About

This site contains articles by Greg Hanson about Christian theology and living out the Christian faith in everyday life. It aims to remove the doubts and rituals that often clog the minds of Christians and seekers alike. These articles are intended to encourage and equip believers to live out their faith with confidence.

The articles here are primarily founded upon three premises:

1. Faith in Jesus is reasonable.

Contrary to the popular misconception, faith is not believing the unbelievable. Though there are some people who do cling to a blind faith, most want to believe in something because it’s true. We do not have to believe in Jesus in spite of the facts; rather, we can believe in light of the facts. This is possible because real faith does not operate in opposition to the facts, it sees where the facts are pointing and goes in that direction.

“And if someone asks about your Christian hope, always be ready to explain it. But do this in a gentle and respectful way.” (1 Peter 3:15-16 NLT)

2. A genuine faith is a complete worldview that impacts every area of life.

The Christian faith is not intended to be reserved for Sunday morning; it is intended to be lived out daily. If it is genuine, it will influence the choices you make and will guide your actions. It will even be expressed in your thought processes. Faith that is compartmentalized is no real faith at all.

“But don’t just listen to God’s word. You must do what it says. Otherwise, you are only fooling yourselves… If you claim to be religious but don’t control your tongue, you are fooling yourself, and your religion is worthless. Pure and genuine religion in the sight of God the Father means caring for orphans and widows in their distress and refusing to let the world corrupt you… So you see, faith by itself isn’t enough. Unless it produces good deeds, it is dead and useless.” (James 1:22, 26-27; 2:17 NLT)

3. The Christian faith is practical; it is not just a formulated set of doctrines.

While there are certainly theological and philosophical dimensions to Christianity, it is also relevant to everyday life. It is to be applied and practiced, not only studied and debated. The Truth of Scripture can be life-changing, but you must internalize it, act upon it, and allow the Holy Spirit to use it to transform you from the inside out. He will make you more loving, more compassionate, more courageous, more ethical, and more faithful, more joyful, and more disciplined. In other words, more like Jesus.

“But the Holy Spirit produces this kind of fruit in our lives: love, joy, peace, patience, kindness, goodness, faithfulness, gentleness, and self-control. There is no law against these things!” (Galatians 5:22-23 NLT)

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Greg Hanson is a pastor as well as a freelance author and contributor to both print and online media.