The Sanctity of Human Life
Human dignity is derived from God
In biblical terms, the sanctity of human life is rooted and grounded in creation. Mankind is not viewed as a cosmic accident but as the product of a carefully executed creation by an eternal God. Human dignity is derived from God. Man as a finite, dependent, contingent creature is assigned a high value by his... Continue Reading
An Essay on Cynicism
In Christ, even cynicism can be overcome
Some of us are cynical because we have felt the power of the insiders and been kept outside or put outside. Others of us may have had the determination to move several rings toward the center. But, at what cost? Has integrity been lost – what about health? Eventually, will non-negotiables like gender, age, body type... Continue Reading
The Answer to Russia’s Orphan Crisis
Preaching the Gospel and adopting the orphans
The answer to orphanages teeming with doomed children isn’t, ultimately, American adoption. The answer is, ideally, a Russia so revived by the gospel of adoption in Christ that Christian families receive children even as they have been received into the household of Christ. Ultimately, of course, we seek a a landscape devoid of orphanages, as... Continue Reading
Struggling to be Free or Free to Struggle
Why we fight against indwelling sin
In other words, we no longer have to struggle to be free from sin. Christ has set us free, and we are free indeed. But what does that mean? If we are no longer slaves to sin, and Christ’s obedience is applied to our account, are we free to go out and live lives of... Continue Reading
Fact Checker: Are Your Kids Likely to Lose Their Faith?
Don't listen to the naysayers and pessimists
A handful of Christian authors have created a bit of a cottage industry peddling the scary news that the odds are not good that our young people stay strong in their faith into adulthood. Untrue. There are important, effective, and relatively simple things parents and Christian workers can do to substantially increase the likelihood our... Continue Reading
Why Suburbia Really is Affecting your Spiritual Life
As Christians the whole of our lives is influenced by where we live
For both understanding and flourishing in the built environment, we need to experience it on foot. I realize that in some environments this is impossible, but it is important to resist the temptation to jump in our cars. When we walk, we are confronted with aspects of the built environment that don’t work very well.... Continue Reading
Groupthink: The Brainstorming Myth
The fatal misconception behind brainstorming is that there is a particular script we should all follow in group interactions
“While the instruction ‘Do not criticize’ is often cited as the important instruction in brainstorming, this appears to be a counterproductive strategy. Our findings show that debate and criticism do not inhibit ideas but, rather, stimulate them relative to every other condition.” Osborn thought that imagination is inhibited by the merest hint of criticism, but... Continue Reading
The Millennial Generation’s Acceptable Sin
Bending God's own standards to satiate their libido
More disturbingly, many young evangelicals are trying to loosen the standards of the moral law to fit their desire to become sexually active before committing to marriage. Some are direct, telling the church to shut up and stay out of their sex lives. They say that Jesus wants his followers to pursue justice, provide for... Continue Reading
Pithy Phrases for 2013
Some wise and humourous phrases relevant to ministry
Pithy phrases catch my attention. The Bible is the source of the wisest ones, of course, with the enduring advice of Proverbs. For example, “A fool takes no pleasure in understanding, but only in expressing his opinion.” A quote from the 1880s, which could have been spoken in 2013, shows us foolish thought is still... Continue Reading
Heatless Flames: No “Program” Can Replace the Gospel
We need to stop pandering to men’s appetites
“In evangelical circles, there is a lot of hand-wringing about how we can “fix what’s wrong” in Christendom. For what it’s worth, I don’t think the problem is a lack of manpower or zeal. Perhaps it’s just that so much of what we do is misdirected. We are perpetuating an evangelical funhouse, with mirrors to... Continue Reading
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