April 23, 2011
The crucifixion of Jesus that we commemorate today confronts us with powerful paradox. The Apostle Paul captured this in 1 Corinthians 1 by contrasting the foolishness and wisdom, the weakness and power that were simultaneously on display at the cross. We could add to that list that Jesus was both passive and proactive in his [...]
April 17, 2011
This “Palm” Sunday begins Holy Week, in which we commemorate the events that form the bedrock of our faith: the suffering, death, and resurrection of the God-man Jesus Christ. The Apostle Paul emphasized the utter indispensability of these events when he wrote, “if Christ has not been raised, your faith is futile and you are [...]
April 10, 2011
The commercialization of Christmas is a double-edged sword. Negatively, the season seems helplessly mired in consumerism and materialism, having little to do with Christ. Yet there is a certain good cheer about each December that is hard to miss, and we can co-opt this sentiment and focus it on our joy over the Savior’s birth. [...]
April 4, 2011
“It’s only paranoia if they aren’t out to get you.” As a parent I feel something close to paranoia because of an even worse prospect: “It’s only paranoia if they aren’t out to get your children.” Recently I’ve been reading a few books about the way pornography is transforming our culture’s sexuality and assumptions about [...]
March 25, 2011
“You know, he didn’t like black people.” This is what one of my neighbors said about another neighbor who was moving. I have no idea whether this is accurate or not–he seemed friendly enough to our African-American neighbors and my African-American children. The deeper concern I had was that this allegedly racist neighbor professed to [...]
March 18, 2011
While most media outlets remain abuzz concerning radiation leaks in Japan and a no-fly zone in Lybia, the Evangelical online world has been teeming with discussion over Love Wins, a new book by influential pastor Rob Bell. I have not read the book and will not pretend to grasp his complete argument, but the reason [...]
March 13, 2011
“Blessed are those who hunger and thirst for righteousness, for they shall be satisfied” (Matthew 5:6). Hunger, thirst, and satisfaction are some of the most elemental experiences of human existence. Newborns go through the cycle every few hours, and most adults do three times a day. What is it about the experience of contentment, gratification, [...]
March 13, 2011
Like a 4 year-old with a hammer, our culture is quite gifted at demolition. There is some deep satisfaction we derive from seeing the idols of downward-spiraling folk smashed into little tiny bits. Whether Moammar Gadhafi, Charlie Sheen, or auditionees on American Idol, we relish when the insane political ideology, the hard partying, or the [...]
March 13, 2011
I know very little about golf, but the one piece of golfing advice I remember is, “Let the club do the work.” The idea is that if your swing is correct, the club will get the ball where it needs to go without muscling it as if you were cutting weeds with a scythe. In [...]
February 18, 2011
On Sunday, God willing, I will be preaching from Isaiah 46, where God gives the following command to his people: “Remember this and stand firm, recall it to mind, you transgressors, remember the former things of old; for I am God, and there is no other; I am God, and there is none like me, [...]
