Christian Doctrine

Singing Christmas Theology

/ DebbieLynne Kespert / 1 Comment

Hark! The Herald Angels Sing has been my favorite Christmas hymn for most of my Christian life. It’s packed full of solid Biblical doctrine ranging from the Incarnation to regeneration, always bringing us back to His glory.

Singing this beloved hymn grows more meaningful each year as I notice new depths of theology in its familiar verses. As a result, I love it even more now than I loved it as a new Christian. I pray that you’ll discover truths about our wonderful Savior every time you sing it too.

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Yes, Jesus Ate With Sinners — But Do You Understand Why?

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Rainbow HeartThe argument goes that,  since Jesus ate with people that the Pharisees regarded as sinners, He accepted them as they were. As a result, He would embrace those whom conservative Christians supposedly reject today. In particular, He would champion members of the LBGTQ community, and shame on conservative Christians for calling their sexual orientation sinful!

Christians who believe that homosexuality and transgenderism require repentance constantly hear that we should follow Jesus rather than following Bible verses that condemn homosexuality and transgenderism. Jesus, they remind us, hung out with tax collectors and prostitutes, giving us an example to follow. When we dare to speak out against sexual sin — especially those sins under the LBGTQ umbrella — we face enormous censure for evidently failing to be Christlike.

But maybe we ought to look at an instance of Jesus eating with sinners and tax collectors. In this episode, Jesus has just called Levi (also known as Matthew) to follow Him. Luke 5:28 plainly says, please notice, that Continue reading →

Don’t Expect Me To Be Ashamed

/ DebbieLynne Kespert / 2 Comments

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A friend of mine asked a question on Facebook, largely directing it to his friends who, like him, reject the authority of Scripture. I read through several responses, most of which revealed varying degrees of animosity toward what they call “traditional Christianity.”

I thought about the question for  24 hours. That’s probably a good rule of thumb for engaging on social media anyway, and I would most likely do well to implement that rule a lot more frequently than I do. Anyway, as I mulled  it over, I realized that the best answer to the question was to ask what the Bible says about the matter.

That’s always the best response.

Predictably, someone immediately challenged my comment by saying that the Bible is difficult to define, and therefore an unreliable source. I sensed from his tone that he wanted to shame me for Continue reading →

Unforgiveness Hurts Others More Than It Hurts You

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Forgiveness ButterfiesSomewhere in the 1960s, when evangelicals became enamored with psychology, teachings on forgiveness started emphasizing the benefits of forgiveness on the person doing the forgiving. If they had left the discussion at Matthew 6:14-15, that would have been fine.

To their shame, they didn’t leave it there. No, they elaborated that when someone refuses to forgive those who hurt her, she imprisons herself in bitterness. Therefore, they reason, she Continue reading →

All Three Of The One We Praise

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Can you think about the Triune God without trying to figure out how He can be one and yet three? You should, you know.

Of course the Trinity should fill you with wonder every time you think of God as three Persons in one Being. But rather than trying to reduce the Trinity to neat metaphors that make you feel able to understand the hows and whys of  it all, have you ever simply responded with worship?

This Lord’s Day, why not praise Father, Son and Spirit without analyzing Their unity? Remember that all three of the One we praise deserve honor and glory — each for His unique work.

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Drinking From A Fire Hydrant Is Difficult, And It Could Drown People

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Fire HydrantPopular false teachers give bloggers plenty of material to keep us busy. And when a false teacher has a Twitter account, he or she becomes the gift that keeps on giving.

I do understand the sense of urgency that compels people to call out these false teachers. Over the years, I’ve used this very blog for that purpose, and I certainly don’t rule out doing so again. As evangelicals grow more and more Biblically illiterate, false teachers gain greater power to spread their deception.

But in our urgency to warn our brothers and sisters against false teachers, we can stumble into a variety of pitfalls that could potentially undermine our message. For example, we could overload Continue reading →

Remember Who The Victims Are

/ DebbieLynne Kespert / 2 Comments

Inexhaustible Bible

False teachers and false teaching should, by all the means, make Christians angry! If we love the Word of God, we will naturally hate anything that comes against it. And such animosity comes out of a pure love for Christ and His people.

Did you notice the clause, “and His people”? I didn’t put that there simply for rhetorical value. Loving the people of Christ encompasses many things, one of which is wanting them to reject false teaching in favor of doctrinal purity. It follows that we should approach victims of false teaching just that — victims.

Sometimes we forget that most of the people who fall victim to these theological aberrations honestly believe they follow the Lord. Some are even Continue reading →