January February 2021

Against a Too-Human God

For many Bible scholars, it is strange that John Calvin did not write a commentary on the book of Revelation. He did not even take the time to preach systematically about it, as he did with many Bible books. Martin Luther concluded that it was “undeciphered prophecies, with no certain interpretation, they are nothing but […]

The Mysteries

Everyone loves a good mystery. It challenges us. Man is ever self-challenged to conquer the world: Nebuchadnezzar, Darius the Mede, Cyrus the Persian, Alexander the Great, and Rome, to name a few. Alexander cried when there were no more worlds to conquer. But wait: More worlds are on our horizon! Man looks upward into the […]

An Interview with Amber Riggs

After sixteen years serving the Church in various educational capacities, Amber Riggs has stepped down as co-director and dean of administration for Artios Christian College. She continues to live near Eugene, Oregon, with her husband and four daughters. The BA caught up with Amber to ask about her experience and what’s next for her.   […]

Focus on the Faithful – Abraham

“Faithful” is our theme for 2021, and in this space over the next six issues, we’ll look at six Bible characters whose faithfulness in their own unique context speaks to us in ours. Our goal here is to challenge and encourage the Church of God to embody faithfulness, in our own time, after the examples […]

Yoked

In a flash, God could have made an ark for Noah and his family. But He didn’t. Instead, God instructed Noah to build it. Noah spent decades building that boat. It was grueling work. Cutting trees. Hauling lumber. Making sure that every piece fit together just right. Not only did he work with his hands, […]

Fits and Starts

For a long time, I committed more “fits” than “starts.” For those not familiar with the idiom “fits and starts,” it refers to irregular intervals of action and inaction, as in “His presidential campaign is proceeding by fits and starts.” The expression began in the late 1500s with “as by fits.” The noun fit meant […]

What Color Am I?

I learned early on that if people are different colors, I did not have the preferred color. When my mother and longtime friends would get together and the subject of skin color came up, my mother was sure to say with a tone of disgust, “We are all pale and bleached out. Everything shows. Every […]

Who is Your Master?

“I just need to check my Instagram one more time before bed.” “If I don’t worry about it, no one will.” “I cannot believe I just did that. People are going to think I’m a loser.” At the start of my New Testament Survey class, I did a study on Matthew 6. I had always […]

Moses’ Mistake

Why do we sin? One reason has to do with our emotions. We can seethe over someone who has done wrong to us or spoken against us, and then lash out at them or slander them. We can envy what a person has to the point of wishing them ill. Even though we believe we […]

I Hear The Call

I Hear the Call   I hear the call to the highest peaks,  The cry to the deepest trenches, And I fear the barren summits, And dread the darkest tempests.   I know the Creator of the mountains,  The Maker of the deep, And I trust the One who calls and guides To tend and […]