First Clement urges the Corinthians (Clement, remember, is in Rome) to pursue God’s blessing (chps. 33-35). I begin with thematic words from 35:4-5: Let us therefore make every effort to be found in the number of those who patiently wait for him, so that we may share in his promised gifts.  5 But how shall this be, dear friends?—if our mind is fixed on God through faith; if we seek out those things that are well-pleasing and acceptable to him;... Read more

Andrew Simon: Today marks the 69th anniversary of Jackie Robinson breaking Major League Baseball’s color barrier, and once again, MLB and each of its 30 clubs are pulling out all the stops to celebrate the Hall of Famer’s legacy. [By the way, if you are interested in reading about Negro League Baseball, Robert Peterson’s Only the Ball Was White is the best I’ve read.] On Jackie Robinson Day, all players and on-field personnel across the league will don No. 42... Read more

O God, whose blessed Son made himself known to his disciples in the breaking of bread: Open the eyes of our faith, that we may behold him in all his redeeming work; who lives and reigns with you, in the unity of the Holy Spirit, one God, now and for ever.  Amen. BCP Read more

The baseball season is now up and running, the weather in Chicago has not been friendly to baseball, but the probabilities are that it will warm up and we’ll get some good weather. Probabilities is all I’ve got on this one. During this Easter season we await Pentecost. Worst idea yet: A Pennsylvania school district incorporated a low-tech method of protecting teachers and students from attackers. Millcreek Township School District in northwest Pennsylvania handed each of its teachers a 16-inch... Read more

Northern’s description of the podcast: Who exactly is the Holy Spirit? What does he do in our lives? How can we know him more deeply, and is it possible to tap into his power? Is it possible to be aware of his promptings and speaking into our lives? Dr. Scot McKnight answers these questions and more in this comprehensive examination of what the Bible says about this divinely important, but often confusing member of the Trinity. Who exactly is the... Read more

The Family of God In the early church, it wasn’t unusual for someone to show up and have no place to go. This person would have chosen to follow Christ and as a result, their family would have disowned them. That is, they would have told their son or daughter, wife (in the patristic culture, husbands were harder to disown) if they chose to follow Christ, they would no longer be part of the family. Now, for some of us... Read more

Although BioLogos and Reasons to Believe (or more accurately those Christians affiliated with these organizations) have similar views of divine action, there are significant disagreements when it comes to evolution. Chapter 7 of Old Earth or Evolutionary Creation: Discussing Origins with Reasons to Believe and BioLogos begins to address the question of evolution explicitly. Darrel Falk presents his view, representative of BioLogos, while Fazale (Fuz) Rana presents the view of Reasons to Believe. Ted Cabal, Professor of Christian Apologetics at... Read more

In his brand new book D. Bruce Hindmarsh (The Spirit of Early Evangelicalism) sets out to describe the heart or “spirit” of early evangelicalism, and then to clarify its socio-cultural connections. What he’s onto is what was then called “true religion,” so his subtitle is True Religion in a Modern World. He opens this academic book — laced, tied, and double-knotted with evidence — with the “one needful thing” text that was preached on frequently by both John Wesley and George... Read more

By Todd Dildine, who is a pastor at a small neighborhood church in Uptown, one of the most diverse neighborhoods in Chicago. He is most passionate about helping the church navigate the challenges of post-Christendom. Todd loves playing volleyball and he’s going to get married this summer! A four part blog series that applies the instruments of social science to address the declining attendance rate in the American church and what to do about it! One of the most important conversations a 21st century... Read more

As you may know I’ve recently written a book called Open to the Spirit. This post today is not in the book but something I’m posting just for this blog. Tongues gets too much attention when it comes to being open to the Spirit. If we are open to the Spirit, it means we have to be open to a thousand ways the Spirit works. Including the gentle but important art of discernment. What do you think of “discernment” and “discernment... Read more