With Puritan Reformed Theology, Joel Beeke has given the church a handy collection of his writings commending and interacting with the best of Puritan theology.
Brady Is Not The GOAT, But Super Bowl LII Was
Tim Bates
Did They Know Jesus Yet? A Textual Criticism Case Study in John 14:7
For those of you who are tracking the release of the Legacy Standard Bible — the real, actual successor to the NASB 1995 — there’s an interesting change in John 14:7 that’s more textual criticism than translation. Let’s take a look. LSB NASB 1995 John 14:6 Jesus *said to him, “I am the way, and […]
Why Genesis 2 Teaches a Covenant of Works – Part 1
In the Garden of Eden, there lived a king named Adam. God gave Adam, the first man, a mission to further this kingdom over all the earth. God would reign through the man He had appointed as the federal head of the human race (cf. Gen. 1:31). The key to this paradise was that Adam […]
Then Nathan Went To His House
In 2 Samuel 12:15, we find the phrase “Then Nathan went to his house.” It appears to be an inconsequential detail of a greater narrative. Yet every Word of God’s revelation is profitable, and we should meditate upon why God chooses to include certain details in His Word. What strikes me most about this verse […]
Sermon Excerpt: An Evangelical Atheist?
Here is a quick sermon excerpt from our series in Ephesians. This comes from Ephesians 2:12 as we discussed what the Ephesians were like before their conversion. They were “without God.” Sadly, many who claim to be Christians live the same way. Consider the following: An Evangelical Atheist acknowledges God. Acknowledges the gospel. Acknowledges his […]
The Son of David
There he was, the son of David — suspended between heaven and earth. Silver had been offered for the taking of his life. His followers were now scattered. Though they had thought he would lead them to an earthly victory as true King, their hopes were now dashed as he was surrounded by wicked soldiers […]
Jesus and John Wayne (book review)
Kristin Kobes Du Mez (pronounced “doo may”) is a professor of history and gender studies at Calvin University in Grand Rapids, Michigan. In Jesus and John Wayne: How White Evangelicals Corrupted a Faith and Fractured a Nation, she lays out a seventy-five-year history of evangelical culture with an aim towards explaining the cultural rise of Donald […]
Why Heaven Now is Incomplete
First, I’ll admit that I’m a bit hesitant about the word “incomplete.” I don’t mean to imply heaven is an existence of suffering. It’s not. The souls of believers have no more sin or sorrow or pain or suffering. And I want us to also remember the beautiful words of Psalm 16:11 — “You make […]
9 Common Emotional/Situational Pornography Triggers (repost)
Of all my years counseling Christians and non about the dangers of pornography, there are 9 common emotional and situational patterns that trigger porn use. Some of these are simply symptoms of a deeper problem, meanwhile others only serve to justify a depraved craving. I don’t want to harshly judge those who have fought tooth […]
Christ is King
What does it mean that Christ is King? We explored this recently as a church as we walked through Ephesians 1:21. So in today’s post, I want us to explore the meaning of Christ’s kingship by considering four attributes of His kingdom based on Ephesians 1:21. It is Unparalleled Verse 21 in the ESV begins […]
Fault Lines by Voddie Baucham (book review)
Author’s note (02 August 2021): I have become aware of Joel McDurmon’s credible accusations of misquotation and plagiarism in Fault Lines. My own independent investigation into the misquotation issue confirms Baucham’s misquotation of CRT scholar Richard Delgado on page xvi. I furthermore find — in agreement with McDurmon — that this was not merely a matter […]
Assurance of Salvation, or the Lack Thereof
The Problem I saw a heartbreaking post in a Facebook group. It went like this: Do any of you worry that Jesus will say depart from me for I never knew you? And I worry that I would be one of those wolves in sheep clothing, deceiving the Body of Christ? I don’t understand why, this bothers […]
Baptists and the Christian Tradition: Towards an Evangelical Baptist Catholicity (book review)
Baptists and the Christian Tradition offers ample material contributing to the conversation of what it means to be an evangelical, committed to the church catholic.
You Will Be Like ‘Gods’?: Genesis 3:5 and Mormonism (re-post)
The following post originally appeared on Things Above Us in October 2019. A good friend in the ministry recently raised a question she was asked by someone else concerning Genesis 3:5 in the context of a conversation with members of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, and it’s a very good one. In this […]
Rightly Understanding John 3:16 — Applications
In a previous post, I wrote a little on understanding John 3:16. In today’s post, I’d like to walk through a few applications of understanding this verse rightly. There are negative applications for both the non-Calvinist and the Hyper-Calvinist. There are also positive applications for those who desire to be consistently Calvinistic, or biblical. First, […]
Go, Therefore: Family Worship
“Go, Therefore” posts are quick tips to help Christians live lives of evangelism. Family Worship As Evangelism Daily family worship ought to be observed by families for many reasons. To name a few: God is worthy to be worshipped, it is a way men ought to lead their homes, it’s good preparation for church, it […]
“Antiracism” Deserves a Capital Letter: A Preview of Voddie Baucham’s Fault Lines
Note: The full review is now published. Recently on Twitter, a Ph.D. student at a Southern Baptist seminary threw shade at Voddie Baucham’s upcoming book Fault Lines for many flaws such as “commitment to innuendo,” riling up a “populist mob,” and lacking integrity. He went so far as to criticize Baucham and his publisher for […]
Rightly Understanding John 3:16
It seems some Calvinists get so concerned about John 3:16 being used as a “gotcha” against the Doctrines of Grace that they can go too far in overcorrecting. Some work so hard to show what all the verse does not mean that they fail to eagerly embrace all that it does mean. Certainly, John 3:16 […]
2 Peter 1 in the Legacy Standard Bible
With the full text of the LSB New Testament now available, we have an opportunity for the first time to look through how the translation handles one of the catholic (general) epistles. I’ve sought to explain every change in 2 Peter 1 in this post. LSB NASB 1995 head Growth in Christian Virtue Precious and […]
5 Reasons Baptist Churches Should Associate
I may write a follow-up post on the nature of associations, but in today’s post, I just want to lay out 5 reasons that churches ought to cooperate. Dr. Gregg Allison says this: [C]hurches are to establish and promote strong associations with other churches for the sake of mutual accountability, sharing of resources, cooperative high-impact […]