Aug
27
2012
Worth a Look 8.27.12
Kindle Deal of the Day: Godspeed: Making Christ’s Mission Your Own
Have you ever felt like there’s a higher calling for your life? Something more than the mundane weekly routine of work, eat, sleep, play, and church? In Godspeed, Britt Merrick challenges us to step out of our little, self-centered lives and step into God’s grand mission—His plan to restore, redeem, and renew the world. Your heart has been aching for something more. This is it. Join His mission and change the world.
Scot McKnight interacts with a recent TGC Discussion on Jesus and the gospel:
I was with a friend the other day, I asked him straight up, “Are the Gospels the gospel?” With a bit of a look of dismissal and condescension, he said No with the suggestion that it’s clear for everyone but me. He’s at odds with Carson, Keller and Piper on this one. They think Luke presents the gospel. I agree.
11 Mental, Emotional, and Spiritual Challenges Unique to Rural Pastors:
If you are thinking about going into rural ministry… you need to talk with the congregation about some of the things on this list if you value your marriage. If you are in the congregation of a rural church you need to take this to heart for the sake of your pastor and his family.
The Man Alive: Irenaeus did not teach self-fulfillment
Reviewing conversations with Christians over the past half-century or so, I am impressed by how often I have heard quoted a line from Irenaeus of Lyons: “the glory of God is man fully alive.” Normally it would be encouraging to hear a wide variety of Christians quoting a second-century church father and martyr, especially so prolific and effective an opponent of every heresy that plagued the churches of his day. But in the case of this quotation, its popularity arises from a radical misreading, and this misreading explains a lot about what is wrong with American Christianity at present.
The Cost of Church Revitalization:
I’ve been thinking a lot lately about what it takes to turn a church around. I can think of a lot of churches that are in decline, but I can only think of a few that have turned around. Here’s what they have in common.