Noah was called by God to be a witness to the world around d him as the day of judgement drew near and the Flood was about to come. It’s clear from the New Testament that Noah was preaching to the people, warning them of coming danger. This warning came through the fact that he… Continue reading Before you warn about danger first make sure there’s an ark ready
Category: Leadership
How do we relate to Anglicans and the Church of England?
The main protestant church here in the UK is the Church of England. Its status owes to three things. First its size, it is the largest, secondly its prominence, it is the established church and so, it’s what most people thinking of when they think about church and thirdly it has influence. The Church of… Continue reading How do we relate to Anglicans and the Church of England?
Friendship is not the same as fellowship
Fellowship is one of the most overused and misused words in Christian conversation. We talk about “sharing fellowship” to refer to having a cup of tea and chat after the church service. Fellowship should be way more than that. We also talk about friendship and fellowship between Christians from different churches and denominations as well… Continue reading Friendship is not the same as fellowship
Stephen Sizer, antisemitism and church discipline
In this article, I wrote about why the church seems to have dealt badly with the problem of antisemitism, particularly in relation to the Stephen Sizer case. Before going further, I should also mention again that this is not just about the Sizer case. As I commented in the previous article, a couple of years… Continue reading Stephen Sizer, antisemitism and church discipline
The sheep with a broken leg? The danger of embellishing Scripture
I’ve only heard the claim once from a pulpit but perhaps that was already one time too many. I’ve since come across other people who have heard the claim. A preacher talking about the Lost Sheep in Luke 15 claimed that after finding the sheep, the shepherd would then break one of its legs. The… Continue reading The sheep with a broken leg? The danger of embellishing Scripture
Is narcissism the problem?
The Gospel Coalition have just published this article offering further engagement with Chuck De Groat’s book “When narcissism comes to church.” The writer, Dan Doriani, is positive towards Chuck’s work but has some concerns, particularly with the thesis that: narcissism is especially common among pastors because they often enjoy a high profile. Narcissists crave power,… Continue reading Is narcissism the problem?
He’s the good good shepherd
I love Psalm 23 and it was really helpful to hear a speaker talking about this at a recent church leaders’ retreat. On Sunday I shared my own attempt at a paraphrase of the Psalm. It’s been particularly on my mind over the past few days as it seems to link with a few particular… Continue reading He’s the good good shepherd
What does your pastor need to know?
Every so often I see comments about what pastors and church leaders need to have studied, to know and be reading now. At one end of the spectrum is the view that “all we need is the Bible” and we don’t need to make it complicated. At the other end of the spectrum is the… Continue reading What does your pastor need to know?
House of Cards and a tragedy of mistaken heroes
Back when I was a student at University, anyone who was interested in politics and saw themselves as having a future in parliament was avidly studying the TV adaption of Michael Dodd’s House of Cards as diligently as they were paying attention to their actual subject. The protagonist in the original House of Cards is… Continue reading House of Cards and a tragedy of mistaken heroes
How did complementarianism end up becoming a boundary marker?
This was a question asked the other day on twitter. It was expressed I believe as a lament as much as a question. There are Christians who stand foursquare with other evangelicals. They believe the Bible to be God’s inspired word, without error. They confess that Jesus died on the cross to bear the penalty… Continue reading How did complementarianism end up becoming a boundary marker?