Rebellion

About one hundred years before the northern kingdom was carried into exile by Assyrian armies, and just two years before the earthquake, the Lion roared from Zion. Yahweh raised up and sent his prophet, Amos of Tekoa, into the northern kingdom to announce a coming inescapable judgment. Exile. Amos...

At the start of his ministry the Lord Jesus used just two verbs to summarize the good news of his kingdom: “Repent and believe in the gospel” (Mark 1:15). Paul condensed his ministry in a similar way: I testified “both to Jews and to Greeks of repentance toward God and of faith in our Lord Jesus...

“So then, brothers, we are debtors, not to the flesh, to live according to the flesh. For if you live according to the flesh you will die, but if by the Spirit you put to death the deeds of the body, you will live.” – Romans 8:12-13 We come now to one of those verses where a mere 1500 words cannot...

This combination of words appears to put the Christian on the “horns of a dilemma”. It seems that you must, “pick your poison”. To hold to belief in the sovereignty of God seems untenable because God somehow cannot eliminate or control the evil in the world, or, if he is sovereign, he must be...

Learning about the battle between popes and civil authorities in medieval Europe feels a bit like an episode of Oprah’s show: “You get excommunicated; you get excommunicated; everyone gets excommunicated.” Of course it famously culminated in Henry VIII finally not going along with the program and...

The right preaching of the Gospel, the right administration of the sacraments and church discipline have together been held, among Protestants, as the key marks of any true church. And though the third mark, church discipline, has sadly been neglected in modern evangelicalism (greatly damaging the...

Jonathan and James go guestless, discussing one-on-one the answer to Westminster Shorter Catechism Question 38 concerning the benefits believers will enjoy from Christ at the resurrection. Though we are already thoroughly blessed by our relationship with Christ, there are three distinct benefits...

Author Jim Belcher illustrates his chapter, “The Struggle Within,” [1] with a compelling psychoanalysis of Robert Lewis Stevenson’s classic novel, The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde. [2] Dr. Henry Jekyll, a reputable scientist wanting to enjoy being exclusively good without the lure of...

I doubt that many readers will have any difficulty accepting the premise that we live in tumultuous times. Consider the contradictory claims surrounding the recent election: “There was no Fraud!” “Stop the Steal!” How about claims related to COVID 19? “Masks do not do any good.” “Mask demonstrably...

First, let it be known that God hates; He hates sin and he hates sinners. [1] And we ought not shy away from this truth for it is really only out of this reality that the Gospel explodes with such wonderful good news. The God who hates sinners also loves sinners and sent his only Son to die and...