Progress in Haiti
There is progress in Haiti, but you have to look in the right places.
I’m determined to show bits of progress. You have to look closely but signs of progress are there… New churches are being planted. A school has been founded in the village of Dociné where 225 kids attend. This fall they will have 270! And all the teachers have proper teacher certificates. It’s not slip shod:... Continue Reading
Conflict Management: Don’t Throw People Under the Bus
We tend to throw people under the bus when a bus is headed for us.
To throw someone under the bus” is defined as meaning “to sacrifice; to treat as a scapegoat; to betray,” but . . . the key to the phrase really lies in the element of utter betrayal, the sudden, brutal sacrifice of a stalwart and loyal teammate for a temporary and often minor advantage.” ... Continue Reading
Living the Abstinent Lifestyle in New York
Remaining chaste in New York City—or anywhere.
The Rev. Michael Keller, who grew up in Manhattan and who leads the Reformed University Fellowship City Campus ministry at Redeemer, said New York’s commodified approach to sex makes life more difficult for the abstinent. “If everyone else is using sex as something to consume, you will too,” he said. Trinity Laurel moved... Continue Reading
Where Do ‘Liberal’ Bible Scholars Come From?
Is reading the Bible a cure for fundamentalism? That's how many so-called liberal Bible scholars got their start.
Biblical scholarship is an academic discipline, taught and studied at universities, colleges and divinity schools all around the world. So it should be no surprise that biblical scholars run in all shapes, sizes, colors and denominations. What would surprise many people, though, is that a very large number of us love Jesus and the church,... Continue Reading
Biola University and Grace College of Indiana Sue Federal Government
The two evangelical college sue the federal government over the contraceptive mandate
Biola University and Grace College of Indiana on Thursday filed suit against the Obama administration and its contraceptive mandate. Now eleven colleges and universities have sued the federal government over the issue, including major schools like Wheaton College, the University of Notre Dame, and Catholic University. The federal government is facing 25 lawsuits across the... Continue Reading
Report Shows 5,000+ Multisite Churches
Multisite churches are growing at a much larger pace than traditional megachurches.
Multisite churches have grown from fewer than 200 in 2001 to 1,500 in 2006 to an estimated 3,000 in 2009 to more than 5,000 today. In comparison, U.S. megachurches have grown from about 50 in 1970 to about 1,650 in 2012 in North America. The number of congregations that host worship services at... Continue Reading
Affirming Erskine Theological Seminary
Erskine Board Action Regarding Restructuring at the Seminary
We, the Board of Trustees, affirm these statements and commit to the students, staff and faculty our intention to provide governance which stands true and upholds this commitment. It is our desire that Erskine Theological Seminary continues to be a distinct seminary which men and women can attend and know that they will be instructed in the things of Jesus Christ, His Church and His mission.
When Crafting Ministerial Job Descriptions, Let Realty Shape Expectation!
The vast majority of these job descriptions cluster around two extremes: overly generic or impossibly comprehensive.
Pastors are neither generic nor ideal. They are not universally nor uniformly gifted. There is no redundancy or irrelevance in the body of Christ. These are individual people created for a specific time for specific “works, which God prepared in advance” (Eph. 2:10).
Get Fired in the Interview
Lay all your cards out on the table, and let the chips fall where they may.
They didn’t know what Calvinism was, but they nevertheless wanted to know what my friend felt about it. His answer to their question was open and honest. And it led to his being able to open the Bible with the committee and lead them through his own beliefs directly from the scripture. After hours of teaching from my friend, the committee finally asked him, “Can you please come to our church and teach us more about this?”
As Secularism Advances, Political Messianism Draws More Believers
Civil religion is a marker of the strength of a nation’s faith life
The American Founders understood that when they replaced the King they were also replacing the idea of the “divine right of kings” and the monarch as moral leader of a country. They knew vibrant spirituality, virtue, and morals among the people would be needed for liberty to flourish. “It is substantially true that virtue or morality is a necessary spring of popular government,” declared George Washington in his farewell address.