Category Archives: Index

Advice to a New Elder: They Smell Like Sheep, Part 7 (Boundaries)

Posted on July 2, 2016 by Jay F Guin

At last we get to the pastoral part of an elder’s job description. First, a few boundaries — Power under submission There is no reason to insist that all elders take on pastoral duties — unless you also insist that … Continue reading →

Posted in Advice to a New Elder, Elders, Uncategorized | 8 Comments

The Mission of the Church: Leadership

Posted on June 30, 2016 by Jay F Guin

Thompson has a fascinating chapter on church leadership. We don’t normally think of leadership as a missional topic, but Thompson makes the point that how we’re led is governed by the church’s mission. If we don’t get the connection, we … Continue reading →

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Advice to a New Elder: They Smell Like Sheep, Part 5 (What is “administration”?)

Posted on June 28, 2016 by Jay F Guin

But doesn’t the Bible say that elders should be shepherds rather than administrators? No, it most certainly does not. In fact, administration is listed as a gift of the Spirit in 1 Cor 12, and leadership is a gift of … Continue reading →

Posted in Advice to a New Elder, Elders, Uncategorized | 3 Comments

The Mission of the Church: Creation Care, Part 1 (The Old Testament)

Posted on June 28, 2016 by Jay F Guin

If the mission of the church is to get people to heaven when they die, then the church has no reason to care for the Creation or human flourishing or abundant living (John 10:10) in general. The scriptures don’t emphasize … Continue reading →

Posted in Missional Christianity, Uncategorized | 16 Comments

The Mission of the Church: Justice, Part 7 (Conclusions)

Posted on June 27, 2016 by Jay F Guin

Christian mission through the government So we no longer live in the Constantinian world in which government works with the church to direct society, and no matter how many books you buy and read arguing that the US is a … Continue reading →

Posted in Missional Christianity, Uncategorized | 19 Comments

The Afterlife: Lesson 3, focused on Isa 65-66 and 2 Cor 5:17 (June 26, 2016)

Posted on June 26, 2016 by Jay F Guin

I was out last week under the weather, and so this is class 3. We started in Isaiah and went from there to 2 Cor 5:17 and a few other passages. Here’s the downloadable mp3: June 26, 2016 Class 3 … Continue reading →

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Advice to a New Elder: They Smell Like Sheep, Part 4

Posted on June 26, 2016 by Jay F Guin

I keep promising myself that I’m going to get to the They Smell Like Sheep part of the series — that is, pastoral care by elders. But not quite yet. It remains true that most elders have far more work … Continue reading →

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The Mission of the Church: Justice, Part 6 (Rom 13; John Howard Yoder)

Posted on June 26, 2016 by Jay F Guin

Romans 13 (Rom. 13:1-6 ESV)  Let every person be subject to the governing authorities. For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.  2 Therefore whoever resists the authorities resists what God … Continue reading →

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Advice to a New Elder: They Smell Like Sheep, Part 3

Posted on June 25, 2016 by Jay F Guin

We set up a Ministries Team a long time ago. We quickly learned several critical lessons the hard way. 1. The elders had trouble coordinating their work with the team’s. The elders were used to directly overseeing the church’s ministries. … Continue reading →

Posted in Advice to a New Elder, Elders, Uncategorized | 4 Comments

The Mission of the Church: Justice, Part 5 (1 Cor 5:9-13 and Rom 1:18-26)

Posted on June 25, 2016 by Jay F Guin

1 Cor 5:9-13 To my way of thinking, this passage is at the heart of the question, and I’m thankful to the readers for keeping me on my toes as I’ve tried to apply it to public policy questions in earlier … Continue reading →

Posted in Missional Christianity, Uncategorized | 1 Comment