Casey BedellG. K. Chesterton claimed he never discussed anything except politics and religion stating there was nothing else to discuss. By this, he meant these two topics compass the whole of human activity and thought. I believed that valuing religion and...
John HaralsonImagine yourself in a courtroom where God himself is the prosecutor. The heavens and earth are called as witnesses, and the lawsuit is against none other than his own people. The charge? Rebellion—despite all the love and care God had shown them...
JoAnna HoytAs a child, I loved the Choose Your Own Adventure book series. These books allowed me to shape the story to my desires. No other book allowed that. If I did not like an outcome, I simply “rewound” my decision and chose another. The book provided the...
Mark BriansOn the night of His betrayal, Jesus knew that the Father had given him all things into his hands. This biblical phrase signifies dominion and power, yet Jesus chose to use this authority not for revenge or domination, but for acts of...
Sean McGeverI recently addressed a gathering of church leaders about the Everlasting Gospel for Gen Z. When I finished speaking, a long line of people formed to ask questions. That wasn’t strange or unusual. What was strange was that they all asked me versions...
Donald C. McIntyreThe Bible does speak of demons, and demonology is a proper subject of theology. If angels and demons exist and afflict God’s people as the Bible asserts, then their existence and methods are necessary for a Christian’s understanding of reality. The...
Joseph DodsonI recently heard about a hiker who came across another hiker with her two dogs. As they chatted, the dog owner unleashed her pets so that they could frolic among the flowers and the trees. The dogs could not contain their excitement as they felt...
Christopher KouChekov's gun is a rule of stage drama named after the Russian author and playwright Anton Chekhov. The rule states that if a gun appears in the first act, it must be fired by the end of the final act.
Lauren HunterWhen anxiety hits, among the places we go for advice and comfort—e.g., family, friends, pastors, spiritual directors, or perhaps even to a counselor or therapist—we must not forget to go to God’s Word to calm our anxious hearts. The Bible...
Scott HarrowerWhen I first met Marcel, he was slowly rubbing the side of his head, a small figure sitting alone at the back of our church. Tears streamed from his eyes as he told me that the sermon had moved him. Over the next few weeks, I began to get to know...
Veli-Matti KärkkäinenI am old enough to recall the time—both as seminary professor and as a church minister and (much before that) as a theology student—when books on ecclesiology written by and for evangelicals were rare. Things have changed for the better, and today...
Karen EngleFinding appropriate Mother’s Day sermon ideas isn’t always easy. Let’s face it—Mother’s Day can be a tricky day to preach on. The pastor-preacher has to stand in front of a congregation and find something special to say to connect with the hearts of...
Showing kindness to the sick from a distance—paying bills, meal trains—is surely not wrong, but what is interesting about the biblical command to visit the sick is the emphasis Scripture places on embodied presence. I was hungry and you gave me...
Kelley MathewsShuffling along the dusty paths of ancient Israel, travelers and residents would inevitably stumble upon piles of rocks. A particular pile near Gilgal, however, showed evidence of being constructed with purpose. The mighty warrior Joshua had...
Tobin PerryNothing gets to the heart of who God is more than his generosity. From the first chapters of Genesis—when God creates the world for humanity to steward—to the last chapters of Revelation—where God recreates the world for humanity—God gives. God...
Kyle BeutlerEaster Sunday is right around the corner. As you prepare for your service, meditating on the glory of the cross, take a look at these Good Friday and Easter worship songs and hymns. Some are traditional, some are contemporary, and some are somewhere...
Jason StoneFor more than a decade now, I have trained pastors and students to leverage Logos for their study of the Bible, including sermon preparation and planning. Over the years, I have heard the same concern time and again: many professionals study the...
Jason HoutsmaI don’t know a single worship leader who doesn’t want more solid musicians on their worship team. Identifying those musicians through an audition process is the first step to getting them there. But how can you set new worship team members up for...
Vern PoythressAre there analogies to the Trinity? If so, what? Sometimes when people talk about analogies for the Trinity, they are exploring analogies from within the world that might help them better to understand the Trinity, or at least to illustrate the...
Elliot RitzemaLoneliness is truly an epidemic in our Western culture. Countless people lack any close friends or romantic partners. They join no groups. They go bowling alone. What can churches offer to the lonely? One answer: the practice of public confession...
Benjamin FischerAs interest in traditional churches and liturgy has grown among evangelicals, there is also growing curiosity about liturgical terms and actions such as confession, absolution, and benediction. Because the word “absolution” has changed in meaning...
Mary JahnkeSometimes the easiest tricks are the best. You know, the ones that make you wonder it has been all your life. Proclaim has some juicy tricks, too. (Proclaim is presentation software designed for churches. With it, anyone on your team—even...
Richard LintsWhat is idolatry? Idolatry is seeking ultimate security and significance in that which is not ultimate. It is also an inversion of the original relationship between the Creator and the human creature. Man and woman were created as images of God...
Brad KellyGrace is generally understood as a gift: the favor or kindness one person gives to another. Grace is, therefore, generally understood to be something that is not earned or deserved. Your paycheck is not grace. Your boss is not expecting a thank-you...
We call ourselves Christians. This name was first given to us in the city of Antioch. It distinguished the disciples of Jesus—those who professed him to be the Messiah or the Christ—from other Jews of the day. Christians continue to be identified by...
From Thanksgiving to Christmas Day, you won’t need to look—or listen?—far to run into a Christmas song or two. They’re playing in the background of grocery stores and coffee shops aplenty. But when we let Christmas songs sit in the background they...
Robby LockettIt’s a very catchy song. A mysterious minor key, a melody that sticks in your ear, cadences that just ache their way to resolution. It is also ubiquitous—and received uncritically by many who hear it. The song Mary, Did You Know? is as much a...
Logos StaffChristmas is upon us, and like last year, the world is—different. Yet students are still coming home for the holidays, and families are (mostly) still gathering. Amid the uncertainty, people are looking for comfort and even direction. It’s a vital...
Stephen SteeleCharles Spurgeon criticized Robert Hawker's Bible commentary for seeing Jesus in unnecessary places, such as every Psalm, a view widely held in Christian interpretation until John Calvin rooted Psalm interpretation in historical context. There's now...
Jon PrattWhat do good works have to do with salvation? Absolutely nothing! I would like to contest the notion that Paul contradicts himself when he insists that salvation does not come from works and that we must work out our salvation. We will investigate...