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When the Church Isn’t so Welcoming
Lamin Sanneh, the African theologian who would be pivotal in the development of missional theology, was raised in an orthodox Muslim household in Gambia. He found himself drawn to Christianity after e... -
liturgy
Lord, you whose Son did pray that all
Lord, you whose Son did pray that all your children might be one, we come with repentance for the sin of useless division and for the secret vice of pride. We beg forgiveness for harsh judgment, for p... -
Quote
God’s vision for his people is not for the elimination of ethnicity to form a colorblind uniformity of sanctified blandness. Instead God sees the creation of a community of different cultures united b... -
illustration
The Diversity of the Early Church
So if we want to get the church right, we have to learn to see it as a salad in a bowl, made the Right Way of course. For a good salad is a fellowship of different tastes, all mixed together with the ... -
scripture guide
Scripture Guide, Acts 9:36-43
Ancient Lens What can we learn from the historical context? A Diverse Early Church From the start, the early church was a mix of people from different backgrounds, traditions, and classes. We se... -
Quote
Today, unlike almost any other earlier period, the money and the strong educational institutions of Christianity are in one part of the world, while a majority of the active believers are located else... -
lectionary
Fourth Sunday of Easter
Ancient Lens What can we learn from the historical context? A Diverse Early Church From the start, the early church was a mix of people from different backgrounds, traditions, and classes. We... -
illustration
God Dislikes Uniformity
The South African politician Nic Diederichs—a prominent leader during the apartheid era—once made a rather provocative observation: God, he said, dislikes deadly uniformity. I hate to admit that I lik... -
illustration
Three Ways to Make a Salad
There are three ways to eat a salad: the American Way; the Weird Way, and the Right Way. The American Way of eating a salad is to fill your bowl with some iceberg lettuce or some spinach leaves, some ... -
lectionary
Sixth Sunday of Easter
Context This week’s reading from Acts recounts the call to Paul on his second missionary journey to go to Macedonia and his encounter with Lydia in Philippi. Textual Context The structure of the B... -
scripture guide
Scripture Guide, Acts 16:9-15
Context This week’s reading from Acts recounts the call to Paul on his second missionary journey to go to Macedonia and his encounter with Lydia in Philippi. Textual Context The structure of the B... -
Quote
The membership of every local church is no accident; it is by divine design. There is no one there who is a spare part, a third foot, or second nose. There is no one there who is not necessary, or who... -
illustration
Welcoming Children is Like Welcoming Jesus Himself
Just this morning, my family attended church with our son who has autism. He was particularly enthused by the music today, and he was moving around quite a bit. A man in the choir noticed our son, and... -
Quote
All of life is political-incorporating the themes of power, interests, negotiation, and ethics. -
Quote
The majority of church members need to be involved in the change or it will soon produce resistance. -
liturgy
Make Us Your Children
Heavenly One, Your reach extends to every person, every nation, offering grace, forgiveness, and hope. A saving embrace drawing us to you and each other. Make us your children: grateful for a place at... -
Quote
Church is not an organization you join; it is a family where you belong, a home where you are loved and a hospital where you find healing. -
Quote
In most cases, the existing church culture is from a former era that is only meaningful to those in the church, not those in the community. -
lectionary
10th Sunday after Pentecost
Preaching Commentary Background to the Letter and Passage Paul’s letter to the Ephesians was probably intended for wider distribution and use among the various churches around Ephesus. As such, the... -
illustration
Excluding Sinners is Excluding God
There is a story of a public sinner who was excommunicated and forbidden from entering the church, He took his woes to God. "They won't let me in, Lord, because I am a sinner." "W... -
Quote
The church-community . . . is conceived of as a single life to such an extent that none of its members could be imagined apart from it. But in the church-community every member is moved by the Holy Sp... -
Quote
We have been so soaked in the individualism of modern Western culture that we feel threatened by the idea of our primary identity being that of the family we belong to-especially when the family in qu... -
Quote
[Culture is] The collective programming of the mind that distinguishes the members of one group or category of people from others. -
Quote
As a missionary … it was always comforting to realize that I did not bring God along with my physical and cultural baggage to my new host country. -
illustration
Just as I Ain’t
I grew up attending churches designed for church people. No one said it, but the assumption was that church was for church people. The unspoken message to the outside world was, “Once you start believ... -
Quote
The body of Christ is a multicultural citizenry of an otherworldly kingdom. -
Quote
We must re-grasp the idea of church membership as being the membership of the body of Christ and as the biggest honour which can come man's way in this world. -
blog
We are Better Together: Moving from Empire to Kingdom
A Multi-faceted Church Who loses by the church and parachurch’s lack of unity and cooperation? Absolutely everyone : congregations, ministry organizations, ministry leaders, individual believers . .... -
Quote
We believe that the gospel is best lived out when churches are firmly rooted in their surrounding community's culture. -
Quote
Social responsibility becomes an aspect not of Christian mission only, but also of Christian conversion. It is impossible to be truly converted to God without being thereby converted to our neighbor.
![[Culture is] The collective programming](https://images.unsplash.com/photo-1544550285-bb77ca19c0e8?ixid=M3w1NzU0OTZ8MHwxfHNlYXJjaHwxfHxDdWx0dXJlfGVufDF8Mnx8fDE3MTA1MzQwNzR8MA&ixlib=rb-4.0.3&q=80&auto=compress&fit=crop&w=200&h=200)
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