My interaction with Brad Littlejohn on this pink hair business is going to have to proceed very careful lest the whole thing turn into a love fest. I think we have established that we largely agree on the principles, at least at 30,000 feet. The issue remaining, as I understand it, is how much of …
How Liberty of Conscience Looks in Yoga Pants
Brad Littlejohn made a thoughtful contribution to the great pink hair discussion here, and he was going great until he got to the part about what binding consciences actually looks like. But his beginning was really strong—he sees that pastoral work centers on numerous applications of first century principles to twenty-first century tangles. “To preach …
No Baptismal Scar
The situation described in the following letters continues to be entirely fictitious, including persons, names, crimes, sins, relationships, circumstances and all particulars. The kind of situation that is described, however, is all too common and my hope is that biblical principles applied to this fictitious scenario may be of some help to individuals tangled up …
When You Paint the Barn
Last night I posted a contribution to the discussion that Toby Sumpter kicked off, and there is already a need for a quick follow-up. I said that reasonable Christians ought not to be discussing this, and someone asked if I thought there was no such thing as responsible discussion on the topic. I said this: …
The Coronation of the Infantile
Introduction: My friend Toby Sumpter had a few wonderful things to say about one of the central confusions of our time, and it caused more discussion than it ought to have done—although the discussion did help to illustrate the confusion. But among thoughtful Christians, there really should be no discussion whatever. His words can be …
No Such Thing as 4-D Checkers
Someone once defined a liberal as someone who does not know how to take up his own side in an argument. By that definition, Trump is certainly no liberal. He only knows how to take up his own side in an argument and, depending on the day, it could be various sides of the same …
Pleasant Blessings and Hard Ones
A number of you have already heard the news that Nate is going to be undergoing brain surgery in a couple of weeks. We have been greatly encouraged by the number of people who have contacted us with assurances of prayer. Everyone in our family is doing well, but we are still eager for the …
The Manna of Anger
The situation described in the following letters continues to be entirely fictitious, including persons, names, crimes, sins, relationships, circumstances and all particulars. The kind of situation that is described, however, is all too common and my hope is that biblical principles applied to this fictitious scenario may be of some help to individuals tangled up …
The View from the Bible Balcony
Introduction: A few days ago I wrote about Watermelons and Worldviews, which engendered, as they say, discussion. It was an intro piece, and you can’t always say everything in an introduction. I was tackling a certain kind of criticism of biblical worldview thinking, the kind of criticism that inevitably makes the thinking involved less biblical. …