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Aug 29, 2024 | 
thegospelcoalition.org | Rebecca McLaughlin |Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra |Caleb Batchelor |Brett McCracken
Readers might expect to find that Hays has changed his mind about the meaning of the verses that apparently prohibit same-sex sex. But he hasn’t. Instead, he and his son, Christopher (an Old Testament professor at Fuller Theological Seminary), suggest God has changed his mind. If we read the Bible carefully, they argue, we’ll find that “God repeatedly changes his mind in ways that expand the sphere of his love” (2).
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Aug 29, 2024 | 
thegospelcoalition.org | Brett McCracken |Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra |Caleb Batchelor |Jared Larson
Even though Amazon considers 2022’s The Lord of the Rings: The Rings of Power debut a success—the company touts more than 100 million viewers worldwide and record-breaking Prime Video signups from the show’s launch—many Tolkien fans found the premiere season a mixed bag, if not a total disappointment. I share that feeling.
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Aug 28, 2024 | 
thegospelcoalition.org | Don Carson |Caleb Batchelor |Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra |Brett McCracken
Listen or read the following transcript as D. A. Carson speaks on the topic of New Testament studies from Matthew 24-25. 1. This passage speaks of the significance of the signs. Verses 32 to 35. The disciples had asked the question in verse 3, “When will these things be?” I suggested last night they confused the destruction of the temple with the Lord’s return, but still they asked the question, “When shall these things be?”Jesus answers in two steps. The first step is found in verses 32 to 35.
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Aug 28, 2024 | 
thegospelcoalition.org | Leland Brown |Caleb Batchelor |Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra |Brett McCracken
Many pastors have longed for a taste of Charles Spurgeon’s preaching gifts and ministry success, but few have desired the pronounced suffering that accompanied them. Spurgeon’s published sermons show him a master of preaching to distressed souls, but he had to be distressed himself to do so. Sufferings were not coincidental or unfortunate in a pastor’s life; for Spurgeon, ministry and suffering were theologically connected, the pastoral package deal.
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Aug 28, 2024 | 
thegospelcoalition.org | Erin Shaw |Caleb Batchelor |Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra |Brett McCracken
People in every generation struggle to find their identity. According to a study by Horowitz Research and Vox Media, two in five Gen Zers want to be asked who they are. This is a shift away from wanting to be told who they are by society. This generation wants to own their identity. The study also revealed Gen Z prefers labels based on personality traits and preferences rather than on society’s emphasis on gender, race, and physical characteristics.
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Aug 27, 2024 | 
thegospelcoalition.org | Jacob Boyd |Caleb Batchelor |Brett McCracken |Joe Carter
The 17th-century “Prince of Puritans,” John Owen (1616–83), committed his life to the work of ministry as a pastor, theologian, vice chancellor, chaplain, and statesman. He desired to worship the triune God freely—without any external regulations not explicitly found in Scripture. What was Owen’s theology of public worship, and how should it be practiced in a worship service? Behold the Glory of God for WorshipOwen regularly taught that worship, private or public, is beholding God’s glory.
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Aug 27, 2024 | 
thegospelcoalition.org | Brandon Ryan |Caleb Batchelor |Brett McCracken |Joe Carter
Some parts of church leadership are exciting, deeply spiritual, and clearly worthwhile. Others, well, not so much. This, of course, varies from person to person. Around five years ago when I was serving at a Californian church, the task of putting together the annual budget fell to me. Amid weekly preaching, worship leading, and shepherding responsibilities, preparing the budget definitely felt like drudgery.
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Aug 26, 2024 | 
thegospelcoalition.org | Andy Bannister |Brett McCracken |Joe Carter |Caleb Batchelor
A growing number of public intellectuals have recently taken to making statements to the effect that Christianity, although in their mind untrue, is nevertheless good for society. Perhaps the most startling was world-famous atheist and one of the so-called Four Horsemen of the New Atheism, Richard Dawkins.
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Aug 25, 2024 | 
thegospelcoalition.org | Thomas Gibbs |Caleb Batchelor |Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra |Brett McCracken
Declining respect for clergy is no longer news. What’s newsworthy is how broadly shared and deep that skepticism runs. According to a recent Gallup poll, fewer than a third of Americans (32 percent) view pastors as highly honest and ethical.
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Aug 24, 2024 | 
thegospelcoalition.org | Jared Larson |Sarah Eekhoff Zylstra |Caleb Batchelor |Brett McCracken
“We’re Christians too!” It’s a line you may have heard time and again when sharing the gospel with a Mormon friend. Reasoning with a Mormon about his faith can be incredibly difficult. How should you go about it? I’d discourage you from beginning by telling your friend, “Your Jesus isn’t the Jesus of the Bible.” As a former Mormon, I can tell you that hearing that line from Christian street evangelists hurt far more than it helped.
