What I’m more interested in though is the gap between this list of bestselling Christian books, and the evangelical online writing economy. Put simply, the contrast between the work that outsells all other work in Christian bookstores and the work that drives traffic and conversation in the evangelical blogosphere is astonishing. The two worlds look nothing alike. When was the last time you saw an article on your social media written in the first person voice of Jesus, assuring readers of prosperity and emotional centeredness?

Renewed emphasis on practical ministries. Many of our churches have gone through a period of theological recovery for which I am very grateful. Now the leaders want to know the “how” along with the “what.” They are looking for practical solutions built on biblical truths.   For those who read my blog regularly, you know... Continue Reading

“The earliest church was seen as too exclusive and a threat to the social order because it would not honor all deities; today Christians are again being seen exclusive and a threat to the social order because we will not honor all identities.”   Many say that Christians who maintain the historic, traditional doctrines are behind the... Continue Reading

He joined the faculty in 2006 after several years of teaching at Southwestern Baptist Theological Seminary, and he served for several years as Assistant and later Associate Professor of Systematic Theology. In fall 2012 he took on administrative duties as Academic Dean, and his service in that role involved the addition of three new faculty... Continue Reading

Every preacher has been there. We can sense we are loosing our people and we still have 10 minutes left in the sermon. We want to make sure we give adequate time to the preaching of God’s word, but this principle to leave them longing for a bit more, is a good goal to pursue. I would rather leave my people in a place where they wanted just a little more, verses exasperating them with too much.

Pope Francis and his cardinal allies have been known to interfere with CDF's judgments on abuse cases. This intervention has become so endemic to the system that cases of priestly abuse in Rome are now known to have two sets of distinctions. The first is guilty or innocent. The second is "with cardinal friends" or "without cardinal friends."

Let’s be clear. The Bible in general and the book of Acts in particular records and affirms the expected and desired dynamic of statistical growth in and through Gospel healthy churches… and so do we. But whenever statistical growth becomes the focused objective of a church’s ministry (instead of a valued consequence of its ministry), it is simply a... Continue Reading

Episcopal bishop John Shelby Spong, author of Why Christianity Must Change or Die, was among those who argued that churches should become more liberal in order to survive. But Haskell says his research was definitive: “Conservative Protestant theology, with its more literal view of the Bible, is a significant predictor of church growth while liberal theology... Continue Reading

“Pastors, elders, and deacons – we who have been called to leadership but have lost our consuming passion for Christ – what will we do today? We need not retire. Instead, we need to repent. Jesus waits with open arms, tear-filled eyes, and words of forgiveness, and words of encouragement for us to get up and continue... Continue Reading

“The idea that a good church member is someone who’s there every Sunday, at small group every Wednesday, and active in another area of service, is an assumption at which we need to pause. For some people, that’s a very reasonable or even light expectation. For others (let’s say, the single mother), simply to make... Continue Reading