Great question I’ve been asked: Scot, what are the “everyday heresies” the church embraces and/or espouses? Any insight? Wondering if complacency, consumerism, and the outsourcing of parental responsibility are more harmful than doctrinal irregularities or inconsistencies. Read more
Last Thursday Kris and I flew up to Detroit for a conference put on by Orchard Grove Community Church called Equip. Chris Cramer, a lead pastor, knew how much he had benefited from attending conferences and yearned for his whole church to go … which usually can’t happen, so he brought the conferences to Orchard Grove and called it Equip. Great, great idea. We told the folks at Orchard Grove that we are the ones who benefit from these events... Read more
James is like his brother Jesus in how he understands God. God is good and God is there and God is not silent and God responds. who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. One thinks of a text like Matthew 7:7-11: 7 “Ask and it will be given to you; seek and you will find; knock and the door will be opened to you. 8 For everyone who asks receives; he who seeks finds;... Read more
Romans 5:12-21 proves to be one of the key texts in any discussion of science and faith these days. We began a discussion of this passage last week with a consideration of the meaning and nature of the death introduced in Gen 3. Another issue in the conflict or reconciliation of scientific knowing with the gospel message strikes us full force in v. 14: Nevertheless death reigned from Adam until Moses, even over those who had not sinned in the... Read more
Last week one of the prayers in the prayer book tradition Kris and I use (The Divine Hours: Prayers for Springtime (Tickle, Phyllis) ) was this prayer: O Lord, you have taught us that without love whatever we do is worth nothing: Send your Holy Spirit and pour into my heart your greatest gift, which is love, the true bond of peace and of all virtue, without which whoever lives is accounted dead before you. Grant this for the sake... Read more
I’m a bit behind getting up a brief report on my time in San Diego at the National Pastor’s Convention. The NPC is a mix of young pastors and older pastors, a mix of concerns for both, and a whole lot of getting to see folks I love to see. And I thought I’d focus on the folks. Everyone I talked to really enjoyed this year’s NPC. Thanks to John Raymond, who has his finger on the pulse of the... Read more
James starts off James 1:5 with a line that has brought comfort to many: If any of you lacks wisdom, he should ask God, who gives generously to all without finding fault, and it will be given to him. Many take comfort in being able to turn to God for wisdom, and they should. Why and what kind of wisdom does James have in mind? If we read James in light of James, which is where any good reading of... Read more
This pastor gave permission to take this letter to the Jesus Creed blog. So, what is your advice and wisdom? Hi Scot, I’m a pastor near Minneapolis. I have a question that I’m wondering if you could give me some insight on. God has been doing wonderful work in bringing many young unmarried couples with children to our church. They are connecting here. And when asked, I have chosen to baptize their children. A leader in the church recently challenged... Read more
I’ve been reading about 20somethings of late and one book I found particularly helpful is by Jeffrey Jensen Arnett: Emerging Adulthood: The Winding Road from the Late Teens through the Twenties . (The title has nothing to do with the emerging movement.) Jean Twenge’s own works at times uses Jensen’s research to provide categories and interpretations to make sense of the facts she found. I want to make two points about Arnett’s book that are helping me. He has chps... Read more
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Pastor’s Bookshelf: Matthew
I’m going to begin a series on commentaries for pastors, teachers, and those who want to study the New Testament. I will try to give my top five commentaries, but one has to make judgments each time and there are many others who could be mentioned. Go ahead and mention others. So, here goes for solid, historical, and exegetical works. The best, most complete commentary ever written on Matthew is by Dale Allison and W.D. Davies. It’s 3 volumes; it’s... Read more