Like Louis McBride, I have often pondered this question, and I like the perspective he has cited from Joel Green’s book on Conversion in Luke-Acts. Again, this approach to the question takes as its point of departure the consequences of a particular approach to the human situation: What is the human ‘problem’ that needs to […]
In a small group with which we meet weekly, I mentioned recently the concern I often hear expressed about the departure of younger people from the church. “Millennials” are frequently mentioned in this regard, and some studies have indicated that it pertains particularly to those who have attended university. Later in the week, a group […]
I’m always fascinated by the way in which God brings people to himself, and I just read one conversion story that wonderfully illustrates the variety of means God uses. Guillaume Bignon is a French atheist who met an American Christian woman on vacation in St. Martin. He liked her but her faith dictated that they […]
When I was born, my father was interim pastor of a church in Ontario. The congregation understood that my parents were headed for India as missionaries, but in 1944 it was not simple to travel, and they were still developing a support network. Both my mother and father had a passion for getting the good […]
Michael Horton’s presentation In chapter 5, Michael Horton takes up the fourth and fifth points of “TULIP,” which he places in covenant context. He distinguishes the Sinaitic covenant of law from the Abrahamic covenant of promise/grace, and he then unpacks the new covenant doctrines of effectual calling and perseverance. The overarching truth which Horton unfolds […]
Some years ago, when people did theology on list-serves rather than on blogs, I wondered aloud, on the Canadian Evangelical Theological Association List serve, about the wisdom of encouraging people to “accept Jesus into their hearts.” It triggered a good discussion. I was reminded of that conversation when I read a post by Paul Helm, […]