Robert Louis Stevenson wrote a series of short essays about Edinburgh, Scotland. In his Picturesque Notes of Edinburgh, he tells the story of two unmarried sisters who shared a single room. As is often the case when people share close quarters, they had an argument. But in their case the argument was over a point…
Still More Reflections of the 2021 SBC Convention [Note: You can find Dr. Straub’s two previous reflections on the 2021 SBC meeting here and here. Ed.] In the aftermath of the Nashville meeting of a few weeks ago, SBC pundits are still musing on the successes and failures of the 2021 convention. On the plus…
“God is not a Republican!” said the preacher. He was in the middle of a message in which he emphasized the greatness of God above human institutions. The statement was intended to shock his politically conservative audience. Then a voice rose up from the back of the room. “Well, he is CERTAINLY not a Democrat!”…
In preparing for a series on Jonah, one thing stood out to me: Jonah had an incredible grasp of theology. He was a faithful prophet of the LORD (2 Kings 14:25). Implied in that is a grasp of God’s Word as well as the belief that God is a communicating God. We learn a lot…
I sometimes take the occasion to write a July 1 post for Proclaim & Defend because, as a Canadian, I have an inner compulsion (no doubt driven by our national angst) to remind the world (i.e. my American friends) that I am different from you all. (See, I can’t even do “y’all” right.) Kidding aside,…
Are the gifts in 1 Corinthians 12.7-10 for every generation in the church age? More importantly, what does it mean to be a spiritual person. The great desire of faithful believers is to make certain we do not quench or grieve the Holy Spirit when we meet in the church. Any genuine manifestation of the…
“I already have one of those,” said the taxi driver when I offered him one of the gospel tracts in my wallet. Since I live in a densely populated Asian city, the odds seemed slim he really had one. To my shock, the driver pulled an identical tract from the console between the seats. “You…
The gender identity of men and women in our culture is skewed, and I am afraid Christians buy into it too often. The comic book culture has created a vision of masculinity that is physically powerful, emotionally distant, angry, and brooding. Now there are variations but that is the general idea. Our culture has…
For those who missed it, here are audio recordings of most of the sessions from our conference last week. I’m providing links to our book announcement and position statements as well. Monday (June 14) 7:00 PM Evening Service – Dr. Kevin Schaal Dr. Larry Oats – FBFI History book: For the Faith the 100-year history…
When I think of what’s supreme, I think of Taco Bell. Fries Supreme Nachos Supreme Beef Crunchy Taco Supreme Beef Soft Taco Supreme Beef Burrito Supreme Chicken Burrito Supreme Steak Burrito Supreme Nacho Cheese Doritos Locos Taco Supreme I could keep going, but you get it. It seems like Taco Bell would have us think…