September 2022

All posts from September 2022

So, is the Bible THE “source”? Maybe not.

Mike Slaughter September 21, 2022
Lisa Yebuah, campus pastor of Southeast Raleigh Table, a multi-site campus of Edenton Street United Methodist Church in Raleigh, North Carolina.

Christians of all stripes or denominations would generally agree that the authority of Scripture is the basis for our faith, lifestyle, and missional calling. Yet we become complacent at best, or stone-throwers at worst, when we worship the Bible rather than the Living Word through whom all things were made. After all, Jesus didn’t leave us a book of rules defining the parameters of God’s will for all ages. Jesus gives us his living presence. The Holy Spirit is dynamic, moving, and expanding our understanding of God. God doesn’t change (see Hebrews 13:8), but our understanding of God does – or at least should. When did the Trinity for so many of us become God the Father, God the Son, and God the Holy Bible? 

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Mike SlaughterSo, is the Bible THE “source”? Maybe not.

Ever Google “Christians are”? Ouch.

Mike Slaughter September 14, 2022
Matt Miofsky, lead pastor of The Gathering UMC in St. Louis, MO

People are looking for something different! I am convinced that we are living in a time of seismic spiritual transition in the church. God is doing a new thing! Old institutional religious systems of governance are passing away. Denominational walls are falling down. Christ will be seen in the midst of a counterculture community, emptied of self, living immersed in God’s love. 

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Mike SlaughterEver Google “Christians are”? Ouch.

Practice of Faith versus Profession of Faith

Mike Slaughter September 7, 2022
Matt Miofsky, Mike Slaughter, Rachel Billups, Lisa Yebuah,
Jacob Armstrong

The church has often been held captive to the political cultural values of the times (justification of slavery, antisemitism, segregation, along with other “isms”) rather than to the revolutionary movement of Jesus. Many “believe” in Jesus, but very few follow. In the Gospels, Jesus said 87 times “follow me,” two times “believe in me,” and zero times “worship me.”

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Mike SlaughterPractice of Faith versus Profession of Faith