The word for pollution is alisgema, and is used once. In Acts 15:20, the decision of the Jerusalem Council was that the Gentiles needed to abstain from certain basic things, among them the pollutions of idols. However much idolatry may appeal to that which is primitive, and therefore pure, the end result of all forms …
Stay Real
“We must put away all notion of self-importance. God will not bless the man who thinks himself great. To glory even in the work of God the Holy Spirit in yourself is to tread dangerously near to self-adulation. ‘Let another praise thee, and not think own lips,’ and be very glad when that other has …
Why Discussions Get Hot Sometimes
“And that explains the vehemence with which attacks on someone’s assumptions are met; they are often attacks on that person’s unacknowledged religion” (Herbert Schlossberg, Idols for Destruction, p. 8).
Penitential Seasons
Since we are coming up on Easter, my sermon yesterday was on penitential seasons like Lent and Advent. You can listen to it here.
Triple Threat
The New Testament rejects boasters (Rom. 1:30; 2 Tim. 3:2), and so it is not surprising that it also condemns the sin of boasting. The word is aladzoneia, and is rendered as boasting once and as pride once. The man who thinks he controls his own life, and who is going to go here or …
Yelling Is Not Preaching
“We must cultivate a cogent as well as a clear style; our speech must be forceful. Some imagine that this consists in speaking loudly, but i can assure them they are in error. Nonsense does not improve by being bellowed . . . Let us be forcible by reason of the excellence of our matter, …
Intangible Idols
“Idolatry in its larger meaning is properly understood as any substitution of what is created for the creator. People may worship nature, money, mankind, power, history, or social and political systems instead of the God who created them all. The New Testament writers, in particular, recognized that the relationship need not be explicitly one of …
Gnosticism Run Through the Filters
The first chapter of Schneider’s book describes the rise of democratic capitalism, a phenonemon that caused the Church to confront something brand new in human history — the rise of mass affluence. The Church had always had to deal with wealth, and with the wealth of wealthy members, and then had to deal with her …
Freedom Index
Before continuing my review of Schneider’s book, let me make one additional comment on a point I made in my first post. Use of catch-phrases like “capitalism” are often not very helpful because they are used in confusing ways by numerous disparate groups. At the same time, relative freedom from government officials pilfering your resources …
Going to Psalm Sing
“Dad, do we have to go to the psalm sing tonight?” “Well, it depends on what you mean by ‘have to.’ If you mean, ‘does the church require all members to attend?’ the answer is no. We can sit right here and watch the game if we like—which I suspect is the real reason for …