As a Christian first and a local church pastor second, I am continually reminded that Christians are in the “people business.” To be a follower of Christ means to be in the church and serving in ministry at some level (Ephesians 4:10-11). That means you deal with—people. I have often defined ministry as, “filling gaps … Read more
And the waters continued to abate until the tenth month; in the tenth month, on the first day of the month, the tops of the mountains were seen. Genesis 8:5 The study of Noah’s life is an extraordinary venture. He was a man who saw the world destroyed, survived a global flood, who populated a … Read more
A family member of mine recently passed away. His passing was peaceful and expected, with many loved ones by his side. But as the arrangements were made and the funeral graveside services were held, thoughts began to stir within me anew about a topic on which I’ve been eager to write: the care of the … Read more
To be a Christian is to be a born-again follower of Jesus Christ. To be a Christian is to obey all of Jesus’ commands, which includes his instruction to “Go, and make disciples of all nations.” (Matt. 28:19) To be a Christian, therefore, is to live a life on mission here and near, yet posture … Read more
John the Baptist has been considered the last of the Old Testament prophets. Jesus considered him to be the fulfillment of Malachi 4:5-6, the promised “Elijah,” who would “turn the hearts of fathers to their children and the hearts of children to their fathers.” (cf. Matt. 11:13-14; 17:10-13; Luke 1:17) Surely marking the end of … Read more
I can still remember where I was. Standing in my parents’ living room, watching planes fly into buildings, only to see the Twin Tower collapse into the streets of lower Manhattan. The day was September 11, 2001. Of all that happened on that day, and all that came from it, my mind still remembers the … Read more
The English word “deacon” is a transliteration of the Greek word diakonos (Gk: διάκονος) which means “servant.” The noun form diakonia is translated “service.” The verb form diakoneo “to serve” occurs 36 times in the NT. In various instances this Greek word is translated “minister” or “ministry” as in Ephesians 4:12 “to equip the saints … Read more