Prayer, its power or the lack of it, gives testimony to the vitality and reality of the Christian’s faith. “Prayer,” Jonathan Edwards announced, “is as natural an expression of faith as breathing is of life.” The Christian has faith. The Christian prays. Otherwise, he is no Christian at all.
Author: Peter Beck
Peter Beck serves as professor of Christian Studies and director of the Honors Program at Charleston Southern University. In addition to his book The Voice of Faith: Jonathan Edwards’ Theology of Prayer, he has published numerous articles on Jonathan Edwards, the Puritans and Baptist studies. Additionally, Peter has more than twelve years of pastoral experience and currently serves as Lead Pastor of Doorway Baptist Church in North Charleston, SC. You can follow him on Twitter at @DrPeterBeck.
For the Love of a Great Sermon
What is expository preaching? What makes a sermon good? What kind of preaching do we need? What kind of preaching can we live with? What kind of preaching can we live without? Those are questions that I asked myself when my family and I sampled the church options when we moved several years ago. The task… Continue reading For the Love of a Great Sermon
Worshiping Christmas
Ever see a frightening angel in a nativity scene? Me neither. They’re always cute little kids or beautiful women (or really effeminate looking men). The same thing is true of the angels on most Christmas trees. That’s just not right.
A Thankful Worship at Thanksgiving (and Beyond)
“Now, therefore, I do recommend and assign Thursday, the 26th day of November next, to be devoted by the people of these States to the service of that great and glorious Being who is the beneficent author of all the good that was, that is, or that will be.”
The Great Commission for Us
There are certain Bible verses most evangelical Christians know. There’s John 3:16. Who doesn’t know about how God so loved the world? The mere mention of John 3:16 brings “amens,” fells giants, and ends all theological debate. Genesis 1:1 has that power too. In the beginning God created and we’ve been quoting it ever since.… Continue reading The Great Commission for Us
The-ol-o-gy
Webster’s dictionary defines “theology” as “the study of the religious faith, practice, and experience.” Technically speaking theology is God (theo) talk (logy). We are doing theology when we talk about God. But it’s so much more than that. The Bible says that Christians are to love “the Lord your God with all your heart, with… Continue reading The-ol-o-gy
I Believe
Studying church history does more for the church than provide sermon illustrations. Church history allows us to learn from those who’ve gone before us so that we might benefit from their experiences and avoid their failures. Consider this example. In recent years, creeds have gotten a bad name. Opponents have labeled them oppressive, intolerant, divisive,… Continue reading I Believe