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Writing

Explore our collection of theological essays, biblical studies, and reflections on faith and culture.

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Apologetics

Do I Have to go to Church?

Imagine driving up to Canada and stopping at a restaurant to get a bite to eat. While you’re sitting at the table, an enthusiastic young man comes over to you and says in an excited voice, "Are you an American?" You reply, "Yes, I am." "Wonderful! I have so little…

by Mark HorneNovember 15, 1999
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Biblical Horizons

The Prayer of Manasseh

1 O Lord Almighty, God of our fathers, of Abraham and Isaac and Jacob and of their righteous posterity; 2 You who have made heaven and earth with all their order; 3 who have shackled the sea by Your word ofcommand, who have confined the deep and sealed it with…

by James B. JordanOctober 4, 1999
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Biblical Horizons

The Apocrypha: Bel and the Dragon

Part 1: 1When King Astyages was laid with his fathers, Cyrus the Persian received his kingdom. 2 And Daniel was a companion of the king, and was the most honored of his friends. 3Now the Babylonians had an idol called Bel, and every day they spent on it twelve bushels…

by James B. JordanOctober 4, 1999
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Church Government

Ministers and Ruling Elders Do Not Occupy the Same Office

This debate has been going on for some time. But with few exceptions, almost all explanations of Presbyterian church polity claim that a “church” (meaning a single local congregation) must be ruled by “a plurality of elders” of whom one may happen to teach and work full-time doing so. This…

by Mark HorneSeptember 2, 1999
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Biblical Horizons

The Apocrypha

I hope that those who are advocating reading more of the ancient, "classical" literature of the ancient, "classical" world, are also promoting the Apocrypha. I’m afraid that many Christians don’t realize what great literature much of the Apocrypha is. It is not, of course, inspired by God, and perhaps because…

by James B. JordanAugust 4, 1999
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Church Government

What is Presbyterianism?

PRESBYTERIANISM is a term referring to a system of government in the Church. It is commonly contrasted with Congregationalism and Episcopalianism. Presbyter is a Greek word that is translated as “elder” in our English New Testaments. Thus, Presbyterianism is commonly defined as “rule by elders.” This is a misleading definition.…

by Mark HorneJune 5, 1999

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Friday Flurry

Patristic Inerrancy? John Woodbridge contests the widespread notion that Fundamentalists invented the inerrancy of Scripture, that it's a peculiarly post-Cartesian development. He assembles an impressive array of witnesses, including these two quotations from Augustine: "It seems to me that the most disastrous consequences must follow upon our believing that anything…

August 25, 2017

Political Violence and Moral Equivalence

President Trump garbled the message, but he was right. There was violence on both sides during the horrific events in Charlottesville. Racial hatred is evil. Given America's fraught record of discrimination against African-Americans, the KKK, white supremacist groups, and neo-Nazis deservedly have a unique place in America's chamber of horrors.…

August 24, 2017

Worship Is For You

It is often said that we come to worship to give and not to receive. That is a dangerous half-truth. Praise, thanks, adoration are all part of worship, of course, and God delights in our praise. But in worship as in all of life, we have nothing to give unless…

August 24, 2017

Manasseh's Turn

When he became king at the age of twelve, Manasseh of Judah "turned," "built," "raised" altars, prostrated himself, and engaged in liturgical service (2 Chronicles 33:3). It looks like a promising sequence of actions, what all the good kings of Judah did. But the quality of Manasseh's reign turns on…

August 23, 2017

Eternal Creator?

James Dolezal ( All That Is In God ) spends a chapter defending the claim that God is eternal Creator. In the course of this discussion, he interacts with Scott Oliphint's view that God takes on "properties that he otherwise would not have had" when he related to "something ad…

August 22, 2017

Against Theology

The following is an extract from chapter 2 of my Against Christianity (Canon Press, 2003). You can get a 30% discount on the book by entering LEITREADER during checkout at www.canonpress.com/AgainstChristianity The Bible never mentions theology. It does not preach theology, nor does it encourage us to preach theology. Paul…

August 22, 2017

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