This is our last post on Dean Nelson’s book, God Hides in Plain Sight: How to See the Sacred in a Chaotic World , and it’s been a good book. One I expected to scan and then put away, but one that drew me in with its prose and its utter seriousness punctuated by LOL humor. This book would be a great book for an adult book reading group, a good Bible study book, and especially good for middle agers... Read more
This weekend I attended a conference at Lipscomb University on Reclaiming the Imagination and the focus was on Wisdom, wisdom literature in the Bible, and preaching. It was the best conference I’ve attended ever. I don’t know exactly why, but maybe because: 1. It was fun. 2. It was with some top level thinkers, pastors, and Bible people. 3. I have a steep learning curve on Wisdom literature since my career has focused more on the narrative portions of the... Read more
The story in Acts moves from the martyrdom of James, brother of John (sons of Zebedee), back to Peter, whose own agency in the mission of God shapes the first half of the Book of Acts. Peter, along with James, is persecuted by Herod Agrippa I, but the story of Peter turns out so differently — and it is here that we encounter an experience so true of real life in the gospel work: some are martyred and some live... Read more
Last Thursday (see here) I started a short series of posts focused on Dorothy Sayers’ essays published in the volume Are Women Human?. The first essay in this volume is an address given to a women’s society in 1938. Sayers starts the essay by relating her invitation to speak to the group and noting that she did not consider herself a feminist and did not wish to be identified with feminism. She did, however, think that “a woman is as... Read more
John Franke, in his new and exciting book Manifold Witness: The Plurality of Truth (Living Theology) , learned as a kid that one way to settle theological questions was to appeal to the “historic Christian faith.” So John looked into it, and he began “to wonder how we can talk about something like the historic Christian faith in light of the diversity that has characterized Christian history” (22). John appeals to Andrew Walls’ church history space traveller who visits the... Read more
Do you know someone facing death? Are you being asked to help someone face death? I love how the 7th chp of Dean Nelson’s new book opens up: I have found what I was searching for without ever having discovered what it was. Dean Nelson’s chapter in God Hides in Plain Sight: How to See the Sacred in a Chaotic World , deals with last rites, and his experiences in hospitals have led him to see their value. He then... Read more
The mission of God in this world — that is the message of the Book of Acts. It tells us the story of how God as at work — in Christ’s death, resurrection and ascension, along with the Pentecost Spirit — to create the new people of God. And the apostles were commissioned and empowered to declare this gospel. But, it comes at a cost: It was about this time that King Herod arrested some who belonged to the church,... Read more
It would be easy to say low church evangelicals clamor for community because there is so much individualism at work, but that’s a cheap shot that misses the target. Liturgical churches can struggle as much with community too. But what needs to be observed, and it has been observed across the spectrum in the last century, is that the NT and the early churches taught a family concept of the church. The best book I’ve seen on this of late,... Read more
Again, another great post from Jeremy Berg, and I’m keen to hear what you have to say. How do you respond to this mixture of football (sports) and faith? It has made the news here and here. Al Mohler has weighed in … and it’s your turn today. “And when you come before God, don’t turn that into a theatrical production either. All these people making a regular show out of their prayers, hoping for stardom! Do you think God... Read more
Why is our media so fixated on balloon boy and his silly parents, while ignoring the judge in Louisiana who chooses not to marry an interracial couple? Read more
Jesus Creed
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In