The Original Sin of Preaching: The Constant Craving for a Useful God in Pulpit and Pew
By Magnus Persson
03/25/26
12mins

The Original Sin of Preaching: The Constant Craving for a Useful God in Pulpit and Pew

God is not a tool in our hands. He does not exist to serve our goals, our metrics, or our platforms.
Even Chuck Norris Needed a Savior
Russ Lackey
Russ Lackey
03/23/26

Even Chuck Norris Needed a Savior

The gospel isn’t for the strong but people who know they aren’t.
Post-Denominational Lutheranism
John W. Hoyum
John W. Hoyum
03/20/26

Post-Denominational Lutheranism

One great thing about our post-denominational age is that it has opened up opportunities to make common cause with other Lutherans who, despite their differences and eccentricities, can agree on some of the most important things.

All Articles

Sam Leanza Ortiz
Sam Leanza Ortiz
05/12/25

The Weathervane of the Eastern Church

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.
Bruce Hillman
Bruce Hillman
05/09/25

Church Attendance Increases in New Study—But Can We Trust It?

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.
Adam Francisco
Adam Francisco
04/23/25

The Shroud of Turin, Apologetics, and the Resurrection

It’s easy to understand the allure of the shroud. In a skeptical age, a physical relic that appears to bear the imprint of the risen Christ seems like proof positive of the faith.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
04/22/25

A Review of The Big Relief: The Urgency of Grace for a Worn-Out World

Dave weaves together music, movies, and documentaries to illustrate all the ways we seek relief—and then, full and free, he connects our need to Christ’s gift.
Bruce Hillman
Bruce Hillman
04/22/25

What does Pope Francis’ Death Mean to Protestants?

While I disagree with many things Francis did and believed, I think he deserves credit for this: Francis showed us what Christian leadership can look like.
1517 Staff
1517 Staff
04/09/25

Lenten Love Songs

Three Lenten songs express the same astonishing wonder of a Lord who willingly suffers and dies.
Zack James Cole
Zack James Cole
04/04/25

A Georgia Boy’s Lament: Val Kilmer, Doc Holliday, and the Friend of Sinners

News of Kilmer's death hit me like a freight train because his Doc Holliday stirred something in me about friendship—both the earthly kind and the divine.
John Bombaro
John Bombaro
03/27/25

The Proclamation of Paint

How intentional will we be about utilizing gospel spaces that already inescapably communicate?
Amy Mantravadi
Amy Mantravadi
03/26/25

A Review of Unloved: The Rejected Saints God Calls Beloved

Sometimes the old story is the one we need to hear again and again.
A.J. Vega
A.J. Vega
03/12/25

The “I” in Church

We are called to believe in the church even when we don’t believe in the church.
Donavon Riley
Donavon Riley
03/11/25

The Wound and the Well

The great lie of addiction is that suffering must be fled, must be numbed, must be drowned out by any means necessary.
John Bombaro
John Bombaro
03/03/25

Rehabilitating Happiness

To be happy is to be the object of God’s love in Christ and to love God and others with the love of Christ.
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