A close walk with Jesus
Sometimes we can be surprised by the kind of things theologians say that seem to resonate with us. We might expect them to be profound insights into a particular doctrine; but, more often than not, it is because of a…
Tag Christ
Gregory of Nyssa – A Lone Voice Against Slavery
Gregory of Nyssa – A Lone Voice Against Slavery I have already written about Gregory of Nyssa[1] – one of the Three Cappadocian Fathers – and his compassion toward the poor. But he deserves another article, for a stand that…
Sanctification: Different From Justification
When it comes to justification and sanctification, you cannot have one without the other. It is important to understand that justification and sanctification are distinct aspects of our salvation in Jesus Christ but justification and sanctification are also inseparable aspects…
The Resurrection: Motivation for Holiness
Motivation is what moves us to do something. For some, the reason for being at the gym is the ten or twenty pounds they need to lose. Some study for grades. Some study to get beyond the poverty in which…
Resurrection: Union with Christ
Puritan pastor Walter Marshall concludes his magisterial work on a believer’s sanctification, The Gospel Mystery of Sanctification, with the simple but profound dictum that “Sanctification in Christ is glorification begun as glorification is sanctification perfected.”[1] What makes this statement work…
The Resurrection: Historical Reliability
He is not here; for He is risen, as He said. Come, see the place where the Lord lay. Mat. 28:6NKJV Very early in the second century, a Roman historian named Publius Cornelius Tacitus referred to the resurrection of Christ…
The Gospel Matters
Let me begin with an affirmation. The Gospel Matters. Some will immediately accuse me of being antagonistic. After all, Stan Wischnowski ran a headline that read “Buildings Matter” and he found himself without a job.[1] But I am not an…
Gospel Unity or Black Lives Matter
As a pastor, I am for unity. It is part and parcel of the fabric of what it means to be a Christian. I am united to Christ by virtue of the Spirit of unity indwelling me. The Apostle Paul…
Justification and Assurance
These things I have written to you who believe in the name of the Son of God, that you may know that you have eternal life… 1 John 5:13aNKJ The Protestant Reformation is most often remembered and celebrated as the…
Justification and Counseling
Justification is an act of God’s free grace, wherein he pardoneth all our sins, and accepteth us as righteous in his sight, only for the righteousness of Christ imputed to us, and received by faith alone.[i] When this pastor begins…