I believe it is often easier for those of us in conservative Christian circles to emphasize Jesus’ full deity. Read more

In Luke 8, we find Jesus healing a woman with an issue of blood that has persisted for twelve years straight without end. We also find Jesus raising a synagogue ruler’s daughter from the dead (See Luke 8:40-56). Both the woman and the daughter are beyond hope by human standards. The woman has spent all her resources on trying to stop the blood flow, but to no avail. The religious ruler’s daughter is near death, and later dies. But rather... Read more

Hebrews 4:12 compares God’s Word (logos) favorably to a double or two-edged sword. While God’s Word is not a double-edged sword, it is sharper than such a sword. Now some might take this text as an encouragement to weaponize God’s Word (logos; Hebrews 4:12), or Scripture (graphe; 2 Timothy 3:16). We must never weaponize God’s Word where we use it to demean, condemn or destroy someone else. Rather, we must hold God’s Word like a scalpel. The Holy Spirit does... Read more

Conspiracies are always secretive. As such, it is hard for me to fathom the doctrine of the incarnation as a conspiracy. Read more

Luke 8:26-39 tells the story of Jesus casting out a host of demons from a man. The demons begged Jesus to have mercy on them by not sending them into the abyss, but rather a herd of pigs. The people in the vicinity begged Jesus to leave their region because “they were seized with great fear” (Luke 8:37; ESV). The formerly demon-possessed man—“sitting at the feet of Jesus, clothed and in his right mind” (Luke 8:35; ESV)—begged to depart with the Lord. He... Read more

Storms and waters pound states like Florida and Texas while fires rage in the states of Oregon and Washington. They have caused such devastation, destroying anything in their path. Luke 8:22-25 may come as a source of comfort and/or consternation to people facing various dangers and disasters in life. Jesus is found sound asleep in a boat on a lake during a raging storm as his disciples frantically try to cross to land (some of them expert sailors), no doubt... Read more

The dominant outlook on life often appears to be one of wariness, not awareness. What are we often wary of today? Refugees, immigrants, people of other religions, different ethnicities, different orientations? While it is appropriate to be wary of imminent dangers, differences are not necessarily or often dangers. Wariness should not be the dominant impulse of one’s life. Awareness should be. Be aware, not wary. Certainly, consideration of personal and communal safety as well as solidarity are critically important. But... Read more

Photo Credit: Marco Bellucci Many Evangelical Christians are growing discontent with being assigned “Evangelical” as a Christian label. They are experiencing some level of dysphoria. “Evangelical” means a great deal of things to a whole host of people. People of various stripes within the Evangelical movement are struggling to come to terms with these meanings, as well as with the issues dividing the movement. Such dysphoria or discontent is perhaps no more apparent than in dealing with sexuality and gender,... Read more

It’s one thing to be American on paper. It’s quite another to be American in principle and practice, like the “Dreamers” who benefit the country in many ways. The “Dreamers” are undocumented immigrants who were brought to the United States as children. It was not their decision to come, and it is not their desire to go. Many “Dreamers” work diligently to live the American Dream, and only ask to be granted the opportunity to work, to pursue education, and... Read more

I have always been fascinated with the story of the rich young ruler (recorded in Mark 10, Matthew 19 and Luke 18) as it bears on divine goodness, Jesus, and us. Among other things, I have been struck by Jesus’ response at the beginning and close of his interaction with the man. Here are the opening and closing statements in context: “And as he was setting out on his journey, a man ran up and knelt before him and asked him,... Read more