Gladness In The Face Of Realism: The Practice of Restoration and Rejoicing in Psalm 126 (Part 2)

“Here today, gone tomorrow.” “Like the flip of a switch.” “In the blink of an eye.” “At the drop of a hat.” We have a stack of phrases to express how quickly our situations can change, even unexpectedly so. We can all . . . Continue reading →

Irony and the Presbyterian Church in America (Part 3): Strategic Planning And Corporate Culture Change

When the 35th GA convened at Memphis’ Cook Convention Center June 12–14, 2007, the PCA was changing from the inside out. Its expanded Overtures Committee met for the first time, and the CMC (Cooperative Ministries Committee) was begun. CofCs (Committee of Commissioners) . . . Continue reading →

The Establishment Principle

In my mind, the Old Testament model of theocracy doesn’t clearly correlate with the New Testament or Apostolic Church practices, or even the Patristics for that matter, which suggests that applying Old Testament concepts to Christian statecraft might be anachronistic or misguided. . . . Continue reading →

Dear Abusive Men In The Church

Dear abusive men in the church, I so often feel like berating you, but in what follows I actually want to give you a compliment of sorts.  You are succeeding in changing hearts and minds about a key issue facing the church . . . Continue reading →

Laboring For The Spoils Of Scripture: Augustine’s Threefold Hermeneutic (Part One)

“Like fingernails on a chalkboard.” Sometimes that phrase captures my response to a bizarre interpretation of Scripture. For example, I recently read a modern commentary on the story in Mark’s Gospel, where Jesus heals a man with leprosy: “Jesus stretched out his . . . Continue reading →