Month: July 2017

Being the Church

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This Sunday we continued our conversation about the church and how it was designed to work.  With the help of a summary of the church Luke offers in Acts 2, we saw that the church was designed to rest on four pillars.  Keep reading to see what those were and what we need to do about them.

 

While there have been very large churches at various times and in various places throughout the history of the church, the megachurch movement in this country began in the 1980s.  One of the first churches that was a part of this movement and in many ways came to define it, was Willow Creek Community Church.  Willow Creek was founded by Bill Hybels.  It started as a youth ministry meeting in an old theater in 1975 in Chicago, but under Hybels’ visionary leadership it quickly became the largest church in the country.  Today it averages 26,000 people a weekend.  It’s main sanctuary seats just over 7,000 people.  Read the rest…

Digging in Deeper: Romans 13:1

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“Let every person be subject to the governing authorities.  For there is no authority except from God, and those that exist have been instituted by God.”  (ESV)

This is one of the harder things Paul wrote.  The relationship of Christians to the authority of the state has been a stubborn knot to untangle since the beginning.  What does it look like to be subject to governing authorities as one who is chiefly subject to the authority of Christ?  If there is no authority except what has been instituted by God, what do we do about authorities that do not in any way seem to be godly?  Surely there have been authorities in place over the centuries that were not instituted by God…right?   Read the rest…

Morning Musings: Romans 12:9-21

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One of the things every follower of Jesus wants at some point along the journey is a checklist of things that if we do all of these, we will be on the right track in our Christian walk.  Well, here in Romans 12:9-21, Paul offers us about as close to this kind of a list as we will find anywhere in the Scriptures.  This isn’t a list that gets a lot of attention, and it certainly isn’t exhaustive, but it does cover an awful lot of ground.  So here’s my encouragement: Print this list.  Make it a checklist.  Read the rest…

Morning Musings: Romans 12:4-5

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“For as in one body we have many members, and the members do not all have the same function, so we, though many are one body in Christ, and individually members of one another.”  (ESV)

The church was not designed to be an operation of one.  It runs like a human body.  There are many different parts that all play an important role in the proper functioning of the body.  In order for things to work like they should, every part has to play its part.  If you are a part of the body of Christ, you have a role to play.  Absent you playing that role, the whole thing will not work like it should.

Morning Musings: Romans 12:1-2

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“I appeal to you therefore, brothers, by the mercies of God, to present your bodies as a living sacrifice, holy and acceptable to God, which is your spiritual worship.  Do not be conformed to this world, but be transformed by the renewal of your mind, that by testing you may discern what is the will of God, what is good and acceptable and perfect.”  (ESV)

While there have been volumes written on these two verses, these are quick takes and so I have two quick thoughts.   Read the rest…