I’ve always been torn between academia and the church. On the one hand, I love to study. I love books, theological discussions, books, Greek, reading, books, and teaching in an academic setting. In many ways I feel like I was made for the classroom. Yes, I’’m a geek. But I like to surf, so back off! But on the other hand, I love the church. I probably love to preach more than teach, and I love trying to live out... Read more
Let me say upfront that this blog is primarily intended to reach the many supporters, students, faculty, friends, donors, and aspiring students of Eternity Bible College. But feel free to read on if you’re interested in hearing about my last 5 months in Boise, ID. Quick overview. My family I moved to Boise Idaho on May 1st, 2014, in order to start an extension site for Eternity Bible College. The idea started back in early summer 2013 and is now... Read more
As you may know, I’m writing a book on homosexuality, which should be published by this time next year. One of the things I’ve tried to do is read various blogs on homosexuality from a diverse perspectives. This has helped me not only stay up on what’s current in the discussion, but also gain some insight into the hearts and minds of other people thinking through this tough issue. I’ve especially enjoying reading blogs by people who are LGBTQ (formerly,... Read more
I recently re-read Rob Bell’s best selling book, Love Wins, and was pleasantly shocked at how much of it I agree with. Well, I agree with about 80% of it. The problem is that the other 20% is wrong and misleading. In any case, I was struck by something he said as he was slaughtering our sacred evangelical cows in chapter one. Bell pointed out that even though Christians today emphasize having a “personal relationship with Jesus,” the phrase never... Read more
Andrian Warnock and I both responded to John Piper’s interpretation of Romans 7, to which Piper has recently posted a response on the Desiring God blog. I’d like offer a counter response to Piper’s strongest arguments for his view. Again, Piper believes that Paul is describing a believer in Romans 7:14-25, whereas Andrian and I do not. Or more specifically, I believe Paul is identifying with an unconverted, though zealous and pious, Jew who is trying to conquer sin by obeying... Read more
Last week, I blogged about the meaning of “church,” as I conversed with Don Miller (in a bloggy sort of way) over his disenchantment with Sunday services. I wanted to circle back around and tease out something I mentioned at the end of that post regarding diversity. Put simply: How important is ethnic diversity for constituting a healthy church? Other forms of diversity are important—social, age, financial, gender, etc. But for this post, I want to focus specifically on ethnic... Read more
My new book, Charis: God’s Scandalous Grace for Us, is free today and tomorrow! What a fitting deal for a book on grace! Also, my previous book, Fight: A Christian Case for Nonviolence, is on sale today and tomorrow for $1.99. Please Share This On Facebook and Twitter! Free stuff is good stuff. After tomorrow, both books will go back to the regular price. If you want a teaser, I’ve blogged about Charis a couple weeks ago with my posted... Read more
When God created humanity, he commissioned us to rule the earth (Gen 1). Animals, plants, land, and sea—it’s all under our dominion, and this includes the culture and civilization developed from creation. Since we bear God’s image, we are to bring God’s rule to bear over all aspects of creation. We should seek to bring God’s reign—His way of doing things—over our businesses, families, ministries, vocations, and all the stuff we develop from the world. And this includes our cell... Read more
As some of you know, I host a daily radio program on Idaho’s KBXL 94.1 The Voice called What Does the Bible Really Say, which airs Mon-Fri from 2:15-2:30pm (MST). For those of you who don’t live in Idaho, which is probably 95% of you, you can listen live online HERE or listen to all of the archived shows HERE. Some of the topics we’ve covered include, What does the Bible say about… Angels The Birth of Christ The Fall... Read more
I’ve been asked by many people, “When are you going to blog about ISIS?” And my answer thus far as been, “Probably never.” Even though I have quite a few thoughts on Christians and violence, I don’t have much wisdom for how nations should fight against other (aspiring) nations, or the best tactic to rid the world of terrorists. When people asked another question: “What should we do with ISIS,” I’m always reluctant to answer until I know what they... Read more
Theology in the Raw
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In