Would you consider yourself a fair-minded person? I mean a person who believes in equity—who holds yourself to the same standards to which you hold others; a person who really believes we shouldn’t have double …
The Words of Jesus #11
All of us grow up familiar with rules. Our parents had rules for us. Schools had rules. The community had rules. If you are the parent of a teenager, I’ll bet you have heard at …
The Words of Jesus #10
Was Jesus a pacifist? It hasn’t been much of a question in this country since the end of the draft, but it still resonates with a number of people. Did Jesus say we could not …
The Words of Jesus #9
When the history of our generation is finally written, I think historians will see the single greatest tragedy of our generation is the disintegration of the family. Some experts are now saying that half of …
The Life & Teachings of Paul #37 - 2 Timothy
Finally we come to Second Timothy. Paul is now an old man—one who had been over a lot of roads, been to a lot of places. He had been imprisoned, beaten, shipwrecked. Paul may not …
The Authentic Jesus #1
There are so many mysteries in the Bible. Yes, it was written in another language and in another culture, and there is much we simply don’t know. But I am not talking about that. I …
The Words of Jesus #8
I known I’ve been complaining about Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John not giving us more of what Jesus actually said. They’ll tell us that Jesus went into a synagogue and taught, that people were astonished …
The Words of Jesus #7
Jesus was a man of few words, so we want to pay close attention to the words he did say. When he spoke, he was often enigmatic in what he said–sometimes it was hard to …
The Words of Jesus #6
How was it possible that otherwise sane men would want to kill Jesus? Think about it. He was a quiet man. He was plainly a kind man. He was an engaging teacher and faithful to …
The Words of Jesus #5
Over the years, a common objection people raised to religion is that, well, it’s pie in the sky. Religion, they think, has some vague promises of benefits in the next life, but it doesn’t do …
The Life & Teachings of Paul #36 - Titus
Titus was a younger man than Paul, and is called his own son after the common faith. Titus had assisted him since at least the Jerusalem Conference, so by the time Paul gets around to …
Christian Origins #64 - Ephesians
There seems to be a difference between a secret and a mystery. At the very least, the Bible seems to use the word mystery in more than once sense. For example, there might be something …
The Words of Jesus #4
I doubt if there are any words of Jesus more widely quoted and better known than his little statement in John 3:16: For God so loved the world, that he gave his only begotten Son, …
The Words of Jesus #3
Whatever image you have in your mind of Jesus Christ, it is surely wrong. None of his disciples told us anything at all about how Jesus looked—which is a curious oversight, in a way, because …
The Words of Jesus #2
Nothing is more central to the Christian faith than baptism. Whether it be by immersion, sprinkling, or pouring, baptism is the initiation rite to the Christian church. If you haven’t been baptized somehow, someway, you …
The Words of Jesus #1
Did it ever occur to you to wonder why Jesus didn’t write his own book? Why do have Matthew, Mark, Luke, and John as the four Gospels, but no Gospel According to Jesus? And have …
The Life & Teachings of Paul #35 - 1 Timothy
Let no man despise your youth; but be an example of the believers, in word, in conduct, in love, in spirit, in faith, in purity. Till I come, give attendance to reading, to exhortation, to …
The Starting Point
Nancy Pearcey, in her book Total Truth, brought something into focus that I had thought about but hadn’t quite got together. She observed that a common weakness of evangelism is that we start with redemption. …
Making Life Work #24
I’ve never known of a womanizer who really liked women. Women are useful to him, things to satisfy his ego—but not people he respects or cares about (or, more importantly, cares for). There may have …
Making Life Work #23
Only by pride comes contention: but with the well advised is wisdom. We all know that too much pride is a bad thing. And we all know that humility is a virtue. But what are …