“If a sheep has strayed let us seek it; to disown it in a hurry is not the Master’s method. Ours is to be the labor and the care, for we are overseers of the flock of Christ to the end that all may be presented faultless before God. One month’s absence from the houseContinue reading “Baptists: What Happened to Regenerate Church Membership? Part I”
Category Archives: Uncategorized
In Praise of Slow Growth
“Life moves pretty fast. If you don’t stop and look around once in a while, you could miss it.” -Ferris Bueller Life moves fast, and we like it that way. We, by nearly every measure, are a people who want things quickly and feel shortchanged if anything takes too long. Why won’t the traffic light change?Continue reading “In Praise of Slow Growth”
The Bearded Ecclesiologian Podcast Episode 1: Why Should We Care About the Church?
Church Idolatry?
Exodus 32 is undoubtedly one of the most disappointing chapters in the entire Bible. You know the story. While Moses is on Sinai receiving instructions concerning the new Eden, the tabernacle, Israel grows impatient. “Where is Moses? What’s taking him so long? We don’t know if he is dead or alive.” So they panic, andContinue reading “Church Idolatry?”
Some Men Just Want the Fight
One of the very best movies I have seen in recent years is the World War I epic called 1917. The basic premise of the film is two young soldiers are tasked with delivering orders to another unit to call off a planned offensive attack because they would surely lose as it is a trap. InContinue reading “Some Men Just Want the Fight”
Are You Bored with Jesus?
“Discipleship is learning about Christ’s supremacy over all things. It is truly companionship with Jesus through all of life. A scheme of the devil is to get people to renounce their faith in Christ, but another scheme of the devil is for people to simply grow bored with Christ. Satan will do anything he can toContinue reading “Are You Bored with Jesus?”
What in the World is Going on in the Southern Baptist Convention?
No one can deny that the Southern Baptist Convention (SBC) is a gigantic mess right now. “Dumpster fire” was the way one podcast host recently described it. Most people are not super engaged in SBC politics, not even most SBC members. And who could blame them? But one cannot help but see them now thatContinue reading “What in the World is Going on in the Southern Baptist Convention?”
Now is No Time to Abandon the Fellowship
To the surprise of no one who knows me, I’ve never been the seafaring type. Travel on the water (in whatever form) has exactly zero appeal to me. That being said, something I do know about travel on the high seas is that the worst possible time to abandon ship is in the midst ofContinue reading “Now is No Time to Abandon the Fellowship”
Be Faithful and Come What May
What does church success look like during a global pandemic? For at least a generation, success in churches was based largely on numerics, on this we can agree. Every year in my denomination (the Southern Baptist Convention), for example, churches must fill out the Annual Church Profile (ACP), which asks churches nearly every conceivable questionContinue reading “Be Faithful and Come What May”
The Bearded Ecclesiologian 