Thoughts on ethics, society, politics, religion, philosophy, theology, and everything in between
The U.S. Supreme Court recently overturned its 1973 Roe v. Wade decision, which had established the legal freedom to have an abortion as a Constitutional right. This has moved the question of the legality of abortion back into the democratic legislative process (where it belongs), and a number of states have quickly moved to make … Read more
The Ethical Consequences of Progressive Christianity It is no secret that progressive Christianity’s abandonment of historic Christian orthodoxy is often motivated by a desire to be free of the constraints of traditional Christian sexual ethics. While the Church has always believed that human sexuality should be expressed either through celibacy or through a lifelong covenant … Read more
“If we claim to be without sin, we deceive ourselves and the truth is not in us. If we confess our sins, he is faithful and just and will forgive us our sins and purify us from all unrighteousness” (I John 1:8-9). Confession of sin is a vitally important part of being a Christian. There … Read more
Obsessed with Sex? The contemporary Church is way too obsessed with sexual morality. It wastes so much time and energy preaching an extreme, prudish standard of sexual ethics, rather than focusing on more important ethical issues. Obviously, justice is much more important than chastity. Insisting on the extreme, traditional standards of Christian sexual ethics does … Read more
The Psalms occupy a unique place in the canon of Scripture. Most of the writings that make up the Scriptures consist of God’s prophetic words to us, or narratives about God’s dealings with human beings in salvation history. The book of Psalms, on the other hand, is a collection of human prayers addressed to God. … Read more
Theonomy or Dismissal? What does the Old Testament Law have to tell Christians about how they should live today? Christians have given a wide variety of answers to this question. On one end of the spectrum there are theonomists, who believe that the Old Testament Law should be the model for the laws of civil … Read more
According to the modernist view of truth, there is a set of indubitable truths universally accessible by the reason of any human being which can provide the foundation for certain knowledge. Upon this foundation, we can then build our other beliefs, secure in the knowledge that our beliefs are certain and reasonable. In this way, … Read more
The Gospel and Nonviolence “When people with power see things happen of which they disapprove, they drop bombs and send in tanks. When people without power see things of which they disapprove, they smash store windows, blow themselves up in crowded places, and fly planes into buildings. The fact that both methods have proved remarkably … Read more
Theological Ethics “A properly Christian ethic cannot hold to the notion of a general ethics and remain Christian. To advocate this is to demand that Christians who are subject to the Word of God share that allegiance with something which is autonomous from God’s Word. For Christians to resort to an autonomous general ethics, as … Read more
Doctrine and Ethics Which is more important: right belief or right action? We have all heard this question asked countless times. Usually, this question is asked by people who then confidently answer that right action is obviously more important; therefore, right belief, right theology, does not matter. After all, people can have true beliefs while … Read more