The other night I received a series of text messages from my 19 year old son Riley, a freshman at UNC-Chapel Hill.Riley: What verses dominate Calvinism? (Meaning, what verses best answer or refute Calvinism.)Dad: I Timothy 2:3-4 and 2 Peter 3:9Riley: And how do you...

My favorite verses in Scripture are those that describe the reality of the incarnation of God in Christ.The concept is such that human language is frankly inadequate to describe its power and beauty.Nevertheless, the New Testament authors do a remarkable job of...

Since church was snowed out this past Sunday, I briefly watched a televised service from another, more liturgical church in our area (they cancelled for 12.26 as well; this was a re-broadcast from back on a snow-free day in November).As part of the liturgy, the...

I read Jonah this morning and noticed a verse tucked away in its opening scene that I had long overlooked. As the storm gathered strength against Jonah's flee-to-Tarshish cruise liner,All the sailors were afraid and each cried out to his own god (1:5).At first glance,...

As a practicing member of the LDS (Mormon) Church, Glenn Beck believes:That the angel Moroni appeared to 17-year-old Joseph Smith in 1823 and told him of golden plates that would contain "the fullness of the everlasting gospel."That Smith dug the plates up four years...

Warning: Salty Language Below. This week, I heard about a bumper sticker making the rounds in New York City:The Truth Will Set You Free. But First It Will Piss You Off.I find that painfully true.I find it theologically true.It's why in Luke 3, John the Baptitst...

As many of you know, for many years I have been critical of premillenial dispensationalism, the "rapture-centric" view of the end times made most popular in the Left Behind series of novels.For a long list of reasons, I have generally held to the simpler amillenial...

The Apostle's Creed puts it this way:I believe in the resurrection of the body . . . Yet the fact remains that most people don't take the resurrection of the body very seriously. They are more focused on the immortality of the soul.Most Christians believe that eternal...

Syncretism is not a common word in modern conversation, much less in the blogosphere.And no, it's not the name of that old Police album. That was Synchronicity.Though the word may not be that familiar, a lot of people are doing it. And believing it.Syncretism is a...

In its current issue on Ten Ideas That Are Changing The World, Time magazine lists the rising influence of Calvinist theology as idea #3. I have to admit that my heart sank upon seeing it. In case you don't know, Calvinism is a stream in the larger river of Christian...