Tag Archives: Christianity

Calvinsim: more like Schmalvinism!

Posted on 23/06/2012 by Simon | 27 Comments

Calvinism must be one of the most overused and abused terms going around in church circles. Much of what I say below I really mean, but it is rather tongue-in-cheek. Also, the way I box people into categories is very fluid, as I will explain later. Finally, I should also apologise to anyone who goes by the name Schmalvin; any confusion is completely unintended.

There are quite a number of streams of Calvinism. Each of the groups I describe below all locate themselves in the theological heritage of the French Protestant reformer, John Calvin. It is very confusing. I hope this helps. Continue reading →

→ 27 Comments

Posted in Doctrine, Humour, Theology

Tagged calvinism, Christianity, God, john calvin, truth

BEHAVIOURAL CHANGE – be careful who you point your finger at

Posted on 17/06/2012 by Don | Comments Off

Our Pastor’s tenure with us is coming to a close. As we approach his last month, I’ve reflected upon his many contributions to the spiritual growth of our church. In my opinion, I believe his primary contribution has to do with his zeal for the gospel and challenging us to be more gospel-focused.

By this I mean, he has made it a high priority that we actively pursue and create opportunities to tell others about Jesus. He has taken the focus off us and redirected it to the proclamation of the good news about Jesus to those not now part of our church – to friends, working colleagues, neighbours, and family members who are outside the family of God.

Continue reading →

Comments Off

Posted in Church, Life Application, Reflection, Spiritual Growth, The Gospel

Tagged Christianity, Church, gospel, habit, Jesus, stewardship

Evangelism

Posted on 22/04/2012 by Don | 4 Comments

Last night a group of 20 people met in our home to talk about evangelism. This wasn’t just a talk-fest – we were considering the best strategy for our church to proclaim the gospel to people who didn’t know Jesus.

We came up with a few simple definitions of ‘evangelism’. The two that I liked are; evangelism is explaining the gospel to non-Christians in a language they can understand, and evangelism is introducing people to Jesus. Simple!

We discussed the idea that while the Bible teaches that some believers are given the spiritual gift of evangelism, this does not mean those who do not have this gift are Continue reading →

→ 4 Comments

Posted in Church, Fallen & Flawed, Life Application, The Gospel

Tagged By Grace you are saved, Christianity, Church, evangelism, faith, gospel, Sin