"Ready for Harvest," a Christian Youtube channel did a community poll regarding the following statement, ""It was necessary for Jesus to become man because without becoming man He could not overcome sin in the flesh and thereby gain victory over Satan." I am not sure if this is a direct quote from somewhere--- on a …
Continue reading Reflections on Sci-fi Aliens and the Incarnation (Part One)
I almost hate writing that title. I am involve in Pastoral Counseling, and there are so many people who come up with some principles or methods of counseling and label them as "Biblical" often meaning nothing more than that they have linked them to a few key Bible verses. Alternatively, it can mean even less …
Continue reading Maybe We Can Work on a More Biblically Sound Missiology…
I was talking to a couple of colleagues at seminary recently who were speaking of how a major university near us in Baguio City, Philippines, is really focusing on "Decolonization" as it pertains to Anthropology, among many other things. My immediate response was to be pretty skeptical. I think this is largely because of my …
Continue reading What Would a “Decolonization” of Missions Anthropology Look Like?
I believe every person in this room can be a missionary. In fact, I believe that each of you here, if you are a follower of Christ, already is a missionary. The question here is what type of missionary are you, or will you be? CALL I rarely use the term “Call to Missions” For …
When it comes to English translations of the Bible, I can be pretty broad-minded. I can appreciate the historical treasures that are the King James 1611 and the Geneva 1599... even though I would rarely use them (since I don't speak that language). I can appreciate the likes of The Message, The Amplified Bible, or …
So I was listening to "Theology in the Raw" (Preston Sprinkle's podcast) in an interview of Nijay Gupta. Gupta has recently published a book, "Strange Religion: How the the First Christians Were Weird, Dangerous, and Compelling." I have only read a tiny bit of the book so far, but it looks very interesting. During the …
Continue reading Is the Primary Purpose of Church to Worship God… Really?
Samuel Munson (born 1804) and his fellow companion Henry Lyman (born 1809) were early American missionaries to Sumatra. In their first year, they were killed by Batak tribesmen in 1834. I have been asked more than once if I am related to Samuel Munson since I am a missionary in Southeast Asia and have the …
Continue reading Quote on Death of Samuel Munson— no relation
A friend of mine shared on Facebook a post expressing concern that many foreign missionaries are not actively involved in local churches-- that is, local churches in the area where they serve. He expressed it in terms of missionaries actively planting local churches should feel driven to "plant themselves" in local churches. In general I …
Continue reading How Involved Should Missionaries Be with Local Churches?
Many expect have seen the news that former US president, Donald Trump, is selling a Bible called the "God Bless America " Bible. Apparently, it costs US$59.99. This seems for a KJV (public domain) Bible. However, I suppose that is not a key thing. <I have to be cautious on this. I am "anti-partisan" in …
.... lA] scripture can function directly by itself operating as the instrument of transformation. It is “as if divinity indwelt the words and caused them, through articulation of them, to bring about altered states of being.” Here, scripture becomes “incantatory or sacramental.” Typically, this is how the shrŭti canon of Hinduism works, as also the …