Thoughts on ethics, society, politics, religion, philosophy, theology, and everything in between
In addition to the seven main classical virtues of the Christian tradition, there is at least one other Christian virtue that is vitally important for Christians to develop: integrity. Integrity means being honest, being consistent, being true to one’s convictions, and being true to who you are. For Christians, of course, “being true to who … Read more
Church Discipline and Individualism Along with the preaching of God’s word and the administration of the sacraments, church discipline is one of the three marks of the church. Without it, there cannot be a genuine community of Christian disciples. Both Jesus (Matt 15:18-20) and the apostle Paul (I Cor 5:1-13, 2 Thess 3:6-14) clearly teach … Read more
According to the New Testament, the church is God’s holy covenant people. It is the family of God. It is the community of Jesus’s disciples. It is the body of Christ. It is the redeemed and renewed humanity, the firstfruits of God’s new creation. When we look at the church as it exists today and … Read more
An Emotion Contemporary Christian worship music is typically light on theological doctrine. Rather than focusing on instructing the congregation in theological truth and reinforcing that knowledge, it tends to focus on producing a certain emotional state in the congregation. Music is one of the most powerful influencers of human emotion, and Christian music composers know … Read more
The sixteenth century Protestant Reformation called into question various aspects of late medieval Church teaching having to do with the nature of the Church, the sacraments, and the relationship between the authority of Scripture and the authority of Church tradition. Arguably the biggest issue that eventually divided Protestantism from Roman Catholicism, though, had to do … Read more
Calvinism vs. Arminianism For centuries, Christian theologians have debated the relationship between God’s sovereignty and human freedom. The early Greek Church Fathers tended to have a robust view of human freedom and responsibility, even as they affirmed the need for God’s grace in order to be saved from our sin. The great fifth century theologian … Read more
Because God is Holy, nothing sinful can bear to be in His presence. So, when God’s holy covenant people sin, this creates a serious problem, threatening their relationship with Him. In the Old Testament, God provided a sacrificial system to His people by which they could make “atonement” for their sins, rectifying the threat to … Read more
WWJD? What Would Jesus Do? This phrase, often abbreviated as WWJD, was extremely popular in Christian circles back in the 90s, when WWJD bracelets could be seen on the wrists of many young Christians. Though the use of WWJD has declined greatly since then, it is still quite recognizable as a popular Christian phrase today. … Read more
Traditionally, Christians have believed that human beings are composed of two parts: a material body and an immaterial soul. This is what is known as a dualist understanding of human nature. Recently, however, an increasing number of Christians have claimed that human beings are not composed of two distinct parts, but are made up of … Read more
Traditional theism has held that God is “immutable,” meaning that God cannot change. If God changes for the worse, then God would become imperfect. On the other hand, if God changes for the better, then that would mean that God was previously imperfect. Both of these possibilities would contradict the fact that God is the … Read more