The author of Hebrews says this about Jesus: “You have loved righteousness and hated wickedness; therefore God, your God, has anointed you with the oil of gladness beyond your companions.” Hebrews 1:9, ESV One thing we should keep in mind as church leaders is our tendency to be selective in the things we denounce. I […]
Os Guinness on Progressivism
In some churches, the words tradition or traditional are used in a pejorative sense. Anything that smacks of tradition is considered harmful to the desire to grow a large church. And since bigger is always better, tradition cannot be good.
An attitude of gratitude
In his book “Overcoming Toxic Parenting” Rick Johnson writes the following about having a positive attitude: “Part of having a good attitude is developing gratitude for what we have. Do you have a faithful spouse and children who love you? Then you are blessed beyond words. Be grateful. Do you have a home to live […]
Theology vs. Experience?
There are some who would downplay theology and doctrine in favor of renewed experience of the power of God. “It’s not about doctrine” is a phrase that I’ve heard a few times within Christian circles. I found this quote from Tim Keller helpful when thinking about theology vs. experience: “We are not called to choose […]
On the pursuit of relevance
So while I think there is nothing inherently wrong with wailing guitar solos and smoke machines as part of the worship experience, perhaps we should pump the brakes on the drive to make worship like a rock concert and the sermon like a motivational seminar.
Totally not like Jesus
While strolling through Rittenhouse Square in Philadelphia, we could hear an amplified voice near one corner. From a distance, I could not identify the purpose of the speech, but I did have some idea that the speaker was angry about something. I was curious to see if it was a political protest or a speech […]
Pastor as CEO?
How many moral, ethical or pastoral failures do we need to witness before we are willing to admit that copying the organizational architecture of an American corporation is not a good plan for the church?
Bars of wood to bars of iron
But are we any happier as a society? Have the new-found freedoms brought personal peace? Based on the angry rhetoric from those who most loudly proclaim freedom from limits, I struggle to see that we are indeed happier.
On those who have walked away
Honesty demands that we admit our struggles to work out our faith. Real faith is at times a gritty mess and we all face difficult times. My experience is that God remains faithful even when we are faithless, as Paul tells us in 2 Timothy 2:13. Feeling doubt and even expressing doubt does not automatically disqualify someone from being relationship with God.
Cowardice masquerading as Grace
I have recently begun to understand that there have been times in my life when I pretended that I was displaying grace, but it was not grace. It was cowardice masquerading as grace. There are times when the lone, contrary voice needed to be heard and mine was silent. There are times when it would […]
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