Theology Archives - Page 7 of 17

In Blog, Purity, Theology on

December 6, 2021

Pursuing Purity

Growing up, I mostly missed the purity culture movement within the evangelical church. I did sign a True Love Waits abstinence pledge in middle school, and my parents gave me a purity ring when I turned thirteen. But I never attended any purity events, or read any books like I Kissed Dating Goodbye, or listened to talks that compared girls who had sinned sexually to used cars, expired food, or a wilted rose. I was never hurt by “purity culture,” but I know many Christian women who lived their teen years before me were.

While many bad things happened as a result of this purity movement, I fear we are now moving too far in the opposite direction. In response to purity culture’s flaws, many people, mostly those who fall in the progressive Christian camp, claim that God doesn’t really care what you wear or who you sleep with. He doesn’t care about purity or modesty. Want to wear crop tops and tight miniskirts? That’s fine! Want to sleep around before you settle down and get married? That’s good and even healthy.

But the Bible actually has a lot to say about purity and its importance in the lives of believers. Instead of throwing the proverbial baby out with the bathwater, we should examine what God’s Word teaches us about purity and determine how we can foster a culture of true, biblical purity in our families, churches, and communities.

Tristany

1 Comment

In Bible Study, Blog, Thanksgiving on

November 22, 2021

But God

When the clock struck midnight on January 1, 2021, people were ecstatic to leave the woes and troubles of 2020 behind. However, it appears that 2020’s issues followed us into 2021 and, in some cases, became even worse. People are still contracting and dying from diseases, often without any family or friends beside them as they take their final breaths. Workers are still being let go from their jobs, even though there is an ongoing nationwide worker shortage. Small businesses are still facing product delays, and the threats of inflation keep rising and rising. Corrupt world leaders are still enacting laws and policies that oppress their constituents, getting bolder and more authoritarian by the day. And many churches are still parroting the slogans and jargon of our secular culture and beginning to move away from biblical Christianity.

With all these things happening in our culture, country, and world, it may seem hard to find something to be thankful for this year. But we, as Christians, have a lot to be thankful for regardless of what’s going on around us. Whenever we’re feeling discouraged or disappointed, we just need to remember two little words: “But God.”

Tristany

3 Comments

In Blog, Names of God, Theology on

November 15, 2021

He is Jehovah Nissi

During America’s Civil War, flags were enormously important to soldiers. They were so important that soldiers would sacrifice their lives to protect their flags from enemy capture. State and regional regimental flags were morale builders, and they were a great source of pride for the soldiers. They also had a more practical purpose. Battlefields could get loud and confusing, and it could be easy for regiments to become scattered. So, a regimental flag would mark the position of the regiment and be a visual rallying point for the soldiers to follow.^[1]

But America isn’t the only nation who has treasured her flag in battle. Even nations in ancient history would fly their flag or banner at their front lines. Seeing their flag at the front lines would give soldiers a feeling of hope, and it was a focal point for them during their battles.^[2]

Shortly after their exodus from Egypt, ancient Israel fought against the Amalekites. During this battle, Moses went up on a hill with his staff. When he held up his hand and staff, Israel prevailed. But if he lowered his hand and staff, the Amalekites prevailed. Two men, Aaron and Hur, went up with Moses to help him hold his hands up during the entire battle. Israel ultimately won the battle and defeated the Amalekites.

“And Moses built an altar and called the name of it, The LORD Is My Banner,” Exodus 17:15, ESV

Tristany

In Blog, Ten Commandments, Theology on

November 8, 2021

In Vain

One of my favorite TV shows is Friends (I know—not the most wholesome show, but it does make me laugh). There are several recurring side characters in the show, but one of the most memorable characters is Janice, Chandler’s on and off girlfriend who appears in nearly every season of the series. Janice is mainly known for one thing—exclaiming in her loud, nasally, nails-on-a-chalkboard voice the phrase, “OH. MY. GOD.” And Janice isn’t the only one to make this exclamation. Between Janice, the six friends, and other characters, the phrase is said 1,069 times over the show’s ten seasons.^[1]

Growing up in a conservative Christian household, I was taught to never use this phrase. In my mind, I was just asking to be struck down by the Lord if I dared to utter those three little words in a row. It was such a big deal because it was prohibited in the third commandment – “You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain” (Exodus 20:7a, ESV). But what does it really mean to take God’s name in vain? Is this commandment just telling us we can’t use the phrase, “Oh my god,” or is there more to it?

Tristany

1 Comment

In Attributes of God, Blog, Theology on

October 25, 2021

He is Wise

The philosopher Aristotle once said, “Knowing yourself is the beginning of all wisdom.”^[1] Our self-absorbed, truth-is-relative culture loves sayings like this! We love taking personality type quizzes and learning more about our Enneagram numbers. We think by knowing more about ourselves we’ll be able to better understand ourselves, take care of ourselves, and make better decisions for ourselves. While there’s nothing inherently wrong with personality quizzes, they do have us focusing solely on ourselves to become better people, and the Bible completely disagrees with this-