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

Brian W. Thomas
Brian W. Thomas
05/16/19

Font to Table: Why Does the Pastor Wear That?

The minister’s clothing represents his office of service, derived from the ministry of Christ, and never himself.
John Bombaro
John Bombaro
05/13/19

A Note on the Seriousness of Preaching

Our stories are decidedly unserious when viewed through the lens of the seriousness of God’s affairs. Jesus put the matter succinctly: “For what does it profit a man to gain the whole world and forfeit his soul?” (Mark 8:36). Human affairs are not serious in and of themselves. Rather, they are consequential because they garner meaning and significance within the overarching story of God and man.
Philip Bartelt
Philip Bartelt
05/09/19

The Gospel for Lukewarm Christians

To be lukewarm is to take refuge in your own works apart from the works of God.
Paul Dunk
Paul Dunk
05/01/19

The Divine Drama

If I don't preach Christ, then there's really no reason anyone should roll out of bed on Sunday to hear anything I have to say.
Matt Johnson
Matt Johnson
04/16/19

Pastor Of Disaster

How are things at your church? Are people getting saved in droves, are there mass baptisms every Sunday, is giving at an all-time high, and are your members model citizens and pillars of the community?
Jacob Corzine
Jacob Corzine
03/31/19

The Law and the Already Terrified Conscience

Where contrition is evident, the conscience has already been prodded, piqued, finally terrified. More Law only serves to confirm the lie this person is already at risk of believing: that the last work of the conscience is also God’s last word. But God’s last word is the word of absolution, not the confirmation of the conscience’s testimony, but now its contradiction.
Robert Kolb
Robert Kolb
03/24/19

Meditating on the Passion (A Forgotten Art: For Preachers and the Entire Congregation)

Lenten meditation is the one time Luther might advise us to be turning in on ourselves--and taking a cold, honest glance. For only in the shadow of the Cross can we look honsetly into the cause of the death of the man from Nazareth, the second person of the Trinity.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
03/14/19

So You Don't Like Your Pastor

Pastors are built from the same stuff as everyone else. That’s good, and that’s bad.
Brandon Hanson
Brandon Hanson
02/27/19

Revelation 2:18-29 | Shrine Of The Sambatha | 018

The danger was not necessarily inside the city. Nor was it from an obvious source. Outside the walls of Thyatira, lay a small shrine of white stone.
Donavon Riley
Donavon Riley
02/19/19

God Speaks to Us to Give Us Gifts

When we say “forgiveness,” we mean, “Jesus.” When we say, “righteousness,” we mean, “Jesus.”
John Bombaro
John Bombaro
02/17/19

Psalm 23: A Song of Christ (Or: A Note on Christ-Centered Preaching from the Psalter)

Christ and the Evangelists, along with saints Peter and Paul, show a deep attachment to the Book of Psalms...it was because the Psalms were about the Messiah, the Christ of God.
Brandon Hanson
Brandon Hanson
02/13/19

Revelation 2:12-17 | Bring On The Bull | 017

Pergamum! Oh, Pergamum! Behold the glory of Pergamum! It was not at this time the greatest provincial power, nor was it the most favored in the Roman Empire.
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