Resources

A.  Biblical Approach to Spiritual Lethargy The Bible instructs pastors on how to address spiritual lethargy when it overcomes those under their spiritual care.  All churches have at least a few members who are dying spiritually and also some who need to be roused out of their slumber.  One of…

God is at Work In the midst of pandemic and fear, it is easy to allow despair to take root in our hearts. As jobs are lost, and thousands are confined to their homes, it can be easy to wonder where God is, in the middle of such a time…

Defining Spiritual Lethargy Called to care for and cure souls, pastors invest a significant amount of time and energy addressing a malady which can be diagnosed as spiritual lethargy.  The Apostle Paul urged the Thessalonians to avoid succumbing to spiritual lethargy: “so then let us not sleep as others do,…

When I was 8 years old, my Grandpa bought me a red, Craftsman toolbox. Every year after, he added a tool to my box–first a hammer, then a pipe wrench, a set of sockets, wrenches, pliers, a measuring tape, etc. By the time I graduated from high school, I had…

The Western view of virtue it that it is the essential characteristic of the citizens of a self-governing republic. What about virtue for the nations of the East and especially China with its ancient empires and now its communist centralized system? What role does the virtue of the people play…

Why Do I Need Seminary? Here are a couple of quotes you may have heard before: “Why do I need to spend three years at a seminary when I have the Holy Spirit?” or “If Jesus can use illiterate fishermen to start His church, why do I need to go…

Where Are These Civic Virtues Found? A Republic requires the virtue of its citizens to function well and even to survive. I think that this surprising thought from Montesquieu makes me look at our European and especially our American governments in a fresh light. But what kind of virtue is…

The last several years have left a mark on education in unprecedented ways and not just theological education, but all education. Websites like Coursera, Edx, and Lynda have arrived and provide people with skills and education, that at one time, were only available at a college. Theological education has not…

 For this very reason, make every effort to supplement your faith with virtue, and virtue with knowledge, and knowledge with self-control, and self-control with steadfastness, and steadfastness with godliness, and godliness with brotherly affection, and brotherly affection with love. 2 Peter 1:5-7 Government and Virtue Where is social virtue found?…

When Jesus teaches us how to pray He teaches us that prayer involves confession.  Confession is necessary because the Bible teaches that we sin willfully.  We need to ask forgiveness for those willful sins.  The Bible also says that we can sin without knowing (Leviticus 5:17-18).  Because sin separates us…