Category Archives: relationships

Submission Is for the Mission

Posted on March 20, 2025 by salooper57

The biblical context makes it clear that wives are not the only ones instructed to submit. This submission cannot be about male superiority since three of the four times Peter instructs people to submit, men are the ones submitting. Continue reading →

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A Prayer for Your Love Life

Posted on October 6, 2024 by salooper57

Paul, the passionate revolutionary who spent years in prisons all around the Mediterranean for the sake of the cause, prays for the Philippian revolutionaries’ love life. What has love got to do with the subjection of every nation and people and power on earth under one head, even Christ? Continue reading →

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Churches: Go Small to Get Big Results

Posted on May 4, 2024 by salooper57

My wife and I have worshiped in some very large churches over the past six months. Thousands of people flood their campuses each Sunday. Their worship leaders are professional musicians. Their pastors are great communicators and exceptional leaders. I enjoyed … Continue reading →

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The Love of Knowledge and the Knowledge of Love

Posted on January 13, 2024 by salooper57

In one of his best known passages, the Apostle Paul wrote, “For now we know in part.” Human knowledge is always partial. The greatest theologian has only partial knowledge, as does the greatest scientist and the greatest philosopher. Of course, … Continue reading →

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A Biblical Model for Handling Church Conflicts

Posted on December 30, 2023 by salooper57

Anyone who has been around the church for any length of time has heard about church fights and church splits. Christians, it seems, are not much better than anyone else when it comes to handling conflict. They might even be … Continue reading →

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A Favorite (Frequently Misunderstood) Bible Verse

Posted on October 7, 2023 by salooper57

It has been said that the most quoted verse in the Bible is no longer John 3:16 but instead Matthew 7:1: “Judge not, lest ye be judged.” That is not surprising. Personal freedom is the touchstone of the era. Everyone … Continue reading →

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A Life That Means Something

Posted on October 1, 2023 by salooper57

This sermon was preached on May 10, 2020, at Lockwood Community Church.

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Why Have 40 Million Americans Stopped Attending Church?

Posted on August 5, 2023 by salooper57

A former youth pastor once said to me: “I’ve seen kids do well” – in terms of faith – “whose parents were genuine Jesus-followers. I’ve seen kids do well with addicted, abusive parents who don’t know God. But I’ve never seen kids do well whose parents talk like they’re Christians but live like they’re not.” Continue reading →

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Mind Your Own Business (1 Thessalonians 4:9-12)

Posted on July 30, 2023 by salooper57

A recent survey found that only 21% of non-Christians have a positive attitude about the church. We won’t win those people unless we win their respect, and we won’t win their respect by mocking them on the one hand or mimicking them on the other. Continue reading →

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A Life-Changing Principle for a Better World

Posted on July 8, 2023 by salooper57

The Golden Rule is not a moral instruction that can be followed thoughtlessly or, in most cases, acted on spontaneously. To follow the Rule, I need to put myself in someone else’s shoes and this requires thought, intelligence, and imagination. Continue reading →

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