Exploring Faith and Spirituality

Religion

To Understand Jesus Walking on Water, Read the Old Testament

When I was younger, a particular kind of 3D picture was popular: You could easily identify the picture at first glance, but if you stared at it long enough, another picture would appear as if magic...

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Why It’s So Difficult to Set Our Minds on Things Above

Paul commands us to set our minds on things above (Col. 3:1–4), and one reason for this instruction is that it’s so much easier not to. All sorts of diversions come more naturally. I don’t have to ...

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Local Preacher, You Need the Global Church

In 1969, John Stott had a counterintuitive idea. The fruit of this idea continues to hone and challenge my preaching all these years later. Each time someone purchased one of Stott’s books or paid...

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Help Me Finish the Study I Started

I was the kid who couldn’t wait for the first day of school. Newly sharpened pencils and crisp, clean notebook paper made me giddy. Each subject seemed like an invitation to discover. I was eager t...

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Don’t Let the ‘Friend-Enemy Distinction’ Derail Your Faith

If you’ve wandered into certain back alleys of the internet, you’ve likely run across discussions of the “friend-enemy distinction.” Carl Schmitt, a German political theorist, introduced the phrase...

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Does Your Theology of the Law Have Room for Psalm 119?

Every time I teach a course on the Pentateuch, the topic of God’s law comes up. I typically ask, “When you hear the phrase ‘God’s law,’ does it leave you with a positive feeling, a negative feeling...

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Divine intervention against cold callers | Brief letters

Scammers’ souls | Peter Sullivan | ‘The enemy within’ | Strangers to whom? | State ownership of newspapersYears ago I decided to interrupt cold callers (Letters, 11 May) and say: “Just a minute. Le...

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The Gospel According to Mephibosheth

In his days as a young monk, Martin Luther struggled to love God. His words looking back were, “Love God? I hated him!” This isn’t surprising, since all Luther had seen at that point was God’s seve...

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The Only One Who Can Say ‘You Are Enough’

I don’t know where it came from, but now it seems to be everywhere. I hear it on podcasts and TV shows. I’ve seen it on T-shirts and social media graphics. A quick search for it on Amazon brings up...

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Romans 8 Deserves a Deep Dive

Melissa Kruger and Courtney Doctor talk with Trillia Newbell about the depth and richness of Romans 8. They explain how to understand Romans 8 in the context of the previous chapters, why there’s n...

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What (Not) to Say When a Friend Feels Inadequate

I opened my discipleship group’s text thread to find a friend sharing her struggles after a hard day. She’d had a poor review at work, was frustrated with potty training her son, and felt like she ...

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Back to the Fathers: How Biblical Theology Belongs in the Church

In the Church of Saint-Germain-des-Prés in Paris, vivid frescoes depict the unified story of salvation, centered on the person and work of Jesus Christ. In a side chapel in that same building, the ...

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High hopes for the new pope in hard times | Letters

Zaki Cooper says bridge-building in our troubled world is a sacred task, and Christina Thomas says that, for once, demagogues and dictators have been sent offstageIt is encouraging to hear Pope Leo...

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‘AI Companions’ and the Christian Doctrine of Friendship

On a long-form podcast with comedian Theo Von, Meta CEO Mark Zuckerberg leaked that his company is working on artificial intelligence (AI) companions. The average American has fewer than three frie...

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How Moms Can Care for Women Experiencing Infertility

As I walked through infertility, I found, unsurprisingly, that those most ready to comfort me were women who had experienced reproductive loss themselves. While some precious friends who haven’t sh...

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Tim Keller’s Overlooked Teaching That Will Endure for Generations

I know a thing or two about trying to summarize the life and work of the late Tim Keller. It’s not easy, but it’s rewarding. No one has taught me more about the Christian life. And if there’s one p...

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The Ruthless Elimination of Sloth: An Appeal to Young Men

“You can be anything you want, but you cannot be a loser.” Harsh? Perhaps. My dad told me this when I was in high school and contemplating my future. What was a loser for him? It wasn’t someone wi...

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Don’t Let TikTok Disciple Your Kids

Media theorist Marshall McLuhan argued that “the medium is the message.” As a teacher, I feel this daily. Given the choice between a lecture and a YouTube video, which one will help me present the ...

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Time Is Short, Moms. Be Encouraged!

You also, be patient. Establish your hearts, for the coming of the Lord is at hand. Do not grumble against one another, brothers, so that you may not be judged; behold, the Judge is standing at the...

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5 Ways to Keep Learning After College

Recently, I overheard some students talking about life after college. One said he couldn’t wait to graduate and be done with school. He expressed his eagerness to sell all his books. Sadly, this at...

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How Does ‘Sinners’ View Sin?

Sinners, the new film from Ryan Coogler (Black Panther), is a box-office smash and critical hit. Already the highest-grossing original film in many years, Sinners has been heralded as a welcome sig...

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