A Tale of Two Valedictorians: The Shooter and the C.E.O.
"Be sure your sins will find you out." - Numbers 32:23 "Two roads diverged in a wood, and I—I took the one less traveled by, and that has made all the difference." -- from the poem The Road Not Taken by Robert Frost I graduated so far back in my ...
Toward a Practical Theology of Good Works: Good Works and Old Testament Poetry and Wisdom Literature
A thematic approach to good works and Old Testament poetry and wisdom literature Obedience to God's communal good works, beginning with Ruth and Boaz and culminating in the reigns of David and Solomon, brought a time of peace and prosperity to the nation of Israel. We should not be surprised, ...
Is Money the Root of All Evil?
There is nothing wrong with having money You have probably heard someone say, “Money is the root of all evil!” However, that’s not what Scripture teaches. Rather, Scripture teaches that it is the love of money that is the root of all evil. The passage in question shows up in ...
Toward a Practical Theology of Good Works: The Practice and Teaching of Good Works in OT Historical Books
Let's review Having looked at the practice and teaching of good works in the Pentateuch, we learned several things about doing good works. First, a believer's sin affects in a negative way how he or she experiences God's plan for their good works, but not God's ultimate outworking of his ...
Stones of Remembrance
Like everyone else, we believers can be forgetful people. We especially can forget the many instances of God's goodness to us. What to do? Joshua 4: 4-9 records the command of Joshua for the Israelites to set up stones of remembrance. “So, Joshua called together the twelve men he had ...
Toward a Practical Theology of Good Works: The Practice and Teaching of Good Works in the Pentateuch
In the previous section of this series on a practical theology of good works we looked at the good works that God himself has done as recorded in the Bible. We did so in order to gain God's perspective on good works. Specifically, we looked at God's good works in ...
Jesus is Our King
Every four years, increasingly it seems, our country is whipped into a frenzy during the months leading up to the November presidential elections. Both sides dig in. Positions solidify. Name calling and ad hominem attacks are thrown around. Politicians promise life will be rosy if you give them your vote ...
Toward a Practical Theology of Good Works: Finding Out What Pleases the Lord
When it comes to God and his good works, God calls all believers to participate with him as he does them Some of my fondest and earliest memories are of my father teaching me how to straighten old nails. A survivor of the Depression, Dad made it a practice of ...
Why Your Men’s Ministry Must Include Men with Disabilities
One in five people in the United States suffer from a disability"Approximately one in five people in the United States live with a disability. According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, about 19% of the U.S. population reported having a disability in the most recent American Community Survey (ACS)." ...
Toward a Practical Theology of Good Works: Redemption – God’s Greatest Good Work of All
We have all been slaves to something "At one time we too were foolish, disobedient, deceived and enslaved by all kinds of passions and pleasures. We lived in malice and envy, being hated and hating one another." Titus 3:3 Never underestimate the ability of us human beings to enslave each ...