Pilgrimage

In one’s spiritual pilgrimage the realization of temporal finiteness births a longing for personal communion with God.

O my God, sweetness unspeakable, turn into bitterness all my fleshly consolation, which draweth me away from the love of eternal things, and wickedly allureth toward itself by setting before me some present delight. Let not, O my God, let not flesh and blood prevail over me, let not the world and its short glory deceive me, let not the devil and his craftiness supplant me. Give me courage to resist, patience to endure, constancy to preserve. Grant, in place of all consolations of the world, the most sweet unction of Thy Spirit, and in place of carnal love, pour into me the love of Thy Name (à Kempis 2006, 91).

This passage from Thomas Hæmmerlien’s work The Imitation of Christ illustrates the core philosophical concentration of the text: A life that seeks to become like Christ in word, thought and deed must yearn for divine grace and reject worldly enticements. Hæmmerlien, also know as Thomas à Kempis, elected to live his life in obscurity and absorb himself in the spiritual pursuit of oneness with Christ. His compilation of personal thoughts into The Imitation of Christ has served Christianity as a centerpiece of devotional literature for over a half-century. Continue reading

Conflict can be defined as a “circumstance in which two (or more) persons have incompatible needs, desires, or goals” (Shaffer 2005, 281). This is an issue from which the church is not immune. In addition to preaching, teaching and counseling, pastors often serve as initiators, moderators and terminators of church conflict. It is not surprising that there are many Christian books and journal articles to help ministers successfully navigate conflict. Crisis and conflict have been part of the social fabric of the local church since its genesis in scripture. It has been said that conflict is inevitable; therefore, professional ministers and local lay leaders have an obligation to clearly understand conflict origins, conflict management, and how to bring healing once conflict has ended. Continue reading

The socio-economic and cultural changes in post-modern society have presented an unprecedented challenge to traditional evangelical churches. While Catholics and high-church protestant denominations have experienced serious decline in the last several decades, this has only been a relatively recent phenomenon to plague some evangelical churches. Pastors, church boards and congregations are grappling with the theology of the institutional church and its relevance in addressing the myriad questions of secular society. As evangelicals seek to change the methodology without watering down the message of the Gospel, many churches are experiencing positive transformation while others are simply maintaining the status quo or dying off. Often, the success or failure of a congregation seeking change rests in the theory of change embraced by the local church. Continue reading

Celebrating the resurrection of Christ in His church is one of the highlights of year for me. Christmas is glorious, but Resurrection Sunday gives a spiritual high that has no equivalent. Isn’t it interesting how Jesus spent the time from his resurrection until His ascension (40 days) continuing to do what he did before His death. While He was on the earth after before he went to be with the Father, He spent his time teaching His disciples, encouraging them, and telling them about what was going happen in the future. While the resurrection fundamentally changed His body (it became glorified), it did not fundamentally change His vocation. There are many applications here, but for today, let’s enjoy our redemption and celebrate with our brothers and sisters in Christ.

This is a very insightful post from Art Katz posted today at the European Prophetic College

Life is cheap…or so modern society would have us think it is. The cost of an early murder-in-utero is only a few hundred dollars.

Secular science has proven the life of a baby in the womb is distinctly separate from the mother. Secular science has proven that the baby in the womb IS NOT just tissue, but is an actual living human. The debate on abortion has moved past this concept. While in years past it would have been horrific to acknowledge these things and still be a proponent of abortion it is now becoming socially acceptable. Abortionists now argue that population control and the welfare of the more highly developed (i.e. the mother) is a more important consideration than protecting life in the womb. I have not time to articulate this slipperly slope other than to ask what are the future implications for the mentally handicapped? the elderly? terminally ill? Continue reading

The means of living the sanctified Christian life has been a subject of debate since the first century. Scholars have argued the significance of various Scripture passages seeking to determine the desire of God for His people’s lifestyle and calling. There are some aspects of the Christian life, however, which God determines to remain behind the darkened glass. He seems to shed enough light on the subject matter for believers to wrestle with it yet keeps it hidden just enough to cause the conclusion to be elusive. So it seems with the doctrine of sanctification. God has offered enough information in Scripture to determine how one should live, but the methodology whereby one may experience sanctification seems much less clear. God requires believers nonetheless, to seek His divine purposes and will with regards to their lives; thus they must wrestle with the Scriptures for personal illumination. Continue reading