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SHINING AS STARS IN A SIN SATURATED WORLD
Read more: SHINING AS STARS IN A SIN SATURATED WORLDFellow followers of Jesus, I wonder if we truly believe one of the deepest convictions underlying the Christian faith. That sin pervades every layer of our world, ultimately invading every society and infusing every culture— including Christian homes and institutions.
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SALVATION IS BEING AND BECOMING
Read more: SALVATION IS BEING AND BECOMING“. . . the Christian life is not merely about emulating Christlike behavior but being conformed to Christlikeness. It is not about doing good things as proof or evidence that we are saved but about becoming truly good, to realize the fulness of our humanity that God intended.”
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SALVATION IS LIFE WITH GOD
Read more: SALVATION IS LIFE WITH GOD“In part one, I suggested that the question of whether one can “lose their salvation,” we are asking the wrong question or, at least, that isn’t the question we should begin with. Rather, we must first be clear on what we’re talking about when we’re talking about ‘salvation.’ That is, we must consider the essence…
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MISSING THE MARK ON SALVATION
Read more: MISSING THE MARK ON SALVATION“The implication of this pop gospel is that if salvation is reduced to a mere agreement with certain realities about God-Humanity-Sin-Christ-Salvation– nothing more, nothing less; then how we actually live does not ultimately matter. Equally problematic is that such a view ultimately makes salvation about us rather than about God and his purposes for us…
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THE GOSPEL IS NOT ABOUT US
Read more: THE GOSPEL IS NOT ABOUT US“. . . the gospel is not primarily about us, it is about God. It is not primarily about assuaging our guilt nor easing our suffering, either now or in eternity . . . gospel is about God setting the world right by reestablishing his rule and reign over creation in bringing all things into…
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SAME LANGUAGE, DIFFERENT STORIES
Read more: SAME LANGUAGE, DIFFERENT STORIES“This is where things have become quite muddled for us in the modern/post-modern West. We assume intrinsic values like human dignity, justice, compassion, equality, generosity, and the like. Yet, such is not the way in many places outside the West, and especially throughout the history of the world.”
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“Behold…” IT’S NOT WHAT WE THINK
Read more: “Behold…” IT’S NOT WHAT WE THINK“These words appear amid Jesus’ letter to the church at Laodicea. The image stands as a central part of a corrective to a church that had become seemingly self-sufficient and self-satisfied in their material wealth. They no doubt had interpreted their relative prosperity as a sign of God’s providential blessing upon them… wherever material prosperity…
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Faith IS NOT A FEELING, OR IS IT?
Read more: Faith IS NOT A FEELING, OR IS IT?“It has often been said that ‘faith is not a feeling.’ While it is true that we should not be flippantly driven by passing emotions, neither should we so easily dissect ‘faith’ from ‘feeling,’ otherwise we risk reducing it to a purely rational and cognitive exercise …”
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LOSING THE PLOT
Read more: LOSING THE PLOT“It’s interesting that the church of Ephesus, a church of relatively prominent and privileged status throughout the New Testament, is here commended for their diligence, perseverance, and intolerance of sin and false teachers, yet rebuked for forsaking their devotion to Christ…”
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HOPE AMID FAILURE IN PARENTING
Read more: HOPE AMID FAILURE IN PARENTING“On the daily, parenting is rough. Kids are prone to obstinance and failure in meeting our expectations, repeatedly… Suffice it to say, I’ve lost my nerve on my kids on not a few occasions. While my frustration is justifiable, more often than not my anger is disproportionate and unproductive, ultimately rupturing the relationship between parent…
Bear Theology 