What living at peace with each other in a church family assumes that there should only be a very, very few non-negotiables in the church family. Non-negotiables? Let me explain what I mean by that. Have you ever heard the phrase, “In essentials unity, in non-essentials liberty, in all things love.”? There are three levelsContinue reading “We are to warn disruptive people in a church family – 1 Thessalonians 5:13–15, 26, Part 5”
Tag Archives: spirituality
Church family peace requires small groups – 1 Thessalonians 5:13–15, 26, Part 3
What we see is that in early church’s practice of living together, in their sacrificial generosity, they had unity. And that ties directly to the phrase in 1 Thessalonians 5:13, I skipped over in the previous posts. In those previous posts I emphasized “live…with each other.” Paul says, “Live in peace with each other.” Peace. InContinue reading “Church family peace requires small groups – 1 Thessalonians 5:13–15, 26, Part 3”
Christians are to “live…with each other” – 1 Thessalonians 5:13–15, 26, Part 2
Have you ever heard of the Ephrata Cloister? The Cloister was a group of Christians who practiced communal living from 1732–1934. They viewed themselves as a kind of monastic (celibate) community, with noncelibate “householders.” Because I live about 20 minutes from the Cloister, I have toured it, and I find it an eerie experience, cult-like.Continue reading “Christians are to “live…with each other” – 1 Thessalonians 5:13–15, 26, Part 2″
How do you handle yourself when you disagree with someone? – 1 Thessalonians 5:13–15, 26, Part 1
This past week, there was an awkward moment during class discussion in a Bible class I teach for a local Christian college. We were discussing Hebrews 10:25 which says “Let us not give up meeting together.” That verse teaches Christians to be committed to gathering together regularly and consistently. I asked the students if theContinue reading “How do you handle yourself when you disagree with someone? – 1 Thessalonians 5:13–15, 26, Part 1”
Evidence for Jesus’ Resurrection, Part 4
There is one more piece of evidence that I believe supports the idea that Jesus resurrection is true. Think about the fact that the Jewish religious leaders hated Jesus. I pause at that word “hate.” I don’t think it is too strong. When we read the Gospel accounts, the many interactions between Jesus and theContinue reading “Evidence for Jesus’ Resurrection, Part 4”
Evidence for Jesus’ Resurrection, Part 3
In all four Gospels, guess who the first people are to discover and talk about the resurrection of Jesus? The Disciples of Jesus, right? No! It wasn’t the men; it was the women followers of Jesus who discover the resurrection. The fact that all four gospel writers specifically describe that it was women followers ofContinue reading “Evidence for Jesus’ Resurrection, Part 3”
Evidence for Jesus’ Resurrection, Part 2
Is it believable that Jesus’ disciples stole his body? For sure, the disciples had cause to steal the body. They had just given three years of their lives to follow Jesus. They were invested in Jesus. Furthermore, he had made claims that he was going to rise from the dead. So to save face andContinue reading “Evidence for Jesus’ Resurrection, Part 2”
Evidence for Jesus’ Resurrection, Part 1
Earlier this week I was reflecting on what Holy Week was like about twenty years ago at Faith Church. We had Maundy Thursday service on Thursday nights, then Good Friday morning we had the Cross Walk, including a big wooden cross with the wheels that we would take turns placing on our shoulder and walkingContinue reading “Evidence for Jesus’ Resurrection, Part 1”
Evidence for Jesus’ Resurrection, Preview
Imagine you’re at Easter dinner with family and friends, and someone asks you, “You don’t really believe in the resurrection of Jesus do you?” You respond, “I do believe in the resurrection of Jesus.” They press in, “Seriously. A dead person comes back to life? That’s ridiculous, right?” What do you say to them? OneContinue reading “Evidence for Jesus’ Resurrection, Preview”
How to evaluate your pastor – 1 Thessalonians 5:12–13, Part 5
Editor’s Note: This week we welcome guest blogger, Emily Marks. Emily is an adult & community educator. She and her husband Sean live in Lancaster, PA, with their dog Corvus. Emily grew up as a pastor’s kid, and therefore she brings a wealth of experience and a unique perspective to this week’s passage. When weContinue reading “How to evaluate your pastor – 1 Thessalonians 5:12–13, Part 5”
Engaging Scripture 