Tag: Bible
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Waxing Nostalgic
I was going through some old emails the other day and came across an email I wrote to my kids on the occasion of one of them graduating from high school. This is a slightly edited and slightly depersonalized version of that email: ———— Graduating high school is an important milestone in life. It’s a…
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Notes on Anti-Semitism
Some thoughts on the current anti-Semitism trends: ———- Questions for anti-Semitic “Christians”: Much of the NT was written to instruct Christians about how to deal with their persecutors, most of whom were Jewish. Are you willing to follow those instructions? The book of James is particularly relevant here since it addresses precisely this issue. If you…
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Merry 8th Day of Christmas!
Merry 8th day of Christmas! And happy Jesus’ circumcision day! Today is the Feast of the Circumcision and Naming of Jesus. Luke takes care to record Jesus’ circumcision in 2:21. The shedding of blood on Jesus’ 8th day can rightly be viewed as a foreshadowing of the cross. His circumcision confirms that Jesus is a…
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A Christmas Chronology: Notes on Matthew 1-2 and Luke 1-2
If you put the first two chapters of Matthew and the first two chapters of Luke together, you can basically plot the first 40 days of Jesus life with a good bit of detail. Both Matthew and Luke record the day of Jesus’ birth in Bethlehem (day 1). Luke tells us he was circumcised on…
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Exhortations: Four baptisms, a funeral, and the Eucharist
God calls some to himself in the womb. Others he calls to himself later in life. R is one called later in life. God has worked powerfully in R’s life over the last several months, opening his eyes to see the horror of his sin and the beauty of Jesus. R has come to see…
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From the Archive: AIMING AT SHALOM:THE CHURCH’S MISSION OF JUSTICE AND MERCY
AIMING AT SHALOM:THE CHURCH’S MISSION OFJUSTICE AND MERCY This article was originally published in 2004. Charles Spurgeon once quipped, “If you give a man the gospel, wrap it in a sandwich. And if you give a man a sandwich, wrap it in the gospel.” With those words, the great Baptist preacher captured the essence of the…
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Patriarchy and the Calvinist Tradition
Calvinists have obviously always been patriarchal, but it should also be noted Geneva in Calvin’s day was one of the first places in the world to make domestic violence a crime. Wife-beating or any other form of domestic violence was dealt with swiftly in Calvin’s Geneva. Numerous other pastors, ethicists, and theologians in the Calvinist…
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Calvinism: Not Just a Pretty TULIP
This article was published at The American Reformer. “Calvin had inspired in his disciples that energy of piety which abhors all halfway measures, which boldly endeavors to make all affairs of life subject to Christ, the Head and Lord.” – Augustus Lang Calvinism used to be a cultural force. In fact, Calvinists have a long…
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Trump wins!
This is part of the email going out to my congregation this morning: “He who sits in the heavens laughs.” Those words from Psalm 2:4 certainly rang true last night. In the providence of God, we have just witnessed the greatest political comeback in American history. Donald Trump has battled back from losing the 2020…
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From the Archives: A Visionary Ecclesiology (2002)
A Primer for Church Members on the Nature and Functions of the Body of Christ Introductory Note: I intend this paper to serve as something of a “user’s guide” for church members, though church leaders may also find it valuable in developing vision statements for their local bodies. I have not “proven” all my assertions with…
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