Author: Pastor Rich Lusk
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Usury (Again)
Ronald Wallace summarizes John Calvin’s view of usury (charging interest on loans): “For centuries before Calvin’s day, the Church and most other authorities had applied the Biblical condemnation of usury quite directly to commercial practices, and had prohibited loans at interest… Calvin was the first to question the older method of interpreting the Bible on…
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Whose Rainbow Is It? Notes on Genesis 9
The rainbow (or “war bow”) is a sign of God’s covenant fidelity to Noah – he will preserve the created order and will not destroy the world in a flood again (even though men will continue to be sinners). Further, the rainbow is a sign that God himself will bear the judgment his people deserve…
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JESUS’ BAPTISM — THE FOUNT OF LIFE: A Study in Biblical and Practical Theology
[These are Sunday School notes from a class taught during Epiphany, 2004.] Introductory Note: January 6 is Epiphany in the traditional church calendar. Though Epiphany is often treated as a single day, with the Sundays following counted as “Sundays after Epiphany,” we will treat Epiphany as an extended season. “Epiphany” means “revelation” or “manifestation.” Following…
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Notes on Suffering
Thanksgiving is the key to the enjoyment of any gift. Thanksgiving is the key that unlocks joy. Thanksgiving in all circumstances, especially in the midst of suffering, is crucial. When we are suffering, the great temptation is to think God isn’t good, meaning he isn’t generous, he doesn’t love us, he doesn’t have our best…
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From the Archives: Theses on Food and Feasting (Revised)
[This was written several years ago and has been available on the the “essays” section of the website, but I’m republishing it here with a few edits.] Jesus made it clear we are not defined by what goes into our mouths but what comes out of them (Mark 7). To call some foods “clean” or…
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December 2025 – X Posts and Miscellanies: Feminism, Christmas, Parenting, Drugs and the Demonic, Sexual Ethics, Socialism as Substitute Patriarchy, DEI, Guns and the Second Amendment, Civil Government/Romans 13, Virgin Birth, Communism, Newbigin on Christendom, Etc.
In C. S. Lewis’ Last Battle, Queen Lucy says, “In our world too, a stable once had something inside it that was bigger than our whole world.” Christmas is about the Creator becoming a creature in order to redeem his creatures. It’s about the God of Israel becoming the perfect Israelite to fulfill Israel’s mission…
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Christopher Caldwell’s Age of Entitlement — A Few Notes and Questions
These are some notes from a while back, prepared for a discussion of Caldwell’s book: This is a compelling book. It’s straight forward and ruthless in its analysis. I thought his assessment of Reagan was harsh but probably fair overall – Reagan had some great rhetoric about limited government but did not have the nerve to…
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The National Association of Evangelicals and Christian Nationalism
Tell me about the National Association of Evangelicals proposing an amendment acknowledging the lordship of Christ over America in the 1950s. AI answers: Yes, the National Association of Evangelicals (NAE) supported efforts in the late 1940s and 1950s to promote a constitutional amendment that would explicitly acknowledge the authority and lordship of Jesus Christ over…
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Driscoll, Wilson, and the Mars Hill Fiasco
I enjoyed this podcast conversation with Mark Driscoll and Doug Wilson: I especially liked the part of the discussion where they contrasted pastors with social media influencers. Many social media influencers are insulated from the “real world” implications of their content. Pastors deal with the messy details of people’s lives (or at least they should).…
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FUTURE JUSTIFICATION: SOME THEOLOGICAL AND EXEGETICAL PROPOSALS
SOME THEOLOGICAL AND EXEGETICAL PROPOSALS FUTURE JUSTIFICATION: SOME THEOLOGICAL AND EXEGETICAL PROPOSALS [This essay was originally published in the book A Faith That Is Never Alone edited by Andrew Sandlin.] Before offering my exegetical and theological proposals for a doctrine of “future justification,” I need to offer a few preliminary principles that set the stage…
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