What are the advantages of preaching consecutively, chapter after chapter, all the way through a book of the Bible? There are five reasons…
The essence of Christmas is the mysterious, glorious and profound claim that God, the creator of the heavens and the earth, became a man in the person of Jesus Christ. To this astounding truth one might be compelled to ask: did it have to be this way? Was there any other way for God to redeem us? The second chapter of Hebrews gives us three reasons why God had to become a man:
Next Saturday (April 19, not tomorrow) is Record Store Day. This annual celebration of independent record stores has been taking place since 2007, and gives special attention to the vinyl record, which happens to be the main reason independent records stores are still in business. As music consumption moves away from CDs and increasingly toward MP3 downloads or direct streaming, there has been a movement back toward buying records the old fashioned way. Vinyl sales have been on the increase for the last few years, and show no signs of slowing down.
Sometimes people complain that they didn’t get much out of a sermon. Often (maybe even most of the time) this is the fault of the preacher, but sometimes this can be the fault of the listener. There are certain steps you can take to prepare yourself to get the most out of a sermon on any given Sunday at any given church. Here are some tips:
Thankfully, there are more opportunities today to hear good preaching than ever before, as one can hear multiple sermons from high-profile preachers on the Web. Below is a list of seven preachers that I consider to be highly skilled and Gospel-centered, and from whom I personally receive much spiritual edification and inspiration. Click the links and you will be directed to a list of sermons you can hear on-line:
One of my favorite books from last year was Is God Anti-Gay by Sam Allberry. In the book, the author, who himself struggles with same-sex attraction (SSA), makes a suggestion that I had not considered, and that many gay rights activists might not even consider a remote possibility. Here’s what Allberry wrote:
This Sunday I will be completing a short sermon series called “What is Christianity,” in which I have attempted to explain the four major epochs of redemptive history – creation, fall, redemption, and glory. It’s a new start for our church as we have been adjusting to a new sanctuary, so it seemed appropriate to go back to the basics and review what the Christian faith is all about.
A church in Alexandria, just about 20 minutes west of Yorktown, has recently been thrown into the national spotlight because of a situation regarding its former choir director. According to an article in the Ball State Daily News, the director, Adam Fraley, was forced out of his position at First United Methodist Church. The reason? Fraley is gay.
Ross Douthat has written an article in the New York Times in which he says same-sex marriage will inevitably be legalized in all 50 states, and that all that is left for proponents of traditional marriage now is to “find out what settlement the victors will impose.”
