For various reasons, people in many different professions today are experiencing burnout in alarming numbers. We live in an era when people are always going, always doing, and never stopping. They are busy at work and busy at play. If you ask . . . Continue reading →
“Religious ignorance and a general unconcernedness about divine things, together with the most profuse dissipation and a growing disregard of moral virtue, are the reigning characteristics of the present age.”1 So wrote Augustus Toplady in a letter to a friend in 1776. Although . . . Continue reading →
Pastors are sinners. This sentence is not overly pleasant to read or think about. But it is true that, like other people, pastors in Christ’s church are far from perfect. They stumble in many ways. Even the godliest pastor struggles with various . . . Continue reading →
That’s crazy! We say these words when we see something strange and amazing. The ball hit the right fielder in the head and bounced over the fence for a home run. That’s crazy! My neighbor’s dog can get onto the garage roof . . . Continue reading →
“Do little things with great love.” That statement has stuck with me ever since I heard it some years ago. Life is mostly made up of small choices and seemingly insignificant happenings. Although there is nothing wrong with pursuing and achieving big . . . Continue reading →
It’s all about politics. This statement is a generalization, but it is not an incorrect description of the United States cultural scene. Everything in our culture is politicized, from fast-food joints to wedding cakes to running shoes. I cannot even avoid politics . . . Continue reading →
Pluralization and polarization are two defining features of Western culture. Pluralization refers to the coexistence of diverse viewpoints, practices, and beliefs among people with various backgrounds, customs, and ethnicities. Polarization manifests itself today in the “us versus them” attitude that sharply divides . . . Continue reading →
Short Prayers: Christian Perspectives from the Past Notable Christians from the past have not always emphasized long prayers. Some of them highlighted the benefit of short prayers. For example, when he was discussing Jesus’s teaching on prayer, Augustine (d. AD 430) emphasized . . . Continue reading →
The stronger the Christian, the longer his prayers. This concept seems to be an unspoken assumption in modern Christianity. It may be because of the notion that more is better. If prayer is a good thing, long prayers must be better than . . . Continue reading →
Because darkness hates the light, Christ’s church has always gone through times of oppression and persecution. The Bible says Christians should not be surprised when the world’s animosity is directed toward them (1 John 3:12). Even if persecution has not always been . . . Continue reading →
We are all going to die! It is not just a line from some movie script. It is a basic truth: No person will escape death. Unless Christ returns first, you will die, I will die, and everyone else will die as . . . Continue reading →
It is not that simple. You cannot just throw a pill at it and expect it to go away. Pills can help, but depression is not that straightforward. It is a complex mental challenge that has various layers: biological, social, physical, psychological, . . . Continue reading →
Christians often mimic the tactics of non-Christians in the social and political realms. For example, the “cancel culture” found in legacy media and social media is also found in evangelical media and Christian social media. American politicians and pundits use scare tactics, . . . Continue reading →
One of the oldest and most repeated religious questions goes like this: “Why does God allow evil to happen?” Or it may sound like this: “Why is there evil in the world?” These types of questions fall under the subject of theodicy. . . . Continue reading →
Girolamo Zanchi (1516–90) is certainly not a household name in Christian circles. He was very well known among seventeenth-century Reformed Christians, however. For just one example, Puritan Thomas Goodwin wrote that Zanchi was “the best of Protestant Writers.”1 So why are many Reformed . . . Continue reading →
In a moment, I will point out a few places in Scripture that talk about the layers of self-control we began talking about in part one. Continue reading →
Self-control is not a popular virtue. Few people really want to restrain themselves from pleasure or self-gratification. Very few people are concerned about regulating their grief, anger, or frustration. Instead, indulging in pleasure is a priority for many. People give full vent . . . Continue reading →
To get a true understanding of the fruit of gentleness, we must first think about the gentleness of Christ, which we meditated on in part one. Now we can start to think about gentleness in our own Christian lives. Jesus said we . . . Continue reading →
1. Pitting Scripture and Confession against each other. 2. Regarding the enterprise of systematic theology as inherently rationalistic. 3. A mono-covenantalism that sees one covenant, originating in the intra-Trinitarian fellowship, into which man is invited, thus flattening the concept of covenant and . . . Continue reading →
I am guessing most of us are familiar with the word gentle. If you helped your friend move into an apartment, he probably told you to be gentle with the box containing dishes. When your son was holding his newborn brother, you . . . Continue reading →
