What Does Baptism Do?
By Brian W. Thomas
05/01/26
21mins

What Does Baptism Do?

This is an excerpt from the third chapter of By Water and the Word: God’s Gift of Baptism for You by Brian Thomas (1517 Publishing, 2026), pgs 52-60.
The Tree That Sweetens Every Sorrow
Bradley Gray
Bradley Gray
04/30/26

The Tree That Sweetens Every Sorrow

Even when the bitter places sink down deep into our bones, the Restorer never relinquishes his grip on you.
A Review of
Amy Mantravadi
Amy Mantravadi
04/28/26

A Review of "To Live Well: To Live Well: Practical Wisdom for Moving Through Chaotic Times" by Alan Noble

To Live Well is therefore not a general advice book, but a message suffused with the gospel.

All Articles

Valerie Thur
Valerie Thur
10/11/18

What If and What Is

For all its stewing, regret ironically does not truly focus on the past. Often it is more concerned with the present and the future and how they would be if only we had done something differently.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
10/07/18

The Two Reasons Our Past Can Be Changed

In Christ, God’s Son, yesterday, today, and tomorrow all collapse into one. He holds in himself everything from the beginning to the end of the world.
John Bombaro
John Bombaro
10/04/18

Name Brand

Many scholars believe that what Jesus says in verses 18-20 are the key to Matthew's Gospel. Actually, it may be the key to the entire Bible, for in these three verses we see the full scope of the history of redemption brought to bear in one history-altering, cosmic event: Baptizing in God's name.
Tate Barber
Tate Barber
09/27/18

I May Not Be A Smart Man, But I Know What The Gospel Is

I am not a good Lutheran. I have only been around reformation theology for a few years.
Donavon Riley
Donavon Riley
09/25/18

I’d Never Go to That Church

Would you go to the church on the corner knowing that the pastor is an ex-con?
Valerie Thur
Valerie Thur
09/25/18

The Belief Cure

We try believing in more abstract concepts: justice, happiness, and self-improvement, only to find that we can never truly grasp which standards should be accepted and which should be rejected.
Donavon Riley
Donavon Riley
09/18/18

Jesus Opens Us

Jesus opened our ears and mouth when He baptizes us. Jesus put His fingers into our ears, speaks to us, and washes our sins away.
Valerie Thur
Valerie Thur
09/06/18

Our Only Answer to Evil

The following is adapted from Called to Defend written by Valerie Locklair (1517 Publishing, 2017).
Daniel Deen
Daniel Deen
09/05/18

Thank God for Evolution

I am not going to give an apology for evolution as a scientific theory. Rather, I am wondering if the normal way of discussing evolutionary science within conservative Christianity has blinded us to certain fruitful uses of the theory.
Ken Sundet Jones
Ken Sundet Jones
09/04/18

Learning the Cycle of Gospel Proclamation

True preaching arises when the Holy Spirit steeps the proclaimer in its own cycle of judgment and mercy.
Chad Bird
Chad Bird
09/01/18

Scandalous Church Stories Not Reported This Week

Early in the church’s life, some Christians were dragged before the city authorities in Thessalonica and accused of “turning the world upside down,” (Acts 17:6). They were guilty as charged. They were turning the world upside down. Or, rather, they were putting the world right side up.
Joel Hess
Joel Hess
08/29/18

Who Did Jesus Marry?

Did Jesus ever marry? Yes, He married you!
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