Why We Need a Children’s Book About Death
When it comes to sad things in life, we tend to wrap up their hearts in cotton wool and lock them away.
The preacher of Ecclesiastes tells us: “It is better to go to a house of mourning than to go to a house of feasting, for death is the destiny of everyone; the living should take this to heart” (7:2). The living should take this to heart—which includes children, not just adults. Often, when we go to... Continue Reading
Entrust Yourself to God at Night
God sustains you by your sleep.
David’s childlike trust in God as his protector led him to earnest prayer: “I cried aloud to the Lord” (v. 4). And God answered. He provided sleep for the rehabilitation of David’s weary mind and body. God will do this for you, too. If you follow David’s example of earnestness in prayer, his testimony can... Continue Reading
It’s All About the Conscience
Our task as spiritual physicians is to treat bad consciences, continually delivering the healing balm of the living word of God and his life-giving sacraments.
Our goal is not to build people up to utilize their own inner resources or become better spiritual athletes. The cure of souls is instead geared to address spiritual dysfunction and disease, restoring health and life to souls burdened by guilt and torn by shame. I’ve made it no secret that Harold Senkbeil’s The... Continue Reading
The Bible Is the Story of Us
The bible is a beautiful, unique text, and its story informs ours.
As we sit with God’s story, it not only informs us and makes us more complete; it also teaches us about the consistent character of God — his faithfulness and love, his mercy and justice. Reading the Bible gives us the opportunity to see God through the lives of others. While the times may change,... Continue Reading
What Is a Girl Worth?
A hard, but important, book to read.
It’s a deep sorrow that What Is a Girl Worth? had to be written at all. Though it is at times a sad and sickening read, we cannot and must not flinch from the reality it describes. My hope and prayer is that Denhollander’s long labor on this book will make a difference within the... Continue Reading
The First Sexual Revolution: The Triumph of Christian Morality in the Roman Empire
As an expert in the history of the late Roman world, Harper explores how the Christian sexual ethic, so despised and seemingly inconsequential in the first century, came to be codified in law by the sixth century.
The Christian sexual ethic, it should be obvious, was radically different from mainstream Roman culture. Even the more “conservative” Stoics should not be seen as precursors to Christian morality. While some of the language may be the same (e.g., contrary to nature), the ideas, the values, and the reasons for Stoic ethics and Christian ethics... Continue Reading
Unlikely Converts: a Must Read Book
Understanding the common characteristics of an outsider’s conversion will help us be more bold and strategic in our pre-evangelism.
Newman defines evangelism as “the verbal proclamation of a very specific message: that Jesus died to atone for sins, that he rose from the dead, and that people must respond with repentance and faith” (21). He then shifts his focus away from evangelism to pre-evangelism, and argues that in our culture there is generally the need for work to... Continue Reading
Greg Johnson and His Surprising Book!
Comparing Greg Johnson’s views on sexual ethics in his 2002 book with his present-day views.
Johnson said in his book, “Whatever the reason, it’s wrong to assume that because God is calling a person to be single that he or she must be either gay or a loser or bitter about it all” (p. 146). That was written before Johnson informed us of his own same-sex attraction. It has lately... Continue Reading
Echoes of Exodus: Tracing a Biblical Motif
It is the grand story of salvation itself.
At times I did not know where this project was leading me; however, the deeper I drilled, the more I realized that there was no one book that was trying to “tie it all together.” I had found many disparate and disjointed studies about the motif, but realized that no-one, to the best of my... Continue Reading
Book Review: “Beyond Authority and Submission,” by Rachel Green Miller
It is evident that Mrs. Miller defines men and women as substantially equivalent and that the “co-laboring” she sees in Scripture is a partnership of ontological equals.
Because Mrs. Miller has neglected to deal with the relevant ontology, the thesis of her book is unproven and hence fails. However much we may agree on the equality of men and women as images of God, as fallen, and as redeemed in Christ, that does not remove the stubborn reality of ontological differences. At... Continue Reading
