The Good Deposit of the Gospel
Reflecting on Paul’s final letter, Douglas Pratt traces the word “entrust” in 2 Timothy and asks whether the church is investing in the next generation of pastors and leaders to whom the gospel will be handed on.
Tag
Paul’s Letters
18 articles from 12 issues, 1995 to 2026
The Foundation of Our Calling
Burnett opens Ephesians 1 and finds Paul piling blessing on blessing: chosen before the foundation of the world, predestined in love, sealed for an inheritance. The piece sits with the dizzying generosity of Paul's grammar and asks what it means that our calling is grounded that deep.
A Theology of the Ordinary
Canlis returned to America after seventeen years abroad and was struck by how aggressively the culture sells 'best,' 'biggest,' 'greatest.' Reading Paul through Eugene Peterson, she argues for a theology of the ordinary that finds the work of God in walking-around life.
On Reconciliation – Honoring the Work of Jesus Christ
Ephesians 2 says Christ has broken down the dividing wall of hostility, in the present perfect tense: it was done, and it remains done. Goodloe asks why the church so often acts as if the work were still pending, and what it means to live as those for whom reconciliation is already accomplished.
The Vertical: “Be Reconciled to God” A Sermon to the 222nd General Assembly
Andrews preaches 2 Corinthians 5 to the 222nd General Assembly: from now on we regard no one from a human point of view. The vertical reconciliation God has accomplished in Christ creates and shapes every horizontal one. A sermon for a denomination tempted to invert the order.
The Women Prophets of Corinth: A Study of Aspects of 1 Corinthians 11:2-16
1 Corinthians 11 has supplied 'regimental colors' for centuries of arguments about women in worship. Bailey reads the passage in its larger literary context (1 Cor 11-14 as a single essay) and offers a careful answer to what Paul actually meant when he addressed women's prayer and prophecy.
Paul’s Theology of Sexual Practice: A Study of 1 Corinthians 6:9-20
Bailey brings thirty-five years of work on 1 Corinthians to bear on chapter 6's strenuous teaching about sexual practice. Paul wrote the letter for the Corinthians and for everyone everywhere on whom Christ's name is called, and the early church through Calvin agreed: he meant exactly what he said.
Ambassadors for Christ: 2 Corinthians 5:11 – 6:10
What does it mean to be an ambassador for Christ when a denomination changes its ordination standards? Mark Atkinson works through 2 Corinthians 5 and 6 and argues that the church speaks for its sending authority and makes no policy of its own.
The Origin of the Counterfeit Gospel
Where does a counterfeit gospel come from? Randal Working turns to Romans 1 and Calvin to argue that starting from human experience replaces revelation with speculation, and then asks whether Reformed Christians should stay in the PC(USA).
Fight the Good Fight of Faith: 1 Timothy 6:12
What makes a good soldier of Christ? In his last sermon at Princeton, J. Gresham Machen tells seminary students that Paul could fight because he was at peace with God, and that only the Cross gives that peace.
The Pastoral Dilemma
How does a pastor stay faithful both to the people he knows and to the gospel? Thomas Gillespie reads 1 Corinthians 6:9-11 and answers that the gospel’s power to wash, sanctify and justify is the pastoral word for every kind of sinner.
Sex and the City of God: Part I
How should the church speak about sex when the culture can talk of little else? David Swanson preaches on 1 Corinthians 6 and argues that the body matters, that it is a temple of the Holy Spirit, and that it belongs to the Lord.