Gary Shogren's Blog
In 1 Thessalonians 1:5b-7, Paul is still thanking God for the Thessalonians, and his thanksgiving sets the pace for the rest of the letter. You know how we lived among you for your sake. You became imitators of us and of the Lord, for you welcomed the message in the midst of severe suffering with... Continue Reading →
Paul has spoken about how he knows that the Thessalonians are genuine Christians: first of all, because they have the fruit of the Spirit. Words, yes, but also attitudes, actions, values that go beyond what we would expect from a human being, apart from Christ. You can’t see the Spirit, but you can see what... Continue Reading →
Paul was in a terrible fix: he had been forced to leave his new disciples in Macedonia, and he was particularly uneasy about the new Christians in the second church, planted in Thessalonica. After all, hadn’t Jesus taught that sometimes the gospel mission ends in disaster? (Matthew 13:20-21) The seed falling on rocky ground refers to... Continue Reading →
Is the New Testament gift of prophecy operative in the church today? Many say Yes; [1] many, No, famously John MacArthur in 2014, in his Strange Fire conference and book. [2] There is third response, a Yes, but viewpoint which has been popular among some non-charismatic evangelicals, and affirmed in recent times by John Piper:... Continue Reading →
Note: this sermon outline is based on my volume in the Zondervan Exegetical Commentary of the New Testament; readers might want to acquire that commentary if they wish to see the exegetical work behind these talks. These posts are Sermon Notes, not polished messages. Introduction A few years ago I went to a reunion; there were people I hadn’t... Continue Reading →
So: two kinds of Christian. The normal - "normal" according to God's definition, that is - walks in the Spirit, and through His transforming power enjoys a life of miraculous love, joy, peace, and all the rest. The subnormal - the person who lives by his or her own strength (or as Paul would say it,... Continue Reading →
If someone desires to give the church a certain percentage of their net or gross income, I honor that as their right and privilege. As for me, I promote that all Christians should give generously and cheerfully. But first, a full disclosure – I believe that tithing was an Old Covenant rite by which about... Continue Reading →
Notice that I didn't say how they get there, I mean why they have traveled there and then returned to tell us all about it. For the past few decades, people have dived into writing up their experiences of heaven – and a few times, of hell – published bestselling books and hit movies. For... Continue Reading →
As a Christmas gift this year, I have bundled together some of my blog posts that have to deal with "How to Life the Christian Life: throw out the old rules and play by the New Covenant." Over a hundred of you have downloaded it already - enjoy! Simply click here: How to live the Christian Life_Shogren I... Continue Reading →
[The following thoughts are taken from my new commentary on Romans in the Comentario Bíblico Contemporáneo, to be published in 2015 by Ediciones Kairós. It is also available in pdf forms as a small book, How to Live the Christian Life - in the right-hand column look under "Four of my books".] A “paradigm shift” is... Continue Reading →
Open Our Eyes, Lord! 