Over the past three years, I've been asked a variety of questions about law school and how it relates to pastoral ministry. Most of these questions, however, revolve around two issues. First, people want to know HOW someone can be both a lawyer and a pastor. For many people, this is a moral question. That... Continue Reading →
Here is a video providing a brief explanation and example of why and how I use the public reading of scripture in worship. For more information, check out my blogs on the public reading of the bible and how to use the public reading with the sermon.
Micah and His Personal Priest: When every man creates his own religion. (Judges 17:1-18:31)WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT? Micah, whose name ironically means, “Who is like Yahweh,” ignores the religious precepts revealed by God and attempts to establish his own cultic system. First, he had idols built with money that had been dedicated to the LORD.... Continue Reading →
If I could turn back time (an old 80s song just popped into my head), I would have a lot to tell the younger me. Although there are some clear advantages to being a young man, those strengths cannot compare to the wisdom that one acquires throughout life. One of the downsides to being young... Continue Reading →
WHAT’S IT ALL ABOUT? As the cycle of rebellion, oppression, and deliverance continues, a new deliverer is introduced: Gideon, the farmer. The Midianites and Amalekites raids of Israelite farmlands caused Gideon to hide in a winepress to beat out his wheat, which certainly makes him look like a coward. However, when the angel of the... Continue Reading →
The Minor Prophets (“The Twelve”) as One Book[1] In the Hebrew canon of Scripture, the modern thirty-nine books of the Old Testament were categorized as twenty-four books. The twelve books commonly referred to as “The Minor Prophets” were arranged in the Hebrew Bible to function as one book that unfolded in twelve parts (cf. Acts... Continue Reading →
1. The sovereignty of God[1]: As the One who empowers both the oppressors and the deliverers, the LORD demonstrates His unquestionable control over human history. The contemporary reader may struggle with the notion that God uses unbelievers to discipline His people or, worse, that He would allow and instruct Israel to go to war against... Continue Reading →
What is Poimenology? On the one hand, it is a word that I made up by adding the Koine Greek word for pastor (ποιμήν or ποιμένα, lit. shepherd) to the scientific phrase "ology," which means "the study of" a field or discipline. Conversely, I believe that as a field of study pastoral ministry has been erroneously... Continue Reading →
Who tempted the man and woman to disobey God by eating of the forbidden tree? Although popular Christian authors often take for granted the identity of Eden’s serpent, some scholars believe that the serpent is either Satan[1] himself or at least a representation of Satan.[2] This view suggests that the modern reader should assume the... Continue Reading →
