Author Archives: Travis Flanagan

Worship, Memory, and Doubt

I spent all of last week at a wonderful place — Falls Creek youth camp in Davis, Oklahoma. The worship was led by Met Collective, whose leader is Matt Roberson. Something he told the students throughout the week was this: “He who remembers well, worships well.” Going along with this, on the final night ofContinue reading “Worship, Memory, and Doubt”

What is the Place of Good Works?

I just finished writing a series of lessons from Proverbs that I will teach to our group at youth camp next week. Many of the proverbs were written by Solomon to his sons to encourage wise and upright living in the sight of God and others. Many commentators have acknowledged that the proverbs are aContinue reading “What is the Place of Good Works?”

Should We Teach Doctrine to Children?

Doctrine is just a fancy word that means “teaching” or “something that is taught.” In the church, we use the term doctrine to refer to the teachings of the Bible. In my book, doctrine and theology are fairly similar. We have the doctrine of God, the doctrine of man, the doctrine of salvation, etc. DoctrineContinue reading “Should We Teach Doctrine to Children?”

Should We Worship God and Country?

Yesterday, the United States of America celebrated its independence. This means that countless Americans spent the day poolside, grilling burgers and watching firework displays. This also means that countless churches spent the Sunday prior (July 1st) honoring both God and country in their morning worship services. But some churches did not. The approach of JulyContinue reading “Should We Worship God and Country?”

Did Jesus Have Two Dads?

You may or may not know it, but June is marked as gay pride month. This past Sunday, June 24th, thousands joined to march for gay pride. This included my cousin and her husband, who proudly marched in New York City. They posted a picture on social media holding a rainbow colored sign that readContinue reading “Did Jesus Have Two Dads?”

The Center of Old Testament Theology

*Note: The following is a series of excerpts from a paper Travis wrote recently for a doctoral seminar entitled “A Theological Center in the Old Testament: Major Options and Objections.” Arguing for a clear distinction between biblical and dogmatic theologies, Johann Gabler’s 1787 faculty address at the University of Altdorf has been marked by scholarsContinue reading “The Center of Old Testament Theology”

Review: Jesus Among Secular Gods

I am the youth minister at a local church in North Texas, and twice a year I walk some of our students through a discipleship course. This time I presented them with a number of Bible studies to choose from, and they landed on Jesus Among Secular Gods, a study written by Ravi Zacharias andContinue reading “Review: Jesus Among Secular Gods”

Theodicy: Is God Just?

Is it right for God to bless the wicked? Is it fair for God to allow calamity to strike the righteous? Is it just for God to use an evil nation to punish a more righteous nation? These questions introduce us to the theodicy problem. Theodicy is a Greek compound word, theos meaning God andContinue reading “Theodicy: Is God Just?”