This weekend, pastors and preachers around the world will exert significant effort to explain the good news of Jesus (i.e. the gospel). They’ll do so knowing that a lot of people in the pews have never believed the gospel and may not hear the gospel again until next Christmas or Easter when they return to…
Photo by Jehyun Sung on Unsplash When you think of Jesus he was a great leader, wasn’t He? What are some of the characteristics of Jesus’ leadership? Attracted and equipped people (cities and towns he visited for days, weeks and sometimes even months…invested his life in people) Found and mentored emerging leaders Engaged in ongoing personal development (through…
In a couple of weeks, I am taking off to Serbia in order to teach a course on church history. The opportunity to engage with students around the world, particularly as we talk about our common “family” history, is tremendously exciting. The first lecture is aimed at introducing students to the study of church history.…
**This post was originally published in April of last year. This post is not meant as a criticism or condemning of Webb and other evangelicals, only an exploration into the phenomenon of people leaving Christianity. No attempt to judge motives is intended.** Derek Webb is an ex-Christian. For those of you who may not be…
“But I say to you, Love your enemies and pray for those who persecute you, so that you may be sons of your Father who is in heaven.” (Matthew 5:44-45) We cannot know what it means to love our enemies until we have to do it. We must be hated in order to know what…
Photo by eberhard grossgasteiger on Unsplash “If anyone would come after me, let him deny himself and take up his cross and follow me” (Mark 8:34). Brett McCraken, in Uncomfortable: The Awkward and Essential Challenge of Christian Community states, “to be a Christian is to accept the discomfort of a way of life inspired and empowered by a…
This weekend marked the end of the season for my beloved Kentucky Wildcats. I love watching UK basketball and it was sad to see them lose to the Auburn Tigers. The loss, however, was much easier to take when I heard Duke also lost. A bit of balance was restored to the universe. When I…
Photo by Vidar Nordli-Mathisen on Unsplash Here’s a short word from Timothy Keller on Christians friendships: Christian friends are not only to honestly confess their own sins to each other (James 5:16), but they are to lovingly point out their friend’s sins if he or she is blind to them (Romans 15:14). You should give your Christian friends…
Photo by Kyle Glenn on Unsplash I love that quote from Woody Allen. It’s raw, honest, and all-too-familiar for a lot of people. And yet, we know there are instances that if we choose not to say something we’re not loving the person, but rather loving ourselves. That is a sobering thought. Too often an individual errs on…
Before I preach on Sunday’s, I pray. More often than not, I pray that the Spirit would give us eyes to see great and glorious truths in the Bible and then live in light of what we’ve seen. That is, I do not aim in my preaching to merely help our congregation gain intellectual weight.…
