The messages of the Bible are sometimes subtle and therefore missed. Such is the letter writing habit of the most prominent New Testament writer, Paul. The ancient writers followed a form that can be a lesson for each of us as Christians in a perverse world that is headed for its ultimate destruction. Listening to […]
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Tag: Methodology
Exploring the Worship Spectrum: 6 views
This is one of the Zondervan “Counterpoints” books (2004). The editors take the latest forms of evangelical worship and have six different proponents defend each one and the others give a critique. The are: Formal-liturgical worship by Paul Zahl, an Episcopal rector; Traditional hymn-based worship by Harold Best, retired music professor from Wheaton College; Contemporary […]
Teaching the Obvious
Sometimes it is very necessary to teach what we assume to be the obvious. Consider the facts of creation. Why does it matter that a child knows the order of the days of creation? As long as he accepts that it happened, isn’t that enough? Science confirms that the order of creation designed by God […]
Wise and Foolish Man
In Exodus 33:22 Moses is fearful of God’s command to leave a place of safety, Sinai. God gives Moses this assurance: “I will put you in the cleft of the rock, and will cover you with my hand while I pass by.” Caves are one of God’s magnificent creations and are also ones that He […]
The Purpose Driven Problem
President Theodore Roosevelt said, “Wisdom is nine-tenths a matter of being wise in time. Most of us are too often wise after the event.”1 However true this is of all of us, it is still better to be wise late about something than not wise at all. When I first read Rick Warren’s “Purpose” books […]
Deceived on Purpose
I have read numerous tracts, pamphlets, articles and books on Rick Warren and his Purpose Driven Phenomenon. I would recommend this book for fairly easy but informative reading (200 pages, fully footnoted in paper cover). Smith is a freelance writer with university degrees who works in social work on the west coast. Most interesting to […]
This Little Church Stayed Home
This is the sequel to Gary Gilley’s first book, This Little Church Went To Market. I’ve met Gary and have observed that his heart and life are consistent with the words of these books. This second book does three things: It reviews postmodernism and shows its continuing influence on our lives; it presents a scriptural […]
Going Public with Your Faith
I finished this book with a real 50/50 attitude. It is a Zondervan book but done by Focus on the Family with which the authors have close connections. I appreciated the emphasis on evangelism in the world, not just in the church. I believe our churches have to realize that people aren’t getting saved just […]
Seeker Sensitive or Sinner Sensitive? (p...
The last issue I presented what I believe to be the obvious short-comings of the Seeker Sensitive movement. It has been my observation that this movement, though beginning with good intentions, has strayed from the biblical model of evangelism. “Seekers” have become a market place and the gospel a commodity, the price of which has […]
Seeker Sensitive or Sinner Sensitive? (...
Maybe it’s just me but does it seem as if many are saying that no one has been “sensitive” to “seekers” until the end of the twentieth century? One gets the feeling from such writers that until recently most Christian evangelism was overly aggressive, mean-spirited, and did everything possible to turn sinners off to the […]