bible

I’m Gonna Tell My Guy Friends I Love Them

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Here’s why I’m gonna tell my guy friends that I love them: because I do love them. Pretty simple huh? The Problem We live in a culture that has, for all intents and purposes, reduced the the phrase “I love you” to only two definitions: I want to have sex with you. I vaguely wish that you would be happy, because being happy is so nice. Both of these definitions lack the true meaning of love. You want to know my definition? I steal it from J. Budziszewski who stole it from Aquinas, who stole it from Aristotle, who actually … [Read more]

The Hatmakers are Gay Affirming

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https://www.facebook.com/HatmakerBrandon/posts/661677820673474 This is a review of a post by Brandon Hatmaker (husband of Jen Hatmaker) explaining their choice to join the revolution of “affirming Christians.” A link to the post is at the top of this page. Please DO read it for yourself before reading this review. I’m writing this at the request of a friend, and I am happy to oblige. I would recommend having the post open in a different window next to this one, so you can see both at the same time. That’s how I wrote it. So, when I quote something from the post, you … [Read more]

Your Church Doesn’t Need “A Mission Statement”

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Introduction If you belong to an evangelical church with over 100 members it probably has a “vision statement” or “mission declaration” or something similar. I pulled up the websites of the churches nearest me and quickly found quite a few mission statements. Here’s a small sampling: “Our vision is simple: Knowing Christ. Loving People. Changing Lives.” “[We are] an intergenerational, multicultural body of believers in Christ making disciples who are being transformed through Jesus Christ, making relationships in a life-giving community of sacrificial love, and making an impact on the world by sharing the good news of Jesus Christ with … [Read more]

Review of Let The Nations Be Glad

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The following is a paper I wrote for my World Missions class. The prompt was “Four pages will describe the content of the book, and 4-6 pages will provide an analysis of the book. This analysis should address your opinion of how well the author dealt with the subject. Did he support his points well? What was missing in his arguments? What were the most valuable points in the book?” Please enjoy.  Introduction Let the Nations Be Glad by John Piper is, by any standard, a masterful work. Piper’s handling and inclusion of Biblical text and deep thought is commendable, … [Read more]

The Maccabean War and First Century Judea

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This is a paper written for my New Testament introduction class. The prompt was to discuss the effects of the Maccabean war on first century Judaism. Enjoy! Introduction When attempting to determine how to navigate exploring the question of the effect of the Maccabean war on first century Judaism, I found myself in a sea of information. Where to begin? How does one go about looking at the effects of a war, without first looking at the war? How does one look at the war, without looking at the historical context which led to the war? These seem to be … [Read more]