On Sunday we looked at Paul’s strong emphasis on community in the local church. He is quite emphatic, emphasizing we—together—must grow up into Christ. That is, the process of maturation happens in community. It is through the church that God matures his people, with the aim of transforming them into the image of Christ. I…

I frequently reference the works of various authors in my sermons. I especially love reading early church fathers who wrote sermons and commentaries on the Scriptures. I recently quoted from the first-century work called “The Didache”, specifically citing the passage “Didache 11:3–6”. In early April I cited the letter to the Corinthians from Clement of…

Last Sunday I was asked about an all-too real scenario: how are we to handle family members who are constantly stirring up trouble? How are we to respond when family members cut us off and later demand to know why we never reach out to them? How are we to live at peace when others…

We’ve all heard of the “80/20” rule. You might not know it has a formal name: the Pareto Principle. This principle states that 80% of effects come from 20% of the causes. For example, 80% of sales might come from 20% of customers or 80% of profits come from 20% of products. We hear of…

It’s easy to look back with hindsight and wonder at the inability of people to see what is plainly obvious to us. For example, in the first century God walked this earth. He had taken on human form and lived as a man, and was eating, sleeping, working, and doing all the things that normal,…