Archive for January 2019
Theology for the Teen Years
They call my generation Generation Z, and we’re passionately progressive, open-minded, and tolerant – except in one notable area: religion. We are, in fact, the least religious generation in US history. Since the birth of my generation (around 1995), there has been an unprecedented decline in prayer, church attendance, Bible reading, belief in God, and…
Read MoreHow has idolatry inverted the image of God?
What does it mean to be made in the image of God? How was the image meant to function within the temple context of the garden of Eden? Why is Christ the true image of God and how does he image God in a way we do and do not? How does a biblical understanding…
Read MoreHow has idolatry inverted the image of God? New podcast episode with Richard Lints
What does it mean to be made in the image of God? How was the image meant to function within the temple context of the garden of Eden? Why is Christ the true image of God and how does he image God in a way we do and do not? How does a biblical understanding…
Read MoreLife from Death: The Upside Down Story of the Christian Life
One summer, our family hiked in northern California. The pine trees were as tall as a city building, blocking the sun and making it seem like dusk in the middle of the day. We stood like tiny ants beside ancient trunks which have reigned over the forest for hundreds of years. During our trek along…
Read MoreImmutability and Pastoral Ministry
The latest issue of Credo Magazine is titled The Immutability of God. The following is an excerpt from Matthew Claridge’s column, Immutability and Pastoral Ministry. Matthew Claridge is Pastor of Mount Idaho Baptist Church in Grangeville, ID. He holds a M.Div. from Trinity Evangelical Divinity School and a Th.M. from The Southern Baptist Theological Seminary. The doctrine of divine immutability,…
Read MoreFrom One Generation to Another: Teaching Doctrinally Rich Hymns to Children
Modern hymn writers Keith and Kristyn Getty have helped rekindle the church’s historic practice of singing doctrinally rich hymns. Their musical and theological contributions have helped reform corporate worship practices within the broader evangelical world. Through their work, congregations have renewed their passion regarding the theological significance of singing hymns together—hymns that express the faith…
Read MoreShould pastors learn theology? New Credo video with Matthew Barrett
How can you counteract the tendency to put off studying theology until a slower point in life? Where is there an opportunity for you to study doctrines you are less familiar with? What value is there in reading through a systematic theology each year? Can you arrange time in your sermon preparation for doctrinal study?…
Read MoreShould pastors learn theology?
How can you counteract the tendency to put off studying theology until a slower point in life? Where is there an opportunity for you to study doctrines you are less familiar with? What value is there in reading through a systematic theology each year? Can you arrange time in your sermon preparation for doctrinal study?…
Read MoreWhy Pastors Should Engage Geerhardus Vos
Among confessional Reformed and Presbyterian theologians from the late nineteenth century to the mid-twentieth century, few were held in higher esteem by their like-minded contemporaries than was Geerhardus Vos. His reputation in his birth-country of the Netherlands was such that when Vos was in his mid-twenties Abraham Kuyper offered him a position at the Free…
Read MoreWhy the Church Still Needs Immutability: A Conversation with Six Pastors and Scholars About an Attribute That Matters
The new issue of Credo Magazine is titled The Immutability of God. The following is an excerpt from our conversation with six pastors and scholars about why immutability matters and how the church today can answer objections to this attribute. Richard Barcellos | Immutability, along with other “classical” attributes of God, are seeing somewhat of a resurgence today. Why is this…
Read MoreThe American Gospel: Christ Alone Documentary, A Vital Tool for Awakening and Revival
Recently my church experienced something of a small spiritual awakening. I wouldn’t call it a full-blown revival, but something close to that. The fruits of it are obvious and wonderful: increased clarity on the gospel, a more intense abhorrence for false teaching, a deeper burden for the lost and desire to reach them, and more…
Read MoreJustification Revisited: A Review of deSilva’s New Commentary on Galatians
The book of Galatians, just like virtually every book of the Bible, boasts a staggering number of commentaries. David A. deSilva, however, has added to this number with The Letter to the Galatians. DeSilva, who holds the position of Trustees’ Distinguished Professor of New Testament and Greek at Ashland Theological Seminary, is an accomplished scholar,…
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