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September 2014

September 02, 2014

How I would say what Victoria Osteen said differently

In a video clip that has been making the rounds on social media, prosperity gospel...

August 2014

August 20, 2014

Could you listen to an angry black Jesus?

I know. He doesn't look all that angry. There just aren't any good angry black...

August 10, 2014

Is it okay to notice that Jesus can be a jerk sometimes?

The lectionary reading for this week is the familiar story of Jesus walking across the...

July 2014

July 31, 2014

Who are the weeds in God’s garden? (Matthew 13)

This picture is a renegade chamomile plant that came up through a crack in our...

May 2014

May 26, 2014

I could have been Elliot Rodger

I know you're not supposed to read the manifesto of a mass murderer, but that's...

May 25, 2014

Klingon Christians and their gospel coalitions

In a recent post, Peter Enns writes about a certain type of Christian who doesn't...

May 14, 2014

Buried in baptism, raised in faith (#sermon #podcast)

This past weekend, I preached on the way that Jesus' cross renews us in two...

May 04, 2014

Rescued from the power of darkness (#sermon #podcast)

At our LifeSign contemporary worship service, our post-Easter sermon series "Resurrected" is a journey through...

April 2014

April 22, 2014

Six ways that capitalism fails the church

The religion blog forum Patheos is hosting a Public Square conversation called "Has Capitalism Failed?"...

April 01, 2014

Nothing outside you can make you unclean

In week four of LifeSign's "Jesus vs. the Pharisees" series, we look at a key...

March 2014

March 24, 2014

“Do you see this woman?” (Jesus’ outrageous response to an inappropriate foot massage) #sermon #podcast

Let's say you're a rabbi in 1st century Palestine, and you've heard of this really...

March 05, 2014

Jesus vs the Pharisees: A Debate on Holiness (my Lenten sermon series)

One of the most important and often neglected threads of the gospel stories of Jesus...

February 2014

February 22, 2014

Three highly ignored teachings of the New Testament: Sabbath healings, circumcision, and unclean food

One of the main reasons that many Christians fall short who are earnestly seeking to...

February 13, 2014

Have you ever been thrown into hell or did you pluck your eyeball out in time? (Matthew 5:29)

Jesus says some pretty wild things, but this week's lectionary reading includes one of his...

February 12, 2014

The Bible has room for more than one gay Christian story

A couple of weeks ago, at Wheaton College, a very interesting dialogue happened. The campus...

February 11, 2014

What makes God mad? My hard heart.

This weekend, I had the perfect setup for a stereotypical social justice Christian sermon. I...

February 05, 2014

Did we crucify Jesus or did God? (Using @ScotMcKnight to bludgeon bad atonement theory)

Scot McKnight had a very interesting post last week concerning a recently popular"scapegoat" atonement theory...

January 2014

January 27, 2014

Wrestling with original sin (#sermon #podcast)

A week ago Sunday evening, we looked at the story of Adam and Eve as...

January 26, 2014

I am the bread of life (#sermon #podcast)

Last Sunday morning, I preached on Jesus' statement "I am the bread of life." I...

January 24, 2014

A response to @BillMaher’s recent comments about God

I've been reading an interview with outspoken atheist comedian Bill Maher in the Atlantic. The...

January 17, 2014

Is the Old Testament a debate between priests and prophets?

I've been reading two books recently that have me really wondering what to do with...

January 13, 2014

Three different conceptions of Biblical authority

Thanks very much for your responses to my last post on Biblical inerrancy. Though some...

January 06, 2014

The difference between spiritual purity and moral cleanliness

Leviticus 10:10 says, "You are to distinguish between the holy and the common, and between...

December 2013

December 27, 2013

Does it matter that Luke knows nothing of Herod’s slaughter of the innocents?

This Christmas, I stumbled over a verse, Luke 2:39, that I had never noticed before:...

December 25, 2013

Solidarity: the meaning of Christmas

Emmanuel. God with us. That is the meaning of Christmas. Jesus was born to show...

November 2013

November 20, 2013

Justice of the heart and Frank Schaefer

This week, the United Methodist Church put a pastor on trial named Frank Schaefer for...

November 19, 2013

Is your life NSFJ (not safe for Jesus)?

Please excuse the gratuitous selfie; I couldn't think of another graphic to use. I was...

November 05, 2013

A litmus test of Christian morality: the film North Country

My wife and I wanted to watch a light film at home this past Saturday...

October 2013

October 30, 2013

Mark Driscoll’s “working class” bloody Old Testament Jesus

I'm not a pacifist or a pansy (other than the fact that I'm not very...

October 23, 2013

Wisdom is to rest in Jesus

At our church staff meeting today, we looked at this reading from Matthew 11:25-30: At...