My teacher riffs on one of my favorite Bonhoeffer books – a book that has helped keep me grounded in the fellowship of “cracked eikons” I’m blessed to serve and at the eucharistic table I’m privileged to attend. The third quotation near the bottom is emblazoned on my pastoral soul, my ecclesiological north star. … More Loving the Church That Is (S. McKnight)
My son Peter asked, “Dad, who are the good guys and bad guys? Are we supposed to cheer for the apes or the humans?” A profound question that gets to the heart of the film itself. I told Peter, “I’m not sure if it’s that simple, buddy; let’s keep watching.” … More Planet of the Apes
The ‘gospel’ many have been taught has drifted from Jesus’ original message. Weighed down by a hyper-individualism, we’ve bought a neat little salvation package whereby sinners bow their heads, pray a prayer, pull the grace lever and a bookkeeping angel with big-rimmed glasses moves your name from the Damned column to the Saved column in Heaven’s database. … More The Time is Fulfilled! Change Your Thinkin’!
“With all the hostility coming toward Christians from secularism and progressive ideology,” he asked, “why not punch Left instead of Right?” Evangelicals “attacking our own side” on such matters will only cause unbelievers to hate us more and Christians to trust their leaders less. … More “Why Not Punch Left?” (Russell Moore)
The week between Christmas and New Year’s gets many in the counting mood. Counting how many gifts we need to return. Counting how little money is left in the checking account. Counting how many cookie calories we’ve consumed. Counting how many pounds we need to shed when we hit the gym in the New Year. But it turns out that what we choose to count may tell you a lot about what we value. … More Counting on Christmas
“Christianity, if false, is of no importance, and if true, of infinite importance. The only thing it cannot be is moderately important.” -C.S. Lewis … More When Moderation is the Enemy
Your favorite candidate will win or lose based on how our country votes this November. However, the church will win or lose based on our behavior between now and then. … More Why Christians Shouldn’t Argue Over Politics
In this series of posts we’re exploring the different ways the Bible confronts the reader and the appropriate response to each. #5 – THE BIBLE AS GOD’S PRACTICAL GUIDEBOOK FOR LIFE The most popular approach to Scripture in modern-day America is to search it for practical principles for daily living. The Bible is God’s “Handbook … More THE BIBLE: Guidebook for Life
In this series I am sharing some of the passages of the Bible — or Life Verses — that have most impacted my own life. “These men who have turned the world upside down have come here also….they are all acting against the decrees of Caesar, proclaiming that there is another king, Jesus.” ACTS 17:6 After college I immediately began … More LIFE VERSES 7: Acts 17:6
Respected leader Bob Buford highlights diverse perspective on recent reports proclaiming the decline of Christianity Here’s the article from Exponential entitled Is It “The Big Drop”? Or Is the U.S. Church Becoming More Evangelical than Ever? I expect most of us have been seeing the media barrage reporting on the drop in the number of Christians in the United … More The Demise or Evangelicalization of the American Church?
“But God…made us alive with Christ….and he raised us up with him and seated us with him in the heavenly realms in Christ Jesus, to demonstrate in the coming ages the surpassing wealth of his grace in kindness toward us in Christ Jesus” (Eph. 2:5-7). Ephesians can be broken into two parts where the first 3 … More EPHESIANS 12: Solidarity with Christ is Everything (2:5-7)
One of the greatest concerns I have for the emerging generation is the growing pervasiveness of “mircro-communication” in their lives. I recently saw a 15 year old girl featured on “Nightline” who sends 30,000 text messages on her phone each month. Do the math: that’s 1,000 per day, 62 per waking hour, or one … More Combatting Soundbite Christianity
What do you think?
I heard a story on the radio recently discussing the fading reality of the “American Dream.” The story said only about 57% of Americans still believe the American Dream is achievable or worth pursuing. I say, “Die, American myth, die!!” I happen to believe that many (not all!) of the promises of the American Dream … More The Future of the American Dream
This is a growing collection of resources to help familiarize Christians with the current debate on what the Bible teaches about homosexuality and how we can better love and minister to the GLBTQ community. WHAT DOES THE BIBLE TEACH? Here’s a good place to start if you’re wondering what the Bible teaches and how both sides make their … More Jesus, the Bible, & Homosexuality – Resources
“There is a beautiful and powerful grassroots Kingdom movement arising all over the globe …. Millions of people are abandoning the Christendom paradigm of the traditional Christian faith in order to become more authentic followers of Jesus. From the Emergent Church movement to the Urban Monastic Movement to a thousand other independent groups and movements, … More Whatchamacallit?
What happens when the gospel of the Jesus-shaped Kingdom of God is intermixed with a political ideology? Answer: Listen to any political talk show pushing a political agenda while buttressing it with religious rhetoric usually involving the phrase “Judeo-Christian” values. Michael Spencer, the Internet Monk, offers a very timely reminder to the millions of American … More “The Limbaughization of Christianity”
Does this graphically make my points about the dangers of micro-communication and the movement of people in our culture toward a “soundbite Christianity?” (Read previous post here) “Just give me a small dose of Jesus when and where I want it.” Thanks for the image, Joe!
Jeremy L. Berg 