Always Reforming

John 3:16-18: God Reconciling the World to Himself 1.       Introduction a.      We finished Colossians last week.  Next time we’ll start a new series. b.     I think John 3:16 has almost become cliché. c.      Reformed Christians seem to avoid this passage unless we’re trying to dispute what other people believe about it.  Have you ever heard a sermon on it?  We need to go back to the basics periodically, and we’ll find they’re very deep.  d.     John 3:16 is so simple, and yet so profound.  MH: “Here is the Gospel indeed, good news, the best that ever came from heaven to earth.” e.      Because everyone knows this verse, we often hear it or read it without thinking about it.  We rob ourselves of the richness of this passage. We need to stop and meditate.  f.       Prayer 2.    ...

I.                   Introduction a.      Chapter 3                                                              i.       In Chapter 3, Paul has been describing for us a heavenly-minded lifestyle.                                                           ii.    ...

    Worship--what a topic!  I don't have stats on this, but I'd wager that differences in the style of worship have caused as many Church splits as doctrine has, if not more.  Many times the differences rise no further than level of comfort.  In many Reformed communities, however, styles of worship are largely based upon what is known as the Regulative Principle of Worship (hereafter RP).       Now, I feel like I ought to offer a little bit of information about my theological upbringing.  I was raised in a Reformed Presbyterian church.  We used no instruments and sung exclusively from the Psalms.  The RP was the basis for our decisions about worship.       If you are not Reformed, you probably don't really know that that phrase means.  Heck!  I'm Reformed and I can barely nail down a clear definition.  Different groups claim to ascribe to it, with many of them defining it differently.  Basic...

    Semper Reformanda--always reforming.  That was the battle cry of the Reformation.  It reflects not their doctrine per se, but their attitude.  I'm beginning to believe that we have lost our connection to the Reformers by establishing accepted dogma and marginalizing those who might approach theology from a different angle.  Allow me to explain.     Over the past year or so I have become increasingly dissatisfied with what I have come to see is a status quo within the Reformed faith.  People talk about standing for truth and maintaining tradition, but I believe that these are friendly labels for the harsh reality--we're becoming much like the Roman Catholic Church our forefathers sought to Reform.  Many of our practices lack Biblical warrant.  Many of our beliefs are based on misconstrued passages or, even worse, nothing but the traditions of men.      What is worst of all, however, and what reveals our attitud...

    Of late, the issue of head coverings has come up in my circle.  Okay...my cousin and I have been discussing it, but the point is, the issue has been bouncing around my head for the past few days.  It is a topic that I have avoided for some time.  Every time I read through 1 Corinthians, I would tell myself, "We'll get around to that."  The reality is that I didn't want to be "that guy"...that guy who people view as a chauvinistic jerk who wants to make sure everyone--especially his wife--remembers that he's the head of his home.  I think I'm beginning to respect "that guy"--those men who have cared enough to stand for what they believe.     Let me be clear that I am referring to head coverings for women (those old enough to leave them on...)  DURING CORPORATE WORSHIP.  I am not advocating head coverings at all times.  Though I see nothing necessarily wrong that practice, I don't see any command for it either.   ...

After the death of Moses the servant of the Lord , the Lord said to Joshua the son of Nun, Moses’ assistant, “Moses my servant is dead. Now therefore arise, go over this Jordan, you and all this people, into the land that I am giving to them, to the people of Israel. Every place that the sole of your foot will tread upon I have given to you, just as I promised to Moses. From the wilderness and this Lebanon as far as the great river, the river Euphrates, all the land of the Hittites to the Great Sea toward the going down of the sun shall be your territory. No man shall be able to stand before you all the days of your life. Just as I was with Moses, so I will be with you. I will not leave you or forsake you. Be strong and courageous, for you shall cause this people to inherit the land that I swore to their fathers to give them. Only be strong and very courageous, being careful to do according to all the law that Moses my servant commanded you. Do not turn from it to the rig...