“Fireproof and Courageous . . . could have been every bit as heavy-handed without exciting comment had the message been about climate change, treating a gay teenage boy with dignity and respect, or some down-‘n-out protagonist discovering the critical importance of ‘believing in himself'” (Rules, p. 247).
Two Ways to Go, and One of Them’s Bad
“There are only two forms of engagement that Christians can engage in — we must either adopt a transformationalist approach or a compromising approach. If we are not going to go the escapist route, waiting for the rapture, we must either take every thought captive, or we must split the difference” (Rules, p. 241)
No Substitute
“If we are going to be engaged in true cultural reformation, we need a gospel that kicks the devil in the teeth. And that means it must be a message of penal, substitutionary, vicarious blood-bought atonement. When it comes to this substitute, we must accept no substitutes” (Rules, p. 239).
Ancient of Dawns
“Because He is the living God, because He is the fountain of life, this means that all the days involved in that glorious title Ancient of Days, are each of them new days. They are new days, and they remain new days. How could He grow old? He is the everlasting one. He is the …
The Extraordinary Ordinary
“To the dullard all things are dull . . . The simpleton thinks that ordinary things are ordinary . . . only a healthy soul can see how remarkable every unremarkable thing actually is. When you consider how many magnificent things can be done with a potato, you recognize the absolute sovereignty of God, and …
Conservatism Is Not a Flash Mob
“Look. I like Ronald Reagan. But defending the right wing of your civilization from Reagan on down is like appealing to the ancient lineage of Gondor — you know, way back to Denethor’s grandfather. Three stewards in a row” (Rules, p. 230).
Parade Ground Generals
“What we need are some Levites with the sword of the Spirit to ascend into their pulpits and fix it. But that might require some courage, and so as a proposed alternative we have built a conference circuit, and a series of networks and coalitions, and let’s not forget the blogs, where we have all …
Never Silent
“Find me one place in the universe that is silent about Him. The stars sing about Him. The oceans provide the bass line. The mountain ranges skip like a calf, and the tree reach yearningly toward the Heaven that they so wonderfully represent to us. And the azure sky tells men to stop bonking their …
Both Books
“But the God who passes judgment on that day is the same God who inspired the Scriptures to be written, and He is also the same God who governs the fall of sparrows, the motion of atoms in all of Neptune’s moons, the number of hairs on every head that will come up before him …
Something Is Always Mandatory
“But somebody outside is still running the show. Somebody is outside the walls of all our faith communities applying the tenets of his religion to absolutely everybody. But he is shrewd enough to call it secularism, leaving out the tell-tale prayers, candles, and altars, and poof! nobody notices that it is an imposed faith system …