At the center of Pentecostal spirituality is the divine encounter. One can rightly argue that we cannot make an encounter with God happen in as much as we cannot control God. Nevertheless, some Scriptures make me think that this is something we can facilitate to some extent. A couple of the old strategies Pentecostals used to […]
How can Pentecostal churches move from “generic evangelicalism” to restoring historic Pentecostal spirituality? I should clarify that, for my own part, my concern is not first and foremost with encouraging churches to be “more Pentecostal”—I don’t have a preoccupation with preserving denominational distinctives simply for the sake […]
Some people argue that “the New Testament always shows healing and never shows someone asking for healing and leaving still sick.” The Bible, however, includes examples of people who were not healed. Paul himself was not always healed. Paul himself was not always healed. He reminds the Galatians that “it was because of an illness […]
I recognize that Joel Osteen is a great communicator (even Forbes does), and there are numerous things I appreciate about him and his ministry. Nevertheless, there is a repetitive theme in his ministry that I find troubling. And it is particularly troubling given the millions of people who listen to his sermons and assume that […]
As leaders, we are often told that we need to “lead like Jesus,” we need “to behave like Jesus.” But here is a sobering truth: If you do not have and are not […]
There seems to be a growing number of Joel Osteen “haters” out there. So, I thought I would point out a few things I really like about the guy and his ministry at Lakewood Church.
We packed into our green minivan and drove into the small town at the foot of the mountains. Even though we were camping, we managed to clean off our camp smell and still arrive at the small Pentecostal church a few minutes early. Upon entering their worship space, I got the suspicion that this was […]
There are not a lot of worship songs directed to the Holy Spirit. The Bible never says we would worship the Holy Spirit, but is it okay?
Pentecost Sunday is coming soon. Did you even know? If you are Pentecostal, probably not. Yet, I have heard some Pentecostals complain when their pastor hasn’t mentioned Pentecost on Pentecost Sunday. Is this a problem? Not Liturgical Most Pentecostal churches I know aren’t liturgical. The closest they come to following the liturgical calendar is celebrating Christmas and Easter. […]
“What do I need to do to become a Christian?” I asked my theology class this question today. Thankfully, no one said “invite Jesus into your heart.” Nevertheless, I was struck that their answers largely assumed that Christians have to say something to be saved—for example, say a prayer where you confess your sin, […]