I became something else, something other than what I naturally would have become, by becoming an evangelical pastor. Do not underestimate the difficulty of the task. While I generally agree with evangelical theology, I am at odds with the evangelical subculture and its version of holiness. The office of pastor […]
We’re not just wanting to keep Christians happy and growing. We aren’t attempting to lure believers from other churches by having glitzier services and better programs. We’re starting with hard-core skeptics and trying to transform them into zealously committed disciples of Jesus. And that’s really hard! To be truthful, most […]
“Watch me, dad. Watch me.” There are few imperatives a father hears more often from his children than “watch me.” It’s a plea for us to recognize that whatever our son or daughter is doing — catching a ball, jumping off a diving board — is worthy of our full […]
Faithful biblical teaching should, and will, produce a response. And people’s response should, through the presence and work of the Holy Spirit, reflect the response that the biblical text itself was seeking to produce. We want people to think, feel, and act in ways that are in line with what […]
Perhaps our most important stewardship of all is the stewardship of the gospel. As Jesus Left this earth, he gave his disciples and his church this instruction: “Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptizing them in the name of the Father and of the Son and of the […]
There are two verses I cite to myself every day: Romans 12:4 (“Do not think of yourself more highly than you ought, but rather think of yourself with sober judgment”) and 2 Corinthians 4:5 (“For what we preach is not ourselves, but Jesus Christ as Lord, and ourselves as your […]
