-
Must You Have Experience to Truly Know?
It is very common in today’s culture to argue that experience is the ultimate authority. However, as I have written before, not only is it foolish, but it is dangerous to elevate experience as the determiner of truth. Additionally, Christians need to be adamant that lack of experience does not prohibit one from having an opinion or even speaking authoritatively on an issue. The idea that experience is not the decisive argument is counter cultural. It is extremely common to hear arguments like, “You don’t know what it is like,” “You have not been there,” or “You are not like me, so you don’t know.” Whether it is a culturally sensitive issue, like the racial minority decrying whites for not understanding their oppression, or whether it is an individual issue, like someone describing his or her depression or anger; the belief that experience is what ultimately leads to understanding is…
-
The Folly of Government Without God
If there was no God, why would you obey the government? In today’s increasingly secularized culture, there are massive efforts to remove God from the public life. But one important argument that needs to be made is that if God is removed from society, the whole foundation for the authority structures within that society crumble. Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God. Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God has appointed, and those who resist will incur judgment (Romans 13:1-2). Notice that Romans 13 says all subsidiary authorities, namely government and family, are instituted by God (cf. 1 Pet 2:13-17). They are designed by God to be representatives of His ultimate authority and enforce morality which coincides with how God has created the world. God as the Foundation for Government…
-
Comparison: the Good and the Bad
“Comparison is the Thief of Joy” is a common saying, but I’m not sure who said it first. It is certainly true that some kinds of comparison can cause problems. But is all comparison wrong? In order to think through this issue, I ran a quick Bible search in the New Testament looking at all of the comparative adjectives (183 of them to be precise). Rather than list all of them, I want to just give some general observations from Matthew. Comparison in Itself is Not Wrong The first comparative adjective in the New Testament is an acknowledgement by John the Baptist that there is one coming “who is mightier than I” (Matt 3:11). Additionally, in the Sermon on the Mount, Jesus gives the obvious implication that life is “more than food, and the body more than clothing” (Matt 6:25). Clearly both of these comparisons are meant to realize important…
-
The Bible and Pets: a Theology of Animals
Americans love pets! It is reported that 67% of American households own a pet (the top pets being dogs). The amount of money Americans spend on their pets grows each year, increasing over 50% between 2013 and 2018. That means people spent $87 billion dollars on their pets in 2018! To put these numbers in perspective, in 2018 couples spent $845 on average per year on pets! Over 10 years (an average life span of a dog), that would mean spending $8,450 on one animal! Given the value that people put on their pets, it comes as no surprise that many hold to a viewpoint that pets are inherently equal to human beings. Although pets should be important to us, if we follow the cultural line of thinking we risk elevating pets to an unbiblical place. I think it is important for all Christians to be taught the differences between…
-
Can Jealousy be Good? Or is It Always Sin?
It is usually assumed jealousy is always a sin. But, there are times jealousy is NOT a sin. Yes, you read that accurately—jealousy is not always a sin! In fact, jealousy can sometimes be good. If that surprises you, then we definitely need to look at the biblical evidence. We tend to think of jealousy (sometimes used as a synonym for envy) as wanting what someone else has or being resentful of them (and that is wrong). However, in biblical language the Hebrew and Greek words for jealousy are often synonymous for the idea of zeal. For example, in Psalm 69:10 the psalmist says, “Zeal for your house has consumed me.” Yet the same word can be used for jealousy in places like Job 5:2, “Surely vexation kills the fool, and jealousy slays the simple.” When studying the various uses in the Old and New Testaments one is struck with…
-
Ahithophel and Dealing With Bitterness
Ahithophel is one of those lesser-known characters in Scripture. But he is an excellent example of how bitterness can corrupt the soul. Bitterness is an issue we all need to deal with. This post on Ahithophel and bitterness was originally posted by Dr. Varner on his now-delinquent blog many years ago. He gave permission to repost it, and I always appreciate the way Dr. Varner spells things out. I hope you do too. The Tragedy of Ahithophel Following David’s awful sin of adultery with Bathsheba and the ensuing arranged murder of her husband, Uriah, he was confronted by Nathan the prophet. Among the consequences of his sins were that from his own household enemies would arise against him (2 Sam 12:10-11). Three of his sons – Amnon, Absalom, and Adonijah – each caused serious problems for him and his successor, Solomon (2 Sam 13; 14-17; 2 Kings 1-2). There was…
-
Does the Old Testament Law Apply Today?
How does a Christian apply the Old Testament Law today? This is a bit of a complicated question. Given the fact that the Law reflects creation principles, we should not be surprised that it remains relevant. Indeed, Scripture unequivocally teaches the positive role of the Mosaic Law in the life of the Christian. “Do we then nullify the Law through faith? May it never be! On the contrary, we establish the Law” (Rom 3:31) “the Law is holy, and the commandment is holy and righteous and good” (Rom 7:12) On the other hand, there are also clear Scripture passages which indicate the believer’s relationship to the Mosaic Law has drastically changed. “Law was given through Moses; grace and truth were realized through Jesus Christ” (John 1:17) “You are not under the law but under grace” (Rom 6:14) “Christ is the end of the law” (Rom 10:4) “But if you are…
-
A Christian Critique of Personal Experience
Personal experience is currently regarded as the primary means of knowledge and truth in our culture. Whether it is the current issues of racism or LGBT rights, or it is something like biblical interpretation; personal experience is regularly elevated as the controlling determiner of truth. Take for example the following claims of experience: “Systemic racism must exist because I have experienced it.” “You cannot judge a transgender individual because you don’t have his experience. You don’t know what it’s like for him.” “I have had the experience of speaking in tongues; therefore, Scripture has to be interpreted to allow for speaking in tongues.” Now at the outset, I freely acknowledge the value of personal experience. Scripture clearly expects wisdom to be possessed by the mature because of their many days of experience (Job 12:12). Also, many of the Psalms are based on a response to personal experience. Further, our personal…
-
The High Cost of Following Jesus
Many people buy into the lie that Jesus wants you to believe in Him so that He can fix your life. Many people think following Jesus is the key to a prosperous life. I have heard preachers say that if someone wants to be a better athlete, a better doctor, a better musician, then come to Jesus! The truth is, Jesus never promised that following him would make your life better. In fact, He constantly warned that following Him may make your life worse! Take Luke 14:25-33 for example. Jesus tells any who are interested in following Him that they must be willing to sacrifice three things. In following Christ, you must be willing to sacrifice life’s closest relationships. If anyone comes to Me, and does not hate his own father and mother and wife and children and brothers and sisters, yes, and even his own life, he cannot be My…
-
Church Discipline: The Forgotten Pillar
Little known to most people, the 1561 Belgic Confession gives three marks by which the true church is known: (1) preaching the pure gospel, (2) observing the sacraments (i.e., baptism and communion), and (3) practicing church discipline. Throughout church history, church discipline has been an integral component of God-fearing churches. However, a recent survey of pastors revealed that 55% of churches have never formally disciplined a member. Another 21% stated that, although the church had practiced church discipline, it was three or more years ago. Clearly, church discipline has fallen on hard times and is hardly viewed as a pillar of the church. There are a variety of reasons churches do not practice church discipline. One reason, sadly, is ignorance. In order to alleviate the ignorance, my goal in this post is to provide a simple template for following church discipline as taught in Matthew 18:15–17. Church Discipline Step 1:…