This year, 2025, marks the 1700th anniversary of the Nicene Creed, which is the whole Christian church’s most foundational statement about the Trinity. Protestants (of the sound varieties), Roman Catholics, and the Eastern Orthodox all share agreement that the doctrines coming from . . . 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 →
Is the church’s Bible also the academy’s Bible? Although we might even ask what this question means, Michael Legaspi argues that the Bible as Scripture is different than the Bible of the academy. In this respect, he indicates a gap between uses . . . 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 →
We all feel the need to know where we are and where we are going at any given time. That is not just true geographically, either. We also need guides for big subjects and doctrines, especially the ones that have been considered . . . Continue reading →
As a Presbyterian minister, I have attended many Presbytery meetings where candidates for licensure or ordination are asked various questions touching on the Bible, theology, church government, and their commitment to the church’s confessional teaching. Inevitably, one question that is almost always . . . 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 →
Robert Rollock (1555–98) did not live very long but he was a hard-working Scotsman who left his mark on Reformed theology and especially in biblical commentary and the development of Reformed covenant theology. In his introduction to Rollock’s commentary on Ephesians, Casey . . . Continue reading →
Up to chapter four, Gordon has focused on the form of preaching. But at this point he turns to questions of content. He says, “In addition to the cultural matters that have concerned me throughout, I also believe that preaching today fails . . . Continue reading →
I am a fan of T. David Gordon. He writes well. He speaks plainly. He does not mince words. With some writers, it is quite possible for five people to read them and come away with five different conclusions about what the . . . Continue reading →
Recently, I have been removing a large stump from my back yard. The task has required more than one tool at different phases of the process. At times, I need a chainsaw to get deep cuts on certain sections. Other times, I . . . Continue reading →
Books on New Testament theology are often stale and lack depth of real theological analysis. I have regularly felt that when biblical studies attempt to do theology, the fruit is either obvious or seriously off track. Against this backdrop, Matthew Harmon’s exploration . . . Continue reading →
The church has had pastors since our very beginning. Although that observation may seem obvious, we may yet overlook the important point that the pastoral craft is very ancient. We likely often envision the pastoral role only in terms of our modern . . . Continue reading →
Whenever someone introduces himself to me as a worship pastor, my standard response is, “Me too.” Inevitably, my reply prompts inquiry about how I lead worship. So, I explain that I call the church to worship, I pray a lot, I read . . . Continue reading →
Myles Coverdale (1488–1569) was a champion of the Word of God in sixteenth-century Europe, especially in England. He translated the Word, preached it, embraced new insights into its meaning vis-à-vis justification by faith alone, rejection of Christ’s physical presence in the Lord’s . . . 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 →
Leadership comes with the territory of pastoral ministry. The trouble is that we do not always embrace it as a reality. It can be hard to see how the obviously distinct aspects of the pastoral call fit alongside normal assumptions about leadership . . . Continue reading →
Can we learn anything from the disputes between two seventeenth-century theologians in England, John Owen and Richard Baxter? In this book, Tim Cooper makes the case that we can. And if we can, there are few better-qualified guides than Dr. Cooper. Extensively . . . Continue reading →
The twenty-first century is not the first to witness English-speaking theologians in the Reformed tradition expressing dissatisfaction with the Reformation’s doctrine of justification through faith alone on the ground of Christ’s righteousness and sacrifice alone. Continue reading →
Eschatology is one of those perennially discussed (and often debated) topics in Christian theology that, in my estimation, can often miss the main point by getting caught in the details. Usually, the first question it prompts is about what someone’s view of . . . Continue reading →