In 2023, a little book by a prominent Christian communicator shook the evangelical world. Steve Chalke stated in “The Lost Message of Jesus” that the doctrine of Penal Substitutionary Atonement if true would amount to “cosmic child abuse.”[1] It’s important to be clear about what he wasn’t saying. Chalke did not claim that the atonement… Continue reading Penal Substitution: Steve Chalke and the Lost Message of Jesus, 20 years on
Author: faithrootsdw
What have I been doing?
This is just a little update for those who have been supporting us by praying and financially. My time is currently divided in half between our local church, a New Frontiers church in North Birmingham where I now serve as part of the eldership team and working to encourage and equip church planting and revitalisation… Continue reading What have I been doing?
The curse
When the people of Israel came out of Egypt, God gave them The Law in the wilderness at Sinai. Then, before they were about to go into Canaan, Moses in effect set before them a choice between curse and blessings. This choice was to be enacted in a covenant ceremony. The people were to pass… Continue reading The curse
Held secure
I chose quite the day for my first ever Test Cricket game. The last time I watched live cricket as opposed to following scores on the BBC and catching snatches of games on the telly was back in the early days of 20/20 when a few of us went to see Kent after work. This… Continue reading Held secure
Father Abraham had many sons
In Galatians 3:6, Paul has taken us back to the example of Abraham, the ancestor of God’s people, to whom, through whom and in whom God’s covenant with his people was made. He has demonstrated, as he will again when he writes to the Christians in Rome that Abraham was justified by faith. In other… Continue reading Father Abraham had many sons
Bewitched
Do you enjoy magic tricks? Are you left amazed by how the magician manages to get the right card every time, pull the rabbit from a hat or make his assistant disappear. Of course, no one really thinks that it’s real magic. We know that the magician relies on slights of hand and diversion tactics… Continue reading Bewitched
Does God care particularly about special places?
The other day, I wrote about the Eternal Wall of Answered Prayer. One of the things I picked up was that there were claims of a special experience of God’s presence at the site. One of the questions that has come back in discussion is whether or not God does show concern for specific places… Continue reading Does God care particularly about special places?
Terms and conditions
Paul reminds the Galatians in chapter 3 of what they’ve seen, heard and received, They’ve seen the Gospel clearly presented, that Christ was crucified for them. They’ve received the Spirit. They know that their new life in the Spirit is founded entirely on Christ’s crucifixion and has been received by faith. So how can they… Continue reading Terms and conditions
What is contemporary complementarianism responding too?
One of the reasons why we might see both continuity and discontinuity in a thought is because we see contextualisation at work. This means that we react to and engage with the thinking of the world around us. This can work for both good and ill. We contextualise for good by considering how to shape… Continue reading What is contemporary complementarianism responding too?
We don’t need “the world’s largest Christian land mark” in Birmingham
“We’re one step closer to building the world’s largest Christian landmark” reports Richard Gamble about the building of an “Eternal Wall of Answered Prayer”. There’s a lot going on in the report in Premier Christianity from the association of a physical place with spiritual presence to odd hubris of declaring this an “eternal wall.” Then… Continue reading We don’t need “the world’s largest Christian land mark” in Birmingham
