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Humble without the #hashtag

As much as it a pains me to give this guy any more exposure, sometimes you need to in order to expose something. First, you need to watch the latest video from Joshua Feuerstein to understand what I'm talking about here:     I do this not to further his “cause” or “movement” but rather to counteract it. Mainly with something more practical, but hopefully also with more common sense too. It's things like this that give Christianity a bad name. I mean really, is this really what Christians should be worried about? Why not do something more useful like feed the homeless and start a movement that'll actually benefit society AND do something Jesus...

How Old Was Jesus When He Died? A Fresh Look At The Historical Clues

...ome early Christians believed Jesus lived up to his late-30s/early-40s, which suggests a much longer ministry than the traditional three years as often assumed. Irenaeus’ reasoning for this is also theologically based on how Christ came to live a complete human experience, and by living longer, he sanctified each stage of life: He came to fulfill all righteousness, and for this reason did not reject the common human experience, but sanctified every age by His likeness to it. He came as an infant to sanctify infancy, as a child to sanctify childhood, as a youth to sanctify youth, and as an elder to sanctify old age. He therefore passed through every stage of...

Lent: Day 9 - Ignatius to the Philadelphians

...hink many Christians today still need reminding of as well. We have been set free in Christ (Acts 13:39; Rom 8:2; Rom 10:4; Gal 5:1), taken out from under the power of the old and are now under a new Law: the Law of Love/Christ (Rom 13:10; Gal 5:14; Gal 6:2). Go, therefore, in freedom.  ...

Before the Pumpkins: The Barbecued Deacon

...In our last post, we walked with Perpetua and Felicity through the sands of the amphitheatre, their faith outshining Rome’s cruelty. Now for the final part in this series, we turn to another of the Church’s earliest heroes — one whose courage was matched by an unexpected wit. His name was Lawrence, a deacon of Rome, remembered across centuries as the man who kept his humour even while lying on the griddle. The Setting: Rome, AD 258 Under Emperor Valerian, a fresh persecution of Christians swept through the Empire. Bishops, priests, and deacons were hunted down, their property seized, and their churches closed. The bishop of Rome at that time was Six...

It’s Not Your Job To Convert Anyone

...alling as Christians is the Great Commission, Jesus’ final instruction to His followers: Matthew 28:19–20Go therefore and make disciples of all nations, baptising them… and teaching them… But it dawned on me that all of those actions: teaching, mentoring, discipling, baptising; they all come after someone has come to faith. We are not told to convert people. We are told to make disciples. Conversion is the doorway into discipleship, yes, but that moment of heart-opening and illumination belongs to God alone. Our job is simply to bring people to the Lord, to make the introduction. If they choose to stay, if they choose to follow then we begin the work...