The age of the Caesars is, once again, upon us. Like in a Percy Jackson novel, the pagan gods have taken up residence in our world, becoming the spiritual thread uniting our society and informing its moral imagination. As Christians look for ways to live faithfully in the world, the ancient church provides a helpful model for living in a world that seems increasingly pagan.
Most Protestant pastors oppose gay marriage, mainline support stalling: survey
Most Protestant pastors in the United States continue to oppose same-sex marriage, with the previously growing trend of support stalling, according to a recent report by Lifeway Research. In a report released Tuesday, Lifeway found that, in 2023, 21% of surveyed Protestant pastors said that they saw “nothing wrong” with same-sex marriages, which was a slight decrease compared to the 24% of pastors who said the same in 2019.
What Does It Mean to Walk in the Spirit?
Learning to walk in the Spirit is essential for the individual Christian and for the local church. As J. I. Packer wrote in Keeping in Step with the Spirit, “Apart from [the Spirit], not only will there be no lively believers and no lively congregations, there will be no believers and no congregations at all. But in fact the church continues to live and grow, for the Spirit’s ministry has not failed, nor ever will, with the passage of time.” We need to be willing to engage the Bible and see its vision for a truly supernatural lifestyle—a “walk by the Spirit” kind of life (see Gal. 5:25).
The Strict Father model is killing us
George Lakoff has given the world one of the most helpful and depressing models of understanding the differences between liberals and conservatives and how we think — what he calls the moral mind. His book Moral Politics: How Liberals and Conservatives Think is must reading for anyone trying to make sense of the times in which we live. I quote him all the time. Seriously, this is essential reading.
How to Address Churchgoers Who Are “Too Busy” to Serve
We must begin to prepare people for future appeals to serve and to address the forces keeping people from saying yes.
Bible societies mount effort to revive view of Scripture as source of ancient wisdom
Bible societies are attempting to understand why, in a time when 90% of the world’s population has access to the Christian sacred text, relatively few consider it a foundation of their lives.
Why children are behaving differently at church after the pandemic
It is now June 2024, and we are four years away from the beginning of the COVID-19 experience in the United States. But the ripple effects of the pandemic are still being felt in church children’s ministries.
Pastor: Why Shouldn’t You Be on Television?
As media continues to evolve, pastors and ministry leaders are presented with more options than ever for spreading their message. While digital platforms have become increasingly popular and effective, the long-time appeal and wide-reaching impact of broadcast television still make it a strategic option for pastors looking to expand their evangelism efforts. But even in cases where a pastor feels that television is a great opportunity, that pastor is often surrounded by a team telling him that TV is dead. But after spending decades working in film, video, and digital media, here’s a handful of reasons traditional broadcast television still matters....
In some rural districts where broadband service is not available and broadcast television reception is limited, radio is also an option.Top 10 Things You Need to Know to Build a Thriving Small Group Ministry
Want to build a thriving small group ministry in your church? It won't be easy. It will require a commitment to the long haul, major determination, a willingness to commit resources, disappoint the guardians of the status quo, and much, much more.
Also see:Top 10 Ideas to Help You Build a Thriving Small Group Ministry Post-COVIDPolitical Discussions in Your Small Group? Here Are 5 Ways Forward
We will need to take time to pray, plan, and prepare for the potential problems, such as political discussions, that could arise during this election season.
The problem is, in the eyes of God, in light of His holiness, these “respectable sins” are just as evil. Yet for some reason we’re comfortable with these. We aren’t bothered by them. Why is this?
Balancing Act
If we are going to be bearers of the good news of Jesus and have a voice that speaks to our culture, we must be aware of what is happening around us. To bury our head in the sand like the proverbial ostrich is never the answer. Instead, every Christian needs to become an anthropologist, studying the many cultures that exist right where we live, worship, work and play. This will mean listening both to people we agree with and those we disagree with. It means being kind and gracious with people who don’t affirm our faith, who practice other faiths or who are hostile to Christianity.
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