New England news & perspectives
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The importance of women’s faith to the Church
Written in a time and culture that devalued women, the Bible is remarkable in the honor it ascribes to the faith of women. For example, this theme is one of the elements we see clearly in the Gospel of Luke. Let’s take a look at what we can learn from the stories the Holy Spirit prompted Luke to record.
Hold everyone in forgiveness
Can you forgive someone who hasn’t asked for forgiveness? There is a difficult tension in this question. On one hand, we must acknowledge that when someone admits guilt and the debt is graciously released, there is a beauty in that transaction. On the other hand, perhaps some of us have offered forgiveness to an individual or to a group of people who have not apologized, and their lack of accountability has felt a bit unsatisfying.
Virtual resurrection witnesses
To put it simply, every day should be a day that our actions and speech announce the resurrection. That being said, with the current COVID-19 pandemic affecting the world in a way that has produced massive shutdowns, limiting human physical interaction, the question becomes, How do we do we bear witness to Jesus’ resurrection now?
Who are you promoting?
In the world of church planting, planters are occasionally told that we are the brand and therefore must promote ourselves regularly. Just as a musician, an athlete or an artist might attempt to increase their own profile, we, too, must accept that it is necessary for people to know us and see us as a central element to the ministry. The idea is that people who are like us will see us, relate to us and then join us in our new church.
However, a year before starting my church planting journey, Jeff Bass, a mentor of mine who serves as the executive director for the Emmanuel Gospel Center in Boston, shared a very different perspective on how I might pursue ministry as a church planter.
Building a healthy multicultural church
The Bible is clear and repetitive in articulating God’s heart for all peoples. The book of Revelation tells us that God calls forth people from every tribe, nation, and tongue to worship Him, making heaven the picture of multicultural beauty. As the visible Church on earth, our focus must always be to try and worship in a manner that most reflects the Promised Land which we will one day call home. Even if a local church finds itself to be in a mono-ethnic location, the call to see multicultural worship is still valid and can still be accomplished by supporting such works in different locations and by sending missionaries to proclaim the Gospel among different people groups.
What the Northeast needs from missionaries
There is a constant call within the northeastern part of the United States for laborers to move to the area and join the battle to see the region re-awakened to the power of the Gospel. Church planting ministries regularly recruit and promote vision tours in an attempt to get more missionaries to the shores of the proverbial Babylon that is the New England states, plus New York and perhaps New Jersey.
A white man’s religion?
Ministry in the urban context comes with its own set of challenges. Among them are the objections to Christianity that run deep within inner-city communities of color. As I pastor in a neighborhood made up largely of ethnic minorities, it is not uncommon for me to hear someone dismiss the Christian faith purely because it is perceived to be “the white man’s religion, meant to oppress ethnic minorities.” It is important to note that this characterization of Christianity is not completely unfounded.