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.

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You may be surprised to discover that, rather than changing your theology, these other voices deepen and expand it in ways that never would have happened if you listened only to the “approved” voices.
Christianity is not a solo endeavor. Not a private relationship between Jesus and me.
Eucatastrophe combines two Greek words: ‘eu’ meaning ‘good’ (as in eulogy or euphoria), and ‘katastrophe’ for destruction.
What is your fight club? Who is your Tyler Durden?
They stood on their feet, the Father's host, Alive in the Son and Holy Ghost.
The table is full-laden; feast ye all sumptuously. The calf is fatted; let no one go hungry away.
The story did not end with Jesus' death and resurrection, or even with the Acts of the Apostles.
“It’s bigger on the inside” is not only an evocative literary device, it is also a phrase heavy laden with Good News found in the true story of Christianity, especially at Christmas.
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.
True freedom, Luther discovered, is found in Jesus crucified who sets us free.
Over and over, generation after generation, sinners repeat the same mistake. "How is it possible that God can be a man," we ask.
Fairy tales are but one chapter in the book we call storytelling. We may prefer reading other kinds of stories (mystery, science fiction, and so on).