Every NAPARC congregation consists of sinners. Consider, however, the rhetoric used by the podcasters: “gender apartheid” and “toxic masculinity.” These are very strong words. The dictionary (ibid) defines the noun apartheid thus: “(in South Africa) a policy or system of segregation or discrimination on grounds of race.” It now includes “segregation on grounds other than... Continue Reading

We have earlier reported on how the Judicial Council’s complex ruling ultimately took away any foundation in UMC church law for Dr. Karen Oliveto of San Francisco to indefinitely remain a bishop in good standing, and how more broadly, this ruling fundamentally reshaped our church law to remove what had previously been major barriers to... Continue Reading

“Pledging allegiance to God and to America in the same breath, melding together the kingdom of God and self, they pray a blasphemous prayer to a red, white and blue Jesus,” he opined. “How tragically this prayer cancels out the prayer of Jesus himself. The political church prays, ‘Make America great again!’ Jesus prayed, ‘Your kingdom... Continue Reading

 I respect what no one sees. I respect the fact that you were broken to pieces by God. Personal Heartbreak. Sadness. Doubt. Disappointment. Devastation. Hurt Feelings. Sleepless Nights. Unspeakable Pain. You don’t talk about this part of your journey much. But one of the main reasons God uses you so effectively is you have been broken to... Continue Reading

Note well the development.  The Reformation recovered the preaching of the Word — and with it a church architecture which made the means of grace central, especially preaching.  The heirs (and heiresses) of Anabaptism adopted a church architecture which sidelined the Word.  The stage appeared where the Word wasn’t enough.  So, especially when building churches... Continue Reading

We must preach because preaching is not simply the fuel for worship: preaching IS worship. As Piper says, “in the same way that a melody can awaken us to the true beauty of God in the lyrics of a worship song, so the spiritual music of the preacher’s soul can awaken the people to the... Continue Reading

Strangely, the one source of genuine help in such circumstances is the one that is literally in our hands as we seek to minister to others, but all too often fail to use as we seek to minister to our own souls. It is, of course, God’s word in Scripture. Indeed, we too easily forget... Continue Reading

“In trying to be helpful, many churches have failed, because they have failed to be truthful. They have failed not out of hardness of heart, or lacking of kindness, but in thinking that they are more merciful than God. I shudder to think about how much more rigorous, painful, and dangerous, and difficult my conversion... Continue Reading

Perhaps, to use Payne’s phrase, the little controversy over the Truth’s Table episode shed more heat than light. But it wasn’t random. It happened in the context of on-going, contentious, formal and informal fights over women’s roles in evangelical churches—fights that are often painful and racially inflected. The way it unfolded—online, across multiple platforms and cities, with... Continue Reading

“It’s a death spiral. Declining smaller churches decline much more rapidly than larger churches. Once the declining church goes below 100 in attendance, its days are likely numbered. Here is the sad summary statement of this portion of the research: Once a church declines below 100 in worship attendance, it is likely to die within... Continue Reading