Calvinist Pastors in the SBC

Here is an interesting story in BP about the number of SBC pastors who espouse Calvinism.

http://www.baptistpress.org/BPnews.asp?ID=26914

Ehrman, Metzger, and the Historical Jesus

Dan Wallace has an interesting take on remarks made by Bart Ehrman at this week's SBL meeting in San Diego. For those ineterested in the historical Jesus, this is well worth the time.

http://www.reclaimingthemind.org/blog/2007/11/19/the-historical-metzger/

Good One

I read this in a sermon lately: "Some church members are B.P.O.--Burial Purposes Only!

[Frank Harrington, "It's Decision Time]

Small Churches

I really appreciate recent blog entries by Rodney Decker and Dave Black on the importance of supporting small churches. Both are members of smaller congregations. I currently do not pastor a small church; our congregation runs between 500 and 600 on Sunday mornings, but for over 20 years I served smaller congregations.

My wife grew up in a small church; her youth group was her and one other for the most part. She does not feel badly that she missed out on VBS every year, nor does she feel slighted about not going to camps and attending the youth events kids in the larger churches take for granted. She fondly remembers growing up in a church where everyone knew and cared for everyone else.

It is getting harder for the smaller church to "compete" with the churches that have the programs and all the bells and whistles. Sometimes smaller churches have a bit of an inferiority complex because they can't offer what the other churches do. Smaller churches, however, have what larger churches primarily do not--intimacy. Everyone knows when you're there and when you're not. You don't have to wonder about names on the prayer list you don't know. You don't have to wonder whose going to minister to you when life is difficult--the church will--all of them.

I'll never forget that when my son was born, everyone and I mean everyone came to our home and celebrated our first child with us. That doesn't happen in larger churches.

I celebrate the small church. My prayer is that in a day when many believers think bigger is better, they'll consider that often that is not the case. Perhaps they need to join or remain in that church with 100 or less. It may not have all the bells and whistles, but when did that matter to God?

Worship

In preparing for a message about worship I came across this quote from Franklin Segler. He writes, "A church can remain alive only as it continually comes to God in worship" [Christian Worship, 73]. Our mission is to make disciples, but our life is worship.

Bad PowerPoint

Got this from the DBO blog. Anyway, I hate PowerPoint; I do think it hurts learning and interaction. Yet, I use it every week in class. Am I a hypocrite? Probably!