Feelings spread. From person to person.

Sometimes one person directly transfers their feeling to another. A happy first-time mom infects another woman with her joy. A middle-school-aged boy at the school dance passes along his fear of dancing to his friends.

But sometimes feelings mutate as they pass...

It feels like a subterranean roiling has finally burst to the surface. For a long time dis-ease has been working its way through evangelicalism. Faultlines of “race,” gender, and culture have threatened volcanic explosion—and for some it’s happened.

We’ve been feeling...

Every flower that dares bloom Should hide in shame Compared to your beauty.

Or if it dared to speak Should asked to be named “Kristie.” Truly.

Every ray sparkling from the sun Ought seek cover of night Next to your radiance.

Or if it could indeed run Should immediately take flight To avoid...

Donald Trump’s race to the White House defied every prediction and expectation. From his controversial speech announcing his candidacy, to the large crowds filling stadiums, through scandalous comments of one variety or another, down to last night’s election returns, Mr. Trump...

Note: The views and opinions expressed here do not necessarily represent TGC or any of its council members, staff or supporters. They are the views of the author alone. This is a personal blog that happens to be hosted at TGC. Such hosting should not be construed as an endorsement from TGC for...

Note: The views and opinions expressed here do not necessarily represent TGC or any of its council members, staff or supporters. They are the views of the author alone. This is a personal blog that happens to be hosted at TGC. Such hosting should not be construed as an endorsement from TGC for...

Note: The views and opinions expressed here do not necessarily represent TGC or any of its council members, staff or supporters. They are the views of the author alone. This is a personal blog that happens to be hosted at TGC. Such hosting should not be construed as an endorsement from TGC for...

Note: The views and opinions expressed here do not necessarily represent TGC or any of its council members, staff or supporters. They are the views of the author alone. This is a personal blog that happens to be hosted at TGC. Such hosting should not be construed as an...

Note: The views and opinions expressed here do not necessarily represent TGC or any of its council members, staff or supporters. They are the views of the author alone. This is a personal blog that happens to be hosted at TGC. Such hosting should not be construed as an endorsement from TGC for...

Note: The views and opinions expressed here do not represent TGC or any of its council members, staff or supporters. They are the views of the author alone. This is a personal blog that happens to be hosted at TGC. Such hosting should not be construed as an endorsement from TGC for anything...

Note: The views and opinions expressed here do not represent TGC or any of its council members, staff or supporters. They are the views of the author alone. This is a personal blog that happens to be hosted at TGC. Such hosting should not be construed as an endorsement from TGC for anything written...

Editor’s Note: This is a guest post from a friend, fellow church member, and leader at Anacostia River Church, Nick Rodriguez. By day, Nick works in education policy and reform. But he’s a full-time husband and father who loves the Lord Jesus Christ. The views expressed here are...

A number of people have asked me if my conscience troubles me with the thought of opposing a Trump presidency by checking Clinton in November if it comes to that. In yesterday’s post I offered a brief and simple reply of “Yes.” But I also went on to say that a spotlessly clear...

Let me say from the onset that I’m not looking for a debate with anyone. I’m not looking to sway anyone’s vote or to suggest that someone viewing things differently from me is in sin. I’m not wanting to pit my “moral outrage” against your “moral...

My honest truth? When it comes to so-called “racial reconciliation” or just plain living out the faith in its intra-ethnic dimensions, these days I’m quite exhausted and usually thinking about ways to check out. That’s been the case for the last two years. It’s not...

Many of us writers struggle to write beautifully about beautiful things. Our words fall lifeless like stones. Our imaginations mist and evaporate. We look drop-jawed at stunning wonders, feeling the ineffable sense of the thing. But when we speak or write, by comparison, we’re crude and...

Last night I tuned in to the Democratic primary debate between Secretary of State Hillary Rodham Clinton and Senator Bernie Sanders. It’s the first Democratic debate I’ve watched during this election season. After watching a couple of big tent circus acts called the Republican debate,...

I’m grateful for Phil Johnson’s gracious and clear reply to my post responding to his Facebook “poke” (his word) at me. I’m even more grateful that Phil isn’t interested in a prolonged brouhaha, which the Internet sees too much of on any given day and rarely...

Incidents in the country have been rearranging the evangelical landscape for the last couple of years now. Not any of the incidents involving typical “culture war” issues, like homosexuality, gay marriage, and abortion. Apart from some fraying between older and younger evangelicals, the...

The American public continues wrestling with its understand of Islam. The wrestling makes sense. We can understand the confusion. Islam and Muslims are not a monolith. Just by way of example, The Washington Post published an op-ed today encouraging people not to express solidarity with Muslims...

The recent move of Wheaton College to place on administrative leave one of its faculty has sparked debate about whether Muslims and Christians worship the same God. This debate recurs because of the culture’s tendency to flatten religious differences into nebulous and impersonal ideas...

In the Laquan McDonald case we’ve received another warning against uncritical support for and unaccountable uses of authority.

It’s another shooting ruled a murder by officials that would have gone unchallenged and unaddressed were it not for video evidence to the contrary. Prosecutors...

I’m getting older. It had to happen, I guess. While I still think of myself as that 20-something (30-something early in the morning) young man, the rest of the world takes glances at my white hair and gray whiskers and thinks to...

There is vanity under the sun,

An emptiness common to man.

Smart guys who care nothing for love,

And those who love with little thought.

Each regards the other as the worse problem

when desperately they need each other to be whole.

The post Smarts and Love appeared first on The Gospel Coalition.

I’ve only felt a sense of calling this clearly and strongly on one other occasion. That’s when I first saw my wife and knew in an instant that I would marry her. A certainty something like that attends this call to be a part of the Anacostia River Church mission.

Two weeks ago, on Easter...