Enjoying God Blog

Heresy abounds. It always has and always will, until such time as Jesus returns and exposes the misguided theological fabrications of men and women and vindicates the truth of his Word. In our day, there are many heretical and deviant notions circulating within the professing evangelical church. But I am persuaded that the most serious and severe departure from biblical faith in our day is the repudiation of the truth of penal substitutionary atonement (together with the wicked, childish, inexcusable, or as J. I. Packer has put it, “the smarty-pants” caricature of penal substitution as “cosmic child abuse”). Continue reading . . . 

Heresy abounds. It always has and always will, until such time as Jesus returns and exposes the misguided theological fabrications of men and women and vindicates the truth of his Word. In our day, there are many heretical and deviant notions circulating within the professing evangelical church. But I am persuaded that the most serious and severe departure from biblical faith in our day is the repudiation of the truth of penal substitutionary atonement (together with the wicked, childish, inexcusable, or as J. I. Packer has put it, “the smarty-pants” caricature of penal substitution as “cosmic child abuse”).

There is much that could be said about this, but today I restrict my comments to the declaration of Revelation 1:5b where John predicates of Jesus Christ “glory and dominion forever and ever.” And what is the ground for this doxology? Why is Jesus deserving of such praise? It is because, among other things, he “loves us and has freed us from our sins by his blood” (Rev. 1:5b).

This the only place in the NT where Christ’s love for us is in the present tense. John wants you to know that no matter what you end

One of the three things said of Jesus in Revelation 1:5 is that he is “the ruler of the kings of the earth,” and that includes Assad of Syria and Kim Jong Un of North Korea, and yes, he is the ruler of President Donald Trump as well. Continue reading . . . 

One of the three things said of Jesus in Revelation 1:5 is that he is “the ruler of the kings of the earth,” and that includes Assad of Syria and Kim Jong Un of North Korea, and yes, he is the ruler of President Donald Trump as well. Solomon said it with the utmost clarity: “The king’s heart is a stream of water in the hand of the Lord; he turns it wherever he will” (Prov. 21:1). When God’s purpose was to bring the people of Israel back to Jerusalem from their time of exile in Babylon, how did he do it? He “stirred up the spirit” of the pagan, unbelieving king of Persia, Cyrus, “so that he,” Cyrus, “made a proclamation throughout all his kingdom and also put it in writing” (Ezra 1:1).

We see this incredibly wonderful and reassuring truth all through the Revelation, but especially in chapter 17. There we read how God will make use of the kings of the earth and even the leaders of the corrupt religious system to accomplish his purpose. We read in Revelation 17:17, “for God has put it into their hearts,” that is, into the hearts of the ruling leaders of the pagan kingdoms of the earth, “to carry out his purpose by being of one mind and handing over their royal power to the beast, until the words of God are fulfilled” (Rev. 17:17).

Today we hear and read and see on every hand the movements and decisions and plans of earthly leaders in their efforts to expand their power and gain new territory. And people tremble in fear. Do not be afraid, Christian! D

It’s been a little more than a week since most Christians celebrated Easter, or Resurrection Day. But it would do us all well to continue to keep our focus on the reality of the empty tomb. Here are ten things that we need to know about efforts on the part of unbelievers to account for it. Continue reading . . . 

It’s been a little more than a week since most Christians celebrated Easter, or Resurrection Day. But it would do us all well to continue to keep our focus on the reality of the empty tomb. Here are ten things that we need to know about efforts on the part of unbelievers to account for it.

(1) Even the most skeptical, cynical, and unbelieving historians, philosophers, and theologians agree that a man named Jesus died on a Roman cross on Friday and was later buried in a tomb that was empty on Sunday morning. They also agree that countless individuals, both men and women, testified that they saw Jesus alive on multiple occasions after he had died, included among whom were James, his half-brother, who initially did not believe Jesus was the Messiah, but later came to faith and held so tenaciously to that belief that he was willing to be stoned to death, and also Saul of Tarsus, who for quite some time hated and persecuted those who claimed that Jesus was alive, who also came to faith and devoted his life to spreading that message and was eventually beheaded for his belief and devotion to Jesus.

The question for all such unbelievers is this: What is the best explanation of how the tomb came to be empty?

(2) There is no evidence anywhere in the ancient world that anyone disputed that the tomb of Jesus was empty on Sunday morning, not even those who crucified Jesus. And they were the ones who stood most to gain by simply hauling out the body of Jesus, pointing to it, confirming his identity, and fore

At Bridgeway we love the song, “What a Beautiful Name It Is” (written by Ben Fielding and Brooke Ligertwood). But there is a line in it that has caused a few to wonder if perhaps we are singing heresy. Continue reading . . . 

At Bridgeway we love the song, “What a Beautiful Name It Is” (written by Ben Fielding and Brooke Ligertwood). But there is a line in it that has caused a few to wonder if perhaps we are singing heresy. The relevant portion of the lyrics goes like this:

“You were the Word at the beginning,One with God the Lord Most High.Your hidden glory in creation,Now revealed in you our Christ.

What a beautiful Name it is,What a beautiful Name it is,The Name of Jesus Christ my King.

You didn’t want heaven without us,So Jesus, you brought heaven down.My sin was great, your love was greater,What could separate us now?”

Did you see it? It’s the statement: “You didn’t want heaven without us.” Some have argued that this line suggests that Jesus is needy, that he is, in himself, somehow deficient and less than complete and only we, his people can fill up what he lacks. That’s why he “didn’t want heaven without us.” But we know from numerous biblical texts that God needs nothing, that as Creator and Providential Lord over the entire universe, he is altogether self-sufficient and independent. For example, in his speech on Mars Hill, Paul said this:

“The God who made the world and everything in it, being Lord of heaven and earth, does not live in temples made by man, nor is he served by human hands, as though he needed anything, since he himself gives to all mankind life and breath and everything” (Acts 17:24-25).

Similarly, in his doxology at the close of Romans

This is the sort of thing that happens more often than not as one gets older. That’s the only excuse I can come up with for having posted the incorrect endorsement for Jason DeRouchie’s new book, How to Understand and Apply the Old Testament: Twelve Steps from Exegesis to Theology (Presbyterian & Reformed, 2017). Or maybe it was just late at night, following a long and exhausting day. In any case, the endorsement that was posted earlier today was actually for Jason’s superb book, What the Old Testament Authors Really Cared About: A Survey of Jesus’ Bible (Kregel, 2013). But hey, why not take advantage of my mistake and get this volume too? Trust me, what I wrote back in 2013 about Jason’s edited survey of the OT remains true. It’s an excellent resource. Continue reading . . . 

This is the sort of thing that happens more often than not as one gets older. That’s the only excuse I can come up with for having posted the incorrect endorsement for Jason DeRouchie’s new book, How to Understand and Apply the Old Testament: Twelve Steps from Exegesis to Theology (Presbyterian & Reformed, 2017). Or maybe it was just late at night, following a long and exhausting day. In any case, the endorsement that was posted earlier today was actually for Jason’s superb book, What the Old Testament Authors Really Cared About: A Survey of Jesus’ Bible (Kregel, 2013). But hey, why not take advantage of my mistake and get this volume too? Trust me, what I wrote back in 2013 about Jason’s edited survey of the OT remains true. It’s an excellent resource.

OK, now back to my error. Here is the endorsement I wrote for Jason’s new book, How to Understand and Apply the Old Testament.

Bethlehem College and Seminary, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is a marvelous place to pursue one’s education and to prepare for Christian ministry. One of the many reasons for this is the remarkable faculty that God has brought to BCS. Two of those men are Andrew David Naselli and Jason S. DeRouchie. This past week their companion volumes on NT and OT exegesis were released by Presbyterian & Reformed Publishing Company. Both are in hardback. Andy’s NT volume is 384 pages and Jason’s OT volume is 583 pages. Continue reading . . . 

Bethlehem College and Seminary, in Minneapolis, Minnesota, is a marvelous place to pursue one’s education and to prepare for Christian ministry. One of the many reasons for this is the remarkable faculty that God has brought to BCS. Two of those men are Andrew David Naselli and Jason S. DeRouchie. This past week their companion volumes on NT and OT exegesis were released by Presbyterian & Reformed Publishing Company. Both are in hardback. Andy’s NT volume is 384 pages and Jason’s OT volume is 583 pages.

I had the privilege of reading both books in advance of their publication and wrote the following endorsements for each.

Andrew David Naselli, How to Understand and Apply the New Testament: Twelve Steps from Exegesis to Theology (Phillipsburg: P & R Publishing, 2017).

“I have long awaited and prayed for this book. I didn’t know that Andy Naselli would be the one who finally would write it, but I can think of no one more qualified to do so. If you are an average, adult-educated lay person in the local church who wants to know how to read and interpret Scripture, this book is for you. If you are a young pastor who entered ministry without the benefit of a seminary education, this book is for you. If you are a pastor who has allo

News broke this past week that Hank Hannegraaf, of the Bible Answer Man radio program, was chrismated on Palm Sunday at Saint Nektarios Greek Orthodox Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. Yet another man devoted to the Eastern Orthodox faith is Rod Dreher, who has been much in the news of late because of his best-selling book, The Benedict Option. So who are the Eastern Orthodox and what is it precisely that they believe? Continue reading . . . 

News broke this past week that Hank Hannegraaf, of the Bible Answer Man radio program, was chrismated on Palm Sunday at Saint Nektarios Greek Orthodox Church in Charlotte, North Carolina. Yet another man devoted to the Eastern Orthodox faith is Rod Dreher, who has been much in the news of late because of his best-selling book, The Benedict Option. So who are the Eastern Orthodox and what is it precisely that they believe?

There are @ 6 million people in the U.S. who identify with the Orthodox faith, and @ 200-215 million worldwide (70 million of whom are in Russia alone), all of whom are gathered into one of the 13 autocephalous or “self-governing” Orthodox churches throughout the world. The head of each autocephalous church is called a Patriarch. The Patriarch of Constantinople is given greater honor but has no authority to interfere with the affairs of the other 12 Orthodox communions. “All bishops share equally in the apostolic succession, all have the same sacramental powers, all are divinely appointed teachers of the faith” (Timothy Ware, The Orthodox Church [hereafter TOC], new edition [New York: Penguin Books, 1997], 27).

Although these many autocephalous churches are independent, they maintain (so they assert) complete agreement on matters of doctrine and are in sacramental communion with each other.

Before I describe ten of the m

Today is Good Friday, the day on which Jesus was crucified. Prior to this, as Jesus sat with his disciples in the upper room, he said something in his prayer to the Father that calls for our serious and joyful consideration – “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world” (John 17:24). Continue reading . . . 

Today is Good Friday, the day on which Jesus was crucified. Prior to this, as Jesus sat with his disciples in the upper room, he said something in his prayer to the Father that calls for our serious and joyful consideration – “Father, I desire that they also, whom you have given me, may be with me where I am, to see my glory that you have given me because you loved me before the foundation of the world” (John 17:24).

The disciples had already seen the glory of Jesus in one sense. In John 1:14 the apostle said, “and we have seen his glory, glory as of the only Son from the Father, full of grace and truth.” But this “glory” was the glory of his lowly service, his humble suffering, his willingness to stoop down and touch lepers and heal them, his willingness to endure mockery and spitting and ultimately crucifixion. They had also seen his glory in the signs and wonders he performed. But the “glory” spoken of here in John 17:24 is that of his exalted grandeur, his majestic power and beauty and authority.

Three of them, Peter, James, and John, were witnesses of his “glory” in a way that none of the others were. They were with Jesus on the Mt. of Transfiguration. Peter described it this way in his second epistle:

“For we did not follow cleverly devised myths when we made known to you the power and

We find ourselves today well into the events of Holy Week. I think it would be of great spiritual benefit to pause and consider something Jesus said as he sat with his disciples in the upper room on that night when Judas would betray him into the hands of his enemies. Continue reading . . .

We find ourselves today well into the events of Holy Week. I think it would be of great spiritual benefit to pause and consider something Jesus said as he sat with his disciples in the upper room on that night when Judas would betray him into the hands of his enemies.

I would be among the first to honestly confess that there are some texts in Scripture that I struggle to believe are true. They are texts that stretch the limits of “believability”. They simply seem too good to be true. I know they are true, because I believe in the inspiration and authority of the Bible, but I don’t see how. I want to look at one of those texts today. I hope this doesn’t sound irreverent or flippant, but when I hear Jesus say that God the Father loves me just as he loves Jesus, my immediate reaction is: “Oh, come on! Get serious, God! You ask me to believe a lot of remarkable things, Lord, but now you’ve gone too far.” Look closely at John 17:23 and 26,

“I in them and you in me, that they may become perfectly one, so that the world may know that you sent me and loved them even as you loved me. . . . I made known to them your name, and I will continue to make it known, that the love with which you have loved me may be in them, and I in them” (John 17:23, 26).

I was raised in a wonderful Christian home in which both my mother and father were Christians. They loved me. I never doubted it for a moment. My sister loves me. I’ve had numerous close friends whose love for me was real and powerful. My two