“In Christian cultures, envy is understood to be one of the seven deadly sins, what Shakespeare identified as a ‘universal wolf.’ But in democratic societies, envy is institutionalized, and the tenets of such envy are diligently taught to the democratic young when they rise up, when they lie down, or when they walk along the …
The Whole Person Comes
The Christian faith is not divided, because Christ is not divided. There is no division here—whether Jew or Gentile, slave or free, male or female, black or white, young or old. Neither is there a division between internal and external. There are those who seek to introduce such distinctions, just as there have been those …
Without Sandpapering It
The Word of God is a hammer, Jeremiah says, that breaks a rock in pieces. It is not a flattering caress. The Scriptures are no Judas kiss. The textures of God’s revelation to sinful man are not smooth and silken vanities. Isaiah the prophet spoke to the proud and arrogant of his day, and used …
The Day of Death
Our knowledge of the greatest journey we will ever undertake is lamentably sketchy. Some of this is obviously because of the nature of the case—death is a great barrier. But at least part of our ignorance is the result of not studying what the Scriptures teach us about this. “For we know that if our …
Mix and Match Identities
“When you say about a painting, a music video, or a pair of jeans, ‘I like this,’ you make some sort of judgment, but it’s not a judgment of quality. In Nobrow, judgments about which brand of jeans to wear are more like judgments of identity than quality. These judgments do not depend on knowledge …
Inescapable Blasphemy Laws
“Every culture has blasphemy laws. They are not always called that, but no society allows citizens to rail against the reigning deity. In our pluralistic times, these blasphemy laws are called ‘hate crimes’ legislation, among other euphemisms, but they are really religious protections to keep the reigning god, demos, from being blasphemed” (The Case for …
Your Kindness is Forever Sure
Minister: Lift up your hearts! Congregation: We lift them up to the Lord! Torment is my lot, deliver me, I hold tight to Your law. God, plead my cause, deliver me, And quicken me, fulfill Your Word, Keep all Your promises to me. Salvation is a distant isle From all these wicked men. They do …
Sacrificial Violence
We know from the Scriptures that those who maliciously seek to inflict violence on others—whether verbally, or physically, or within the confines of their own bitter hearts—are incurring guilt. But at the same time it is important for us to note that this is not what they are seeking to do. They are not trying …
Gladness and Strength
God delights to feed His people. In Psalm 104:15, we learn that wine has been given to make glad the heart of man. We learn in the same verse that bread was given to strengthen the heart of man. Strength and gladness are therefore here on this Table before us. God has given us the …
Lots of Death Spirals
Mark Driscoll has some good things to say here about the Episcopalian death spiral. HT: Justin Taylor Speaking of death spirals, seven Canadian women have decided to take the innovative thinking about marriage (that is all the rage these days) to the next so-called level. They have decided to marry themselves, which should at least …