Would it shock you to learn that during the time when the New Testament was being written, the entire Christian Church throughout the known world observed the Sabbath day? How about the fact that the …
Christian Holidays #15
If you have read much of the Bible at all, or if you have gone to church very long, you know that somewhere, out there in the future, there is a day of judgement coming. …
Christian Holidays #14
In the autumn of every year, the Jews celebrate their most solemn festival—Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. Would it surprise you to learn that Yom Kippur is a Christian holiday as well? That the …
Thinking About the Psalms #2
The third psalm has a striking subheading: A Psalm of David, when he fled from Absalom his son. No one is certain as to when the subheadings found in the Psalms were created or whether …
Thinking About the Psalms #1
I’ve been doing some writing recently on the Psalms, and there are some profound lessons that just keep growing on me. I can’t help thinking that there’s something quite special about this book of the …
Christian Holidays #13
Behold, I tell you a mystery: We shall not all sleep, but we shall all be changed—in a moment, in the twinkling of an eye, at the last trumpet. For the trumpet will sound, and …
Christian Holidays #12
Even if you are not Jewish, you are probably aware of the two main Jewish holidays in the autumn of every year: the Jewish New Year, and Yom Kippur. But you may not be aware …
Christian Holidays #11
One would presume that Christian people would like to know more about God. And yet there is a treasure trove in the Bible of which most Christian folk are blissfully unaware. In the first place, …
The Law of Liberty
When Israel settled into the promised land, they enjoyed a time of freedom like few people have ever enjoyed in the history of the world. But I don’t think very many people understand or appreciate …
What Christians Have
Sometimes I wonder if Christian people know what they have. Oh, I know they parrot Christ is the answer. I don’t think one in ten understands what the questions are. And still fewer understand exactly …
For the Children
At this point, we would do well to stop and ask ourselves why the state has anything to say about marriage at all. Why does the state outlaw polygamy? Why does it regulate divorce? Why …
Freedom and the Law
When the framers of our American constitution first gathered, they faced a fundamental question. The question was not merely, Can we create a free republic? The question was, Can we create a free republic that …
The Prophet’s Complaint
I’m sure you’ve heard the old axiom: Once bitten, twice shy. Or maybe you heard it another way: Fool me once, shame on you. Fool me twice, shame on me. I think that old saw …
Dangerous Times
Several years ago, I was driving through an area the weekend after a tragic mass shooting had occurred there. I listened on the radio to the people who lived nearby as they responded to being …
The Age of Depression
My wife was driving home one afternoon and came up against a sheriff’s blockade and a helicopter in the road with its rotors turning. We live in a country subdivision, and this was unusual to …
Without a Cause
There is a persistent theme in the Bible, found mainly in the psalms, that turns everything we think we know about murder on its head. Let me start with the murder of Jesus who is …
The Time Traveler
The apostle John came as close to being a time traveler as any man is likely to be. When he was sitting near the coast on the isle of Patmos one day, a great voice …
The Ultimate Disaster
People love disaster movies. I’m not sure why. I suppose it is the vicarious danger, the excitement, the examination of human character. The disaster flicks always have their heroes and their villains, their wise men …
The Absence of Holiness
In spite of all we say about grace—in spite of all we know about salvation by grace through faith and not of works—we still find warnings in the Bible about things which, if not followed, …
The Problem with Sin
I used to be a teenager and, although it was a long time ago, I still remember some of the questions about the Bible that troubled me back then. Young people ask a lot of …