The Unintended Consequences of the Modern Church
It’s a good season to reexamine the effectiveness of the modern church. Our commitment, as RENEW.org leaders, is to continually go back to Scripture, to restore and prioritize what it teaches. We face a challenge because in the last fifty years, as church leaders have sought more effectiveness in our churches, we have come to […]
Resisting the Lure of Legalism
“Are you so dull?” he asked. “Don’t you see that nothing that enters a person from the outside can defile them?” (Mark 7:18, NIV) Let’s talk about legalism. I know about legalism because I used to be a legalist. At the time, I didn’t believe legalism was really a thing. I’ve actually said to people, […]
Invitation to Discipleship: My Story of Being Discipled and Becoming a Discipler
In this invitation to discipleship, Anthony Walker describes how he was discipled to become a discipler. Several times I’ve been asked to speak on varying topics from the epistles Paul wrote to Timothy. Almost every time, my mind goes back to how I relate to Timothy. Recently I was asked to speak from 2 Timothy […]
What Is Discipleship?
Discipleship is the state of being a disciple of Jesus Christ. So, what then is a disciple? A disciple is simply a follower or a student of Jesus Christ. When we bring in the depth of New Testament teaching on what it means to be a disciple of Jesus, we can expand the definition of […]
What Prevents Us from Life Transformation?
At a ministry conference recently, I commented that, when measured against the heart of God in the Sermon on the Mount, large segments of American Christianity seem to be going completely off the rails. Even though it was a rather sedate crowd, that comment got an “Amen!” That reaction tells me two things: 1) Not […]
Is Discipleship Required: 6 Steps for the Local Church
Curt recently wrote a previous article, “Is Discipleship Required,” because we believe that in Scripture, Jesus, the Apostles, and the other New Testament writers spoke and wrote specifically about being a disciple of Jesus. Moreover, we hold that King Jesus theology is the best explanation for why being a disciple is mandatory. If you agree […]
Is Discipleship Required?
I turn 50 this year, which means that I have been in a conservative evangelical church for 50 years now. Around 10 years ago, I was first introduced to the idea of being a disciple of Jesus rather than simply being a cultural Christian. Over these last 10 years, I have been sorting out what […]
Thinking Clearly About Evangelism
It’s no secret that many American churches are struggling, particularly with a decline in church attendance. Close to home (for me at least), Churches of Christ were bleeding members prior to COVID-19, and anecdotal evidence from the past few years doesn’t seem to paint much more of a positive picture. More widely, while data can […]
