Perfectly Depraved
The first of the five points of Calvinism is Total Depravity: as I understand it, the idea that on our own we can do no good, but that the good things we do are a result of God’s grace working through us. This leads to a troubling, ambiguous place: how should I feel about good works? Good Works are Good Good works are something to be proud of. I should try to be as good as possible, because faith without works is dead (James 2:17). Responding to God’s grace by loving others, not being jealous, greedy, lustful, mean-spirited, etc. is…
[Read More]
5 Reasons to Keep the Organ in Worship
When I was growing up in a Baptist church, pipe organs were on their way out. In fact, the church I attended never even had one, and they unceremoniously trashed their weak electronic number over 25 years ago in favor of a succession of latest and greatest synthesizers. These days, their numbers have dwindled among Catholic and mainline Protestant congregations, and are close to extinction in evangelical circles[…] http://www.theologyinworship.com/2015/04/13/5-reasons-to-keep-the-organ-in-worship/
5 Great Things About Small Churches
As a small church pastor, I have to believe that small churches can and should do great things as small churches without becoming large. This means that no matter the size, a church has something good to offer, that each church has a purpose given by God other than to grow or die. I think small churches offer a few competitive advantages, to use the language of economics, that we ought to take advantage of, instead of sitting around being envious of megachurches. (Note: This almost goes without saying, but megachurches and program-size churches have their roles too, and are…
[Read More]
9 Ways to Be a Better Neighbor
Being urbanized means we have lots of neighbors, but being transitory makes it feel like a waste of time to get to know them. Yet neighborliness is a good thing for its own sake[…] http://www.relevantmagazine.com/life/9-ways-be-better-neighbor
