- Written by: Rich Lusk
- Category: Church
AIMING AT SHALOM:
THE CHURCH’S MISSION OF
JUSTICE AND MERCY
BY RICH LUSK
(This is an older article, originally published at Theologia.org in 2004.)
Charles Spurgeon once quipped, “If you give a man the gospel, wrap it in a sandwich. And if you give a man a sandwich, wrap it in the gospel.” With those words, the great Baptist preacher captured the essence of the church’s mission in the world.
- Written by: Rich Lusk
- Category: Church
Discipleship and the Visible Church
By Rich Lusk
This is an old article article, being republished for the blog.
Discipleship is a vital dimension of the church’s life. The church’s motherly, nurturing role as discipler is indispensable. Indeed the church is the school of discipleship. We are enrolled in her school in baptism, educated in the word by her pastors and teachers, and fed at her table in the weekly covenant renewal service. Consider Calvin’s wisdom:
- Written by: Rich Lusk
- Category: Church
From Public Church to Private Christian
By Rich Lusk
This is an old article article, being republished for the blog.
It is critical for the church to understand the broader social trends that have undermined her existence as a public and visible community if she is going to act and react in appropriately biblical ways in our (post)modern situation. The progressive privatizing of religion needs to be sketched out more fully than will be done here, but a few critical points may be made.
- Written by: Rich Lusk
- Category: Church
Orphan Care as a Christian Calling
Rich Lusk
This is an old article article, being republished for the blog.
How does one become part of a family one was not born into? Adoption. One of the central privileges of the gospel is our adoption into the family of God. We are not children of God by nature; rather, we are by nature children of wrath (Ephesians 2:3). God, in his glorious grace, adopts us into his family through Jesus Christ (Ephesians 1:4-5). The eternal Son of God became the Son of Man and suffered and died for us, that we might become children of God, born again by the Spirit into a new family (John 1:12-13; 1 John 3:1). Now, as sons in union with the Son, the Lord Jesus Christ, we cry out “Abba” to our Heavenly Father through the work of the Holy Spirit (Romans 8:15). The Triune God has adopted us, inviting us into his shared life of love and has made a home for us in eternity (John 14:2-4). As adopted and dearly loved children, we have a place at God’s table. We can be assured he provides for our every need, carries our every burden, and protects us from every enemy.
- Written by: Rich Lusk
- Category: Men & Women
Plucking and Cutting:
An Examination of Matthew 5:27-32
Rich Lusk
This is an old article article, being republished for the blog.
While sex happens in private, it has public implications and so biblical law has quite a bit to say about it. We cannot keep God’s law out of our bedrooms. But neither can we keep God’s law out of our hearts. And so the Scripture also has quite a bit to say about sexual desire, most famously in Matthew 5:27-32.