Rob & Kristen Bell: An Egalitarian Marriage Book Coming Out… finally???

September 10, 2014 By Kurt Willems

Many of us have been hoping for a Christian marriage book that is “egalitarian” in nature for a long time. Of course, there are some books out there that aren’t anti-egalitarian, but most of the popular marriage books out there are written from a conservative/complementarian bent. If you don’t understand those words, here’s a brief definintion of each: Egalitarian/Mutualist: Women and men are both equally gifted and qualified for all levels of leadership in the church and for leadership within... Read more

Undiluted: the book to hand your friends about the kind of Jesus you follow

September 9, 2014 By Kurt Willems

Undiluted… now there’s a thought. What would it look like to remove the muck and mire of American culture from the deep well of the Christian faith to reveal an undiluted Jesus? It looks painful. It looks like losing friends. It looks like carrying a cross. It looks like letting go of comfortable ideas. It looks hopeful–eventually. It looks like an undiluted Jesus. However we slice it, discovering a Jesus that looks different that the American Jesus is quite... Read more

Revelation #1: Anabaptist Apocalyptic Fever, a Fresh Word, and Exile

September 8, 2014 By Kurt Willems

Yesterday at Pangea Communities we began the LONG journey preaching through the book of Revelation. I spend some time in this first talk wrestling with apocalyptic fanaticism in my own tradition of Anabaptism. In the 1530’s a group of so-called Anabaptists in Münster decided that the New Jerusalem would be located there. So, by all means possible (even taking up arms!) they sought control of the city as they invited devotees to citizenship. Of course, they failed… and the end of... Read more

Ed Young to Preach a Series on “Drones”

August 28, 2014 By Kurt Willems

HT: Medium.com Ed Young is an excellent communicator. His theology is terrible most of the time, but he’s got skills. His skills led him to make the following promo video for an upcoming series……… What is your take? Bad use of metaphor? This is the same pastor who celebrated the “greatest sniper in US History.” Read more

God Doesn’t Give a ______ about Cussing–God Cares about Character Formation

August 27, 2014 By Kurt Willems

As a younger Christian, I judged people. A lot. I didn’t know that I was casting judgment…but I was. I’d hear a “bad word” and would think (especially if they went to church): They must be really struggling in their relationship to the Lord. I had similar beliefs about drinking and smoking. How could one follow Jesus and engage in such vices?* Little did I know that I was measuring the wrong kind of score card for spiritual maturity. I’m... Read more

God’s Story, Our Story & the Ancient Church: The Christian Life is Like Shakespeare

August 25, 2014 By Kurt Willems

Last night we continued in our series at Pangea Communities called Threads. This is a look at our core values as a church and how when we weave them together, they produce what Paul calls “a tapestry of love.” [PODCAST] The value we covered in our latest worship gathering is STORY–We choose to live into the narrative of God. Of all of our values, this can seem the most “abstract.” What does it mean to live into the story of... Read more

My Neighbor Mark Driscoll to Take a 6-Week Leave of Absence

August 24, 2014 By Kurt Willems

What a whirlwind it has been for those following the Mark Driscoll and Mars Hill situation. For a summary, see the New York Times. All I want to say, before giving the following report is that I pray for Mark Driscoll and all who have been hurt by him directly or indirectly. As a newish resident church planter in Ballard (the site of the first permanent “main campus” as I understand it) I simply want to love my neighbors affected... Read more

God’s Scandalous Grace in the Old Testament

August 21, 2014 By Kurt Willems

Preston Sprinkle is a guy I respect. As we’ve interacted over the past couple of years, he’s always been graceful (even where we’ve disagreed). Hence, I think he’s chosen a topic he models: grace. Not only so, but he’s a thoughtful scholar and embraces the nonviolence of Jesus (see my review of Fight: a christian case for nonviolence). We actually agree on quite a bit! So… here’s your chance to learn about his latest book: Preston Sprinkle, Charis: God’s Scandalous... Read more

The Israel-Gaza Conflict has Names and Faces: Hearing Voices from Both Sides of the Wall

August 21, 2014 By Kurt Willems

Over the past several weeks, my heart has grieved the violence taking place in Gaza. Hamas hurts the cause of all Palestinians when they shoot their homemade rockets over the wall at innocent civilians in Israel. And Israel perpetuates the desperation of groups like Hamas with their unjust policies, walls, and discrimination. Both sides of the story need to be told. A better future is possible–but it won’t come through violence. Violence begets violence–every time. Most Christians, I hope, agree... Read more

Resources for Reading Revelation (without all the weird futuristic stuff)

August 19, 2014 By Kurt Willems

This post is going to be short. As some readers may know, we will be starting an ongoing sermon through the book of Revelation at Pangea Communities in September. By ongoing… we are going to take it slow… and sometimes take breaks… but someday in the far distant future we will get through the whole thing. (you can subscribe to the podcast here to stay caught up with the Revelation series) In this post, let me simply point you to... Read more