The Dutch humanist Desiderius Erasmus tried to defend the obscurity of Scripture against the tides of the Protestant Reformation. In his letter to Luther called On the Freedom of the Will, Erasmus parroted the Roman Catholic judgment about the Bible’s relative darkness. The Scriptures, said Erasmus, reflect the vast, unsearchable depths of God – whoContinue reading “Willful Blindness”
Category Archives: Faith
What Endings Teach the Living
[Better is] the day of death than the day of birth. I realize that’s an abrupt way to begin an article, but that’s how the Preacher begins Ecclesiastes 7. No easing in; he just pushes us into the deep end of the existential pool. So, here we are. What do you think about the Preacher’sContinue reading “What Endings Teach the Living”
The Most Needed Gift
It was October 21, 1999, my 40th birthday. That’s the birthday when many people start thinking they’re heading over the hill and begin contemplating their own mortality. Well, I was definitely contemplating mortality . . . just not my own. That was the day we buried my father. We headed to the same spot whereContinue reading “The Most Needed Gift”
The Hiddenness of God
The hiddenness of God is often proposed as evidence that God does not exist. Atheists who advance this argument can affirm that there may be some evidence that God exists, such as the Big Bang, the fine-tuning of the universe, and the existence of objective moral facts. However, this limited evidence is far less than whatContinue reading “The Hiddenness of God”
Where God Waits for You…
The LORD will fight for you; you need only to be still. (Exodus 14:14) Tom Conlon is a rock, earthy artist, braver than most of us. Tom has the courage to be silent. I first heard of Tom when we moved to Clemson, South Carolina. He was a legend there. He was giving away hisContinue reading “Where God Waits for You…”
There Is a Wisdom
There is wisdom, and then there is wisdom. Some wisdom is from heaven, and some wisdom is from earth (James 3:13-18). On the first Palm Sunday, it might have seemed like people were expressing heaven’s wisdom, but within five days the earth’s wisdom seemed to have won out. Jesus’ six trials (three Jewish and threeContinue reading “There Is a Wisdom”
When We Are Forgotten
23 Yet the chief butler did not remember Joseph, but forgot him. Genesis 40:23 (1599 Geneva Bible) My natural tendency is to heartily participate in self-pity, outrage, and un-forgiveness thereby opening doors in my heart that Satan enters causing me to become discouraged. When this happens to me, I find that my circumstances drive meContinue reading “When We Are Forgotten”
Three Stories of Hope
“The world — or at least our culture — is going to Hell on a greased firemen’s pole” seems self-evident. Take a straight-line extrapolation of deplorable trends, add a few Bible texts and how can it be otherwise? But history is always unpredictable because the Lord of history is unpredictable. “For my thoughts are notContinue reading “Three Stories of Hope”
When the Culture Tries to Teach Your Children Sexuality
Sue* and her husband, Steve* are committed Christians who attended their local church and built their home on gospel principles. They excitedly moved their family to another state when an opportunity presented itself for Steve to advance in his career. Little did they know how important the move would be to counteract the destructive genderContinue reading “When the Culture Tries to Teach Your Children Sexuality”
What Kind of Person Are You?
It’s dinnertime in Capernaum. During the day, the streets buzzed with merchants hawking their wares and caravans carrying goods from faraway lands. But the hot sun yielded to the cool air of evening. Children’s voices echo through the streets as they finish playing and head home. Travelers settle into inns for the night. After cleaningContinue reading “What Kind of Person Are You?”
Intentional Faith 