We have seen that the devil baits his hook with sinful pleasures, and then, when the hapless sinner bites, he gives a deft tug on the hook of accusation. Now the fish might well protest, when being hauled into the boat of condemnation by the ruthless fisherman, that the worm was not his idea. “Why …
Book of the Month/March 2013
Gosh, what a book. I really cannot recommend this book highly enough. This will be a relatively short review — what I want to do is give a brief summary of the set-up, mention three things about it that were simply wonderful, and then conclude with a plea for you to get it and …
Book of the Month/March 2013
Gosh, what a book. I really cannot recommend this book highly enough. This will be a relatively short review — what I want to do is give a brief summary of the set-up, mention three things about it that were simply wonderful, and then conclude with a plea for you to get it and read …
Peer Pressure Review
One of the claims I have been making is that the world runs on accusation. Searching out the truth, examining the arguments, and making your decisions on that basis is one way of doing business, but another, much more popular way, is to find out what all the other kids are doing, and just go …
One Kind of Cup on the Table
I am arguing that the world runs on the energy of accusation and condemnation. This is how people are kept in line. I am also arguing that the death of Jesus Christ on the cross has fundamentally undone that system of condemnation. Since Jesus died and rose, the whole thing has been unraveling, and cannot …
Because Snakes Don’t Have Feet
The Bible consistently speaks of leaving the old way of life in terms of leaving the way of envy. Sins are like grapes, which means that they come in clusters, and so other things are consistently mentioned as well. A number of our sins do come in bundles. But one of the things we must …
A Serpent Impaled
It would be an easy mistake to think that the devil wants us all to become ethical relativists. But this is like thinking that the kidnapper wants the child to have some candy. It is like thinking the homeowner wants to the mouse to have a bit of cheese, and so he put some out …
We Don’t Understand!
I am visting California for a few days, and the fiscal/business woes here caused me to reflect on the mentality of those who are industriously ruining the country. The canker is well-advanced in some states — Illinois, say, or California — but the problem is everywhere.So why are Californians leaving California? What is causing the …
Three Kinds of Accusation
The human heart is not divided up into watertight compartments, and thus it is possible to make obvious distinctions in how we respond to accusation without making absolute distinctions. That said, people are generally put on the defensive by guilt, shame, or fear. Obviously, more than one can operate at a time, but generally one …
A World of Right Reason
When the apostle describes a generic condition of unbelief, it is interesting how he does it. When we lived in unbelief, what was the atmosphere we breathed continually? “For we ourselves also were sometimes foolish, disobedient, deceived, serving divers lusts and pleasures, living in malice and envy, hateful, and hating one another” (Tit. 3:3). For …