Answering Questions About Homosexuality #2
Below is the second post from Pastor Bob in an ongoing blog series designed to help Christians think through the issue of homosexuality in a careful and Biblical way. For more on the reason for this series, click here.
Question 2: Are homosexuals welcome at your church?
Answering Questions About Homosexuality #1
Below is the first post from Pastor Bob in an ongoing blog series designed to help Christians think through the issue of homosexuality in a careful and Biblical way. For more on the reason for this series, click here.
Question 1: How can we know whether homosexuality is a sin when there are so many interpretations of the Bible?
3 Reasons To Do a Blog Series on Homosexuality
Starting next week, I will begin a multi-part blog series that will seek to answer common questions about and objections to the traditional Christian position on homosexuality. Some of you might be sick of hearing about this issue, which is totally understandable, so let me offer three reasons why I think this is a good idea:
Is the PCA Traditional or Progressive?
There has been much talk lately in our denomination (PCA — Presbyterian Church in America) about its current state of health as a result of an article written by former Covenant Seminary President Bryan Chapell titled, “The State of the PCA.” The article is actually a “slightly edited” version of an address that Chapell is giving at the PCA’s General Assembly in Chattanooga this week.
8 Reasons For a Church to be ‘Confessional’
In my blog a few weeks ago about being Presbyterian, I mentioned that a distinguishing mark of our tradition is that we adhere to the Westminster Confession of Faith (WCF) (the Heidelberg Catechism is good too). As a follow-up to that idea, I thought it might be helpful to take this a step further and consider some good reasons why a church should be “confessional” — that is, why it should hold to an established confession of faith.
6 Reasons Why ‘Christianity Explored’ is a Good Way to Explore the Gospel
Are you curious about Christianity? Perhaps you were not brought up in the church, and you want to know more about the claims of Jesus. Maybe you come from a Mormon or Muslim family, and yet you are interested in orthodox Christianity. Or perhaps you’ve strayed from the church, but now feel a tug to go back. You want to know the basics of Christianity, but don’t know where to start.
3 Reasons to be Presbyterian
This is not an age when it is popular to belong to a particular church denomination. Most Christians shun such distinctives, mostly because denominational boundaries have become a symbol for the stereotype that Christians simply can’t get along with one another. Sometimes I am asked if it wouldn’t be easier if we just took the word “Presbyterian” off our sign in front of our church. Maybe it would be better if we just called ourselves, “New Life Community Church.”
Sufjan Stevens and ‘Christian Music’
As a fan of the singer Sufjan Stevens and the magazine The Atlantic, I was thrilled to see the two come together recently when the periodical posted an article on its Web site titled, “How Sufjan Stevens Subverts the Stigma of Christian Music.”
PCA Affirms Traditional Marriage After PCUSA Denies It
Here was the headline of a March 18 story reported by an ABC news station: “Presbyterian Church Approves Gay Marriage in Constitution.” “What?” I can imagine some people thinking after reading the headline. “New Life has approved gay marriage?”
Documentary on ‘The Doctor’ Ready for Release
It’s good to have heroes. The danger of course is that we might idolize our heroes, which is always to be avoided, but it’s also easy to go to the other extreme and downplay the outstanding godly example set by saints who have come before us. Most likely all of us have a hero of one kind or another, even if it’s just an athlete or rock star. The question is whether our heroes are truly worthy of the title.
Answers to 4 Common Objections to Infant Baptism
There is a common experience for many people who visit New Life: They appreciate that the people are warm and friendly; they value the emphasis placed on sound Biblical preaching; they are grateful that the church is evangelical and Gospel-centered; they are relieved to find they are not in a liberal mainline church.
Book Review – ‘A Brief History of Thought’
Tim Keller once wrote that if you’re going to read one book about how a Christian should interact with contemporary culture, then A Brief History of Thought: A Philosophical Guide to Living by Luc Ferry should be the one. This might seem strange, because Ferry is not a Christian, but a self-identified humanist philosopher (p. 227). And yet, having read the book myself, I can see why Pastor Keller recommended it. And for what it’s worth, I recommend it as well.
Project Radiance: Why Art is Important
This past weekend at New Life, we unveiled a new art installation in the foyer of our new facility. It’s a piece called “Project Radiance” that was designed and installed (with much help from others in the church) by a New Life member and architecture student at Ball State.
A Church Planting Vision for Muncie and Delaware County
As Christians, we believe we are the light of the world — not because we think we’re something special, or because we’re better than other people. It’s because this is what Jesus says is true of his people — in Mat. 5:14, he says to his disciples, “You are the light of the world.” Where Christians are, there is light. Where Christians are not, there is darkness.
5 Tips for Listening to Sermons
Sometimes people complain that they didn’t get much out of a sermon. Often (maybe even most of the time) this is the fault of the preacher, but sometimes this can be the fault of the listener. There are certain steps you can take to prepare yourself to get the most out of a sermon on any given Sunday at any given church. Here are some tips: