Issue
Christian Liberty: Getting Beyond Legalism and License
Vol. 9, No. 2 • Mar/Apr 2000
To know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding, to receive the instruction of wisdom, Justice, judgment, and equity; To give prudence to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion …. Proverbs 1:2-4 There is always a risk in writing on ethical topics, especially on a subject one has not mastered. […]
All Articles (10)
Recovering the Art of Christian Prudence
To know wisdom and instruction, to perceive the words of understanding, to receive the instruction of wisdom, Justice, judgment, and equity; To give prudence to the simple, to the young man knowledge and discretion …. Proverbs 1:2-4 There is always a risk in writing on ethical topics, especially on a subject one has not mastered. […]
A Sober Assessment of Reformational Drinking
Protestant reflection on the consumption of alcohol has undergone a dramatic transformation since the Reformation. Whether this change stems from the rise of pietism or the triumph of middle-class morality, contemporary evangelical ideas about alcohol are at odds with the views of the Protestant reformers. Attending to the reformers’ ideas, then, is important not only […]
Christian Colleges and Holiness Commitments
Who disagrees with Christian liberty? No one raises his or her hand. Yet many Christian colleges and parachurch organizations have codes of conduct requiring many things that the Bible does not. In itself, this isn’t that odd; no one claims that a restaurant requiring a tie is violating its patrons’ Christian liberty. But then again, […]
“Iustitia Dei: A History of the Christian Doctrine of Justification” by Alister E. McGrath
In his preface to this one-volume revision of his original two-volume edition, Alister McGrath informs us of its purpose and scope: “The history of the development of the Christian doctrine of justification has never been written. It is this deficiency which the present volume seeks to remedy. The first edition of this work appeared in […]
Freedom in Worship:
The argument for the regulative principle main-tains that God has, in Scripture, revealed his zeal to direct his own worship. That it is contained in the Westminster Standards and reflected by the adherents of those standards in Scotland, England, and America is sufficient to warrant its observation by the Church. It is a mandate “from […]
How the Regulative Principle Liberates
Typically in discussions about worship, the regulative principle plays the role of bad cop. It is restrictive, confining, and downright narrow, according to its opponents. After all, the word “regulative,” implies regulations and rules that will cramp a church’s worship “style.” To be sure, the regulative principle limits corporate worship (that is, worship overseen and […]
Christian Living
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Help! Saved but Still Sinning
Sanctification isn’t effortless. The act of dying to sin implies spiritual battle and life-long war against sin. Living unto righteousness implies costly, intensive labor that daily says “no” to sin and “yes” to Christlikeness. So what do we do when we fail yet again? How can we overcome feelings of failure, defeat, and self-loathing when we sin?
Fearing Death Isn’t a Sin. Here’s Why.
“To the one who is afraid of death, dear brother or sister, Don’t let your fear turn into faithlessness, but instead offer it to God.” Jesus’s death and resurrection have transformed what death means for the Christian. Pastor Adriel shares that feeling fear at the approach of death is not automatically sinful, however, the real […]
The Weight of Steadfastness
What if the discomfort we’ve avoided—the very trial we’ve begged God to remove—is the instrument our loving Father is using to bring us to completion, the place where lasting joy is found?
Assurance in the Shadow of Doubt
The coexistence of assurance and doubt is not a contradiction, but a reflection of the Christian life lived between justification and glorification. True assurance rests not in the strength of one’s faith, but in the object of that faith—Jesus Christ—and the presence of doubt, while unsettling, does not nullify genuine belief.
