Faithful Presence

For those who are passionate about changing the world and making a difference in society, David E. Fitch’s book is a good read.

“Does the church have anything to offer a world full of injustice? Can the church reach out to the worlds around me in a way that doesn’t judge them, alienate them, or ask them in some way to come to us? Can the church engage the hurting, the poor, and the broken with something more than just handouts? We have seen the programs, the missional church, the justice teams, the church in a coffee house or in a bar, and nothing seems to change. Can’t we do all of this better without the church? 

Continue reading Faithful Presence
Advertisement

Don’t Skip the Private Parts

Romans 6:12-14 says, “Let not sin therefore reign in your mortal body, to make you obey its passions. Do not present your members to sin as instruments for unrighteousness, but present yourselves to God as those who have been brought from death to life, and your members to God as instruments for righteousness. For sin will have no dominion over you, since you are not under law but under grace.”

Romans 5 is the ground for Romans 6. Because you have been justified through faith in Christ, you are dead to sin. You are not its slave anymore. You are free. You can now walk in the newness of life. There are two things you can do to apply this verse to your life:

First, do not present your members as instruments of unrighteousness.

Continue reading Don’t Skip the Private Parts

Bible-Quoting Fascists?

A Response to John Nery’s Column at the Inquirer

“How can someone who knows the Bible well enough to quote from it at will—usually from the Old Testament—support the killing of drug suspects or the manifestly unfair shuttering of an entire TV network?” 

That’s how John Nery of Inquirer.net started his column today, July 21. I was intrigued not just because I somehow recognized the Bible-quoting person he was writing about but also because fascism and the Bible don’t usually appear together in the same sentence. 

Continue reading Bible-Quoting Fascists?