We all have become familiar with cancel culture in the media, entertainment, and academia. People who take unpopular positions are banished from social media and school campuses. Speakers who are deemed to be on the wrong side are shouted down. Heroes from the past are not spared as their statues are torn down and their […]
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Tag: sin
Podcast: Truth In Love: The Abuse Pendulum, Part 2
In this podcast, Dale Johnson interviews me about spousal abuse. For the blogs under discussion, see my Abuse Counseling page.
The Abuse Pendulum, Part Three: Weaponizing Scripture and Weaponizing Victimhood (Eph. 6:17)
A few years ago, I wrote two blogs expressing concern that biblical counselors need to approach the very sensitive and important issue of abuse in a scripturally balanced way. You can find Part One here and Part Two here. I began the previous blogs with an acknowledgment that the church and biblical counselors have often […]
Why Do Some Children Become Prodigals?
Parents of prodigals spend many agonizing hours asking themselves, “Why did my child rebel? Is it because I was a bad parent? Is it because my child got in with the wrong crowd?” Sometimes we may even ask God, “Why don’t you do something to bring my child back?” The problem of wayward children is […]
Lessons Learned from a Fallen Pastor
Introduction (by Jim Newheiser) Recently, the BCC presented a blog about “Helping Adult Victims of Clergy Sexual Abuse,” authored by Caroline Newheiser along with an anonymous victim. A fallen pastor who read Caroline’s blog contacted me and wanted to tell his story as a warning to church leaders, so we have written this blog together. […]
3 Lessons from David’s Fall and Forgiveness
As we face our sin, we have to navigate between two unbiblical ditches. One is despairing that our sin is beyond forgiveness. The other is carelessly thinking we can violate God’s commands without experiencing painful repercussions. The fall of David in 2 Samuel 11 is one of the saddest accounts in all of Scripture. Yet […]
Hating the Haters, Judging the Judges, and Criticizing the Critics
Hating the Haters “Everyone who hates his brother is a murderer; and you know that no murderer has eternal life abiding in him” (1 John 3:15; also see Matt. 5:21-22). Our culture labels those who take certain unpopular stands as “haters.” There are forms of hatred, such as racism, which fully deserve our condemnation, because […]
Caring in Cases of Adultery
Adultery is something that many of us will have to deal with in one way or another in the church. The gospel gives great hope in these difficult situations. The goal of this workshop is to help equip you to bring that hope to those who have felt the pain of a broken covenant.
Pursuing Peace by Gently Restoring Others
Sometimes to live at peace with others we must confront them about their sin. This session will discuss how to determine if a sin must be confronted and how to go about the process in a way that seeks to gently restore a brother or sister.
Pursuing Peace by Forgiving Others
Forgiveness can be very hard, particularly when someone has hurt us very much. This session will examine how for Christians, meditating on the way Christ has forgiven them all of their debts can and should empower them to forgive others.