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it’s not true that we’re dealing with “a translation of translations of translations,” as if the original Greek first went into Chinese which went into German which went into Polish and finally we got around to putting it into English. No, we’re able to translate directly from the original Greek and Hebrew, so at worst we’re dealing with a translation, full stop. But what should we say about that last idea, the charge that all we have available to us are “hand-copied copies of copies of copies of copies?” Copypock. Er, I mean, poppycock. That’s what we should say. Let’s think for a moment about the question of transmission—that is, can we be confident that the original text of the Bible was transmitted accurately to us through the centuries? As we begin to consider that question, we should just right off the bat acknowledge the gigantic glittering elephant standing here in the room: We don’t have the originals....

I am a master at identifying sin. I might be tempted to brag about that fact, except for this: While I’m a master at identifying the sin in other people, I’m a mere novice at identifying the sin in myself. And I don’t think I’m the only one. There seems to be something deeply embedded in sinful humanity that gives us the ability to spot the sin in others but to ignore it in ourselves. We can provide a thorough accounting of someone else’s flaws, but often only a cursory account of our own.

Do God’s attributes matter to Christians today? Most of us take them for granted and seldom think about them specifically. Does anybody seriously discuss why God’s invisibility is important? Theologians may argue over things like impassibility and eternity, but most people do not. They assume that God is eternal and that he cares about us, but they do not puzzle over whether he himself suffers.

As a Christian, I come across many challenges to my worldview. Some challenges come from those in other worldviews; others come from other Christians. One of the most common challenges from outside is to God’s existence. One argument observes all the evil and suffering in the world and asks how a good God could allow it. Many Christians also struggle with this very issue. They know that God exists, but they see suffering in their own lives and wonder why God is allowing so much. Because of this, some question whether God is even there, or if they’re not willing to go that far if God is even good. This was articulated to me very clearly not too long ago: “The story of Job is just a chess game between God and Satan, and my life is no different.”...

Some years ago I sat near the front of a worship service as I watched the guest preacher pace back and forth across the stage. He was a popular speaker in our area, and crowds had come to hear what he had to say. My first clue that something wasn’t right was when he started by saying, “I forgot my Bible tonight.” But that didn’t deter him. He explained that for days he had prayed about what God wanted him to say to us. He told stories about how he had taken walks in his neighborhood, sat at coffee shops, and reclined in his study. He was funny, witty, and engaging, and he kept the crowd entertained...

Most pastors are more than happy for someone else to choose the songs on Sunday morning. With sermon preparation, counseling, and countless other responsibilities, shouldn’t someone else worry about what the congregation will sing? While I understand the difficult demands of being a pastor, I want to encourage pastors to be involved in the selection of songs for corporate worship. Levels of engagement may differ (based on a number of factors), but it’s not appropriate for pastors to disengage completely. After all, there’s truth to the saying, “We are what we sing.” The songs we sing together shape our thoughts of God, the gospel, and the way we see the world. In fact, singing to one another is a mark of the Spirit’s filling (Ephesians 5:18–19) and the word of Christ dwelling in us richly (Colossians 3:16). With this in mind, I want to share six imperatives I’ve come to value in the selection of songs for corporate worship. Then I’ll describe how we put these principles into practice for a Sunday service at my church. Six Imperatives for Selecting Songs...

Science is an amazing thing! It’s enabled us to transcend so many of our previously existing barriers, from being able to walk on the moon to being able to carry on a live conversation with someone on the opposite side of the planet, from helping us know what makes fevers run hot to knowing what makes stars hot, from giving us the flashlight to the strobe light to the blacklight. It’s an amazing thing, but unfortunately, many seem dedicating to pitting science against Christianity and vice versa.On the one hand, you have the atheists who have tried to monopolize science as theirs and nobody else’s (Their symbol is an atom for Pete’s sake). On the other hand, you have Christians who insist that a strict, literal, face value reading of Genesis is the only way to read it, and if you deviate from the 7 24-hour day view, you’re a man pleaser and a compromiser. The Bible and Science both talk about our origins, so it’s no wonder that people would wonder if they’re simpatico. I would affirm that there is no conflict between God’s world and God’s word. There may be a conflict between science and theology, but not between the world and The Bible. Science and theology are both interpretations of God’s world and God’s Word respectively. If the universe and The Bible have the same author, then

During the summer at one of our Summit campuses, an Afghan woman—I’ll call her Hadiya—showed up to VBS and, with a very limited vocabulary, let the staff know she was there for her 5-year-old to attend the event. She opened up her phone and showed them a picture of a lady who she called Amanda and said that this lady invited her while she was at the park. Hadiya had wanted to come because she’d heard of the church before.

Some time ago I heard an interview with Bono on a public news station, and the subject of Jesus came up. I guess Bono was in one of his truth-moods because here’s what he said: “The secular response to the Christ story always goes like this: ‘He was a great prophet, obviously a very interesting guy, had a lot to say along the lines of other great prophets, be they Elijah, Muhammad, Buddha, or Confucius.’

Bible study is not the same thing as Bible reading. If Bible reading is like raking for leaves, Bible study is like digging for diamonds. The Christian life calls for both. When we study the Bible, we are on a quest for meaning — and not just any meaning, but God’s meaning through the Bible’s human authors. Discovering God’s meaning may require hard work (digging for diamonds always does), but the journey will leave us with deeper knowledge, more Christlikeness, and a stronger sense of God’s beauty in his book...