We may take the task of reading the Scriptures and attending to the reading of Scriptures in worship lightly, failing to discern what God is up to with us in that effort. A faithful, that is, a full-of-faith rendering of the Scriptural word in terms of both denotation...
So, by faith let us put on both lenses [worshiping in Spirit and in Truth]. We should look at each passage of scripture and examine each service or song or ceremony with both lenses on. To get a true stereo image, an in-depth, full-dimensioned image, of how we...
The Scriptures include or allude to just about every approach to worship there is: organized, spontaneous, public, private, simple, complex, ornate or plain. Yet there is no comment anywhere about one way being preferred over another. Rather, it is the spiritual...
Why should a church teach hymns? One basic reason is that hymns are a means of communicating the message of the church. Some hymns are paraphrases of Scripture and others are based on specific Scripture verses. Hymns also effectively convey the church’s theology....
Paul actually expects Christ to be encountered as his people share with one another a whole range of verbal ministries in the congregational. For example, as they “sing psalms, hymns and spiritual song,” with gratitude in their hearts to God, they will fulfill the...
For me, one of the saddest lines in all of Holy Scripture comes from the little fellow with the one talent: “I was afraid and I went and hid your talent in the ground.” Fear loses. Passion wins.
The Scriptures very clearly have a “bias toward action.” Simply put, the word of God tells us that if you don’t do it, you in fact have not heard it and do not believe it (see Matthew 21: 28-32; James 1: 22-25).
If the bulletin makes it clear that Scripture is an important part of Christian worship, then we can be sure people will get the message that the Bible is crucial in shaping their lives as Christians. But when the role of Scripture in worship is negligible, when...
In common English usage, “peace” means the avoidance or absence of conflict. It indicates the lack of something: war or lesser forms of overt violence. In Scripture, on the other hand, shalom indicates the active presence of multiple dynamics: well-being, harmony,...
When medical bills are the biggest cause of bankruptcy in the United States, there are systemic injustices at work. When people working 40-hour weeks at minimum wage jobs still can’t earn enough to support their families, there are systemic injustices at work. When...