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The other kinds of church abuse
Spiritual abuse is about more than predatory pastors, conmen, and cover-ups. There are common forms of spiritual abuse happening in many churches that, if not confronted, will foster a perfect breeding ground for predators and frauds to flourish.
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Does God take His Holy Spirit away from Christians? Some thoughts on Psalm 51:11
The one where I think through the implications of a troubling line from a popular hymn adapted from Psalm 51.
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Does James 2 deny faith alone?
The one where I get really nerdy detangling the wires we’ve crossed in Paul’s and James’ teachings on justification and faith.
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Evening and morning: how Day One of creation foreshadows the Christian life
The one where I talk about how the ordering of the first day of creation—first evening, then morning—foreshadows what God is doing through the Gospel.
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Vertical and horizontal: how distinguishing the directions of the Christian life can strengthen assurance
The one where I explain how our security in the vertical dimension—peace with God through Christ—comforts believers in our struggles in the horizontal dimension. Which includes ourselves and everything else that’s not God.
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Some further thoughts on the Holy Spirit in Romans
The one where I explain how Romans chapters 6 and 8 are telling a particular story, from different angles. And how understanding this will help us rescue a gem of pastoral theology for struggling Christians in Romans 7:15 – 8:2. (Fair warning, this one is heady, and I’m still working out the finer points.)
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The Spirit of Holiness: Brief Thoughts on the work of the Spirit in Believers
In Romans 1:4, St. Paul refers to the Holy Spirit as the “Spirit of holiness.” This phrase alerts us to the totality and all-pervasiveness of the Spirit’s work in the sanctification of believers: it is all “from the Lord, who is the Spirit” (2 Corinthians 3:18).
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What does it mean to be “above reproach”?
Scripture calls church leaders to be “above reproach” (1 Timothy 3:2; Titus 1:6-7). What does this mean? And how can unrealistic standards for “above reproach” lead to unhealthy and even abusive leadership in churches?
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Does marriage make us holy?
There’s a popular sentiment in Christianity these days that the purpose of marriage is to make you holy. Is that really what marriage is for?
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Why Christians Have Nothing to Fear on Judgment Day (No, seriously!)
The one where I attempt to detangle a veritable rat king of unhealthy teaching regarding final judgment, to remind believers that for those in Christ, final judgment will be by grace alone, through faith alone, in Christ alone—just like the rest of our salvation.
the sermonator
scribblings and sermons: doctrinal, devotional, and practical
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