As we draw closer to God’s heart, the journey of sanctification is more likely to engage our hearts when we realize the much bigger love story of what God wants in our relationship with Him — a sacred romance with us. Appreciating his unending love can arouse our hearts to participate more in the joy of sharing his love with others. We are part of something much bigger — the greatest love story ever told.
Read MoreSanctification is the journey of being drawn closer to God. It is not an accomplishment we achieve on our own. The Holy Spirit is the key actor. So what is our part in the process of sanctification?
Read MoreHow are pastors and churches key to helping believers grow closer to God and growing in their sanctification?
Read MoreThink of your life with God as a journey. Your ultimate destination is the Celestial City in eternity. In this life, what’s the next step you aspire to in being drawn closer to God? In Paul’s terms, what more of Christ’s full stature will you reach for? In Luther’s terms, where would you like to see your new nature in Christ become stronger and what of your old sinful nature would you like drowned out?
Read MoreWe can probably all agree the world is changing and poses a real threat to the advancement of the kingdom if we as the church become irrelevant to the changing environment. So what do we do?
Read MoreThe purpose of sanctification is not to win God’s favor to get into heaven; Christ already took care of that. Today a hunger for “getting into heaven” is no longer prevalent in our current society. But there is great hunger for the fuller, more abundant life that Jesus came to offer in this life we are living now. To become more like Christ is the goal of sanctification. It conveys movement from far away to very close. Promoting such growth provides practical goals for ministry.
Read MoreAt Christmas, we love to sing Oh, Come, Oh Come, Immanuel. We celebrate that God is with us. This Christmas, ponder how much of God is with us in the baby born in Bethlehem. For Christians in the earliest centuries, this was a serious theological issue.
Read MoreChurch attendance took a heavy hit during the pandemic. Will involvement ever go back to pre-pandemic levels? The pressure is on now for churches to demonstrate that they offer something beyond what other cultural institutions can do.
Read MoreWhat the Bible says remains central. Do you want the Gospel to have a greater impact on people’s lives? Start with specifics, then add reflection and theory. Is the old approach of starting first with biblical theory easier? Definitely. But that leads to the question of how important it is to be effective in your ministry. Which approach can be best used by the Spirit to touch and change lives?
Read MoreSpiritual Enlightenment happens when switches get turned on. Ministry is all about finding those Spiritual switches that work for people at various stages and situations in life.
Read MoreHow do we change the culture of our church so we are illuminated by the Holy Spirit’s enlightenment? How does that happen through the ministries of a church? And what actions can we take that make it easier for the Spirit to touch hearts and turn bulbs on bright? Can we identify things we do that get in the way of the flow of Spiritual energy, that keep the switch turned low?
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