This is an excerpt from Chapter 6 in Sinner Saint: A Surprising Primer to the Christian Life (1517 Publishing, 2025). Sinner Saint is available today from 1517 Publishing.
On its journey from Byzantium to Constantinople to Istanbul, this special place helps us understand the broader arc of Christian history, which goes on until Christ's return.
We needn’t fear statistics and studies as palm readings into a certain future. God is God, and his Spirit is alive through his Word.

All Articles

God is a judge, but unlike you, God is just!
Despite the mathematical incongruity, the church confesses that Christ is one hundred percent human and one hundred percent divine.
In grace, God chooses to love his people.
I realized that no matter where I call "home," I won't be able to shake the feeling of homesickness.
Wisdom lurks in the outer places. Rich gratitude sprouts from the impoverished and forgotten.
By the end of this prayer of wrestling, David finally has the strength to claim victory over his lying enemies.
"When God has his say, have confidence that his Word and sacraments bestow precisely what he says."
The gospel is best understood in terms of those two most important words: for you.
The gospel gives us faith, hope, and love, all of which proceed from Christ’s death and resurrection.
In Simeon's hands and Anna's gaze, we are reminded of God's promise—not distant, not fading, but alive.
This article is part of Stephen Paulson’s series on the Psalms.
It is impossible to live our lives in a way that would convince God of our value because he already knows our value. He is the one who gave it to us.