Was the universe designed and created or was it a cosmic accident, a product of time and chance? The debate has raged for millennia with increasing sophistication in models, data, and arguments, particularly since The Enlightenment period. The West is currently captivated by naturalistic explanations with nearly all scientific funding and investigation aimed exclusively and myopically at material causes. But beneath the naturalistic paradigm lies a deeper paradox—that not onl

Modern Western civilization largely believes that all that exists is matter and its movements (energy), otherwise known as the physical world . Those who adhere to this view of reality are known as materialists , and while this view certainly gained prominence after The Enlightenment in the 17th and 18th centuries, it is not at all a modern idea to the West, but rather, it dates back to at least the 5th century BC with Greek philosophers such as Leucippus and Democritus. But

With a new generation comes renewed questioning of established orthodoxy, and this is not necessarily a bad thing as without constant discussion, well-reasoned doctrine can quickly become mindless dogma. Recent criticisms of Christianity regarding the relevance of the Old Covenant in the New Covenant era have come from both inside and outside the church walls. From the outside, many have accused Christians of hypocrisy and cherry-picking which biblical rules they choose to li

In scripture there are two different categories of sin: sin against God and sin against man. The former is universal and absolute, independent of person, time, or place. But the latter is contextual and relative, dependent on personal issues of conscience and cultural norms which can vary between people, times, and places. These are sins not as defined by God, but rather as defined by humanity. However, God holds us to these definitions in addition to His own as they are offe

Usually when something we want is dangled before us, our natural response is to reach out and take it. The fact that we desire it is the justification used for our impetuousness and the end is used to justify the means. But usually shortcuts taken to obtain or achieve something do not produce superior or even equal results. Scripture clearly describes patience as a virtue, not impulsiveness, and discipline and longsuffering as building blocks of good character, not indulgence

There are a lot of horticulture metaphors in the New Testament, including vines and branches, trees and fruit, and wheat and tares. One of the "tests" found in scripture to ascertain the nature of a tree is to see if it produces good fruit. But that begs the question: what is "good fruit?" Thankfully the Bible not only prescribes the test, but also the parameters, providing the standard by which to measure. However, man often inserts his own definitions based on worldly, pers

There are often questions and confusion regarding Old Testament law in a New Testament era, leading critics to accuse Christians of hypocrisy. Even well-meaning and faithful believers do not always understand the reasons why the church does not follow all the commands given in Mosaic Law. But the truth is that scripture lays out a clear rubric in these matters and though there is certainly hypocrisy in the church, proper adherence to Old Testament law is rarely the issue. Thr

Our modern society has pushed sexual boundaries and bent definitions so far, that it has come full circle and is undermining its own foundation. Though most modern gender identity advocates and activists don't realize it, their arguments now present them with an uncomfortable dilemma which strays far beyond the realm of science and into those of philosophy and theology. Ironically, to make sense of these entangled concepts, the advocates are forcing us to evaluate their claim

Beauty may be in the eye of the beholder, but sexuality is in the I Am as the creator. The lust of the flesh may desire and justify all kinds of carnal pleasure, but only God can define proper sexuality as the designer and author of sex. These definitions have been widely agreed upon and understood throughout Jewish and church history, but have recently come under fresh scrutiny and challenge, so it may be time to revisit the texts and reevaluate the arguments for this gener

A civilization engulfed by materialism will consequently be enraptured by humanism and hedonism and will eventually end in catastrophism. Derived from a Greek word meaning pleasure, the ancient philosophy of Hedonism is the theory that the satisfaction of desire is the highest good and aim of human life. This philosophy has permeated Western civilization to such a pervasive degree that even the Church has succumbed to its influence, devising man-centered theologies such as th

Since psychology was established as a scientific field in the late 19th century, the Church has increasingly deferred to its authority. Today, about two-thirds of churches offer no lay counselling services, instead referring believers to professional psychotherapists and in many churches and ministries, staff are actively discouraged from counselling unless they have the proper training, degrees, or credentials. But this very recent shift in orthopraxy begs some rather import

Socrates held that the disciplined practice of thoughtful questioning enables the scholar or student to carefully examine beliefs and be able to determine the validity of ideas. Jesus employed a similar Jewish practice of answering questions with questions, which forced people to think, process, and come to their own realization of truth, even if it contradicted beliefs they held just moments before. One of the cherished cultural beliefs of modern Western society is that gett

If there is a God, why do the innocent suffer? Countless people throughout history have wrestled with this question, and many have rejected God as a result. Even many believers struggle to reconcile their belief in a good and loving God with the harsh reality of suffering and injustice in the world around them. But a proper rephrasing of that timeless question would be, if there is no God, what makes them innocent and who cares if they suffer? This may seem like a rather cal

Our modern world and the entire global economy may be based on it, but scripture has a much more cautious view of debt with God even legally regulating it in Old Testament Israel. Due to modern society's broad acceptance of this monetary instrument, it has become a cultural norm with most people simply defaulting to the use of credit, loans, and debt with little question or concern. The "buy now, pay later" mentality began in earnest in the middle of the 20th Century and near

Scripture is usually quite explicit in defining sin and God's character is consistent and His word never changes, so why is it that there are some issues which appear a bit fuzzy? The rub is in the fact that God is not the only being in the universe who defines sin—mankind does as well. This is where issues of conscience come into play, and though the issues themselves appear blurry, the way scripture instructs us to handle them is crystal clear. The Origins of the Conscience

Episode 1: Host Josh Elke pulls apart the first 1,600 years of church growth and history Episode 2: Josh Elke summarizes the first era of...

The phrase The End Times invokes awe, wonder, fear, confusion, and skepticism. Eschatology has become a divisive subject in the Church due to entrenched doctrinal differences as well as con-men and charlatans who have made dubious predictions and maligned the topic via guilt by association. But the theological implications of eschatology are enormous and the volume of content on the subject in scripture is difficult to ignore. An overview of the apocalyptic scriptures and th

Intense debate abounds in the Church in areas of theology, morality, and doctrine which are perceived to be gray. Scripture does not always spell out the finer details and man therefore must reason his way through some sticky subjects. This reality provides ample opportunity for Christians to blur the line between righteousness and unrighteousness, so we must be very mindful of our hermeneutics, check our currently held beliefs against historical church doctrine and orthodoxy

Part One: God’s Redemptive Mission The Gospel. It’s the redemptive plan of God from Genesis to Revelation, the overarching narrative of scripture, the reason the church exists, and why Christ has not yet returned. Many think the Gospel begins and ends with Jesus, but His first coming was actually the result of the Gospel—the good news first appears clear back in the 12th chapter of Genesis . The Scripture, foreseeing that God would justify the Gentiles by faith, preached t

Compassion is a biblical virtue and command for individuals, but when it comes to government, scriptural instruction is decidedly more focused on justice and security. When we conflate the role of government with the individual or the church, we arrive at rather unbiblical conclusions which often result from reading passages very divorced from their textual and historical contexts. Such is the case with the modern debate about national borders —biblical texts are trotted out