A young evangelical pastor named John Dickerson just released a head turner of an essay in the New York Times, with the Wall Street Journal America’s paper of record. Wielder of a sharp pen and possessor of a passionate heart, Dickerson is senior pastor of Cornerstone Church in Prescott, Arizona. He is a graduate of [...]
Dear Discouraged Christian: Here’s Some Gospel Encouragement
December 1, 2012 By 2 Comments
If you are feeling discouraged from events in recent days, you may need some encouragement. You have come to the right place, my friend. Two recent articles in secular media have offered surprising testimony to the vitality of Christianity in dark places. The first, from the Guardian, is on the rise of Calvinism in Chinese churches. [...]
A Day in the Life of John Calvin
September 4, 2012 By 1 Comment
What would it have like to have known John Calvin? Bruce Gordon tells us in his marvelous survey of Calvin’s life, Calvin (Yale, 2009). One picture emerges from his letters and sixteenth-century biographers: serious, though not without a sense of humour, intense and deeply spiritual. Discipline was not simply for the church; discipline was his [...]
Doing Ministry with a Shelby Cobra Mustang Engine (Like Piper & Carson)
February 17, 2012 By Leave a Comment
I just did an interview with Christ the Center, a podcast produced by the Reformed Forum, which is associated with Westminster Theological Seminary. This is a high-powered theological podcast that has hosted such important discussions as the recent debate among Presbyterian theologians over justification and union with Christ (with Michael Horton and Lane Tipton) and [...]
He Wins Because of God: Essay on Tebow for The Atlantic
January 12, 2012 By 12 Comments
Tim Tebow is America’s most popular athlete. Pretty incredible for a guy who was (un)hailed as the second coming of Ryan Leaf. A month ago, I wrote on Tebow and John Calvin for the Gospel Coalition. Just today, The Atlantic has published an essay I wrote on Tebow. It’s on how to assess what it means [...]
Is Tim Tebow Succeeding Because of the “Hand of God?”
December 13, 2011 By 9 Comments
It seems to be Tim Tebow week here at the blog, though without any prior planning toward this goal on my part. I wrote a piece on the Sunday night comments of NBC sportscaster Bob Costas that suggested that God does not “take a hand in the outcome of [football] games.” Readers of this blog [...]
John Calvin and Sin in the Life of the Believer: The Gospel Coalition and Evangelical Spirituality
July 1, 2011 By 1 Comment
How should we who consider grace the central reality of our life think about God’s response to our sin? This is a tricky question, one that defies some of the easy answers we offer to it. Today at The Gospel Coalition, I ask and seek to answer this question in a post entitled “You Can [...]
Kevin DeYoung Speaks Wisely About Celebrity Pastors
June 9, 2011 By 2 Comments
Kevin DeYoung has just posted a manifestly helpful piece on the hot-potato topic of “celebrity pastors.” I commend it to you; it’s full of wisdom and good theological thinking. Here’s a snatch: Give glory to God for his gifts wherever you find them.This entails three things: 1) We must always remember—and not just give lip [...]
Follow Patheos
Evangelical: