How can you be sure that you are saved? Maybe you have asked or been asked that question. Many people will point back to a stroll down the church aisle or a prayer that they once prayed. However, Scripture does not counsel us to place our trust and hope in such experiences. Thabiti Anyabwile has [...]
Category > Theology
The Unity of Community
Speaking of God’s unity in the three persons of the Trinity as a “unity of community,” A.J. Conyers draws attention to the fact that the church reflects this same attribute in herself. The church is a unified body made up of many parts. What is the unifying factor? Conyers says,
The church reflects this same language [...]
Theology for the Church
I just finished an excellent article by Gerald Heistand concerning ecclesial theology. What is ecclesial theology? “Ecclesial theology is theological reflection written to the wider believing community, for the good of the church catholic, and born out of pastoral/ecclesial concerns.” The Society for the Advancement of Ecclesial Theology was created for this very purpose. Simply [...]
The Christian Experience of the Spirit
There are so many things we take for granted as Christians. We talk about the comfort we have in knowing that God is near us through Christ and the Spirit. Yet we have a tendency to overemphasize God’s nearness to the detriment of his transcendence. In the process we lose sight of the bigness and [...]
The Monday Muse: Dividing Over Music
Two weeks ago I asked the question of whether it is a sin to break church unity over views on the millennium. In the midst of that discussion, my friend Greg asked another really good question.
Is it a sin to divide the Church over music and worship style?
So there you have it. Greg has posed [...]
Sovereignty and Responsibility Together?
I liked Piper’s response to the question about the evident tension in the Bible’s testimony for both the sovereignty of God and human responsibility. I find the coexistence of these two realities to be one of the most perplexing aspects of the Christian faith and theology. Piper’s answer sums it up well for me.
(HT: Zach [...]
The Monday Muse: Sin to Break Church Unity Over Millennium?
A recent sermon by Mark Dever has been buzzing around the blogosphere. In his sermon on Revelation 20 and millennial views, Dever makes the bold statement that to break church unity over a difference in millennial view is sin. As transcripted by A.J. Gibson:
I think that millennial views need not be among those doctrines that [...]
The World’s Dependence Upon God
From the beginning, creation is dependent upon God in every way. Scripture does not give us the impression that God was in need of the earth, animals, vegetation, or human beings. He was not bored one day and decided that it would be nice to make some companions. He did not create humans and then [...]
The Mystery of the Trinity
“The idea of God, as the church fathers generally recognized, must be largely given over to mystery. Augustine said that we speak of the Trinity, not because we can explain this mystery, but only in order ‘not to be silent’ and allow greater error.” (41)
I found this statement by A.J. Conyers in A Basic Christian [...]
The Monday Muse: Saving Waters
I’ll keep it short and sweet this week. In Scripture, salvation and baptism have an extremely close relationship to one another. It is quite common to see statements about salvation being accompanied by the charge to be baptized as well. In fact, Mark 16:16 says, “Whoever believes and is baptized will be saved, but whoever [...]
