Latest Blog Posts from Wednesday in the Word, the podcast about what the Bible means and how we know.
Judging by external appearance is at the heart of James 2:1-13. But James is not concerned with whether we are nice to people or not. James is raising a more profound question: how are you looking at the world?
I can spend 20 hour a week in Bible study without complaint but I’d rather shovel rocks than sit through most 20 minute sermons. Transformation without information has all the nourishment of whipped cream.
God has identified the real problem in our lives and the only solution. But we easily deceive ourselves. The real issue is how are you going to respond to this message? Are you willing to hear God out?
A recently engaged woman learned her fiancee has “ongoing struggles with pornography.” She isn’t sure what to do. Assuming sin usually runs deeper than we care to admit, my advice would be postpone the wedding until the she can answer “yes” to two questions.
The poor believer will be exalted. The rich unbeliever will be humiliated. It may seem the other way around right now, but if you understand the gospel, it should change your perspective.
When did we learn that all hardship is harmful, that every unknown is dangerous, and that even the tiniest failure must be avoided? It is a logical conclusion if we alone are responsible for everything, but James would say otherwise.
If we accept the fact that God is our Father, our Provider and our Redeemer, does it make sense that He would hide His will from us? Yet many Christians talk about the “will of God” as if finding it is a version of the con man’s three-shell game.
James 1:1-8 is one of the most important passages of the book. It sets the tone, the theme and the foundation for the rest of the letter. If we get this passage wrong, it is like grabbing the salt instead of the sugar. It will change the entire flavor and understanding of the letter.
In his letter to the Galatians, Paul argues that there is one voice to listen to above all others and that is the voice that speaks the gospel of Jesus Christ.
In his critique of Tim Keller’s Generous Justice, Giere refers to Galatians and points to a major theme of James. Do James and Paul offer a litmus test of saving faith?
Our author introduces himself simply as another sinner saved by grace. Who was James? How did he come to faith? And how do we know which James wrote this letter?
Fantasy, distortion and falsehood are the currency of our new technology. It is easy today to be someone you’re not. By contrast, the Epistle of James raises the question: are you living what you claim to believe?
What is there to celebrate about Christmas? I’d like to answer that question by looking at one of my favorite Christmas stories: Job. The hope that sustained Job sitting on that ash heap, scraping at his boils, is the knowledge that he had a Redeemer who was born on Christmas day.
Beauty is no longer in the eye of the beholder; it is in the mouse click of the photoshopper.
Paul writes his final comments with his own hand to emphasize his message.
Does the Bible dictate who works inside and outside the home? Consider this debate over “who wears the pants” sparked by the “Dad Mom” Tide commercial.
Burning hearts are not nourished by empty heads. We must develop our minds if we are to sustain our passion for the Savior.
Obedience is not agreeing with truth and intending to do it. It’s doing what God asks us to do as soon as possible. Why, then, do I fail to act?
It’s easy to discuss “loving our neighbor” in the abstract. It is more difficult to figure out how to apply that to concrete, practical everyday situations.
Take this highly unscientific quiz to diagnose your discouragement style—then find out what to do about it. Do you match Elijah, Moses, John the Baptist, or Gideon?
What sort of freedom is Christian freedom? What does it mean to “walk by the Spirit” or “crucify the flesh”?
No compromise is possible. You either seek salvation by keeping the whole law or by grace through faith in Christ. You can’t mix and match law and grace.
“The female part of every congregation have an influence which cannot be defined nor resisted. For the most part, this influence is as just in its award, as it is sovereign in its sway.”
For we judge between the plate that is unclean and the plate that is clean, saying first, if the plate is clean, then you shall have dessert. But of the unclean plate, the laws are these:
Two sons. Same father, different mothers. Only one inherited the promise.
Paul’s relationship with the Galatians teaches us 5 principles of biblical leadership.
Neither churches nor families are teaching 20-somethings that marriage is the adventure – except in our Perfect Union class.
How do you evaluate whether a particular interpretation hits the mark of authorial intent?
Some of us may be choking on cutesy things, but many of us are working towards a model of serious bible study and discipleship.
The law teaches us that we are sinful and we need a savior. But having learned that lesson, we should graduate from law-keeping to the maturity of faith.
Not only is it important to have an intentional, deliberate approach to female discipleship, it is necessary for a healthy church community.
When you wake up each day do you see yourself as a child of promise or a slave to a deal?
According to a recent USA Today article, “girlfriends are key to women’s optimism.”
The covers of our Galatians and James homework packets are wordles. You can create your own at www.wordle.net
How does justification relate to atonement? What’s the difference between expiation and propitiation? Find out.
Why does the Apostle Paul broadcast his conflict with the Apostle Peter in an open letter to multiple churches? What did he expect the Galatians to learn from it and what can we learn today?