A small family
The Southern Baptist Convention is the largest evangelical denomination in the United States, but it often seems like a small family. Forget six degrees of separation. It’s more like two or three at the most.
Taking a stand
October 31, 1517 is the traditional date when Martin Luther posted his 95 Theses on the door of the Wittenberg church, outlining his theological position and declaring his opposition to many practices of the Catholic Church. That makes this week the 500th anniversary of the events that marked...
Education on mission
Gateway Seminary is not a college or university, but we pay close attention to what is happening at those schools for many reasons. The most important reason is, as a graduate school, our students come from colleges or universities and their prior educational experience impacts their...
More funerals than baptisms
Preaching about evangelism is frustrating. While listening, almost every hearer nods in agreement the gospel must be shared, people need to be saved, and churches must make evangelism a priority. But when the sermon is over, the results are usually “business as usual” – with little real...
Good churches
Green Valley Baptist Church in St. Joseph, Missouri, celebrated their 50th anniversary this past weekend. They were my first pastorate (1982-89). They somehow survived! It was my pleasure to preach on Sunday as part of their weekend-long celebration.
Sadly, right all along
Hugh Hefner died a few days ago...
Productivity vs. posturing
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Over this past weekend, many professional athletes and related personnel engaged in various forms of protest, spurred on by recent comments by President Trump. Many people are now expressing opinions about those opinions and the President’s opinions and how they were expressed. My question about...
A common myth exposed
A common myth in our culture is “all religions are the same.” Many religions use the same vocabulary (for example - love, grace, peace), providing supposed evidence for their commonality. That kind of superficial analysis contributes to a false sense of similarity, but falls short of proving the...
Summer vacation
“What did you do on your summer vacation?” is a cliché writing assignment children do to get back into the swing of school responsibilities. We are a bit beyond that as a graduate school, but we still enjoy catching up with each other when faculty members return from summer ministry travels.
At our best
When hurting people are in crisis, petty divisions just don’t matter. South Texans and their friends are showing the best of the American spirit. The Christian worldview still prevalent in these communities undergirds this effort. Churches have taught servant leadership and the importance of...