“When God gives life—either physical or spiritual—he does so through the power of his Word. This means pastors who want to have a life-giving ministry have no viable option other than the preaching and teaching of Scripture. Yes, small groups, fellowship, and various programs can be good tools for discipleship and evangelism. But none of... Continue Reading

No one really desired to be a shepherd. It was hard, lonely, dirty, and lowly work. Shepherds had no fanfare and received no accolades from the masses. But shepherds had one driving duty: to care for the sheep that were entrusted to their care. Predators could lurk and swiftly attack so shepherds had to be vigilant... Continue Reading

It struck me this past Sunday, that our most effective services are shaped like an hourglass. We begin “wide,” progress to “narrow,” and then return to “wide.” We begin distracted, burdened with the cares of the week that has gone by, deeply aware of the sins we have committed, perhaps scared or sorrowful or shaken.... Continue Reading

From the perspective of Calvin and his compatriots, the institution of catechesis for children and new converts represented the recovery of a long-lost practice that had characterized Christians in the apostolic era. According to the ecclesiastical articles to which Calvin contributed in 1537, ancient Christians had employed “a definite catechism” to instruct children in the... Continue Reading

Bestselling author Joel Osteen is the preaching pastor of one of the biggest churches in America. There are regularly over 40,000 attendees who pitch up to hear his sermons. This is quite a responsibility. Especially considering Hebrews 13:17, which warns that pastors will give an account for each soul in their flock and the injunction in James 3:1 that Bible teachers will incur a stricter... Continue Reading

A novel and disjointed schooling produces a novel and disjointed disciple. This is an unwanted success. If a disciple’s schooling is a jumble of disparate parts, the disciple does not fail to become a jumble himself, no less vulnerable to embracing contradictions and innovations than when he first began.   It is possible to make... Continue Reading

The graying of the American pastorate did not start in the 1990s, however. More than half of all Protestant clergy (55 percent) were younger than 45 in 1968. This year, only 22 percent of pastors are under 45. The church has gone from a time when a majority of leaders were in their 20s, 30s,... Continue Reading

Indeed, in some quarters today, even as we just celebrated the 500th anniversary of the Reformation, there were leading evangelical and even Reformed and Presbyterian Christians advocating a doctrine of two-stage salvation or justification. An initial justification by grace alone, through faith alone, and then a so-called “final salvation” or “final justification” through faith and... Continue Reading

So yes, I get it. I understand why churches offer only Sunday school or only small groups. In different seasons of life and ministry, I’ve thought about punting either discipleship classes or small groups in our church. But after nearly a decade of ministry in our church, I’ve seen the fruit of offering both discipleship classes and... Continue Reading

Evangelicalism is different. Its most recent origins in the 1940s point to a movement that attempted to unite Protestants outside the mainline churches into some sort of organizational order for the sake of restoring Christianity as the vital center of national life. Not only do the earliest documents of the National Association of Evangelicals indicate... Continue Reading