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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Faithful preachers should remain steadfast in the biblical categories and terminology and preach the reality of death.
Mindful that the pagans’ understanding of death is a finality, Paul says, “NO!” Death is not the end of humanity in God’s new world.
The parable is harsh. It judges. If you do not believe, you will not be saved. But let us pause for a moment and think about why Jesus is telling the parable.
We need a God who acts for us, each of us in particular. We need a God who sticks to His Word that He will never abandon or forsake us.
The parable of the wedding banquet in Matthew hinges on whether a guy is wearing the right costume for the party.
Because of Jesus, we are restored to a solid relationship with our Creator God. And, because he built it right, it will stand forever, whatever comes our way!
When your identity is tied up in the judgment of others—you're in deep trouble. Because, however well-curated and photo-shopped your life may be, sooner or later someone is going to look at you, they'll swipe, and they'll move on.
God uses the fifth commandment to protect us from selfishness, prevent us from only thinking about our needs, and to drive us to Christ and our neighbors.
Jesus is better than all the politicians. He fulfills all his campaign promises. In fact, he’s willing to die to complete His work of redemption.
Jesus breaks through our barriers in His beatitudes. He shatters our conceptions of the blessed life and opens the Kingdom of God to all people.
It’s easy to slip into thinking about forgiveness solely in terms of our authority over it.
God's city is beautiful because God has constructed it to offer eternal safety to all weary sinners.