This is an article under construction. The nuts and bolts are here, but I am crafting this discussion for use as the opening chapter of a three volume series on Biblical Worldview. At the risk of making my consideration of Terry Walling’s book, Unlikely Nomads, even longer, I...
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November 22, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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This is long for a review, but I have a synopsis of some my grievances a little ways down. This is in no way a personal attack against a person I do not know, but his book is symptomatic of a larger struggle for the faith in the...
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November 9, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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There are different ways to describe God. We will attempt to consider at least three in the rest of this book, but I’d like to introduce them here to prepare you for them. We can talk about the nature of God as God—Essence Attributes. Most are defended...
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September 28, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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Back in the late 80s, I gave The Knowledge of the Holy by A. W. Tozer to a Christian “friend.” It had made quite an impact on my 19 year old self, and I wanted to share the blessing. The book was about the essence of God and...
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September 28, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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Academics love the reputation of being “objective.” Many fancy themselves wholly logical and “scientific,” and gifted with unadulterated reason. They aren’t any of these, but that doesn’t mean that they don’t try and definitely doesn’t mean that they don’t love the reputation.[1] It was the quest of more...
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September 27, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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Growing up we had a local store called Ann & Hope; it was like a flea market in a barely-converted penitentiary, but with less ambiance. Great deals though. Local Christians would joke, “Why go to Ann & Hope when you can go to God and pray?” My inner...
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September 22, 2023 Andrew Sargent
So you've Accepted Jesus
Christians go to church. We practice our faith in community, as the Bible says.[1] We are a global family of faith with local gatherings almost everywhere—“Churches.” “Church” is used to translate the Greek, Ekklēsia, which is a combination of “call” and “out.” So many quip, we’re called...
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September 13, 2023 Andrew Sargent
So you've Accepted Jesus
There is an old joke that goes, “If I found the perfect Church, it wouldn’t be once I joined.” And that is as good of an anchor to toss out as any other when discussing the right and wrong way to choose a church family. In the early...
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September 12, 2023 Andrew Sargent
So you've Accepted Jesus
The goal of this series of devotions is to provide a panoramic view of Christianity. We are introducing, but certainly not encapsulating, a host of issues that face those who have spiritually bent their knee to the Lordship of Jesus Christ. Some of these will discuss special language,...
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September 6, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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If I compare myself to the most wretched people I can think of, I look pretty good. Faithful husband, even before getting married, lived a mostly honest life, only stolen two objects… both before 17. But, I know a little of my inner man, and God knows the...
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September 6, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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God has given humanity ten social anchors for sustaining prosperous and free societies. We call these the Ten Commandments. As anchors they are more than just enforceable laws for society, they are principles of existence tethered to laws for society, which should shape our every interaction. In Exodus...
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September 5, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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We’ve been exploring the Ten Commandments and, by now, I’m hoping you’ve seen a distinct pattern in our meditations on them. We’ve articulated the value of these commandments as agents of legal structure in a blessed society AND explored them as agents of instruction for the covenant heart...
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September 2, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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The 7th commandment of the Big Ten says, in Exodus 20:14, “You shall not commit adultery.” It, like “You shall not murder,” is a spike in a metaphorical wall upon which you can legitimately hang many associated ideas. Not only are overt, legally-punishable sins like murder and adultery...
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September 1, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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The seventh of the Big Ten commandments, given by our loving Creator to bless us with a special revelation of the path of life that He wove into the fabric of His good world, is a blessed torment. It strikes at the heart of being creatures who by...
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September 1, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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We are eight commandments into the Big Ten. These God gave for the creation of a stable and blessed society. Exodus 20:15, says simply, “You shall not steal.” Amazingly enough, however, many worldview assumptions exist inside those four words. In the book, The Kite Runner, Baba, the narrator’s...
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August 30, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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The last of the great commandments given by God to Israel at Mount Sinai in order that they might reap the benefits of a blessable and blessed society cuts below the surface of the previous four commandments in a powerful way. It strikes at the underground spring from...
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August 30, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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Exodus 20:13 gives a simple command with layers of implications in the context of Scripture. “You shall not murder,” demands that society punish legally provable murderers with death, and, more deeply yet, that believers pull murder, roots and all, from their souls. I’ve been serving the Lord as...
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August 18, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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In The Ten Commandments, we have the rudiments of a legal code. Torah[1] however, is much bigger than a legal code. In it, specific commands are woven into the rich context of Israel’s covenant living before Holy God. Thus, while a judicial body might hold one accountable to...
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August 18, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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In the list of rules for society that God gave as a good gift to His confused, rebellious, and self-destructive image bearers, the first to which He attached a promise is “Honor your father and your mother, that your days may be prolonged in the land which the...
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August 17, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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In the Ten Commandments, we find the core of a body of rules for life and society that are God’s gift to a floundering race. In them, He reveals the rudiments of the path of life in His world. Today, I want to meditate on the fourth of...
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August 16, 2023 Andrew Sargent
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