The Consuming Fire and the Holiness That Comes Down
By Bradley Gray
10/02/25
23mins

The Consuming Fire and the Holiness That Comes Down

He doesn’t consume us, even though that is what we deserve. Instead, Jesus comes down to us and consumes all our sin by taking it on himself.
When Pastors Are Abused by Their Congregations
Donavon Riley
Donavon Riley
10/01/25

When Pastors Are Abused by Their Congregations

This article is the first part of a two-part series. The second part will take a look at when pastors abuse their congregations.
An Excerpt from Untamed Prayers: Psalm 123 and Psalm 136
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
09/30/25

An Excerpt from Untamed Prayers: Psalm 123 and Psalm 136

The following entries are excerpts from Chad Bird’s new book, Untamed Prayers: 365 Daily Devotions on Christ in the Book of the Psalms (1517 Publishing, 2025), pgs. 311 and 335

All Articles

Chad Bird
Chad Bird
11/30/16

Gospel Phobia

If the devil took over a church, I suspect it would be bursting at the seams every Sunday, with smiling faces, clean noses, straight morals, conservative voting, institutional fidelity
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
11/27/16

Six Words That Make All the Difference in the World

In those waters we are nailed to his cross and washed out the door of his tomb. Within his wounds we safely hide.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
11/24/16

When Turkeys Preach

It’s strange that we’ll stuff our mouths today with a bird whose life preaches against us. For consider the turkeys, which neither sow nor reap nor gather into barns, and yet your heavenly Father feeds them.
Donavon Riley
Donavon Riley
11/22/16

It's OK to Be Godless, So Long As You're A Christian

"What do you mean, 'Confess that I don't believe in God?' I'm a Christian. Of course I believe in God!"
Matt Kroelinger
Matt Kroelinger
11/18/16

Weak Faith in the Midst of Tragedy

Recently I’ve met many people that have suffered tragedies in their families. I know this sounds a little selfish, but the ones that stick out the most to me are the ones that affected my own family.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
11/16/16

Showing Mercy to Former Ministers

I don’t care why you left the ministry—moral failure, congregational politics, burnout, whatever—the Christ whom you proclaimed has not left you.
Brian W. Thomas
Brian W. Thomas
11/16/16

The Alien Fashion Sense of Jesus

The redeemed are dressed in white robes.
Donavon Riley
Donavon Riley
11/15/16

The True Prosperity Gospel

Every Christian is abundantly rich through baptism.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
11/14/16

The Sex Worker Who Teaches Us the Fear of the Lord

Hear that confession of saving faith? Rahab may have been a prostitute in Jericho, but she was secretly a virgin daughter of Yahweh.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
11/06/16

Animals Teach Us How to Read the Bible

The church is God’s flock. Jesus is both a lion and a lamb. The zoo turns out to be as packed with theology as a seminary, if not more.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
10/31/16

The Hardest Thing to Believe

You matter so much to God that he would rather die than lose you. You matter so much to Jesus that no suffering was too much, no deprivation too burdensome, no punishment too severe for him to endure to have you as his own.
Bob Hiller
Bob Hiller
10/28/16

Giving God A Nap

The Word of God wrecked the room. The wise and seasoned pastor along with the smart mouth vicar were all silenced in the fear and awe of a God who can seem so absent at times.
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