When you utter the words “christian” and “music” consecutively, you can mean so many different things. Do you mean music that is “Christian”? Do you mean the music that plays on CCM radio stations? Do you mean music appropriate for worship? Do you mean music that Christians have on their IPods? Whatever you mean, aContinueContinue reading “Why Many Worship Leaders Would Make Lousy Music Critics”
Category Archives: Church
Part 2: Costly Grace
Bonhoeffer’s The Cost of Discipleship challenges the way we think about salvation to the core. Is grace really so simple as a wave of the Deistic wand, and–*poof*–sins forgiven, nothing else necessary? Grace was meant to do more than justify sin. In fact, it wasn’t meant to justify sin. Sin will never be justified; it will alwaysContinueContinue reading “Part 2: Costly Grace”
Part 1: Cheap Grace
I have really enjoyed learning from and reading Dietrich Bonhoeffer, and if you have been following my blog any length of time, I apologize for all of the recent posts from his works. And…I know what I am about to do runs directly contrary to what I wrote in Retweets, Reposts, and Links: Gimme Something Original,ContinueContinue reading “Part 1: Cheap Grace”
Do You Love Your Diet More than Jesus?
Would your friends more quickly characterize you as “gluten-free”, “vegan”, “pro-organic”, “pro-free-range”, etc., than as a “Christian”? Do you abstain from eating at others’ houses or with other people out of fear that they might expect you to eat something that’s against your diet? Do you share your views on food and diet with moreContinueContinue reading “Do You Love Your Diet More than Jesus?”
Church Planters, Be Advised: A Letter from the Year 2063
I am a pastor of a church that was planted 50 years ago. Many church plants that survive will eventually get to the place where my church is fifty years down the road. It’s a delicate place. It’s a place where a pastor is helping the people begin to look for a fresh work ofContinueContinue reading “Church Planters, Be Advised: A Letter from the Year 2063”
The Canned Gospel
If you were to present the gospel in two or three minutes, what would you say? In many Reformed circles today, I believe our mental Bible dictionaries probably have this entry: gos·pel [gos-puhl] noun. Definition — justification by faith alone. Certainly this is a part of the good news, but is that the whole of it?ContinueContinue reading “The Canned Gospel”
Self-Actualization: Allow Me to Illustrate…
Illustrations are a great thing. They spice up the sermon; they further explain your point; they add rhetorical punch. However, they are just that—illustrations. The orator is the master, and the illustration is the slave, not vice versa. It is the speaker’s job to determine whether an illustration, analogy, or story fits the points theyContinueContinue reading “Self-Actualization: Allow Me to Illustrate…”