June 2021

In Bible Study, Blog, Ephesians on

June 28, 2021

Truth in Love

If there’s one thing the American church overemphasizes, it’s this: love. Don’t get me wrong; love is an important thing for Christians to have and to practice in their daily lives. We are called to love God, love our neighbors, and love our enemies (Matthew 22:37-39, Luke 6:35). Love is a fruit of the Spirit (Galatians 5:22), and it’s greater than faith or hope (1 Corinthians 13:13). Those who do not love don’t know God. How do we know this? Because God is love (1 John 4:8).

Love is important for the Christian. But many people today, including many in the church, are redefining what love is. To them, love is an acceptance and an affirmation of a person and their lifestyle. To them, love means that you cannot judge someone, regardless of the choices they are making in their lives. To them, love equals avoiding controversial or uncomfortable conversations for the sake of “keeping the peace.”

This love is not a biblical form of love. These practices are not what the Bible calls us to. Instead, God’s Word calls us to “speak the truth in love” (Ephesians 4:15). But what exactly does this mean?

Tristany

2 Comments

In Blog, Reformed Theology, Theology on

June 21, 2021

The Calvinist’s Favorite Flower

What is a Calvinist’s favorite flower? A TULIP.

If you understood this joke, you’re probably a fellow theology nerd. Welcome to the club! If you didn’t get the joke, no worries. Today we’re going to talk about Calvinism and TULIP, so hopefully you’ll understand the joke by the end.

Let’s start with what Calvinism is. Calvinism, or Reformed Theology, is a branch of Protestantism whose beliefs are based on the teachings of John Calvin and other reformers. Calvinists emphasize things like the grace and sovereignty of God, predestination, and justification through faith. I learned about Calvinism for the first time a few years ago. After doing some research about their beliefs, I discovered that I, myself, was a Calvinist, and I developed a deeper affection for God and His Word and a thankfulness for His merciful salvation. Their main teachings are summarized by the acronym, TULIP, and we’re going to look at each letter of this acronym and how each teaching is supported by Scripture.

Tristany

1 Comment

In Blog, Book Reviews, Ten Commandments on

June 14, 2021

Ten Words to Live By

One of the most well-known passages in all of Scripture is the Ten Commandments. Not only have they been taught often at church and in Sunday School, but they have also been displayed in classrooms, courthouses, capitol buildings, and on monuments all across America. Though we may not have all ten commandments memorized, we generally know what they command, and we probably think we’re pretty good at obeying them. After all, when’s the last time you murdered someone or made a little wooden idol to bow down to? It’s fairly easy to not curse or steal, and we, of course, always put God first in our lives (right?).

But, as Jesus reveals to us in His Sermon on the Mount, these commandments have a far deeper meaning and intention than we might originally think (Matthew 5), and this is exactly what Jen Wilkin focuses on in her book Ten Words to Live By.

Tristany

4 Comments

In Attributes of God, Blog, Theology on

June 7, 2021

He is Patient

We know very well what impatience is because we live in a culture of instant gratification. We get impatient when the driver in front of us isn’t paying attention to the traffic light. We get impatient when the person before us in the grocery store check-out line has way more than the ten-item limit. We even get impatient when our internet takes more than a couple seconds to load something! This impatience often leads to us getting angry and irritated. That’s why the Bible sometimes describes patience as being “slow to anger.”

Thankfully, our God is never impatient with us. He is always patient and always slow to anger towards His children-

Tristany

1 Comment