… when it comes to wearing blue jeans. One year ago Kris forced a pair of blue jeans on me: “Let’s go get something for you that you don’t want but something you need” sort of claim. So, I went along with her plan to buy some blue jeans — I hadn’t worn any for about 20 years — and by the end of the second week she had to find me unguarded to wash them. Recently, due to wearing... Read more
The other day I was at O’Hare airport sitting at my gate sipping away on a decent cup of coffee when I noticed a pastor I met at a conference a year or so. I was jotting down some notes for a lecture on the “gospel” when he asked me, “Working on a sermon?” “No,” I answered, “Just jotting some notes on the meaning of the gospel.” “That’s not hard,” he said firmly. “The gospel is that Jesus died for... Read more
We’ve been doing a series on racism and how it has infected our theological beliefs. I’ve asked some colleagues both from North Park and a friend at Wheaton to join me in this series, but today’s post is one of my own. Our series is rooted in the exceptional book of J. Kameron Carter,Race: A Theological Account . His book traces how the Church’s beliefs about Jews had lasting impacts on how the Church’s theology has become racialized even when... Read more
What do we mean by “gospel”? This question shapes the current Bible we are discussing on the Jesus Creed blog. We are not offering (right now) a definitive answer but looking at all the major passages and sketching observations. These are the steps we have to take to build a comprehensive understanding of the word “gospel.” We look today at several important passages in Thessalonians. (more…) Read more
How many of us have prayed a prayer like this one? My dear ones, O God, bless Thou and keep, in every place where they are. Read more
On the Jesus Creed we have been engaged in a brief discussion of original sin using Henri Blocher’s book Original Sin: Illuminating the Riddle (New Studies in Biblical Theology) as a guide. This series is part of an ongoing attempt to wrestle with key doctrines of the Christian faith and the implication that our modern scientific understanding of the world may have on our articulation and understanding of these doctrines. The first installment in this series considered the science and why Adam, Eve,... Read more
Saturday afternoon, about 3pm, Kris and I were sitting in the front row at North Point Church in Atlanta. I was mulling over what I was about to say when I realized that Bill Willits, a leader at North Point, was calling to the stage three friends of ours: Norton Herbst, Steven Redden, and Jason Malec. Three excellent, gifted, young leaders — and they have come together in a decision to plant a church in Denver. Bill barely managed to... Read more
What does the word “gospel” mean in the New Testament? My experience with good Christian folks reveals they think of the gospel in very simplistic terms. Simple is not bad. My experience also shows that many don’t think of the word “gospel” even in biblical categories. So this series is devoted to sketching what the New Testament says. It can surprise many folks today. This is the 30th post in this series and today we look at 1 Thessalonians 1:... Read more
I get an e-mail, it’s from MSN Featured something and it says something like this and I don’t have their words: “If you don’t want our regular notices then please click ‘unsubscribe’.” They were kind enough to think of me, so I thought. So I clicked “unsubscribe.” And it took me to a “Canadian” (who knows if this is true) pharmacy. Ah, what trickery! What about you? What can we do? Read more
How do we apply the Bible to situations of divorce? A pastor recently asked me about this. I’m interested in your response. This is one of the most common subjects I get asked about by my students at North Park. Scot, I’ve got just a few pages left in The Blue Parakeet: Rethinking How You Read the Bible , and it raised a question for me. I resonate deeply with the need to read the Bible as story and that... Read more
Jesus Creed
Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In