Think Theology

If I had a dollar for every time that someone said they had a “prayer request” or a “concern” about someone, and then they proceeded to gossip and slander another fellow Christian, I really do think I’d be rich beyond belief. It has, quite frankly, occurred around me my entire life. I don’t believe I’ve [...]

“Our need for community is more and more obvious today. The breakdown of the traditional family and the desire to be part of something greater than ourselves are motivating many disciples to get reconnected. We’re remembering that God himself is the ultimate three-in-one community: Father, Son, and Holy Spirit. Many of us have been following [...]

“Although trying to cool their ardor for congregational tongues-speaking, Paul does not disparage the gift itself; rather, he seeks to put it in its rightful place. Positively, he says three things about speaking in tongues, which are best understood in light of the further discussion on prayer and praise in vv. 13-17: (1) Such a [...]

We live in a day when it’s hard to tell the difference between truth and error. Why is that? Because we have fallen prey to the Postmodern philosophy that says words don’t matter very much. This relativistic attitude has infiltrated the church so that people can say one thing and do another and no one [...]

Here’s a humorous look at church that makes me ask the question: How much of our Christianity is real and how much of it is just a show? “Sunday’s Coming” Movie Trailer from North Point Media on Vimeo.

Previously, we focused on clarifying the views of Believer’s Baptism regarding mode (i.e., What is baptism? How should baptism be done? etc.). Here, we’ll highlight this view’s understanding on the meaning of baptism. The Meaning of Baptism: Why is baptism important? While we turn to the New Testament to discover the meaning of baptism, we [...]

The subject of baptism has divided many Christians, which is unfortunate. But controversy is essential where truth is rejected or distorted (e.g., in matters related to Christology and the gospel). Controversy is also deadly to Christian fellowship when disagreeing about truth dominates magnifying truth. However, many Christians feel threatened when they are confronted with controversial [...]

There’s an interesting article in Christianity Today – Should Multisite Campuses Be Church Plants Instead? I’ve been intrigued by this very question for about a year now. Some of my favorite preachers happen to pastor congregations that are expressed through multisite campuses. I’ve even had the pleasure of worshiping at a few gatherings that were [...]

Sola Scriptura…one of the cornerstones of the Reformation that continues to be at the heart of most of the disagreements between the Protestant and Catholic/Orthodox churches even today.  But while most Protestants would argue vehemently for Sola Scriptura, how many truly live it day to day in their understanding of the faith and scriptures? One [...]

Some things are very timely. I just read an interesting bit of advice from Kevin DeYoung, author of Why We’re Not Emergent: By Two Guys Who Should Be. DeYoung gives nine steps to follow when you are concerned about issues in your local church (DeYoung’s thoughts are here). DeYoung is commenting specifically in regards to [...]

After a couple months of polling, we have some results. The question for our poll was, How big is “too big” for “church”? And I am pleased with the results! The majority of folks said that it depended on the leadership (50%) or that it depended upon the situation (33%). I wholeheartedly agree. Some people [...]

[Editor's note: The following essay is printed with permission. Pastor Pribble is a fantastic man of God who I had the honor of talking to on the phone for a few short minutes. Not only did he give me permission to reprint this, we had a great conversation. I'm interested to know what others think about [...]

In the last two years I have become more interesed in a subject that I previously had little interest in and very little time for - leadership! The amount of books written on the subect is amazing; the ministries dedicated to this subject overwhelming; and the self-proclaimed specialists disturbing. Let’s face it, the subject is getting [...]

While we continue our previous discussion on the subjects of Church History and Historical Theology, make sure to click on the Peanuts cartoon on the left. It is hilarious! Anyway, there is much that we, the Body of Christ, can learn from our extensive history and we would be foolish to overlook the rich resource that [...]

I’m in the midst of writing an essay on the nature of the Church, specifically hoping to address what exactly the church is and I thought it’d be fun to get the opinions of everyone here. I guess I need a break from my research and writing. So the question is: What is the Church? [...]

[Editor's note: I'm reposting this in order to stimulate further conversation, especially in light of how important this subject is] Several months ago we spent time working through 1 Corinthians 12-14. Within this “Early Church Worship Guide,” we clearly find the apostle Paul writing, “So, my brothers, earnestly desire to prophesy, and do not forbid speaking [...]

I was recently reading through the Wisconsin Christian Newspaper (WCN) and found an interesting article written by Ron Kempen of Gospel Light Ministries under the Come, Let us Reason Together… section of the newspaper. I’ve found the WCN to an interesting read simply because it presents such a wide variety of theological positions. I’ve found [...]