I did it or at least I think I did.
We are in the middle of a sermon series on Reformed Theology yet I believe that maybe half of the people know it. Maybe less. Maybe they have a healthy perspective of theology. Maybe it isn’t a big deal for them at the moment.
I started out with the hope to help the congregation build a deeper foundation in their understanding of God and their journey through life with Jesus. I thought that it would be important to talk about some of the basics. These are not the “non-negotiables” but rather the “disputable matters” that have good theologians on either side.
But then I began to question my purpose: Is my role only to get the people to think through things, to use their brains? Pastors aren't supposed to tell people what to think? Surely my job is to nudge them in a certain direction, right?
Peace came my way when I remembered a useful saying that one of my informal mentors says, “The main things are the plain things so keep the plain things the main things.” My hope is that we can always lead with a sense of humility in our theology knowing that we do not have it all figured out. Some day when we get to the end of our journey, I want to be able to celebrate that our search to know God deeper did not cause division nor did it distract us from loving others. I want to teach unity on the essentials and freedom where it is needed.
We are only 2 weeks into the 5 week series. I have great resources from which to draw from (Thanks Jim Osterhouse)! I have a great congregation that truly desires to be stretched yet does not want to be told what to think. The conversations have started and I have heard some deeper discussions. My hope remains that the roots grow and great things come from this. I look forward to where this takes us together!
We are in the middle of a sermon series on Reformed Theology yet I believe that maybe half of the people know it. Maybe less. Maybe they have a healthy perspective of theology. Maybe it isn’t a big deal for them at the moment.
I started out with the hope to help the congregation build a deeper foundation in their understanding of God and their journey through life with Jesus. I thought that it would be important to talk about some of the basics. These are not the “non-negotiables” but rather the “disputable matters” that have good theologians on either side.
But then I began to question my purpose: Is my role only to get the people to think through things, to use their brains? Pastors aren't supposed to tell people what to think? Surely my job is to nudge them in a certain direction, right?
Peace came my way when I remembered a useful saying that one of my informal mentors says, “The main things are the plain things so keep the plain things the main things.” My hope is that we can always lead with a sense of humility in our theology knowing that we do not have it all figured out. Some day when we get to the end of our journey, I want to be able to celebrate that our search to know God deeper did not cause division nor did it distract us from loving others. I want to teach unity on the essentials and freedom where it is needed.
We are only 2 weeks into the 5 week series. I have great resources from which to draw from (Thanks Jim Osterhouse)! I have a great congregation that truly desires to be stretched yet does not want to be told what to think. The conversations have started and I have heard some deeper discussions. My hope remains that the roots grow and great things come from this. I look forward to where this takes us together!
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