"As obedient children, do not be conformed to the passions of your former ignorance, but as He who called you is holy, you also be holy in all your conduct, since it has been written, 'You shall be holy, for I am holy'" (1 Peter 1:14-16).

"Not many of you should become teachers, my brothers, for you know that we who teach will be judged with greater strictness" (James 3:1).

My friend, seminary professor and fellow pastor here in Southeastern Indiana, Michael Pohlman, writes in his book Resolutions of a Pastor (Wipf & Stock, 2025), "A pastor must prioritize personal holiness in his own life even as he labors for holiness in the church. After all, the fundamental non-negotiable qualification for a pastor is to be 'above reproach.'"

Keep Reading

"But if the man encounters an engaged woman in the open country, and he seizes and rapes her, only the man who raped her must die. Do nothing to the young woman, because she is not guilty" (Deut 22:25-26).

"Outside are the dogs, the sorcerers, the sexually immoral, the murderers, the idolaters, and everyone who loves and practices falsehood" (Rev 22:15).

April was Sexual Assault Awareness Month. It came and went with little to no fanfare. We have learned to yawn at thousands of hours of Epstein files depicting unspeakably heinous acts committed against young women. And surely we know Epstein wasn't the only rich and powerful man abusing those girls. I am not sure we could handle it, if we could somehow know just who, what, when, where, and how often. It makes my stomach churn.

Keep Reading