A life characterized by an immersion in the Bible, and a thoughtful understanding of its more than 31,000 verses, offers weighty benefits. In the 23rd chapter of the Old Testament book that bears his name, Job declared that he treasured the words of God’s mouth...
Have you ever helped someone learn how to read? It is an exciting journey, but it is a long one. A child does not wake up one morning and decide, “Today I will learn how to read.” Instead, it takes them weeks or months to develop basic phonics skills before they...
In Dave Jenkins’ book, The Word Explored, he cites several alarming statistics[i] as it relates to biblical literacy amongst Christians: Fewer than half of all adults can name the four Gospel accounts. Many Christians cannot identify two or three of the disciples....
The United States has never been more educated than it is now. More people hold high school diplomas, undergraduate degrees, and graduate degrees than at any point in our nation’s history. And yet, research shows a worrying trend—Americans are spending fewer hours...
One subject that isn’t getting enough coverage in contemporary Christian books and Christian media is the significant issue of biblical illiteracy. Two researchers who have looked into this problem in the Church, George Gallup and Jim Castelli, write, “Americans...
I love the hymn “The Solid Rock” by Edward Mote. It has been a battle hymn for my soul these past two years. For the past two years at times, I have battled with despair and depression. I have felt like I have been going in circles with no clear direction in the...
Next to prayer, memorizing and meditating on the Bible rank highly among the hardest spiritual disciplines. Or seemingly hard. There are many reasons for this, but one reason is we do not understand why these are necessary for the Christian life. Is there any...
“Until I come, devote yourself to the public reading of Scripture, to exhortation, to teaching” (1st Timothy 4:13). John Calvin is considered one of the primary influences of the Protestant Reformation. Today we cannot consider his whole life but here’s one...
One of the outstanding qualities of the apostle Paul was his desire to mentor others, encouraging them to follow his example, and boldly testify to Jesus Christ as Lord and Savior. Among those greatly influenced by Paul was a younger man named Timothy. A close bond...
When I was twenty-four years old, my husband of two years graduated from seminary and became the senior pastor in a rural church in Missouri. We packed up our home in Tennessee and moved to begin a new life as a full-time ministry couple. It dawned on me about the...
What got you out of bed this morning? A blaring alarm clock, an enthusiastic dog, or a crying baby? Maybe you were excited to be one day closer to the weekend or your next vacation. If I’m honest, my love of coffee lures me from my bed most mornings. Sometimes I...
When we think of biblical literacy, many of us may picture ourselves tucked away in our home office or at our kitchen table with notebooks and commentaries encircling us like our own little army. Most likely it’s the early hours before the sun rises or the late...
Sarah: Hello, Dave. Thanks for doing this interview for Theology for Life! We’re excited about the new book you’ve just had published—The Word Explored. As I already know, but our readers may not yet, this book is about the problem of biblical illiteracy. This is a...
T4L: Today we are interviewing Alisa Childers. Thank you very much for agreeing to do this interview with Theology for Life Magazine, Alisa. Can you tell us a bit about your life, marriage, and your ministry? Alisa: My husband and I live in the Nashville, TN area...
In this issue of Theology for Life Magazine, we’ve been considering the subject of biblical illiteracy. We understand that we haven’t covered everything on this topic, but it is our prayer that, hopefully, readers of this issue of Theology for Life will grow in...
In this issue of Theology for Life Magazine, we’ve been considering the subject of union with Christ and how it impacts the life of the Christian and ministry. We understand that we haven’t covered everything on this topic, but it is our prayer...
Union with Christ is one of the most neglected doctrines in Christianity today and also one of the one of the Gospel’s greatest mysteries. In his helpful book Union with Christ in Scripture, History, and Theology, Dr. Robert Letham notes that “Union with Christ is...
“Faithful is the saying: For if we died with Him, we shall also live with him: if we endure we shall also reign with him: if we shall deny him, he also will deny us; if we are faithless, he abideth faithful; for he cannot deny himself” (2nd Timothy 2:11-13, KJV)....
Though “nothing is more central or basic than union and communion with Christ” according to John Murray, it is equally true “this mystery of Christ’s union with the devout is by nature incomprehensible”.1 It is so much so that God “shows its figure and image in...
Does the idea of communion with God draw you in or push you away? There is much in our lives that distracts and prevents us from experiencing genuine communion with God. Living in a fast-paced society, with endless demands and countless opportunities, can mean that...
Social shame asks the questions: Where do I belong? Who am I? Who are my people? Who can be trusted? None of these questions can or will be answered perfectly by any person, place, community, or church. Your experience tells you this truth. But the truth is that in...
To some, our union with Christ is a mystery; an ambiguous thing that seems rather undefinable. In this article, we will discuss 10 things concerning our union with Christ and how it affects our everyday walk with Him. The Bible Contains an Astonishing Number of...
Communion with Christ is central to our relationship with Him. This article will provide us with a look at 10 basic concepts that every Christian should know regarding his/her communion with Christ. Our Communion with Christ Assumes Being in Union with Christ. In...
In Romans 8:1, Paul uses the word therefore to state a critical summary statement of what has already been said previously in the book. In the previous chapter, he states that the Christian's victory comes “through Jesus Christ our Lord” (Romans 7:23-25), which is...
I have a teenage son who plays basketball. Recently, his coach recommended that he start going to the gym and lifting some light weights. So occasionally my son has been accompanying me to the gym where I’m a member and doing workouts with me. But here’s the thing:...
Salvador was a Cuban spy, sent to Miami as a mole in order to learn military secrets from the United States government. However, Cuban nationalists with whom Salvador associated incognito eventually led the clever spy to renounce his loyalties to Castro. As a...
On September 4, 1869, when he was thirty-seven years old, Hudson Taylor found a letter waiting for him at Zhenjiang from John McCarthy. God used the letter to revolutionize Taylor’s life. “When my agony of soul was at its height, a sentence in a letter from dear...
a true and real union, (but which is only passive on their part,) [the elect] are united to Christ when his Spirit first takes possession of them, and infuses into them a principle of new life: the beginning of which life can be from nothing else but from union...
In this issue of Theology for Life Magazine, we’ve been considering the subject of biblical counseling and how it impacts the life of the Christian and ministry. We understand that we haven’t covered everything on this topic, but it is our prayer...
Ted Tripp’s book, Shepherding a Child’s Heart, is a thoughtful book written for parents with the aim to teach children about their need for the gospel so that they may live in response to the gospel. The means by which this is accomplished begins by teaching young...
Stuart Scott’s book, From Pride to Humility: A Biblical Perspective, is a small, accessible book designed to help counselee’s identify sinful pride, repent of it, and replace it with God-centered humility. The book is an excerpt taken from Scott’s...
Heath Lambert’s book, Finally Free: Fighting for Purity with the Power of Grace, is an issue-specific book for men and women (but particularly men) who struggle with sexual sin, specifically in the area of pornography. In the introduction of the book Lambert puts...
Rick Horne’s book, Get Outta My Face: How to Reach Angry, Unmotivated Teens with Biblical Counsel, is an extremely practical and helpful book written for any adult seeking to help teens see the bigger picture of their actions, in an effort to direct their attention...
People often ask me how biblical counseling differs from other approaches to soul care. Here’s a summary I’ve been teaching for almost two decades, which I hope will help you grow in understanding sanctification. This week, look up the Scriptures listed and...
The Lord of the Church is at work. Jesus Christ is building His Church. However, He is not only building His Church, He is also making her holy—a work that He will not stop performing until she is blameless: “…Christ also loved the church and gave Himself up for...
If you’re anything like me, you can look back on your walk with the Lord and note what I call “high water mark" moments. These are times when my life was changed (sometimes radically) due to a new realization about the Word of God that I was previously unaware of....
“For Ezra had set his heart to study the law of the Lord and to practice it, and to teach His statutes and ordinances in Israel” (Ezra 7:10). After 70 years in exile, when Israel was returning to Judah, Ezra was charged with re-establishing the interpretation and...
When I was introduced to biblical counseling, it seemed as if I had discovered some rare jewel. There were several aspects of the biblical counseling movement that captivated my attention. Classical soul care drew upon a rich heritage of faithful practice by...
As a pastor, I love one of David Powlison’s definitions of biblical counseling: Counseling is one part of the overall ministry of Christ that meets us publicly, privately, and interpersonally…biblical counseling is part of the interpersonal ministry of the Word....
You are excited about Biblical counseling! Perhaps you were exposed to Biblical counseling at a conference you attended. Perhaps you or a loved one received Biblical counseling and found peace, hope, and joy through the careful study and application of God’s word....
Scott and Laura were married 12 years ago, but recently, Scott got involved in affair with a woman at work. He’s a “Type A” kind of guy, making it to an executive vice-presidency within three years of joining the company. He’s married to Laura—a shy, retiring kind...
T4L: For those of you who read our other articles in this issue, we are interviewing Dr. Bob Kellemen on his other biblical counseling book, Gospel-Centered Family Counseling: An Equipping Guide for Pastors and Counselors. We previously spoke with him about the...
T4L: Today we are interviewing Dr. Bob Kellemen. Thank you very much for agreeing to do this interview with Theology for Life Magazine, Dr. Kellemen. Can you tell us a bit about your life, marriage, and ministry? Dr. Kellemen: Thanks for inviting me, Dave. I have...
I couldn’t believe how long she talked and how long my mentor sat listening to her. He seemed to have a bottomless supply of patience. It was my first time in a real-life counseling observation, and I quickly learned how vital patience is to being a good counselor....
It is probably impossible to conceive of the horror of Hell and of the ferocity of retributive justice and righteous wrath that will sweep over those found on the last day to be out of Christ. Perhaps a word like ferocity here makes it sound as if God’s wrath will...
In this issue of Theology for Life Magazine, we’ve been considering the subject of divine justice and how it impacts the life of the Christian and ministry. We understand that we haven’t covered everything on this topic, but it is our prayer that—hopefully—readers...
Enjoying God: Finding Hope in the Attributes of God by R.C. Sproul is written with the layman in mind. The author intentionally sets unnecessary theological jargon aside and aims for hearts and minds of everyday people. The end result is a biblical vision of God,...
Life is a series of events that is filled with moments of intense joy and seasons of pain and suffering. Dark Clouds, Deep Mercy by Mark Vroegop is concerned with the later. The author is acutely aware that people who live in a fallen world will inevitably face...
“Preach the gospel—and if necessary use words.” This pithy quote by St. Francis of Assisi has captured the hearts and minds of many. The sentiment sounds right and may even feel right, but fails in the final analysis to do justice to the gospel. Yes, the gospel is...
A few years ago, while I was working on my undergraduate degree, I was running late for an 8:30am Hebrew class. So, that morning, I ran out of the house, jumped in my car, and sped off to Dallas. As I was speeding in my little red Chevy Cobalt, I saw him and he saw...
When we suffer, which we will, there will often be mystery. Will there also be faith? In Christian thought, faith is never naïve or gullible, but rather relies on the strength of its object. Faith that depends on a God, who is a cruel tyrant or cheap trickster,...
“Positive and encouraging.” When I tune my radio to the local Christian station, that’s the theme I hear—over and over. It’s not just the station’s motto. The music is upbeat. The hosts are jovial. There’s plenty of laughter. The only “downer” is the news. But then...
Unbelief is in the air. Unbelief is gaining ground in postmodern culture. Over 100 years ago, the German philosopher, Friedrich Nietzsche wrote, “I call Christianity the one great curse, the one great innermost corruption, the one great instinct of revenge, for...
To help us understand the need for lament in biblical worship, here are ten observations from Psalm 13, an individual lament of David. Psalm 13 is an Individual Psalm That was Recorded for Public Use Psalm 13 begins with the superscription (ss.), “To the...
God’s patience is, as far as sinners are concerned, a highly treasured attribute among his people: “But you are a God ready to forgive, gracious and merciful, slow to anger and abounding in steadfast love, and did not forsake them” (Nehemiah 9:17). But the patience...
As I write this article on July 1st, 2020, the United States is facing a crisis on multiple fronts. On one front, you have the COVID-19 epidemic. On the other front, you have protests which are (for the most part) okay, but many of those protests have turned to...
Can you trust a God who executes judgment? A skeptical culture poses this question to Christians today. I think, however, we can ask a better one in return: Can you trust a God who doesn’t execute judgment? Scripture shows our sin-cursed world not only faces divine...
Recommended Reading April 2020 In this issue of Theology for Life Magazine, we’ve been considering the subject of idolatry and how it impacts the life of the Christian and ministry. We understand we haven’t covered everything on this topic, but it is our prayer,...
Growing up on a large lake, I developed a great appreciation for the power of the wind. I enjoyed many summer days sailing with friends on the family sailboat. When the weather was fair and there was a steady wind, it made for a delightful day. The wind carried you...
“Little children, keep yourselves from idols” (1st John 5:21). If the heart of man is, as John Calvin described it, “an idol-making factory”, then the way in which those idols are destroyed should be of utmost importance to us. The Bible is replete with references...
The consistent biblical testimony is that idolatry is inexcusable. Scripture never condones idolatry on the grounds that men knew no better, but condemns it on the assumption that they did, and that irrespective of whether they had encountered any part of God’s...
The notion of the retributive irony has to do with being punished by means of your own sin. Can believers suffer this kind of retributive irony? I want to address two things in this article. First of all, let’s focus a little bit more on another example of being...
Let’s talk about laziness. Laziness is idolatry. It is closely related to its opposite—workaholism. Both the sins of laziness and workaholism are sins of self-worship. The behavior looks different, but the root idolatry is the same. And the problem we face is that...
Is God opposed to prosperity? Where is the line between being grateful for the gifts He's given us and idolatry? Sometimes God offers prosperity as a blessing for faithfulness (remember Solomon?), and often it comes as a result of hard, honest work. It is certainly...
We're not to be pitied. If we feel sorry for ourselves, others will feel sorry for us. If we recognize that we have a unique opportunity—the advantages of being able to serve the church, and if we're filled with gratitude for this opportunity and season—then others...
Our conscience is the first tip-off. Do we have freedom in our conscience to indulge in whatever we're doing? Do we have regret after indulging in it? Most people can sense when they've crossed a line. Sometimes we blur those lines due to repetitive use of...
One of the things that has really helped me understand the power of idolatry in our own time and place is, strange to say, the plagues in the book of Exodus. One of the things that was amazing for me to discover is that all of the plagues in Exodus relate to gods...
In Exodus 3:14, God says, “I am who I am.” Such a declaration is powerful because the Lord God was declaring not only who He is at His absolute essence, but also declaring to the world, “I am the only God!” As we fast forward to the New Testament, the Lord Jesus...
“Say to wisdom, ‘You are my sister’, and call insight your intimate friend, to keep you from the forbidden woman, from the adulteress with her smooth words” (Proverbs 7:4-5). Life in this fallen world means that we will face sinful temptations of various kinds, and...
“My little children, I am writing these things to you so that you may not sin. But if anyone does sin, we have an advocate with the Father, Jesus Christ the righteous.” (1st John 2:1-2) The ascension of Christ in Question 46 of the Heidelberg Catechism prompts the...
In this issue of Theology for Life Magazine, we’ve been considering the subject of Jesus’s High Priestly ministry and what that means for daily Christian living and ministry. We understand that we haven’t covered everything on this topic, but it is our prayer that,...
In Hebrews 2:11, the author has demonstrated that Jesus and His people belong to the same family; the implication is that Jesus has assumed our human nature. Now the author indicates that the necessity of delivering His people from their enemies—death and...
The writer of Hebrews focuses not on any earthly ministry—not on believers and not on an earthly priest—but on Jesus Christ in heaven. It is His person and work that the author of Hebrews has been expounding on since the beginning of chapter 7. It was Christ who...
Several of the earliest controversies and key battles in Church History were over Christ’s divine and human natures. One of the classic texts to explain why Jesus Christ had to become fully man, so that He might perform priestly service before God on man’s behalf,...
The Old Testament is filled with stories of men and women that God used in powerful ways. Who can forget the miraculous way God raised up the prophet Moses and used him to deliver the people from Egyptian bondage? Who can forget the great victories God brought...
There are many wonderful works Jesus did for His people. Jesus said that He came in His incarnation “[not] to be served but to serve and give his life as a ransom for many” (Mark 10:45). Jesus gave Himself for His people. He lived the life we could not live, and He...
The book of Hebrews unfolds the gospel in at least five ways: it shows the connection between Christ’s person and His work, shows His superiority to Old Testament persons and institutions, underscores humanity’s need for redemption, warns of apostasy, and exhorts...
A crucial theological question in Christology is: could Jesus have sinned? This question is not easy to answer, and as such, it requires careful reflection, given the variety of issues involved. Historically, classical Christology has argued that our Lord Jesus...
T4L: Today we are interviewing Dr. John Frame. Thank you very much for agreeing to do this interview with Theology for Life Magazine, Dr. Frame. Can you tell us a bit about your life, marriage, and ministry? Dr. Frame: I was born in Pittsburgh in 1939, received...
It was a heartbreaking sight. The wild turkey had dashed onto the road, frantically scurrying its skinny legs in a sprint for its life as a line of cars came barreling head-on. As I drove on a narrow, two-lane country road, I had enough distance to slow down and...
Jesus has entered the heavenly sanctuary on our behalf. He has gone there as forerunner, a designation found only here in the New Testament, but which appears in a variety of athletic and military contexts of the Hellenistic world. In Hebrews, where the term is...
In Hebrews 2:14, the writer says it is “our confession” that Christians must hold fast to. The early church employed theological formulas to express the faithful’s confession like the Apostle’s Creed. These confessions remind believers that there is true content to...
Jesus Christ meets the qualifications to be the Mediator and High Priest to His people. Someone may be qualified for a position without actually having the authority to hold it. Qualification is a prerequisite, but there must be an appointment to the office if the...
The most graphic image that Scripture uses for the killing of sin is crucifixion. The cross has rightly stood at the center of Christian theology throughout church history. Crucifixion was so painful that a word was invented to describe it: excruciating, which...
In this issue of Theology for Life Magazine, we’ve been considering the subject of holiness in the Christian life, and what that means for daily life and ministry. We understand that we haven’t covered everything on this topic, but it is our prayer that, hopefully,...
Godliness, Christlikeness, and Christian spirituality all describe a Christian becoming more like God. The most powerful way to effect this change is by letting the Word of God dwell in one richly (Colossians 3:16). When one embraces Scripture without reservation,...
Believers are called to holy living. In this article, we will examine seven different ways to live a holy life. First, Know and Love Scripture Scripture is God’s primary road to holiness and to spiritual growth—with the Spirit as Master Teacher, blessing the...
Fear of being accused of legalism has, in some circles of Evangelicalism, led to decreasing calls for personal holiness. This is, I believe, particularly true among younger Christians. Many of them have grown up in a form of hyper-fundamentalism that was marked by...
The great eighteenth-century revivalist, George Whitefield, wrote: The Puritans [were] burning and shining lights. When cast out by the black Bartholomew Act, and driven from their respective charges to preach in barns and fields, in the highways and hedges, they...
There is a large, two-sided cart at my local library with a faded laminated sign that reads, “Books, a dollar a bag.” I make it a point to visit that cart every time I stop by in search of the proverbial needle in the haystack, and I am always struck by the number...
T4L: Hello, Dr. Rogers, and welcome to Theology for Life Magazine. Can you tell us a bit about yourself, including the current ministries you are involved in? Ben Rogers: I am the husband of Christie, the father of Henry and Hugh, the pastor of a small church, and...
Running, as a constant motif through Romans 6, is the interplay between what is called the indicative and the imperative. In the former mode, Paul insists that God has accomplished our decisive break with sin: “We died to sin” (Romans 6:2); “our old self was...
Imagine a woman named Jane (a person you’ve never met). She is a mature and growing Christian who loves Jesus, gives wise counsel, and helps others come to know more about Jesus…but she does not pray, read her Bible, or go to church. What did you think as I...
How do you handle temptation? I’m not talking about the fleeting, seemingly benign thought of sin that may hold initial allure, but is easily dismissed (though we should be on guard against these kinds of thoughts, too). No, I’m talking about that moment when...
Many of us are dissatisfied with our prayer life. It could be that we never really got started on one. It may be that we are not entirely convinced of its importance. Most do not pray like Martin Luther, Jonathan Edwards, or George Whitfield. We don’t give four...
In this issue of Theology for Life Magazine, we’ve been considering the subject of the sufficiency of Scripture and how it helps Christians to no longer be tossed to and fro (like a wave in the ocean), but to stand wholly on the Word of God no matter what ministry...
As far back as the late medieval period, men such as John Wycliffe (c. 1329–1384) and Jan Hus (1373–1415) called the Church to return to Scripture. When challenged by hostile church officials, Hus answered his opponents, “Show me... better out of the Scriptures,...
In my experience, I’ve found that many people in local churches would agree with a statement of faith that reads like this: “We believe that Scripture is breathed out by God and is authoritative, inerrant, infallible, and sufficient.” Albeit, this is a very short,...
The aim of pastoral ministry is to shepherd the people of God toward Christ that they may be formed into His image. As the Apostle Paul wrote, “Him we proclaim, warning everyone and teaching everyone with all wisdom, that we may present everyone mature in Christ....
Discernment is a word that many Christians today need to get a better hold of. What exactly is discernment? How does discernment relate to spiritual growth? These are some of the questions that I will cover in this article. First Thessalonians 5:21-22 says, “Test...
The big idea in Hebrews chapter 1 is the point of all of Hebrews: the Son is superior to all others because in Him we have the fullness and finality of God’s redemption and revelation. We do pretty well understanding the fullness piece. Everything in the days “long...
During every era of Church history, men and women have proclaimed, apart from Scripture, “God told me”, “God revealed to me”, and “God said to me”, as if these “revelations” are equal to the authority of God’s revealed Word in Holy Scripture. Why do we do this? Why...
The sufficiency of Scripture is a fundamental tenet of the Christian faith. When we talk about the sufficiency of Scripture, we are speaking about how the Scriptures are all the Christian needs to equip them for a life of faith and service to God. The sufficiency...
If God has given us the Scriptures to be the canon or rule for our lives, it follows that we must regard them as the supreme authority for our lives. Paul tells us that they are 'breathed out' by God. There can be no more authoritative word than one that comes to...
T4L: Thank you very much for agreeing to do this interview with Theology for Life Magazine, Dr. Newheiser. Can you tell us a bit about your life, the Institute for Biblical Counseling and Discipleship, and the counseling program at Reformed Theological Seminary...
Every Christian should develop the ability to think rightly about spiritual matters. Every Christian should be like the Bereans of Acts 17, who examined the Scriptures to see what is true and what is false. In this article, I want to explain the essential issues...
In this article we will consider how to develop a plan for discernment. The importance of personal discernment cannot be overstated, because those who are unable to distinguish right from wrong will likely fall into serious error. Christians need to realize that...
In this issue of Theology for Life Magazine, we’ve been considering the subject of doubt and how to deal with it with the help of the promises found in God’s Word and godly people. We understand that we haven’t covered everything on this topic, but it is our prayer...
Elyse holds a certificate in biblical counseling from CCEF (San Diego) and an M.A. in Biblical Counseling from Trinity Theological Seminary. She has authored 23 books on daily living and the Christian life. Along with her husband, Phil, Elyse is a member of Valley...
Josh Moody (Ph.D., University of Cambridge) is the senior pastor of College Church in Wheaton. He is a pastor, author, conference speaker (Moody Founders Week, Basics Conference), and college campus speaker (Yale University, University of Illinois, Durham...
Is the Bible really true? Does God actually hear my prayers? Can I genuinely be forgiven? Will I definitely go to Heaven when I die? Is there truly a God at all? Doubt can be a stimulus to faith, or an ongoing annoyance in the Christian life, or a fatal blow to...
One of my favorite characters in the Disney pantheon is a small stuffed donkey everyone knows by the name of Eeyore. He’s quaint, he’s rustic, he is down to earth, but most of all he is the epitome of the human condition when it comes to doubt. Often times in my...
Many Christians simply do not know how to talk to God. And we are particularly uncomfortable talking to God about our discontent, grief, or pain. Yet, the Bible actually models for us how to do this very thing. The Bible encourages us to bring our discontent to God...
“Because the LORD loved you.” (Deuteronomy 7:8) Doubts and questions often cloud our joy by covering up the rays of clarity. Doubts may come from outside (the world and Satan), but more often they well up inside of us—especially those of us who are prone to...
If we shadows have offended, Think but this (and all is mended) That you have but slumbered here, While these visions did appear. –Puck’s Epilogue, A Midsummer’s Night Dream It was only a dream. This is how Shakespeare decided to reconcile the chaos he created in...
Often, it’s thought in our secular culture that Christians are anti-intellectual. They believe this because often Christians give the impression that they have “blind faith” with nothing to intellectually back it up. I say give the impression not to suggest that...
You do not have to be a counselor to be well acquainted with doubt. At some point doubt plagues all of us and we engage with doubters as we journey with others in the ups and downs of life. As a counselor I deal with this issue of doubt all the time and in this...
One of the hard things about struggling with doubt is this accompanying second-hand problem—where you are not only feeling doubts, but you're feeling guilty for feeling doubts. The Bible never says that doubt is a good thing—because faith trusts. But, on the other...
When Christ saved me from legalism and led me a saving knowledge of Him, tendrils of legalism remained wrapped on me. Every sin I caught myself in was further ammunition I used against any assurance of salvation I had. As I stood worshipping alongside my friends at...
Dear Timothy, Grace to you and peace from God our Father and the Lord Jesus Christ. My dear brother in Christ, the world will try to press you into its God-denying mold when it comes to gauging your success in ministry. The world, and perhaps a good many...
There are growing pains in our home. I have a preteen and a teen and each day I witness my children stretch and grow and mature into young men. The growing process isn’t easy, as youth hover somewhere between childhood and adulthood. It’s often an awkward season....
Mary came into my office to discuss a personal dilemma she was facing. She had recently applied to a missions agency to be considered for an international ministry assignment. In an initial interview with the agency, she had struggled to articulate an adequate...
Ever heard one of these claims? Perhaps you’ve even said one yourself. Over the years, we’ve heard them all—but they’re all false, or at least they imply a falsehood. Common claims by Non-Christians: Science proves the Bible is wrong. Evolution is science, but the...
Recently, my son and I went on a campus tour of a local university. In many ways, the university is a wonderful place where young people can explore, experiment, and grow intellectually, but all too often universities can also be the place where young people lose...
Doubt is a major problem for Christian believers, but we are very reluctant to admit it. We are reluctant, of course, to admit many spiritual problems, like anger, anxiety, and envy. But doubt may be the hardest to admit, because doubt seems to be the opposite of...
“Rejoice with those who rejoice, weep with those who weep.” Romans 12:15 (ESV) When ministering to someone who is grieving, please don’t be like Job’s friends. They were full of good advice, counsel, and were well-meaning. If you know the story you know that, in...
There are times in life where what you believe is tested by what you experience. If you believe the Bible is true, it is not too much later you will come across something or someone who calls that into question. We are used to people outside the Christian community...
Loneliness and grief are deeply personal subjects that affect everyone. In high school, I remember before my parent's divorce sitting on the upstairs stairs in our house, in the Greater Seattle area listening to my parents’ argue, and being deeply affected with...
Only the bravest people dare to venture outside in the middle of a Texas summer day, the rest of us are either in an air-conditioned building or near water. My kids love to swim, and being inside all day supplies young children abundant energy that needs to be...
“Be pleased, O LORD, to deliver me! O LORD, make haste to help me!”[i] “In my distress I called upon the LORD; to my God I cried for help.”[ii] “Hear, O LORD, when I cry aloud….”[iii] ‘Hear the voice of my pleas for mercy, when I cry to you for help….”[iv] “Hear my...
Grief is a strange thing. Months, even years after a loss, it can show up unexpectedly. About eight months after my grandfather passed away, I was traveling on the highway and passed the exit I would take to get to his house. I suddenly started crying and couldn’t...
Ray Rhodes, Jr. serves as founding pastor of Grace Community Church of Dawsonville, GA and as president of Nourished in the Word Ministries. He has served four congregations over three decades of pastoral ministry, and for fifteen years, he has led Nourished in the...
In this issue of Theology for Life Magazine, we’ve been considering loss, grief, illness, and how by growing in our understanding of the grace of God, we can then walk with others who are dealing with these challenging events or seasons. We understand that we...
Nancy Guthrie and her husband, David, are the co-hosts of the GriefShare video series used in more than 10,000 churches nationwide and also host Respite Retreats for couples who have experienced the death of a child. She is also the host of Help Me Teach the Bible,...
Let’s talk for a minute about the things someone can do for one who is grieving. The list below isn’t exhaustive—there are only 7 things—but it is meant to give us all a starting point. Hopefully these 7 things will be helpful to you in your relationships, whether...
From my perspective as a pastor, it seems like churches go through seasons of crises. One year it’s marital problems, and it seems like every marriage is falling apart. The next year its illness and death, and it seems like every family is suffering loss. Other...
Have you ever seen a bulldozer clearing a field for new construction? The grass, the little saplings, and even the larger trees—all fall equally and inexorably prey to the power of the one who is making the area conform to his vision, to his plan. The feeble plants...
It was a cold night in the first week of January. Out in the country, so far removed from the majority of civilization, it seemed unfathomable that so terrible a thing could happen. But it did. The next day, news crews would attempt to stoically report on what...
The biggest piece of advice I have for caregivers is that it’s okay to grieve your loss in someone else’s pain. In fact, you should grieve. Your hurting friend or family member is not the only one who has experienced loss. I’ve lost much of the use of both of my...
Marissa Henley, the author of Loving Your Friend through Cancer: Moving beyond “I’m Sorry” to Meaningful Support, loves to write and speak about suffering and God’s character. She lives in Arkansas with her husband, three kids, and one disobedient dog. She’d love...
I spent most of my young adult years quoting Romans 8:28 to friends and family who were suffering. This promise from God’s Word has always been one of my favorite verses: “And we know that for those who love God all things work together for good, for those who are...
“I did not shrink from declaring to you anything that was profitable, and teaching you in public and from house to house” (Acts 20:20). Many pastors are reluctant to counsel. Some fear that individual counseling will interfere with the primacy of their...
Dr. Andreas Köstenberger is the founder of Biblical Foundations™ and Research Professor of New Testament and Biblical Theology and Director of the Center for Biblical Studies at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary. T4L: Thank you very much for...
Most pastors are what I like to call “regular pastors”. They don’t pastor megachurches or preach in front of thousands. They don’t have book contracts or speak at national conferences. They don’t have impressive social media platforms or serve alongside...
In November 2013, my life changed: I was called by a normative sized local church, with an average age of 70, to be their pastor at the age of 25. My wife and I were the youngest in the church by nearly 20 years. To put this in perspective: The only...
This season at Servants of Grace, we’ve been discussing the primary place of expository preaching for the life and health of the local church. From attacks on the Word of God, to essential biblical doctrines, there are a lot of issues that relate to and...
Doubt in our day is in fashion. In fact, it is viewed as a virtue in our culture. Tell someone what you believe, and they will tell you, “Your truth is good for you”. Then they will proceed to tell you their “truth”. On and on you could go, because no...
Dr. Jeff Robinson (Ph.D., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is a senior editor for The Gospel Coalition. A native of Blairsville, Georgia, he also pastors Christ Fellowship Church in Louisville, Kentucky, and serves as senior research and...
Many people today hear preachers talking about preaching, and they get lost in the fog of ambiguous theological language. When a congregation hears a pastor reference expository preaching, often there are members in attendance who have no idea what...
Recently I’ve noticed a trend among some Christians who don’t regularly attend church, as well as those who do attend regularly, but suggest that they don’t need to hear a sermon weekly because they’ve “moved” past that stage of their Christian life. I...
Jason DeRouchie (Ph.D., The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary) is a Professor of Old Testament and Biblical Theology at Bethlehem College & Seminary in Minneapolis and an elder of Bethlehem Baptist Church. His resource website is...
Acts 17:16-34 is a model of the Great Commission proclamation, matched to an apologetic in defense of Christian truth. In that passage, Paul is standing at the center of apologetic ministry in the first-century city of Athens. Athens was the most intellectually...
Within expository preaching, there are two practical goals worth achieving: conversion and discipleship. As Paul writes in Romans 10:17, people come to faith in Christ through the hearing of the Word of God. In 2Timothy 4:2, he charges his disciple...
The movement known as “Word of Faith” is a branch off of the Pentecostal movement. In the late 20th century, E. W. Kenyon studied under Phineas Quimby and was taught a system known as “New Thought” that connected the mind with God’s Word in such a way...
Some years ago we did things a little differently at our church than we do now. We had a band that was filled with hired guns and we paid them to play the lights out every Sunday. To illustrate: our guitarist would tour the world with a famous boy-band,...
In the past five years, as more and more books have come out on biblical counseling topics, I have consumed more and more on this subject. The result of this reading has been the opening of my eyes to the need for biblical counseling in the local...
I owe more to the ministry of Martyn Lloyd-Jones than I can put into words. In what follows, I will try to summarize some of the most life-changing lessons I have learned from his preaching. Preach the Word Dr. Lloyd-Jones practiced expository preaching...
Pastors have the weighty and wonderful responsibility of preaching Christ from all the Scriptures. Biblical theology, therefore, is a vital help for pastors to faithfully declare the glorious truth that Jesus is the main point of the whole Bible. How do...
“I charge thee in the sight of God, and of Christ Jesus, who shall judge the quick and the dead, and by his appearing and his kingdom; preach the word; be instant in season, out of season; reprove, rebuke, exhort, with all longsuffering and teaching” (2...
Charles H. Spurgeon’s understanding of the connection between the Holy Spirit, prayer, and preaching can be paradigm shifting. His understanding of the connection between preaching and the ministry of the Holy Spirit is not new, but it does need to be...
Few issues are as controversial as the topic of homosexuality in our day. Within the past several years, in large part due to a decision by the United States Supreme Court on gay marriage, the number of books coming out on gay marriage has significantly...
The publication of Nancy Pearcey’s book, Total Truth: Liberating Christianity From Its Cultural Captivity sent shockwaves throughout the evangelical world and helped equip a new generation of apologists. Total Truth confronted the notion that scientific...
God’s grand plan for motherhood is the same plan that He has for everything He has created. He created all things for his glory. So to put it bluntly, motherhood is about nurturing life. God has created and equipped women to nurture the life...
A 2016 issue of Time Magazine featured an essay by Jessi Hempel telling the heart-wrenching story of her brother, Evan, giving birth to a son. That sentence might catch you off guard. (If it didn’t, maybe read it again, a little slower!) The photo the...
Jesus's Countercultural View of Women The place of women in the first-century Roman world and in Judaism has been well-documented and set forth in several recent books.1 Most frequently, women were regarded as second-class citizens. Jesus’s regard for...
Perhaps the greatest temptation in singleness is to assume marriage will meet our unmet needs, solve our weaknesses, organize our lives, and unleash our gifts. Far from the solution, Paul makes marriage out to be a kind of problematic “Plan...
How should Christians share the Gospel with practicing homosexuals? I’d start by saying that you preach the same gospel that you would preach to someone who is not in the homosexual lifestyle. That’s the most important thing to say. I think what the...
This season at Servants of Grace, we’ve been taking a look at biblical gender roles and the authority of the Word of God. From attacks on the image of God, to the authority of the Word, to a man being a man and a woman being a woman, many people have a...
I have three young children who each profess faith in Jesus Christ. As we bring them up, my wife and I are continually reminded that we are doing so in an age that is hostile to the Kingdom of Christ and to the Word of God. Of course, this is nothing...
I am writing this post for my young brother and myriads of other young men like him—young, single men that I have conversations with almost daily about life and relationships. I know that God does not call every man to marriage, but for the many that he...
I am a regular pastor, and I have a heart for regular pastors and the churches they lead. When I think about a regular pastor, I think about a guy pastoring a small to medium sized church. Despite the attention given to celebrity pastors and their...
One might think it would be easy for a pastor to love his wife. A pastor preaches on marriage often enough to know how a husband should love his wife, right? Ignorance is certainly not an option. We also see pastors exhorting couples during wedding...
“Marriage. Marriage is what brings us together today. Marriage that blessed arrangement, that dream within a dream …” and so goes one of the most famous quotes from the movie, The Princess Bride. What makes the quote funny is how the minister...
Beauty. It’s a word that is loaded with meaning. To many in our culture, influenced by the Greco-Roman idea of beauty, beauty is about a perfectly sculpted body. It’s hiring a whole team of people to make you physically attractive to (now) someone of...
I like to be independent. I like to make my own decisions. I don’t want to be seen as following the crowd. I also don’t like to ask for help. I like to be self-sufficient; running on my own power, my own skills, my own abilities. Can you relate? We...
In this issue of Theology for Life Magazine, we are learning about biblical gender roles, biblical manhood and womanhood, all with a focus to help people learn what these great truths are, and how to minister to them. These issues are not for the ivory...
It happened again. Only, this time, I was charged with being intolerant, unloving, and bigoted. You see, I had written an article detailing why biblical Christianity is against the idea of “gay Christianity”. I was told—literally—that, “[I] hate gays as...
Marriage is often painfully hard. After all, marriage is the joining of two sinners, preferably if they are Christians (so saint-sinners) together in covenant before God. Marriage according to the Genesis 3 world is not perfect. In the New Jerusalem,...
Before I continue, it is important you know that I write better than I live. Everything seems neat and tidy in print. There is nothing neat and tidy about parenting. Parenting is the most difficult job in the world and no one can convince me otherwise....
Dear Young Man, I remember well the joys of finding the lady I would marry. Let me tell you the story. I was twenty-six years old at the time. Since I was nineteen years old, I wanted to meet a young lady who loved Jesus and the church. I searched...
When we begin to think about the question, “What is a ‘biblical sexual ethic’?” we must first take a look at Genesis 1 with God creating Adam. There we see that man is not an accident; God made Adam from the dust, fashioned him in His likeness and...
Dear Young Mother, You may feel invisible during this season of life. You aren’t. We serve El Roi, the God who sees us (Genesis 16:13). You are seen. You are known. Your selfless love and service, though imperfect, matter for the Kingdom. You, dear...
One of my friends once asked asked me if it was morally permissible to sleep with his girlfriend. She was pressuring him to sleep with her, and he was contemplating giving in to her requests. By the time he approached me, he had almost talked himself...
Gavin Peacock is husband to Amanda, father of Jake and Ava, and a pastor at Calvary Grace Church in Calgary, Alberta. He is also the Council of Biblical Manhood and Womanhood’s (CBMW) Director of International Outreach. He was a professional soccer...
Dr. Andreas Köstenberger is founder of Biblical Foundations and has recently accepted a position as Research Professor of New Testament and Biblical Theology at Midwestern Baptist Theological Seminary and Director of the Center for Biblical Studies....
Fatherhood began in God, since He is our Father. God is our Father at two levels. One, He created us: “Is not he your father, who created you, who made you and established you?” (Deuteronomy 32:6). Two, He adopted us: “You have received the Spirit of...
Few words are more invested with meaning than the term “headship”. It’s a Christological and theological term that is grounded in Ephesians 5:23, which reads, “For the husband is the head [Greek, kephale] of the wife even as Christ is the head of the...
Over the last few decades, the church has had no shortage of evangelism programs. Each of these mentioned above have been used by the Lord to add to the eternal harvest. But as I recently learned, each of these programs has, at best, a...
The question and theme, “Where is the Lamb?” spans the entire Old Testament. Abraham, who was thankfully spared by God from fulfilling the task, offered his son Isaac as a sacrifice atop Mount Moriah. 2nd Chronicles 3:1 teaches that it was...
Several of the earliest controversies and key battles in Church History were over Christ’s divine and human natures. One of the classic texts to explain why Jesus Christ had to become fully man, so that He might perform priestly service...
The default sin of the human heart is to put ourselves first. “It really is all about me!” was once a funny t-shirt slogan, but it has now become a way of life. Unless preachers and Bible teachers are careful, the way we handle Scripture can...
Joe and Barbara are both solid Christians. They regularly spend quality time in the Scriptures, in prayer, and are routinely involved in the life and ministry of their local church. Both though struggle with feelings of condemnation. Joe has secret sins...
The English word “gospel” is an approximation of the Greek word εὐαγγέλιον (euangelion), which means “good news” (Friberg). While it is presently in vogue to refer to the whole Bible, or at least salvation history, as “the gospel”, this term...
Was Jesus’ death necessary? Why did He have to die, and what did he accomplish? Here’s a very brief summary of the six core things Christ accomplished in His death. Expiation Expiation means the removal of our sin and guilt. Christ’s...
There has been something of a biblical-theological revolution over the past several decades. It is not a revolution in which new doctrines are being uncovered, so much as it is one by which our understanding of a Christ-centered and...
“Justification by faith alone frees me to love my neighbor disinterestedly, for his or her own sake, as my sister or brother, not as the calculated means to my own desired ends,” writes Timothy George describing the reason why the...
John Calvin, the great Reformer, spoke for many when he declared that justification is “the main hinge on which religion turns”. Why is it so important? Because “unless you first of all grasp what your relationship to God is, and the nature...
Several biblical terms express (but do not exhaust) the ministry of Jesus as Substitute, and the meaning of the cross. Those are including (but not limited to) the following: Jesus as our PROPITIATION. “He is the propitiation for our sins…”...
This season at Servants of Grace, we’ve been taking a look at the person and work of Jesus. From attacks against the idea of Jesus dying in our place for our sin, to the exclusivity of Christ, many people have a great deal of questions about...
The doctrine of the Incarnation is very important to Christianity. It reminds us that Jesus is both God and man, which makes it possible to speak meaningfully about who Jesus is and what He did. In the 19th century, James Denney, a professor...
“Therefore, having been justified by faith, we have peace with God through our Lord Jesus Christ” (Romans 5:1). At the heart of the biblical gospel is the amazing truth of justification. Without this truth, there would be no gospel at all....
What Does It Mean? Propitiation (noun) prō-pi-shē-ā-shǝn: the act of gaining or regaining the favor of; in this case, a sacrifice that bears God’s wrath and turns it to favor. Why Does It Matter? Read that definition again, and it should be...
The Gospel of John differs from the other gospel accounts in many ways, chiefly among them—the beginning of his account of Jesus. Like the other Gospel writers, John wants us to understand that Jesus is God made flesh—the only God who became...
"Alas! And Did My Savior Bleed" Theology can be a daunting subject. When it comes to topics like the Doctrine of Christ, people can sink into their seats and ignore the subject, which is a terrible response to such precious biblical truth. Within the...
The resurrection of Jesus is foundational to the Christian faith, and yet, oftentimes, we only give it real thought around the Easter season. But the resurrection of Jesus is so important that Paul writes, “If Christ has not been raised,...
The historical evidence for the resurrection of Christ is very good. Scholars such as William Lane Craig, J.P. Moreland, Gary Habermas, and others have done an especially good job of detailing that evidence.1 It is the aim of this article to...
“Redemption” is a rich word and perhaps somewhat unique among the great gospel words in our theological vocabulary, in that it’s a word that easily resonates with unbelievers. Some of our favorite stories, songs, and films are built around...
To say that the heart of the gospel is Christ crucified would not be wrong (1st Corinthians 1:23; Galatians 6:14). To say that the heart of the gospel is the resurrection of Christ would not be wrong either, for by it our justification comes...
Do not believe anyone who tells you that the way to focus on Jesus and His resurrection is to take the spotlight off the Bible. The entire Bible is a blessing to the believer, not a burden. It is not an obstacle to effective evangelism; it...
It has often been observed that the “last days” are not just some future event of tribulation and doom, but are instead the days of Christ’s church, inaugurated by His resurrection. Thus, as Acts 2:17 and Hebrews 1:2 teach us, the last days...
Jesus in John 11:25 said, “I am, the resurrection and the life. Whoever believes in me, though he die, yet shall he live.” The lengthiest explanation of Jesus’ resurrection is found in 1st Corinthians 15. This whole chapter is about...
I saw the new Star Wars film recently. The last scene (slight spoiler warning) is a wordless image that summarizes the goal of all the action of the film and points ahead to the plots of the sequels. Many films are like that: After all the...
This season at Servants of Grace, we’ve been taking a look at prayer and spiritual warfare. In our day, many Christians struggle with their prayer lives and even more struggle with the reality of spiritual warfare. With this issue of Theology for Life,...
Spiritual warfare is vitally important in the world of spiritual growth. With the increase of new age thinking, atheism, Satanism, and a growing interest in the occult worldwide, the need for Christians to understand what spiritual warfare is has never...
In the double interests of going deeper in some of my favorite theologians and trying to strengthen my own prayer life, I've recently been reading John Owen’s work titled, The Work of the Holy Spirit in Prayer. This 116 page treatise is actually the...
Many Christians struggle a great deal with prayer. Whether it’s struggling with feelings of guilt or shame, the struggle is often not to make time to pray, but why pray. In Hebrews 4:16 the author of Hebrews tells his readers, “Let us then with...
I’m sure such folks are out there, but I’ve not personally met any Christian who hasn’t struggled with saying the same old things about the same old things in prayer. Before long, such repetitive prayer is boring. And when prayer is boring, it’s hard to...
It was the 1st of March, 1985. I remember where I was sitting when it happened. I was Pastor of a church in the western suburbs of Chicago. A guest preacher was speaking on a series of meetings at our church. He was teaching on the prayers of the...
Near the end of his first letter to the church of Thessalonica, the Apostle Paul issued an exhortation that at once seems inviting and impossible. He writes, “Rejoice always, pray without ceasing, give thanks in all circumstances; for this is the will...
The book of James gives remarkable insight into the prayer life of the great prophet Elijah. James 5:17-18 says Elijah controlled the weather with his prayers. He prayed, and it did not rain. For three and half years not a drop fell from the sky. Elijah...
This particular season of ministry has been at times very difficult for me, and I’ve found that this is typically a result of not being focused on my prayer life. For me, praying in general has always seemed like a chore. I know that you do not want to...
Pastoral ministry is unrelenting spiritual warfare. There was a time in Protestant history when an emphasis on spiritual warfare in the Christian life and in pastoral ministry was standard fare. Such works as Richard Gilpin’s Daemonolgia Sacra, Thomas...
In Matthew 4, Jesus is confronted by Satan in the desert. In this story, we learn how Jesus used Scripture in spiritual warfare against Satan. Today, I want us to look at Matthew 4:1-11. This temptation is an attempt by Satan to subvert God’s plan for...
Over the years, a dozen or so individuals have entered my pastoral study for counsel due to struggling with assurance of their salvation—they are not quite sure whether they are saved. Week in and week out they attend Sunday services. They read the...
When members of the Body of Christ suffer, the whole Body suffers together (1st Corinthians 12:26). Even if we are geographically removed from those being persecuted, we can still draw near to them spiritually. Hebrews 13:3 exhorts, “Remember the...
Prayer is an important part of the Christian’s life. 1st Thessalonians 5:17 encourages Christians to pray without ceasing. How can we know what words to pray? Scripture gives us seven examples: Adoration Psalm 18:2 – The LORD is my rock and my fortress...
The Prayer of Adoration Jeremiah 10:6-7, "There is none like you, O LORD; you are great, and your name is great in might. Who would not fear you, O King of the nations? For this is your due; for among all the wise ones of the nations and in all their...
It is extremely easy to make the discipline of doing theology all about us. We can rob God of His glory in theological study by doing it in such a way that it ignores actual interaction with Him. Kelly Kapic reminds us that God is not merely an object...
Matthew 12:22-32, “Then a demon-oppressed man who was blind and mute was brought to him, and he healed him, so that the man spoke and saw. And all the people were amazed, and said, “Can this be the Son of David?” But when the Pharisees heard it, they...
Evagrius of Pontus once wrote, “If your soul grows weak, pray. As it is written, pray in fear and trembling, earnestly and watchfully. We ought to pray like that, especially because our unseen and wicked enemies are vehemently trying to hinder us.”[i]...
By the kindness of God’s grace, I’ve been a Christian since I was five years old. Over the years my family has endured many difficult situations, such as my parents’ divorce, my brother’s divorce and separation from his son, my father’s hospitalization...
Persistent prayer proves hard for many Christians. We may labor on our knees for years as we pray for our unbelieving child, an empty womb, our spouse to be converted, the friend battling cancer, depression to no longer have a hold, a sin to lose its...
You are reading a theological journal. You are, no doubt, then familiar with the story of George Mueller; a story that is equal parts wonder at the amazing faith of a man with a heart for orphans and an amazing God who provided in response to his faith....
The things that matter most to us all center on the Gospel. The Church simply can’t afford to forget the lesson of the Reformation about the utter supremacy of the gospel in everything the church does. Elie Wiesel, Nobel Prize winner and...
John Knox was born in Haddington in 1514, though admittedly there is some debate on the exact date. We do know that Knox was born into a poorer family with not a lot of resources. Upon completion (another point of historical contention) of...
Recommended Books on the Five Solas, Church History, and Reformed Theology This season at Servants of Grace, we’ve been considering the Five Solas and how we need Reformation inside the local Church. In our day, many believe that truth is all about how...
October 31s, 2017, marks the 500 year anniversary of the Protestant Reformation. This quin-centennial celebration is remarkable in many ways, as Protestants around the world will remember the accomplishments of the Reformers, most notably the bold move...
The Reformation in the 16th century is long known as a religious renewal movement, which we refer to today as the Protestant Reformation. This movement is known to have changed the course of Western civilization, but what is often not understood about...
In order to gather a sense of Jonathan Edwards’ titanic legacy in American religious history, one needs only to survey the host of nicknames ascribed to him by various scholars through the years. In 1988, Robert Jenson pronounced Edwards “America’s...
When tasked with writing about Martin Luther there are many ways in which one can approach the man. There are books on his influence on the Christian life, biographies aplenty, commentaries on his Tabletalk’s, commentaries on his letters and...
It has been said that Soli Deo Gloria is “the glue that holds the solas together”;[1] the way we view God influences everything about us. It influences how we parent our children. It influences our work ethic. Our view of God influences the way we...
Over the past several decades there has been considerable debate among Christians regarding this question, “Should the term “mission” be used exclusively to refer to the task of evangelism and disciple-making, or can it be broadened to include...
Born on July 10, 1509, in Noyon, Picardy, in northern France, John Calvin was raised in a family of deeply committed Roman Catholics. Calvin would long remember his mother taking him on pilgrimages to see the relics of the saints, while his father, the...
The Unquenchable Flame: Discovering the Heart of the Reformation Reviewed by James Forbis The Unquenchable Flame: Discovering the Heart of the Reformation, by Michael Reeves, may be the most important book you can read this year in...
"Thus says the LORD: “Stand by the roads, and look, and ask for the ancient paths, where the good way is; and walk in it, and find rest for your souls.” But they said ‘We will not walk in it.’ (Jeremiah 6:16, ESV) We are living in an unprecedented age...
It’s an innocent question at first, “Is Calvinism good for the church?” Some people will not be alarmed by that question in any way, shape, or form. Others will think that this question doesn’t need to be asked at all. To them, Calvinism is a disease, a...
The idea of revival originates in the reality that, on the one hand, God is the decisive giver of all spiritual life and, on the other hand, humans, even those who are born again and part of God’s covenant family, from time to time drift into a kind of...
One of the greatest truths rediscovered during the Reformation was Sola Scriptura. Men such as John Wycliffe and John Huss affirmed this doctrine and called people to return to the Bible. When challenged by hostile church officials, Huss repeatedly...
George Whitefield was the most famous man in America before the American Revolution. The Church of England minister was the most visible leader of the Great Awakening, a series of revivals that swept through Britain and America in the...
On October 31st, 1517, Martin Luther hammered his now famous Ninty-Five Theses to the castle door at Wittenberg. It wasn’t long before his “beef” with Rome went viral and led to his excommunication. Less than four years later, Luther was summoned to...
William Tyndale’s life story is one of adventure (see the movie God’s Outlaw; 1986). This is not the story of some scholarly, ivory-tower theologian. Tyndale had a singular desire, and that was to see the Word of God available in the native language of...
Five centuries ago, an unknown Augustinian monk named Martin Luther rocked the world with his Reformation theology and preaching. What started out as an attempt to engage in a debate turned into the greatest awakening in human history since the...
Reformation theology is often summarized by the five Solas. Scripture Alone (Sola Scriptura) stands as the formal principle of the Reformation, and the foundation of all theology. God’s glory alone (Soli Deo Gloria) functions as a capstone for all...
On the 500th Anniversary of the Protestant Reformation, I am profoundly thankful for the many efforts to commemorate the theological themes central to the great recovery of the gospel in the 16th century. Most people summarize those key themes in the...
Within a year of posting his Ninety-Five Theses, Martin Luther was summoned to appear before Cardinal Cajetan to be examined for his accusations against the Roman Catholic Church’s theology and practice. When the Cardinal pressed him on the issue of the...
Critical to the Reformation was the recovery of the great doctrine of justification by faith. Martin Luther believed this doctrine was the doctrine on which the Church stands or falls. I will not assume that everyone understands the meaning of the word...
This season at Servants of Grace, we’ve been discussing suffering and justice, and what that means in light of God’s sovereignty. In our world today, many people have a skewed view of what justice is and God’s role in bringing that about. So...
Churches are filled with people who are, and will be, experiencing hurts and disappointments in life. Jesus promised we would experience troubles in this world, but to take heart, He has overcome the world (John 16:33). Pain and suffering are marks of...
When the storms of life wreak havoc on all you know and love, what theological truths anchor your soul? What doctrines do you turn to when the world around you seems to give way under your feet? What truths about God bring you the most comfort when life...
The Westminster Shorter Catechism famously answers, "Man's chief end is to glorify God and enjoy Him forever." This is to be the single greatest controlling influence in our lives. I confess that it is easy to talk about glorifying God and enjoying Him...
Biblically speaking, to be just means to use your strength on behalf of the weak. Justice most certainly includes an overall “fairness”, truth, integrity, honesty and refusing to show partiality. But the essence of justice goes beyond that. The essence...
There is no theological issue more complicated than the relationship between divine sovereignty and human responsibility. And this is no mere academic question, for our understanding here (or lack thereof) significantly affects such practical areas as...
Kristen Wetherell and Sarah Walton are the authors of Hope When It Hurts: Biblical Reflections to Help You Grasp God’s Purpose in Your Suffering (www.TheGoodBook.com). T4L: You each have been diagnosed with Lyme disease and continue to suffer the...
The Lord is sovereign, powerful, and good. Evil exists and creatures bear moral responsibility for it. In making sense of the undeniable presence of sin, along with injustice and suffering it causes, many people deny one or more of these...
Whatever difficulties you face, it's safe to say there is something else going on than what meets the eye. In what way is God working all things for good? According to Romans 8:28, God is conforming us to the image of His Son. Jesus Himself was brought...
John 12:35-43, “So Jesus said to them, “The light is among you for a little while longer. Walk while you have the light, lest darkness overtake you. The one who walks in the darkness does not know where he is going. While you have the light, believe in...
Achilles was the Greek hero in Homer’s Iliad during the Trojan War who was killed by Paris with an arrow that struck his only vulnerable spot, his heel. So the Achilles heel is the vulnerable or susceptible spot. Critics of historic Christianity often...
Few issues are as volatile right now as the problem of ISIS. Former President Obama, during his Presidency, stated multiple times that Islam is a “religion of peace”. While some denominations of Islam may seek to have peace, the statement that Islam is...
Hope has been defined by the Merriam-Webster Dictionary as “desire with anticipation.” Other definitions given by Merriam-Webster include a “deeply held wish” or a “feeling of wanting something to happen.” I’m certain that this is how the broader...
The Bible from beginning to end is the story of God. There is but one living and true God (Deuteronomy 6:4; Is. 45:5-7; 1 Cor. 8:4), an infinite, all-knowing Spirit (John 4:24), perfect in all His attributes, one in essence, eternally existing in three...
If God is sovereign and all powerful, He must not be good. Or if He is good, then He must not be sovereign and all powerful. So reason many who believe that there should simply not be any suffering in the world. But even if they understand some...
Is God the author of evil or its helpless victim? St. Augustine's answer has been the most intellectually credible and emotionally satisfying solution to this vexing problem. One doesn't need a Ph.D. in theology to look around the world and realize...
As we examine the topic of the suffering of Christ and sovereignty of God, we see that it is one that many people face and struggle with mightily. In this article, we will begin the journey through this topic by considering what is said in the Book of...
We often think that if God loves us, He should spare us, or those we love, from suffering. And when He doesn’t, we wonder how that can be love. In John’s account of Lazarus’s death and resurrection, Jesus shows us how this can be. We start by being...
The doctrine of the Wrath of God has fallen on hard times. In today’s world, any concept of God’s wrath upsets our modern sentiments. It’s too disconcerting, too intolerant. We live in a day where we have set ourselves as the judge and God’s character...
All people suffer. All Christians suffer. In fact, Christians suffer in unique ways because of their faith commitment. After being stoned and left for dead, the apostle Paul exhorted the disciples to understand, “It is necessary to go through many...
Dave Furman (ThM, Dallas Theological Seminary) serves as the senior pastor of Redeemer Church of Dubai in the United Arab Emirates, which he planted in 2010. Dave and his wife, Gloria, have four children. He is the author of Being There How to Love...
Prosperity is hot topic in the church. Does God care if a pastor drives a nice car or lives in a nice home? Does God command that all who follow Him take a vow of poverty and starve their families in a protest of earthly comfort? Bible teachers sell...
Consider these ministry scenarios: you are teaching a Bible study and during a time of group discussion, a woman reveals that her husband left her for another woman. What do you say? Or someone you serve in ministry learns they have a debilitating...
The impetus for this article comes from the ultimate reality of God as the supreme value in and above the universe. God is absolute and eternal and infinite. Everything else and everybody else is dependent and finite and contingent. God Himself is the...
On February 17, 1860, citizens from Montgomery, Alabama, gathered in the jail yard to burn the “dangerous books”[i] of Charles Haddon Spurgeon, the most popular preacher in the Victorian world. A newspaper recorded the event: Last Saturday, we devoted...
Recommended Reading on the Art and Science of Biblical Interpretation This season at Servants of Grace, we’ve been considering Hermeneutics: the art and science of biblical interpretation. We are living in a time where many people—though Bibles are a plenty—are...
What a privilege it is to lead a Bible study! And what joy and excitement await you as you delve into the Word of God and help others to discover its life-changing truths. If God has called you to lead a Bible study group, I know you'll be spending much time in...
A result of the trend towards biblical illiteracy and sound-bite approaches to theology is that of the difficulty many have with proper interaction with the biblical text. The big nerdy term for how to interpret Scripture is called hermeneutics. Subsumed within the...
When Jesus approached His two disciples departing Jerusalem on the day of His resurrection, He asked, “What is this conversation that you are holding with each other as you walk?” (Luke 24:17). Deftly, he quizzed them about the events of his own death, burial, and...
Ever since the serpent in the Garden of Eden asked Eve, “Hath God said”, Scripture has been under attack. Unfortunately, this attack is not merely coming from outside the walls of Christianity. Increasingly, the questioning of the inerrancy of Scripture, in...
Biblical Interpretation through the Centuries Throughout the centuries there have been hot debates about the meaning of Scripture. In fact many church councils were called to end what was considered heretical teachings and debates about the meaning of God’s written...
Most of us read the Bible as if it is telling a story, one that culminates in the person and work of Jesus Christ. We get the overarching narrative of Scripture and can see that Scripture sets out to tell a story about Christ. For some reason, however, it is more...
Going to church each Sunday and sitting under godly, loving, biblical, and practical preaching week in and week out should be enjoyed as a privilege by God’s people. While some people, like myself, learn best by sitting and listening, I know many people get more...
“When the Spirit of truth comes, he will guide you into all the truth, for he will not speak on his own authority, but whatever he hears he will speak, and he will declare to you the things that are to come.” (John 16:13) In verse 12 of chapter 16 of the Gospel of...
Bible reading, meditation, journaling, meaty theology books—they are crucial and quite individualistic. And while there is a place for your personal, passionate pursuit of God, the Bible was never meant to remain a solely singular endeavor. The Word of God was and...
One of the most penetrating series of imperatives that explode from the pages of Scripture is found in Paul’s letter to his young protégé, Timothy, “Preach the word; be ready in season and out of season, reprove, rebuke, and exhort, with complete patience and...
So you'd like to begin spending time with God daily? It's a noble goal and one that every Christian should strive for. Perhaps you just made a personal resolution or you just had a spiritual mountaintop experience and you want to fan the flame of passion you feel...
“And these words that I command you today shall be on your heart. You shall teach them diligently to your children, and shall talk of them when you sit in your house, and when you walk by the way, and when you lie down, and when you rise. You shall bind them as a...
The word interpret can be used to mean “to understand”, “to translate”, or “to explain”. These three functions of the interpretive process are also appropriate for preaching. First, we seek to understand what the text is saying. Then, we translate that information...
Ever since the time of Adam and Eve, the Word of God has been under attack. These attacks not only come from outside the walls of the church, they also seem to creep into and rear their ugly head from inside the Church as well. Thus, it is vital for believers to...
“Do your best to present yourself to God as one approved, a worker who has no need to be ashamed, rightly handling the word of truth.” (2 Timothy 2:15, ESV) When it comes to understanding the Christian life, knowing and applying the Bible is a non-negotiable: one...
If someone were to ask you, “What does the word dog mean?” You might respond, “Well, use it in a sentence!” Most words have a range of meanings, and what a word means depends on how it is used. Doing a word study is a helpful Bible study practice; however, it...
One of the biggest issues that isn’t being talked about enough is the issue of biblical illiteracy. Researchers George Gallup and Jim Castelli put the problem squarely: “Americans revere the Bible–but, by and large, they don’t read it. And because they don’t read...
Perhaps one of the greatest ironies should be assigned to our current situation: we have more access to Scripture and its rich historical truths than ever before, and yet we have in our churches an ever-increasing lethargy when it comes to the exploration of said...
Luke 24 is one of the most significant and important passages in the Bible as it pertains to what is known as redemptive history. In Luke 24, Jesus sets forth how all of Scripture is about Himself. From the front cover to the last page in the Bible, Jesus is the...
“And beginning with Moses and all the Prophets, he interpreted to them in all the Scriptures the things concerning himself.” (Luke 24:27) The word “interpreted” in Luke 24:27 comes from the Greek word διερμηνεύω (transliterated as diermēneuō), which means either to...
The doctrine of God has been either neglected or under attack for more than a century. Yet, it is one of the most neglected doctrines in the Church today. From understanding the doctrine of the Trinity, creation, prayer, Satan and demons, God’s providence,...
Recommended Reading on the Doctrine of God This season at Servants of Grace, we’ve been considering the Doctrine of God. We are living in a time where this doctrine is either neglected, under attack, or greatly misunderstood. With this issue of Theology for Life...
In the contemporary evangelical movement, we are seeing all sorts of attacks on the doctrine of God. From neglect of teaching on this particular doctrine to weird ideas as it relates to the Trinity and more, over the past century, we’ve seen this doctrine under...
Spiritual warfare, particularly in the area of demonology is quite neglected in many reformed churches. This is a problem because it creates a vacuum for those whose position on demons and spiritual warfare is influenced more by unchecked testimonials and Hollywood...
The Gospels record that those who heard Jesus teach were “astonished” and “amazed” by the authority with which He spoke (Matthew 7:29; Mark 1:22; John 7:46). Whether Jew or Gentile, Jesus’s audiences were frequently captured, not only by His knowledge of God’s...
In all of the time I have been a Christian and in all of the time I have served in my ministry at the local Church I have never heard anyone say the following sentence: “I am satisfied with my prayer life.” For many in the local Church their prayer life is...
The way we approach the miraculous is important. Many Christians do not realize that they have adopted an impersonal worldview that makes the miraculous an intrusion into the affairs of our life. They sound often more like David Hume than the Bible. Hume, for...
In the study of the doctrine of God, a primary concern is to develop an understanding of His attributes. In this article, we’ll look at specific characteristics of God, such as His Holiness, His immutability, and His infiniteness, to gain a coherent understanding...
Theologians often like to use fancy words to describe biblical teaching and categories. In two articles in this issue of Theology for Life Magazine, I’m going to explain what the communicable and incommunicable attributes of God are. In this article, we’ll start...
In English, the terms righteousness and justice are different words, but in both the Hebrew Old Testament and the Greek New Testament there is only one-word group behind these two English terms. In the Old Testament, the terms primarily translate forms of the...
In 2009, my wife and I purchased a home in Atlanta, Georgia. Despite being a larger house in a nice neighborhood, it was what our realtor called “a handy man special”. It needed some serious TLC. The fact that dogs had used the walls to “mark” their territory and...
God’s mercy, patience, and grace may be seen as three separate attributes, or as specific attributes of God’s goodness. The definitions given here show these attributes as special examples of God’s goodness when it is used for the benefit of specific classes of...
Over the past century, we’ve seen multiple attacks on the doctrine of the providence of God. The truth is though these attacks are unwarranted. The providence of God is a great comfort to the people of God. John Flavel, a prominent Puritan writer and author of The...
The historical development of Trinitarian theology was anything but unencumbered and straightforward. Articulating and explaining how one God exists in three persons—who are equal in substance, essence, and glory from all eternity—was the primary theological task...
Genesis 1:1 - “In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” Scripture begins with a simple, clear, and important declaration. In the beginning, God created the heavens and the earth. There is no explanation of where God came from. We are simply told God...
Have you ever looked at a diamond ring at the jewelry store, literally captured by its beauty? As you admire this stunning stone, the salesperson places a sheet of black velvet under the diamond, which always does one thing: it accentuates the beauty of the...
The daily headlines relentlessly pound against the shore of our lives. We live in a world that suffers from the curse of sin. Ours is a world filled with pain. In such a cultural milieu, it is crucial that we know and affirm the goodness of God. The goodness of God...
“Before the mountains were brought forth, or ever you had formed the earth and the world, from everlasting to everlasting you are God.” – Psalm 90:2 CH. Spurgeon, when preaching on Psalm 90, said, "God was when nothing else was." Quite honestly, this sounds like a...
They are everywhere. Do you see them? You can’t miss these things. The pages of Scripture shout from the mountaintops about them. What are they? Verses about the omniscience of God. We’ll begin with three: Have you not known? Have you not heard? The LORD is the...
I want to fly. No, not just purchase a ticket and take a seat in 3B. I want to really fly. Put out my arms, jump off the Empire State building, and fly. It isn't just the fancy of it that appeals to me. Don't get me wrong, it would be fun, but I have practical...
Dr. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, one of the greatest preachers and theologians of the 20th century, taught that a high view of God leads to a high view of Jesus. Popular culture flaunts its belief that man, in all of his glory, is the beginning and the end of all things....
God as “other”, and God as “near” are two key elements of Biblical doctrine. God is the sovereign Creator, transcendent, and distinct from His creation. Yet, God also draws near in love and judgment to His creation. Both elements are important for a Biblical...
“To the glory of God alone.” Most of us have heard of this phrase, also referred to in the Latin as Soli Deo Gloria. We hear it from athletes as they talk to reporters after the big game, or actors upon receiving an award. It is the topic of conversation in many...
What can we know about God? The knowability of God is a topic in Christian theology that answers this question. Additionally, it is very much the most basic question of Christian theology. Why do I say this? The answer is quite simple; this is the most basic...
If there is one truth evangelical Protestants can all get behind, it is the holiness of God. To deny the holiness of God would be to deny the Christian faith and the Scriptures altogether. Countless studies and books have been tailored to exploring this particular...
Few issues are as controversial in the church today as the debate that surrounds the issue of Adam being a real person in real history. This debate centers more around one’s convictions about the Bible itself and its authority than it does about Adam and science....
The historicity of Adam is one of the most debated issues in modern Christianity. There are many who simply do not believe Adam and Eve existed, even within the Church. Some scholars do not believe that the existence of a literal Adam and Eve is crucial to...
Why are Adam and Eve some of the last people to visit our churches? After all, Genesis is the starting point and foundation of God’s revelation about redemption! Well, if you really want to open doors, you need to know the stumbling blocks pastors must overcome. A...
This season at Servants of Grace, we’ve been considering the topics of Adam as a real person in real history and science. We are living in a time when many people are questioning whether Adam is a real person in real history along with a literal reading of Genesis....
Other than the discussion over the issue of how long the days of Genesis 1 are, arguably one of the most heated debates among evangelicals on the issue of origins is whether there was any death and more specifically, whether the is a biblical case for animal death...
The order of events of creation recorded in Genesis 1 contradicts (at very many points) the order of events according to the evolution story. Many Christians think that if we just take each of the days of creation as being figurative of long ages (hundreds of...
Over the past couple of weeks at a Bible Study I have been attending, we have been exploring some fundamental aspects of Scripture and theology in general. As a starting point, a necessary one I might add, the discussion has centered on Genesis 1-4, for it is in...
In the past few years, a handful of books from ostensibly conservative Christians have challenged the traditional interpretation that God created man from the dust of the ground. Instead, these authors have argued for some eclectic blend of creation and evolution...
The cover story in Christianity Today in June 2011 was “The Search for the Historical Adam”. The subtitle read, “Some scholars believe genome science casts doubt on the existence of the first man and woman. Others say the integrity of the faith requires it.” The...
The intriguing title, The Quest for the Historical Adam, by William VanDoodewaard, is patterned after Albert Schweitzer’s (in)famous The Quest for the Historical Jesus (1910). But rather than a focus on the “last Adam,” VanDoodewaard focuses on the first Adam. And...
Anyone who has read the Bible very much will recognize that there are different kinds of literature in the Old and New Testaments. There are parables, poetry, prophetic visions, dreams, epistles, proverbs, and historical narrative, with the majority being the...
Adam as a real person in real history is under attack in our day. From attacks on the scientific community to the Christian community, some are suggesting we shouldn’t take seriously the Bible’s teaching on Adam. What is often missed in books and articles on this...
With the influence of evolutionary and humanistic constructs which gained prominence during the latter stages of the nineteenth century cultural and academic milieu, alternative interpretations of creation became vogue. The increasing pressure from the scientific...
Young earth creationists, or rather biblical creationists, are often accused of being over-literal in their interpretation of Genesis 1. Regrettably, this accusation caricaturizes this position as a “literalistic interpretation”, which is unfortunate since biblical...
There is an intensifying controversy in the church all over the world regarding the age of the earth. For the first 18 centuries of church history, the almost universal belief of Christians was that God created the world in six literal days, roughly 4,000 years...
T4L: Hello, Dr. Carter! Could you give us the elevator ride introduction to yourself and your ministry? Dr. Carter: Creation Ministries International was started in Australia nearly 40 years ago. Today, we have an international team of about 30 speakers operating...
As a scientist and Christian, I have come to the conclusion that the Bible serves as an essential foundation for understanding science, in the past and present. While I would expect atheists to object to this concept, I find that even many Christians object. Why is...
At the heart of much of the discussion on gender today is a wrong understanding of the image of God in man. Much of this discussion is occurring in a secular media that wants to promote “equality and tolerance”. These people want people to believe that there is...
Men, and now women also, are struggling in silence with pornography. All over our world, children and adults are being kidnapped (or otherwise entrapped) and sold into the world of sex trafficking. With every click, men and women perpetuate the pornography and sex...
Vicki Tiede is an inspiring Bible teacher, conference speaker, and author. Her passion is to open the Scriptures with women in order to share God's grace and enduring faithfulness. She transparently relates life experiences that resonate and draw others into a...
Grant serves as the Executive Director for CBMW. He is also a PhD student in Church History at The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He is Marine Corps veteran. He holds a B.S. from Texas A&M and an M.Div from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. He...
Luke and Susan Carter worship at Ustick Baptist Church in Boise, Idaho. Between them, they have a total of seven adult kids and 10 grands. In 2013, when both were retired and in their mid-60s, they answered the call to volunteer with a Christian non-government...