holiness

Legality is Not Morality

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In my Sunday afternoon group (homegroup) we’ve been going over various Christian ethics questions and trying to discern the Biblical worldview. I noticed a few times through the course of the lessons a dangerous and unquestioned assumption: if it’s legal, it must be good, or at the very least, not bad. For Christians, this is one of the most pernicious and harmful assumptions we can make in our time, so I’d like to flesh out this basic distinction a bit. We’ll start with defining the two terms, legality and morality, and then we’ll compare and contrast them. Finally, we’ll talk … [Read more]

When I Criticize “the Church”…

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I feel this is a post in which I will stray and wander, both while I write it and while I try to apply it in my own life. Please forgive me for both. Define “church.” This is a subject that has been covered by many, but it has not been covered by me. Given my insatiable need for clear and precise language, I thought it best to explain the possible meanings of the word “church” when I use it. My Definitions “Church” can mean 4 different things in my vocabulary: The Universal Body. Unalterable, immutable, clothed in white, stretching … [Read more]

Partly Holy Christians

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I’ve noticed that the blog posts I write that get the most views are the ones about controversial or touchy subjects. Not many read my posts on the philosophy behind God’s name as the present tense, first person, “to be” verb. I find it vivifying and exhilarating! Not many read my post on gluttony. Who cares right? That’s a sin we’re okay with in our culture, and if we’re not, we just keep it to ourselves. I can’t tell you how many people didn’t read my posts about Progressive and Normative Dispensationalism. I bet most of you even skipped over … [Read more]

Feasting or Gluttony: Which are You Doing?

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I’m eating barbecue with my friends on Memorial Day. We’ve just floated the Comal River and we are about to blow any kind of diet we had, then a joke gets made about gluttony. Should we be joking about the sin of gluttony? Is it really a laughing matter? Does eating barbecue with your friends on Memorial Day, (way more barbecue than you’d eat on a normal day) even count as gluttony? What is the line between feasting and gluttony? What does the Bible say about feasting? In the bible, feasting is seen primarily in the Old Testament, and the … [Read more]

People Have Sex, Words Have Gender

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I’m writing this days after Bruce Jenner decided to become Caitlyn Jenner and the question of Transgenderism is hotter than it’s ever been. Introduction To those who support Jenner’s decision, I ask a single question of you: If Jenner changes back, will you be equally supportive? I’ve been thinking it through for days to be sure I don’t say something about this that I’ll regret. There are so many angles from which to look at this. There’s the Jon Stewart angle, which unknowingly exposes the inconsistency of supporting both feminism and trans-genderism. There’s the Walt Heyer angle, which traces the gruesome … [Read more]