Yesterday I mentioned how impressed I am with the ESV Study Bible and promised to point you to some resources for reading the Bible through in a year. [Read more...]
The ESV Study Bible
October 29, 2008 By 5 Comments
Last week, I received my copy of the brand new ESV Study Bible. Yes, the rumors are true; this thing is an absolute monster! It would hold its own in a duel with one of those super-sized family Bibles that used to sit on my family’s coffee table when I was growing up. [Read more...]
The Question That Changed Everything
October 28, 2008 By Leave a Comment
In the fourth chapter of the Gospel of John, Jesus encounters a Samaritan woman at a well while his disciples go into town for food. Notice that Jesus was the first to engage in conversation. Two things about this passage are striking. First, Jesus was Jewish and the woman was Samaritan. Neither culture liked the other; in fact, there was a great deal of disdain for one another. The second issue here is that they are of opposite genders; [Read more...]
Fresh Out
October 27, 2008 By Leave a Comment
I want to point you to the blog of the pastor with whom I serve. Stacy writes a weekly column for our church’s newsletter and he reposts the column on his blog. While all of his columns are worth the time to read, this post in particular is a poignant call to reclaim the Great Commandment (although he doesn’t use those words).
Impacting the Kingdom Through Worship,
Authentic Worship
October 26, 2008 By Leave a Comment
“Authentic worship can only be in Christ. It is not driven by a liturgy or a call to worship, a change in style or a methodology. Redemption does not signal the beginning of worship. Instead it marks its once-and-for-all cleansing. It is washed in the blood of the Lamb and turned into a following after the example of Christ and into continued deliverance from the intrusions of fallen worship.”
Harold Best, Unceasing Worship: Biblical Perspectives on Worship and the Arts
What Are You Bringing to Worship?
October 24, 2008 By 1 Comment
I became acquainted a few years ago with a worship pastor who serves a large church outside of Milwaukee, Wisconsin. The church is large enough to require a fully staffed welcome center during office hours. One particular volunteer would serve once a week and every week when the worship pastor passed by the welcome center, she would ask him, “Am I going to get anything out of worship this week?” [Read more...]