My recent post about the place of experience generated some conversation over on Facebook, and it reminded me how compelling personal experience is in forming one’s theological convictions. A couple of friends mentioned specific types of experience that cannot and ought not be ignored, including experience that can challenge long and deeply held theological convictions. […]
When I was growing up in church, I learned that what we believed was certain, so much so that we wondered how it was that anyone could doubt. This was so ingrained in my thinking that I recall reacting with shock when I read that evangelical Christianity, the kind that had shaped me, fell into […]
I think the problem is that familiarity really does breed contempt. What do I mean? When I joined the Mennonite Brethren, I was attracted by what I knew about the denomination, but I realized that there was much I did not yet know. Happy to learn that the MBs had a long tradition of theological […]
I didn’t grow up among the Mennonite Brethren. I was a pastor’s son in a number of Baptist denominations. I went to a Baptist seminary, and did my graduate studies at an Anglican college, while a member of an Alliance church. So how did I end up teaching theology among the MBs? Well, first, I […]
My last post about the problems of seeing Scripture as a repository of propositional truth about God evoked questions that asked for examples, and one area of interest seems to be faithful sexual practice. My comments and opinions are my own, and they relate only to sexual practice among people who profess to be followers […]
When Paul refers to being “transformed by the renewing of your mind,” he is talking about a couple of things — first of all, he is talking about transformation from the inside out, rather than legalistic or ritualistic works. Doing the “right things” gets you nowhere if it is not empowered by the inner transformation that […]
Paul’s about the church as the Great Collective thought continues in verse 2: “Do not be conformed to this world . . .” J.B. Phillips paraphrased this verse in his translation of the NT as “Don’t let the world around you squeeze you into its own mould . . .” Note that this is a […]
In biblical teaching about Christian discipleship, we are accustomed to hearing about the Great Commission (Matthew 28) and the Great Commandment (Matthew 22). These two great teachings identify the inner and outer directions of obedience to Christ. I’d like to introduce a third great teaching into your theological consciousness – the Great Collective. It is […]
What Are You Thinking? 