Bees in My Bonnet

Recently a friend posted this meme on Facebook: I couldn't just scroll by, as some would have suggested I do (surprise, surprise!)  I felt someone needed to address the obvious (well, it was obvious to me anyways...)  And I suppose that someone had to be me.  So, I post, for your reading pleasure (and my venting need) my dialogue and a few of the comments others put (hope they don't mind!): A person by the name of Kyle wrote:   Biblical Jesus is hard core and is all about the truth, and modern Jesus is about the feels and about making faith about you instead of him. I hope to see more people respond to biblical Jesus. So I said: May I remind you He was full of grace and truth - not solely about truth to the exclusion of 'the feels', as you call them. Biblical Jesus is God incarnate who is described to us as full of compassion. 'He looked at him and loved him' 'Jesus wept' 'Jer usalem, how I have longed to gather you...' It is appare...

A Word about the Preacher Before continuing, let me add the side-note that it is not merely the text of Scripture that matters in preaching, but the one delivering the message as well. In order to integrate the mind’s understanding of the Word and the heart’s response, the one delivering the message ought to have first encountered similar delight in preparation to deliver the message. In her book, Storytelling Laura Emerson says, “ Be wholehearted and enthusiastic. Don’t tell things without making them real.” Emerson taught that “Nothing great was ever achieved without enthusiasm.” Impression precedes expression…When you are intimate with the characters and the sequence of events and catch the spirit of the narrative, storytelling will become the spontaneous outpouring of this experience.” Obviously there is more to Biblical preaching than storytelling. But these thoughts could be true of preaching – the impact of preaching will be far greater if the one delivering ...

Preaching in the Local Church “All Scripture is God-breathed and is useful for teaching, rebuking, correcting and training in righteousness, so that the man of God may be thoroughly equipped for every good work. In the presence of God and of Christ Jesus, who will judge the living and the dead, and in view of his appearing and his kingdom, I give you this charge: Preach the Word; be prepared in season and out of season; correct, rebuke and encourage – with great patience and careful instruction.” 2 Timothy 3:16-4:2 The New Testament here commands that the Word be preached in the environment of the community of faith, namely, the Local Church. The ‘ Ekklesia’ or ‘gathering’ of believers is to be a community that revolves around the teachings, person and work of the Lord Jesus Christ. The Church gathers out of obedience to the Lord, primarily to remember Him in worship. As worship is the purpose for the Church gathering, preaching can be seen as a part of corpora...