May a Christian be a patriot? May a Christian in the United States be a patriot? He may, he should, and in many cases, he must. The primitive Christians sent mixed signals about patriotism. They were highly skeptical about unbridled patriotism in the pagan Roman Empire. They opposed Christian participation in the military and civil [...]
Month: July 2012
The Blessed Madness of Reason
Now as he [Paul] thus made his defense, Festus said with a loud voice, “Paul, you are beside yourself! Much learning is driving you mad!” Acts 26:24 To my fellow Christians: would any unbeliever ever have warrant to accuse our vast learning of driving us mad? If not, why not? Our times are marked by [...]
The Rhetoric of “Unconditional” Grace
Tullian Tchividjian writes: “When it comes to drawing near to God and pleasing him, legalism insists that obedience precedes acceptance — that it’s all up to us. But the fresh breeze of gospel freedom announces that acceptance precedes obedience — that once we’re already approved and already accepted by God in Christ, we can freely [...]
Secularism Goes to Church
“All anyone need know about the long-term prospects of gay marriage — and of the likely fate of a political party that opposes it — is that evangelical Christians under the age of 25 are more tolerant of gay marriage than New Deal Democrats over the age of 65.” Carl M. Cannon, Politics Daily, “Gay [...]
The “Right” to Approval
This is a blunt message to Christian (and other) young adults. You are entitled to your own life choices, but you are not entitled to widespread endorsement of those choices. You have a claim on your life, but you do not have a claim on everyone else’s imprimatur. Twin traits of young adults are (a) [...]
Cultic Characteristics
These days, you may find yourself labeled a cultist simply because you believe the Bible or affirm historic Christianity, so far has modern Christendom come from its own history. However, even within the broad bounds of orthodox Christianity, certain individuals, churches and ministries manifest cultic characteristics. I’ll mention several of those characteristics. Isolation First, [...]
Impoverishing the Cross and Empty Tomb
Can We Expect Only to "Muddle Along"? I've already noted how that Mark Galli, Managing Editor of Christianity Today, has flirted with antinomianism in suggesting that the "gospel . . . takes ethics away as duty and gives it back as joy — precisely because we don’t have to do it anymore but get to [...]
