Thom S. Rainer is the president and CEO of LifeWay Christian Resources and has a very popular blog on church life. Having read with approval a number of his other articles, I was surprised to find one that I roundly disagreed with. It is titled “FIFTEEN REASONS WHY YOUR PASTOR SHOULD NOT VISIT MUCH” And he... Continue Reading →
“Children of the Light” 1 Thess 5:4-11 [Sermon Notes on 1 Thessalonians, Week 14]
Note: These are sermon outlines, not full messages. Let's begin with a "tip" for Bible reading – it's a good idea to look for repetition, repeated words or ideas. This certainly helps in the case of this passage. I would like you to look for pronouns: we, our, us; you; they, them, those 4 But you, brothers... Continue Reading →
Is there healing in the atonement?
A friend writes asks about 1 Pet 2:24-25, where Peter alludes to Isa 53:4-6 – “He himself bore our sins in his body on the cross, so that, free from sins, we might live for righteousness; by his wounds you have been healed. For you were going astray like sheep, but now you have returned... Continue Reading →
Will God Heal Us? A Re-Examination of Jas. 5:14-16
By Gary Shogren, Seminario ESEPA, San José, Costa Rica Originally published in Evangelical Quarterly 61 (1989): 99-108; bibliography and some ancient references updated in 2008. “Are any among you ill? Let them summon the presbyters of the Church and let them pray over them after anointing them in the name of the Lord with olive... Continue Reading →