Monthly Archives: April 2023

Church as Temple and Priesthood (1 Peter 2:4-10)

Posted on April 30, 2023 by salooper57

Melissa Highsmith was kidnapped by a babysitter when she was just 22 months old. Her kidnapper changed her name and raised her as her own in the city where she was born, but Melissa never had an inkling about her … Continue reading →

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The Next Great Awakening: From a “Me Society” to an “Us Community”

Posted on April 29, 2023 by salooper57

In 1976, Tom Wolfe published, “The Me Decade and the Third Great Awakening,” in New York Magazine. I find Wolfe’s style painful to read (there are 103 exclamation points in this article) but his cultural analysis was impressive. He detected … Continue reading →

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The Me Generation (What the Bible Has to Say to American Culture)

Posted on April 25, 2023 by salooper57

Tom Wolfe coined the phrase “The Me Decade.” That quickly evolved into “the Me Generation.” Time Magazine referred to millennials as “The Me, Me Generation.” Let’s face it: we are now a “Me Society.” In this class, we think about … Continue reading →

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Alien Residents (1 Peter 2:11-12)

Posted on April 23, 2023 by salooper57

In 1 Peter 2:11, Peter calls the people of Jesus “foreigners and exiles.” They have green cards. They’re here on work and student visas. It is not their ambition to settle down, though if they can make this a better … Continue reading →

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Finding the Right Pastor: Insights from the Bible

Posted on April 22, 2023 by salooper57

In 2023, I will finish my work at the church I have served for decades. My wife and I love our church and want it to flourish after we move on. So, of course, we want the next pastor to … Continue reading →

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The Sexual Rip Current (What the Bible Has to Say to American Culture

Posted on April 18, 2023 by salooper57
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The Crossing (John 5:19-30)

Posted on April 16, 2023 by salooper57

Why would anybody not want this kind of life, the kind that goes on forever? I’ll be candid: they don’t want it because there is no way to postpone its onset. Eternal life doesn’t start at the grave. You cannot purchase it on the layaway plan. Some people wish they could. But when you accept the eternal kind of life, it begins immediately. Not everyone wants that. Continue reading →

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Why the Church is Essential to God’s Plan for Humanity

Posted on April 15, 2023 by salooper57

The church is more important than is generally understood, even by church members. It is crucial to the future, for it lies at the center of God’s plan for humanity. Without the church, the world could never be right, and … Continue reading →

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What Does the Resurrection Say to American Culture?

Posted on April 11, 2023 by salooper57

America does not believe in resurrection. At least, that appears to be the case from what America does believe. In this class, we clarify what the Bible means by resurrection and then examine American culture’s competing beliefs.

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The Family of God (Series on the Church)

Posted on April 9, 2023 by salooper57

You are a young man in first century Israel (though what I am about to say would have been true of men almost anywhere in the first century). You got married on Sunday. Your family, your bride’s family, your friends, … Continue reading →

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