If Pedophilia is a Sexual Orientation, Now What?
In his book, Kershnar questions whether pedophilia should be considered a mental disorder and/or morally wrong.
If you think it sounds outlandish that pedophilia might be normalized in this way, you wouldn’t be alone. Most people feel moral revulsion at the prospect of such a thing. But this book appears to be questioning the “ick factor” associated with pedophilia. Is the “ick factor” just an aesthetic preference or an intuition about... Continue Reading
Tuned in Parents on the Technological Frontier
There are several things to which I return again and again as I seek to counsel myself and other parents in our congregation regarding this issue.
We Must Remember that We Can’t Change the Hearts of our Children. No amount of sheltering our children from the evil of the world without will keep them from acting on the evil of their hearts within. We can neither regenerate our child’s heart nor bring him or her to a place of spiritual maturity.... Continue Reading
All Welcome. No Exceptions.
Paul’s was a message of inclusion and sanctification. We must not set them against one another.
The mainline message of inclusion is a good reminder to check our inner Pharisee but it is only the beginning. If we are to respond faithfully to and minister faithfully in the name of our Savior we must articulate and model the first part of the message: “Welcome!” We must also, however, articulate and model... Continue Reading
An Essential Key to Understanding the Development of the NT Canon
The key is understanding the different categories of books in early Christianity.
In sum, understanding these four categories is an essential step in removing misconceptions about the NT canon that seem to abound today. Knowing these categories can give a person a fairly basic picture of how the canon developed: (1) there was a core canon from a very early time, (2) there was dispute about some... Continue Reading
4 Ways the World Will Pressure You to Conform
The metaphor of “exile” remains an apt description of Christians who are sojourners in this world
All Christians are to live as sojourners and exiles, blessing the world around us by refusing to conform to its patterns of thought and behavior. As Augustine said, sometimes we must stand against the world for the good of the world. In every age, the world implements strategies of isolation, indoctrination, assimilation, and confusion, and... Continue Reading
12 Observations After Reading The Porn Phenomenon
What affect do you think pornography has on you personally?
“As the society’s moral compass turns further away from God, we must realize that informed consciences will be more rare, and tactics of guilt and shame will become increasingly less effective. Rather, we should be wise to discuss the issues the culture cares about—and that God cares about too.” How would you define “pornography?” Why do people choose to... Continue Reading
Holiness Is Not Our Goal
Our growth in holiness is not our goal. It is only a means to an end.
Obedience to the law of Christ is an outgrowth of our faith in Jesus Christ, and serves the purpose of our communion with him. This goal of communion is clear from God’s presence in the Garden (Gen 3:8), Jesus’ prayer “I in them and you in me” (John 17:23), and our marital consummation when Jesus... Continue Reading
Prosperity Gospel vs. Social Gospel: What Religion Means to Trump, Clinton
NPR delves into the faiths of the Republican and Democratic presidential tickets
Trump himself has never claimed to be transformed or “born again.” But that may not matter, if he outsources the responsibility for religious outreach to his running mate. As Indiana governor, Mike Pence bolstered his conservative credentials by signing a religious liberty law to protect business people — critics said it would allow them to... Continue Reading
10 Things You Should Know About the Bible’s Teaching on Men and Women
Maleness and femaleness are creational, not contractual
“Humanity’s binary gender design as male and female reflects in some mysterious way the nature of God. While sharing a common humanity, the man and the woman are unique and complementary rather than identical.” 1. We were created male and female by divine design. According to the Genesis creation account, God created humanity male... Continue Reading
The Trinity: Impassible Love and Hate
God does not experience sinful emotions nor involuntary emotions
“Our passions ebb and flow in response to the changing world for we ourselves are subject to change. God is without passions, he is not subject to change, but he is not without hatred and he is not without love.” A month before our son was born my wife came home from the baby... Continue Reading