Archive for the 'Church' Category

Todd’s Theses revisited

Published
by
Todd
on Wednesday, December 19, 2007
in Church and Theses
. 2 Comments

Theses Part OneWay back in March 2006, I started a blog-series titled “Todd’s Theses.” I essentially listed the church- and theology-thoughts running through my head at the time. I went back to review those posts and thought it might be interesting to repost them here unedited and unfiltered. Do I still feel the same? Am I embarrassed of what I believed so long ago? Let’s find out.

1. God and His ways are bigger than human comprehension. (Ecclesiastes 8:16-18)

2. The Bible doesn’t provide the entire picture of who God is. (John 21:25)

3. The Bible is a living, breathing document that needs to be read, reread, interpreted and reinterpreted. Its truths are everlasting, but the way we understand and apply them will change. (Matt. 16:19)

4. To be a Christian requires all of our selves. There is no such thing as a “Sunday” Christian. (Luke 9:23)

5. Eternity is now. When we are baptized, we aren’t changed, cleaned and reconciled for tomorrow; we’re changed, cleaned and reconciled for the right now. We need to do everything in our power to bring heaven to earth for today, not earth to heaven for tomorrow.

6. Christ is bigger than politics. Conservative and liberal, republican and democrat, libertarian and socialist all find common ground in Christ. (John 14:6)

7. Worship is not about what I get it out of it.

8. Worship is not incorporated. Worship is life. There should be no such thing as a “worship service.”

9. The way we observe communion today is not the way it was observed in the Bible. (Acts 2:41-43)

10. God’s grace covers our mistakes, ignorance and stubbornness. (2 Cor. 12:8-10)

11. Salvation doesn’t follow obedience. Obedience follows salvation. (Eph. 4:1)

12. You cannot be a Christian and ignore the fatherless and the widowed, the hungry and the naked, the lost and the ignored. (Matt. 25:35-45)

13. Seeing people based on negative attributes is not the way God sees us. Our identity is not in our failures; our identity is in Christ. (Eph. 4:10)

14. The question of “who will be saved?” is of little importance in the life of a Christian. The question should be “How can I show Christ in my life to everyone around me?”

15. The Christian faith is not an institution; it is a movement. We should spend less time, money and energy on maintaining the institution and more on carrying out Jesus’ vision for his disciples. (Matt. 28:19)

16. For too long the great commission has been the method rather than the vision. We are to make disciples, baptize and teach others to obey. We must be creative and relevant to carry out that vision. (Acts 17:22-34)

This list is interesting in light of a current discussion I’m having with several friends about the person and divinity of Jesus.

So, what do you think? Where am I way off base?

Part two coming tomorrow…
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Tackling the Big Ones

Published
by
Todd
on Wednesday, November 21, 2007
in Church and Question
. 15 Comments

I’m a simple-minded chap. I like pretending like I’m a deep thinker when I’m in group discussion, but my day-to-day life hardly reflects that false reality. Most of the time I appreciate the simplest and quickest answer to questions that trouble me.

Unfortunately, a majority of the world isn’t like me. Most people are unsatisfied with the quick and easy answer—and rightly so. Knowing this, it amazes me how Christians can claim to have the truth to some of life’s biggest questions and then recite tired, old, shallow answers.

The big questions are quite legitimate. However, the answers I’ve received to some of those questions over the course of my life—while simple—don’t even satisfy me!

Here’s two examples and the problems I have with the rote answer:
Q: Why do bad things happen to good people?
A: Because it’s all a part of God’s plan.
Problem: What kind of god would allow his/her followers to suffer terrible calamities, particularly when you claim that your god is all-powerful? How could this “good” god have a plan that involves innocent children dying?

Q: How could a loving and all-powerful God create a place of eternal torment for those who choose not to commit their lives to him?
A: It’s not for us to know. Our job is to obey. There’s nothing we can do about it anyway, just follow God.
Problem: God created the system! He chose to create a place of fire and wailing and gnashing teeth. While he may not send people there (thanks to their free will), He didn’t have to make a place where people suffered for eternity.

So, what answer would you give to those (and other, if you’d like) big questions? How can we start equipping our churches to tackle these big questions in relevant and helpful ways?
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30-minute Worship

Published
by
Todd
on Monday, November 19, 2007
in Church and Seeking
. 3 Comments

Too busy for a whole hour and a half of worship? Here’s your solution.

Some things I don’t like about this site:

  1. They’re promoting 30-minute worship.
  2. They use “r” instead of “are.”
  3. They link to a f.a.q. page that doesn’t actually have any questions—frequently asked or otherwise.
  4. The sermon is longer than the worship!
  5. They left the hyphen out of “30-minute.”
  6. The circle-graphic thing at the top right of the page cuts off some of the copy.

Circle Graphic

Some things I do like about this site:

  1. The grungy look.
  2. The VW beetle at the bottom of the page.
Can you find it?

Am I turning into a watchdog site?
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(h/t: Larry)

Getting Fed

Published
by
Todd
on Monday, November 12, 2007
in Church and Question
. 16 Comments

Continuing our seeker-sensitive discussion (kind of):

What does it mean to “get fed” by a church? Have you used this language before? What did you mean? From what does this idea stem? Is it time to leave a church if you’re no longer being fed? How do you know you’re not being fed?

Feed me your thoughts.
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Seeker Sensitive

Published
by
Todd
on Wednesday, November 7, 2007
in Church
. 16 Comments

I’ve been a bad blogger. I’m sorry. Aside from being sick and busy, I haven’t really had much inspiration or motivation. Now that I’m not blocked by Harding’s web filter, I don’t know what to blog about…I don’t want to say anything too inflammatory so as to face censorship again.

So, to keep things safe, I’d like to facilitate a discussion about “Seeker-Sensitive” churches.

What does that phrase mean to you? What are your experiences with “seeker-sensitive” worship services? Do you think it’s an effective model?

Let your voice be heard!
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