Rationalism and the Chain of Being

God's First Command

In this opening episode of the new podcast season on Dominion, Nathan F. Conkey challenges a doctrine widespread in evangelical and reformed circles: the idea that Christians are exiles on the earth, just passing through on their way to heaven, with no real business in wealth, work, politics, or culture. Walking through Genesis 1–3, he argues the Bible teaches the opposite. Man was formed from the earth and commanded to take dominion over it — a mandate written into human nature (Gen 1:26) and issued as God's very first command (Gen 1:28). From gold and gems in Genesis 2 flow trade, banking, craftsmanship, science, and family life; none of it a distraction from the kingdom, all of it dominion work done God's way. Exile, by contrast, makes its first appearance in Genesis 3 — and there it is God's judgment on sin, not the believer's identity. Conkey contends that "exile theology" is a prison of words that has neutralised faithful men and left Bible-believing churches with little cultural impact. His call: repent of living like an exile, recover your identity as a dominion man, and start building. Next episode turns to Cain — the first man God actually made a stranger and vagabond on the earth.

Easy Chair No. 151, July 17, 1987 - Laurie Eck & the Christian Conciliation Service

Laurie Eck discusses the Christian Conciliation Service, a ministry designed to resolve disputes among Christians according to biblical principles rather than secular courts. Inspired by his own marital and professional struggles, Eck emphasizes reconciliation, restoration of relationships, and applying God’s law to conflicts. The service trains local church members—often elders or spiritually mature individuals—to mediate disputes, including marital, business, and property conflicts, fostering accountability, peacemaking, and corporate responsibility within the congregation. Eck highlights the challenge of churches being consumer-oriented and avoiding conflict, stressing that real reconciliation requires submission, servanthood, and adherence to biblical standards. The ministry has spread nationwide, adapting to local contexts while aiming to restore the authority and witness of the church."

Standards

Prices, ages, and even fish stories seem to change over time but the real issue is not the thing being measured, it’s the yardstick. Money has shrunk in value, not food; houses haven’t changed, but the standard we measure them by has. The same confusion infects moral and public life: when standards shift, everything looks distorted. Nothing can be judged rightly without a fixed, trustworthy measure. Scripture alone provides that unchanging yardstick when the standard is wrong, every conclusion will be wrong too.

Religious Liberty Versus Religious Toleration

Religious liberty recognizes Christ alone as Lord of the church and denies the state any authority to license, regulate, or define faith. Religious toleration, by contrast, makes the state supreme granting permission to religions only so long as they conform to government policy. History shows that toleration leads to control, corruption, and persecution, while liberty produces faithful, free churches. The erosion of religious liberty today signals not neutrality, but a growing form of soft totalitarianism that Christians must clearly recognize and resist.

Fallen Man

History and experience alike expose the truth Scripture declares: apart from Christ, man is fallen and dangerous. An early archaeologist once observed a society without Christian restraint and concluded that men seemed “born with stones in their hands,” ready for violence an echo of Paul’s words that none are righteous. Yet modern humanism insists man is naturally good and denies guilt, justice, and even right and wrong, imagining a freedom that would only unleash greater evil. The choice is unavoidable: a world ordered by God’s law and grace, or a world ruled by fallen man. The question is simple which one are you helping to build?