Imagine filling out an application for heaven. After filling in your name and address, you come to a section marked “Qualifications.” What would you put there? “My belief in God? The people I have helped along the way? I’ve tried to live by the Ten Commandments?” Or would you write, “No qualifications other than my […]
Do followers of Christ have a moral obligation to keep the Ten Commandments? Even though this seems like an easy question, I’ve struggled with the answer. Why Is This A Hard Question? The question of our relationship to the law of Moses is thorny for a number of reasons. People who believe in the Bible […]
Dear Chris, The last time we talked, you asked whether I thought those who end their own lives could go to heaven. Since we didn’t get a chance to finish that conversation, I hope you don’t mind if I use this letter to say some things that I wish I’d been able to say at […]
How do we, as followers of Christ, vote in a way that is consistent with our faith? Some believe the answer is to cast our ballot in favor of candidates who will try to make the morality of the Bible the law of the land. Others believe the most Christlike vote is the one that […]
Diane and I have been married for 31 years. For more than three decades it seems as if we’ve been talking, laughing, and disagreeing about almost everything. My reason for mentioning the disagreements is that I’ve been thinking again about one issue we’ve found especially difficult. Time after time we’ve argued about the way women […]
Why would a parent do more for some of his children than for others? Why does our Father in heaven seem to repeat the mistake of a well-known biblical patriarch? Jacob provoked family rivalry among his 12 sons by spoiling young Joseph in the presence of older brothers (Genesis 37:3). So often our Father seems […]
The sound of worship has hit a sour note. In many congregations, changing styles of music have become a source of conflict. Some church members miss the loss of doctrinally rich hymns. On the other side of the aisle is a generation that seems to thrive on new songs, more volume, and repetitive lyrics. Over […]
