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Writing

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

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Pastoral Ministry

Rural Church Growth

I've pastored a very rural church for well over a decade. Our town has about 1,000 people and will never grow until Jesus returns. 38 people attend our worship on Sundays. Here's a quick list of what we’ve done to grow our church, and what I’ve done to survive pastorally.…

by TheopolisAugust 10, 2017
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Art

Letter to a Young Artist

Thanks for sharing so honestly about your current crisis of creativity. I totally understand and relate to that; it’s happened many times in my musical life thus far, and I’ve begun to accept it as a normal rhythm of the creative process. I actually went through a serious dry spell…

by Joel ClarksonAugust 8, 2017
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Biblical Theology

Stones and Fruit: Divination and Procreation – (Part 3)

The Broken Stones of Israel At Sinai, the tablets of the Law of Moses were broken and restored. The Old Testament is a history of “new covenants,” including that promised in Jeremiah and fulfilled in Zechariah. Ultimately, the vertical Oath and the horizontal Sanctions met in the death of Jesus…

by Mike BullAugust 3, 2017
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Isaiah

God's Market, the Church

Woe to the sinful nation. Woe to those who enlarge their estates and build their portfolios. Woe to the drunks. Woe to those who call evil good and good evil. Woe to the proud who are wise in their own eyes. Woe to Congressmen who pass unjust laws and to…

by Peter LeithartAugust 1, 2017
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Romans

In the Flesh: Then and Now

The interpretation of Romans 7:7-25 is notoriously difficult. Good scholars disagree on many aspects of the passage, but the central interpretative difficulty concerns the identity of the “I.” Is Paul referring to himself? Is Paul referring to himself pre- or post-conversion? Does the “I” refer to Adam? Is the “I”…

by Bill SmithJuly 27, 2017
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How to Worship

The Minister's Uniform

You board the Metra train at Arlington Heights station one afternoon, heading to downtown Chicago for some sight-seeing. As the train departs from the station, a man in jeans, a striped t-shirt, and a Kansas City Royals baseball cap enters your train car, and begins asking to see each passenger’s…

by Jon HerrJuly 25, 2017

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Jean de Florette

Some thoughts on Claude Berri’s beautiful and provocative 1986/1987 films Jean de Florette and Manon of the Springs . 1. The story is a reverse Oedipus tale, focusing on how Cesar Soubeyran(Yves Montand) ruins and kills his own son (Jean, played by Girard Depardieu) without knowing it is his son.…

June 18, 2005

Festivals in 2 Kings 4

There are a number of verbal links between 2 Kings 4:42-44 and the festivals of first fruits in Leviticus 23. First, Leviticus 23:14 prohibits Israel from eating bread or roasted grain or “new growth” (Heb. CARMEL) until the gift of the first sheaf. 2 Kings 4:42 refers to the man’s…

June 18, 2005

Translation, 2 Kings 8

Now ‘Eliysha’ spoke to the woman which he had restored her son to life, saying, “Arise, and go/walk, you yourself and your house And sojourn in which you sojourn. For Yahweh called for famine, And also it will enter to the land seven years.” And she arose, the woman, and…

June 15, 2005

Babel in time

A friend, Toby Sumpter, points out that the tower of Babel project must have taken a considerable time. Nimrod, who founds Babel/Babylon (Gen 10:10), was a great-grandson of Noah (Noah-Ham-Cush-Nimrod). But the earth was divided in the days of Peleg (10:25), in the sixth generation from Noah (11:10-17: Noah-Shem-Arpachshad-Shelah-Eber-Peleg), at…

June 15, 2005

Abraham and Adam

Yahweh promises Abraham an abundant seed, and a land to put them in. Planted in the land, Abraham’s seed becomes the new Eden.

June 15, 2005

Sermon outline, June 19

INTRODUCTION As a nation, Israel is in trouble. In the war against Moab, Yahweh turned away against Israel and allowed Mesha to escape Israel’s lordship. Far from the palace and the army camp, however, Yahweh is still at work. Behind closed doors, He works through Elisha to save a remnant…

June 15, 2005

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