“One of our cultural commonplaces is that the Puritans were dour iconoclasts, capable of smashing beautiful things in cathedrals, but incapable of producing anything of literary merit. But if we examine the works produced in the sixteenth and seventeenth centuries by men who were either Puritans or establishment Protestants, what do we find? These men …
Which Rarely Turns Out Well
“Domineering fathers and manipulative mothers are frequently tempted to use the courtship model as a way of controlling their children instead of serving them” (From 5 Paths, p. 81).
Three Questions on Guidance
“When the revealed will of God for all Christians is being honored, what is our responsibility after that? We have a great responsibility to conduct our lives, including this aspect, with wisdom. I counsel young people to consider three basic questions as they attempt to do that. What are your abilities? What are your opportunities? …
Her Name is Suzy Lordschoice
“An attractive young woman joins the college and career group at church, and all of a sudden about ten guys start hearing from the Holy Spirit” (From 5 Paths, p. 77).
Honor, Not Dishonor
[Concerning 1 Pet. 3:7, on the wife as the weaker vessel] “Too often men read this passage and unfortunately respond to it with a junior high mentality. Thinking of every difference in terms of competition, they start doing a little touchdown dance. ‘My wife loses! I am the strong one!’ But this response just proves, …
And They Were On Fire Too
“Modern prejudices against the Puritans and Reformers make it hard for us to see that sixteenth-century Puritans were not scribblers of fundamentalist screeds, but foremost scholars, poets, historians, and writers . . . It is too often assumed that our Reformers were simply hedge preachers or hot gospelers, but that is a gross caricature. In …
Real Home Authority
“The caricature of headship is that of a bossy man demanding food and sex when and where he wants it. The caricature of submission is that of a mousy wife acting the role of a compliant doormat. But the real model for headship is Jesus Christ . . . Husbands are called to love their …
Some Else Going On
“When a young man is approaching a young woman, she can kid herself about the nature of his interest for a long time. But if he approaches her father, her father knows exactly what is going on. Dad will be much harder to persuade that the young man has suddenly developed a spontaneous interest in …
Full Boil
“The preconditions of the Reformation were everywhere — the heat was spread evenly across the bottom of the pot. When the bubbles first started to appear, they seemed like solitary events — first John Wycliffe . . . then Jan Hus, the Bohemian reformer . . . then Luther. But by the time of Luther, …
So Let’s Not Kid Ourselves
“When a guy singles out a young woman in some romantic fashion, this means that one of two things is happening. Either he is trying to get her into bed dishonorably, or he is attempting to get her into bed honorably” (From 5 Paths, p. 72).