Serving in ministry full-time, part-time, or even as a volunteer can be a daunting task. Constantly developing sermon series, teaching materials, leading or participating in staff meetings, board meetings, small group meetings (well, you get the idea). Not to mention dealing with numerous issues within the church. The litany of problems laid at your feet […]
Anytime the preacher says, “Look again at verse 5. The word there means…,” the audience moves their attention to Scripture. They learn that in Bible Study, as in any other endeavor, words matter. Let’s say the preacher says something like, “Remember, there were no chapter divisions when this was written. When Paul said, ‘If you […]
Sex has been an economized commodity since early human history, and in many parts of the world sex work remains thriving business. How should Christians respond to sex workers? One religious response to sex workers has been to see such people as worthless because of the immorality involved (e.g., the Pharisee in Luke 7:36-39). Yet […]
I was first introduced to the Trust & Follow Jesus manual for disciple making through Bobby Harrington. He came and did a practical seminar on how to replicate disciple making groups on Harding University’s campus. The steps for creating a group and the “simple, effective, and reproducible” process immediately caught my attention because this is what […]
Jesus rose from the dead and ascended into heaven over 2,000 years ago. Before he left, he empowered his disciples and asked them to take the gospel to the ends of the earth and make disciples of all nations (Matthew 28:18-20, Acts 1:8). Yet, from that time to the present, the ends of the earth […]
Let’s consider the what, why, and how of Jesus’ parables in the Bible. What are parables? Why does Jesus speak in parables? How should they be interpreted? These are important questions, and the answers can be both simple and challenging. What Is a Parable? Imagine how hard it would be to teach the concept of […]
Here is a short summary of 2 Corinthians: 2 Corinthians is actually the fourth letter from Paul to the church in Corinth. There had been a serious breakdown in the relationship between Paul and members of the church, a lot of which was motivated by some traveling preachers who ran down Paul and promoted themselves. […]
There seems to be a confusion of definitions when it comes to defining discipleship. People want to define discipleship as all the things they are already doing. And the things churches are already doing are typically programmatic. Let’s be clear: Discipleship is not a sermon or a Bible class. Discipleship is most likely not your […]
Who are the Anabaptists, and what can we learn from them? To understand the Anabaptists, it is helpful to see their story in the larger context of church history. When I teach church history, I simplify it by using game board pieces to make it easy to remember: Thimble: The Monopoly thimble represents the early […]
Meals Ready to Eat or MRE are pre-packaged meals given to service members when cooking or preparing food is not an option. You should know a few things about them if you’ve never eaten one. First, they taste horrible. Secondly, they have a 10-15-year shelf life. Third, they have 2500 calories designed to be a […]
Paul’s description of love in 1 Corinthians is repeated in and around church so much, many of us just tune it out. It’s a shame because that passage contains some of the richest truths in the Bible. Whenever I read it, I feel an undercurrent of conviction—a reminder to evaluate my motivations. Why am I […]
Jesus tells us to love our neighbors, but what does that look like? How do we practice it regularly? Paul Huyghebaert shares intentional steps to make this a regular part of our daily rhythms.
How quickly should we share the gospel? It’s an important question and one that we shouldn’t take lightly. As I read and listen to people talk about evangelism, it seems most folks fall into one of two camps, which Mark McCloskey calls “the relational-incarnational approach” and “the comprehensive-incarnational approach.” Both have good reasons for their […]
Late Friday evening, the country of Morocco was hit with a 6.8 magnitude earthquake, followed by a 3.9 magnitude aftershock on Sunday evening. The epicenter of the quake was near Marrakech, a popular tourist spot. At the time of this writing, at least 2,862 people have died, with more than 2,500 injured, with countless others […]
Right before His ascension into Heaven, Jesus shared His vision for His Church—His heart for Gospel impact and saturation: “You will receive power when the Holy Spirit comes on you; and you will be my witnesses in Jerusalem, and in all Judea and Samaria, and to the ends of the earth” (Acts 1:8). The endgame […]
Why is it that some people rarely cry while others weep at the opening of a new supermarket? Sometimes it is a matter of maturity. While we expect babies to cry when hungry or frightened, we encourage older children to “Be a big boy” or “Be a big girl and don’t cry.” It’s partly temperament […]
