One of the most entertaining parts of the World Cup this summer is watching how visitors to the United States react to various aspects of our country. Whether it is the Australian guy who could not stop praising the goodness of Texas Roadhouse or the Europeans who cannot fathom the bigness of a Costco, people are stunned by America’s greatness.              But are restaurants and grocery stores what make America great? As we celebrate America’s 250th birthday this month, it seems worthwhile to pause and reflect on what makes [...]

What do you desire? You can answer this in many ways. Maybe you desire connection and intimacy, to know and to be known deeply and truly. To be seen and loved and enjoyed and delighted in. We desire to have good friends, to be affirmed and approved, to be judged in the right, to do meaningful work, to make a difference, to create things that are beautiful and useful, to play and laugh and run and be free from every encumbrance, to be healthy and whole and stable and [...]

The belief in the existence of supernatural evil is central to Christianity. Beyond believing in its existence, Christians also believe in evil’s ongoing activity. The Scottish-born and Presbyterian theologian John Murray says that there are “unseen spiritual powers” behind all that is broken in the world. He says, “The arch-foe of the kingdom of God is not the visible powers arrayed against it; for behind these visible agents and manifestations of evil is the ingenuity, craft, malicious design, instigation and relentless activity of the devil and his ministers.” Murray [...]

Life is a series of peaks and valleys, ups and downs, highs and lows. Following Jesus is a journey filled with twists and turns, green pastures and icy mountain passes. Sometimes the sun is shining, sometimes dark clouds cover the sky. Like everything else in life, being a Christian is difficult. If it were easy, everyone would do it. But some Christians think that the life of faith is supposed to be mostly easy and happy. Many have been taught that there are three categories to describe the Christian [...]

Christianity is very Jewish. Jesus was a Jew. Jesus’s first followers were Jews. Most of the members of the first churches were Jews. Most, if not all, of the Bible is written by Jews. The New Testament is littered with quotations and allusions to the Hebrew Scriptures. And many Christian practices are rooted in Jewish traditions (eg. the Lord’s Supper reflects the Passover meal, and baptism the ritual washings). The “Jewishness” of Christianity is undeniable. God decided to save the world through Jews. His plan began with one nation [...]

In a few weeks, we will resume our study of Luke’s Gospel, going up the mountain with the disciples to see the transfiguration of Jesus (9:28-36). This short story has been long neglected in the church. In the transfiguration, we find an intertextual tapestry that draws together the doctrines of our trinitarian God, Jesus’ two natures, and the Bible’s storyline (e.g. the exodus, Moses on Mount Sinai, and Elijah’s ministry). Many of us have not seen all the glory there is to see in the transfiguration. And yet the [...]

            One of my seminary professors liked to say, “Persevere brothers, it’s the only good option!” Dr. Morrison would say this when we were overwhelmed with papers and readings and wondering how we would get it all done before the end of the semester. His statement was surprisingly effective for me. When faced with a mountain of work, the options were either to tackle it or give up. We had to pick one. We could choose to persevere or choose to give up. These were the only options, which [...]

The Stream that Leads Us to the Fountain Sometimes during the Christmas season we hear people say, “Happy holidays!” and we really wish they would have said, “Merry Christmas!” We wonder how people could have the audacity to take Christ out of Christmas, so we make sure to (emphatically) say “Merry Christmas” whenever we can. But, of course, there is no Christ in Christmas for many people these days. So we can’t expect people who do not love Jesus to promote his name. As Christians, however, we know that [...]

             “Jesus loves me, this I know, for the Bible tells me so; little ones to him belong, they are weak, but he is strong.” Maybe your parents sang this little chorus to you when you were little. Maybe you sing it to your little ones now. Did you know that the song has more than one verse? If you want to know what the other verses say, see hymn 344 in our hymnal! Sometimes when I sing this song to our children, I think to myself, “Does the [...]

Recently I was reading Tolkien’s The Silmarillion (the backstory of Middle Earth) and Andrew Robert’s The Storm of War (a history of World War II). One story is set in the beauty of an exquisite and enchanted world, with glorious beings and tales of mystery and wonder. The other story is set in the industrialized and mechanized and brutal and violent modern world. The contrast between the glory and beauty of the one world and the horrors and devastations of the other could not have been greater, especially because [...]