Let’s get the easy/hard stuff out of  the way. I LOVE my denomination. Okay, I love a lot of denominations, but I love mine. I do not love it over the Church, but that’s a discussion for another day. Back on the 19th of September, I quoted Ed Stetzer (on Google+ & Facebook) regarding his views on the… Continue reading Is There a Future for the Church of the Nazarene?
Author: Ian
Loving Little
41“A certain moneylender had two debtors. One owed five hundred denarii, and the other fifty. 42When they could not pay, he cancelled the debt of both. Now which of them will love him more?” 43Simon answered, “The one, I suppose, for whom he cancelled the larger debt.” And he said to him, “You have judged… Continue reading Loving Little
The Pursuit of Happiness
I’ve been annoyed lately (not always a good thing before writing a post). Probably centered around the Fourth of July (the formal U.S.A. Independence Day), there is always a spate of articles about the U.S.A. being founded on Christian principles, which is somewhat true. Then there is the argument over whether Thomas Jefferson was a… Continue reading The Pursuit of Happiness
The Idle Idol of “Christ-like” Disciples
Yes, it is a provocative title. That’s kind of the point. I suspect that the immediate reaction of many who caught the title was outrage, disgust, or some other feeling of disquiet. Those that are Christian at least. Those who have had “Christ-like” Disciple or “they should see Jesus when they see you” repeated so… Continue reading The Idle Idol of “Christ-like” Disciples
Dangerous Questions
3And when David and his men came to the city, they found it burned with fire, and their wives and sons and daughters taken captive. 4Then David and the people who were with him raised their voices and wept until they had no more strength to weep. 5David’s two wives also had been taken captive,… Continue reading Dangerous Questions
The Key is the Response to Community, part 2
(Please read part 1 first) So, what light can this shine on our lives? Many things bind us together, some are voluntary, some are not. In the case of religion (or faith if the word “religion” bothers you), we do things together to (re)affirm our community. Circumcision was the earliest (and physically experienced) Jewish rite… Continue reading The Key is the Response to Community, part 2
Did You Know (Version 4.0)
This was released in Fall 2009, and if feels out of date already! Since I posted Version 3.0 in December 2008, I figured that getting this out there wouldn’t be a bad idea.
Next Sermon: Save the Planet?
At Preaching.com, Jonathan Merritt wrote about the neglect of Creation Care in sermons. In his article, Preaching Gone Green: Why Pastors Should Address Creation Care, he makes some valid points about Creation Care. The biggest point is that right now there is a big disconnect between Christians and the environment. One can (and I do)… Continue reading Next Sermon: Save the Planet?
In Defense of Deficits…Or Not
James K. Galbraith wrote, In Defense of Deficits, that there is too much overreaction to the deficit the U.S. Government is running up. To his defense, Galbraith makes some very good points, some I wonder if even foreigners have thought of (or maybe they have). In many regards, I agree with Galbraith that the hyper-concern… Continue reading In Defense of Deficits…Or Not
The Key is the Response to Community
Leviticus 12 (ESV) seems to paint a pretty gender-biased view from our overly sensitive gender aware lives. In fact, it seems pretty anti-female. However, even the ESV Study Bible doesn’t say this, but actually aserts that since the text does not mention why, that it is too much inference. So, where does that leave us?… Continue reading The Key is the Response to Community