HOW did the death of Jesus work? How did it secure anything? Was it a price being paid? If so, who owed whom what? Was the Devil holding a deed that had to be paid? Or, is there something else altogether different that explains the “How” and “Why” of the death of Christ? These …
Category Archives: Jesus
Dust of the Earth: Food of Demons
God formed man from the dust (afar, עָפָר) of the earth (Gen 2:7). And humans hated him for it. We tried him, found him guilty and attacked Him. And so man returns to dust. From dust [ עָפָר ] we were taken, and to dust [ עָפָר ] we return (Gen 3:19). When God cursed …
Suffering Exists Because Worship Doesn’t
Suffering exists because worship doesn’t. Worship is ultimate, not suffering, because God is ultimate, not our pain. When this present evil age is over, and the resurrected in Christ inherit the restored creation, their suffering will end. But worship abides forever. John Piper, in his book, Let the Nations be Glad, says the same thing …
God is News to Satan
In Genesis 3, the news of who God is and what God is like was experienced first-hand by Satan. The news also came to Adam and Eve. Indeed, all of Genesis is the revelation of God to His creatures. For us readers, and for those who directly experienced His activities — Satan included — the …
Richard Gaffin on the Resurrection
Why was Jesus raised from the dead? What does it mean? What does it have to do with redemption? What is its relationship to the doctrine of Justification? I ask, because Romans 4:25 puzzled me when I first read it. I remember reading it back in 1997. I remember it like yesterday. I was stunned. …
It is profoundly Christ-like to be non-significant
Edward Leach wrote, “THE AGGRESSIVE WORK”, in the June 1869, Sword and Trowel. Speaking of pastors who worked in the small English villages, he wrote this: The difficulties are disheartening. The disappointments are heart-breaking. By so much the more then are the courage, faith, patience, and perseverance praiseworthy.
Suffering: a blessed estate
For the Christian, the greatest moments of pain bring the resurrection of Jesus into sharp relief. In suffering, his resurrection and our own become more impressive, more important and more precious than the momentary circumstances. The glory that is to be revealed in our bodies does not compare to the pain felt in our bodies …
A Theologian of Suffering Names Things Properly
If we name something improperly, and then talk about it, we will cause confusion and harm to ourselves and those who name it rightly. In theology, this is relevant in discussions about justification. If we name justification what others name sanctification, then arguments, sorrow and charges follow. How we name our doctrines and how we …
How a church can have a modern reformation and be truly emergent
Preach and Enjoy Christ. Really. Every sermon. Stop preaching all the other stuff. And remove any and all leadership that does not see why this ought to be. Done. Will you see success? This is wonderful and liberating success! Anything less is pretend church or invented happiness. And everything less is boring!
What happens after death, and then what happens after that?
A rumor needs to be stopped. Dying is not a stage in life where one finally gets to be with dead friends and relatives. Being with friends and family is not the point of our lives nor is it the point of death. However, some Christians talk about dying precisely as the state of finally …
Images of God used in Worship
Do the following words have any relationship to using pictures of Jesus in churches? Exodus 20:4-5. “You shall not make for yourself a carved image—any likeness of anything that is in heaven above, or that is in the earth beneath, or that is in the water under the earth; you shall not bow down to …
Downloadable Truth… Is it Healthy?
The preaching of Jesus is a chief treasure of all real churches (Acts 5:42; Rom 1:15; Eph 4:11; 1 Cor 1:17; 1 Cor 1:21; 1 Cor 9:18; 1 Cor 15:2; 2 Tim 4:2; Titus 1:3; 1 Peter 1:25; etc.). Jesus wants a Church where he is preached faithfully, and he wants his people gathered to …
Who Wrote the Bible? And What is the Title Page of the Bible?
Question: Who wrote the 66 books of the Bible?
The Cross as an Instrument of Joy
A Christian does not simply have Christ as savior — as if we can reduce his life to this: Jesus gave his life and therefore we don’t have to go to hell. His life includes that, but it is more than that. We participate in more than the winning benefits of Christ, starting with the …
What do dying people ask for?
Jesus washed the feet of his disciples (John 13:5), and then he explained to them the union of self denial with the Kingdom of God. In that explanation, he said some strange, wonderful and necessary things about prayer and how he would grant what we ask: Whatever you ask in my name, this I will …
Suffering with Joy
Suffering with Joy Originally published in the Louisburg Herald July, 15, 2009 For it is commendable if a man bears up under the pain of unjust suffering because he is conscious of God. But how is it to your credit if you receive a beating for doing wrong and endure it? But if you suffer …
Truly this was the Son of God — Mark 15:39
And Jesus uttered a loud cry and breathed his last. 38And the curtain of the temple was torn in two, from top to bottom. 39 And when the centurion, who stood facing him, saw that in this way he breathed his last, he said, “Truly this man was the Son of God!” — Mark 15:37-39 …
“Cancer does not define me”, Rachel Barkley, dying of cancer
Rachel died on July 2, 2009. I originally posted the following on May 29, 2009: A Christian’s identity is wrapped up in Jesus, not the final moments of death or the circumstances attending seasons of happiness. This is not my sentiment only, but I am speaking back the testimony of a young woman dying of …
The Trinity
The Bible teaches the Trinity. When we say, “Father, Son and Holy Spirit”, we still affirm that there is only one True God; there are not three distinct gods being indicated by that phrase. The Bible teaches that Jesus is God. Likewise, we learn from the Bible that Jesus, the Son, prayed to His Heavenly …
The Temptation of Christ
Jesus was tempted, as it is written, “Then Jesus was led up by the Spirit into the wilderness to be tempted by the devil.” — Matthew 4:1 What exactly does it means to say that Jesus was tempted? Did he want the thing that was offered while he denied himself of his desire? What (if …
God is like this: Jesus washed feet
The Incarnation (Jesus is God in Flesh) is God being what God is like. He was always like what he is like, and in the incarnation he was being the same way as he has always been – now in human flesh. Jesus washing the feet of his disciples is not God saying, “See, I …
Why do we make mistakes in interpreting the Bible?
Do you remember that part of the Gospel of John where the Jews took palm branches and went out to meet Jesus and called him King? That episode is recorded in John 12. It made me wonder: Why palm branches? What do palm branches signify?
The New Exodus
Article for the Louisburg Herald, March 25th edition. The exodus was a foundational event in the Old Testament. God took a landless people, the Hebrews, and extracted them from Egypt. They were in bondage and he redeemed them. They left Egypt and went into the wilderness for a forty-year sojourn. He fed them there by …
A Biblical Study Tour in Kansas City
I know it sounds odd to think of doing a Biblical study tour in Kansas City, but it can be done! I give tours of the Biblical materials found in the Nelson-Atkins museum. Each person on the tour gets an exercise packet and tour booklet that I have created just for this purpose. I am …
The Prayer of Jabez
There is a little corner of the Bible that birthed a modern movement. The corner is 1 Chronicles 4:9-10 and the movement is the “Prayer of Jabez” movement. My goal is to go through the original Hebrew of this prayer (which I will try to show that it is a vow and not a prayer) …
Song of Solomon
The Old Testament book Song of Solomon may not be the love story we have always thought. I am picking up earlier proposals by scholars that Song of Solomon is a polemical book — being an attack on the kings of Judah and their sometimes tyrannical practices. The pen is mightier than the sword, and …
Was Jesus in Hell between the Cross and Resurrection?
Was Jesus in Hell? This is not my question. It is a question we get from Church history. Taking a question and going and looking for an answer is not the best way to approach the Bible. The best questions seem to emerge as we read. No matter, the question has been put to us. …
Jesus Alone is Relevant
Jesus is relevant, and in him there is no irrelevance at all. Our assent to this is reflected in all of our actions. Our loyalty to Christ — our AMEN to his relevance — is found in our Sunday-choices and our Monday-behaviors.
Be Holy
The Lord our God seeks representation; he wants to be found in creation, and he wants to be found in our holiness — in our actions, in our behavior.
Death is not an Impediment to Deity
Every now and then I pull into Amazon.com and browse a few of the “Recommended books” they have for me; I love it that they point me to books I end up liking. Here is a spectacular quote from one such book: Jesus is what happened to God This is from The Preached God, …
Paul’s Theology Hinges on this: Jesus is God.
The Greek word in the New Testament for God is “theos.” But God by any other name is still God. His titles, his role (especially as Creator) and his glory are befitting nobody other than God alone. That means that when we see Jesus adorned with the unique titles and praises of God, we know …
Jesus is God
The life-blood of Christianity is this: Jesus is God, the Father is God and the Holy Spirit is God. The Father is not Jesus the Son. The Son is not the Holy Spirit and the Holy Spirit is not the Father. And yet, there are not three gods, there is only one God. This teaching …
Truly, God Hides Himself
“Truly, you are a God who hides himself, O God of Israel, the Savior.” — Isaiah 45:15 Our Creator hides himself from us. And that is counterintuitive of what we hear from our religious authorities. They regularly picture God as exhausting himself in his efforts to show himself to us. But God hides. And he …
What is a Christian Sermon?
Originally published in the Wed, Oct 10th, 2007 Louisburg Herald. What is a Christian Sermon? I have a challenge for you. The next time you hear a sermon, listen to determine if Jesus is actually explained. Count how often the minister explains Jesus. Pay careful attention, for mentioning Jesus is not the same as explaining …
God on Trial. Is He Guilty? Genesis and Romans.
A major theme of Romans is the trial and vindication of God. The resurrection of Jesus is God’s trial defense and verdict. When Jesus emerged from the tomb it was the revelation of God proved right and trustworthy. For the ramifications of a trial of this sort to be grasped, the case against God must …