XV. …it is even most absurd that the rational creature as rational should not be subject to him [God] in the genus of morals and not be governed by him suitably to his nature (i.e., by moral means) by the establishment of . . . Continue reading →
Natural Law
If It’s News Is it Still A Slippery Slope?
Given that, under the American constitution, we do not have a state religion, the types of arguments Christians can realistically expect to make in the civil sphere as it actually exists are limited. We have American history, our Constitution, the Declaration, Supreme Court . . . Continue reading →
Of Hotels and 2 Kingdoms
An HB Classic
In view of the Oregon case in which a baker faces prosecution for refusing to make a wedding cake for a homosexual couple, it seemed like a good idea to re-post this. The original context was the challenge that there’s no good . . . Continue reading →
Paul Cites Homosexual Behavior As Proof Of Natural Law
For although they knew God, they did not honor him as God or give thanks to him, but they became futile in their thinking, and their foolish hearts were darkened. Claiming to be wise, they became fools, and exchanged the glory of . . . Continue reading →
Why Equality is the Wrong Category By Which to Analyze Homosexual Marriage
One of the most most rhetorically successful and popular ways to defend homosexual (gay) marriage is the appeal to “marriage equality.” The argument is, in short: if heterosexuals may marry and enjoy the social and civil benefits of the institution then homosexuals, . . . Continue reading →
In Order for Leviathan to Flourish He Must First Kill Natural Law
An HB Classic
Stanley Fish proposes to go back to Thomas Hobbes. The Leviathan (Whale)-like civil authority is precisely why our founders said: “We hold these truths to be self-evident…” and appealed to “the Laws of Nature and of Nature’s God” and to the “the . . . Continue reading →
Heidelcast 24: Give It A Rest—What Christians Can Learn From Chick-Fil-A
Your Creator wants you to take a break. I’m a Chick-Fil-A fan. Love the peach shakes. It’s one of the few places in this area where I can find real sweet tea. There’s another reason to like Chick-Fil-A. They love their employees . . . Continue reading →
The Abiding Validity Of The Creational Law In Exhaustive Detail
A correspondent to the HB writes: People can gloss over the term all they want, but secularism is still what it is, a rival religion and ethos to Christianity. The real divide between the FV and anti-FV crowd began with Van Til . . . Continue reading →
Beza’s Role In Developing Resistance Theory
Beza believed that this natural law of sovereignty had been evident in the Jewish monarchies of the Old Testament and was borne out in contemporary European politics. He placed several caveats on this principle, however: first, the king must be guilty of . . . Continue reading →
Owen On The Law In The Garden And On Horeb
Q. 1. Which is the law that God gave man at first to fulfill? A. The same which was afterwards written with the finger of God in two tables of stone Mount Horeb, called the Ten Commandments. John Owen | Greater Catechism . . . Continue reading →
My Favorite Atheist Lesbian Author: A Case Study In Providence
I first encountered Camille Paglia in 1991, just after she had published the essay, “The Joy of Presbyterian Sex.” Blame Bob Godfrey. I was pastoring a church in Kansas City and happened to be visiting Escondido and stopped by Bob’s office. He . . . Continue reading →
Rational Responses To Attacks From Advocates Of Homosexual Marriage
Attack 1: You’re intolerant–you reject me just because I’m different from you. Reply: Let’s be honest with each other. We both know you’re the one who rejects what is different from yourself. You reject the challenge of the other sex. Attack 2: . . . Continue reading →
Office Hours: Divine Covenants And Moral Order
In the 16th and 17th centuries, indeed, from the 2nd century until the 20th century there was little question among Christians whether God has revealed his moral law in nature and in the conscience. In the 20th century, however, that verity came to . . . Continue reading →
It’s Not About Equality. It’s About Definitions
The Bait And Switch Of Gay Monogamy
…Michaelson confesses: “there is some truth to the conservative claim that gay marriage is changing, not just expanding, marriage. According to a 2013 study, about half of gay marriages surveyed were not strictly monogamous. This fact is well-known in the gay community—indeed, . . . Continue reading →
Heidelcast 84: When Marriage Is Decoupled From Nature
With episode 84 we are taking a brief hiatus from our series on the moral law to talk with one of my favorite authors, Stella Morabito, about an article she published in The Federalist, “A Funny Thing Happened On the Way to . . . Continue reading →
Homosexuality: Untethered From Natural Law
When I look back on my earlier life, I see the converse is also true. As I first stepped out of the closet in the 1990s, I made a conscious decision to ignore natural law. Once I made that choice, I could . . . Continue reading →
Our Fundamentalist Founders?
The interweb is a funny thing. One never knows what, at any given moment, one will discover. This morning I stumbled on a discussion involving David Harsanyi editor at one of my favorites, The Federalist, over John Locke (1632–1704), God, and natural . . . Continue reading →
Heidelberg 91: What Are Good Works? (1)
he objectively, clearly revealed moral law as the baseline for Christian ethics is essential to Christian living and Christian liberty. James calls it “the law of liberty” (James 1:25) because it frees us from the tyranny of human opinion. It does not answer every question (it does not intend or claim to answer every question) but it is an essential starting place. What must a Christian do in response to God’s grace and in union with Christ? Love God with all his faculties and his neighbor as himself. Continue reading →
Heidelberg 91: What Are Good Works? (2)
The source, fountain of good works is true faith. By using this expression, the catechism deliberately takes us back to Heidelberg 21, where true faith is defined and to Heidelberg 60 which are among the several places where true faith is said to be the sole instrument (sola fide) of justification and salvation. True faith is also the instrument of union and communion with Christ and it is the headwaters of the believer’s new, Spirit-wrought life in Christ. In other words, true faith is essential to good works. Continue reading →