Apprentice 2 Jesus

Church Life

  • Why “Relevant” Churches Aren’t Liturgical

    “Sunday’s Coming” Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo. Repeat after me: “We are not liturgical and dead. We are alive and relevant.” Read more

  • The Need for Pastor-Scholars

    One of my goals is to truly be a “pastor-scholar.” I certainly don’t think of myself in the vein of John Piper, yet I have as a goal the ability to strive to know God and then communicate him to my church. I don’t want to be a slouch intellectually or spiritually. Yet, I don’t… Read more

  • The Witness of History

    I had the pleasure of sitting with Vinson Synan at breakfast in March at Society for Pentecostal Studies. He is an incredible man and wonderful conversationalist. This interview has a few of his reflections regarding the witness of Pentecost he has personally seen in the past several decades. One comment stands out for me as… Read more

  • Money, Sex, and Power

    The New York Times has no lost love for the Catholic Church. They use every opportunity to raise the ugly issues of the Church. The new findings in sex scandals give them plenty of fodder. I will in no way excuse the incredibly vile behavior of these priests. This column does bring out some interesting… Read more

  • Three Voices We Need to Hear Again

    Through church history, especially since the Reformation, I am convinced we are only rehashing old problems. We are just doing it with greater speed. (Kind of like our fashion trends these days. Did the 80s styles have to come back SO fast?) Three voices need to be heard once again, in my view. 1. Soren… Read more

  • Getting Unsaved

    As I am preparing my lectures for Church History II I am studying Soren Kierkegaard. Kierkegaard in Denmark during the 19th Century dropped on a bombshell on that nation when he said Christianity no longer existed in Denmark. There were churches all over the place. People chalked it up to Kierkegaard’s melancholy. Luther once said… Read more

  • What is My History?

    I am attending my first Society for Pentecostal Studies meeting, mainly because it is on the campus where I teach. The event has been a good one for me. The sessions have been a learning experience. I am keeping track of big words I need to look up later. 🙂 A plenary session I attended… Read more

  • Intellectual Dishonesty

    As I teach Old Testament and New Testament at a college level, at I am continually amazed at how little “Christian” students know the stories. This presents a question I simply want to ask and see if there might be any discussion: Is it intellectually dishonest to say you are a Christian and then never… Read more

  • Narcissicistic Christianity

    I admire people who write well, and say things I try to say. When I write them it’s just not very fluid. This post on “Jesus and me broke up” is outstanding. It encapsulates my thoughts on what is going wrong in American Christianity. We have a Christianity that isn’t about Jesus. It’s about “me.”… Read more

  • Influence

    One thing that simply cannot be underestimated in our lives is the influence of others. People only WE may know, but can change the course of our lives. They won’t make the cover of Time magazine, or be on American Idol or Oprah. They simply lived life and you were better because of them. The… Read more