Category: The Christian Spirit

Reflections on living as a disciple of Christ.

Waves & Waves of Liquid Love: Charles Finney’s Conversion Experience

  

Probably my favorite conversion account is that of Charles Finney’s. A lawyer with little knowledge of the Christian faith, Finney decided he needed to read the Bible since so much of the law was based on it. The more he read, the more convicted he was over his sinfulness. One day he determined to get right with God, so he went into the woods to pray. Yet every time he started to pray, he thought he heard someone in the… Read more »

True Christian Consistency

  

Some people may misunderstand this Charles Finney quote and think it applies to the foundational doctrines of the Christian faith. It does not. Rather, it is an appeal for Christians to stay open to the Holy Spirit as He leads us into greater knowledge, understanding, and wisdom. We all need to humble ourselves and receive new light from Him. We haven’t yet arrived at a full grasp of His truth. I have not yet been able to stereotype my theological… Read more »

Dying to Self

  

One reason I devote Saturdays to commentary from C. S. Lewis is that he always seems to say something in a unique way. For instance, when writing about the necessity of dying to self, he is able to make us think about it from a different angle. In one of his essays, “A Slip of the Tongue,” he explains what it really means to die to one’s selfishness: It is not so much of our time and so much of… Read more »

Let Us Not Lose Heart

  

Sometimes when I ponder the state of our society, and the world in general, I wonder if there is any hope. Yes, I know that in the end, God wraps things up His way. The future is glorious for those who remain faithful to Him. But what I see around me would be depressing without that ultimate hope. I’ve studied the writings of Whittaker Chambers for nearly thirty years now. His magisterial autobiography Witness is filled with poignant insights into… Read more »

Wood, Hay, & Straw

  

Jim Wallis, one of the leaders of what might be termed the Christian Left, has now come out in favor of same-sex marriage. Ever since his days as a member of the 1960s radical group Students for a Democratic Society, which was grounded in socialist/communist philosophy, Wallis has tried to walk a fine line in an attempt to marry [pun intended] Biblical principles with a humanistic, atheistic worldview. It has been as spectacularly unsuccessful as the same-sex unions he now… Read more »

Truth Shall Do Us Good

  

In my early years as a Christian, I received many valuable insights from reading the works of Charles Finney, one of the premier evangelists of the nineteenth century. Finney is controversial to some, but to me, he opened a door for understanding the love of God in a way few others could. On Sundays now, I’m going to share comments by Finney, taken primarily from his Systematic Theology. Today’s excerpt comes from the preface; I use most of this quote… Read more »

Salt, Light, & Truth

  

I write often about the drift of our culture into acceptance of a type of sex God forbade. For many people, this whole issue is simply a matter of “democracy”—let the people decide what they want. When you introduce the moral element, they tell you that’s irrelevant. All that matters is that we are devoted to popular sovereignty. As a historian, I know that term well. The last time it was front and center in the political debate was prior… Read more »