I knew that people who grew up with a lot of money also grew up with a huge amount of suffering; alcoholism, distant fathers, divorce and all sorts of pain. They basically were shunned by the Christian missiological field…. I found this to be a ve...

Shame is a demoralizing emotion. It’s an indiscriminate sort of internal bully. No person, regardless of their relative confidence or station in life, is exempted from its ridicule. There is no route home where shame is not waiting for you. It can...

Books that simultaneously challenge my perspectives and comfort my soul don’t come around every day. The Secret Thoughts of an Unlikely Convert has recently done this in my life. This book traces Rosaria Butterfield' story of redemption and chroni...

Our Father is continually watching over us with a holy and righteous gaze. What does He see? Adopted children who have received His unmerited acceptance and unconditional love. A powerful love that transforms His beloved into the likeness of His S...

It seems unnatural to separate how we feel with what we know as it relates to our assurance of salvation. For many, the pursuit of assurance has been primarily a task of evaluating feelings, actions, and emotions. While this method seems sufficient and natural, it will inevitably demonstrate itself ineffective against the overwhelming faithlessness that we are so prone to have. But, as we will see below, making the separation between the grounds for our salvation (the objective reality) and the evidence of our salvation (the subjective reality) is the only way a Christian can find true peace.

At the core of this discussion, the intended use of 1 John, is confusion over the means vs. evidence of salvation. Many pastors, by prefacing the fact that they are focusing on the evidence of salvation and not the means, free themselves to speak in must-do terms. A standard is quickly brought forth for every believer to stand against. It would seem that this means vs. evidence is the loophole of Christianity. It is through this gap that pastors can mandate reformed lives, better practices, and godly living. Therefore, the believer is given a set of tasks to complete in order to confirm true repentance.

We are born in sin. To doubt the good will of God is an inborn suspicion of God with all of us. Besides, the devil, our adversary, goeth about seeking to devour us by roaring: “God is angry at you and is going to destroy you forever.”

Rather consistently, what we focus on is our faithfulness to God (obedience) rather than His faithfulness to us (Gospel). The difference between these two ideas is the difference between a pietistic theology and a reformed one.

The Law and the Gospel are not the same thing. If you confuse them you lose the Gospel and end up with self-justification.

What if Saul met Paul? What if in some Steven Spielberg-esk way this could happen? A Freaky Friday of biblical proportions.

Is There Only One Way a Christian Can Vote?
By Pastor Justin Perdue

As we think about and read through the Bible, theologians throughout history have recognized two “voices” that rise to the top: Law and Gospel. When we understand Law and Gospel, and their proper distinction, the Bible begins to become more clear. But before we get there, what is “Law” and what is “Gospel?”