Does the World Notice When Christians Fight with One Another?
In the earliest centuries of the church, the burgeoning Christian movement had its fair share of critics. And their complaints were wide and varied. Christians worshipped a criminal crucified by the Romans. Christians were a threat to the empire because of their refusal to pay homage to the gods. Christian books were filled with errors and contradictions. Jesus was a magician who learned his dark arts in Egypt. And so on.
Of all the early critics (and there were many), Celsus was undoubtedly the most strident. Writing in the latter half of the second century, Celsus was a Greek Philosopher who penned one of the earliest sustained critiques of Christianity … Continue reading...
How to Have Healthy Disagreements in the Church
During the TGC National Conference this past April, I was part of a panel discussion with Alistair Begg, Gavin Ortlund, and Jen Wilkin on the topic of “How to Have Healthy Disagreements within Your Church.” The panel was hosted by Carl Laferton of the Good Book Company.
I have to say that I can’t imagine many topics more timely than this one. It was encouraging to hear the perspectives of my fellow panelists on how the evangelical community needs more grace, charity and maturity in the way we disagree. Here’s the video:… Continue reading...
The Loss of Intellectual Curiosity—and Why It’s Dividing the Church
In the 2020 Apple TV breakout hit, Ted Lasso, there’s a remarkable scene in the local London pub where Ted challenges the show’s nemesis, Rupert Mannion, to a game of darts. Confident that he can beat this silly American who knows nothing about British culture, Rupert quickly ups the stakes with an aggressive bet. Ted agrees and the game is on.
Rupert quickly discovers, however, that he has underestimated this bumbling “aw shucks” football coach. While Ted threw darts with his right hand in the warm-up session, it turns out he’s really left-handed. Rupert also learns something else he didn’t know: Ted grew up playing darts with his father. … Continue reading...
Remembering Tim Keller
One year ago on this day, we said goodbye to Tim Keller. In honor of his passing, I am reposting my original tribute to him below.
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By now, you have heard the sad news. Tim Keller has just passed away.
I still remember the first time I heard a Tim Keller sermon. It was the mid-90’s, and I happened to be in New York City. Having just graduated from seminary, I had heard all the buzz about this new pastor in Manhattan who had (incredibly) built a thriving, growing church in the midst of one of the world’s most liberal cities. Since it was a Sunday, I figured I … Continue reading...
Is Marriage a Good Thing?
Marriage has fallen on hard times of late.
As of 2020, US News and World Report documented how the US marriage rates have dropped to historic lows. Indeed, since records were kept from the early 1800’s, at no point in our history have people been married so infrequently.
But it’s not just declining rates—the people who are getting married are getting married later. Just let these numbers sink in: In 1978, the number of people between 18 and 34 who were married was nearly 60%. As of 2018, that number felt to 29%.
Now, it would be all too easy to look at these numbers and declare we just live … Continue reading...