Messianic Secret: Why Did Jesus Quiet People Down About Him?
In what has been called the “Messianic Secret,” Jesus told both demons and people not to tell what they knew about him. Sometimes it was during an exorcism, after a healing, or even after his disciples recognized that he was the Messiah. Why did Jesus want to keep people quiet? Did Jesus want people to...
Daniel McCoy
7 Reasons Some Preachers Avoid Politics in Sermons
Why do some preachers avoid politics in their preaching? Here’s a helpful list… 1. They aren’t very informed. They didn’t major in political science and have never held office. They casually read the news. Would you go to Chuck Todd for an exegesis of 1 Thessalonians or to Peggy Noonan for an essay on small...
Bob Turner
Why Are We Here? An Exploration of Why Humans Exist
Why are we here? In short, we are here because an eternal God created us, so that we might be in union with him, and spread his glory. The 20s/30s ministry at my church is going through Mark Moore’s book Core 52 for the next year, in an effort to increase biblical literacy. To assist...
Gavin Andrews
What God Showed Me in My First Extended Fast
Our church did a 21-day fast in January. As I prepared for the fast (my first extended one) and prayed about what my focus should be, I asked God to show me areas that I haven’t yet surrendered to him. Several times over the 21 days, I asked the Holy Spirit to help me noticeably...
Holli Turner
Will a Heated Election Melt Your Church?
Church bells have been used throughout church history for various reasons. Church bells have been rung to announce times of prayer, begin church services, mark the hours in a day, and even to announce momentous events for the community. Church bells have been used to announce a person’s death and to encourage people to pray...
Daniel McCoy
10 Reasons to Send a Student to Christian College for a Year
I have met innumerable donors, volunteers, lifelong ministers, and other Christian leaders who have this in common: They attended a Christian college planning to stay only for a year, and the experience changed their lives for the better. Several of these individuals stuck to their original plan and switched to a secular university after a year,...
David Fincher
Did Jesus really exist? Don’t we have just untrustworthy copies of copies of copies of the Gospels?
Did Jesus really exist? Although some scholars have questioned Jesus’ existence, we actually have remarkable evidence for the historicity of Jesus. In addition, there is remarkable evidence that what we have access to today in the New Testament is a reliable witness to the message about Jesus. In this article, I’m going to answer a...
Richard Knopp
Who Was Joshua in the Bible? 10 Leadership Habits from the Life of Joshua
Who was Joshua in the Bible? Joshua was a national leader and military commander in ancient Israel. As Moses’ aide and successor, Joshua finished what God started through Moses: leading the liberated Israelites to settle in the Canaanite land God had promised them. Although a book in the Bible is named after him, Joshua shows...
Daniel McCoy
Postmodern Theories Playing Out in Today’s World
How are postmodern theories playing out in today’s world? The theories of postmodernism explain the shift from seeking truth in objective reality to defining truth according to subjective experience. Postmodernism reacts against notions of objective truth and scientific progress by treating such claims with suspicion. Beginning in philosophy lectures by French Theorists, postmodernism is now...
William Dyer
Discipling Children: Providing for the Plant (Part 2)
This is the second in a three-part series on parenting, outlining three phases of discipleship in our children. Plant the Seeds: Discipleship by Planting Seeds of Stability Provide for the Plant: Discipleship by Supportive Relationships & Training Protect the Future: Discipleship by Influence In the previous article, I wrote about the first stage of parenting,...
Renée Sproles
Sermon on the Mount: Mammon
“No one can serve two masters. Either you will hate the one and love the other, or you will be devoted to the one and despise the other. You cannot serve both God and money.” (Matt. 6:24) I like Dave Ramsey’s program. I also get that the title “Financial Peace” is a lot catchier than...
Jeremy Bacon
Navigating the Valley of the Shadow of Death
Psalm 23 is one of the most famous passages of Scripture. You can find these poetic lines everywhere, from sermons to pop songs, tattoos to funerals. The psalm is relatable because everyone experiences pain, suffering, loss, and death. At one point or another, we inevitably ask, “How do I navigate the valley of the shadow...
Joshua Branham
Deconstructing the God of Sexual Identity
What follows is the manuscript of a sermon delivered in Ozark Christian College’s chapel on 2/25/2021. I feel some conflict this morning. It is a strange thing to be asked to preach about a god you no longer believe in. I’m not sure I ever actually believed in this god. There was a time I...
Chad Ragsdale
Leader’s Guide for the Real Life Theology Handbook
This is a free eBook to go along with the Real Life Theology Handbook by Daniel McCoy and Andrew Jit. It walks you through how to set up a discipleship group using the RLT Handbook. This eBook walks you through……
Renew.org
12 Key Prayer Points for Disciple Making Movements
Effectiveness in prayer is often related to knowing what to ask. This is the list of the top twelve prayer points used by Shodankeh Johnson and others in movements in West Africa. Pray… 1. For God to send laborers into the harvest field. For an increase in disciple-makers and intercessors. He told them, “The harvest...
Shodankeh Johnson
3 Decisions when Starting at a New Church
Walking into a new job can be exhilarating and exhausting. You have so many hopes and dreams as you are expectant of what God is going to do. With fresh eyes on the scene, it is easy to see everything that you think needs to be fixed. You notice all of the changes you want...
Matt Stieger