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Showing posts from October, 2022

Legion vs. the Lord: Christ’s Authority Over Unseen Evil

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by Bart Denny Whether you are a professional mechanic or a shade-tree tinkerer, you have probably met that bolt. You know the one. You start with a regular wrench. No movement. You grab a longer handle. Your knuckles get scraped, your patience wears thin, and if you are honest, your vocabulary gets “creative.” So you reach for the Liquid Wrench. Then the torch. Then the breaker bar. Still nothing. Finally, you call the neighbor with the impact wrench. Same bolt, same rust, same stuck threads. One burst from the impact, and what resisted you for an hour breaks loose in a second. The difference was not you trying harder. The difference was authority . A different kind of power was applied. A lot of life feels like that bolt. Maybe it is an addiction, anger, bitterness, lust, or unforgiveness that will not budge. Maybe your “stuck bolt” is more internal: anxiety that will not let go, depression that will not lift, bitterness that has hardened into a way of life. The Bible c...
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“Because of the Angels”: What’s Really Behind the Head Covering Debate?

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by Bart L. Denny, Ph.D., Th.M. If you’ve ever read 1 Corinthians 11 and found yourself puzzled by Paul’s instruction that women should cover their heads in worship “because of the angels” (v. 10), you’re not alone. This passage has sparked confusion and debate for centuries. Some, like K. P. Yohannan, argue that Paul’s words are a timeless command for all women in every church to wear head coverings in church. The reference to angels, they claim, seals it as a universal directive. But is that really what Paul intended? Let’s take a closer look. While 1 Corinthians 11 teaches principles that still matter today, the practice of head covering appears rooted in a specific time, place, and culture. And the reference to angels? It’s important, but perhaps not in the way some assume. What Did Paul Actually Say? Paul’s only mention of head coverings is in 1 Corinthians 11, a letter written to a first-century church navigating issues of gender roles, worship practices, and public witness. The p...
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The Ultimate Answer: "He is Risen"

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by Bart Denny I don’t watch much television, but when I do, I enjoy Jeopardy! It’s a quiz show with a twist: contestants are given the answer, and they have to come up with the right question. A friend of mine once joked that he is a Jeopardy! person living in a Wheel of Fortune world. Sometimes life feels the same way. We are given the answer, but we do not always recognize the question. “He is not here, for he has risen, as he said.” (Matthew 28:6) That is it. The answer. To death, despair, doubt, and to the deepest questions of the human heart. The Followers Who Saw Early on that first Easter morning, Mary Magdalene and “the other Mary” went to the tomb. An earthquake shook the ground, and an angel rolled away the stone. His words were simple and history changing: “He is risen.” They ran to tell the disciples, and on the way they met Jesus Himself. They touched His feet. They worshiped Him. These women were unlikely witnesses in their culture. If the resurrec...
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Leaders Wanted

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Have you ever been job hunting?  Sure you have unless you’re lucky enough to be independently wealthy or were born with the proverbial silver spoon in your mouth.  After theIt’s great when you find that dream job. Well, okay, maybe it’s not a dream job, but at least you don’t have to go through the grind of a job hunt anymore.  Then, suddenly, your company downsizes, you tick your boss off for the last time, or you just plain get tired of your job and know you need a new one. Time to go job hunting again. So, where do you start looking for your new job?   Before the internet, we all went to the newspaper “help wanted” ads.   Today, you go to Indeed.com or Monster or to the website of companies that you are interested in, and you look up the available jobs.   You look at an overview of the job.   You check out the qualifications for the job:   Do you have the minimum education and experience needed?   Are you overqualified?   You pay pa...
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Preaching in a Postmodern World: Holding Out Truth in an Age of Doubt

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by Bart Denny What does it mean to preach the gospel in a world where truth feels optional and everyone seems to have their own version of it? That’s the world we live in. And for pastors and preachers today, it can be disorienting. We know we’re called to proclaim God’s unchanging truth. But how do we do that in a culture where people are skeptical of authority, suspicious of institutions, and increasingly allergic to absolute claims? This isn’t just a communication problem—it’s a theological one. And it’s not new. In 1 Corinthians 9:19–23, Paul writes, “I have become all things to all people so that by every possible means I might save some.” Paul understood what missionaries and preachers today must remember: faithful preaching must also be culturally aware. So how do we preach timeless truth in a postmodern world? Let’s start by revisiting what preaching actually is. Preaching Isn’t Optional—It’s a Divine Assignment Preaching isn’t just a tradition—it’s a theological n...
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A Baptist Bride? An Analysis of “Old Landmarkism”

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This paper will show that “Old Landmarkism," or "Baptist Bride" theology, is an extreme variant of Baptist ecclesiology that is historically untenable and far out of line with traditional Baptist ecclesiology. Further, Landmarkism is also far removed from the New Testament practices Landmarkism purports to champion. This paper will briefly examine the historical roots of the Landmark Controversy and its influence on Baptist groups and denominations, particularly in the southern United States. The author will paper will examine the tenets of Landmark ecclesiology—including “Baptist succession” (or “Baptist perpetuity”), the marks of a “true” church, Baptist separation, and the Lord’s Supper. In all cases, this paper will show Landmark views of Baptist separation, succession, and the ordinances of the church—while emerging from valid concerns—are taken to an unbiblical extreme. A Brief History of the Old Landmark Movement It is beyond the scope of this paper to trace the c...
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