The Hermit and the Blackbird
By Donavon Riley
03/27/26
11mins

The Hermit and the Blackbird

Lent exists because we are forgetful creatures. We forget how hungry we really are.
Getting Over Your Moral Superiority
Daniel Emery Price
Daniel Emery Price
03/26/26

Getting Over Your Moral Superiority

The Pharisee valued fasting and giving tithes, but could not find value in his fellow sinner.
The Original Sin of Preaching: The Constant Craving for a Useful God in Pulpit and Pew
Magnus Persson
Magnus Persson
03/25/26

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.

All Articles

Chad Bird
Chad Bird
07/15/16

Nice, France, and the Heart of the Human Problem

Dear church, do not get sidetracked. This is about far more than terrorism, racism, gun ownership, and the like. This is about the evil of the human heart.
Bror Erickson
Bror Erickson
07/12/16

Tulip’s Baptism: Is It Valid?

It is worthwhile because Jesus Christ gave baptism to His disciples as a means for making disciples after He had suffered under Pontius Pilate, was crucified died and buried and rose again on the third day.
Bror Erickson
Bror Erickson
06/28/16

So Bad Even God Won't Forgive?

The authority God gives to men—to you and I as baptized believers in Christ—is to forgive sins, to free them from guilt, to free them from the power of sin.
Bruce Hillman
Bruce Hillman
06/13/16

God’s Fixed Courtroom

A crisis of faith always occurs when we begin to believe that God has betrayed us.
Scott Davis
Scott Davis
06/13/16

Camouflage, A Convict and A Cross

Have you ever played hide and seek with a 2-year-old? News flash: They’re terrible at it.
Kathy Morales
Kathy Morales
06/07/16

Real Strength

God cannot love me unconditionally without prerequisites, especially after all I’ve done, can He?
Bruce Hillman
Bruce Hillman
06/06/16

Banjaxed

Stephen Fry, the English actor, author and game show host once disparaged the “grammar Nazis” who felt it necessary to enforce all the rules of language but who had forgotten, or just didn’t care, about the joy of language.
Bonnie Petroschuk
Bonnie Petroschuk
05/30/16

First, the Bad News

Either one of those verses alone is scary; but both of them together are terrifying!
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
05/25/16

God Isn't Looking for Brown-Nosers

Faith does not require that we always Hoorah what the Lord does. God wants children, not brown-nosers.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
05/09/16

Is There Any Hope for Me? Can These Bones Live?

O dry bones, hear the word of the Lord. Thus he says to these bones. Behold, I will cause breath to enter you, and you shall live.
Bonnie Petroschuk
Bonnie Petroschuk
05/02/16

An Evil, Untrustworthy Bunch

“We humans are an evil, untrustworthy bunch.” I said to a friend recently, by way of explanation/cold comfort, after he had been cut to the core by fellow Christians who were uncomfortable with his vulnerability.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
04/19/16

Church and the Toilet Flush

Burdened within and without, we cross the threshold into church. We don't leave behind our earthiness, our tragedies, our white-knuckled grip on the last vestige of dignity in our sad lives.
1517 is a Christian non-profit (501(c)3) multi-media organization. Our mission is to declare and defend the Good News that we are forgiven and free on account of the death and resurrection of Jesus alone.
1517.org
Search
Academy
Donate

1517 grants permission for our free online resources to be printed, photocopied, and otherwise used freely for private and church use. We require that authorship and source (1517.org) are referenced and maintained. These resources may not be sold or included in any publications for sale.