Agreeing to Disagree? How Christians Should Respond When They Disagree
Have you ever experienced a church or denominational conflict?[1] You know the scene: A group has split into two or three factions, each claiming the moral high ground. We might roll our eyes when this happens over petty things, but are factions ever justified? In a Relevant Magazine article, Brett McCracken points to six issues that divide Christians today: homosexuality, universalism, politics, evolution, women in ministry, and the...
Suffering in Silence
I was alone. It’s ironic to think about, since, as a pastor, my life is about people. Yet in my first few years of ministry, I suffered, feeling completely alone. It wasn’t that I didn’t expect to suffer. Being on the front lines of spiritual warfare will bring with it battle wounds. There will be opposition until Christ returns. I understood this, and I accepted that some form of suffering comes with ministry. What took me by...
Cultural Exegesis: A Primer
Karl Barth allegedly quipped that Christians should “do theology with the Bible in one hand, and the newspaper in the other.”[1] His point is that the Christian, in thinking about the truth of God, should understand how God’s truth and today’s world intersect. Theology is fundamentally practical. Yet practical theology can also be a daunting task. While the Bible provides clarity on the things of God, we may struggle to apply these...
“The Teaching of the Creatures”: An Early English Free Will Baptist Appeal for a “Serious” and Thoughtful Christian Worldview
Romans 1:20 For since the creation of the world His invisible attributes, His eternal power and divine nature, have been clearly seen, being understood through what has been made, so that they are without excuse. (NASB) In 1651, sixty-one men, representing thirty General-Free Will Baptist congregations in England, gathered together to commit to paper a formal statement of their beliefs and practices. Appropriately named The...
Evil, Hope, and the End of the World: An Interview with Michael Zeigler
The Reverend Dr. Michael Zeigler is the pastor of Epiphany Lutheran Church in St. Louis and is an adjunct instructor of Systematic Theology at Concordia Seminary. Michael has become a good friend over the last few years. He is a great model of how one should wed sincere pastoral concern to significant theological reflection. He sat down with me recently to discuss the published form of his doctoral dissertation, Christian Hope Among...
An Introduction to Conservativism: Canons One-Three
Russell Kirk (1918-94) is credited with reviving modern conservatism. He was a prolific author of more than three dozen works, including letters, non-fiction, novels, short stories, and more. At a time when many believed that conservatism was in its twilight, Kirk emerged with the dawn. Rod Dreher identifies Kirk as “one of the key figures in the renascence of twentieth-century American conservatism.”[1] If you describe yourself as a...
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