Doctrinal Thoroughness
Google ‘Gospel-centered’ and you will find thousands of churches and Christians who have adopted this nick as descriptive of themselves. No one wants to be… Read More »Doctrinal Thoroughness
Articles
Browse articles on various topics below.
A Distinctly Christian Worship
Synthesizing a theology of worship in the New Testament has been a struggle for Christians since the early church. In particular, how Christ’s coming, life,… Read More »A Distinctly Christian Worship
Defending the Gospel
Churches that wish to conserve and propagate the gospel must be willing to defend it. The gospel is attacked in several ways, and therefore its… Read More »Defending the Gospel
Rambling thoughts on corporate prayer
Matthew Henry said, “It is taken for granted that all the disciples of Christ pray. As soon as ever Paul was converted, behold he prayeth.… Read More »Rambling thoughts on corporate prayer
Being Committed to the Gospel
As important as understanding the gospel is, it is not sufficient. Churches must be committed to the gospel. That is, churches must be devoted to the… Read More »Being Committed to the Gospel
“Jesus, I Will Ponder Now”
Sigismund von Birken (1626-1681) was the son of an evangelical pastor who had to flee Bohemia for Nürnberg. Von Birken studied both law and theology,… Read More »“Jesus, I Will Ponder Now”
His Honor in 21st Century America
Malachi 1:6-9 (ESV) reads: “A son honors his father, and a servant his master. If then I am a father, where is my honor? And… Read More »His Honor in 21st Century America
Towards Conservative Christian Churches – Understanding the Gospel
Since the gospel is the basis and boundary of Christianity, anyone interested in conserving Christianity ought to be interested in conserving the gospel. A cursory… Read More »Towards Conservative Christian Churches – Understanding the Gospel
An enduring moral order
First, the conservative believes that there exists an enduring moral order. This is the foundational principle of conservatism; as a Christian conservative, I would modify it… Read More »An enduring moral order
Worship That God Has Not Prescribed
One of the key passages in Scripture that illustrates deviant worship is found in Exodus 32:1-10: When the people saw that Moses delayed to come… Read More »Worship That God Has Not Prescribed
Isaac Watts was kind enough to write me a letter (with a postscript)
I received this letter from Isaac Watts a couple years ago, and published it on my blog. Watts gave me permission to publish it so… Read More »Isaac Watts was kind enough to write me a letter (with a postscript)
Hymnody of Quiet Trust in Trials
We sang several songs in our Sunday morning service which emphasized the believer’s quiet and confident trust in God in the midst of the trying… Read More »Hymnody of Quiet Trust in Trials
Toward Conservative Christian Churches
A few weeks ago, I posted my opinion that the form of Christianity which omits certain distinctives is a truncated and emaciated Christianity. Conservative Christianity,… Read More »Toward Conservative Christian Churches
Learning to Worship is Like Learning a Foreign Language
My four-year-old son has been learning French recently. Well, sort of. We’ve checked out some children’s French DVDs from our local library, and each day… Read More »Learning to Worship is Like Learning a Foreign Language
On the suggestion that ‘holy hip hop’ is the new Baroque
Anthony Bradley recently submitted a commentary for World magazine publicizing ‘holy hip hop.’ He writes, “If you are looking for theologically saturated Christian music that… Read More »On the suggestion that ‘holy hip hop’ is the new Baroque
Easter Hymnody
As a general rule, each month I teach one new or more unfamiliar hymn (or occasionally two) to our congregation. (In March, it was a… Read More »Easter Hymnody
Does “Slow Fade” really communicate God’s truth to His people?
I recently listened to a message delivered by a music pastor at a pastor’s conference on the subject of song selection. He touched on issues… Read More »Does “Slow Fade” really communicate God’s truth to His people?
Conservatism Beyond Music: Introduction
The central concern of this blog dictates that discussions of conservatism almost inevitably reduce to discussions of musical conservatism. This is not, in itself, a… Read More »Conservatism Beyond Music: Introduction
The Relationship between Cultural Conservatism and Theological Conservatism
What I have described in this series is nothing more than historic conservative Christianity—Christianity that aims at conserving God’s truth both doctrinally and aesthetically. It is popular… Read More »The Relationship between Cultural Conservatism and Theological Conservatism
Doth not the mind often leave them before the Lord?
A couple weeks ago, I commented on how important it is for Christians in an age of Internet and media distractions to learn to wean… Read More »Doth not the mind often leave them before the Lord?