Good Bible Study and Good Study Bibles

Coram Deo is a church that is built on the Bible. We want you to study the Bible, read the Bible, love the Bible, learn about Jesus from the Bible, shape your life according to the Bible.

So good Bible study is a discipline that should mark every follower of Jesus. And the #1 rule of good Bible study is: just read your Bible. A lot. Read it in context. Read it fast. Read it slow. Read it out loud. Read it silently. Just read it. We are out to become a church that just reads the Bible and prays. Wouldn't that be unique?

The best tool for Bible study is just a good translation of the Bible. No study Bibles, no notes, no Internet searches. All these things give you someone ELSE'S view of the text; which is good and helpful, but only AFTER you've wrestled with it for yourself. Will quotes Tom Nelson as saying, "There are two types of people: prophets and parrots. Prophets tell people what God has said; parrots tell people what someone else said." Don't be a parrot. Study the Bible for yourself.

Having said that, a good study Bible can be a great resource. Along with many Coram Deo folks, I am reading through the entire Bible this year - something I have not done for quite a few years. In the past, I followed rule #1: reading my (non-study) Bible. This time around, I am using my Spirit of the Reformation Study Bible - an NIV-based study Bible with research notes edited by one of my favorite seminary professors, Richard Pratt. I am finding the notes very helpful, especially in the Pentateuch. For instance, Exodus 36-40, about the construction of the tabernacle, becomes much clearer as I view an artist's rendering of what the tabernacle probably looked like. And Pratt's helpful theological articles, steeped in the Reformation tradition and cross-referenced to creeds like the Heidelberg Catechism and the Westminster Confession, offer a wealth of information on some really important questions. There are lots of lame study Bibles out there, and most of them I would caution against. But this one has been really helpful. So check it out if you're considering a purchase.

Regarding translation: Mark Driscoll and the elders of Mars Hill Church recently published a paper on why they prefer the ESV translation of the Bible as the starting point for good study and preaching. Though I don't agree with every point, I find the paper to be excellent food for thought. You can find it here.

Church Leadership

Yesterday at our Coram Deo gathering, I scratched the surface of an issue that raises all kinds of additional questions. The question I tried to answer was, "What does biblical church leadership look like?" Hopefully I did justice to this question. Two related questions, which I did not do justice to, are: "Why do you believe the Bible teaches that elders must be male?" and "What are some practical steps men can take to grow in godly, masculine spiritual leadership?"

Cooper has uploaded two files to the Resource page and the podcast which will help in addressing these questions.

For the first question: Resources > Other > Special: Gender Roles (Sunday Night School of Theology)

For the second question: Resources > Other > Spiritual Leadership

Omaha's Archbishop: One of the Worst?

In preparing for my message on church leadership this weekend, I was doing some research to try to understand how the city of Omaha views church leaders. By and large, is our city trusting of religious leaders? Or do they have reason to be skeptical?

The bad news is: the gavel falls squarely on the side of the latter. Omaha's Catholic Archbishop, Elden Curtiss, was named by Beliefnet.com ("the largest spiritual website... not affiliated with any spiritual organization or movement") as one of America's Worst Bishops for his (mis)handling of multiple sexual abuse cases.

Any of you former Roman Catholics have some insight as to how this has affected the Catholic segment of our city?

My missional two cents: this will make it harder to gain credibility in our city. And it means that healthy, gospel-centered leadership is part of bringing redemption to Omaha. If we can show the church and the city what humble, godly, Christ-centered, gospel-saturated, strong, biblical leadership looks like, we will be sowing seeds of redemption into a city that has every right to be skeptical.

May we grieve with those who have been hurt by abuse. May God allow us to be agents of His redemption. (And, in the process, may He bring the church of Rome to repentance for its unbiblical understanding of church leadership.)

The Rules for Cussing

The Christian blogosphere has been abuzz since John Piper cussed at the Passion '07 Conference a few weeks ago. The joke in our network is that Mark Driscoll is wearing off on him. In case you don't know, Donald Miller forever branded Driscoll by calling him "The Cussing Pastor" in Blue Like Jazz (p. 133-134).

All kinds of bloggers are arguing about whether it's OK for pastors to cuss or not, and if so, what the proper circumstances are, etc. etc. So, in the interest of giving some parameters, one of my Acts 29 colleagues suggested the following guidelines.

Five Rules for Cussing

1. You have to be 18 to cuss. War is hell and you have to be 18 to join the armed forces.

2. You can't use words that are replacements for sexual intimacy or use slang terms for female anatomy. This is a special union between a man and a wife and shouldn’t be referenced in a vulgar or denigrating way.

3. You can't cuss at another person (She's such a ...) or tell another person what they can do with your ass.

4. You can’t cuss in front of children or elderly people or at your pastor while he is preaching.

5. You can’t use the names of God or Jesus irreverently (i.e., GD) or wear a pastel-colored sweater vest.

Otherwise, happy cussing.

What do you think?

US-71 (What is a mature Christian?)

If you weren't at church on Sunday, this won't make much sense. You can listen to the audio on our podcast or download it from the Resources section (Sermon Categories > Vision and Values > "What is a Mature Christian?") If you were at church, this better make sense. Let the conversation begin ...

(TIP: Click on the image to bring it up in a new window so you can see the text)



* Gospel-centered missional Community (The Heart of Things)

The Kingdom of Light:
Gospel - Salvation in Jesus
Community - Fellowship with one another
Mission - In the world so others may see and believe

Discipleship to Jesus:
Ongoing belief and application of His reemptive work → Personal transformation
Commitment to His body → Community restoration
Obedience to His mission → Kingdom expansion

“Drop Your Nets” → New identity, new community, new purpose

Jared Strock (a.k.a "the beat box")

Commenting

For the last few weeks all the comments have been going into a black hole, but I have gone there and redeemed them. All comments have been published so you can go back and see the conversations that took place. And while I'm on the subject, please do comment. Otherwise Bob and I feel like we are talking to ourselves, which we can do in the office without a blog. So by all means, pitch in your two cents.

- Will

Rethinking Mission

I am a child of evangelicalism, having swam (??) in its waters from earliest childhood. So sometimes, in speaking about mission, I find myself falling back into trite evangelical Christian cliches that have lost (or are on the verge of losing) their efficacy. Sharing the gospel, being a witness, knowing Jesus and making him known, etc, etc... all reflect the biblical truth, but all have also been over-played, like so much pop-radio ear candy, garnering attention for a moment only to fade away when the next wave comes along.

So it was refreshing this morning to read this angle on mission from Anglican scholar N.T. Wright:

If you are to shape your world in following Christ, it is not enough to say that being a Christian... is about high moral standards, using every opportunity to talk to people about Jesus, praying [for people]... All that is vital and necessary, but you are called to something much, much more. You are called, prayerfully, to discern where in your discipline the human project is showing signs of exile and humbly and boldly to act symbolically in ways that declare that the powers have been defeated, that the kingdom has come in Jesus the Jewish Messiah, that the new way of being human has been unveiled, and to be prepared to tell the story that explains what these symbols are all about. And in all this you are to declare, in symbol and praxis, in story and articulate answers to questions, that Jesus is Lord and Caesar is not; that Jesus is Lord and Marx, Freud, and Nietzsche are not; that Jesus is Lord and neither modernity nor postmodernity is. When Paul spoke of the gospel, he was not talking primarily about a system of salvation but about the announcement, in symbol and word, that Jesus is the true Lord of the world, the true light of the world.

Hulkmania Church

If church is a people, not a place... someone should tell these guys. I have seen a lot of attempts at church marketing, but this is taking it to a whole new level... sucka!

Although I must say... if I lived in Dallas... the idea of seeing the Hulkster at church on Sunday morning might be really tempting. Will, can you check this out while you're on vacation??

http://fellowshipchurch.com/newseries