“Gospel Links for Gospel Culture” is a weekly round-up of content to encourage you in your faith and ministry.
The Power of Story
Trevin Wax:4 ways to raise kids who love Jesus
Mary Wiley:As our kids pick up my mannerisms and the phrases I use often, I’m reminded that kids are constantly learning. They are absorbing what they are told, making assumptions based on what is presented as true, looking at what their friends find on the internet, ultimately building a framework for how to understand life. Upon that framework, they’ll build the house of their theology, or their understanding of God and his work in the world. So, how do we help them build a theological framework on the truth of Scripture? Here are the truths that I preach to myself and also pass along to parents who ask this question.
Preaching a Church Toward Mission
Jared Wilson:How do we preach toward good evangelistic engagement? If, as many younger evangelicals of the gospel-centered persuasion believe, we aren’t to turn our Sunday service into a seeker-targeted evangelistic event, in what sense might the sermon time fuel the missional impulse in our churches to reach and serve the lost? Here are some practical ways to serve this end.
The Most Dangerous Question You Can Ask When Studying the Bible
Michael Kelley:I believe in questions. And I believe in questions when studying the Bible. In the same respect, questions help us dig deeply into the meaning of Scripture. Questions help us meditate on the truth we find there. And questions also help us move our time in God’s Word from being just an educational exercise and into the realm of training in godliness. So it’s good and right, I believe, to ask all kinds of questions when we are studying the Bible. But there is one question we should avoid. It’s a question that is, in fact, dangerous for us to ask: “What does this passage mean to me?”
Can Social Media Be Redeemed?
Jairo Namnún:So let me begin by saying that I think social media, while full of dangers, can have a redemptive place in the life of Christians and churches. At the same time, I think many of us are too reactive and not proactive enough. We do things because those are the things that people do without necessarily meditating on the whys of the whats. And I see a lot of that in the way many of us use social media. Particularly, I think our pages and timelines and boards are too full of ourselves.
God Will Help You
Jen Oshman:Because my best friend was just ahead of me in the parenting marathon, I had the benefit of watching from behind how she handled the ages ahead. Each evening at the park I saw how she dealt with the fours and fives and sixes of her own kids. As I watched her interact with her kids at the park, here’s what I heard her say over and over and over: “God will help you.” It was their family’s refrain, her motherly chorus.
How the Church Does Good
David Bowden:What causes us to do good or evil? Most people seem to think that it comes down to the decisions we make. If you set your mind on doing good, you will. If you choose to do evil, you’ll do that instead. But Jesus teaches us that the real source of our actions lies much deeper. It all comes down to the heart.
The Gospel Project’s editorial team contributed to this post. Photo: Pixabay
I especially like the article, “The Most Dangerous Question You Can Ask When Studying the Bible.” I have seen numerous teachers use this tactic (after reading the passage and go around to each member and ask, “What does this passage mean, or say, to you?”). It’s amazing how much a passage is taken out of context–and the teachers actually support, even affirm, their answer. WOW, what a terrible strategy for teaching. I’ve even observed pastors sitting in a small group where this strategy is used, and say nothing. No wonder we have so many confused people in our churches. I printed a copy of Michael Kelley’s article and I plan to hand it to teachers I know who use this tactic.