Browse Archives
Check out news and opinion posts across the years
The Face in the Sky
A sermon by Keith Herron, Pastor, Holmeswood Baptist Church, Kansas City, Mo. The Fourth Sunday of Advent Luke 2:8-12 December 22, 2014 Isaiah 7:10-16; Psalm 80:1-7, 17-19; Romans 1:1-7; Matthew 1:18-25 Here’s Barbara...
In our world …
I don't have many Christmas traditions, but there is one thing I try to do every year: at some point during the Christmas season, I watch Emmett Otter's Jugband Christmas. The 48-minute muppet special first aired in...
What Are You Watching This Christmas?
A few Sundays ago, I came to see the Christmas story in a new light. My sister sent me a page from her daily devotional guide written by Gina Bridgeman, who pointed out that key players in the Christmas story were...
For Struggling Millennials, 14 Christmas Truths
Research suggests that trust in the church is rapidly declining, and that millennials – roughly those in their 20s and early 30s – have trouble connecting to church today. They don't feel free to ask real questions and...
How You Can Help Create a World of Forgiveness
In the familiar Christmas story in Luke's Gospel, the angels announce to the shepherds: "Glory to God in the highest, and on earth peace, good will toward men" (Luke 2:14). In a world of constant rivalry and...
4 Ways That You Serve as a Priest
Protestants emphasize the priesthood of all believers, the notion that we are all called to be a "royal priesthood" (1 Peter 2:9), but do we practice being "priests" in our daily lives? When it comes to priests in...
Lebanon’s Syrian Refugees Fighting Harsh Winter
Conditions are deteriorating in east Lebanon's Bekaa Valley and the surrounding area. One snowstorm has ended and another is forecast to begin soon, further chilling the already frozen Syrian refugees in Bekaa Valley....
What It Could Mean to Keep Christ in Christmas
An atheist group put up a billboard near Philadelphia with the message "Keep Saturn in Saturnalia." It was their anemic attempt to fuel the "war on Christmas" by countering a billboard sponsored by the Knights of...
More, and more …
After living in North Carolina for 34 years, I finally got around to visiting the Biltmore House, famously known as America's largest private home. At 250 rooms and almost 180,000 square feet, the French Renaissance...
Why Your Church’s Youth Ministry Matters
Like many, I find Rachel Held Evans to be a thought-provoking writer. I recently came across a post on her blog titled "It's a Miracle Any of Us Survived Youth Group." It was a Twitter compendium of games played in...
Evangelism by Millennials Is On the Rise, Study Says
Evangelism is a priority for the majority of millennials. Often perceived as focusing on social justice to the neglect of evangelism, millennials – defined by the Barna Group as persons younger than 29 – are more...
Mary’s Song Gives Voice to True Christmas Message
For the last couple of weeks, I've had the Magnificat on my mind – Mary's song in Luke 1.36-46, which she sings after receiving the news of her miraculous (yet scandalous) future. Mary was a lowly peasant girl, living...
A Provision of Hope
A sermon by Michael Cheuk, Pastor, University Baptist Church, Charlottesville, Va. December 15, 2013. Isaiah 11:1-10 In the last week or so, the world has mourned the passing of Nelson Mandela, South Africa’s first...
Opening the Gift of Christmas, Part III: Open Joy
A sermon by Jim Somerville, Pastor, First Baptist Church, Richmond, Va. December 15, 2013 The Third Sunday of Advent Isaiah 35:1-10; Matthew 11:2-11 The people at Coca-Cola seem to think you can “Open Happiness” by...
What You Hear and See
A sermon by Randy Hyde, Pastor, Pulaski Heights Baptist Church, Little Rock, Ar. December 15, 2013 Third Sunday in Advent Isaiah 35:1-10; Matthew 11:2-11 “To the victors belong the spoils.” So it has always been, and...
Reverse Mission: Is It Rhetoric or Reality?
The subject of reverse mission, that is, missionaries and pastors from former mission fields now ministering in Europe and North America, is becoming a phenomenon that is attracting the attention of both academics and...
5 Commitments for a Mutually Submissive Marriage
There's a bumper sticker that says, "Marriage is finding that one special someone you can annoy for the rest of your life." That's funny, in a too-close-to-home kind of way, but it falls a little short of the picture...
Church Closings Bring Sadness, Can Also Bring New Hope
Closing congregations is not taught in seminary. In fact, it tends to be spoken about in hushed tones. As congregations explore the question of closure, I am hopeful such conversation is guided by a commitment to being...
Interpretation gone awry
The appropriately massive memorial service for anti-apartheid activist and former South African president Nelson Mandela monopolized the news Dec. 10, as thousands gathered in a driving rain to hear an ark-load of...
A time, two times, and half a time …
Daniel's cryptic reference to a three-and-a-half year period for the reign of Antiochus Epiphanes comes to mind when I try to get my head around what time it is. It's the last week of the semester and the middle of the...
Piling up
It's the time of the year when things pile up. At Campbell, students walk around like zombies as they complete papers and study for exams. The library is open 24 hours. In homes all around, to-do lists for the...