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The Way of the Towel: Greatness, Redefined by Jesus

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by Bart Denny Central text: John 13:12–17 (NIV) Over the years, in church settings, I’ve done a lot of dishes. I’ve raked a lot of leaves. I’ve painted plenty of church walls. I’ve plunged more than a few clogged toilets. I don’t mind getting my hands dirty. But if I’m honest, at this age, with this many years in church, there’s a part of me that wants to say, “I’ve done my time.” I don’t usually say it out loud. I dress it up. I call it wisdom. Focus. Stewarding my time well. But the feeling sneaks up on me. It shows up when another need pops up. When the same few people carry the same load. When I feel tired. It shows up when I think, “Shouldn’t somebody else take a turn now?” And I’ll confess something else: I don’t mind serving. I just want to choose the terms. And if I’m not careful, I start thinking and acting like the low places belong to somebody else. Now let me be even more honest: I don’t struggle with getting my hands dirty. I struggle to keep my ego in check....
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Is Speaking in Tongues for Today?

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 I wrote This research paper several years ago (sometime in 2012) for a class. Edits are minor, and where my views have changed or evolved, I speak of that in brackets. The topic is one of controversy in evangelicalism. For me, in the years since I first wrote this, the issue has become less about whether speaking in tongues exists today but rather whether what passes for tongues-speaking is, in fact, the speaking in tongues we encounter in the Bible. I don’t wish to break fellowship with people who disagree with me on this particular issue but are passionate about the Gospel of Jesus Christ (as I am) and hold the Bible as God’s inspired Word (as I do). I believe that biblical tongues-speaking still exists and is rare. Moreover, most of what passes for tongues-speaking in churches today is not the phenomenon we see in the New Testament. Is Speaking in Tongues for Today? by Bart L. Denny, 2012 (updated in 2023) Introduction Does tongues-speaking continue today?  This pa...
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The Influence of Bonhoeffer’s “Religionless Christianity” on Radical Theology

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As best I can remember, I wrote this paper sometime in 2016. Introduction This paper will compare Dietrich Bonhoeffer’s concept of “religionless Christianity” with the radical (or “death of God”) theology, demonstrating that radical theology it is the logical outworking of his thoughts on religionless Christianity—even if Bonhoeffer himself would have been shocked to see such a development. Of course, many groups have appropriated Bonhoeffer as their own, even if he was not. Bonhoeffer’s brave faith, in the face of Nazi persecution, imprisonment, interrogation, and execution—as opposed to the capitulation to Nazism of the majority of German Protestants in his day—appeals to a broad swath of Christianity, including evangelical conservatives, mainline liberals, liberation theologians, and even the radical or “death of God” theologians. Indeed, as Pugh has said, both pacifists and Mike Bray, the notorious abortion clinic bomber, invoke Bonhoeffer’s example in their causes.[1] Neatly compa...
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Original Sin: Inherited Corruption or Inherited Guilt? (and Why It Matters)

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by Bart L. Denny, Ph.D., Th.M. Maybe you’ve heard the term “original sin.” You might be surprised to learn that there is considerable debate about precisely what the phrase “original sin” entails. Christians hear the term original sin and have differing conceptions of it. Reading the Bible, I have always understood original sin to mean what I more often heard described as a “sin nature,” an invariable propensity to sin inherited from our first father, Adam. Except for Jesus Christ, the God-man, all have sinned, and none can help but sin. All flavors of orthodox Christianity have accepted that humankind inherits a sinful nature and that no human can attain sinless perfection in this life. This sinful nature, because it has come down through Adam, might be considered “inherited corruption.” One of the consequences of this inherited corruption is the eventual physical death of all human beings. But I never recognized that this understanding of original sin, common among Baptists, Arminian...
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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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