One of the most radical notions circulating in the Christian church these days is the idea that those who wear Christ's name ought seriously to devote themselves to following Jesus. This means obeying Jesus' instructions, adopting his attitudes and values, imitating his example, treating people the way Jesus treated them, trusting the Father as Jesus did. It means becoming Jesus' pupil/apprentice, which is what the word disciple actually means -- a relationship far more at home in a carpenter shop or sculptor's studio than in a classroom. Indeed, "disciple" is the most common word used to … [Read more...]

The following reflections, originally penned in the 1930's, were among the notes and papers left by my maternal grandfather, W.N. Short, Sr., after 60 years of gospel service in southern Africa beginning in 1921. Even without historical context, these remarks clearly reflect the faith of the writer, a godly heritage which both challenges and inspires us who are his descendants. I thank my cousin, Ellen Baize, for sharing this with me. Ellen is a daughter of H. F. (Foy) Short, Sr., who is a brother of my mother, Sybil Short Fudge Dewhirst. (Other Short siblings include Beth Ewing, Margaret Ann … [Read more...]

Obedience is not a popular topic today. As strange as it may sound, a great many people who call themselves followers and disciples of Jesus recoil at the suggestion that careful daily obedience either matters to God or ought to concern them. Yet according to Jesus himself, discipleship at its core involves listening to him and doing as he instructs. This is clearly seen throughout the Gospel of Matthew, which scholars believe was originally written as a manual or handbook for early disciple communities. (The vision of a community of disciples is also obscured today by the almost-exclusive use … [Read more...]

This past week (during October 2009) I attended the 61st annual meeting of the Evangelical Theological Society, held in New Orleans, Louisiana. The ETS, which is exactly what its name suggests, now has over 4,200 members, most being teachers in Christian colleges, universities or seminaries, the rest of us serving in other venues also prepared by God. I joined the ETS nearly 40 years ago, have had three articles published in its Journal, and served one year as a regional officer. Although I keep up with the state of evangelical theological scholarship through the Society's 224-page quarterly … [Read more...]

A gracEmail subscriber requests some discussion here about "revolutionary" people, power and purpose, the titles of my classes at the March 2009 Tulsa International Soul-Winning Workshop. * * * The magnificent Salisbury Cathedral in southern England was build over a period of hundreds of years. During the process, an observer watched two workers break large rocks into smaller pieces for the stone sculptors. "What are you doing?" he asked the first man, who boringly replied, "I am breaking rocks." Then the visitor asked the second worker the same question. With a great smile he proudly … [Read more...]

"Regeneration" is a biblical word for conversion, which emphasizes God's ability to generate new life where human logic says no life is possible. We may think of Abraham and Sarah, ages 100 and 90 respectively, to whom God promised their very own son (Gen. 17:15-17).The fulfillment of that promise was no more difficult than the spiritual regeneration of men and women. Jesus borrowed the metaphor when he told Nicodemus that all people must be "born again" or "born from above" (John 3:3). This is a necessity in the very nature of things, since all things reproduce after their own kind. What … [Read more...]

A gracEmail subscriber requests some discussion here about "revolutionary" people, power and purpose, the titles of my classes at the March 2009 Tulsa International Soul-Winning Workshop. * * * We have considered what it means to be revolutionary people. For starters, it means being God's agents, gospel carriers whose character and lives are more important than their marketing skills or their ability to persuade others. Revolutionary power does not refer to our skill at "selling" Jesus. All human power combined cannot produce the spiritual regeneration of even one small person. That result … [Read more...]

A gracEmail subscriber requests some discussion here about "revolutionary" people, power and purpose, the titles of my classes at the March 2009 Tulsa International Soul-Winning Workshop. The power that turns hearts to God is not human in origin but divine. George Atkins' 1819 song restated biblical truth in its request: "Will you pray with all your power, while we try to preach the Word? All is vain unless the Spirit of the Holy One comes down." People who under-rate the power also usually understate the result. If nothing happens in "conversion" besides a change of intellectual content, … [Read more...]

A gracEmail subscriber requests some discussion here about "revolutionary" people, power and purpose, the titles of my classes at the March 2009 Tulsa International Soul-Winning Workshop. * * * As God's agents, believers are called to live seriously and reverently in this world, making decisions and carrying them out in the energy that God supplies. As they do this, both individually and as a community of faith, their unselfish and well-ordered lives become attractively obedient -- to God and to their fellow earthlings. Knowing that they are agents of God and not independent contractors, … [Read more...]