It is very easy to love ideas. Daydreams about democracy. Fantasies of charity. Imaginations drifting over a world at peace. Meanwhile, we are tyrants at home and work. Our hands are closed fists toward the poor and needy. We are mad at our families, angry at our neighbors, at war with every coworker, and even... Continue Reading →
In our current evangelical climate, the Sabbath has momentum. While it is likely that the dominant interpretation of the Sabbath is still that it has been fulfilled in Jesus Christ, and the literal and physical requirements of the day are no longer binding (cf. Romans 14:5, Colossians 2:16-17), there is certainly a growing movement that... Continue Reading →
One of my favorite scenes in C.S. Lewis’s novel The Great Divorce involves quite the trio: a ghost, a lizard, and an angel. The little red Lizard sits upon the Ghost’s shoulders, perfectly positioned to whisper in his ear. The Ghost, who is living between heaven and hell, still has a chance to enter the... Continue Reading →
Over the last few centuries, there have been some powerhouse intellectual figures who have thrown their weight against the Christian faith. Whether Voltaire, Hume, Nietzsche, Marx, Darwin, or Russel, many have brought various charges against Christianity. Of course, not to be forgotten is the great psychologist Sigmund Freud. One of Freud’s primary themes was that... Continue Reading →
All too often in theology, different concepts or aspects of an idea are pitted against one another, as if they could not be mutually compatible. One area that this is prone to occur is when discussing the atonement. The English word ‘atonement’ derives comes from the phrase, ‘At-One-Ment,’ with reference to reconciling parties that were... Continue Reading →
It is important, critical really, to seek to read more books well, rather than to merely read more books. Too often, we readers can be so focused on breaking our reading records, that we fail to slow down and let the reading we’ve done do its work. Reflection. Study. Writing. Rereading. All these are best... Continue Reading →