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January 2014

January 24, 2014

A response to @BillMaher’s recent comments about God

I've been reading an interview with outspoken atheist comedian Bill Maher in the Atlantic. The...

January 23, 2014

Were there mushrooms in Eden?

There are few things that make me smack my head more than the idea that...

January 17, 2014

Is the Old Testament a debate between priests and prophets?

I've been reading two books recently that have me really wondering what to do with...

January 09, 2014

R.C. Sproul’s self-exalting “solidarity” with God’s holiness

I knew I was going to read something that would rankle me in RC Sproul's...

January 06, 2014

The difference between spiritual purity and moral cleanliness

Leviticus 10:10 says, "You are to distinguish between the holy and the common, and between...

December 2013

December 25, 2013

Solidarity: the meaning of Christmas

Emmanuel. God with us. That is the meaning of Christmas. Jesus was born to show...

November 2013

November 29, 2013

Eucharistic life (more than just “being thankful”)

It seemed appropriate to write about the word Eucharist since it means "thanksgiving" in Greek....

November 20, 2013

Justice of the heart and Frank Schaefer

This week, the United Methodist Church put a pastor on trial named Frank Schaefer for...

November 19, 2013

Is your life NSFJ (not safe for Jesus)?

Please excuse the gratuitous selfie; I couldn't think of another graphic to use. I was...

November 13, 2013

Lord, I thank you that I’m not like those people who thank God they’re not like other people

Our senior pastor Larry Buxton, who's a baseball nut, says that parables are supposed to...

November 06, 2013

How I read the Bible differently than John MacArthur

A friend pointed me to Tim Challies' recent interview with John MacArthur in which MacArthur...

October 2013

October 30, 2013

Mark Driscoll’s “working class” bloody Old Testament Jesus

I'm not a pacifist or a pansy (other than the fact that I'm not very...

October 22, 2013

Blasphemy of the Holy Spirit and John MacArthur’s #StrangeFire Conference

Maybe you haven't heard of John MacArthur. He hosted a conference recently called Strange Fire...

October 18, 2013

Isaiah 7 & 53: should prophecies be prooftexts?

My great-grandfather Luther Weigle [pictured here] was the dean of Yale Divinity School and chair...

October 15, 2013

The painter’s studio: a metaphor for thinking about worship

I'm at the semiannual Five Talent Academy gathering. It's an initiative of the Virginia Methodist...

October 04, 2013

Russell Moore vs. Pope Francis on evangelism

Only a Southern Baptist like Russell Moore would be crass enough to refer to a...

October 02, 2013

Rick Joyner, Larry Huch, and false prophecy

There's one thing that makes me madder at God than anything else. It's actually not...

September 2013

September 30, 2013

C.S. Lewis on loving God through loving people

For our sermon series Love Actually, which we wrapped up this past weekend, we've been...

September 14, 2013

What does Pope Francis mean by telling atheists to “abide by their own consciences”?

Well Pope Francis probably made some more Christians angry this week with a 2500 word...

September 13, 2013

Yom Kippur: What does atonement mean?

Today is Yom Kippur, Judaism's day of atonement. It's a day for fasting, repentance, and...

August 2013

August 27, 2013

Robin Thicke, Miley Cyrus, and the death of eros

No, Will Smith and his family weren't actually watching Miley Cyrus and Robin Thicke grind...

August 26, 2013

How the despised ones bring everything to nothing (1 Cor 1:28)

"He has chosen the lowly things of this world: the despised ones and those who...

August 25, 2013

Yoder-gate: learning how to speak nonviolently

Sometime in the last couple of weeks, I got wind of the John Howard Yoder...

August 20, 2013

What is the burden of proof in the #Methodist #homosexuality debate?

In the American justice system, all defendants are innocent until proven guilty beyond a reasonable...

August 19, 2013

Some days there just isn’t a word from the Lord

I've been thinking a lot lately about the disconnect between our public posturing as Christians...

August 18, 2013

Obedience is inspiration (2 Timothy 3:16 in the light of John 3:8)

It's probably not best practice for a preacher to say this publicly, but my sermon...

August 16, 2013

Everyday we’re posturing (Christian sin-talk with @RachelHeldEvans, @KevinWatson, and @RenovatusPastor)

To paraphrase that annoying hit dance song "Party Rock," everyday we're posturing. What I mean...

August 14, 2013

Does doctrine inspire love? (more fallout from @renovatuspastor’s sermon)

Well I got into a twitter argument with a young Calvinist named John following his...

August 14, 2013

An email to Al Mohler regarding penal substitution

Al Mohler recently put up a post on penal substitution in response to the PCUSA...

August 13, 2013

Is morality the fruit of the tree of knowledge of good and evil?

This past weekend, I got to hear my favorite podcast preacher Jonathan Martin live for...