In this life, there are many different sources from which one can draw their identity. In past weeks I wrote on the worldly sources of our stuff, and our actions. If these common sources are not where we should be seeking our identity then where should we look?

The obvious Sunday School answer is that we should find our identity in Christ. This sounds like a great answer, but what exactly does it look like? Continue reading →

In my last post, I wrote about finding my identity based on my stuff. It was a large shift for me to realize that my things don’t matter when compared to Christ. Another pitfall I fell into was finding my identity based on what I had done with my life.

This worked very well for me when my life was going well. Every November I write a 50,000 word novel. I used to look to this event as part of my identity. I used to define myself in my other accomplishments too. When my performance review at work was good, I felt like a successful human being. Continue reading →

I worry about the phrase “God is in control” – not because of any theological disagreement, but due to a fear that we, as Christians, can easily become passive when it comes to the injustices around us.

I strongly believe that God is sovereign. God could come in at any moment and fix everything, but that’s not how He chooses to operate the world. He has given us a lot of responsibility. His creation has been seized by evil spiritual forces who seek to destroy His plan for the world. Continue reading →

This is the second part of my study of contextualization, specifically of the Gospel. Check out the first half here.

In his sermon a few weeks ago, Jared broke down how Paul breaks down the gospel differently for a different culture while visiting the Greek city of Athens. His spirit was “provoked” by all the idols in the city, so the text says, “he reasoned in the synagogue with both Jews and God-fearing Greeks, as well as in the marketplace day by day with those who happened to be there.” In this one verse Paul covers his bases; he goes to the synagogue (a place of learning and religious teaching) to reason with both Jews and Gentiles (that is, all the learned people in the city) as well as the marketplace with men-on-the-street. (I imagine Paul doing one of those news pieces where he walks around a city interviewing random passersby and asking, “What do you think of the Gospel of Jesus Christ?”) Through this debating he catches the eye of some Stoic and Epicurean philosophers who want to hear his teaching, giving him the perfect opportunity to preach the Gospel to them. Continue reading →

All my life I’ve struggled with one central question: Who am I?

I’ve spent my 25 years on this earth finding my identity and purpose in various ways – not all of them healthy. Today begins a three part series on the sources of our identity. Is it based on stuff, accomplishments, or Christ? Continue reading →

This Palm Sunday we heard a special sermon from Hope’s church-planter-in-residence, Jared Daugherty, and it really resonated with me. Keeping with the theme of the church he will be planting this Fall, he preached from Acts 17:16-34 about the provocative, revolutionary message of the Gospel, which contains one of the most detailed depictions in Paul’s ministry of an effective gospel presentation. I’m not going to spend time summarizing the sermon (which can be listened to here), but will instead focus on one of the main themes of Jared’s sermon that I’ve been feeling particularly strongly about lately: contextualizing the Gospel. Continue reading →