“Give me liberty, or give me death!” said Patrick Henry in a famous speech in 1775 that helped ignite the American Revolution and the founding of this nation. Now in 2020, with a nation divided by ideologies and the masses unable to engage in a good natured civil dialogue, I want to yell from the rooftops a new rally cry: “Give us nuance, or give us death!” … More Give Us Nuance, or Give Us Death!
“A horrible and shocking thing has happened in the land of the so-called free. The prophets prophesy lies…and my people love it this way.” … More A Horrible & Shocking Thing Has Happened
He is the faucet, the spigot, the ever flowing spring. I’m that rusty watering can with a slow leak. … More A Conduit, Not a Factory
It’s time for the Body of Christ to grow up. Like a refrigerated teething ring given to an infant cutting her teeth, I have offered Paul’s ‘Body Metaphor’ for the church to chew on as we seek to become One Unified Body of Many Ethnic Parts. … More It’s Time to Grow Up
The “Love Poem” in 1 Corinthians 13 is often pulled out of context and read at weddings. When applied to racial division and ethnic differences in the local church, its doubly explosive! … More Seek the Greater Gift of Racial Sensibility
This is the task of the church today: for Christians of all ethnic and racial backgrounds to receive those of different backgrounds as a gift to broaden our perspective and deepen our love as we learn to not only understand each other’s experiences, but enter into each other’s pain and, God willing, to learn how to suffer in solidarity with them. … More Giving Greater Honor to Minorities
Paul emphasizes our mutual interdependence in the Body which, when applied to race/ethnicity, offers some of the following revolutionary and far-reaching principles for racial healing and cooperation in the church. … More An Intoxicatingly Beautiful Unity-in-Diversity
Let us revisit Paul’s ‘One Body, Many Parts’ metaphor and draw out key insights for more nurturing more harmonious multiethnic relations. … More One Body, Many Ethnic Parts
In the age of Trump, Christian leaders and committed followers of Jesus know deep in their bones that a kind of “melting” needs to take place if the message and mission of the gospel is to bear fresh fruit in a culture where so much is rotten. … More Beyond the Melting Pot
This is a teaser from a sermon on the Book of Revelation. This message explores Jesus’ messages to the seven churches mentioned in Revelation chapters 2 & 3, and the messages Christ might have for churches today. Watch full message here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qwsc9…
There are many lessons to take from the famous story of David and Goliath, but one is the illusion of strength. The COVID-19 virus, like David’s small stones, is revealing the true fragility of systems and structures we thought were so strong. … More Quarantine Letters: Illusion of Strength
“Every wise teacher trained in the kingdom is like the homeowner who brings out of his storeroom new and old things” (Matt 13:52). Jesus warned against trying to pour new wine into old wineskins—a constant warning to Christians and church leaders down through the ages not to get too attached to our ministry models … More The Feast is Ready! Come and Get it!
“Fools despise wisdom and instruction.” Proverbs 1:7 Churches are busy with many good endeavors, but seeking and passing on wisdom seems to have fallen down the list of priorities. According to my teacher, Scot McKnight: “People today care less about growing up or gaining wisdom and far more about staying young, maintaining relevancy, and dressing according … More Wisdom Culture & the Juvenalization of American Christianity
We all know the phrase, “Kids say the darnedest things.” It usually refers to an embarrassing remark a child utters in a public setting. But sometimes kids say the profoundest things. … More Kids Say the Profoundest Things
I’m grateful for the wise and courageous leadership of our Conference Superintendent Mark Stromberg. These are some words from a recent letter to churches and pastors. The ministries in which you are involved matter. The manner in which you conduct yourselves also counts, as it is noticed by others and either reflects well on your … More Wise Words for Church Leaders
This week I am teaching on the nature of the Bible — authority, inspiration, infallibility, etc. — in my Christian Theology class at Solid Rock Discipleship School. I dug up this post from 2011 I wanted to share again as we begin a New Year. In the October 2011 issue of Christianity Today, J. Todd … More On Reading Scripture
538 viaJesus Creed Millennials have earned a reputation for reshaping industries and institutions — shaking up the workplace, transforming dating culture, and rethinking parenthood. They’ve also had a dramatic impact on American religious life. Four in ten millennials now say they are religiously unaffiliated, according to the Pew Research Center. In fact, millennials (those between the ages of 23 … More Millennials Not Coming Back?
The average church-goer hears 12 hours of sermons ALL YEAR. Now, who’s discipling who? … More Americans Consume 11 Hours of Media Daily
When I’m an old worn out pastor sitting on a porch drinking coffee, and my memory is all but gone, I’ll still remember those two words spoken over me in that church basement on plastic folding chairs with a flickering fluorescent light above… … More A Catalytic Mobilizer on a Plastic Chair
The church needs to embrace the pastoral gift/role of “spiritual writing” as enthusiastically it celebrates the gift of public speaking. … More Pastoral Letters in a Digital Age – Part 2
Instead of flinging a relatively impersonal sermon out over a nameless crowd each Sunday, a personal letter to the right person at the right time can fling a shepherd’s arms around wounded or wandering sheep, refreshing their soul. … More Pastoral Letters in a Digital Age – Part 1
While other Jewish teachers were content to spend their time teaching in the synagogue, here is Paul sipping coffee at the ancient equivalent of a Starbucks in the ancient equivalent of Time Square in the ancient equivalent of New York City. … More The Writing is on the Wall
In out-of-the-way places of the heart, Where your thoughts never think to wander, This beginning has been quietly forming, Waiting until you were ready to emerge. For a long time it has watched your desire, Feeling the emptiness growing inside you, Noticing how you willed yourself on, Still unable to leave what you had outgrown. … More Poem for a New Beginning
This is the final post in a 4 part series. Read part 1, part 2, and part 3. I’m writing this from a monastery where I am diving deeper into the writings of the ancient Desert Fathers and later mystics and spiritual masters such as Saint John of the Cross, Thomas Merton and Henri Nouwen. … More Pastors as Spiritual Guides
Modern day pastors have been all too willing to accept the role of a CEO running the church like a business, serving more as a visionary leader than a shepherd of souls. We’ve served the bottomline more than the “least of these.” Board rooms and whiteboards have replaced prayer chapels and the pastor’s study. More pastors … More Pastor: Shepherd or CEO?
Jeremy Berg 