Audience relevance = personal relevance

I agree with the bulk of what’s written on Josh’s post, “Interpreting the Bible” at the Smoak House. To his well-stated comments I would like to add the following thoughts.
Nowhere in Scripture (including 1 Timothy 3:16-17) does God guarantee universal applicability of the totality of Scripture; rather, I’m convinced by several factors that His first [...]

Caution: not for the close-minded

It having recently come to my attention that a surprising number of my intimate acquaintances are uninformed of the specifics of my eschatological beliefs, and owing to my conviction that the opposing views most frequently encountered are deficient both in their ability to be supported Scripturally and in their effect on various doctrines, both abstract [...]

Clinics to grow human eggs

“A major advance in fertility treatment is signalled today as doctors unveil details of a technique that will allow human eggs to be grown in the laboratory from ovarian tissue samples.

The procedure, which is being pioneered by two British fertility clinics, involves taking a piece of ovary tissue from a woman and ‘banking’ it in [...]

The heart of worship

I’ve been musing about this for years and have finally decided to put it down in electronic pen and paper. It concerns something I’m afraid is taken for granted by many people in the “worship movement”. I can imagine some who know me thinking that I’m just trying to justify what the generous would call [...]

Podcast recommendation

Do you listen to podcasts? Would you like to start?
This guy really understands eschatology and the continuing expansion of the Kingdom (unfortunately, he’s also Reformed). Although he’s a preterist, not everything he says is about preterism, but instead he demonstrates how getting one’s eschatology right will influence one’s view on everything. His church [...]

Education: the Christian’s Contribution to Society

King Alfred the Great of England (r. 871-899) was truly one of the most remarkable men in history. The fifth son of the previous king of England, he was a man of deep Christian faith, a man of learning, and a great warrior king, the first king of an England he united and rescued from [...]

Mockery, the last and faltering line of defense against acceptance

The progression occurs something like this:
“That is appalling! I won’t allow myself to even acknowledge its existence.”
“Well, its increasing presence is making it harder to avoid thinking about it, so I’ll act hostile toward it.”
“Hostility isn’t able to stave off the onslaught, and I’m miserable when I’m hostile. I’ll ignore it.”
“Ok, ignoring is [...]

Christians in Politics: a Conversation with Samuel Adams and John Adams

Samuel Adams: “He therefore is the truest friend to the liberty of his country who tries most to promote its virtue, and who, so far as his power and influence extend, will not suffer a man to be chosen into any office of power and trust who is not a wise and virtuous man…”
Me: Hmmm…so, [...]

Who’s responsible in the Benoit case?

Today I overheard someone pondering whether the pressures of the wrestling industry were what “got to” Chris Benoit and caused the atrocities he committed. I just shook my head.
Wrestling industries don’t kill people. Wrestlers kill people.
I’m not trying to be funny here. People blame the desperation of poverty when poor people commit [...]

DeMar Tickles Creationists’ Ears

In a recent article on his website, Gary DeMar tries to pick a fight with a strawman to encourage his anti-evolutionist choir. This has bothered me so much that I had to write a response.
His main thrust comes at the end of the article in which he writes, “Atheist James A. Haught, writing [...]