Some time ago, the pastor of a large, metropolitan church called and invited me to breakfast. As we talked, I learned that there was a large group in his church who were experiencing some difficulties with his leadership. He was a strong leader, and his church followed the episcopal church model that has one man as the ultimate decision-maker in the church ministry.  We had been friends for a number of years and had discussed the question of church government previously, always amicably agreeing…

Last week we discussed the differing opinions of John McArthur and Andy Stanley on whether the church should continue to meet, in view of the state’s mandate that they remain closed. We saw that In both cases, their churches fail in following all the biblical parameters of how a church meets. We saw that the Bible teaches that they are to be: 1.) a church that is visible, attendable and available; 2.) a church with intimately related members; 3.) a church where all participate…

Every church in America faces this dilemma. What do we do when the state tells us to close up shop and meet out of doors or online only? There are two famous pastors who are vividly demonstrating the two obvious options. John McArthur in California says, “We will obey God and continue to meet just as God has commanded us. We must obey God rather than man.”  He is doing so with a congregation of thousands, continuing to meet every Sunday morning. Andy Stanley…

I have recently spent some time with a good friend of mine with whom I went to church some years ago. He grew up in the Catholic Church, and, as a young man, was seriously in pursuit of God, even briefly going to seminary to become a priest. He eventually found a vital, living relationship with Jesus, married an evangelical girl, and they have spent the last 35 years as very committed, church-going believers, raising five wonderful children who are now all adults.  As…

It is difficult to come up with an answer to that question. It is amazing how consistent we are. Left to our own devices, we invariably think we have a better idea of how to live than the detailed instructions our Father left for us in the Bible. He told us, in great detail, how families function, how the church meets and is organized, and the task and limits of our civil government. Why is it so hard to just do what Daddy says!…

When I first came to Jesus, as a sophomore at the University of Oklahoma, my primary concern was “What’s in this new relationship with God for me? What has happened to me? What are the implications in my life and my relationships with those around me? How do I continue in this new way of life?” So, initially, the gospel is always, just as it was with me, a “me-centered” gospel. And why not? There is potentially a lot in it for me—forgiveness of…

For the first time in our nation’s history, the independent, separate relationship between church and state in America is in question. Does the state have the power, constitutionally and biblically, to dictate the church’s conduct, even to the extent of shutting it down in cases of real or imagined crisis, as many blue states are doing now?  The First Amendment to the Constitution is clear: “Congress shall make no law respecting (that includes “restricting”) the establishment of religion or prohibiting the free exercise thereof.”…

This is Martin Luther’s Preface to Galatians. God used these truths powerfully in the 16th century to reclaim the gospel which had been lost over the previous centuries. This message, outlined beautifully here, literally ignited the Reformation and summarizes what we discuss weekly on this blog. Preface to Galatians by Martin Luther (Abridgment & Paraphrase by Rev. Tim Keller) The most important thing in the world                              The one doctrine which…

In modern America, the concept of any fixed baseline of eternal truth, outside of yourself, is ridiculed. The postmodern idea of truth as “whatever is right for you” has carried the day. As Christians we know, at least theoretically, that the source of all truth is the fixed, eternal, word of God, but many Christians have been sucked into saying “Yeah, yeah, I know that, but it just makes sense that God smiles on true love, even between homosexuals, and they should be allowed…

We have seen that God’s plan for each of us is to be involved, in some way, in the civil government. It is essential, because it is one of the three institutions through which we will establish Jesus’ rule over the earth. We begin our involvement by voting—the entry level job. Over 3000 years ago, Moses’ father-in-law, Jethro, introduced to Moses the concept of civil governing by a carefully qualified, increasingly authoritative, plurality of leadership. Today, Jethro’s idea of governmental authority forms the basis…