All the Hell You Shall Ever Have

For the better part of my Christian life, I’ve had a visceral reaction–driven by internal disapproval–whenever I’ve heard someone describe the hardships he or she experienced in life in the following ways: “It was like hell on earth,” or “I…

r21_arthead

The Unthinkable Sin

One day I had the opportunity to preach with John Barros outside of an abortion mill in Orlando. In the message I preached, I made the point that I am also a murderer because Jesus said: “You have heard that…