Notable Christians

My Article at “Serve! with Steve Sjogren”

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Serve! with Steve SjogrenI’ve known Steve Sjogren (author of Conspiracy of Kindness and The Day I Died) since 1989. He’s the visionary behind the resurgence in servant evangelism, reaching people for Christ by serving them first in Jesus’ name. Steve was my pastor for many years and is one of the bright spots in modern evangelicalism.

Steve recently asked me to contribute to his e-zine Serve! with Steve Sjogren. The topic is evangelizing the poor. As someone who served in food pantries and as a remodeler of burned-out brownstones in Cincinnati, I’ve been a part of servant evangelism to the poor, so I share my thoughts and experiences.

My article at Serve! with Steve Sjogren is below. Your thoughts are appreciated.

Cultivating a Heart for Evangelizing the Poor

If you’re looking for innovative ways to reach others for Jesus, consider subscribing to Steve’s site. He’s got great ideas and a wise stable of writers that can help you better fulfill the Great Commission.

Blessings.

John Piper’s Prophetic Warning

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Adrian Warnock relays a “prophetic word” from John Piper, who has become the poster pastor for the resurgence of contemporary Calvinism and Reformed theology. Some folks in that movement have problems digesting Piper’s charismatic leanings, so it should be interesting to see how well the warning below goes over:

I find it intriguing that Piper is careful to appease those who might blanch at the phrase “prophetic word” by saying that the warning doesn’t have to be ascribed to a supernatural revelation. Still, it’s progress…I think.

I also find it interesting that as some of the stalwarts of Calvinism age, they become more friendly with charismatic theology (see D. Martyn Lloyd-Jones, for instance). Ironically, the video above appears directed at the very people who would criticize that chumminess.

Anyway, what do you think of Piper’s warning? Do you think it’s true? (I’ll reserve my thoughts for the comments section below…)

Ministering Money the New Testament Way

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The other day, I mentioned a post about Ted Haggard and his return to the role of pastor. Regardless of what one might think of Haggard, his church offers some interesting takes on standard church practice.

Here’s the section in that post that grabbed me most:

Ted instructed everyone to take out an offering, not their tithes, but an offering. Then when everyone had it [in] hand, he further instructed that we share our offering with someone in attendance as we felt led of the Lord.

The purity of that action speaks volumes:

1. Money isn’t automatically designated for the leaders or for the church grounds or functions.

2. Giving is focused on the needs of the church body as individuals.

3. The Holy Spirit is given free rein to direct the actions of church members.

Right now, I’m sure people in your church and mine need just that kind of practice of giving, yet how rare it is to see such a true-life example!

Be a futurist for a second: What do you think would be the end result, good or bad, of churches in America ministering money in this manner?