Category Archives: Index

Sodom, Gomorrah, and Illegal Aliens, Part 2

When the evangelical right considers the issue of illegal immigration, it’s rare for someone to bring up the word of God as somehow relevant. Instead, we conservative, right-wing Christians tend to think very much like conservative, right-wing non-believers. Our views … Continue reading

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Sodom, Gomorrah, and Illegal Aliens, Part 1

We’ve been studying Abraham at church, and we eventually found ourselves talking about Sodom and Gomorrah. Looking for some depth, beyond the obvious condemnation of homosexuality, I pulled out the trusty computerized concordance to see what else the Bible says … Continue reading

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A Communion Meditation: The Pattern for the Lord’s Supper

Luke’s account of the first communion service is fascinating. Jesus first shares the cup and then the bread. They then eat supper, and then Jesus again shares the cup. It has often bothered me that the cup was before the … Continue reading

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On Baptizing Your Children, Part 2

I think your child being baptized should be seen rather like your child joining the army. It’s a great honor. The child will be incredibly well-equipped and trained. He or she will mature rapidly. But he or she may also … Continue reading

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On Baptizing Your Children, Part 1

We recently had a three-generation baptism at church. A young girl, her father, and grandfather all descended together into the baptistry. The grandfather spoke movingly on the meaning of becoming a Christian–the commitment it involves–and the father baptized his daughter. … Continue reading

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Amazing Grace, Part 2

I just watched the movie. Loved it. How rare to find a movie where the heroes are politicians and (believe or not) a Latin-quoting lawyer–and they’re all Christians acting in faith!

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My Concern with Youth Ministry

I’m deeply concerned about the state of youth ministry nowadays. As adult ministry is maturing from providing “goods and services” to the membership and instead being “missional,” I’m not seeing a comparable maturation of our youth ministries. Continue reading

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Meditation: Abraham’s Communion

Over 4,000 years ago, more than 2,000 years before Jesus, Abraham fought a war to rescue Lot. Abraham recovered not only Lot and his family, but all the goods and food of Sodom and Gomorrah, two very wealthy cities. Melchizedek, … Continue reading

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Meditation: The Extraordinary Ordinary

Unleavened bread. Fruit of the vine. These made up an ordinary, common meal in the First Century. But they became extraordinary because they were touched by Jesus. Just so, we were once ordinary and common, but we’ve also been touched … Continue reading

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Going “Beyond What Is Written”

This is the last post on the instrumental music controversy. There are a couple more arguments made on the subject to be considered–Is it sin to take an action in the worship assembly that’s not authorized by a command, inference, … Continue reading

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