Showing results by narrator "Joffre Swait" in All Categories

In what shape do we find the doctrine of Sola Scriptura today? Many modern Evangelicals see it as a license to ignore history and the creeds in favor of a more splintered approach to Christian living. In the past two decades, Roman Catholic and Eastern Orthodox apologists have strongly tried to undermine Sola Scriptura as unbiblical, unhistorical, and impractical. But these groups rest their cases on a recent, false take on Sola Scriptura. The ancient, medieval, and classical Protestant view of Sola Scriptura actually has quite a different shape than most opponents and defenders maintain

Samuel. Saul. David. Goliath. Jonathan. When we think of 1 & 2 Samuel, these names and the stories that make them memorable generally come to mind. But these narratives are more than mere history. Peter Leithart offers here a typological reading of 1 & 2 Samuel as a unified book. By giving careful attention to the book's literary structures and its patterns of types and antitypes, Leithart unveils the symbolic world of Samuel's cumulative and cohesive story.

The Church today does not expect what it ought to from children and their parents, and this can be attributed in large part to a flawed concept of youth ministry. This need not and should not be so. This essay discusses the reasons behind the problem and proposes some biblical solutions.

This audiobook, coming from a pastor with forty years of experience, offers concrete practical suggestions about how to confess sin properly and how to avoid other snares that married people tend to get snagged on, usually depending on whether they're the man or the woman.

Down swept the Vikings from the frigid North. Across the English coastlands and countryside they raided, torched, murdered, and destroyed all in their path. Farmers, monks, and soldiers all fell bloody under the Viking sword, hammer, and axe. Then, when the hour was most desperate, came an unlikely hero. King Alfred rallied the battered and bedraggled kingdoms of Britain and after decades of plotting, praying, and persisting, finally triumphed over the invaders.

Prostitution, incest, drunkenness at the Lord's table, sectarianism, and babble all were problems in Paul's rag-tag startup church in Corinth. Paul's letter was a course-correction for many in the church, bringing people back to the Gospel as the basis for right unity, sexual ethics, observation of the sacraments, and worship.

In the Garden of Eden, there was only one "No." Everything else was "Yes." In this short book on childrearing, Douglas Wilson points out that we have a Father who delights in us and makes it easy for us to love and obey him. If that is the kind of Father we have, shouldn't we earthly parents do the same? Wilson explains how parents should not just try to get their kids to obey a set of rules or to make their house so fun that following the rules is always easy. Instead, he calls for parents to instill in their kids a love for God and His standards that will serve them well all their days.

As parents, it is easy for us to look back and see the shortcomings of our own education. Since many of us were taught in public schools, we often have a pretty good idea of what we don't want our children to learn. But what exactly should we give them instead?

Deftly guiding listeners through “the four,” Peter Leithart delves into both the unique perspective of each gospel and their unifying witness to Jesus. The gospels are riddled with themes and types; Leithart reveals them and explains the Old Testament prophecies that intertwine with these apostolic books, as well as their underlying literary structures. He discusses the dating of the books, showing how the timeline of the four gospels lace together, and lays out Israel's history leading up to John the Baptist's birth.

Frank Ewert's disarming collection of short fiction starts off with an inside view of small-time, big identity Canadian hockey, its meaning, its plays, its lingo. But each story's distinct voice quickly reveals universal themes of rivalry, calling, discipline, infatuation, and national dignity that invite every reader to be more than a spectator. The characters have keen direction and surprising priorities that open this unknown world to the uninitiated.

In this short but stimulating work, Peter Leithart draws upon insights from history, theology, philosophy, and literature to connect two of the most glorious and unique truths of Christianity; its hopeful eschatology and its doctrine of a dynamic, personal Trinity. First, Leithart shows that the biblical view of history is essentially comic and hopeful, in contrast to the classical Greco-Roman view, which is essentially and irredeemably tragic.

In this collection of essays, Douglas Wilson explores all sorts of areas where the Bible should be applied in our lives--but isn’t. From the home to the public square, from the marriage bed to the pulpit, Doug uses Scriptural wisdom to expose the rot of our modern culture, and to show us how to build a culture with Christ at its center.

The book of Ecclesiastes is confusing to many believers, who see it as a debate between an untrustworthy nihilist and a genuinely wise man who trust in God instead of giving way to despair. However, Douglas Wilson takes issue with this interpretation, arguing that the author of Ecclesiastes is looking at the world with biblically informed vision. Because God is sovereign and will one day judge all men and restore the world, believers can work, rejoice, marry, eat, and worship God in hope.

This cheerful collection of rumbling poetry is the perfect introduction to the good life—the life each Christian should be living. There is wine, there are riddles, there is war with sin, there are jokes...all uttered in appreciation of this world that God made out of his own words. We all can imitate him: Poetry is a way of life.

Suzanne Rhodes, a longtime poet and teacher, offers The Roar on the Other Side as an introductory guide to poetry for students (junior high and up). Focusing on the importance of sight and the necessity of practice, Rhodes easily communicates the joy of words to her listeners and helps them see how good poetry binds all seemingly-contradictory things together.

You can sin with food in many ways: by not sharing it, but eating way too much of it, or by throwing it across the restaurant table, for example. But you do not sin with food by bowing your head over it, saying grace with true gratitude in your heart, and tucking in. Sharp-edged but humorous, Confessions of a Food Catholic addresses the unscriptural approach to food that many Christians have developed in recent years. (By the way, a "food catholic" is somebody who accepts all eaters of all foods, even if the food catholic himself doesn't actually eat quinoa.)

This anthology of over a hundred poems written by Calvinists is a surprising introduction to the aesthetics of the Reformed tradition. Who knew there was such a host of Calvinist poets? Containing notes and short biographies to aid your enjoyment, this collection is the perfect starting point for appreciating these men and women—and the faith that inspired their words.

As one of the supreme Christian epic poems, Dante's Divine Comedy provides not only far more personality and emotional depth than the pagan epics, it also opens up all the issues on which Western history turns truth, beauty, goodness, sin, sanctification, and triumph. For all that, C.S. Lewis loved the Comedy for its seemingly effortless poetry.

To be fully educated, it is necessary to listen to the great pagan classics of Homer and Virgil and the ancient Greek playwrights. However, many Christians are often disgusted by the barbarity and violence, put off by the emphasis on honor and man-centered glory, and simply baffled by the long and tedious descriptions of battle scenes and elaborate ceremonies.

Being Christian: New Devotional Readings has St. Paul's ambitious goal: to present every person perfect in Christ. With that in mind, this wide-ranging devotional is full of strong texts and short teaching, all organized into bite-size readings. You will find applicable wisdom throughout the book, as Being Christian is the product of Jim Wilson's practical advice and scriptural meditation over many decades.