Learning from Jesus’ Disciples – Sin and Reconciliation

In Matthew 26 Jesus lays out a series of predictions regarding the failure and desertion of his disciples. He predicts Judas will betray him (26:21), that the disciples will desert him (26:31) and that Peter in particular will disown him three times (26:34). In the same chapter they go on from there to the garden [...]

Connect. How We Put On An Invovement Night at Northwest

Two months ago our elders and ministers had a one day retreat to talk about the future and direction of the church. In that meeting several things came to light that we decided to act on that included new ministries to add/expand existing ministries and trying to get 100% involvement from our membership in service/ministry.
Following [...]

Keeping People Between the Front Door and the Back Door

When talking about retaining people church leaders often use the terms front door and back door to refer to bringing people in (the front door) but not wanting them to go out the back door (leave the church). I think this terminology needs to be examined because I think underneath it is the old facility [...]

Connect. Involvement.

On May 17th we will be having an involvement event in place of our LIFE groups. No singing, no sermon, dare I say…no invitation? I am not sure if we will offer the Lord’s Supper for those who were providentially separate from our number on Sunday morning. We probably will as no need to ruffle [...]

God’s Desire for Christian Unity

The problem I run across the most in the letters of the New Testament seems to be unity in the early church. The newly established and multi-racial church of the first century really struggled with overcoming social, religious, and ethnic boundary markers in order to have full unity and acceptance of one another.
Why is this [...]

Does Blogging Promote Spiritual Maturity?

I have found a lot of joy in blogging over the past couple of years. It is fun to “meet” people from all over the world. It is interesting to get opinions from a wide variety of backgrounds. Now there are even such things as blogging luncheons and awards taking place from time to time. [...]

Moving From Contemplating the Biblical Navel to Real Application

I am guilty of writing a bunch of thoughts, opinions, and various and sundry other ways of contemplating the biblical navel and end the discussion gaining little more than having thought about something a little more or with a slight nuance. How many of you feel your life has never been the same since reading [...]

Gospel of Mark – Feeding 5000 and Walking on Water (6:31-56)

Jesus Feeds 5000
We go from a Markan sandwich to Jesus feeding 5000. How ironic. The better parallel is pointed out by Witherington (Gospel of Mark, 213) of the two meals – one that led to John’s death and another that shows the miraculous and powerful nature of the kingdom that John preached about and prepared [...]

Gospel of Mark – Common Mission & Message (6:6b-30)

Mark is certainly a delicious book with all of the sandwiches he leaves throughout the narrative. We have another sandwich in Mark 6.
Crust – Jesus Sends out the Twelve (6:6b-13)
Meat – John the Baptist Beheaded (6:14-29)
Crust – The Twelve Return (6:30-30)
The inner part always illuminates the outer part. What does that have to teach us [...]

Doing Church vs. Being Church

People talk about “going to church” or what happened “at church today.” Those are all kind of misnomers. The problem is we begin to identify Christianity as the sum total of what happens in an auditorium two hours a week rather than as an identity issue of the individuals and the community of those who [...]