I call to you with one lung exploded, from breathing the dust of the earth, With my tongue eroded from licking the crust of the Earth, Thus begins one of my favorite songs. The artist is a band big in the 90s called The Choir. It is a modern day Psalm of redemption. The imagery is raw and grotesque. Then again so is our sin. I once heard my Old Testament professor, Thomas Howe ask … Continue reading
Category Archives: Atonement
My church does does a few weird things that I’ve come to love. The first is that we have communion every Sunday. I know, I know. For some of you that’s not weird at all. But before I moved above the Mason-Dixon line, we were lucky to do it once a quarter. I was afraid that if I did it every Sunday it would lose its meaning. I didn’t want that experience to as stale … Continue reading
Jeffrey M. Spencer (This originally appeared in the Spring 1999 edition of the MCOI Journal) beginning on page 8) INTRODUCTION The “Brownsville Revival” began at the Brownsville Assembly of God in Pensacola, Florida on Father’s Day (June 18, 1995) under the direction of Pastor John Kilpatrick and visiting Evangelist St eve Hill. From the very start, this movement has been overflowing with bizarre manifestations and uncontrollable behavior such as laughing, shaking, barking, roaring, and temporary … Continue reading
While surfing the interweb the other day I happened upon yet another attempt at describing the “people you meet” in society. Apparently stereo-typing people is some sort of hobby on line. But one of these got my attention. I can’t vouch for anything on the site itself but this seemed dead on: Some people’s idea of right and wrong just boils down to “Is it mean?” No good can come from any discussion on race, … Continue reading
“Is Christianity Good for the World?” Thus asks a new book co-authored by Christian philosopher and pastor, Douglas Wilson, and media maven and everyone’s favorite curmudgeonly atheist Christopher Hitchens. What started as an email exchange was picked up by Christianity Today and later by Canon Press. Finally, the whole thing was turned into a documentary that is strangely incendiary and cordial at the same time. … Continue reading
Rob Bell has certainly ratcheted up the question of eternity in Christian and secular discussion with his book Love Wins: A Book About Heaven, Hell, and the Fate of Every Person Who Ever Lived . Many know that when I was younger I was an atheist and came to faith once I realized that Jesus was an actual historical person, He was physically raised from the dead and the Bible is fundamentally true. As I … Continue reading