My posts in this series are a bit... all over the place. However, I hope it makes sense when I talk about what I call my call to ministry. But before I do, I would like to talk about the third aspect of one's Call to Ministry. SELF To what extent is a call to …
Category: Commentary
Exploring the “Call to Ministry.” Part 2
I am continuing my discussion on the "Call to Ministry" where I am assuming three aspects--- God, Church, and Self. My last post I talked about the Divine (God) aspect. I will move on here. CHURCH The seminary I teach at speaks of developing Christian leaders from those who are "God Called, Church Affirmed." There …
Exploring the “Call to Ministry.” Part 1
I would like to suggest that there are (potentially) three major components to a Call to Ministry. These three are not independent of each other. Therefore, they are shown like a Venn Diagram. I would like to explore each part separately, with some acknowledgement of the interrelations that may be relevant. GOD Many would argue …
In Ministry, People are More Important than Institutions
Having served on the pastoral staff (relatively briefly) of a couple of churches, ran a Christian counseling center (for much longer), and served on the faculty of multiple seminaries, I have seen the recurring struggle over what is more important, people or institutions. When counseling one or two members of a marriage--- should one focus …
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What Makes Pastoral Care and Counseling “Pastoral”?
I am teaching an online class, "Introduction to Pastoral Care and Counseling" for seminary students in Sierra Leone. The students had a great question: Why call it "Pastoral Care and Counseling"? Why not simply call it "Care and Counseling"? This is a more fleshed-out version of my response to the class. "Pastoral" comes from the …
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Foreign Missionary Thoughts on Leviticus 19:33-34
<I took a break from posting to clean up my old posts. I have gone through all of my posts from the beginning in 2009 to the end of 2012. I deleted around 100, and touched up the rest.> Leviticus 19:33-34 seems to have become a popular verse recently, at least in the United States. …
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HALF in Agreement That the Sermon on the Mount is Not for Today.
I have been a bit surprised at a pattern I have seen recently, especially among American Evangelicals. I see a trend of these Christians (and I generally can be described as an American Evangelical) have with the message(s) of the Sermon on the Mount (Matthew chapters 5-7). First, though, I should note an older view …
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Gehazi the Complicated
I think most Christians would kind of like the Bible to be written more like a Charles Dickens novel. I mean that in terms of characters. Dickens wrote social commentary with numerous characters. In this sense, his novels share something with much of the Bible. A big difference is that Dickens uses pretty simple characters. …
Slavery and Hermeneutics
I don't normally point people to someone else's article, but I will today. William Wade Burleson, wrote a great article, sharing it on FB, strangely, addressing the issue of female clergy. He links the hermeneutics of this issue with that of slavery. He was not relabeling or equivocating. Rather, he was noting the similarity in …
Theology and Three Sources of Truth
Where does theology come from? Many would say that it comes from the Bible. However, the Bible is not a theological work--- it is a work of revelation. Theology is first interpreted (Hermeneutics), and this should be done based on what it says in the context of it being originally said (Grammatical-Historical Exegesis). But theology …